Over the past few days, I was reminded that our trials can either make us stronger or weaker in spirit. Each time we learn from a struggle, we gain wisdom that we can choose to carry with us for the next time that we hit a bump in the road. Or we can let those bumps in the road tear us down until we are calloused and bitter. Sorrow is a funny thing. As we learn and grow in life, our sorrows and trials can help us combat whatever tribulations we have in this life.
I have come to the conclusion that there is so much wisdom in sorrow and he who increases in wisdom increases in grief. This isn’t to say that this means that a person who has been through a lot is inherently wise. Wisdom is a product that only comes after we choose to accept and do our best to combat the sorrows that we experience. When I am having a hard time spiritually, my first instinct is usually to retract myself from anything spiritual. I begin to avoid the things that I know will make my faith stronger. I do this because I feel guilty that I have so many resources available to me to help me grow stronger in my faith. Yet in times of trouble, that is all too oft not what I want. When my faith is shaken, I don't want to jump into doctrines and principles that I know are true because I fear that I’ll find something in them that will further shake my faith. When I have these thoughts, my mind goes to Romans 8:35 whish says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”. Each time I think of this verse, I am once again reminded that tribulation is one of the means by which Satan tries to lead us away from what we know to be true. He flatters us until we listen and then puts us down to the point where we allow ourselves to be separated from Christ until we no longer believe that using the atonement is a possibility. It does us so much good to remember that Christ is always there for us when we need him. It does not matter what we have done or how lost we feel. We are imperfect beings and as such we mess up a whole lot. That is WHY we have the atonement. I have heard the atonement explained this way many times: we live in a world where perfection is beyond our grasp in this life. But the savior is right above us with his hand outstretched to pull us to that perfection through the atonement. All we need to do is take his hand and receive his offering. Whenever I hear or think about the Savior’s outstretched hand, I think of this painting by Greg Olsen. And each time, I am reminded that the Savior will never shorten his reach. I know that for me personally, the wisdom I gain in sorrow is only possible because I am so aware of Christ’s atonement. Without the knowledge of the atonement, I don’t think that I would have the strength or hope that allows me to turn my sorrows into wisdom and for that knowledge, I am so grateful
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
My name is Ellie. I am a sophomore at BYU Idaho. I am excited to live life and to share a small piece of it with you!
Archives
May 2019
Categories
All
Links |