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2011 First Presidency Christmas Devotional

Did you watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional last Sunday? Wasn't it wonderful? It's one of the few things that light the Christmas spirit in me (I'm somewhat of a Scrooge, for those of you who don't know me). I am watching it again now because I missed some of it and wanted to remember the parts that touched me so I can share them with you:

Opening & Closing
  • Love the wintry blue dresses instead of red.
  • The French horns in "The First Noel" sounded heavenly. The entire song was angelic.
  • MoTab sang "Silent Night" with much reverence and sincerity. The harp was beautiful.
President Uchtdorf
  • "Don't ever play with fire--an important message with literal and figurative implications for everyone, not only children."
  • "The Lord does not expect that we commit to move mountains, but He does require that we bring as gifts our best efforts to move ourselves, one foot in front of the other, walking in the ways He has prepared and taught."
  • "Of course, we do not need a Christmas holiday or Christmas traditions to remember Jesus Christ, our Savior. But the celebrations of Christmas can help remind us of Him. The hallowed Christmas season can be an opportunity--and should be one--to recommit to keep the fire of the spirit and the glory of the Son of God burning in our hearts every day throughout the year."
President Eyring
  • Has there always been a fireplace and window background or is that new? It makes it more homey, like a grandfather talking to his family at home rather than in the Conference Center.
  • The video clip was a nice difference and was superbly done. I definitely felt the Spirit testify to me of Mary's divine calling, the Savior's divine birth and mission, and the wise men's true worship of Him.
  • "Well, you can give a great and wonderful Christmas if you will remember the gifts He has given you, and as best you can, offer them to others as He would. That is the true spirit of Christmas and happiness everyday."
President Monson
  • It was also different and very touching to hear President Monson testify of the divine calling of his counselors.
  • He shared his sadness over the commercialism of Christmas but reminded us that "Christmas is what we make of it" and that "despite all the distractions,we can see to it that Christ is the center of our celebration."
  • "[The spirit of Christmas] illuminates the picture window of the soul. We look out upon the world's busy life and become more interested in people than in things."
  • Quoting another: "Let us not spend Christmas, but let us keep Christmas, in our hearts and in our lives."
  • "When we keep the spirit of Christmas, we keep the spirit of Christ."
Sharing Time: What part(s) of the First Presidency Christmas Devotional touched you?
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Comments

Anonymous said…
we watched it and it was great as usual. love your notes-DAD
December 14, 2011 at 1:16 AM
Anonymous said…
I share President Monson's sadness over the commercialism of Christmas. Dickens was talking about this in his day. It is one of the themes of the movie "Miracle on 34th Street".
Yes, "Christmas is what we make of it." As you know, I've been encouraging the family to decrease the focus on gifts, and concentrate more on family time together. This has not gone over well with many family members, but I am still working on it.
A sister in our ward was telling me how she was making a big effort to teach her young children the true meaning of Christmas and shared some of the ideas she would use this year. I hope she was successful. I know when Christ is the center of our Christmas, there are no distractions, and all the wholesome and "fun" things about Christmas are "more fun" than ever.
Mom
December 29, 2011 at 3:11 PM
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