"For Whom the Lord Loveth He Chasteneth."

This week I yet again have found myself asking "why is life so hard", "why do bad things happen to good people", and "why we have to pass through trials"? I don't think I have found the perfect answer, but I do want to share some things that have comforted and strengthened me. 

My former,sweet companion, Hermana Smith, always said, "Trials are compliments." When she first started saying that I was like, what the heck does that even mean? Then I read the scripture found in Hebrews 12, "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth."

Elder D. Todd Christofferson has explained three different reasons for why we are chastened, "(1) to persuade us to repent, (2) to refine and sanctify us, and (3) at times to redirect our course in life to what God knows is a better path."

1: I have seen in my life when I am handed a big trial, that I have literally no one else to turn to but my Heavenly Father. These trials have strengthened my relationship with my Father in Heaven because I am finally humble enough to turn my will into His, and acknowledge the need for His help. I wish I wasn't as prideful or stubborn to need a trial to humble me, but I am grateful for the experiences that have strengthened my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  Elder Christofferson also said, "In addition to stimulating our repentance, the very experience of enduring chastening can refine us and prepare us for greater spiritual privileges. Said the Lord, “My people must be tried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them, even the glory of Zion; and he that will not bear chastisement is not worthy of my kingdom.”" (D&C 136:31).


2: Our Heavenly Father has give us this Earthly experience to learn, grow, and experience mortality. And in at least in my own life I have seen personal growth stimulated from trials and difficulties. Robert D. Hales has said, "Tests and trials are given to all of us. These mortal challenges allow us and our Heavenly Father to see whether we will exercise our agency to follow His Son. He already knows, and we have the opportunity to learn, that no matter how difficult our circumstance, “all these things shall [be for our] experience, and . . . for [our] good” (D&C 122:7)." I love the way that James E. Faust  puts it,  

"Into every life there come the painful, despairing days of adversity and buffeting. There seems to be a full measure of anguish, sorrow, and often heartbreak for everyone, including those who earnestly seek to do right and be faithful. The thorns that prick, that stick in the flesh, that hurt, often change lives which seem robbed of significance and hope. This change comes about through a refining process which often seems cruel and hard. In this way the soul can become like soft clay in the hands of the Master in building lives of faith, usefulness, beauty, and strength. For some, the refiner’s fire causes a loss of belief and faith in God, but those with eternal perspective understand that such refining is part of the perfection process."

Through our trials, we can grow closer to Heavenly Father, learn to rely on the Savior, and we have the opportunity to be molded and shaped into the person God wants us to be. 

3: The last reason is to redirect us back to the path of our Heavenly Father. In the speech "The 4th Missionary", Lawrence E. Corbridge has said, "Every Challenge you face, every hard thing you confront, every bad thing that happens to you, every unfairness, every conflict, every sadness, tragedy, every disappointment and heartache, every temptation, and every opposition happens for one purpose only: TO GIVE YOU OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND BY APPLYING IN YOUR LIFE THE TEACHINGS OF JESUS. As you do so you are changed to become more like Him."

I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and doesn't give us trials because He wants to punish us; He is always giving us opportunities to grow and become more like Him and His son, Jesus Christ. James E. Faust reminds us that we are never alone through our trials. "The Divine Shepherd has a message of hope, strength, and deliverance for all. If there were no night, we would not appreciate the day, nor could we see the stars and the vastness of the heavens. We must partake of the bitter with the sweet. There is a divine purpose in the adversities we encounter every day. They prepare, they purge, they purify, and thus they bless.

When we pluck the roses, we find we often cannot avoid the thorns which spring from the same stem."

When I am passing through a trial, I remind myself of a question that Christ asked Peter, "Will ye also go away?". One may think that a trial will be easier without the gospel, without a belief in God. But, I testify that, that is exactly why we have the gospel is to get us through hard times. Christ will never leave our side, and our Father in Heaven will always answer our prayers.  Trials truly are compliments, because the Lord is giving us an opportunity to grow, and to become more like Him and His Son. I hope that we may all be able to answer as did Peter, "Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life."

"One by one" and the sacrament

Some of my  favorite verses in the Book of Mormon are 3 Nephi 11:14-15. Christ has just appeared to the people in the Americas and he tells them,

 "Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world. And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth, and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come."

This scene is so powerful to me. Can you imagine a personal moment with the Savior? To feel of His hands, to feel of His love, to know for a certainty that He lives.  Christ spends a moment with each person in that crowd so that they may know for themselves that He is the Christ. I have always longed for that.

I shared that desire with a friend of mine and he gave me some beautiful insight. He told me that every Sunday we do have that opportunity. L Tom Perry said, "Partaking of the sacrament provides us with a sacred moment in a holy place." When we are baptized, we enter into a covenant where we promise to obey all of God's commandments, and all He asks. We take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ, and strive to be like him. Every Sunday as we partake of the sacrament, (or communion) the bread and water, we renew our baptismal covenants. In the 26th chapter of Matthew we learn of this ordinance:

“And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.

“And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;

“For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matt. 26:26–28).

Taking the sacrament worthily and with purpose is that one on one time with the Savior each week. In a talk given by Don R. Clarke  he shares 5 principles that can improve our sacrament experience. I encourage all of you to read this talk (click on Don R. Clarke's name). He suggests the following:
1:Have a Feeling of Gratitude for the Atonement of Jesus Christ
"The first principle is to have a feeling of gratitude to Heavenly Father during the sacrament for the Atonement of His Son."
2:Remember That We Are Renewing Baptismal Covenants

"The sacramental prayers are a reminder of these covenants. When we partake of the sacrament, we renew our commitment to live up to these covenants. I believe it would be appropriate to memorize the sacramental prayers in our minds and in our hearts. This will help us focus on renewing our baptismal covenants. Whether we were 8 or 80 years old when we were baptized, I hope we will never forget that day and the covenants we made."

3:During the Sacrament We Can Feel Forgiven of Our Sins
President Boyd K. Packer said: “The sacrament renews the process of forgiveness. Every Sunday when the sacrament is served, that is a ceremony to renew the process of forgiveness. … Every Sunday you cleanse yourself so that, in due time, when you die your spirit will be clean.”⁸ Partaking of the sacrament worthily can help us feel like the people of King Benjamin, who “were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience.”⁹
4:We Can Receive Inspiration for Solutions to Our Problems
As we humbly come to sacrament meeting, we can be blessed to feel impressions for solutions to our daily problems. We must come prepared, be willing to listen, and not be distracted. In the scriptures we read, “But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.”¹⁰ We can know what we should do to solve our problems.
5:Partaking of the Sacrament Worthily Will Help Us Be Filled with the Holy Ghost
They had been promised that if they hungered and thirsted after righteousness, they would be filled with the Holy Ghost. The sacramental prayer also promises that if we live up to our covenants, we will always have His Spirit to be with us.¹²

I know that the Savior wants us to feel His presence in our lives. I know that by taking the sacrament with purpose every week we will feel that. I am grateful to a loving Savior who loved us enough to give us a way to share personal, spiritual experiences with Him weekly, through the sacrament.  I add my testimony to Elder Melvin J. Ballard who said, “I am a witness that there is a spirit attending the administration of the sacrament that warms the soul from head to foot; you feel the wounds of the spirit being healed, and the load being lifted. Comfort and happiness come to the soul that is worthy and truly desirous of partaking of this spiritual food.”