Many people wonder why they go through significant challenges right when things seem they’re going so well. Often the standard is that God is trying us, testing our faith and our willingness to serve Him in all circumstances. That is true, yet there is more to it. A story in the Book of Mormon illustrates the fullness of this concept.
In the days of the Biblical prophet Jeremiah and the reign of Zedekiah over the Jews, there was another prophet whose name was Lehi (Lee-hi). Lehi received revelation to leave Jerusalem and flee into the wilderness because the Lord was going to bring down destruction upon the city because of the wickedness of the people within. So Lehi packed up his family immediately, including his wife and four sons, and departed into the wilderness surrounding Jerusalem. Nephi (Nee-fie), Lehi’s youngest son, records their movements in the wilderness and is willing to do whatever the Lord tells him to, either through his father who is a prophet, or directly to him. This is obviously the mindset we all strive for; to be obedient in all things the Lord has us do, acting in faith. Nephi and Lehi probably both understood that the Lord was trying them, and they were willing to bear the trial.
However, most of us are not like this at all. If we were in the situation where we were asked to leave our homes, we’d most likely identify with the attitudes of Lehi’s two eldest sons, Laman (Lay-man) and Lemuel. They complained and murmured the entire way to their camp. They loved the comfortable home they had just left for seemingly no reason, they probably left all their friends, and we know from later encounters between the brothers that Laman and Lemuel didn’t think very highly of their younger brothers, so they were aggravated by having to take a road trip with them, like any older brothers might. And they were stuck with their crazy dad who said he received revelation and forced their family, probably against their vocalized will, out of their home. Really, how bad could it get for them?
Yet the Lord always uses trials to bless us. True, they are there as a test to show our obedience to Him, but no test with the Lord lacks its blessings. After spending eight years in the wilderness (imagine eight years with only your family and your extended family….it’s either a party or pain) Nephi was commanded to build a ship. Again, they had to move forward with faith, not knowing where the Lord would lead them, but only that they were in the Lord’s hands. With such faith sustaining them, they traveled across the sea to the American continent. They were led to a land of promise, just like the Israelites were when they followed Moses from Egypt where things weren’t terrible to the desert where they had to suffer for a period of time, until the Lord knew they were ready to go and enter the land of Canaan, the Promised Land.
The same is true for us. We might have to either physically leave a place we are comfortable in order for us to go to a better place the Lord has in mind for us, or emotionally or mentally change to fit our wills more in line with Christ’s. In short, God will try us, but never just to try us. It will always be for our progression to a better place or a more perfect state.
Article written by Andrew L
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