Go and Do

I've always wondered, why didn't God just tell Lehi to grab the Brass Plates on his way out of Jerusalem? He knew that they would need the sacred text, He didn't forget, God doesn't make mistakes. The trials that Nephi and his family were called to pass through were not a deviation of God's plan but a part of the plan all along. 

Retrieving the plates was probably the hardest thing any of the four brothers had ever been asked to do. This experience tried and stretched them, but more importantly it molded them and shaped them into the people that God needed them to be.

Laman was willing to approach Laban first, but to no avail. He was even willing to enter a second time along side his brothers to offer all of their worldly possessions to purchase the Brass Plates but again they were chased out. At this point the trial became too much for the Eldest brothers. Nephi's faith was the only one strong enough to trust God for a third time.

Upon entering the city, Nephi finds his faith tested even farther then before when he finds Laban on the ground next to his sword and is commanded to kill him. For a moment his "go and do" attitude falters. For the first time "his heart shrunk" away from the task the Lord had given him. But even through this most testing moment Nephi, consciously aligns his will with God and "obeys the voice of the Spirit" and 

proves himself faithful once again.

Why didn't God "deliver Laban into his hands" the first time around? Why was Nephi subjected to repeated failure, loss of all his worldly possessions, beatings by the hand of his own brothers and then finally forced to stand on his own to face what easily could have been his death? Probably for a lot of reasons but in the end he went completely on faith. He was "led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which he would do." Only then was he ready. It was always God's plan for Nephi to return home with the Brass Plates. God was always willing to deliver the plates into his hands, but Nephi and his brothers had a few things to learn along the way.

Like this experience, our trails are not a deviation away from God's plan but part were always apart of our story. God has big plans for us, much bigger then we have for ourselves. As we strive to become the best man or women we can be, God is working hard to make us into Gods, fit for his kingdom. 

Sometimes our trails are caused by careless others who break hearts and burn bridges. Sometimes our trails come because we fall short and have to learn from the consequences of our actions. But a lot of the time our trials come because the world is difficult, the world is unfair, but with God nothing is wasted. He is refining us, He is preparing us. 

Paul understood this perfectly. When referring to the Savior, he said, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him."

Notwithstanding My Weakness

Often times as a missionary I feel inadequate compared to the task laid ahead of me. The Lord has called me to be his servant and has placed me in some very humbling circumstances. I have visited the home of a young widow who is struggling to find direction for her family. I have listened with broken heart to the remorse of a grown man who wished he had done different. I have been witness to the results of abuse and neglect that has impacted a women's whole world. 

As my heart breaks for the sweet people that The Lord has led me to, I feel I can do little more then pray. Pray that this gospel can find place in their hearts, pray that God will heal up their wounds and broken hearts. Never before have I really understood the responsibility to "mourn with those that mourn".

I think all of us feel that we fall short of what is expected of us. We compare our weaknesses that we are so familiar with to others strengths. We don't know how we can possibly fill the shoes of those who went before. Our only hope being that God will make up for our list of shortcomings.

Even prophets notice their weaknesses. Nephi persisted in a major task “notwithstanding my weakness.”(2 Ne. 33:11). Jacob, wrote of his “over anxiety” for those with whom he was not certain he could communicate adequately. (Jacob 4:18) Our latter-day prophets have met those telling moments when they have felt as if they could not meet a challenge. Yet they did. Teachings of the Prophets: Spencer W. Kimball tells this story,

"On July 8, 1943, President J. Reuben Clark Jr. of the First Presidency called Spencer at home. He said that Spencer had been called to fill one of the two vacant seats in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. To this, Spencer responded: “Oh, Brother Clark! Not me? You don’t mean me? There must be some mistake. I surely couldn’t have heard you right. … It seems so impossible. I am so weak and small and limited and incapable.” Spencer assured President Clark that there could be only one response to a call from the Lord, but his willingness to serve did not immediately overcome his feelings of

inadequacy and unworthiness.

"Those feelings intensified over the next few days, during which Spencer had little or no sleep. While he was in Boulder, Colorado, to visit his son, he went walking in the hills early one morning. As he climbed higher and higher, he reflected on the magnitude of the apostolic office. He was tormented by the thought that he might not measure up, that his calling might have been some mistake. In this frame of mind, he approached the peak of the mountain he was climbing, where he fell in prayer and meditation. “How I prayed!” he recalled. “How I suffered! How I wept! How I struggled!” As he agonized, a dream came to him of his grandfather Heber C. Kimball and “the great work he had done.” This awareness calmed Spencer’s heart. “A calm feeling of assurance came over me, doubt and questionings subdued. It was as though a great burden had been lifted. I sat in tranquil silence surveying the beautiful valley, thanking the Lord for the satisfaction and the reassuring answer to my prayers.” On October 7, 1943, at age 48,

Spencer W. Kimball was ordained an Apostle."

I know that The Lord qualifies those that he chooses!

I know that our weaknesses can become strengths through Him. 

Broken Things to Mend

A Talk by Jeffery R. Holland

The first words Jesus spoke in His majestic Sermon on the Mount were to the troubled, the discouraged and downhearted. “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” He said, “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” I speak to those who are facing personal trials and family struggles, those who endure conflicts fought in the lonely foxholes of the heart, those trying to hold back floodwaters of despair that sometimes wash over us like a tsunami of the soul. I wish to speak particularly to you who feel your lives are broken, seemingly beyond repair.

To all such I offer the surest and sweetest remedy that I know. It is found in the clarion call the Savior of the world Himself gave. He said it in the beginning of His ministry, and He said it in the end. He said it to believers, and He said it to those who were not so sure. He said to everyone, whatever their personal problems might be:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29

He is saying to us, “Trust me, learn of me, do what I do. Then, when you walk where I am going,” He says, “we can talk about where you are going, and the problems you face and the troubles you have. If you will follow me, I will lead you out of darkness,” He promises. “I will give you answers to your prayers. I will give you rest to your souls.”

My beloved friends, I know of no other way for us to succeed or to be safe amid life’s many pitfalls and problems. I know of no other way for us to carry our burdens.

I promise you He is not going to turn His back on us now. When He says to the poor in spirit, “Come unto me,” He means He knows the way out and He knows the way up. He knows it because He has walked it. He knows the way because He is the way.

Brothers and sisters, whatever your distress, please don’t give up and please don’t yield to fear. “Be not afraid, only believe.”

If you are lonely, please know you can find comfort. If you are discouraged, please know you can find hope. If you are poor in spirit, please know you can be strengthened. If you feel you are broken, please know you can be mended.

May we all, especially the poor in spirit, come unto Him and be made whole, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, amen.