Chapter 16: COVID and The Atonement

"...it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed...He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied."

Isaiah 53:10-11 Happy New Year! I greatly appreciate the enthusiasm and desire for self-improvement always associated with the beginning of a new year. For myself, I have set some goals that I hope to follow and grow because of. If you haven't, take some time to prayerfully set some goals! I know Heavenly Father will assist you in finding ways to improve, and who better to ask for help than He who knows you better than anyone? This week was kind of crazy. Elder Wilson and I woke up pretty sick on Wednesday morning, but didn't think much of it until we got a call from some sister missionaries in our district saying that one of them had tested positive for COVID and that our entire district had been exposed on Christmas...so Elder Wilson and I were convinced we had the virus. We set up an appointment later that day in Philadelphia to get tested and spent that day and the following days resting a lot and recovering. We ended up being negative, but still pretty wiped out with a lot of the same symptoms. A crazy scare and very surreal experience to say the least. In addition to that, this week my studies have naturally revolved around the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I really want to internalize and understand this doctrine better because it is the core of everything. Quite literally, everything. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ makes everything possible, and I am grateful beyond the capacity of words to describe for him and the incalculable love he and Heavenly Father have for me and all of us. Christ saw each of us while he suffered the pains of his atoning sacrifice, and at the end of it all, he was satisfied. He loved each of us enough to do what none of us can even fathom. My conversion and desire to improve deepens every time I spend time studying and pondering Jesus Christ and his sacrifice. I invite you all to continue to really internalize the doctrine of Christ's Atonement. Serving a mission is not easy. It's hard to not feel alone sometimes. But, life is that way for a reason. My father told me that in life when things are hard, when we mess up again, when we struggle and just can't seem to measure up, we can choose to be discouraged or choose to be humble. Humility will always bring us closer to God and it will allow Him to work through us. Let us strive to always be humble. I pray I can be better at that. Life is good. God is wise. Let Him prevail. Never give up. Elder Childers

Philadelphia skyline

Philadelphia city hall

Reading Sunset

Pizza Night thanks to my Mom!

Got a haircut!