2 Corinithians 12:9

July 19, 2022

2 Corinithians 12:9

Well, well, well! I have officially passed the one-month mark! Which is actually crazy! I can’t believe I’ve been a missionary for a month, and if you’re wondering if I say that because the time has gone by fast or slow… you’ll need to keep waiting because I haven’t decided! But I do know that I’m loving it! Let’s share some highlights from this week:

New Missionaries: I got to help out the new missionaries this week who were coming in and that was a blast! It’s so weird to see the circle of life here in the MTC! I have a fun opportunity because speaking Mandarin means that I’m here for quite some time. So I get to welcome in new missionaries and then see them come and grow and then leave! It’s the craziest thing! But it’s fun to be like the missionary who welcomed me, just try to be as friendly as possible. Because I went through that same experience! If you know someone struggling, maybe going through a trial, quit reading this lousy email and send them a message! Put yourself in their shoes! Even if it’s weird, I promise they needed to hear from YOU today!
Helping Others: In the MTC we have these training seminars called, “Helping Others Appointments.” This was the first week my companion and I taught a lesson in Mandarin Chinese. And to sum this one up I’d say… it was a fantastic learning experience haha! I remember from last semester sitting in Calculus and talking about derivatives and thinking, “Wow! I wonder what in the world is going on!” This felt like that but then amplified by 7000! Sweet Yomi (the girl we were teaching) just talked so fast! She had to say something like 6 times for me to officially know that I had no idea what she was saying! So, needless to say, I am really going to lean on the Lord for this next little bit. Because I can’t lie, it’s much more enjoyable to talk to people when you know what they’re saying!
Bad dinner (Sunday): The MTC likes to play this fun little game on Sundays with the missionaries. It’s called, “We’re going to give you the least amount of food options for the week that taste not entirely like what we say we’re feeding you, and we’re going to make sure you wait at least 45 minutes in line for it”. This last Sunday I was particularly hungry, and after waiting in line for 45 minutes, I made it to the end of the rainbow to figure out that they gave us two little sticks of bread that had been fried that they had the audacity to call French toast. And a cube of oddly spongy eggs with little bits of something inside. Needless to say, I will spend all of my extra free time this week finding a new solution to this food crisis.

Alright, now I’d like to talk a little bit more about the title for this week's email: 2nd Corinthians 12:9: “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” What an amazing verse of scripture! This was something I really needed this week! I loved this week, but I loved this week because I needed to rely on the Lord and I grew. This was a week of growth, which is not always fun! But ultimately, they’re the weeks that transform us. In the weeks where you feel broken, we can be like Paul and realize that through God’s grace we can be made stronger in our infirmities. Our strength is made perfect in weakness! What an amazing gift this is!

There was a large emphasis this week on the Savior’s atonement, both the redeeming part of the atonement and the enabling power of the atonement! So what’s the difference? I think most are more aware of the redeeming power of the atonement, this is the side of the atonement that makes it so we can call on our Savior and be forgiven for our shortcomings as long as we go about it properly! I love this quote from Jeffrey R. Holland in his Conference talk, "None Were With Him." He says, “Trumpeted from the summit of Calvary is the truth that we will never be left alone nor unaided, even if sometimes we may feel that we are. Truly the Redeemer of us all said: ‘I will not leave you comfortless: [My Father and] I will come to you [and abide with you].” This is one of my very favorite talks, I would encourage everyone who reads this to go read that talk sometime this week! Our Savior walked a long lonely journey so that we wouldn’t have to, through him, we can be made stronger! That’s where the enabling power of the atonement comes into play. Through Christ’s atonement, we can be made better, as we continually strive to keep him in our hearts and in our minds.

There have been times in my life where I have felt down, where I have felt alone, and moments where I am simply struggling to keep my head above the water. But I promise, to all of you who may have felt this before or who are feeling this right now, YOU ARE NEVER ALONE! Heavenly Father and his Son are constantly reaching out ready to help us. I often don’t have the same mindset that Paul had in 2nd Corinthians, where I think about my trials as great blessings in my life that God has given me to build me up! I often think of them as, “God, get me out of this mess as quickly as possible!” But something that Elder Stevens, my amazing companion, pointed out to me this week was when Nephi was on the boat tied up by his older brothers in the midst of a sea storm that looked quite fatal, he called out to God and asked for strength to loosen the bands that were holding him bound. He didn’t pray to have his circumstances changed; he prayed to have the strength to change his circumstances. To be made stronger through his trials and tribulations.

Lastly, there is an amazing song called "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)." It is seriously such an amazing song, talking about being made stronger through our Savior as we put our faith in Christ! It’s not always easy to step out of our comfortable boat and onto the ocean where the Savior is calling us. But I have a testimony that our Savior is standing upon the water with his arm reached towards us. There will be waves, and there might be cruise ships that pass by that look more enjoyable. There may be sharks that swim around you, but in the presence of our Lord, we have no need to fear. There is nothing that our Savior hasn’t experienced for each of us personally! I am so grateful for his infinite love for me as I continue to stumble, fall, and get scratched up. He continually picks me up, dusts me off, and puts his arms around me, helping me to continue on through faith in him.

Zàijiàn,

Elder Steadman