Chinatown Moves On

After the big changes last week, we are getting along pretty well, I think.  I love the sisters in our apartment.  Sister Chan and Sister Woo are fantastic, and Sister Khong is a wonderful teacher.  I'm glad she is my new companion!

We are all especially excited about Sister Chan's arrival because she is the first 19-year-old sister in the Chinatown district ever!  She is the start of big changes in our mission, and I am excited to see what she will do.  I had the opportunity to teach a lesson with her on Sunday (we were on a split) and I see good things in the future for her.  Her trainer, Sister Woo, is also super awesome.  She is a focused, dedicated missionary who knows what's up.  Also, she reminds me of Tinkerbell with her short hair.  I love it.

Other than getting used to the changes in our district, this week has been pretty low key.  We celebrated some birthdays (including mine, a little early) this week, which was fun.  The district pooled together and bought me a Pinyin (Romanized Chinese) copy of the Psalms and Proverbs.  I love these two books of scripture, and I am excited to learn more Chinese from them!

This morning in personal study I read about the Stripling Warriors, a group of extremely faithful young men who put their trust fully in God to deliver them from their trials.  They were willing to put their lives on the line for many because they knew that the Lord would help them.  Something that strikes me, however, is the use of the word "deliver" in these passages.  Whenever Helaman talks about their faith or about the battles they fought, he said that they believed the Lord would deliver them.  Not keep them safe, not keep them alive, even, but that He would deliver them. They knew that no matter what happened, as long as they kept the commandments and the covenants they had made, the Lord would grant them eternal blessings, because that is what their mothers had taught them.  All throughout Alma 56-58 we see Helaman use the word “deliver.”  As I read these chapters this time, it took on a different meaning, having less to do with temporal things and more to do with spiritual things.  I know that there were a lot of temporal blessings associated with this story as well, since the Stripling Warriors were kept alive through all of the battles they fought, and were able to maintain the lands they gained, but understanding the spiritual aspect as well has helped me to apply this story better to my own life. As I personally have faith in the Lord, I know that as long as I keep my covenants and keep the Lord's commandments, I will also be delivered.  I, and all of you, will be able to receive the blessings the Lord wants to give us.  I am grateful for that.

I hope all of you are having a wonderful week.  Good luck to all of you in the cold - I know it's pretty intense in some places right now.  Make sure not to freeze!

Love,

Sister Beer