Elder George McConkie: Christmas in January

Здраво everyone!

Hello from Belgrade, Serbia. Belgrade has recently been going through some very large protests. There have been protests every other day throughout the city. There are many who are critical of the Serbian president right now. Elder Nieves is my new companion and we were walking down the street when we came across while contacting the biggest protest yet. We walked around it and there were tens of thousands of people. The photos and video do not do it justice. Recently we could not get to our lesson because the bridge going across the river had a protest blocking it.

Belgrade is a very old and historic city. It sits in a place that has been wanted by many empires throughout history. Belgrade has been destroyed 50-60 times throughout history. Recently while walking down the street I looked up and saw a massive building with a bombed out hole in the middle of it. There are a couple 12 story buildings that have been bombed out and are unstable. They keep them up as a monument to remember what happened during the 90s and early 2000s. There is a lot of Pro-Russian sentiment, as well as support for Putin.

Eastern Orthodoxy is the predominant religion here in Serbia. For this reason we celebrated Christmas on the 7th of January. They follow the Orthodox calendar and for this reason holidays like Christmas are a little bit after the date the rest of the world uses. Because of this I got to celebrate Christmas twice! It was so much fun. We went caroling l, had activities with some of the members and played a lot of games.

This language has been extremely difficult for me to understand and to learn. As time has gone on it has become super satisfying to understand certain phrases and sentences. Serbian is not an easy language to learn. I have learned Cyrillic which is a different alphabet. Тhese are some of the common characters : ћ ч к ш п ж ђ б ц џ ф д њ љ з г и

Missionary work is not easy but I think that is what makes it so satisfying and worthwhile. The tasks put in front of us are impossible if we try to do them on our own. We have daily miracles. The more we look for miracles the more we find and the more we receive. The more we look for help from God the more we will find it. He won't always make it easier but He will make it better.

The branch and members here are amazing and so kind. Getting to spend Christmas as a full time missionary has been so much fun. Getting to serve and have a Christ centered Christmas is what has made it so much better.

No matter the situation when we turn outward and think about others and about Christ, life will simply just be better. We can take anything we wish to Him and he will give us guidance and comfort. He is the true source of joy. Christmas is the best when we make it about Him. Every day can be as joyful as Christmas if we make each of them about Him. We are here so that we might have joy. Fulfill the reason you are here. Don't waste the opportunity to have joy. Not even for a single day.

Love you all!

-Elder George McConkie

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PICTURES AND VIDEO