I meant these words when I wrote them for another family, and I told them so. It made them all the more powerful when I found myself reading them for myself. It is one thing to know the answers, it is quite another to find yourself asking the questions. Please tread lightly, this is tender ground.
An ancient
prophet named Jacob wrote, “Time passed away with us, and also our lives passed
away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people,
wanderers cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation, in a wilderness, and
hated of our brethren, which caused wars and contentions; wherefore, we did
mourn out our days.” (Jacob 7:26 – Book of Mormon pg. 135)
He was good man, who was doing his
best to be a good teacher, leader, and disciple. However, his life was still
full of difficult days. He often felt alone. Perhaps one of his most painful
burdens was the betrayal of two of his own brothers who had turned completely
away from God, and from the teachings of their father. Because of their bad choices, generations of
their descendants would come to hate and make war against Jacob’s people.
Jacob was a
compassionate, but straightforward teacher. For example, he once had to give a
very difficult sermon. Many of his own people were starting down a road of
darkness and sin. After talking about some of the things that they needed to
change, he said “ O my brethren, hearken unto my words; arouse the faculties of
your souls; shake yourselves that ye may awake from the slumber of death; and
loose yourselves from the pains of hell…” (Jacob 3:11 – Book of Mormon pg.
123)
So often as
we go through life when our souls are wounded we close our hearts, and our
spiritual eyes. These wounds can come from things that we do, such as making
choices that we know we shouldn’t, and they can also come from things
completely outside of our control. This “slumber of death” seems at first to be
a way that we can find relief from the pain of the here and now, but sooner or
later we find that our burdens are just as heavy, and sometimes heavier, but they
are now buried, and we have worn ourselves out by trying to run away from them.
The Gospel
of Jesus Christ gives us a better way.
Even though we do not always understand why things happen, we can come
to understand his plan for us. We are all of us children of a loving Father in
Heaven. We are all brothers and sisters who are more precious to him than
anything else. In order to give us a place where we could live and grow to
become more like him, he created this beautiful world. In order to teach us about
his plan he has reached out to humanity throughout time and given us prophets,
promises, and scriptures. Finally, in order to give us a way to overcome our
individual and collective failings, God so loved the world that He sent His
only Begotten Son, that man might not perish, but have everlasting life.
At the core
of this plan that I have mentioned, is an essential truth that comes as a great
comfort to us on days such as this one. Life does not begin with birth, nor
does it end with death. Our time here on Earth is a temporary state. Before we
were born we lived with God, and we all chose to come here to follow his plan,
knowing full and well that it would mean that we would have dark days and face
unfair circumstances. Part of the reason that we were willing to leave our home
in heaven to come here to Earth is that we trusted in the plan of happiness
that we had been taught by our Father, and we knew that we could count on our
Savior to help each of us overcome our weaknesses and failings. He promised us
that if we would have faith and trust in him that he would give everything,
even his own life, to make sure that we had a way back home.
When
difficulty comes our way as followers of the Gospel of Christ we may trust in
the promises that God has made to all of us. One of the most beautiful of these
promises is that because Jesus died for us and then was resurrected, one day we
all will overcome death. He promises to judge each of us with perfect justice
and infinite mercy. Meaning that we will only have to answer for things that we
could control. He has provided each of us a way to find forgiveness for our
shortcomings and mistakes.
There are
some things that the scriptures are very clear on. One of those things is that
in the eyes of God, there is nothing in this world that is quite so pure and
innocent as a little child. Jesus taught
his disciples that they had to learn how to trust and be just as teachable as a
small child in order to truly follow him.
(See Luke 18:17 KJV Bible pg. 1310) He has promised us that little
children who die before they have a chance to make their own choices are all
“alive in Christ” and are “partakers of salvation” (See Moroni Ch. 8 – Book of
Mormon pg. 525)
Jacob
understood these doctrines. He understood the plan that God has for all of us.
It is why he was able to have faith even when dealing with difficulty. It is
how he found the strength to help others even when he must have felt alone.
Despite the fact that each of our lives are filled with unique personal
challenges the council that he gave his people can still help us. As we listen with courage, we can awake from
the “slumber of death” and find comfort in the mercy of Jesus Christ.”
“Come with
full purpose of heart, and cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you. And while
his arm of mercy is extended unto in the light of the day, harden not your
hearts. “ (Jacob 6:5 - Book of Mormon pg. 132)
God does
not expect us to pretend to be happy when we aren’t. He doesn’t expect for us
to forget the difficult things that we have had to face. He does ask for us to
trust him, even when it is hard to understand our lives. Our friend Jacob
learned many of these things from his own father, Lehi. In the last recorded
words we have from Lehi to Jacob, we learn that we always have a choice. We
cannot choose our circumstances, and sometimes we cannot even choose how we
feel. But we can always choose to trust in God. We can always choose to have
faith. When we do it gives us power. It brings light into our souls, and makes
us just a little bit stronger. (See 2 Nephi Ch. 2 – Book of Mormon pg. 57)
When we
need it most, the love and light of God can sustain us. It is my humble prayer
that our Loving Father in Heaven will continue to watch over and bless you no
matter where you are in life. I implore you to keep your hearts open. I know it
is not easy, but as you exercise faith you will find in small and simple ways
that God is there and that he cares. I am a witness of his love, and I am
blessed through His grace. I know that he can and will comfort you, very often
through the people around you. To those with eyes to see and ears to hear, who
do not harden their hearts, the hand of God can be seen even in times of severe
trial. I bear this witness in the name
of Jesus Christ, Amen.