It is not often that I stop to consider the absence of hope and its effect on the human spirit. But I have done a lot of thinking on the topic as of late. Sometimes it seems as if life is so overwhelming that to go on one more day is beyond one’s capabilities. This is where Jesus Christ comes in.
At times when life is as a midnight sky whose brilliant stars are obscured by clouds or pollution, it seems as if those pinpoints of light in our lives are no longer visible. But this could not be further from the truth. When the weight of sorrow, grief and stress seem too heavy to bear, that is when it is important to step out onto your porch and looking into the midnight sky, realize that the God of Heaven and Earth is there and listening.I just read of a man who decided God didn’t exist because his prayers didn’t prevent his parents’ divorce. It seemed perfectly logical to him, but it makes no sense to me . . . not if one truly understands the Plan of Salvation as laid out by our Heavenly Father, accepted and championed by our Savior, Jesus Christ and taught to us by His prophets and apostles, both modern and ancient, across the ages. Their words can be found in the Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price: The scriptures which teach of the word of Jesus Christ, the God of Heaven and Earth.
Moroni, a prophet in the Book Mormon said:
And again, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you concerning hope. How is it that ye can attain unto faith, save ye shall have hope?
And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise.
Wherefore, if a man have faith he must needs have hope; for without faith there cannot be any hope.
And again, behold I say unto you that he cannot have faith and hope, save he shall be meek, and lowly of heart.
If so, his faith and hope is vain, for none is acceptable before God, save the meek and lowly in heart; and if a man be meek and lowly in heart, and confesses by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Christ, he must needs have charity; for if he have not charity he is nothing; wherefore he must needs have charity. (Moroni 7:40-44)
The absence of hope than deters us from gaining the faith that we need to survive this world, actually, more than survive, but literally triumph over it! Life cannot be endured without light and I invite each of you to allow the light of the eternal promise of Jesus Christ, the God of all Christian scripture, to provide for you the Balm of Gilead, as it were, and let your spirit be soothed.
That “free agency” clause that the war in heaven was fought over allows for terrible things to happen to good people. It’s just the way it comes down. It causes a young boy’s heart to break when his parents divorce. It allows for wicked men and women to subjugate and dominate nations, families and homes. It allows for wickedness to pervasively invade television, radio, movies and the internet . . . but it does not, nor can it ever, eliminate the light and hope of Jesus Christ.
It matters not what trial or tragedy you are currently enduring, whether caused by sin or by a circumstance of life, there is no place so low that the extended and loving hand of the Savior cannot reach you and lift you up. If you will let Him. Remember, that Jesus Christ, the God of Heaven and Earth, loves you more than you will possibly ever know or could ever comprehend. Allow Him to lighten your burdens as He has done for the enslaved throughout the history of the world.
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
