Several events occurred which we shall never forget. First, Elder Jeffrey Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke to our combined missionaries today in a very special devotional. How honored we were to have him and his sweet wife, Pat, devote part of their Thanksgiving. A few of his thoughts which struck me powerfully were:

• "You are the miracle of the Church!"
• One virtue she wished for us all is that of "gratitude." The Holy Spirit is the mother and father of gratitude.
  
• "This is not two years you are just getting out of the way; this is a not a two year tithing! This isn't just something you 'check off your list.'"
  
• He said that he wants his grandchildren(two of them were standing beside him) to dream dreams (to be honorable missionaries, also).
• "Be valiant!"
• Savor every moment of your mission, because this very experience won't come again.
• "You are the future of the church; be the best example you can be!"
• "You need to come home after your mission and be devoted to the Gospel for the rest of your life." He is disappointed when a return missionary isn't committed to the Gospel. Don't act inappropriately!" Nothing bothers him more than to see missionaries return home, wear a beard, earrings in their ears and dress inappropriately and slovenly.
• "You are missionaries of the Lord Jesus Christ; you need to spend time coming to know Him and suffering what He suffered (just a little)."
• "Welcome to the work"!
• "You are invited into the Brotherhood of Christ!"
  
• "You are the future of the church!" As you can tell he was on fire and he held his audience spellbound. After the closing prayer, all stood as he and his wife and family exited and all could hear a pin drop. To say the least, this was quite an emotionally powerful experience.

Next, the MTC cafeteria staff prepared a served a declicious Thanksgiving meal, with all the trimmings, which was enjoyed by all. We shared our table with Lora Lee and Gary Heaton who were accompanied by both of their mothers, ages 85 and 91, respectfully. After lunch, a fireside was held in M19 for all missionaries as a precursor to the humanitarian projects to be completed later in the day. Sister Boone, MTC President's wife asked me to lead the congregational singing (prelude for 15 minutes and opening song) for two subsequent meetings. What a thrill to lead 3,000 elders in "Called to Serve," "If You Could Hie to Kolob (apparently a favorite of all missionaries), "Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel" to name a few. The words are flashed on the large screens for all to read. Brother Flake, Head of the Humanitarian Dept for the Church, spoke for 45 minutes, citing examples by word and videos of countless numbers of people who have been helped and served by the church in the form of labor, materials and food (and even heliopters to rescue men, women and children out of trees after the sunami). If the world only knew... Probably the most touching part of his presentation was a short video showing countless men, women and children throughout the world (India, Indonesia, Africa, etc.) who have been recipients of over 200,000 wheelchairs by the church. My heart was touched by the millions who suffer daily because they are unable to even have the necessities of life! How blessed we are.

Afterwards, the missionaries were divided into two groups of 1,500 each to paraded to the cafeteria where carefully laid plans were in place for all to assemble First Aid kits for the Humanitarian Dept of the church to be sent to needy people all over the world. During each of the assembly processes, groups of missionaries were heard singing (as they worked) favorite Primary songs such as "I Hope They Call Me On A Mission," "We'll Bring the World His Truth," "I Believe in Christ," etc. My heart almost burst with the Spirit! I kept asking myself, "How much can the heart take?" It was unbelievably wonderful.

Steve and I were able to catch of glimpse of our granddaughter Brittany (and her two darling companions likewise headed to Spain Barcelona) who, like all other missionaries, was caught up in the spirit of service and thanksgiving. We hope you all celebrated a wonderful Thanksgiving day, and especially recounted your multiple blessings given by the Giver of all!