Joyeux Noel

Joyeux Noel! Merry Christmas!! Feliz Navidad!

I hope you are all having a wonderful week so far and that you will continue to have a wonderful Christmas Holiday.

This week is going to be super busy for us.  First off I'm not getting transferred! :) I will be here for the holidays and I will finish my mission in Sherbrooke! I'm pretty excited for that. We are losing Elder Rudy and he is going back to Ottawa and we are receiving Elder Thomas from Belgium. 

Tomorrow we will be in Montreal for an all missionary Christmas Devotional. This is pretty exciting. It's the first time since I've been on my mission that I will be at an all missionary devotional. Sister A and I are singing a duet in it so wish us luck and keep us in your prayers. 

We have lots of caroling to do this week with lots of other pass by to people who don't have a lot of family around. So it should be a fun week!! 

I would like to share 2 thoughts of things I have learned and thought about this week. The first comes from a conversation we had at the bishop's house last night. We've all heard of the Golden Rule "Do unto others as you would have done unto you." Last night he taught us the Platinum Rule which is very similar but says "Do unto others as they would have done unto them." Sometimes what a person needs is not what we would want or need but what they would do. Sometimes it may not make sense to us, but as long as we are doing our best to discern their needs and we do it with the spirit it will all work out. 

My second thought comes from a training Sister A and I have at district meeting this week. Picture yourself receiving the most important invitation of you life: a chance to spend a day with Jesus Christ. How would you prepare yourself spiritually and physically for such a day? What blessing might you hope would come from such a visit? There has been a big emphasize on keeping the Sabbath Day Holy and I would like to testify that by keeping the Sabbath Day Holy we are giving ourselves a chance to have that day to spend with Christ. We are allowing ourselves to give him the best present which is to remember Him and learn from Him. So I challenge us all to make our Sabbath Day more meaningful and Christ centered and by doing this small thing so many blessings will come your way!! 

Love you all and have a wonderful Christmas!

Sister Gardner 

Picture is one a member from our ward took and created the card for the stake.