Another religious post. I have decided that my posts that fall under religion, they are going to be titled the same. That way, you can decide beforehand if you want to read. I do this because I know not all of you share my beliefs, which is totally cool. I apologize for the length, but I feel the things I share are important. These things also give me much peace and comfort. This is a state of happiness for me.
With all the political and religious hubbub over the last few years, I am disheartened by stories of lost faith, distrust, and even hate. I believe many of us, myself included, sometimes lose sight of the bigger picture. We lose sight of how much Heavenly Father loves each one of us. Many think that Heavenly Father has abandoned them, doesn't love them, and that He doesn't accept them. We mistake "acceptance of" to mean both actions and person. God accepts and loves everyone, but he doesn't always accept our actions. Too often we expect blessings to be just handed to us without any effort on our part. We feel as though we are entitled to the world for free. We also believe that we will live without any struggles, heartache, sorrow, offense and that we will live in absolute happiness. There is a tendency to forget that their must be opposition in all things (2 Nephi 2:11). We are here to be tried and tested. Inevitably we are disappointed as we step into the world and learn that most everything comes at a price. As a result we blame God and we stop doing the things that matter the most. We stop being obedient. Then there are the people who struggle so much that their faith slowly dwindles away, and all ultimately come to the same conclusion, hopelessness. Now I have had different struggles of my own, and many have had struggles that make mine look like walks in the park. The thing is they are my own struggles. God gives us struggles that we can handle and withstand, but that doesn't make it any easier. Remember that He "makes weak things become strong unto them." (Ether 12:27) How much might have I received from fighting my battles? God doesn't give up on us, and He only "leaves" if we leave Him. Still He is always willing to come back. Repentance is one of the many "tender mercies" of the Lord. These tender mercies give me much comfort and sometimes joy. I pray they do the same for you.
Tender mercies. Our worlds are full of God's tender mercies. I absolutely love this talk given by Elder David A. Bednar given way back in April 2005, "The Tender Mercies of the Lord". I am going to comment about this talk, but I recommend reading it (or watching it). It is prophetic and pertains so much to our lives today. The phrase of the title comes from 1 Nephi 1:20 with emphasis on the last bit. "But behold I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance." I love this. Not only because I can see these tender mercies in my own life, but I can also see them in others' lives too.
What are the "tender mercies of the Lord?" Elder Bednar describes them beautifully as "the very personal and individualized blessings, strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindness, consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because of and through the Lord Jesus Christ." Elder Bednar goes on to give more examples such as not leaving us alone during trials, our faith, self-confidence, repentance, forgiveness, and "peace of conscience", "persistence and the fortitude that enable us to press forward with cheerfulness through physical limitations and spiritual difficulties" are all tender mercies. I would add to that the gift of the Holy Ghost is definitely a tender mercy. Being someone else's tender mercy is an amazing experience. A previous post of mine was about service. The video I linked at the end about the kids putting money in the stranger's shoes. That man needed that money desperately, and those children were his tender mercy. Be open to give as well as to receive tender mercies. Be God's instrument.
