I see courageous people everywhere I look. Friends, neighbors and loved ones facing death, sickness, separation, loneliness, financial hardships, missionary or military service, just to name a few. The scriptures are replete with examples of courageous people who had seemingly impossible challenges. Moses, Nephi, Captain Moroni, Ruth, and Mary, to name a few are all amazing examples of courage!
I heard once that the hardest thing to do in life is to accept God’s will and plan for us. Sometimes God’s plan will conflict with the plans we have already made. Elder Bednar tells the story of a young couple, recently married, that found the husband (John) was sick with cancer. Just as Elder Bednar was about to give the man a blessing, he asked him a series of questions.
Elder Bednar says, “I then posed questions I had not planned to ask and had never previously considered: ‘John, do you have the faith not to be healed? If it is the will of our Heavenly Father that you are transferred by death…to the spirit world…do you have the faith to submit to His will and not be healed?’” In essence, Elder Bednar was asking this man if he had enough courage to continue, should the outcome not go his way.
The Savior was 100% committed to the will of the Father and His plan for Him. In Matthew 16, He taught his disciples that He would be killed and raised on the third day. Peter rebuked the Lord by saying, “Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.” To which the Lord tersely replied, “Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.”
This Easter season, may we contemplate the Savior’s courage, especially during the last week of His life. May we never forget His prophetic entry into Jerusalem on a donkey, His suffering in Gethsemane, His betrayal and crucifixion on Golgotha, and His triumph over death on the 3rd day!
How grateful I am for Him and His example in all things and in all places. Because of Him, we can courageously and buoyantly move forward in our own lives however long and hard the road.
Comments