General Conference Review: "I Will Not Fail Thee, nor Forsake Thee"

So this will probably be my last review from the October 2013 General Conference Talks. I wish I could have done more, still I am excited for the new talks and inspiration that will be coming this weekend and just hope to do more next time!

As it is the last one I thought it would be appropriate to look at what President Monson spoke about. As I read through his talk, "I Will Not Fail Thee, nor Forsake Thee" from the Sunday afternoon session I was deeply touched.

Just after the last conference (so it's been about a year now) President Monson lost his wife of over 64 years. I can't even begin to imagine what that must have been like. The number of people that can say that they've made it that long with someone has to be fairly small. In his own words, "To say that I miss her does not begin to convey the depth of my feelings."

He goes on to say that we all experience suffering and sorrow.  "When the pathway of life takes a cruel turn, there is the temptation to ask the question 'Why me?' At times there appears to be no light at the end of the tunnel, no sunrise to end the night’s darkness. We feel encompassed by the disappointment of shattered dreams and the despair of vanished hopes. We join in uttering the biblical plea, 'Is there no balm in Gilead?'¹ We feel abandoned, heartbroken, alone. We are inclined to view our own personal misfortunes through the distorted prism of pessimism. We become impatient for a solution to our problems, forgetting that frequently the heavenly virtue of patience is required."

Just now I've got some family and friends that are going through some of these extremes of sorrow. My heart aches when I see their pain and I wish I could take it away. I can't though. President Monson himself says that these trials are an important part of life. They are designed to prove our faith and place our view heavenward.

"From the bed of pain, from the pillow wet with tears, we are lifted heavenward by that divine assurance and precious promise: 'I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.'⁷ Such comfort is priceless."

I know that what makes the difference in life is not if we have trials or not - we all do. It's how we handle them. It's if when we are tried, we can look beyond the moment and trust in God that somehow in someway things will be made right in the end. If we remain committed to Him, our burdens will be lighter and we will be able to find peace, comfort and even joy.

President Monson is such a wonderful living example of this. I love to hear him and see the joy that he finds in life even though he has experienced his own fair share of trials and heartache.