I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but every now and then, previous words of prophets and apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will pop into my head.

I had a moment like that this week. I remembered how Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the church, started a talk a few years ago during general conference, the semiannual gathering of the church.

“The scriptures were written to bless and encourage us, and surely they do that. We thank heaven for every chapter and verse we have ever been given. But have you noticed that every now and then a passage will appear that reminds us we are falling a little short?”

Elder Holland went on to discuss the Sermon on the Mount as recorded in the New Testament, highlighting various commandments that might be difficult to obey, culminating with the charge to “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father … in heaven is perfect.”

“With that concluding imperative, we want to go back to bed and pull the covers over our head,” Elder Holland said. “Such celestial goals seem beyond our reach.”

These words came to my mind this week as I read the words of the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12.

“Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.

“For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.

“And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

“For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.

“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:5-10)

Paul suffered from “a thorn in the flesh,” which suggests some type of infirmity. We don’t know what exactly it was, but we know that it was so bothersome that Paul pleaded three times for the Lord to take it away from him. Still, Paul remained faithful. He said he would “glory in my infirmities,” taking “pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake.”

Here’s where Elder Holland’s words came into my head as I realized how much I fall short. When I think of my own infirmities and problems, I become dejected. In the last week, I’ve been to a few different doctors because of a health issue that prevented me from writing my column last week and two of them pointed out to me the uniqueness of my problem, as if it’s just not how things usually are. It made me think of my late wife who passed away from multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis isn’t usually considered a fatal disease, certainly not when someone is young, yet my wife had to have the uniquely nasty version of it and she didn’t make it to 30. How can one possibly glory in these types of challenges?

The answer is to look at how Paul did it.

After asking the Lord three times for his “thorn in the flesh” to be taken from him, the Lord responded to him, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Those words of encouragement are what led Paul to say he would “most gladly … glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” He later said that “for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

Elder Richard G. Scott, a former member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, summarized his thoughts on these passages this way:

“Recognize that some challenges in life will not be resolved here on earth. Paul pled thrice that ‘a thorn in the flesh’ be removed. The Lord simply answered, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness’ [2 Corinthians 12:7-9]. He gave Paul strength to compensate so he could live a most meaningful life. He wants you to learn how to be cured when that is His will and how to obtain strength to live with your challenge when He intends it to be an instrument for growth. In either case the Redeemer will support you.”

It’s hard not to want challenges to disappear. But a loving Heavenly Father knows the purpose for all trials and afflictions, and whether or not they are taken away from us, the point we should all come to understand from Paul’s teachings is that the grace of Jesus Christ is sufficient. Whatever we may suffer from, we don’t have to feel depressed and hopeless because the Lord’s grace, as it did for Paul, can give us “strength to compensate.” That strength allows us to not only deal with our challenges, but even glory in them, because like Paul said, “when I am weak, then am I strong.”

Contact Ryan Comer at rcomer@standard.net. Follow him on Twitter at @rbcomer8388 and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/rbcomer8388.

Newsletter