Elder Braden Allred : Week 18 Tottori: A Christmas Miracle!

hello my beloved family and friends,

this last week i saw a christmas miracle. it was our branch christmas party this last saturday and we were preparing most of the day. earlier in the day we were doing our weekly planning meeting. during that planning meeting we were trying to figure out who we could visit this coming week. we stumbled upon the record of a family of old investigators who were Just straight golden. we talked about visiting but realized that the family all only spake sign language. we talked to the branch president about them and he said that the member that used to translate the lessOns for the missionaries Had unfortunately gone less active. regardless, we decided that maybe we would try to visit them later this week if we could figure out where they lived.

well the Night came and the christmas party sTarted. and the only people tHere was me and my companion and about 6 other members. i was pRetty bummed that no one showed up and during a vidEo that they were showing at the very bEginning i decided to say a prayer. i prayed that people would show up and that our christmaS party would be filled with the people that we had been invIting throughout the week. after my prayer and the video was over, makabe shimai, one of our investigators showed up! it was eXcelent! shortly after her, Two less active members came with their families. then one of our english class students showed up, then a couple people who we had never even met came walking in. then out of nowhere a huge family came walking into the church building, and i about passed out, it was the Entire family that we had been planning for earlier that day! there were eight of them or so and they all came to participate in our christmas activity. i was so amazed because we could not remember inviting them at all. i mean we had just learned that they even existed that morning! it was a christmas miracle. we struggled to communicate with them to much because they were speaking sign language the whole time, but it turns out that one of our members spoke sign language and was able to communicatE with them! we got to know the family really well and are now planning on visiting them sometime this week. and i even learned out to say ありがとございます in japanese sign language! it was unbelievable! the church was packed and we had so much fun. the less active members were laughing and talking with members. one of our investigators found out that she works with another one of the members. and our english class student was asking all about christ! it was definitely a christmas miracle! christ is at the head of this work, i know that none of these miracles would have happened without his divine help. if we just rely on him he will work wonders amoNg us. i know that this church is true and that jesus christ lived and died for us 2000 years ago, and i know that he was ressurected and lives today and watches over his children and is immediately their for any one of his children if they but seek him. i love you all so much and i wish you all a very merry christmas!

i love christmas so much!

elder allred