For the Church's new Christmas initiative, #LIGHTtheWORLD—which encourages people to bring light to this Christmas season by doing acts of service for one another—YouTube star Peter Hollens and his wife, Evynne, created this stunning a cappella version of "Grown Up Christmas List." In the video, the Hollens' show just a few ways we can share love and light this season as we reach out to others.

Since moving myself and my family to Hong Kong where I’m opening an Asia office for my online marketing firm, I’ve had countless opportunities to think “If I hadn’t served as a Mormon missionary, I wouldn’t be doing this today.” The skills I learned almost 20 years ago as a missionary have been invaluable to my career as an entrepreneur, and never more so than now as I live and do business in a foreign country. In 1994 I became a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are more commonly known by the nickname “Mormons” or simply “ LDS.” But I was not a missionary in Hong Kong or Asia where I live now. I served in Manaus, Brazil, where I learned Portuguese, rather than Mandarin or Cantonese. Prior to 2013 I had never been to Asia and knew very little about China or its neighbors. Most of my exposure to Asian culture came from growing up in Arcadia, California. There is a significant Asian population there, but despite this I can’t say I learned all that much about Asia from my Asian friends, who were intent on learning English and assimilating into American culture. But going to a foreign country where I didn’t know the language or the culture wasn’t new to me because I had already done it as a 19-year-old in Brazil. Here are some of the lessons I learned as a missionary that are helping me as I open an office in Hong Kong.

A few beautiful thoughts about love and eternal marriage from this post: "Don’t fear if you feel fear—it might not be you . . . And a simple way to tell if it is you…pray to fall in love and see if you mean it."

July Visiting Teaching Message:

The unemployment rate has just fallen one-tenth of a percent, from 9 percent to 8.9 percent. Of course, it is indeed progress, and it is being celebrated in the White House as such. But the celebrations bring to mind what a wit once said: An “acceptable” level of unemployment means that the government economist to whom it is acceptable still has a job. Today, as we move into the third year of the Obama administration, we do not have anything resembling even such an “acceptable” level of unemployment. Far from it. As of this month, 14 million Americans can’t find work.

Disasters take an emotional toll on everyone. From victims to volunteers, people need to find a way to deal with anxiety and stress. This is such an important concept, the Red Cross has been known to send psychologists to help people cope with the emotional distress that can accompany a disaster.

There are countless studies discussing the relationship between religion and teens' habits. In short, teens that are raised in a religious home are more likely to stay away from debilitating habits and develop healthier ones.

On September 27, 2015, I joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while attending Michigan State University. Before that, I wasn’t religious and struggled with many doubts—including whether God was even real. Now, five years later, I can easily see how Heavenly Father has been so good to me throughout my life, even when I wasn’t sure He was there.

I can remember when I heard my very first Mormon myth. I was 8 years old, and one of my older sisters came to me and said, “Guess what? Steve Martin is a Mormon!"

This article is republished with permission from Book of Mormon Central. For more inspiring and instructive content on the Book of Mormon visit Book of Mormon Central, subscribe to our mailing list, see our YouTube videos, and follow us on Facebook.