We checked several places and asked if we could stay for the night. We were declined multiple times. 

We felt exhausted, hungry, cold, and lost as we checked every place we could find. We were almost in tears but we believed that God would lead us to a place where we could find refuge.

He finally led us to a place where we would be safe from the typhoon we knew so little about. 

However, when we thought we were finally safe, we heard people talking about how we should not have been welcomed to that evacuation shelter since we were not locals. They wanted us out so other locals could stay. 

Tears started running down my face as I hid away from the crowd, asking God what we should do. No one wanted to accept us. No one wanted to let us in. I was in pain and was heartbroken.

And in that moment of pain and loneliness, I felt an overwhelming warmth as I remembered how Joseph and Mary also once experienced this similar dilemma. They too had to knock on multiple doors when Mary was about to give birth to the savior Jesus Christ. 

The Lord Understands Every Pain We Go Through Because He Has Gone Through Them

From birth to death, Jesus didn’t have an extravagant life. He was born in a lowly manger. He grew up in a humble and simple family with nothing much. He was bullied by non-believers. He was called names, chastised, and was not always welcome in the places he went. 

Elder David A. Bednar shared, “You and I in a moment of weakness, may cry out, no one understands, no one knows. No human being perhaps knows. But the son of God perfectly knows and understands for He felt and bore the burdens before we ever did.”

Your pain from being unappreciated, abandoned, losing a loved one, from being alone, being chastised, being ridiculed, insulted, falsely accused, physically hurt, betrayed, and every other pain you feel, He has felt it all. When you think no one understands, or that no one cares, He does. He understands, and He definitely cares. When you think that no one is on your side, remember that the Savior Himself is on your side. 

As I remembered these things while I was hiding away, crying, I was comforted knowing that someone knows exactly how I felt. It was bittersweet knowing that my savior bore these pains way before I ever did. My hunger, exhaustion, loneliness, and pain of rejection, He felt and had gone through it all even more times than I ever did or will in my entire life. 

The Lord will always be with us and can deliver us through our trials by sending us His angels and miracles

Elder Ulisses Soares said, “No matter the obstacles we face in this life we can trust that the Lord will provide a way for us.”

As my thoughts were drawn to the comforting truth that the Lord understands my pain and my situation and was wiping my tears away, my husband found me and listened as I shared how I felt. He assured me that He understood me and that everything would be alright.

I came back to the room where my family was, and I saw their smiles. I learned that a stranger came and offered to help us, out of nowhere. He spoke to the people who wanted us out, and we were given room to stay, and even supplies to help us be more comfortable during our stay. 

It was a teaching experience that the Lord will always provide a way for us, even if it’s not in the way we think or want, and many times sends us miracles along the way. He can turn painful events in our life into miracles. Experiencing that hardship reminded me that God uses painful events to strengthen us and to also help us understand other people better like He understands each of us.

Sometimes, the Lord will also send someone to you, maybe a neighbor, a colleague, a friend, or even a stranger, just to help you and show you that He has not abandoned you. He will send His angels to lift you up, guide you, and help you feel His love. 

Jesus Christ is the light of the world and can light even the darkest times in our lives

I may have experienced pain and felt alone that time, but it was just for a moment. What was left behind was the feeling of love and light.

All this pain comes with a purpose and that may be different for all of us, but ultimately, it is to strengthen us and foster a stronger sense of gratitude. If you feel like you are on a dark and narrow path right now, remember that Christ’s light will always be with you, lighting every step of the way, enough for you to return back to Him.

To learn more about healing through the Savior Jesus Christ, read To My Friends Who Feel Broken: You Can Feel Whole Again.

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“He probably wouldn’t want anything to do with someone like me,” she thought. “God loved me, but I’m sure I’ve disappointed him… So what’s the use?” Jane’s not the only person to think they’re no longer worthy of heaven’s love because they made a mistake or even a series of mistakes. 

We all have weaknesses. We all make mistakes. And sometimes it’s hard not to wonder if our weaknesses and mistakes make us worth less as a person or less deserving of love. Often, the persistent thought tugging at the back of our minds is that our mistakes define us. But the truth is, they actually refine us.

Understanding Who We Really Are

One of the many reasons we may drift away from our divine identity is that we simply don’t know it. Knowing our divine nature and our absolute worth can help us understand and overcome even the heaviest challenges we face.

What is divine identity? Divine means of, from, or like God. Since we are children of heavenly parents, this makes us the sons and daughters of The King of all kings. You and I are children of God.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared,

Of course, there will be times when we hear voices telling us that we are foolish to believe that we are divine or special, trying to convince us that we are worthless, ugly, good for nothing, talentless, or that we are our mistakes. But may we all remember that our mistakes and weaknesses do not define who we are.

Knowing Who You are Can Help You Overcome Sin and Guilt

The Lord rejoices when we repent and strive to avoid repeating our sins intentionally. Repentance brings us closer to Him since and helps us know Him better and deeper. Sins cause us deep and heavy feelings of burden, so God has given us a way to remove this burden, and that is why repentance is a joyous process. He gave us a way to be cleansed from our sins because He loves us. And we must be cleansed from our sins so we can go back to His presence.

