Can you believe it?! Already into the book of Helaman! (But my thoughts come from Alma :-))Following the great war that prevailed for many years, with much destruction and death, some turned away from the Lord; others turned ever closer to Him. Why such a dichotomy? We have our agency, and if we do not the little things to maintain our faith, our hearts may quickly be hardened.
“…great adversities are not without some eternal purpose or effect. They can turn our hearts to God…Such large-scale adversities as natural disasters and wars seem to be inherent in the mortal experience. We cannot entirely prevent them, but we can determine how we will react to them. For example, the adversities of war and military service, which have been the spiritual destruction of some, have been the spiritual awakening of others. The Book of Mormon describes the contrast: (quotes Alma 62:41).
“I read of a similar contrast after the devastating hurricane that destroyed thousands of homes in Florida some years ago. A news account quoted two different persons who had suffered the same tragedy and received the same blessing: each of their homes had been totally destroyed, but each of their family members had been spared death or injury. One said that this tragedy had destroyed his faith; how, he asked, could God allow this to happen? The other said that the experience had strengthened his faith. God had been good to him, he said. Though the family’s home and possessions were lost, their lives were spared and they could rebuild the home. For one, the glass was half empty. For the other, the glass was half full. The gift of moral agency empowers each of us to choose how we will act when we suffer adversity.” (Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign, July 1998, p. 7)
As we think of the many things to be grateful for, we can look deep within ourselves at the soul we have been given by our Father in Heaven. So I share a favorite poem of mine:
Invictus
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
William Ernest Henley
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