Words from Elder Ryder Nielsen in the Philippines Manilla Mission

"What an exciting time of the year Christmas is right around the corner. To tell you the truth now that i am older i feel i have lost the Christmas spirit as far as presents and Santa Claus goes. But a new kind of Christmas has grown inside me. A time to be thankful for the Savior Infinite Atonement. It is also a time we can be grateful for our wonderful family. That is what i will miss the most is being with family. I know that the family is central to Heavenly Fathers plan. Life just isn't worth living without our family. I remember the first phrase i learned in Tagalog back at the MTC it goes like this Ang Diyos and ating mapagmahal na Ama sa langit at Tayo ay mga anak Niya. Which means in English: God is our loving Heavenly Father and we are his children. That simple truth has grown from a little seed into a Redwood because of the things that i have experienced on my mission. It is so amazing to me the love and care he has for each of his billions of children on this planet earth. I am humbled everyday to be and instrument in his hands in blessing and helping one of his children. One of my favorite quotes is from a prophet he said " God does notice us and he loves us, but it is usually through another person that he meets our needs. That is why it is vital that we serve one another." With this in mind i would like to share a quote from Elder Ballards talk this last conference, "We are not asking everyone to do everything. We are simply asking all members to pray, knowing that if every member, young and old, will reach out to just "one" between now and Christmas, millions will feel the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. And what a wonderful gift to the Savior." What a wonderful Christmas gift to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with some one. That is my challenge for all the family back home if they have not already reach out and share your knowledge. The Lord is truly hastening his work and we will be privileged to be apart of it. Elder Ballard also said that the hastening of the Lords work is only possible with the members. What a wonderful thing it is to know the Will of the Lord through living prophets. (1 Nephi 7:12)"