Well, recently I was given a quote from a member of one of the local wards here. I have really enjoyed it, so I thought I would share that with all of you. So, I was talking about some of the not so fun things I have experienced on my mission. I know that way more people that I could even imagine have gone through FAR worse things than I have and this quote was just a nice piece of humble pie you can say. Elder Orson F. Whitney wrote: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God” (quoted in Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle [1972], 98).
What a great quote! As we all take time to look back on hard times that we have gone through we can see lessons that we learned from those hard things. That is part of our Heavenly Fathers plan. He loves us, He loves everyone on this whole planet and He wants us to help each other. The trails that we face that cause us to wonder, "What could I possible learn from this?!" Sometimes these are answers to other peoples prayers. Not that we suffer, but that there is someone else out there that knows what they are going through. Once you have gained these experiences you could help someone going through similar troubles, you will be able to make true friendships with people who need it most. It will bring the people you help a great deal of joy and it will also bring you joy because you helped someone. So now, I challenge all of you to reflect on some of your own trials that you have experienced and think of someone you know that could use your help, be the friendly voice that you were searching for when you were struggling and help them.
I love this! It's amazing the ways that God helps us realize that He is there for us. I often find myself asking, "Why me?" or "Really, now?!" and I have to just step back and know that God is going to help me with whatever I need. He wants to help me and I just need to ask. In the end I come out a better person and I am closer to my Father in Heaven. His plan and his timing are always better than mine.
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