Lord, Bring Them Out!

Hello Friends and Family!                      

Faith must include trust. When we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, we must have trust in him. We must trust him enough that we are content to accept his will, knowing that he knows what is best for us. The kind of faith that includes trust in the Lord stands in contrast to many imitations. Some people trust no one but themselves. Some put their highest trust in a friend or another family member, perhaps because they feel that person is more righteous or more wise than they.  But that is not the Lord’s way. He told us to put our faith and our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Savior gave us the model for that kind of faith and trust. Remember how he prayed to the Father in the agony of Gethsemane? This was the culminating event of his life, the climactic fulfillment of his mission as our Savior. The gospel of Luke, as corrected in the inspired translation of the Prophet Joseph Smith, describes how he knelt down and prayed: “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done” (JST, Luke 22:42). Here we see the Savior’s absolute faith and trust in the Father. “Nevertheless,” he said, “not my will, but thine be done.” The Father’s answer was to deny the plea of his Only Begotten Son. The Atonement had to be worked out by that lamb without blemish. But though the Son’s request was denied, his prayer was answered. The scripture records: “And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him” (JST, Luke 22:43). Strengthened from heaven to do the will of the Father, the Savior fulfilled his mission. “And being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly; and he sweat as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (JST, Luke 22:44).

When we try to develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ rather than merely cultivating faith as an abstract principle of power, we understand the meaning of the Savior’s words: “If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me” (Moro. 7:33). Similarly, the Savior taught the Nephites that they must always pray to the Father in his name, adding: “And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you” (3 Ne. 18:20). Here the Savior reminds us that faith, no matter how strong it is, cannot produce a result contrary to the will of him whose power it is. The exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is always subject to the order of heaven, to the goodness and will and wisdom and timing of the Lord. That is why we cannot have true faith in the Lord without also having complete trust in the Lord’s will and in the Lord’s timing. When we have that kind of faith and trust in the Lord, we have true security in our lives. President Spencer W. Kimball said, “Security is not born of inexhaustible wealth but of unquenchable faith” (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. Edward L. Kimball, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1982, pp. 72–73).

This past week I was able to go on four exchanges, and drive over 1300 miles. It was incredible, and such a learning experience. The miracles that I could share are endless, and being able to see the individuals that have been so mercifully prepared by the Lord has touched me deeply.  There is one miracles I wanted to mention, in particular. 

I was on an exchange with an Elder here in Macon, and we both felt strongly that we should pray to find a young, single, mother with two children that was looking for direction, peace, and comfort in answer to a prayer she had said the night before. We promised Heavenly Father that if He would simply bring the individual outside, we would talk with everyone, and invite everyone to follow the example of the Savior Jesus Christ by being baptized by someone holding the proper priesthood authority of God. This has been a method I have been using for some time now: pray SPECIFICALLY about someone the Ward/branch needs, and ask Heavenly Father to bring them outside. Sure enough, less than two hours later, we both felt very strongly to go to a particular road and pray. We prayed again, to find this family, and as we continued down the road, we saw two young girls outside. We asked, "Is your mother home?" We knew this was the family we had prayed for, and, as such, there would be no father in the household. A mother came out of the home, and greeted us warmly. We said, "Ma'am, God has sent us to you today. We have been praying to find a young, single mother, with two kids, that was praying last night for direction, peace, and comfort. Is this you?" The woman was silent, thought for a long second, then responded, "Yes. Are you the ones sent to help me out?" We told her yes, and we could all feel the deep presence of the Holy Ghost testify that this was exactly where Heavenly Father needed us to be. She said she would read the chapter we challenged her to, pray about it, and come to church. She said, "How did you know what I was praying for last night?" The Elder I was with responded, "We know nothing, but God knows everything. He brought you out today." 

May we ever look for the reasons why the Lord will bring us out this week.  What have we prayed for? Where are our answers? Where could they be?

Until Next Week-

Elder Robb