Life is not easy because it was not easy for Him.
"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed...and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth...Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief; when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin." - Mosiah 14:5-10
Many times in life, we wonder, "Why is life so difficult? Why can't it be any easier?" Honestly, I have had those exact same thoughts too. Many times when I was on my mission. In the moments of despair, when no one wanted to listen, when you would work so hard all day just to get doors slammed in your face. "But, why? Why do they reject us? We have the truth. Why don't they jump up and down to know that they can live with Heavenly Father forever?" I believe that every elder or sister have thought that in their mission. And I know for a fact that the missionaries aren't the only ones that go through this stage either, everyone at one point in their lives asks, "Why does this have to be so hard?"
There was one distinct week in my mission that I asked myself this every day of that week. Everyday my companion and I walked up and down every street and alley, knocking every door hoping to find someone to teach. Sunday morning we started our morning prayer and midway through we both broke into tears we couldn't understand in the moment why it was just so hard for us. We pleaded and kept praying to feel comfort and peace. It hurt to think about how hard we had worked and to see no results. Through all our pleading, I felt as if we were in a fog of darkness. In my mind, I saw the darkness and out of the darkness a hand stretched forth. In the middle of the hand there was a giant scar. In that moment as I grabbed that hand the darkness disappeared and our study room was filled with an amazing spirit. We began to realize that we had seen results in our work. We had become closer to our Savior. Our work wasn't in vain!
There was one distinct week in my mission that I asked myself this every day of that week. Everyday my companion and I walked up and down every street and alley, knocking every door hoping to find someone to teach. Sunday morning we started our morning prayer and midway through we both broke into tears we couldn't understand in the moment why it was just so hard for us. We pleaded and kept praying to feel comfort and peace. It hurt to think about how hard we had worked and to see no results. Through all our pleading, I felt as if we were in a fog of darkness. In my mind, I saw the darkness and out of the darkness a hand stretched forth. In the middle of the hand there was a giant scar. In that moment as I grabbed that hand the darkness disappeared and our study room was filled with an amazing spirit. We began to realize that we had seen results in our work. We had become closer to our Savior. Our work wasn't in vain!
We have come to the earth to become more and more like the Savior everyday. Do you believe if we had an easy life we could become like the Savior? Nope, sorry hate to be the downer but we need the sufferings to become like Christ. We need to suffer just to get to know Him on a more personal level. He suffered with patience, with hope, and most of all, with love. He suffered because He loves us. How much are we willing to suffer because we love him? How many times will we go through the fiery furnace of affliction just to be able to become more like Him? We will pass through many hard times in our lives that can appear as the fiery furnace to us. The challenges of life can melt us or purify us to be more like Him. We can think, "Oh this is too hard. I give up." or we can look up to heaven saying, "Thank you for this chance to prove myself. " The choice is ours. The Lord is ever cheering us on to become more like Him. Just recognize He is there and will clearly show you through every rough moment, just like He had done for my companion and I. I promise that as we suffer with hope and patience, we will come to know the Savior personally but also we will become who we were sent to become.
