O Lord, my heart is exceedingly sorrowful; wilt thou comfort my soul in Christ. O Lord, wilt thou grant unto me that I may have strength, that I may suffer with patience these afflictions which shall come upon me, because of the iniquity of this people.
O Lord, wilt thou comfort my soul, and give unto me success, and also my fellow laborers who are with me—yea, Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and also Amulek and Zeezrom, and also my two sons—yea, even all these wilt thou comfort, O Lord. Yea, wilt thou comfort their souls in Christ.
Wilt thou grant unto them that they may have strength, that they may bear their afflictions which shall come upon them because of the iniquities of this people.
O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee in Christ.
Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our brethren; therefore, give unto us, O Lord, power and wisdom that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee.
And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith."
In my life, I have experienced my greatest sorrows, pain, and heartache because of the poor choices of another. As you look around at the suffering of others, it is hard to witness so many afflictions caused because of wickedness. I find myself asking the very same question spoken by Alma, “O Lord God, how long wilt thou suffer that such wickedness and infidelity shall be among this people?” Almost daily, we hear of a child abused by the very people who should love and protect them. A young father is killed by an intoxicated driver and leaves behind a grieving wife and children. Parents mourn because of the actions of a rebellious child. Children suffer through the heartache of divorce because of the selfishness of a parent. A teenager contemplates taking their own life because of the ridicule of others. And a young girl finds herself feeling alone and isolated because of the unkind words of her friends. Like Alma, I have found myself suffering with a “heart that is exceedingly sorrowful.”
It can be easy to feel overcome with discouragement and despair when trials come because of the actions of someone else. If we had to rely solely on our own capabilities to endure these trials, we would most likely lose hope. Alma asks God, “Wilt thou comfort my soul in Christ . . . wilt thou grant unto me that I may have strength, that I may suffer with patience these afflictions, which shall come upon me, because of the iniquity of this people.” Because of the gift of agency, Alma knew God could not stop the actions of others; therefore, he asked to be given comfort, strength, and patience during his afflictions.
Asking as Alma did requires great faith on our part. Enduring pain because of another may seem unfair, and we may find ourselves asking to have the trial removed. As we read yesterday, I know that the the Lord does visit his people in their afflictions and will ease our burdens.Trials can teach us how to rely on the Lord for strength and give us an understanding of how strong we can be with the Lord’s help. Adversity gives us the opportunity to feel God’s matchless love for each of us. Affliction allows us to feel His comfort of peace when our hearts are heavy. I have spent many nights crying because of pain caused by the actions of another, and when I get down on my knees and plead with the Lord for peace and calm, I feel of His love for me and receive comfort and reassurance that I will be given the strength to endure my afflictions with patience. If your heart is sorrowful, ask the Lord to grant unto you His peace, comfort, patience and strength, and He will bless you because you are His daughter.
Love, Sister Linnell
2 comments:
Thank you, Sis. Linnell.
Such a great reminder. Thank you.
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