Christmas 2008

The best christmas I've ever had was in 2008. I was in Huaycan, Peru. My companion, Elder Zambrano, and I had been teaching the Casimiro family for a while. What started out teaching one of the daughters and her inactive father but quickly began teaching the daughter's "husband" as well as the mother of the family. The Casimiros were a great family. We loved spending time with them. We were even allowed to eat with them on sundays once in a while. The mother was a devout catholic and didn't want anything to do with the church, but she loved my companion and I. The daughter, Liz, wanted to get baptized but couldn't because she wasn't legally married to her "husband" William. My companion and I spent many days teaching William and Liz the importance of being legally married and in November of 2008 they were married. Liz was baptized shortly after but William still wasn't sure he could give up his old life to be baptized. Even though he progressed very slowly, my companion and I always took time out of each day to talk to William. Now, back to Christmas. Christmas was definitely not the same as being home. There were no presents and it was the middle of summer! I did, however, receive a surprise christmas gift. The phone rang. It was hermano William. He told me over the phone about his reading of the Book of Mormon and the things he was learning. He told me of a spiritual experience he had just had while reading about faith in Alma and came to the decision he needed to exercise faith and be baptized. I was delighted. I never felt so happy for someone I cared so much about. It was an amazing feeling to hear those words come out of his mouth. It was the best Christmas gift I have ever received. My good friend whom I will never forget made the best decision. I learned that Christmas really wasn't about presents or snow or even Santa Claus! It is really about experiencing the love Christ has for all of us through service.