Reg Christensen lives in the Midwest with his wife, Carol. They have seven children and seventeen grandchildren. Reg has fulfilled a variety of callings in the Church and he and Carol have been blessed with many service opportunities as Pathway missionaries and service volunteers at the BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies, to mention a few. While living in Jerusalem, they served in the Bethlehem branch, Carol as the Relief Society president and Reg as the branch president. His happy times come from being with family and friends, reading, writing, woodworking, leathercrafting, exploring nature, and blessing lives with his handyman skills. He has published several books, including Unlocking Isaiah: Lessons and Insights that Draw Us to the Savior.
Of note, this is part two of a two-part article. Be sure to read part one of “Enduring in Faith – Growing Through Every Trial.”
Enter Reg…
In part one we explored how life’s trials—particularly those that challenge us intellectually and physically—are part of a divine practicum designed to help us grow in wisdom and faith. We learned from the Savior’s example and were reminded that enduring well often means trusting in God’s timing and purposes, even when life feels heavy. In this second part, we turn our attention to two of the most spiritually stretching arenas: our personal spirituality and our relationships with others. These trials can test our hearts in quiet, often unseen ways. Yet, as we stay anchored to Christ and strive to follow His teachings, we can find strength to endure with grace, empathy, and enduring faith. Let’s dive in to part two.
Spiritual
Spiritual is defined as, “Relating to sacred matters.” Sacred means, “Dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity.” (Merriam-Webster.com, “sacred” and “spiritual”)
To live a spiritual life is to strive to serve and worship our Heavenly Parents by learning of Them, keeping Their commandments, and helping and serving others. Satan and his multitude of minions work constantly to distract us from our spirituality—to confuse right with wrong and tempt us away from a life dedicated to our Heavenly Parents and Their purposes for our lives. In our current internet driven world, corruption, vulgarity, extortions, lies, profanity, pornography, defamation, blasphemies, exaggerations, falsehoods, and evils of every variety are swirling constantly through our personal space and around our domain. At times we may be tempted to pull inward and become hermits—however, our Savior admonished us to live in the world, yet be “not of the world.” (John 15:19)
How do we do it—live in the world without being destroyed by it? How do we endure our spiritual challenges with faith? Constant diligence, humility to change, and rededication are required. Many eternal truths can guide us forward. I will share three.
Recognize the Need for Faith—Seek Pure Truth
In our premortal life, we readily believed the words of our Heavenly Parents because we lived with Them and saw eternal truth in constant action. Here in our mortality, we no longer have the constant personal knowledge that what we are being taught is of God. We are left to seek and exercise faith, which is why “Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ” (Articles of Faith 1:4) is the first principle of the gospel. We are left to constantly sort fact from fiction.
As Paul admonished,
“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21)
We are compelled to diligence in fine-tuning our critical thinking skills in complex issues, while honing our humility to believe simple truths.
Be Honest with Ourselves and Others
I recall listening to the impeachment hearings of a current president. Hatred was running high. Half-truths and outright lies were constantly being hurled from one side of the political aisle to the other and back again. Social media was aflame with falsehoods of every variety and from every corner. Maintaining our civility and spirituality is a constant daily challenge. I have long loved this message from Elder Marvin J. Ashton that gives us a great tool for navigating a lying world with faith:
“A lie is any communication given to another with the intent to deceive. . . . Don’t tell lies. Don’t share lies. Don’t participate in lies.”
Anchor Yourself to Christ and His Teachings
In my teaching, I used an object lesson to teach the principle of enduring our challenges with faith in Christ.
I placed a strong rope on the floor at the front of my classroom and then invited several students to come up and take a printed sign of a temptation used by Satan (e.g., lying, cheating, lusting, profaning). They all stood at the side of the rope opposite the fire-escape door. I then chose a single student to represent themself and stand on the other side of what was to be our Tug-O-War. I whispered assurance to the lone student to “Just hold firm to the rope and they will not be able to move you.”
The lone student seemed nervous and skeptical until everyone picked up the rope and the contest began. Then the angst and skepticism were replaced by calm and confidence as the majority of students, pull as they would, could not budge the lone student.
At this point, it did not take them long to discover that the fire-escape door was left slightly ajar and that the rope extended to my parking spot just outside where it was secured to the bumper of my pickup truck. Near the anchor to my truck was a tripod holding a picture of the Savior.