If you have committed mistakes, big or small, Satan tries to make you feel worthless. You may feel that because you have not met your goals or other people’s expectations, that you’re not as good as others around you. You may have compared yourself to others who look like they are doing “better” in life. You may have even felt that God doesn’t love you anymore or has forgotten about you because of the sin you’ve committed. Don’t let these mistakes and weaknesses keep you from coming to Christ, think that you are not good enough for Him, or think that His love is only for those who have not sinned.

Jesus Christ did not die for perfect people; He did not sacrifice His life for those who have it all figured out. He did not come to earth and preach for the ones who knew it all. Because none of us are perfect, have it all figured out, or know it all, no matter what it looks like on the outside. He came here for all of us who’ve sinned, regardless of the gravity of the sin, for all of us who have weaknesses, for all of us who don’t have it figured out or who are struggling. He did all of that because you are of great worth to Him! 

There is the definite truth that your worth does not rely on whether you’ve done great things in life or not. It does not rely on the mistakes or good things you’ve done. In the eyes of our Almighty God, your worth is the same.

If your sins ever feel like heavy burdens, or if you’ve drifted away from God because of the mistakes you’ve made, this does not mean that God loves you less. There will always be hope for you to come to Him and be forgiven. He will always welcome you back with arms wide open, ready to embrace you with warmth and love, because you are His beloved precious child.

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Become highly favored of the Lord. The prophet Nephi went through many afflictions, but he was able to thrive because he “[was] highly favored of the Lord in all [his] days.” Some might think that having the most powerful being favor us must be very hard to achieve. Afterall, it is the prophet Nephi we are trying to emulate here. Nephi’s story provides us with guidance on how we can gain the favor of the Lord.

One of the most quotable passage in the Book of Mormon is Nephi’s obedient response to his father’s request that he return to Jerusalem to obtain important records. He said, “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded…”. On many occasions, Nephi was commanded to do something that seemed impossible to accomplish, but in all these occasions, the Lord provided a way for Nephi to accomplish the things that the Lord had commanded him.

But it was not a ‘walk in the park’ for Nephi. The Lord did not simply provide a way for him. Nephi had to exercise his faith first and then do what the Lord had asked of him. When Nephi and his brothers went back to Jerusalem to get the plates of brass, their first 2 attempts failed. His brothers wanted to give up, but Nephi, believing that God would provide a way for them to get the plates, went into the house of Laban and was successful in getting the plates for his family.

We learn from Nephi’s story that the Lord favors those who have faith in Him and seek to do His will, even during troublesome times when trials weigh our souls down. He favors those who seek the mysteries of God and desire to know His will. He favors those who roll up their sleeves and go about doing the Lord’s work. The Lord has promised, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him”. He further added, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love”.

Respond with Grace. In one of the wars recorded in the Book of Mormon, Moroni, an army commander, wrote to the Nephite governor, Pahoran, condemning him for not sending supplies and reinforcements to his armies who were in dire need. Moroni wrote this not knowing that Pahoran himself was in trouble and had been cast out by a rebellious faction of his own people.

Given Pahoran’s circumstances, he could have responded with anger but instead, he responded with consideration and grace, explaining his circumstances and reassuring Moroni that they were still fighting for the same cause.

During difficult times, we need to respond graciously and with forgiveness more than ever. Pahoran’s response to Moroni prevented two righteous men from becoming enemies and strengthened their relationship even more. We, too, can choose to respond with grace like Pahoran and seek to understand when we are misunderstood, to speak with compassion when we are spoken harshly of, to have patience when others are losing theirs, and to continue to love even when there is little left to love.

Difficult times can either bring us together or tear us apart. When the choice is placed before us, may we always choose the former.

Endure to the End. In the Book of Mormon, we read about the magnitude of difficulties that Lehi faced on their journey to the Promised Land—starvation, fatigue, his oldest sons’ rebellion, and accusations of being a visionary man who was leading his family to perish in the wilderness, among many others.  Lehi described his heartache and pain, describing his journey as the “days of [his] greatest sorrow”. Amidst the difficulties he faced, he could have easily turned away from God. Instead, he continued to trust in the Lord with such resolute faith and endured the challenges he faced to the end of his days.

We learn from Lehi’s experience that we can’t just sit and chill and wait for a happy ending. His life teaches us that endurance doesn’t simply mean to “hang in there” until the end of our lives. It means seeing our trials as God’s way to temper us in fire and try us in the waters of adversity to help us become as refined as fine steel.  It means growing our faith and striving to keep God’s commandments. It means “patient continuance in well doing”. It means desiring to share the gospel of Jesus Christ and acting upon that desire. It means trusting and relying upon His love and grace to sustain us through difficult times.

And when we have reached the end of our days, we may be able to echo what Lehi wrote shortly before his death, “The Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.”

