Last night we had a JEM Christmas party. We all dressed up, enjoyed a special meal, and played one of those crazy gift exchange games. I was asked to share some of my personal highlights from the past 12 weeks with everyone, and I thought I’d post a paraphrased excerpt from it here, for posterity (or something like that).
“Over the past twelve weeks God has given me many good gifts, and tonight I’d like to share some of them with you. The first gift: acceptance. I've always been a people pleaser. I've always wanted everyone to like me and accept me. But when you live in close quarters with others, as we do here, it’s pretty much impossible to be accepted and liked by everyone all the time. You're gonna get on peoples nerves at one point or another. Yet, each time I have messed up or sinned against someone, I have been met with forgiveness and love. The love I have experienced here reminds me of the love and acceptance I have in Jesus Christ. Amazing!
The second gift: the Bible. In the past I’ve relied on my parents, pastors and friends for advice when making decisions (big or small). But here, my "advisers" are not around, and I have been forced to turn to God and his word for answers. Because of this, my love for the Bible and my gratefulness to God for giving me his word has only increased!
This is just a sampling of the good gifts God has given me; I could share more! But tonight we’re gathered not only to celebrate gifts from God in our individual lives, but also the gift we have all been given—Jesus Christ—who came to earth to save us!"
After my little speech I read the story of Jesus birth in English, Sophie read it in French, and then we sang Christmas carols. It was a wonderfully festive evening!
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