How can I be delivered from trials?

I’m directing my thoughts today to those who find themselves isolated or abandoned, cast away or forgotten; I’m thinking of those who have been brought down low underneath the weight of hopelessness, and feel as though they could suffocate beneath what seems like chains of captivity; I’m writing to anyone who needs a deliverer to relieve their burden. I think that, at one point or another, this description fits just about all of us. 

To any who find themselves in such a situation at this time, I meekfully but assuredly tell you that you have been placed in this circumstance intentionally.  

Let me explain. 

Deliverance Stories

There are in the scriptures, and all around us, what I’ve come to refer to as “deliverance stories”. Constantly, God’s people find themselves captive to one power or another, whether that be to a government of oppression, adverse living situations, an emotionally or physically abusive spouse, a financial or medical crisis, a dramatic or life-changing circumstance, or, often, even “the power of some actual being from the unseen world” (JSH 1:16). 

Oftentimes, the Lord Himself places us in these circumstances for His own purposes, which are usually unknown to us at the time. However, I would contend that He has already told us the reason He places us in these circumstances - we just sometimes struggle to remember the reason. There is wisdom in the fact that the word “remember” and any variation of it appears 369 times in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. 

The Reason For Our Captivity

Nephi is one of the greatest examples for almost any principle. In 1 Nephi, he and his family were driven into the wilderness to flee the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. While journeying, they endured a great number of trials! One particular set of trials, which we do not hear about until Nephi speaks of it in retrospect, is in 1 Nephi 17. Found in the 12th verse, Nephi shares: “the Lord had not hitherto suffered that we should make much fire, as we journeyed in the wilderness-” 

Hang on! Excuse me? You’re already in the middle of nowhere, you have to hunt for your food, eat meat, ward off predators, and light your way in the darkness, but you can’t build a fire? Why on earth would the Lord purposely set such difficult boundaries? Seems kind of mean-spirited, don’t you think? I mean really, can’t He allow just a little bit of comfort? 

No need to fret though; he gives the answer immediately:

“ for he said: I will make thy food become sweet, that ye cook it not;

“And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you...wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led.

“Yea, and the Lord said also that: After ye have arrived in the promised land, ye shall know that I, the Lord, am God; and that I, the Lord, did deliver you from destruction; yea, that I did bring you out of the land of Jerusalem” (1 Nephi 17:12-14, emphasis added). 

I love God. He has such a way with His methods! He puts us through difficult circumstances, sometimes pointlessly it seems, solely so that He can take care of us. Surely, as we receive a thrill from doing something for others, so does our perfect God. 

It would seem that the God we worship desperately wants to be known and remembered by His children. And so, he places difficult trials upon us just so that we will turn to Him! So that we can come to know Him on a deeper, one-on-one level, so that we can serve and love Him! And ultimately so that He can deliver us. 

He wants to deliver us. 

So if your life seems difficult and you feel that the Lord has taken your support and comfort away from you, perhaps He is only trying to say to you: “No, don’t make fire - I want to be your light. I want to prepare your food. I want to deliver you!”

Not By Our Hand

I love war stories in the scriptures, because they teach such great lessons! One particular story sticks out to me as teaching this principle quite well. 

In Judges 6-7 is the famous account of Gideon. Way back in these days, Israel was quite wicked, and had turned from their God, Jehovah. As a result, they had brought upon themselves captivity to the Midianites! In this case, their bondage had come as a result of wickedness; nevertheless, God intends to deliver. 

Gideon was a righteous man, and was called of God to lead the people to battle against the numerous enemy host. Just as Moses of ancient days, the Lord promised Gideon that He would go with him, and that the Midianites would be delivered into his hands.  

On the morning of the charge, there were 32,000 men who were prepared to go with Gideon against the Midianites. But the Lord saw a problem; said he to Gideon, “The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.” 

It was too easy for them to provide their own means of deliverance! The Lord wanted to deliver them. So, He instructed Gideon to send away all those that were fearful and afraid, which consisted of 22,000 men! Of the remaining 10,000 soldiers, the Lord said, “The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there.”

Down at the water, a private test was conducted by the Lord. Of all the men who came to drink, those who got to their knees to do so were sent home, and those who drank from their hands would stay to fight. Those who were to stay consisted of a whopping 300 men! Quite a staggering decrease when compared to the original 32,000, don’t you think?

Sometimes the Lord intentionally places us in staggering circumstances so that we will recognize that we cannot do it alone. If we succeed, it was not because we were great and achieved it ourselves - but it is because the Lord God made bare his arm. (For those who don’t know the rest of the story of Gideon, read Judges 7: 8 - the end.)

