December 2004 Ensign - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

30
The challenging process of facing and
overcoming our weaknesses can refine us,
make us more profitable servants, and
bring us closer to the Savior.
Exercising Determination and Effort
Once we have recognized a weakness, we
need strong determination and great effort to overcome it.
One young woman who was a lifelong member of the
Church chose not to enroll in the seminary program in
high school and seldom read the scriptures. After her
marriage, she realized that she couldn’t continue to
live on the borrowed light of others’ testimonies; she
needed to develop a testimony of her own. She decided
to read the Book of Mormon for the first time. At first it
was difficult to concentrate. Then she realized she must
ponder and pray about what she read. That was the
beginning of overcoming her weakness.
As her small family grew larger and the demands on her
time became greater, she set aside precious moments each
day to read, study, and pray. The words in the scriptures
became sweet to her, and she looked forward to “feasting
upon the word of Christ” (2 Nephi 31:20). She also
immersed herself in the other standard works, and her
spiritual confidence grew.
Yearning to instill firm testimonies
in her children, she, along
with her husband, made gospel
learning and scripture study a top
priority. Each morning at breakfast
they read the scriptures
together and engaged in gospel
discussions. Family home evening
lessons also included the scriptures.
Years later she received a
calling to teach her sisters in the
Relief Society, some of whom had
not read the scriptures or were
struggling with their testimonies.
She encouraged these women to
turn to the scriptures with full energy of
heart, and she bore the strong testimony
she had gained of Jesus Christ and of the
Book of Mormon.
Turning to the Lord
Sometimes, in spite of all we do to “make
weak things become strong,” the Lord, in His infinite wisdom,
does not take away our weakness. The Apostle Paul
struggled throughout his life with “a thorn in the flesh,”
which he said served to humble him “lest [he] should be
exalted above measure” (2 Corinthians 12:7). Three times
Paul asked the Lord to take away his weakness, and three
times the Lord declined to do so. The Lord then explained
that His grace was sufficient for Paul and that, in fact, His
strength was actually “made perfect in weakness.” Then
Paul wrote, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my
infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches,
in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s
sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (vv. 9–10).
Like Paul, we can find positive meaning in weaknesses
that are not taken away. Surely nothing is quite as humbling
as having a weakness that we cannot overcome but
must continue to struggle with
throughout our life. Such a weakness
teaches us, in a very personal
way, that after all we can do we
HELPS FOR HOME EVENING must rely on the grace of Christ to
Invite a family member to lift a heavy object make up the difference.
alone first, then with another’s help. Read the As we humbly submit our will
two stories from this article and discuss how the to the Lord’s, we find that our
Lord helped the two women. Talk about how the weaknesses can indeed become
activity and stories relate to Ether 12:27. Share sources of strength if we put our
your own experiences with this scripture. trust in Him. ■
Discuss Elder Maxwell’s statement. Invite family
members to examine their lives and choose a NOTES
1. “Hope through the Atonement of Jesus
weakness to overcome. Encourage them to pray
Christ,” Ensign, Nov. 1998, 63.
daily and keep a record of their progress.
2. Gib Twyman, “Long Road to Reading,”
Deseret News, 26 Mar. 2001, pp. C1–C2;
personal letter to author.