I know that around this time most of us are more focused on the celebration of the season of Christmas rather than the reason behind why we celebrate this holiday. It is truly humbling to consider the birth of Christ from his perspective. In his premortal existence he was known as Jehova. By his word the world was created, and yet he submitted himself to the will of the Father and was born in meager circumstances. The great creator of the world was submitted to the disruptions of violence, and spent his childhood a refugee. In his adulthood the King of kings held a career considered prominent by none.
In his great revelatory vision, Nephi said of Christ “I looked, and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was taken by the people; yea, the Son of the everlasting God was judged of the world; and I saw and bear record. And I, Nephi, saw that he was lifted up upon the cross and slain for the sins of the world” (1 Nephi 11:32-33).
It amazes me to ponder on the significances of how low our Lord descend so that he could save us, a people so stubborn and wicked that we knew not our God when he came to us, but instead gave him to be crucified. I pray that each of us may grow in knowledge of our Savior so that when he does come again, that we may know him for who he is. For this to take place, it is not enough to simply know his name and say that we have faith. No, we need to have his name and his gospel deeply engraved upon our hearts. May we all give him the gift of our discipleship is my prayer.
Questions
Q: What is the average family size in Indonesia?
A: Two parents and two children. In a lot of neighborhoods in Indonesia they have signs that say “Two kids is enough,” although it was not always that way. Around two generations ago the saying was “banyak anak banyak rejeki” which means something like lots of kids gets you lots of wealth.
Q: How is Christmas celebrated in Indonesia?
A: It is important to know that Christmas is only celebrated by the minority of the population that is Christian. If you are not Christian, you do not celebrate Christmas. Christians here seem to celebrate Christmas by going to lots of parties. It gets the point that when we are trying to make appointments to visit the people we teach they tell us just to come sometime next year because they are busy going to Christmas parties.
Pictures
Elder Allen.