The Reason For Deliverance

Another great example for the Lord placing us in adverse circumstances can be found in the Book of Mosiah, in the Book of Mormon. In this book, we find the account of a particular branch of God’s people, who came to be known as the people of Alma. 

This company were once ignorant citizens under the rule of a wicked king named Noah, but had been converted to the gospel through the preaching of the prophet Alma, and had separated themselves from their former lives and homes. Endangered because of their belief in Christ, they were forced to flee into the wilderness and build up their own society. Everything seemed to be going good for a while, but even the righteous - no, especially the righteous - must endure bondage. 

There happened upon their pleasant community (called Helam), a band of lost Lamanites, who were a barbaric and hateful people. The leader of their band, Amulon, petitioned Alma for directions back to their home country, and promised to leave them in peace. But Amulon was not good to his word, and left guards over Alma’s people; some time later, Amulon returned to Helam with a host of Lamanite warriors and forced Alma’s people into subjection and persecution. 

Alma’s people had done nothing wrong! They had been living the gospel to the best of their ability. They did not bring the Lamanites to them. And even when the Lamanites had come, Alma only did what any good man would do, and he helped them out. So what happened? They were brought very low indeed. 

Under the captivity of wickedness, God’s people did the only thing they knew to do! They cried “mightily” to God for relief. Seeing their faith, Amulon declared that anyone found praying would be killed! Persecutions raged upon the people of God, not because they were wicked, but because they were righteous. Eventually, the word of God came to Alma, and declared “liberty to the captive” so to speak. Pay attention to the Lord’s words, for therein lie His purposes:

“Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage. ... 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 13-14). 

Again, the people of Alma were delivered not by the power of their arm, but by the power of God. In the morning, every one of the Lamanites who guarded the people were placed under a heavy sleep, and the people of Alma escaped completely unhindered by their captors. 

The reason that God delivers the people of Alma is so that they always remember that it was He who delivered them! And so, later on down the road when they encountered further trials, they could remember their deliverance story: when they were in bondage, and the Lord delivered them. 

Deliverance From Sin

I have never been oppressed by a cimeter or a sword, but I have been oppressed by the adversary. At one time in my life, I had turned my back on the Lord, and brought upon myself captivity. Satan is sometimes depicted as wielding chains, or dragging us down to misery with his chains - I testify that these chains are real. For many months, I dragged my chains around - at school, at home, at church, wherever I went! They took their toll on me. 

But just as Alma explains in Alma 36, as soon as I decided to turn to Christ and put my trust in the power of His deliverance, I was delivered. I still remember that day! Immediately I felt as though my chains fell to the floor and off of my crushed spirit - immediately I was delivered from the chains which held me bound.

The very essence of joy coursed through my veins and I was filled with the love of God. The atonement of Christ is real and is the power of deliverance! Because of Jesus Christ, we can be delivered from all of our trials! And now, as I encounter my daily battles with fear, doubt, and other chains that the adversary seeks to bind me with, I remember my deliverance story. I remember how the Lord saved me from an awful fate, and I continue to put my trust in Him.

I testify that with every bondage that the Lord sends us into, He always prepares a way of deliverance. For, the purpose of our trials are to allow us to come to know God more and to trust in Him more! He wants to be known and remembered by His children, not for His sake, but for ours - because when He delivers us and we come to know Him, it is through the power of Christ’s atonement, and we are made stronger - emotionally, mentally, faithfully. That is the purpose of our trials.

So when we find ourselves in bondage, whether it be due to our own mistakes or the actions of others - let us remember that one of Christ’s titles is Deliverer. He wants to be our deliverer! In fact, He wants it so much that He probably brought us to bondage solely so that He could be, and so that we could grow closer to Him thereby. 

So, in such moments, let us “turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put our trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind,” and if we do this, “he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver [us] out of bondage” (Mosiah 7:33). In the name of the Deliverer, Jesus Christ, amen. 

Thanks for reading! God be with you til we meet again. 

Sincerely, 

Taylor, a dead missionary

How can I apply Christ's atonement daily?

I hear church leaders say all the time to apply the Atonement every day. That's good, I guess. For a long time I didn't really take that seriously - sure, I'll ask for forgiveness tonight when I say my prayers! That's applying the Atonement! ...right? 

I think it's more than that. 

Everything - and I do mean everything - that you and I do that pertains to life and salvation can be enhanced by the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It doesn't matter what it is. I've come to believe that Christ's atonement is God's power from which all power is drawn, and the only true medium through which He blesses us. 

To paint the picture in full, we have to start with the Fall.

