Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Turriabla, Cartago, Costa Rica 12.21.15

Dear Family,

So I am officially one week away from coming home. Little by little, I can feeling it all coming to a close. It went by crazy fast though. Lately i have been thinking about my mission looking back and seeing how I have changed. I can see that i have changed just a little bit here and there but overall I feel pretty the same. 
I had a pretty cool experience a couple of minutes ago actually. We were eating lunch at a local Carl's Jr. in San Jose. A man walked in a began to hand some papers to the people. He came to me and I read what it said. Basically it was him selling lollipops to take care of his family. Usually missionaries and members here have the attitude of I'm not going to give because you are probably just going to buy alcohol. But as I saw him I just felt a great sense of love for him as my brother. I gave him a card with the "A Savior is Born" incentive and gave him a few dollars without purchasing the lollipop. 
I felt as he walked away, the thought of "why did you just give him the money?" And the only thing I could think of was that I loved him. I felt that it was just a brief brush with charity. But it was meaningful for me. I feel that I have a sincere love for the ticos and I want them to truly come unto Christ and receive these blessings. 
I know that Heavenly Father has a wonderful plan. He is very conscience of our needs. He knows our names. 
I recently have found that the thirteenth article of faith is a promised blessing for believing the Articles of Faith 1-12. As we do and believe those things, we will become honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and will want to do good to all men. We will begin to look for that which is "virtuous, lovely, of good report and those things that are praiseworthy". We will have faith and believe all things, hope for all things things, and be able to endure all things. 
I know that the scriptures are to be lived, not just read. I know that the promises that the Lord makes us are real. May we all receive the gift of becoming this christmas. Have a very merry one!

Sigamos Adelante, 

-Elder Neider

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