Christ's mission is affirmed in Book of Mormon, LDS told

"Is gratitude a part of our lives? Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit," President Monson said. "What will you and I give for Christmas this year? Let us in our lives give to our Lord and Savior the gift of gratitude by living his teachings and following in his footsteps. . . . It is time to love the Lord, our God, with all our heart — and our neighbors as ourselves."

Acts of charity at Christmas were recounted by President James E. Faust, second counselor in the First Presidency. A widowed mother with nine children found herself wondering how to provide even meager gifts for her younger children during the Christmas of 1941.

A kind neighbor crafted a small wooden wheelbarrow and wagon for the two small boys, but the mother had no way to provide anything for her two youngest daughters, and they woke Christmas morning to only oranges and peanuts, with an explanation that Santa hadn't been able to make it to their home on Christmas Eve but would soon come.

When neighbors visited later that morning, the two girls said Santa hadn't made it to their house yet, but would soon come. The neighbor children returned home and told their mother of the family's lack of gifts, and she spent the bulk of her Christmas day making dresses for the girls and coming up with a couple of dolls, which she delivered on Christmas night as Santa's helper.

"The pure love of Christ goes beyond caring for our own. Those who recently contributed to the Church Humanitarian Fund to help the thousands of people whose lives have been devastated by hurricanes and earthquakes have truly been manifesting the pure love of Christ. This aid has been offered without regard to race or religious affiliation."

Reaching out to those beyond one's own inner circle "is harder to do and takes greater effort. . . . When we see a need, we should fill it promptly," President Faust said. "We should ever be mindful that is was the Savior who gave the greatest gift of all in offering himself as our Redeemer through the Atonement."

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