The Gift

Written 12/7/14

Don't worry Mom, Typhoon Ruby hardly even left a raindrop in Inayauan. We're totally safe :)

Thought I'd get that out of the way first.

2nd, Happy birthday to Benson this week! Weird that he's a whole year old. Or wait... He's two now isn't he?

I seem to be finding all the characters in The Great Mouse Detective here in Inayauan. See the attached picture for more details.

This week Sister Char and I received our "trunky letters" (letters detailing our general departure details... GAH) and I feel like it was only yesterday I was reading Tanner DeHaan's weekly missionary email, when HE got his trunky letters in the mail. It's a surreal feeling. Can we just not talk about it?

Also, my hilarious experience this week is brought to us by our next door neighbor, a rather flamboyant 40 year old. He and I were talking when he exclaims loudly that he can't control himself and starts patting my face and then patting his own face as if putting on makeup. He said he wants my "beautiful" to be on his face too. Then he says to me, in English "If I were a real man, I would court you!" with a big laugh and a dramatic exit. The Philippines often leaves me speechless.

It still feels like a lot happened this week even though our week was scattered and we spent all Saturday inside because of the hurricane, Ruby. We had some random stuff happen with investigators and with Sister R. getting really ill and needing to go to the hospital…Anyway. Don't want to detail all of it, so we'll stick to a couple really cool experiences this week.

First, our cool investigator of about a month now, Sister A., told us of a really cool dream she had a while back, before the chapel in Inayauan was built here. She told us she dreamed that she was sitting down, when the chair was lifted up and she was taken and placed in front of a big, white church, at the front doors, and told that this was the "kingdom of God" and that she needed to enter. For years, she searched for the church that looked like the one in her dream, but only when she came to church the first time a few weeks ago did she feel that this was the "kingdom of God". How right she is.

I hope you all have seen the Christmas initiative the church is starting about "The Gift" of Jesus Christ as the Savior, given from our loving Father. If you haven't seen the video, take a break from reading my ramblings and go watch it.

Did you watch it? Okay.

The second experience happened on Tuesday, when sister and I walked by an elderly sister trying to scrape some wood scraps into a bag. She could barely hear our offers to help, but eventually she got the idea and we helped her carry the bag (and herself) to her house. Share the gift, right? She could barely string two words together because she had a hard time talking, but we did have some conversation and asked to sing a Christmas hymn for her.

At the end she asked my name again and looked at my tag, saying, “Sister Luke….. Jesus Christ.”

Those words hit me hard. In my sharing of The Gift, she shared in return, a gift with me: a simple reminder of who's name I carry, by whose name I am identified by others, and whose name I hope to be called by at the last day.

In Mosiah 5:12 and 13 we read:

I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts... that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.
For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served?

We can serve Him by sharing The Gift this Christmas. By serving Him, we come to know Him, and His voice. We take His name upon us, and we retain that name written in our hearts, not just on a missionary tag. Further, we read in Mosiah 13:15:

Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

At baptism, we covenanted to take His name upon us, and each week during the sacrament, we renew that promise. That means we covenant to share the Gift, as Jesus Christ Himself did. To become like Him. Aren't we taking His name upon us in vain when we don't hold up our promises? Isn't it vain and selfish to keep to ourselves The Gift? It was for all people, after all.

Think of the priceless Gift. "In the Gift of His Son hath God prepared a more excellent way"- the gospel, the Atonement- that can be fulfilled through our faith to live it. The excellent way is an offering of peace, joy, belonging, identity, light, resolved misunderstandings, better communication, healing, and eternal life. Why would we selfishly hesitate in bringing that to anyone?

I would love if you would share with me how you are sharing The Gift this Christmas season. I know it will bring us all the most joy we have ever experienced. I get to feel that joy every day. To quote The Living Christ, "God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son."

Merry Christmas,
Sister Luke