1 Nephi 20:21
God Shall Wipe Away All
Tears
What
21 And
they athirsted not;
he led them through the deserts; he caused the waters to flow out of
the brock for
them; he clave the rock also and the waters gushed out.
The Lord takes care of His
people
Why
Because He loves them.
Pattern
Ps.
107:33 (33–37)
33
He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry
ground;
34 A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickednessof them that dwell therein.
35 He turneth the wildernessinto a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings.
36 And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation;
37 And sow the fields, and plant vineyards, which may yield fruits of increase.
34 A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickednessof them that dwell therein.
35 He turneth the wildernessinto a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings.
36 And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation;
37 And sow the fields, and plant vineyards, which may yield fruits of increase.
Isa.
41:18 (17–20)
17 When the
poor and needy seek water, and there
is none, and their
tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the
God of Israel will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:
20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:
20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
Ex.
17:6
6
Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and
thou shalt smite the rock,
and there shall come waterout
of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of
the elders of Israel.
Num.
20:11
11
And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod
he smote the rocktwice:
and the water came
out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
Christ
Christ
is the water which quenches the thirst. He is the Savior and
Redeemer.
Conference
By
Elder Evan A. Schmutz Of
the Seventy
As
we exercise our faith in the Savior, He will lift us up and carry us
through all of our trials and, ultimately, save us in the celestial
kingdom.
As
part of our Heavenly Father’s plan, He allowed sorrow to be woven
into our mortal experience.1 While
it seems that painful trials fall unevenly on us, we can be assured
that to one degree or another, we all suffer and struggle. It is my
prayer that the Holy Spirit will guide us to a greater understanding
why this must be so.
When
we view the difficult experiences of life through the lens of faith
in Christ, we are able to see that there can be godly purpose in our
suffering. The faithful can experience the truth of Peter’s
seemingly contradictory counsel. He wrote, “If ye suffer for
righteousness’ sake, happy are ye.”2 As
we apply our “hearts to understanding,”3 we
can increase in our ability to both endure our trials well and learn
from—and be refined by—them. Such understanding provides an
answer to the ageless question “Why do bad things happen to good
people?”
Everyone
listening today is acquainted with some measure of loneliness,
despair, grief, pain, or sorrow. Without an “eye of
faith”4 and
an understanding of eternal truth, we often find that the misery and
suffering experienced in mortality can obscure or eclipse the eternal
joy of knowing that the great plan of our Father in Heaven really
is the
eternal plan of happiness. There is no other way to receive a fulness
of joy.5
God
invites us to respond with faith to our own unique afflictions in
order that we may reap blessings and gain knowledge that can be
learned in no other way. We are instructed to keep the commandments
in every condition and circumstance, for “he that is faithful in
tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of
heaven.”6 And
as we read in scripture, “If thou art sorrowful, call on the Lord
thy God with supplication, that your souls may be joyful.”7
The
Apostle Paul, himself no stranger to affliction, drew from his own
experience to teach with depth and beauty the eternal perspective
that comes when we endure well and with patience. He said, “For our
light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far
more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”8 In
other words, we can know in the midst of our afflictions that God has
provided an eternal compensating reward.
In
an intimate and reflective passage, Paul tells us of an unnamed
“thorn” in his flesh, which caused him great pain and brought him
three times to his knees, begging the Lord to take it from him. In
answer to Paul’s prayers, the Lord did not remove the thorn but did
speak peace and give understanding to his heart, saying, “My grace
is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.”
With new understanding, Paul was able to accept and be grateful for
the thorn he was given. He said, “Most gladly therefore will I …
glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon
me.”12
As
we acquire this eternal perspective in our lives, our capacity to
endure grows, we learn how to succor those in need of succor,13 and
we come to appreciate and even express gratitude for the
experiences God allows us to have as tutors in the path to eternal
life.
(this
whole talk is excellent on how the Lord blesses us through our
tribulation just as He did with Moses.
“… Part of enduring well consists of being meek enough, amid our
suffering, to learn from our relevant experiences. Rather than simply
passing through these things, they must pass through us … in ways which
sanctify [us].”18
I have observed in the lives and examples of others that exercising strong
and abiding faith in Jesus Christ and His promises provides the sure hope
of better things to come. This sure hope steadies us, bringing the strength
Apply
This
talk gives me a new outlook on trials. It brings about a change of
attitude to let those trials sanctify us. Instead of complaining,and
begging that the trial be taken away, we should be asking for peace
and understanding.
We
should always recognize our blessings and give the credit to God who
blesses us with everything we have. Jesus Christ is the water, it is
through him that we received the sustaining blessings of life just
as Moses smote the rock and water came out, so we need not thirst
because we have the pure water which nurtures the thirsty and
sustains our spiritual life.
Hymns
103-Precious
Savior, Dear Redeemer
Children
74
I Feel My Savior's Love