Living In a Fallen State

You've heard the Bible story I guess, how Adam and Eve dwelt in the Garden of Eden, only to partake of the fruit and become mortal? When this happened, it ushered in a condition that we call being "fallen". What does it mean to be fallen?

As children of God, they were expected to walk uprightly and abstain from carnal temptations. As long as they obeyed God, they had His support. But when they disobeyed, they inherited sin. 

We are now sinners, which means we're subject to Justice and have lost the Spirit as well as immortality! This is why we are mortal today. Being mortal has brought a whole multitude of weaknesses and short-comings, both physical and spiritual! 

The Atonement Overcomes Every Effect of the Fall

When Jesus Christ performed the atonement, several things took place. Now we will never fully understand just how it works, but there are a few things we do know. 

Isaiah taught in a very concise way what Christ’s atonement did when he said: "Surely, He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes, we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5). 

Now it is clear that Justice demands punishment for transgression and sin. According to Isaiah, in order to get around all of us suffering, Christ took that punishment for us. In a way we will never understand, perhaps not in this life, Christ suffered for our sins so that we do not have to. I think we all have heard this in one way or another. 

The Atonement also allows us all to be resurrected, free of charge, thus overcoming the last enemy: death. But what about the rest of that verse from Isaiah? "Borne our griefs"? "Carried our sorrows"? Alma taught that Christ would come to take away the "pains and sicknesses of his people" (Alma 7:11-12). The Atonement did more than take away punishment for sin, but also takes away pain, sickness, grief, and sorrow. I hope we remember this just as much. This is called grace.

You see, the "fallen state" that we live in is simply Justice exercising its demands on the children of men for our sinful behavior. In order to understand how to use the Christ's atonement everyday, we first have to understand what it can do, and that is, in a phrase: satisfy the demands of Justice.

So what are those demands?

The Demands of Justice

First and foremost, we are unclean and cannot return to God. Secondly, we are mortal and now we must die. However, because Christ died and suffered for us, He has overcome both of those things. 

But what about everything in between? The demands of justice encompass far more than just punishment and death. 

Justice demands mortality, weakness, tiredness, and feeble knees; it demands sickness, broken bones, and paper cuts; it demands fears, broken hearts, inadequacy, and loneliness; it demands blood, sweat, and tears; it demands blindness, deafness, handicaps, and bitterness; every time you fell short, every time you failed, every time you wanted to quit, go home, and climb into bed - it was because you are fallen and Justice has demanded it to be so. 

Justice demands that we are weak. It demands that we are alone. On top of it all, it insists that we are unworthy of miracles and demands that we do all of this by the sweat of our brow and sheer grit because those are the consequences of sin! 

But the Deliverer says "Come unto me, all ye that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30). 

But what dos this look like?

Stories!

When I first entered the mission field in Minnesota, I came to a biking area. My companion was seasoned and well-trained on the bicycle, but I had not been on a bicycle for nearly four years and was definitely not in shape for 100% bike travel. I was exhausted every minute of every day! From the moment I sat on my bike and began pedaling until the moment I collapsed into bed, my legs blazed with fire. But even in these adverse circumstances, I did not forget to call upon God. 

It seems a silly thing, to pray for strength to ride your bike. But the fact is that Christ took everything upon Him - including my burning legs! I testify that even though I had no strength to ride, I made it everywhere I was supposed to. Admittedly, it was not always as timely as my companion would have liked, but we made it! And the only reason I was ever able to make it anywhere in that city is because I received strength from Christ’s atonement. 

Throughout my mission, I had many companions that I got to work with, and I struggled at first to get along with some of them. But even those with whom I struggled the most have become some of my closest friends! Why? Because Christ took everything upon Him - including my frustrations and inabilities to love. I testify that because of Christ’s atonement, I was able to replace my feelings with charity, and was able to see my companions for who the Lord saw them to be, and not for who I originally saw them to be. I learned to love through Christ’s atonement. 

The last few months here at home have been quite a roller-coaster. Without boring you with the entire story, I was meant to be married just last week, but because of strong impressions, my fiancé and I decided to cancel the wedding. She subsequently felt that she needed to serve a mission, as she had originally planned, and has submitted her mission papers! 

As I look at the situation that I and my ex-fiancé find ourselves in, I’m astounded at the way that she and I have handled it. In the last four months, she’s been through much more than what I’ve related here - and any normal person would’ve cracked a long time ago. There would be hate, anger, frustration, and probably a lot of broken things in her room as well as on my face. But for some strange reason, she has nothing but peace right now, as do I. 

