Today I want to reflect on the talk Dieter F. Uchtdorf gave in the April 2010 General Conference "Continue in Patience". I feel that patience is definitely something not of the world today. We as human beings want something and we want it now. Being a young single adult of course what I think of often is Will I ever marry? I look at friends and family getting married off and having kids, whereas I just look on and wonder when my time will come. Even tonight as I was on a short walk as I so often do I found myself thinking. Will I ever meet the one? Will I ever marry and have a family?
Uchtdorf states in his talk that Patience is the ability to put our desires on hold for a time. Funny enough after reading this I look back on my driving habits. I have found that I get frustrated when I get trapped behind a car that is going slower than what I want to go. But in the end it really doesn't make much of a difference how fast you are going and my just result in using up more gas. I always get to my destination and sometimes even get there a bit early resulting in me trying to find a way to spend that time. I would be too eager to get to my destination and not really concerned with how I got there. In relation as humans we are eager to get to the final destination and not spend enough time to slow down and look around us. We are so set on getting from point A to point B as fast as we can that we can miss several opportunities along the way. On my commutes without slowing down I can miss the beautiful sunrise or sunset or the beautiful changing colors of the leaves in the trees. If we slow down we may be able to see more clearly around us and be more open to opportunities of service for others.
Answers and blessings always comes in the lords way and time. Uchtdorf stated that "The children of Israel waited 40 years in the wilderness before they could enter the promised land. Jacob waited 7 long years for Rachel. The Jews waited 70 years in Babylon before they could return to rebuild the temple. The Nephites waited for a sign of Christ's birth, even knowing that if the sign did not come, they would perish. Joseph Smith's trials in Liberty Jail caused even the prophet of God to wonder, "How long?"" Later in the talk Uchtdorf talked about how Brigham Young would come across something he didn't understand, he would pray for the lord to give him patience to wait until he could understand it. the lord's plan comes to us "line upon line, precept upon precept." Answers aren't always going to come how we want them or in the time frame that we want them. With faith and trust in God we need to move forward. Patience is a key. and with our patience I believe that our blessings are increased significantly.
Once we have overcome the waiting period, so to speak, or finally make it to point B it will be made clear why the patience was needed and that it was well worth it. "Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than the receiving that we grow the most." I am finding that this is true. In my quest to finding the right one I have found myself engaging in ways to strengthen myself. I am finding out who I am and gaining many experiences I wouldn't have had otherwise. I also believe that from the trials we go through and overcome we can help others. There is no better advice than from another person who completely understands what you are going through and we can do the same for others.
Uchtdorf ended his talk by addressing us that "the work of patience boils down to this: keep the commandments, trust in God, our Heavenly Father. serve him with meekness and Christlike love, exercise faith and hope in the Savior, and never give up (including on ourselves). It is very easy to give up on ourselves. something may happen to drag us down. In my own experience I finally get to a point where I think I may be making progress only to be cut down again. It is during these times when I feel hopeless and wondering if I will ever make to the final destination. Much like being cut off on the freeway or stuck behind a slow car. But in the end we do make it to point B one way or another just not the way we planned.
https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/04/continue-in-patience?lang=eng
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