The Pearl

This post marks my second for Doctrine & Covenants, and this week the topic is... suffering. I don't know anyone who doesn't suffer. We all do at different points in our lives. It's important to emphasize our reaction and response to suffering-- I distinctly remember a wonderful talk given by Elder Wirthlin in general conference a few years ago, and he said we ought to adopt this attitude: "Come what may, and love it!" He is so right. My question, then, is: when we're in the midst of troubling times, be it personally, as a family, nationally, or whatever, how do we bear it?

That obviously depends on the type of suffering, but either way, we must rely on the Lord. The first type of suffering is the suffering we bring upon ourselves through our actions (ie when we sin). I'd like to focus on a special section in the Doctrine & Covenants. D&C 101, verses 1-3:

Verily I say unto you, concerning your brethren who have been afflicted and persecuted and cast out from the land of their inheritance---
I the Lord have suffered the affliction to come upon them, wherewith they have been afflicted, in consequence of their transgressions;
Yet I will own them, and they shall be mine in that day when I shall come to make up my jewels.

Did you catch that? The Lord, in his great mercy, will count even the transgressors (that's all of us, right?) among his jewels, if we repent and change our hearts and habits.

Continuing on with this discussion of the Saints' suffering (verses 4-9):

Therefore, they must needs be chastened and tried, even as Abraham, who was commanded to offer up his only son.
For all those who will not endure chastening, but deny me, cannot be sanctified.
Behold, I say unto you, there were jarrings, and contentions...
They were slow to hearken unto the voice of the Lord their God...
In the day of their peace they esteemed lightly my counsel; but, in the day of their trouble, of necessity they feel after me.
Verily I say unto you, notwithstanding their sins, my bowels are filled with compassion towards them. I will not utterly cast them off; and in the day of wrath I will remember mercy.

When I reflect on God's mercy, I rejoice! Truly, He is our kind and loving Heavenly Father. Like our mortal parents, our suffering does not make him "happy." But, he loves us, and he knows that when we are chastened, we grow and become better people, if we so choose. Of course, we can become bitter and hard-hearted, and ultimately reject God. BUT, if we repent and recommit to following Jesus Christ, we will be filled with the light and love of our Heavenly Father, and we will be better people because of our experience. It is important to remember that even in our suffering, and even when we sin, God loves us. He invites us to change our ways when we sin, and he will help us to conquer wickedness. We need his help to do this, and the help of our Savior Jesus Christ.

The second type of suffering comes not in response to our sins, but as an opportunity to grow and improve and become more like God. This kind of suffering can be confusing. It hurts. We sometimes wonder, "why me?" Or in the worst case, satan may discourage us and tempt us into believing that, considering our dire circumstances, God must not love us.

Satan is wrong. In fact, if we heed Elder Wirthlin's counsel and choose to embrace our challenges as an opportunity to grow, we will be blessed immeasurably and recognize just how greatly Heavenly Father loves us. The Lord counsels us to "...be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you..." (D&C 68:6). I have a testimony that He will, in fact, stand by us. He will strengthen us and support us, and with his help we will come off conqueror.

Going back to D&C 101, the Lord said we would be his jewels. Similar to a jewel is a pearl. Do you know the story of the pearl? It is one of my favorite processes in nature. Here's a simplified version: At some point, a foreign object, usually a tiny piece of shell or dirt, enters an oyster. The oyster recognizes this irritant, and begins to coat it with a special liquid. Over time, this liquid builds up and creates a pearl. Thus, something that began as a bother because one of the world's most beautiful and precious gifts.


We are all pearls. Accepted into often difficult circumstances, I believe the Lord is trying and chastening us-- coating us-- to become pearls. I have a testimony that God is our Heavenly Father, and that he loves us. If we keep an eternal perspective and rely on him and the saving power of our Redeemer, even Jesus Christ, we will be exalted one day. We will be his jewels. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Just wanted to add this "pearl" of wisdom-- a favorite poem my mom shared with me a long time ago:

The tree that never had to fight,

For sun and sky and air and light,

But stood out in the open plain,

And always got it’s share of rain,

Never became a forest king,

But lived and died a scrawny thing.

The man who never had to toil,

To gain and farm his patch of soil,

Who never had to win his share,

Of sun and sky and light and air,

Never became a manly man,

But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow in ease,

The stronger the wind, the stronger trees.

The farther sky, the greater length,

The more the storm, the more the strength.

By sun and cold, by rain and snow,

In tree and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,

We find the patriarchs of both.

And they hold counsel with the stars

Whose broken branches show the scars

Of pain and loss, of gain and strife.

This is the common law of life.

~Douglas Mallock

I got the image of the redwood trees HERE.

I got the image of the pearl HERE.