In Job 38:7 we are told that in the beginning, “the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy”
We shouted for joy at the opportunity and blessing of this day—of each day.
God tell us in Moses 1:39 just how important we each are
“For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man”
We are His work. We are His glory.
God told Jerimiah that before he came to earth, he was known of God and was given a specific calling to accomplish on earth.
We are His work. We are His glory.
God has a plan for each of us. He answers our prayers, He guides our life, He prompts and directs us on our path.
In primary, the children are learning a beautiful song that truly captures this very individual message:
Jesus is my Savior, I’m His precious Lamb
Tenderly He guides me, with His gentle hand
Calm are waters where He leads
Green are pastures where He feeds me
Jesus is my Savior, He loves me.
Jesus is my Savior, Jesus knows my name,
For His sheep are numbered, each He loves the same
If my tiny feet should roam, He would seek to bring me home.
Jesus is my Savior, He loves me. He loves me.
Is there a more important message? What a gift the primary is to my life. What a gift the primary songs have been throughout my life. Jesus Is my Savior, He loves me.
We are His work. We are His glory. He leads us and He feeds us. He has a plan for us—for me, for you.
It is our task to trust His plan for us. When our life is difficult, we need to trust His plan. When our life seems to be just going along without a bump, we need to expect a bump and trust His plan. When we are in pain and wondering if He still has a plan for us, we need to trust His plan.
Proverbs 3.5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thing own understaning. In all they ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths”
This life is not a guessing game. He WILL direct your path.
There have been so many times in my life that my life has taken an unexpected, usually abrupt turn—and, my first reaction is typically fear. When I remember to trust, I begin to see a path.
Lead, Kindly Light
"Lead, Kindly Light, amidst th'encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.
I was not ever thus,
nor prayed that Thou shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path;
but now lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years!
nor prayed that Thou shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path;
but now lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years!
So long Thy power hath blest me,
sure it still will lead me on.
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent,
till the night is gone,
And with the morn those angel faces smile, which I
Have loved long since, and lost awhile!
sure it still will lead me on.
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent,
till the night is gone,
And with the morn those angel faces smile, which I
Have loved long since, and lost awhile!
Meantime, along the narrow rugged path,
Thyself hast trod,
Lead, Saviour, lead me home in childlike faith,
home to my God.
To rest forever after earthly strife
In the calm light of everlasting life."
Thyself hast trod,
Lead, Saviour, lead me home in childlike faith,
home to my God.
To rest forever after earthly strife
In the calm light of everlasting life."
For many years, I wanted to see the whole path. I wanted assurance that God did have a plan for me. I wanted to know how many days, weeks, months and oh, please, please not years, before God was going to fulfill His promises to me. In truth, I still find myself wanting to see the whole path, but, I am getting better at ‘one step enough for me’
I have found that my greatest blessings have come while learning to wait for the Lord to answer my prayers. What I wanted immediately, He gave me gradually.
When I was 19, I came to a point of crisis in my testimony. I knew that I needed to know, without a doubt, whether Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and whether the Book of Mormon was true. I knew that if I didn’t know this, I couldn’t keep moving forward in my testimony. I spent two agonizing weeks in prayer and study and thought. I expected the answer to come quickly. It was a righteous desire and I wanted to know truth. The answer didn’t come immediately like I expected, it didn’t come the first day, it didn’t come after the first time I fasted. It didn’t come at the end of the first week. It came, but it didn’t come out of a casual curiosity. It came because I realized I desperately needed to know. When it came, I knew. That two week period, seems short in retrospect but, thankfully, the experience of needing to know and begging God for an answer is still fresh in my heart and in my memory. The answer came with such an overwhelming reassuring still, small voice. I remember where I was standing, I remember how quickly it came. I wasn’t praying at the time. I was standing, looking at a bookshelf. The answer came unmistakably. I knew and I knew God answered me.
There have been countless times when I have been prompted to do something—to go on an errand for the Lord. Sometimes, I have been blessed enough to know that the prompting that I received to serve or help someone else was an answer to a prayer.
My sister Lori was here a few weeks ago and reminded me of a time when she was struggling and I was guided to literally answer her prayer.
Her husband was out of town for a few months and she had four small children. She was exhausted, afraid, and worn out. She knelt down and told Heavenly Father she needed help. Moments later, I knocked on her door. I lived in Provo and she lived in Las Vegas
Oh, how important it is to trust Heavenly Father’s promptings.
I was having an especially difficult time one night just before Thanksgiving. The thought of having my husband gone for many more months was weighing on my mind. I lay awake with a heavy heart asking God to help me figure out how to get through the next days, weeks, months. Where to start, how to find peace and joy during this experience. Alan had just arrived at his assigned military post and we were not always successful in getting daily phone calls. The anxiety of not being able to talk to him when I needed to was weighing down on me. As I was explaining this to my Heavenly Father in prayer, my phone rang. Alan called. The effect of that 2 minute phone call was all that I needed to get my perspective back. Alan had a few minutes of down time and decided that, even though it was near midnight for me, he would call.
