Hi sweet friend! One update before I share this edition… A few housekeeping things!
Second, my book deadline is approaching next week with BCC Press. I can’t WAIT to share the book with you when it gets released in April of 2023. Follow along on Instagram at Cherished Doctrine for all of the updates about the book!! Now, onto my post:
During mortality, there are many things we will wait to be resolved. Some of these things may not be resolved until we cross to the other side of the veil. There are moments in our lives when our backs are against the wall, and we are at the mercy of life as well as others’ agency in order to move forward. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, as some of the people I love most in my life have been facing these scenarios. These trials of patience and faith have recently looked like waiting on a job offer, a house to sell, a promotion to go through, and finding a home to live in. For two dear friends it’s been cancer-waiting for the results that the treatment has worked. For another, it’s been waiting for a sick child to be released from the hospital. I’ve been facing a trial of patience and faith in my own life. The actual trial is unimportant- what I want to share with you today is how the Lord responded to my pleadings.
Late one night early last week, I felt that I couldn’t be patient any longer for the thing I’ve been waiting for. I realized that I had taken all of my concerns and frustrations to the people involved, but not to the Lord! I finally took it to the Lord in earnest prayer. I asked,
“Have I offended thee in some way? Did I do something wrong to cause this trial? Is there anything I can offer to thee to resolve this? Fasting? Temple attendance? I don’t mean to demean thee by bargaining, but I would sacrifice anything that thou would ask me to in order to gain forward motion and a resolution on this issue.”
I still get teary when I think about the Lord’s response to my pleadings. Here is the response that I recorded in my journal after praying:
Fear not. Doubt not. Be of good cheer.1 Your decisions and obedience have been right and good. My heart aches for you in this. I ask you to sacrifice your anxiety. Be in the present and soak up every moment of this time with your precious girls. Please know that I will comfort you anytime you ask. How I love you and am well pleased in you!
Friend, this is my Jesus. I testify of His mercy and long-suffering. His compassion and His great love for us.
I know that my relationship with the Lord isn’t transactional. We’ve studied in Isaiah 58 this week that the law of the fast is a gift from God. I am grateful to have this gift available. Have you ever felt that you would sacrifice or offer anything to the Lord in order for some trial to be resolved? I felt this way this week- I really was brought to my knees. I reached the place where I would have given anything to ease the burden.
He didn’t ask me to fast. He didn’t ask me to do more work in gathering Israel, or to do any other needful thing in building His kingdom as an offering. He asked me to do something that will benefit me immediately. He also knew it would be hard for me to do- I am naturally anxious! He knew that this would make me grow. I have felt myself, layer by layer, releasing the grip of tension and anxiety surrounding this part of my life. I have felt myself trusting in Him more- in His care surrounding the progress of this part of my life, His ability to intervene on my behalf, and His shouldering more than His share of the burden in the yoke2.
I have realized that it is in the waiting that the Lord uses that time to orchestrate circumstances for our benefit. Whether those are tangible, favorable effects such as the outcome being what we prayed for (or better!), OR growing spiritually by learning to trust Jesus when there is no sign of receiving what we want. From an eternal perspective, either way, we are victorious. My love for the Savior only grows with each step I walk with Him, and my burden is lifted, even if the situation doesn't change.
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God3
Read “Waiting on the Lord” by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Isaiah 40:28-31, Alma 32: 41-43, Doctrine & Covenants 123:17, John 5:2-9
Recall Recall a time in which you were waiting for a resolution to a trial or an answered prayer. How did you know the Lord was with you in it?
Reflect How did you grow from waiting?
Reclaim Make a list of all of the attributes of Christ that you have learned about through walking a trial with Him beside you.
John 16:33
Matthew 11:30
Romans 8:28
Artwork is “Find Rest Unto Your Souls” by Eva Timothy