Lots of cool insights from the last few days- I'd like to try to convey them in this post, so I apologize in advance if you have trouble connecting all my ideas together. Here we go!
So I was able to talk with two amazing women in the last couple of days, who have both been through so much while here on earth. The scripture that came to mind while I was talking with both of them was Job 23:10 "But he knoweth the way that I take; when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." The pure love, true joy, peace, and light that radiated from both these women was a huge testimony to me of the power of the refiner's fire.
Although I met these women independently of one another, both had some amazing parallels in the trials they shared, and also who they decided to become through living the gospel of the Jesus Christ. Both women had been married relatively young and found themselves within an abusive marriage. One told me how her husband was an extremely charismatic guy, seemed to be amazing to everyone else, but once it was just them, emotionally manipulated and abused her. Year and after year, she pleaded with God that he would change and embrace the gospel in his life again, but it seemed as though her prayers were going unanswered. Eventually, she ended up finding out that he had an affair and he left the church, so she decided it was best to move on and get a divorce. There was a lot of hurt, pain, and warped truth- she said it was so difficult for her to recover her trust towards men after such a negative marriage. Although she never would have guessed it in a million years- she is so grateful for all the trials she experienced with her first husband- she is now happily married to a worthy, proactive priesthood holder, and together, they are raising a family centered in the gospel of Jesus Christ. She has told me that she knows because of the sorrow and pain she has experienced, she has a much deeper capacity to help others through similar situations.
Other woman I spoke with found herself in a physically abusive marriage. It was terrifying for her to never know when he would strike next, and she feared for both her and her children's safety. After divorcing this man, this incredible woman, a single mother for 15 years after that, focused her energy and efforts towards God and Jesus Christ. Through their help, she was able to support her 3 kids for the next decade or so, until she and her current husband met. They are amazing together! And there is so much peace and light that radiates from them both.
Anyhowsers, both women had such pure, stalwart testimonies of the importance of keeping the gospel of christ in their lives. They both testified of how that had been the only way they had made it through such challenging and dark times. They both shared how grateful they are now that things unfolded the way they did- and how they are still working on it- but they have experienced a beautiful amount of healing thanks to the atonement of Jesus Christ.
And that is the amazing thing about the gospel. We are not promised that we will get off without any challenges, heartache, or pain. On the contrary, we knew full well we were signing up for some pretty messed up experiences here on earth- but we trust in the promises of our Father. We trusted (and still trust) that through the atoning sacrifice of Christ, our trials have the ability to refine us. We can choose to allow our pains and our afflictions to shape us into beings that can love beyond ourselves, beings that can reach out and help others who struggle even when we don't have it all together. I truly know that your study about being merciful is a huge part of our test here in mortality. Forgiveness is such a beautiful and heavenly trait- and honestly, unless we have made a mistake and experienced the beauty of mercy for ourselves, it is next to impossible to apply that trait to someone else.
As we incorporate the gospel of Jesus Christ into our lives daily, we will develop the ability to apply forgiveness to ourselves when we mess up, which in turn, will allow us to exercise mercy to those around us. As we hone these wonderful skills here on earth, we are preparing ourselves for our divine existence when we are reunited with our Father in Heaven once again. And like you said, it is definitely not about getting it right- or even about the end goal- it is all about how we get there.
I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is there to transform us into our best selves- and it is also here to provide shelter from the crazy storms of life, because seriously, mortality is no picnic. Well most days ;) I love you oh so much and I am so grateful for your diligence, testimony, and light you share!
Much love,
Emily
Holy cow, your study was AWESOME! And well said. I don't know why you were worried about the organization of your thoughts because it made complete sense. Thank you for your study. It reminds me of something that I've been wanting to work on: gratitude. With all the confusing stuff going on, sometimes I have lost sight of those little messages from God. Sometimes I have closed my heart in fear. But a merciful God has guided me to open it again, to understanding, and to light. One of the biggest lights in our lives is the gospel of Jesus Christ! I am so grateful for it. When we are confused and fearful, we've got to remember all that great stuff you said. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is like having Christ in our boat--the apostles still were afraid during the storm when Christ was sleeping. When I read that, I think, "Hold up apostles. you had Christ in your boat for goodness sake!" But here I am doing the same thing, going through the storms of life, sometimes being freaked out saying, "Why are you sleeping?! We are perishing." We have the gospel of Jesus Christ which means we have Christ in our boat. I definitely have to work on taking the storms with calm. But luckily God is merciful and He is teaching me how to be so too...especially with myself. This was a lot of thought..you inspire me:) Love you!
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