Week 4

I loved how parts of the reading this week had to do with trials.  I don't know why, but I have been thinking so much about trials lately and how they shape us into better people.  We learned this week that trials can either make you better or bitter.  Trials will make you bitter if you put too much focus on yourself, but they make you better when you focus on your relationship with God and helping others.
Alma 58 had some tips with how to overcome trials and become stronger from them.  The Nephites are struggling against the Lamanites in this chapter, and it is becoming a huge trial.  In verse 10, they start praying for help.  It reads, "Therefore we did pour out our souls in prayer to God, that he would strengthen us and deliver us out of the hands of our enemies, yea, and also give us strength that we might retain our cities, and our lands, and our possessions, for the support of our people."  It is cool to see in this verse what the people prayed for.  Some people would pray for God to take away the trial; however, these people prayed for strength to endure this trial.  They prayed that they would be shaped into the people that God would want them to become.  In verse 11, we see that the burden of the trial becomes lessened.  Interestingly enough, though, nothing about the trial changed.  The trial seems lighter because the people became stronger and their wills aligned with God's.  Verse 11 says, "Yea, and it came to pass that the Lord our God did visit us with assurances that he would deliver us; yea, insomuch that he did speak peace to our souls, and did grant unto us great faith, and did cause us that we should hope for our deliverance in him."

When we pray for the strength to endure trials, Heavenly Father will bless us with the peace, comfort, strength, and faith that we need to overcome.  I like to compare this to Elder Christofferson's story about trimming the currant bush.  When Heavenly Father cuts us down, we can either say "How could you do this to me?" or "Thank you, Mr. Gardener, for cutting me down.  Thank you for loving me enough to hurt me."  We may think that we are making progress in life, but Heavenly Father knows what He wants us to be.  He gives us trials to shape us into the people that will align with His will.  I know that the trials in life will sometimes seem more than we can bear.  However, I also know that Heavenly Father is there to help us overcome and He will help us on our journey to become more like Him.