The average person would be experiencing turmoil and distress, but as I continue to emphasize: Christ has taken everything upon Himself - including our distress that we would have been experiencing. We have found peace through Christ’s Atonement. 

Applying the Atonement Daily

When we are encouraged to partake of the Christ's atonement every day of our lives, it goes so much deeper than simply asking for forgiveness when we kneel at our bedside. It delves into change, obedience, sacrifice, and trading yokes with the Savior. 

Ultimately, it delves into having faith to repent, entering into a covenant, thereby accessing Christ and receiving the Holy Ghost as a companion, and enduring in obedience and faithfulness to the end of our lives. This formula is what the gospel is about. It teaches us how to access Christ's atonement by living the Doctrine of Christ and changing as a result. 

And then, when we are living the Doctrine of Christ by exercising our faith unto repentance (Alma 34), we are given the power to overcome the effects of the Fall and be free of the demands of justice. We can now receive help from the Savior! This is what the scriptures are talking about when they promise joy and peace in the gospel!

When we're tired, we can receive strength to keep going! When we're discouraged and depressed, we can feel the Savior's love and be enabled to love ourselves and others! When we don’t know where to go or what to do, Christ has made possible revelation, through the Holy Ghost, to guide us! When life kicks us in the teeth and we're at our wit's end, Christ is what allows us to find peace amid chaos. Christ brings strength, love, joy, and miracles! 

I testify that when we are willing to live the Doctrine of Christ, we will be given the capacity to accomplish every righteous endeavor in which we find ourselves engaged. If it is the will of God, it will be done! But only when we are willing to have faith and take His yoke upon ourselves! 

This holiday season, let's focus on what really matters. Christ is, after all, the reason for the season. Let's give Him a gift this year, let's exercise faith to repent and change. Let's grow a little closer to Him. Let's listen a little more to Him. Let's get to know Him a little bit more by using His atonement daily. Because the atonement wasn't only so He could get to know us - it was also meant for us to get to know Him. I so testify in His name, the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Thanks for reading! God be with you 'till we meet again.

Sincerely,

- Taylor, a dead missionary

Christmas In Zarahemla, an LDS Re-Telling of the Night Before Christmas

'Twas ninety-two years since the Nephites last king,

And six hundred years since six-hundred BC;

Lachoneus reigned in the chief judgment seat,

But wickedness ruled up and down every street.

Believers were wrestled straight out of their beds,

By the wicked, who sought to chop off their heads!

The masses, they laughed that the time was far passed 

For the sign of the birth of the First and the Last.

The sign was to be two days and one night,

During which would be filled with afternoon light.

The sun would go down, but a new star would rise,

Giving hope to the captive, and light to the skies.

Tonight was the night that believers would die

If the sign was not given to light up the sky.

Then Nephi, the prophet, bowed himself to the earth,

And cried to his God, pleading, “When is Thy birth?”

All the day long he cried with great faith,

Til the Spirit came upon him, and the Lord saith:

“Lift up thy head, and be of good cheer!

For the time of the sign of my birth draweth near;

Tonight is the night the sign will be giv’n

And I come to my own, from my throne up in heav’n.

I come to redeem thee from slavery’s hold

And deliver my people back home to the fold;

I come to bear grief, and carry thy sorrow,

And all of the weight of thy burdens will borrow;

I’ll lead thee along, from the depths raise you up,

But first I must come to drain the whole cup.

Intercession I’ll make to save you from sin

I’ll know how you feel - without and within.

My blood shall be spilt when I’m crushed by your pain

But I’m willing to do it to free you from chains.

And death is the last thing you’ll have need to fear,

Resurrection will bring you to celestial spheres.

But the path to high places is a long narrow road

It’s not just a gift, so easily bestowed.

An investment I make - I hope not in vain -

I ask you to live on a much higher plane.

Every jot of the law shall all be fulfilled

Now fear not my son, for none shall be killed."

Thus ended Jehovah, He stuck to His promise:

When the sun had gone down, they all were astonished!

For when the sun set, it should have gone dark,

But the lingering light was more than a spark.

The wicked all fell, prostrate on the ground

To pray for forgiveness - new faith had been found! 

Believers rejoiced and gave praise to their King,

Then together with angels, His glory did sing.

We go through our lives with troubles and strife,

But the Deliv’rer, He came, to give us new life!

From the very first day He was born as a babe,

The Christ was deliv’ring us from the grave.

So when darkness confronts you, and far is the morn’

Remember the night that the Savior was born. 

The star in the sky was not meant for one night-

But everyday purposed to fill us with Light. 

- Taylor, a dead missionary