Book of Mormon: Day 51: Sorrow and Mourning Shall Flee Away


 

Today’s Reading:  2 Nephi 7-8:14

11. Therefore, the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy and holiness shall be upon their heads; and they shall obtain gladness and joy; sorrow and mourning shall flee away.

About ten years ago, I found myself battling severe depression.  I experienced post partum depression after I had my third baby and after that it seemed to be a recurring thing in my life.  My husband had just finished his medical residency in Florida and, in the middle of winter, we moved to Montana, where he started a new job. I suddenly found myself away from my friends and my life as I knew it.  It was hard going from the warm, sunny beaches of Florida, to the cold, dark winters of Montana.  I became sad and anxious and I fell into a depression darker than anything I had ever experienced before.  I felt like I was literally falling into a deep black hole and I couldn’t find my way out of it.  I cried constantly and the anxiety I felt was almost debilitating.  Nothing I did seemed to help.  I tried desperately to feel the spirit and to feel light.  I prayed constantly, desperately reaching out to my Father in Heaven to take the darkness away.  Each time I prayed, an image of Christ would come to my mind.  I clung to the hope and the flicker of light that it gave me.  I knew, that if nothing else, I could turn to Him and somehow overcome it.

One of my favorite examples of faith in the Savior and in His healing power, is found in the New Testament in Luke.  It is the account of the woman who suffered physically, and I imagine emotionally as well, for years, with an issue of blood.  She had faith in Christ and knew that if she could just touch His robe as he passed by her, she would be healed. And she was. Her faith in the Savior made her whole again.

I felt much like this woman.  Nothing was helping me but I knew that if I had faith, and trusted in the healing power of the Savior, the darkness I was feeling would leave.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland teaches,

In striving for some peace and understanding in these difficult matters, it is crucial to remember that we are living—and chose to live—in a fallen world where for divine purposes our pursuit of godliness will be tested and tried again and again. Of greatest assurance in God’s plan is that a Savior was promised, a Redeemer, who through our faith in Him would lift us triumphantly over those tests and trials, even though the cost to do so would be unfathomable for both the Father who sent Him and the Son who came. It is only an appreciation of this divine love that will make our own lesser suffering first bearable, then understandable, and finally redemptive.”  – Jeffrey R. Holland, Like a Broken Vessel

With time and with help from a wonderful doctor, I did get better and light came back into my heart and my spirit, but it was one of the most difficult things I have ever experienced. I can now say that as hard as this trial was to endure,  I am grateful for it because I learned, even more, how Christ’s Atonement works in my life.   I gained a greater understanding of His love for me.   He literally became my Savior as He helped me through my suffering.

Turning to the Savior in our trials will strengthen us.  He will give us peace and healing.  He knows our hearts and He knows how to help us when we are suffering.  He knows each of us and loves us infinitely and unconditionally.  Through His Atonement we can “obtain gladness and joy” and He will make our “sorrow and mourning flee away.”

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