A friend of mine referred to this talk on her blog (thanks Devany!!), and I wanted to share it because it is so applicable to so many different circumstances in our lives.
Patience, Nov. 27, 1979, Elder Neal A. Maxwell. It can be found at http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=621.
I found the following passages to be especially meaningful.
Patience is not indifference. Actually, it means caring very much but being willing, nevertheless, to submit to the Lord and to what the scriptures call the "process of time."
Patience is tied very closely to faith in our Heavenly Father. Actually, when we are unduly impatient we are suggesting that we know what is best--better than does God. Or, at least, we are asserting that our timetable is better than His. Either way we are questioning the reality of God's omniscience as if, as some seem to believe, God were on some sort of postdoctoral fellowship and were not quite in charge of everything.
We read in Mosiah about how the Lord simultaneously tries the patience of His people even as He tries their faith (Mosiah 23:21). One is not only to endure, but to endure well and gracefully those things which the Lord "seeth fit to inflict upon [us]" (Mosiah 3:19).
Patience permits us to cling to our faith in the Lord when we are tossed about by suffering as if by surf. When the undertow grasps us, we will realize that even as we tumble we are somehow being carried forward; we are actually being helped even as we cry for help.
I love how Elder Maxwell ilustrates that everything in our lives works together for our good. I have felt that so many times during this experience, though sometimes I have to wipe my eyes so the tears would not distort my vision, and prevent me from seeing the blessings.
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Glad someone actually benefits from what I share, and can share with others. Thanks for your blog Jessee, it keeps my own disappointments in persepective.
ReplyDeleteSweet sweet Jessee. I don't know if you remember me. Portuguese at BYU. Ashley (Radebaugh). I miss you a lot, and have often wondered what you were up to.
ReplyDeleteI'm am speechless. I'm so sorry for your loss. To lose a child must be the most difficult trial to bare, and I'm so sorry that precious Ava is no longer with you. She sounds like such a sweet little angel. You are such a special mama, and I could tell throughout your blog that you were born to be a mother. I pray so hard that you may have this chance again, with little Ava helping you all the way. I know how hard it is to speak to others when you're down, so I don't expect any sort of return on your part. But if I can help with anything. . .let me know. I am crying and praying for you, so I hope somehow it helps. I love you!!
Love, Ashley (Radebaugh) Whimpey
--(Yes. . .I married someone with the last name Whimpey. I went from "Rad" to "Whimpey". Thought you'd like that.)
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