Difficult times are inevitable. It is necessary for our refinement, but we have also been given guidance through the scriptures on how to face these challenges and thrive in the midst of them. The Book of Mormon is one of the many scriptures that God has prepared to guide us. May we turn to it to seek the Lord’s counsel not only during difficult times in our lives but every day as we seek to know His will.

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With the recent corona virus pandemic that has already infected thousands of individuals and affected families, communities, and nations across the world, some of us might be wondering if we’re going to survive this crisis. It is uncertain when the spread of the corona virus will slow down, as confirmed cases continue to rise exponentially. But we can be certain that God is aware of us and He has long been preparing us to cope with this unique challenge.

At the beginning of 2019, the Church introduced the new home-centered, church-supported approach to gospel learning. This new approach has been designed to strengthen family relationships and testimonies and help make the home a place of reverent learning about the Lord Jesus Christ and His gospel.

Looking back when it was first introduced, it seemed hard to accomplish but we have seen families make adjustments for their homes to be more conducive to gospel learning, noticed individuals become more careful with the language they use at home, felt stronger family bonds, and seen our homes become places of greater reverence, worship, and refuge.

A little over a year after this new approach was introduced, we have been counseled to do Sunday worship at home because of the corona virus pandemic. Coincidence? The answer is a resounding no. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell emphasized, “coincidence is not an appropriate word to describe the workings of an omniscient God. He does not do things by ‘coincidence’ but … by ‘divine design.’” The Lord has instructed our living prophet to implement these changes to prepare us for this trying time.

We have also been counseled to store food that will sustain us for 3 days up to a year. In the Old Testament, Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream to mean they needed to store food to prepare for the famine. We, too, have been counseled to make preparations for critical times in our lives such as natural disasters, unemployment, pandemic, and other unexpected circumstances.

There have been community quarantines and/or city lock downs in many cities around the world. This could mean a decrease in food supply and other goods necessary for survival. This is a time when food storage has become very beneficial, not only to us and our families, but also to those people whom God will put in our paths to feed and succor.

There will no doubt be many opportunities to extend a hand and become a blessing to others—widowers, those who do not have priesthood holders at home, those living in a part-member family, or even a stranger that we might be prompted to assist in any way.

As we face this pandemic, we can be comforted that the Lord is in the details of our lives. He knows our circumstances and needs. He hears our silent petitions. He can feel our fears. Through President Nelson, He wants to assure us that this crisis “will pass in due time.” He has promised to sustain us and provide the spiritual nourishment, peace, hope, and light to each of us who will continue to seek and hear Him.

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I lost my father to cancer recently and here are three important lessons that I learned from his battle with the disease.

There is faith in not being healed

Countless prayers were offered, asking God to heal my father, but he was not healed. I mourned and grieved over my father’s death but I was not angry with God. I knew that my prayers and all the prayers that were said for my dad were heard, but it was not God’s will for him to be healed. Whenever I pleaded that God would heal him, my faith did not depend on the outcome I was hoping to receive. I did not have the faith that He would heal him, rather, I had faith that He could heal my father and that whatever the outcome, it would be His will and I was willing to accept it. Having this kind of faith terrified me at first because it meant that the Lord’s plan might include losing my father. But submitting my will to God and trusting that He has a purpose to everything allowed me to come closer to Him and brought me to a deeper understanding of the Plan of Salvation. I have come to appreciate and feel more gratitude for the blessings of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and families that are sealed together for eternity.

Illness is not a punishment, but a part of life

At times, I asked why a good husband and father would be stricken with a chronic illness. He had done nothing terrible to deserve such terrible suffering. As I asked this question quietly in my mind, I was reminded that being mortal with a body of flesh and bones means that everyone is subject to illness and the pains of this world. I realized that there will always be some kind of trial or hardship in someone’s life, not because God wants to punish us, but because it is part of our mortal existence. It just so happened that my father’s trial was in the form of a chronic illness. Having this knowledge and understanding helped me to feel peace and comfort when my father was battling cancer. It also helped me to rely heavily on God’s abundant mercy to help us bear the burden easier.

“There is always something left to love”

This is a passage from a play called “A raisin in the sun.” I had to learn this lesson in the hardest way possible. My dad’s body was frail and bedridden. He needed someone to assist him with everything, 24 hours a day. Many times, he became frustrated with himself, and lashed out with angry remarks. He was at the lowest point of his life and it was the most difficult time for my family. It was an emotional roller coaster ride. With all the mixed emotions, someone might wonder if there is anything left to love in the midst of my father’s condition. The answer is a resounding “YES”. If someone were to ask me when I loved my father the most, I would say, “when the world was telling me that there was little left to love, but I still chose to love him with all my heart.” My love for my father is what kept my patience from running thin, my body sometimes staying awake for over 24 hours to care for him, and my voice soft-spoken. It kept me physically, mentally and emotionally strong. During these moments of difficulty, I learned that loving someone during the lowest point of his/her life is when we truly learn how to love the most.

These are lessons that people can learn without going through what I had to go through. But understanding each one in depth will help people bear the burdens of this life with ease and help them cherish the people they love more in sickness and in health.

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