Patience, Experience and Hope

I am entering the Epistle of Paul to the Romans. It is really kind of hard and difficult for me to digest and hard to read. There is something that I read that enlightened me.

It is about Abraham’s faith In Romans 4: 18 – 22. Abraham maintained his faith in the Lord’s promise to give him posterity without number, even though by age 100 he had not yet fathered his son Isaac. Abraham “staggered not at the promise of God”, but he continued to hope despite his seemingly hopeless circumstances.

I am thinking of myself. How can I maintain as like Abraham? I know Heavenly Father knows my desires, but I am not sure if that desires is His will for me?

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland encouraged us to be like Abraham in maintaining hope and trusting the divine promise:

“To any who may be struggling to see that light and find that hope, I say: Hold on. Keep trying. God loves you. Things will improve. Christ comes to you in His “more excellent ministry” with a future of “better promises.” He is your “high priest of good things to come.”

“I think of those who suffer from sin—their own or someone else’s—who need to know there is a way back and that happiness can be restored. I think of the disconsolate and downtrodden who feel life has passed them by, or now wish that it would pass them by. To all of these and so many more, I say: Cling to your faith. Hold on to your hope. “Pray always, and be believing.” Indeed, as Paul wrote of Abraham, he “against [all] hope believed in hope” and “staggered not … through unbelief.” He was “strong in faith” and was “fully persuaded that, what [God] had promised, he was able … to perform.”

“Even if you cannot always see that silver lining on your clouds, God can, for He is the very source of the light you seek. He does love you, and He knows your fears. He hears your prayers. He is your Heavenly Father, and surely He matches with His own the tears His children shed.”

“Don’t give up, boy. Don’t you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead—a lot of it—30 years of it now, and still counting. You keep your chin up. It will be all right in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come.”

“Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don’t come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come.”

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

An High Priest of Good Things to Come

October 1999 General Conference

Then I read on further and I came to Roman 5. The first 5 verses, especially verses 3 – 5. I do not know why. May be it was due to yesterday I was thinking a lot about how to make myself happy again? How can I be happy in the state of what I am in now?

I feel comforted by these verses.

It seems as these 3 verses are the answers for my doubts and thoughts yesterday. I should endure well in whatever the things that come to me.

As tribulation would develop the patience that I need, from patience would develop the experiences that I need, and from experiences would develop the hope towards the Savior and Heavenly Father. Our hope in God’s promise will not disappoint us.

I may never know in this life why I face what I do, but I feel that I can grow from those experiences which allow me to become a better person.