From December 1838 to April 1839, 33 year old Joseph Smith was imprisoned in an ironically named jail called Liberty in the frontier state of Missouri. In the freezing cold air, he was subjected to poisoned food, which caused violent vomiting and severe diarrhea (from which the only relief was a bucket in the corner of the room for much of his time there), frigid temperatures, and discouragement. After a few failed escape attempts, and after hearing that the people he had been called to lead were being forced from their homes at the hands of an angry mob, Joseph hit the lowest point of his life.
However, it was not his physical circumstances or suffering that pained him most. It was the simple reality that everything had gone horribly wrong. He had been asked by God to form a church, which his home town rejected unequivocally because of his humble upbringing, family mysticism, and cultural superstition. He moved his church to Ohio, built a temple, founded a bank, and started an economic order based upon the idea of personal responsibility and temporal equality. The bank failed, the temple had to be abandoned, and the economic order fell apart because of dishonesty and greed. He was asked to create Zion--a people of one heart and one mind committed to the idea of peace and harmony with God-- and settled a lawless land. They were not only driven out, raped, and shot, but were treated so with the signature of the state to support it. A court of law declared that the pains experienced by those people was unjust. Yet they received no compensation for what they had suffered.
This man had conversed with angels, yet found himself at the mercy of murderers.
At this moment, the trough of his life, Joseph was led to say, "Oh God, where art thou?"
Joseph may have doubted his own purpose in having been engaged in this work. Even more so, he may have wondered if he had not failed God completely due to his own weaknesses and inadequacy. He may have doubted whether God was listening at all.
In response to his prayer, Christ answered, "My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment. And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high..." (D&C 121:7-9).
For Joseph, the key to having peace and success and to knowing the temporary nature of his suffering was to find a way to endure it well. The secret to finding purpose in times of trouble and sadness is to exact the answer to the question "How do we endure it well?"
We draw the answer from others' experience. Alma said of his experience, "Now when our hearts were depressed... behold, the Lord comforted us, and said: ... bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success," (Alma 26:27).
Patience is the all too often cited virtue that is overwhelmingly absent in today's society. When things go wrong, we, like small children, cry and whine when we don't get what we want. We think the whole world is an ugly place unless we get what we desire. Yet, like any good parent knows, the child will eventually realize that things are and will be fine if they are patient. But what exactly does it mean to be patient?
In another instance of history, an entire group of people were put into slavery and denied the right to practice their religion and openly call upon God they knew was there. Of them the record says, "[The] people did pour out their hearts to [God]; and he did know the thoughts and intents of their hearts... and the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort... I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs... and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions," (Mosiah 24:12-14).
The principle that defines patience is cheerfulness in the face of adversity. These people poured out their hearts to God. They told him everything. They spoke in their hearts as if he were standing next to them actively listening to every word they said and all the things that lie beyond the grasp of verbal expression. He knew it all. His advice: decide to be cheerful and happy and your burdens will be light.
After all, God can't take lighten a burden that is unnecessarily self-inflicted by decision; he won't take away a weight you want to keep.
I have learned throughout my short life--through painful experience and in the face of heavy opposition--that happiness is a decision. It is a state of being in which we are sure of our purpose, our destination, and our path. God does not take away our pain, our illnesses, our inadequacies, others' misdeeds and judgments, or broken hearts; but he binds the broken heart, he makes the pain less excruciating, he reminds us we can change and be forgiven, he asks us to love others and forgive them, and he tells us to lift up our heads and be cheerful.
We feel too sorry for ourselves. We think that no one understands what we are going through. I think our Heavenly Father looks at us much like seasoned parents look at their teenager when they say, "No one understands me, etc etc." He might even chuckle a little bit knowing how fleeting that idea will be in light of his larger plan.
Life is often very hard. It may feel beyond our ability to overcome. If there is one thing true in this world, it is that hard things happen to everyone. Yes, hard things happen to every man, woman, and child on the earth specific to his or her weaknesses and the lessons they need to learn to be prepared for what God has in store for them later in life and in eternity. Because of that, I think the phrases "Get through this" and "Don't give up" are not helpful.
Human beings are much more capable than we want to believe, for if we know we have power to overcome our situation, we stand accountable for what happens when we choose to be acted upon rather than act. That can be overwhelming and make some feel judged, so they are resigned to just let things happen to them rather than feel empowered--and then complain about it. That's when self-pity holds us captive.
Anyone can endure a trial.
Anyone can survive or get through it.
Anyone can limp along when they feel wounded and give excuses for why they have fallen behind.
And not giving up on life is perhaps the least noble of the possibilities we can choose as we face difficulty.
What really makes a difference to God and to us is not IF we endured, but HOW we endured.
When difficulties come and sadness claws at our heartstrings, we should ask, "Am I enduring this well? Am I seeing this for what it is or blowing it out of proportion? Am I finding joy despite of this trial, or perhaps even because of this trial? Or am I holding myself to a lower standard because of my pain? Am I allowing tribulation to do its job and make me a better person, or am I becoming bitter?" One set of answers to these questions is exalting. The other is damning.
From that cold jail cell, Joseph Smith wrote of the way to endure it well, "Dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then we may stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God," (D&C 123:17).
So the question now becomes this:
How do I find the strength to be cheerful and patient?
We look to Christ, who came to save us not only from death and hell, but to save us from unnecessary suffering, negativity, and the snare of self-pity. He never felt sorry for himself. We are expected to follow his example.
Of those who will be found standing beside God and will enjoy the same happiness he enjoys, the scriptures say, "they shall overcome all things," (D&C 76:60). That entails a lot--much more than we face now. How can we expect to overcome all if we allow ourselves to be disheartened by what is going on right now?
"And this is the gospel, the glad tidings... that he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify, the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness; that through him all might be saved," (D&C 76:40-42). The word might implies that there is much left to us about what we are saved from in our lives.
The glad tidings, the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ is that he has overcome it all so that we can be free to choose for ourselves how to endure. In that quest, he aids us even now. As the Prophet Joseph said despite his frailties and humanity:
"And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father,
That by him, through him, and of him, the worlds are a were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."
Because he lives, he is ready to give us power to be happy despite our difficulties. It is my hope that we realize that this power is near, it is real, and it is up to us to grasp it and to use it for ourselves and for the good of others around us. It makes us better people, more able to serve, and more like Christ.
Isn't that our goal?
Be positive. Keep smiling. Be happy.
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