Approximately 30 employees and volunteers attended the annual Service Center Christmas Devotional and Social held in Nairobi, at Upper Hill meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After a short Christmas video featuring the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, guest speaker, brother David Frischknecht, director of Area Temporal Affairs spoke to the attendees.
His message included a personal experience that happened 36 years ago in Nairobi. This was Frischknecht’s first visit to Africa. He was planning to meet the U.S. Ambassador and upon arriving he found his contact had left town for 10 days.
Not knowing what to do in this unknown and distant land—no internet, no cell phones in this day—he busied himself with purchasing books and making a trip to the post office to mail them back to himself in the U.S., and then returned to his hotel room. He had not waited long when there came a knock at the door and a missionary couple greeted him with the news his day was filled with many appointments and they were prepared to drive him around.
This experience reminded him that the Lord’s work will always go forth. Frischknecht concluded with a note that we should learn of Him, follow Him and strive to become like Him.
A favorite Christmas carol, Silent Night, was sung by the congregation in Swahili and the activity featuring Light the World theme proceeded in the Cultural Hall.
Quilt squares were made in 15 minutes on paper with each group using a message from the Advent Calendar—producing a quilt suggesting that many varied pieces can successfully make a beautiful whole or when life gives you scraps—make a quilt. Little trinkets were given as prizes for the participants' efforts.
The wrapped gifts contained such things as needles and thread, tinned tuna and local artist’s Christmas cards. These trinkets were to be given forward, to someone they could serve as Jesus did. #LighttheWorld