Elder Bednar also testifies that the mercies from the Lord are real, not a coincidence, and they happen at the time we need them. Things happen on the Lord's time. I am reminded of Job. He had it all, but then literally everything was taken away. His whole life was in shambles. Even his friends turned away. He was truly alone. He says of his suffering, "Even today is my complaint bitter." (Job 23) Then he goes on to say, "But he knoweth the way that I take: When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." God, if I remember correctly, let him struggle emotionally and physically to test Job's faith and obedience. He allows all of us to go through trials, heartaches, and all else that ails us. But He also brings the peace, the comfort, and eventually the joy. After everything, the tender mercy that Job experienced was his testimony. Job 19:25-26 "I know that my redeemer liveth [...] And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." Job chose to remain obedient. As a result of Job's faith and obedience, he received so much more than he had before, truly a tender mercy. D&C 121:7-8 says "My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes." And verse 46 "The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion." How beautiful a promise, and how true for all of us. Still the timing of these blessings are in the hands of God. I know I have had times when I had to wait for my answer. Getting married did not come when I planned, but looking back, I certainly wasn't ready. I planned to get married by age 20 or 21. At that age, I was just diagnosed with T1diabetes. I was trying to figure out my disease and adjusting. I was in no shape to get married. That fantasy husband and I would never have been able to afford the expense of supplies and doctors, and we would never have survived my depression. It was a tender mercy that God brought Hubs into my life when He did five years later. Now there is my plea for children. I have been frustrated, angry, sad, jealous, and resentful. I am trying to remember and have faith that Heavenly Father will bless Hubs and I with children when we are ready. Perhaps right now we just aren't, or we have lessons to learn. Perhaps our lack of children right now is a tender mercy in other respects that we are available to people and family who need us. "Often, the Lord's timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them," says Elder Bednar. Faithfulness, obedience, and humility invite tender mercies into our lives, and it is often the Lord's timing that enables us to recognize and treasure these important blessings."
As I mentioned earlier, the world of late, is in a state of pandemonium. It is times like these that we need the Lord's hands in our lives more than ever. I was amazed and heartbroken when I saw a Facebook comment saying that no one, not religion, not even God himself, should dictate how we live our lives. That God will accept us and our life just as it is, no conditions. To me this seems like such a hopeless directionless life. It's like raising a child with no rules or boundaries, allowed to run amok. How many blessings are we missing out on if we cut God out of our lives. Life is hard. I understand how hard it is when trials are raging. I know how easy it is to lose patience. But it's also times like these when we learn who our true friends are, and we can feel so much love from family and other loved ones. That is a tender mercy. "We should not underestimate or overlook the power of the Lord's tender mercies. The simpleness, the sweetness, and the constancy of the tender mercies of the Lord will do much to fortify and protect us in the troubled times in which we do now and will yet live. When words cannot provide the solace we need or express the joy we feel, when it is simply futile to attempt to explain that which is unexplainable, when logic and reason cannot yield adequate understanding about the injustices and inequities of life, when mortal experience and evaluation are insufficient to produce a desired outcome, and when it seems that perhaps we are so totally alone, truly we are blessed by the tender mercies of the Lord and made mighty even unto the power of deliverance." This wisdom from Elder Bednar I believe is saying, if and when we recognize these tender mercies, which are powerful, will make us mighty to withstand anything. Earlier in this post I mentioned that God cannot do everything for us, we have to do our part. We have our agency to choose our paths in life, and God will help guide us if we allow Him to do just that. Our actions determine His reactions.
The talk goes on to explain who qualifies for God's tender mercies. In the scripture that I began with in 1 Nephi, it says "the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith." Chosen is a key word, but it does not mean that somebody is more blessed with the tender mercies than others. They are available to all. "Rather," Elder Bednar says, "it is our hearts and our aspirations and our obedience which definitively determine whether we are counted as one of God's chosen. [...] As we learn in [...] scriptures, the fundamental purposes for the gift of agency were to love one another and to choose God. Thus we become God's chosen and invite His tender mercies as we use our agency to choose God." Simply put, choose God, and He will choose you. Turning yourself over to God, living with faith and obedience, will expose the tender mercies we all so dreadfully need. "Our work is to keep His commandments with all of our might, mind, and strength-- and we thereby become chosen and, through the Holy Ghost, receive and recognize the tender mercies of the Lord in our daily lives." Faith and obedience are what binds God's promises to us.
Now I know this is a long post, but I believe it is so crucial to our outlooks on life's trials. The common theme is that God will bestow his tender mercies on His time, and according to our faithfulness. I have witnessed and felt many of His tender mercies in my life and of those around me. They bring me so much peace, comfort, and joy. I know they can do the same for you, if you allow God to do His wonders.
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