Christmas on the mission is funny because you get all excited about a 40 minute video call that just ends up being an hour of google call/skype confusion, internet buffering, and if it´s my family 10 people trying to talk to you at once in spanish and english, and it all just being another reminder that all you really wanted was a hug and there´s no chance you´re getting that. I love you guys. I already lived this once last year so this time I decided that I would turn my thoughts to something a little more important...
On Christmas we celebrate the birth of the Savior, but the real question is what does this even mean? What affect on the world did Christ have at His coming, what would the world be like if He never came? If Christ never came, feelings like regret when you know you have messed up big, would have no escape from your conscience. The kinds of feelings like when you wish you could rewind and remove from your life moments of extreme frustration or anger, as seen in the "chew it over with a Twix" commercials. Feelings like when something you want so bad just seems to always be out of your reach could never be calmed.
If Christ never came, the mind battle of just wanting to be happy when the satisfaction never seems to last would have no end. There would be a lack of purpose in what we do, I mean why work so hard to have a good life if WWIII is already coming up and we´ll all soon be turned to dust?
It is normal, to relate to one or more of these examples. However the regret, the frustration, the dissatisfaction, the lack of purpose, has an end, which end can only be determined by you. When Christ came He made it possible to be free from our natural weaknesses and incapabilities, and made possible the hope for change. He lived, died, and then lived again, opening doors to life after death, giving us a reason to use our time wisely here on Earth. He is a source of strength, relief, stability, and peace. However our access to His strength depends on our willingness to change our current habits and thoughts and consequentially we are allowed the peace of being free from the weight of past decisions and experiences.
This Christmas you´re invited to celebrate as if Christ really did come to Earth, take a moment to see what it is in your life that might be worth letting go of, and enjoy the hope of a brighter future full of better choices.
Merry Christmas Eve! Love you all!
Also, my companion says Feliz Navidad... enjoy some photos from the Mission Christmas party and my lovely companion <3
Hermana Bernal
