Week Twelve: Honoring a Birth and Two Different Lives

This week was even slower than the past weeks. However, for good reasons.

On Thursday we went to the Mission Office in Harare and had our joint-zone Christmas Devotional (Bindura Zone and Mutare Zone). It was absolutely wonderful. We had great talks from missionaries, a few different presentations, and both zones had a Choir performance. Our zone did a rendition of Far Far Away on Judea's Plains, with me as the eccentric conductor. The Other Zone did a rendition of O, Come All Ye Faithful with soloists and everything. Both Zone's did amazingly, but we were surprised that President Mkhabela asked Bindura Zone to again perform Far Far Away as the closing Hymn.

We then did a gift exchange, a white elephant game, and had a lot of fun laughing with some of the gifts and reactions.

On Saturday, we then had a Christmas Activity in the Woodbrook Branch where we serve. Each of the auxiliaries performed skits about the birth of our Savior. It was very entertaining. The Branch President and his counselors asked me to prepare a last-minute scripture quiz about the events around Christ's Birth, so I was able to think up some questions and had a little competition between auxiliaries. The last question was "Why was Jesus Christ born into the world?" and I opened it up to everyone to come up with answers. Their answers ranged from "To save our souls" to "To let us return to the Father." I told them all their answers were right and bore my testimony that the Savior was born to save each one of us.

It also was raining so very hard during the activity, that everyone was wet, since we don't have an official chapel.

And then Finally on Sunday night, we honored the life of the mother of a branch member. She was living in South Africa when she passed away last week, and her casket arrived last night. We sang so many Hymns like Rock of Ages, Nearer My God to Thee, I Need The Every Hour, and God Be With You Till We Meet Again.

And it was a beautiful, humble service.

I know my Savior lived, I know he died for our sins, and I know that he conquered death and lives again, and as such we all will be able to conquer death and we will be able to see our loved ones again. I love my Savior and Redeemer, and I am eternally grateful for his sacrifice for me.
Ponderize: 2 Nephi 33:6 "I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from hell."

I love you all. Until next week, Merry Christmas
-Elder Wilcken