Trusting in the Lord includes trusting in His timing and requires patience and endurance that outlast the storms of life. The Lord does not bring but does permit adversity in our lives for our spiritual growth and lasting joy. Whenever we are in the midst of pain and suffering it is hard to believe that it will benefit us. The key is whether it draws us closer to God or makes us angry with God. Our challenge is to be patient in affliction and trust the Lord. The Apostle Paul said to the Romans, “…we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope…” (Romans 5: 3-4 in the Bible)
Consistently Resiliently Happy
I recently read an article that centered around the importance of trusting in the Lord:
“Our son Dan got very sick on his mission in Africa and was taken to a medical facility with limited resources. As we read his first letter to us after his illness, we expected that he would be discouraged, but instead he wrote, “Even as I lay in the emergency room, I felt peace. I have never been so consistently and resiliently happy in my life.”
As my wife and I read these words, we were overcome with emotion. Consistently and resiliently happy. We had never heard happiness described that way, but his words rang true. We knew that the happiness he described was not simply pleasure or an elevated mood but a peace and joy that come when we surrender ourselves to God and put our trust in Him in all things. We too have had those times in our lives when God spoke peace to our souls and caused us to have hope in Christ even when life was hard and uncertain.” We read in the scriptures “Yea, and it came to pass that the Lord our God did visit us with assurances that he would deliver us; yea, insomuch that he did speak peace to our souls, and did grant unto us great faith, and did cause us that we should hope for our deliverance in him.”
(Alma 58: 11 in the Book of Mormon)
Sorrow Can Prepare Us for Future Joy
“In a paradoxical way, afflictions and sorrow prepare us to experience joy if we will trust in the Lord and His plan for us. This is expressed by a 13th-century poet: “Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots, so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow. Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart, far better things will take their place.”
(See The Mathnawi of Jalalu’ddin Rumi (1925-40), trans. Reynold A. Nicholson, vol. 5, 132.)
The Good News of the Gospel
“The good news of the gospel is not the promise of a life free of sorrow and tribulation but a life full of purpose and meaning–a life where our sorrows and afflictions can be swallowed up in the joy of Christ.” The Savior declared, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 in the Bible) His gospel is a message of hope. Sorrow coupled with hope in Jesus Christ holds the promise of enduring joy.
If we are faithful in keeping our covenants, we too will one day arrive safely home, we will bow before the Lord and shed tears of joy for the multitude of His tender mercies in our lives, including the sorrows that made space for more joy.
As we commend ourselves unto the Lord and consistently and resiliently trust in Jesus Christ and His divine purposes in our lives, He will visit us with assurances and speak peace to our souls.” Test Him!
Dallas Jones is the local leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jones quoted from the remarks of L Todd Budge in General Conference October 2019. For a more detailed discussion call (231) 383-8359 or send an email to [email protected]