From the Heart by Lesa Wells

Lately it seems that many of our dear sisters have been struggling with either heartache, tragedy, illness, financial worry, divorce, or depression. I ask myself every day, "Why them?" I know my turn will come and I understand what the Lord says in D&C 136:31, “My people must be tried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them.” We all will struggle at one point or another in this life. Elder Gene R. Cook said, "Jesus taught that we pass through all these trials to refine us 'in the furnace of affliction' (1 Ne. 20:10), and that we should not bear them unaided, but 'in [the] Redeemer’s name' (D&C 138:13). The grace of the Lord through the Atonement can both cleanse us of sin and assist us in perfecting ourselves through our trials, sicknesses, and even 'character defects.' We are both sanctified and justified through the grace of the Lord." Elder L. Lionel Kendrick tells us, "Without trials we cannot be prepared for the great blessings the Lord wishes to give us. Struggles are a part of the sacred sanctification process…Sanctification prepares us to live in the presence of the Savior.” The Lord told the prophet Joseph, "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&C121:1,7-8). The prophet did 'endure it well' and we can too. I recently read the following words, "Rather than simply passing through trials, we must allow trials to pass through us in ways that sanctify us." My prayer is that we can look at our trials as blessings that allow us to draw even closer to Christ, keeping our eyes and hearts centered upon Him, allowing Him to sanctify our souls.