The lesson was simple and obvious—if we anchor ourselves to Christ, we will not be moved by the forces of Satan. It has been said that no amount of water can sink a ship unless it gets inside. Likewise, no amount of evil can harm our spirituality unless we allow it inside of our thoughts and actions. This principle is expressed in the scriptures in reference to the holy temple:
“That no combination of wickedness shall have power to rise up and prevail over thy people upon whom thy name shall be put in this house.” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:26)
We endure our spiritual trials with faith as we continually learn of Christ and strive to live as He invites us to live. Although we live in an ever-darkening world, we are blessed with expanding revelation that provides ever-increasing light to brighten our path forward.
Social
Brigham Young supposedly wrote a note in a young girl’s autograph book. Although never documented, the sentiment is still wise.
“To live with saints in heaven is bliss and glory—but to live with them on earth is quite a different story.”
A gifted author I read years ago, James Ferrell, presented the thesis of his book on forgiveness and reconciliation as follows:
“Being mistreated is the most important condition of mortality, for eternity itself depends on how we view those who mistreat us.”
Our social interactions will provide some of our most serious life trials and therefore some of our greatest opportunities for growth and development. Paramount to our ability to deal righteously and appropriately with others is to recognize the eternal truths that “all are alike unto God” (2 Nephi 26:33) and that “the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.” (Doctrine and Covenants 18:10)
I have tried to counsel my children—and myself—to “love them until you love them.” In other words, we come to love those whom we get to know and serve.
We demonstrate our love for others by serving them in whatever appropriate and helpful way we can, and in so doing, we come to love them more deeply.
How do we demonstrate love for others with whom we have conflict? Our Savior taught us a grand key for social interaction:
“Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.” (Matthew 18:15)
Notice what He did not say—to attack them on social media or to gossip to others about them. There is power and wisdom in sitting down personally with someone and being willing to listen to them.
I have tested this principle many times and found it to be true. And of course, others have their own agency and may not respond to us as positively as we would like. But if we humbly try, seeds for future communication will be planted. And if they outright refuse to communicate with us and perhaps even attempt to harm us, at least we have made the attempt in the Lord’s way.
We were privileged to be taught a true principle from an inspired leader. Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles was visiting our area and conducting a leadership meeting. President Spencer W. Kimball was our church president and prophet at the time.
We were a relatively small group of perhaps fifty people. Elder Packer asked, “How many of you would like to help President Kimball?” Of course we raised our hands—who would not want to help this humble, inspired prophet? Elder Packer then continued, “Well, then, cross your name off his worry list!” He then expounded that no matter whatever slight or insult we may receive from others, we should not take offense.
Taking offense involves a conscious, controllable choice on our part and we may choose not to do it.
Often through the years as someone has “made me angry,” I have paused and remembered that no one has the power to “make me angry.” It is my choice to respond to others as I so choose.
Conclusion
During one of my darkest life trials, I wandered into an empty classroom seeking a few moments of peace and solitude. On the whiteboard was a partially erased quotation. After some searching, I found the source to be Elder Neal A. Maxwell. It has since become one of my guiding stars. I conclude with this quote that is worthy of much thought and pondering.
“True enduring therefore represents not merely the passage of time but also the passage of the soul—and not merely from A to B, but amid “mighty change” all the way from A to Z. To endure in faith and do God’s will thus involves much more than putting up with a circumstance (see Doctrine and Covenants 63:20; 101:35). Rather than shoulder-shrugging, true enduring is soul trembling. Jesus bled not at a few pores but “at every pore” (Doctrine and Covenants 19:18). Sometimes spiritual obedience requires us to “hold on” lovingly, such as to a rebellious child, while others, despairing, cry, “Let go!” Enduring may likewise mean, however, letting go when everything within us wants to hold on, such as to a loved one “appointed unto death” (Doctrine and Covenants 42:48). Patient endurance permits us to cling to our faith in the Lord and our faith in His timing when we are being tossed about by the surf of circumstance. Even when a seeming undertow grasps us, somehow in the tumbling we are being carried forward, though battered and bruised. When, for the moment, we ourselves are not being stretched on a particular cross, we ought to be at the foot of someone else’s—full of empathy and proffering spiritual refreshment.”
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