He Believes in Us

The other night I decided to open up an old favorite book of mine, "God Wants a Powerful People" by Sheri Dew and I found a quote that I've been pondering on and wanted to share with you.

"The last days are not for the faint of heart or the spiritually out of shape. There will be days when we feel defeated, exhausted, and plain old beat-up by life's whiplash. People we love will disappoint us-- and we will disappoint them. We'll almost certainly struggle with some kind of physical appetite, and perhaps several. Some days it will feel as though the veil between heaven and earth is made of reinforced concrete. 

And we may even face a crisis of faith. In fact, we can count on experiencing trials that will test our testimony, our obedience, and our faith-- because how do we know if we really have a testimony, if we'll really obey, if we really want to be honest and chaste and virtuous, and if we really believe in Jesus Christ, if those things aren't put to the test? 

I have learned in recent years, in ways I never would have anticipated, that none of us are beyond the reach of fear and pain and disappointment so intense that it can threaten, if even just for a short time, our testimony and faith. 

Lest this seem too negative a thought about our lives and our future, I hasten to add that I am nothing if not optimistic about our time here in mortality. 

Everything about our lives is an indicator of our Father's respect for us, that He recommended and selected us for now, when the stakes are so high, when His kingdom is being established once and for all, never again to be taken from the earth. He chose us to run the last leg of the relay, when He needs His strongest, fittest runners. He believes in us."

He believes in US. Even when we question his gospel, doubt his love and wonder if living righteously is really worth it. Even when I cry on my way to school over nothing and turn around and have a mental health day instead of facing reality. Even when we pick up old bad habits we've already repented of. Even when we say things we don't mean and fall short of our true divine potential. 

He still believes in you! 

And if we truly believed, that God actually knew our names, reserved us for these final days, and loved us unconditionally, and wanted him on his team, don't you think we'd all live a little differently?