It's Christmastime!

Dear friends and family,

We had a great week here in Great Bend and at the Priesthood Restoration Site! Lessons, service, baptisms, concerts.... all good things helping us come closer to Christ. 

We had another lesson with Mary this week and we taught her the Plan of Salvation at the Priesthood Restoration Site. She tells us she loves the way it feels there, that there is just a peace when you come to the grounds. So with the Spirit already prevalent, we had a great lesson! As we started, we talked about how as spirits we lived with God before we came to earth and here is where our spirit and body come together, which was something she'd never thought about before. She loved that in the spirit world everyone will have the opportunity to learn about the gospel because God loves all of his children. All throughout our lesson she had little light bulbs going off, and told us at the end that the plan seemed like everything she already believed, but it was the first time someone had taught it to her. So cool!

I also heard about my very first baptism that started with online teaching! Back in September I took a request for a missionary visit from a woman named Molly. In our very brief conversation as I confirmed her address, I knew she was GOLDEN. So I wrote a small note to the sisters in her area, pleaded that they would contact her as soon as they possibly could, and clicked send. About two weeks later I texted her to see that the missionaries had come and she said that the sisters had come to visit and were going to meet her family at church on Sunday. I was so excited for her! But after that, no other updates and her referral status was marked as just "teaching." This past week when Sister Martinez was going through her contacts, trying people one last time before leaving or transferring them to me, she found something exciting... Molly's referral status had been changed to "baptized!!" I was so excited!!! After accepting well over 1,000 referral confirmations there was finally 1 person who had been baptized. Sometimes online teaching is hard because we sit at a computer and confirm address after address, very rarely seeing the results of our efforts, but every once in a while we do and it makes it all worth it! Even if Molly had been 1 in a million referrals I'd contacted, it would still be worth it because there is no price or work too great for the worth of souls! 

This week we were also busy preparing for our Christmas concert, our last concert with six of the sisters who fly home tomorrow.  

The girls!

 And it was such a fun last concert! We decorated and dressed up, the Walkers bought everyone corsages and we had a wonderful last night performing and sharing testimony together. We had a good turn out too! President and Sister Randall were able to come to the concert which was neat! And every week Sister Martinez and I serve at a local food pantry and several of the people we work with there came too. The theme, of course, was "Light the World," tying into this year's Christmas initiative. At the beginning of the concert we showed the initiative video available here https://www.mormon.org/  and then kept the lights dimmed and walked in the side doors holding small candles as we sang a song called, "Born is the Light of the World." In the initiative daily videos there is a constant theme of "Jesus (blanked), and So Can You," so the entire evening we talked about the example and life of Christ, but also how we can follow Him and be of service to others. We did some of my favorites, "O Holy Night" and Sister Walker and I did the Piano Guys duet of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," but one of the best parts of the program was the last song, "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," which the congregation joined in on. The piano was playing and the organ and everyone stood and was smiling and singing practically at the top of their lungs! I love how Christ makes people better, happier people. It has been such a blessing on my mission to draw people closer to Christ through music.

With our awesome senior couples -
Clockwise, from top left:  the Walkers, VanOrdens, Richardsons, and Biesingers

This week marks the end of a chapter in my mission and the start of a new one. I watched six of my best friends drive away this morning to fly home, but two new sisters will be coming to join the PRS family and Sister Anderson and I are so excited to pick them up and bring them to their new home! New adventures to come!

Love,

Sister Larsen

Farewell to Sis. Martinez:  A last supper at the local
Italian place.  Treated by the Neubergers who we took on tour
a few weeks ago, and who sent us a gift card in the mail.  So sweet! 

Our darling senior couples!