Come What May, and Love It

Today I was reading from the November ENSIGN which contains all the October Conference talks. One of the talks I read was by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin and was titled Come what May, and Love It. This talk really touched me. He says, "I do believe that the way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be in life."

He continues to point out things he has learned to help you be happy and successful. The first is to learn to laugh. He explains that when things are really difficult it is better to laugh them off than to get angry and make a situation worse. I loved this because I do this sometimes when I am really frustrated and although most the times those around me hate it, this method really does work and help. An example of this was when I was in high school I had a very difficult volleyball practice. Our coach sat in the middle of the court and all he asked was for us as a team to serve 12 in a row over the net and in, that he could not touch. Every time we messed up he wanted us to run a diving suicide or 360. This should have been a 5 minute exercise, but in turn took us over 2 hours and we still never did it by the end of the practice. By the time I went home we had ran 77 of them! I remember looking at my knee and seeing it was completely swollen and that I was so tired, but I also remember laughing the harder it got. I thought to myself. "what can you do about it Stacy." I chose to learn and grow from it and not to make the situation worse.

The next thing Elder Wirthlin points out is seek for the Eternal. He quotes Joseph Smith when he said "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; thou shalt triumph over all they foes."
I liked this because it points out that trials and difficulty will only be for a short time. This reminds me of a time my dear friend Sharisa's grandmother said something to me when I was upset and crying. She hugged me and whispered in my ear, "this too Shall Pass." To this day her words have stayed with me. Which also brings to the 3rd lesson, compensation. For everything taken away the lord promises the faithful it will be restored 100 fold. I can think of times where I lost something and then I realized that a short while later that I was blessed more than before. I know that the lord keeps this promise.

The last thing he teaches is trust in the Father and the Son. Elder Wirthlin says "the simple secret is this: put your trust in the Lord, do your best then leave the rest to Him." Jacob has said this to me many times and time and time again it has been proven to be true. Although I am not currently going through a difficult trial there have been times in my past I felt I could go no further. I truly felt comforted and strengthened by this talk. I know it was meant for me to hear and the next time I am challenged I will remember his uplifting and insightful words.