Well, this week, I am reading about Paul's courage and conviction. I don't know that any of us get away in this life without an opportunity to take a stand and be firm and immovable in something that we not only strongly believe in, but that we know we must go forward and act upon -even when those around you think otherwise, or would fear for their lives and back down when faced with the same circumstance.
In acts 21:10-14,22-25, we read that a prophet named Agabus prophesies that Paul would be bound by Jews if he enters Jerusalem. Upon hearing this, Those who were near Paul tried to persuade him not to go, but Pail said not only was he prepared to be bound, but die also for his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This showed conviction and unwavering dedication and determination and commitment to Christ. When his friends saw that he would not be persuaded and saw his valiance and courage, they backed down and said, " The will of the Lord be done".
So then, Paul goes to Jerusalem and upon entering the Temple, is taken, beaten, bound, and arrested. The accused Him of teaching the people against "the law" and brought Greeks into the Temple.
After that, Paul was persecuted and there was concern because of who he was-a Roman. The lord Visits him again and comforts him Saying," Be of good cheer." Wouldn't that be an awesome experience to have Christ Himself come and speak such comforting words to us when we are going through tough times? I remember one time in my life right after my brother died. I was really missing him and thought I needed him still, but then I had an amazing experience that comforted me as I knew that another brother- even Christ my Savior would be there for me instead and actually gave me a forewarning of things to come that would be painful-even worse than my brother's death.It was long before I realized the truth in this and there were times when I felt like I was not alone as I felt this great warmth surround me and a peace wash over me. It was when I felt so alone and helpless and thought I couldn't go on and cried out in mighty prayer that I would experience this. So anyways, back to Paul's experience- The Lord let him know that because he obeyed and came into Jerusalem to preach, he will also bear witness in Rome. I think that would be comforting because he knew then that he wouldn't be killed. Paul was then taken to see Felix, the Governor at the time. Paul preaches to him of righteousness, temperance, and the judgement to come which caused  Felix to tremble, but even though he wanted to have an excuse to let Paul go, he still chose to bind him as he wanted to please the Jews. When Paul appeals unto Caeser, Festus commands him to be kept until he can be sent to Caeser and talks to King Agrippa who is a Jew and he wants to hear Paul. When King Agrippa hears Paul, Festus, being a Roman.  thinks he is mad, but the king, being a Jew almost believes him. I think that when people hear truth and want to believe it, they hesitate because if it requires them to change their lifestyle or friends, it can be hard thing to give up.
I think Paul showed the greatest courage when he chose to go to Jerusalem in spite of a prophet telling him what would happen and his friends trying to tell him not to go. That takes exceptional courage because they are your peers. What they think of him  and how they feel matters  and affects him.
I can testify that we, too, can develope this kind of courage as we follow the Savior and become like him. we can be lead and be on His errand to be instruments in his hands to do great and marvelous things. When we know that we have his blessing and He has commanded us to act on His behalf, we can know, just like Nephi that we can go forward with faith and "go and do the things...know[ing] the Lord giveth no commandment save he shallprepare a way...". ( 1 Nephi 3:7 in the Book of Mormon)
Paul journeys to Rome in a ship. When sailing bacame dangerous, Paul admonishes the Master of the ship and the Centurion that the voyage could be deadly. The Centurion believes teh Master over Paul and they continue. You know, I ti s so easy to think that because one with the knowledge and expertise has so much experience, we can have a tendency to listen to them instead of lestening to leaders in the church. I think this especially happens when there doesn't seem to be any reason at teh time to follow their counsel that we can immediately see. I remeber when I moved to Califlronia and had food storage. we got ants and called for an exterminator. He told me it was rediculous to have so much food that we would never eat and wouldn't need for so long and advised me that the best thing to do was get rid of all of it. I chose not to and followed in faith teh counsel I received from our leaders in the church and instead, went and bout plastic containers to put it all in! Because Paul was one of God's apostles, he was told by an angel that all on the ship would be saved, but not the ship. He prophesied this to the captain and that is exactly what happened. They came to an island and used a boat from the ship to land there and the ship was then destroyed. While in Melita, Paul uses his preisthood power to heal the sick there. this power is given for the healing of the sick and those with whom have the faith to be healed.Once Paul got to Rome, He took every opportunity while he was imprisoned there to preach of Christ. For two years, he was a faithful witness of Christ even though he was under house arrest and was nor free. I thnk that shows that we can chose to find happiness and purpose in all that we do what ever circumstance we find ourselves in as we strive to be an example and witness of the truth s that we know from Christ. This has been inspiring to me as I see Paul reach his destination in Rome and see him be able to fulfill his purpose as he is guided by the Savior. I am grateful for the opportunity I had to read this passage and be riminded to be happy in our journey and trials and look for opportunities to serve Him.