I was blessed to be a teacher for many years. There are many sweet experiences that I could share from that period of my life. Two tender memories come to mind:
There was a boy named Michael that came to my class in the spring of the school year. Michael was in foster care and he really struggled to find friends. He was a hard child to connect to. I had not quite pieced the different stories of his recent life together into a cogent story. He had come from out of state and was hoping to reunite with is family soon. His mother was too ill to care for her seven children but, he was hopeful that she would be able to bring the children back together soon. One day, after Michael had been in my class for almost a month, I learned that Michael’s mother had passed away. He asked me if I would come to the funeral. I told him that I would. The morning of the funeral, I had meetings that lasted longer than usual. I had a very busy day and I was trying to tell myself that I would not be noticed at the funeral. I considered not going to the funeral and then decided that I would go to the building and make a quick stop at the viewing and make sure Michael saw me and then slip out. I drove to the building and Michael was standing at the door. He had been waiting for me at the door. Other people had tried to coax him back into the viewing but, he said that he had to wait for me. He ran out to meet me. Gave me a hug and brought me into the viewing where he proceeded to introduce me to 15-20 people. He kept saying, “I knew you would come”. It took my breath away when I realized how close I had come to letting this little boy down.
One of my favorite stories is not about me at all but about two boys that I taught. Rick and Ryan. Rick was an all American kid. He was a red-head freckle faced ten year old that had more energy than ten children combined. He always had a grin on his face and was always out for fun. Ryan was an autistic boy in my class. I was team teaching with another teacher that year and we integrated the special education students into the other 5th grade class. Ryan had limited language skills and had a difficult time in structured situations. He had a delightful personality and many wonderful personality traits. Ryan’s mother called me one Monday morning with an obviously tearful voice as she related this story:
“ On Saturday afternoon, a ten-year old Rick rang the doorbell. Rick asked if he could take Ryan for a ride on the back of his banana seat bike and go around the neighborhood for 10 or 15 minutes. ( Rick had found a banana seat at a thrift store, put it on his bike and headed right over to Ryan’s house. He had not seen these seats before and thought this one would be perfect for gving rides) Rick told Ryan’s mom that he knew Ryan would be ok with it because Ryan was his friend from school. Ryan’s mom said ‘Karen, in the ten years of Ryan’s life, I have never had someone come to the door and say Can Ryan come out to play?”
This dear sweet Rick, did what he always did—he went out of his way to be a friend.
Oh how important it is to trust promptings. To trust that God’s plan for us is our plan. That every day we have a work to do. That each stage of our life requires our prayer and willing heart. Jesus knows your name.
Elijah 1 K 17
8¶And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
9Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a awidow woman there to sustain thee.
10So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of abread in thine hand.
12And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
13And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and
14For thus saith the Lord God of Israel
15And she awent and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
16And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.
17¶And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his asickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
18And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my asin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
19And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
20And he cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
21And he astretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child’s bsoul come into him again.
22And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he arevived.
23And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy ason liveth.
24¶And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth.
As is often the case for us, this woman took courage and followed God against what seemed to be her best plan at the time. She had no more food and no means of procuring more food. God sent His prophet and asked this widow to serve. She served to her capacity and God blessed her for a long time to come. The service was for the prophet as the widow thought that it was, but, God, in his abundant efficiency also used the opportunity to put a mirror up to the woman so that she could see herself anew.
Oh how important it is to trust promptings. To trust that God’s plan for us is our plan. That every day we have a work to do. That each stage of our life requires our prayer and willing heart. Jesus knows your name.
In a conference talk given in April 2005, President Erying reminded us:
“So, the great test of life is to see whether we will hearken to and obey God’s commands in the midst of the storms of life. It is not to endure storms, but to choose the right while they rage. And the tragedy of life is to fail in that test and so fail to qualify to return in glory to our heavenly home.
… He later provided this guidance:
Let me suggest to you four settings in which to practice quick and steady obedience. One is the command to feast upon the word of God. A second is to pray always. A third is the commandment to be a full-tithe payer. And the fourth is to escape from sin and its terrible effects. Each takes faith to start and then to persevere. And all can strengthen your capacity to know and obey the Lord’s commands.
In D&C 122: 7 Joseph Smith receives sobering counsel from the Lord. Joseph was a prisoner in Liberty
God takes what we consider catastrophes and forms them for our good. Know that the pain in your life, if you yoke yourself to God, will always come to good for you. This was God’s promise to Joseph Smith and is counsel for each of us.
In the heavens, we shouted for joy at the news that we would come here to live on earth and to experience mortality. We have been told by God that we are His work, we are His glory. We have been told in prayers and blessings that God has a plan for us. We are having experiences. God taught us through His words to Joseph Smith that we should value experiences. We need experiences. We need opposition. We need to learn to trust God. When we trust God, we want to obey His words and stay on His path.
May we each turn toward God in our hearts and expand our trust in Him enough to obey His promptings and His commandments.
Lead, kindly thou my feet; I do not ask to see the distant scene --one step enough for me.
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