Christmas Thought

I know I'm on a blogging spree but I have some thoughts I need to share. The other week in my international health class we learned about the Humanitarian Aid branch of the LDS church. They focus on two main areas. One is disaster relief and the other includes 4 programs. The programs consist of neonatal resuscitation programs, wheelchairs, vision and wells. The resuscitation is training to help health professionals help babies. They give wheelchairs to the crippled and glasses to the poor in vision. They also build wells so communities could have clean drinking water. It struck me that these services are very related to the miracles that Jesus Christ performed during his ministry. He healed the lame and helped the blind to see. He blessed the little children and took a special interest in them. Christ is known as the "Living Water". It really impressed me and I'm glad the church is doing this work. I saw a video of people receiving their wheelchairs. These people were dragging themselves around on their hands and shriveled legs. They were so happy to get a wheelchair that would make their lives so much easier. There was also a father who brought his son and placed him in a chair. What I thought of was how much easier his life would be with an easier way to transport his son. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may not be able to completely heal the bodies of these people but they can still perfom small miracles for these people. I cried when I watched the video because it was such a great showing of compassion and love for others. It will bless their lives. And it taught me that I want to do things like that for other people. It also helps my testimony because if I want to help these people then I am also wanting to become more like Jesus Christ. Today I donated $10 to the Humanitarian Aid in my tithing envelope. I wanted to be able to give something that I have been blessed with and now that money will be used to help others like Christ did. I hope to be able to continue to donate to Humanitarian Aid.

I also liked these quotes from the First Presidency message in the December 2008 Ensign.

"Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. Enemies are forgiven, friends remembered, and God obeyed. The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world's busy life and become more interested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the "spirit of Christmas," we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the "Spirit of Christ."-President Monson

“Again Christmas, abiding point of return. Set apart by its mystery, mood and magic, the season seems, in a way to stand outside time. All that is dear, that is lasting, renews its hold on us: we are home again.”-Elizabeth Bowen

“True happiness comes only by making others happy—the practical application of the Savior’s doctrine of losing one’s life to gain it. In short, the Christmas spirit is the Christ spirit, that makes our hearts glow in brotherly love and friendship and prompts us to kind deeds of service.
“It is the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obedience to which will bring ‘peace on earth,’ because it means—good will toward all men.”-President David O. McKay