ponderings

one of my closest friends was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. she will be 31 next month. i admire her strength, her beauty, and her courage in the face of this scary diagnosis. although her prognosis is good, she has a difficult path ahead of her. and i know her faith in our Savior, Jesus Christ, will carry her through this trial in her life. i am grateful for her example of faith in the atonement of our Savior. it has led me to reflect on my own faith and testimony. i have always enjoyed general conference. and i especially enjoyed conference just a few weeks ago. i found the talks very inspiring and listening to the speakers made my own testimony burn within me. and i was very thankful for the powerful assurance i received that i do know that Jesus is the Christ, our Savior and Redeemer. in sharing my thoughts, i would quote the words of one of my favorite talks from this month's general conference. it is a talk given by elder kent f. richards. he said... "i have pondered about the purpose of pain. none of us is immune from experiencing pain. i have seen people cope with it very differently. some turn away from God in anger, and others allow their suffering to bring them closer to God...elder orson f. whitney wrote, 'no pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. it ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude, and humility...it is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire.'" elder richards also said... "opposition is part of Heavenly Father's plan of happiness. we all encounter enough to bring us to an awareness of our Father's love and of our need for the Savior's help. the Savior is not a silent observer. He Himself knows personally and infinitely the pain we face...president henry b. eyring taught, 'it will comfort us when we must wait in distress for the Savior's promised relief that He knows, from experience, how to heal and help us...and faith in that power will give us patience to pray and work and wait for help. He could have known how to succor us simply by revelation, but He chose to learn by His own personal experience.'...as elder dallin h. oaks taught, 'healing blessings come in many ways, each suited to our individual needs, as known to Him who loves us best. sometimes a "healing" cures our illness or lifts our burden. but sometimes we are "healed" by being given strength or understanding or patience to bear the burdens placed upon us.' all that will come may be 'clasped in the arms of Jesus.' all souls can be healed by His power. all pain can be soothed. in Him we can find 'rest unto our souls.' our mortal circumstances may not immediately change but our pain, worry, suffering, and fear can be swallowed up in His healing balm." this talk by elder richards really struck home with me. i struggle. i worry. i fear. and although these things have not always been taken from me through faith and prayer, i have always, always been given the strength and peace to work through them and learn and grow from them. i have never been left without the comfort of our Savior - comfort that will come to all who call on His name. with easter weekend coming soon, i also wanted to share the poem that president monson shared in his closing remarks of this april's conference. it is a poem written by emily harris: the linen which once held Him is empty. it lies there, fresh and white and clean. the door stands open. the stone is rolled away, and i can almost hear the angels, singing His praises. linen cannot hold Him. stone cannot hold Him. the words echo through the empty limestone chamber, "He is not here." the linen which once held Him is now empty. it lies there, fresh and white and clean and oh, hallelujah, it is empty. just thought i would share.