Brigham Young University (BYU) is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often mistakenly called the “Mormon Church.” As part of their undergraduate coursework, BYU students take multiple semesters of spiritually uplifting, stimulating religion classes.
Here, in this column, students enrolled in scripture study classes have shared their thoughts, insights, and reflections on the New Testament and gospel of Jesus Christ in the form of letters to someone they know. In publishing these, we fulfill their desire to witness to all of us of the relevance, power, and beauty of the New Testament, and God’s plan of happiness for each of us. We invite you to take a look at their epiphanies and discoveries as they delve into the scriptures. Let us know how these may help you in your own life. Share them with a friend.
We Can Do It!
A Personal thought
Life is hard; there is no doubt about that. We so often wonder why it is that life can be so difficult. We may be doing the right things but the trials and tribulations still come. How can we possibly have a good attitude about suffering, what good can such hard times bring? Paul tells us exactly why we should appreciate these trials we are given, “…but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). Our trials will give us hope that can help us make it through this life. There is nothing worse than feeling helpless during a trial and not knowing if you can make it through. But once you have made it, oh the joy you feel knowing that you just made it through a rough spot and you CAN do it again! If life were all candy canes and gumdrops, we would never need to learn hope because everything would be good. If a hard time came, we would have nothing to hold to, nothing to convince us we can make it through. That is what trials can do: give us the experiences we need to know that we can and will survive! It may not seem possible at the time to appreciate the experience we are gaining but in the end, we will look back and see how we have grown, what we have learned and the hope we have gained. Trials are not easy; they will never be easy. But if we can keep the perspective that at the end of our tribulations we will have gained more experience, they will be so much easier to bear. So push through and remember the true words, “We can do it!”