T.R.I.A.L.S.
I have my own survival story; survival from abuse and infidelity. We each have our own story and the trials that shape our character. Some trials are short and others seem never ending. Each trial, however, is there to teach us about God’s individual plan for each of us, and to teach us about the Atonement and how to utilize it in our daily lives.
The Atonement of Jesus Christ is a symbol of God’s love and Christ’s love for each of us. The purpose of the Atonement is to bring us “at one” with the Savior. There are several ways we do this and today I’d like to focus on how we achieve this through TRIALS. My TRIALS have taught me:
T – Trust
R – Redirect our focus
I – Ignore the devil
A – Awaken to higher understanding
L – Lean on the Savior
S – Shake off inner turmoil
TRUST
Trust is hard, especially when it’s been broken. The hardest part for me in my journey has been learning to trust again. Trusting others, trusting myself, and trusting in Christ, the Atonement, trusting in God, and in His promises and timing.
The Lord does not make our paths easy, but He does promise to help those who trust in Him. That help may not always be removing the storm, but rather sitting alongside us as we navigate our way through it.
“God isn’t asking you to figure it out. He’s asking you to trust that He already has.” I have called upon God and exercised the power of the Atonement to compensate for my lack of trust as I’ve worked to rebuild it. There is far too much that I cannot control and I’ve learned that I do my part and I do my best and leave the rest in God’s hands, knowing that the sacrifice made in Gethsemane will work together with God’s will.
Elder Dieter Uchtdorf taught, “Faith is trust—trust that God sees what we cannot and that He knows what we do not…With this kind of faith, though we may not understand why certain things happen or why certain prayers go unanswered, we can know that in the end everything will make sense. ‘All things will work together for good to them that love God.”
REDIRECT OUR FOCUS
I’ve been given every reason to turn my back on God and my faith. Like Joseph of Egypt, I had many reasons to. An unfaithful and abusive spouse led to divorce. I felt like a leper – shunned and out of place because my husband didn’t honor the promises and covenants he made when we were sealed in the House of the Lord. I felt lonely and angry that even though I had lived up to my covenants, my daughters and I were punished for his choices. Single parenting and co-parenting with an abusive narcissist, has not been easy either. Compound that with building a new life to support these changes. Long story short, my life is not what I had imagined it to be.
However, just like Joseph and many others, I know in my heart that I needed God and the Atonement. I need His strength to get me through this storm. I choose to dedicate myself more to Him. I am so glad that I do. I choose to focus on the LIGHT and use the Atonement to fill in where my efforts lack or seem non-existent. John Mark Green writes, “You are not the darkness you endured. You are the light that refused to surrender.” I believe the only way we accomplish this is through Christ.
IGNORE THE DEVIL
If Satan talked Angels out of heaven, he can talk you into hell. Satan is real. He is bound and determined to see us fail and tries EVERYTHING to see that we do. Fear, doubt, hate, and so on, are not of God, but of the devil. Remember that as you consider your thoughts and feelings. Especially when you’re struggling through a trial. You have POWER over Satan within you and calling upon Christ can help you overcome negative thoughts and feelings that prevent you from moving forward.
Satan, like trials, is part of our existence and God’s plan. Those who help and those who betray are all part of the plan. Remember that Jesus could not get to the cross without Judas. May we acknowledge the Judas’ in our own lives, whether it’s Satan or a mortal, and remember that they do not have power over us when we have the power of the Atonement working in our lives.
AWAKEN TO HIGHER UNDERSTANDING
I know that God has an individual plan for each of our lives. Like Joseph, Moses, Job, and countless others, you have a divine purpose to which you are called. In order to uncover that divine purpose, you must endure hardship, usually a hardship that would beat down anyone else. You may have already conquered that, you may be in the thick of it, or you may not have faced it yet. Just know that God has your back – No matter what – and He will not leave you alone. He will never abandon you. We are the ones who abandon Him.
As much as I would have loved avoiding all the abuse, trauma, and cheating, I am not sure I would have the experience, empathy, and unwavering testimony of my Savior that I gained by going through that trial. It set me on a different path, God’s path for me.
God takes us through those rough waters because He knows we can handle it. The person we become as we navigate those waters is the purpose of this life. May we remember this as we battle our demons each day.
LEAN ON THE SAVIOR
I would have missed out on so many blessings, miracles, and growth if I’d set aside the Atonement. I gained an unshakeable testimony in my Savior. I feel His presence in my life. I can see now that God was slowly leading me to better things. And, like Joseph of Egypt, I can see that those trials serve a purpose in God’s plan for my life.
Elder Kearon taught, “With arms outstretched, the Savior offers the gift of healing to you. With courage, patience, and faithful focus on Him, before too long you can come to fully accept this gift. You can let go of your pain and leave it at His feet.”
I love my Savior. I know that He lives.
SHAKE OFF INNER TURMOIL
Own up to your broken pieces. It is part of your story. The only way our story aligns with God’s plan for us is through hardships. He knows this – it’s His design, and that is why we have a Savior – to atone for our mistakes, pain, and sadness.
Elder Kearon taught, “Jesus has overcome the abuses of this world to give you power to not only survive but one day, through Him, to overcome and even conquer - to completely rise above the pain, the misery, the anguish, and see them replaced with peace.”
Jesus Christ has already paid the price for our sins, pains, heartache, and sorrow. I am not so bold as to deny that sacrifice, nor refuse to acknowledge that priceless gift. I know that I need the Atonement in my life. I put forth my best effort (which varies from day to day), and He compensates for what I lack.
Remember the Great Sacrifice Christ made for you, for us all. Because of Him, we have agency. Because of Him, we can be forgiven. Because of Him, we can heal. Because of Him, we can endure trials. Because of Him, we can conquer the darkness.
I would like to echo Elder David Bednar’s challenge to “Press forward through trials of this life and find joy in what the Savior offers.”
Of this I testify in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
