I do put my trust in him, and he will still deliver me – Alma 36:27 – Come, Follow Me Ponderize and Commentary
And I have been supported under trials and troubles of every kind, yea, and in all manner of afflictions; yea, God has delivered me from prison, and from bonds, and from death; yea, and I do put my trust in him, and he will still deliver me.
Trust in God, is one of the greatest character traits that we can develop while in this life. Trust is developed through faith and experiences. These developing experiences range from powerful spiritual experiences to heart wrenching hardships in our lives. Our development of trust is proportionate to our ability to endure well, and as we endure well and develop greater faith we come to know God more and more. Elder Stanley G. Ellis said, “Hard makes us stronger, humbles us, and gives us a chance to prove ourselves. Our beloved handcart pioneers came to know God in their extremities.” (Elder Stanley G. Ellis, “Do We Trust Him? Hard Is Good”)
We went to church for the first time today. It is amazing how little 50 members feel in the chapel, but it was really fun to be able to go back to church. We also had two great speakers, the first was just called on a mission and going through the MTC online from his home, which is a different and yet fun experience for him. The other speaker was a recent return missionary. I would like to share an experience he shared with us. He struggled to be happy for the first 6 months of his mission. He described when it changed for him and he found happiness. It was at a time when things were really hard for him, he had his hardest companion, this investigator he was teaching stopped progressing, and his mission just seemed so hard. They were sitting in their car and his companion was crying because of the sadness he felt because of this investigator. So, this missionary started to pray for help. He prayed and prayed to be able to somehow find happiness and joy on his mission. After a while, that familiar missionary phrase, “Forget yourself and go to work,” came to his mind.
Gordon B Hinckley read those words in a letter from his dad and they changed Hinckley’s attitude and his mission. These words had a similar effect on this good missionary, and was a pivotal point for him. From that time he began too find joy and happiness in his missionary labors. I spoke with him after the meeting, and sure enough this experience truly increased his trust in God.
Another important aspect of building trust in God, is remembering His hand in our lives and the lives of others both anciently and in our own day and time. Moroni 10:3 explains this so well. This is the verse right before the popular Moroni challenge. As you read this verse, try to see how strategic this verse is to preceded the Moroni promise.
“Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.”
Do you see the power in this strategic placement? As we remember “how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men.. and ponder it in [our] hearts,” our trust in God increases and prepares our hearts to receive the truth of the Book of Mormon by the power of the Holy Ghost. The greater our light, the more we get know know God.
“Alma understood that by remembering deliverance from bondage and support during “trials and troubles of every kind,” we come to know God and the surety of His promises.” (Elder Dale G. Renlund, “Consider the Goodness and Greatness of God”)
Let us better apply this formula for developing increased trust in God, by remembering his goodness in our life and the lives of others, increasing our faith in him and his promises, and enduring well our trials and tribulations. Let me close with this quote from Elder Holland.
Angels and ministers of grace to defend us? They are all about us, and their holy sovereign, the Father of us all, is divinely anxious to bless us this very moment. Mercy is his mission, and love is his only labor. John Donne said once: “We ask our daily bread, and God never says, ‘You should have come yesterday.’ … [No, he says,] ‘Today if you will hear [my] voice, today I will hear yours.’ … If thou hast been benighted till now, wintered and frozen, clouded and eclipsed, damp and benumbed, smothered and stupefied till now, God yet comes to thee, not as in the dawning of the day, … but as the sun at [full] noon, to banish all shadows” (Collected Sermons). (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland , “Look to God and Live”)
Craig
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