When The Psalmist Was Meditating Upon The...

When the Psalmist was meditating upon the beauties of creation, he exclaimed with awe and amazement: ¶

"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; "What is man, that thou are mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? ¶

"For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. "Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet": (Psalm 8:3-6.) How comforting it is to note the esteem and concern the Lord has for his children. ¶

What is man? As Latter-day Saints we believe that man is the spiritual offspring of God our Heavenly Father, created in his image and after his likeness. We further believe that man once dwelt in the presence of deity and came from a heavenly home to this earth. ¶

The poet Wordsworth, in a flash of inspiration, referred to this transition when he penned these beautiful lines: ¶

"Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting: ¶

The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar: ¶

Not in entire forgetfulness, And not in utter nakedness, But trailing clouds of glory do we come From God, who is our home": ¶

In that far distant past when plans for the creation of the earth were discussed, it was proposed that those who would be privileged to come here to inhabit the earth must be tested and tried to prove whether they would do all things that the Lord would command them to do. The faithful were to ". . . ¶

have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever." (See Abraham 3:25-26.) It is our conviction that we were present at that great council and had a voice in the decisions that were made. ¶

The Lord once asked the Prophet Job some pertinent questions pertaining to those important events, when he inquired: "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? . . ." ¶

"When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" (Job 38:4, 7.) Because of faithfulness in that former estate, we have been born into this world, blessed with mortal bodies which house eternal spirits. Here we have opportunities to grow, progress, and gain experience in mortal and earthly things. ¶

The divinely inspired Declaration of Independence proclaims that every citizen of this glorious country is entitled to enjoy "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." ¶

The attainment of happiness has become a desired goal of most individuals; but there are those who ofttimes mistake pleasure for happiness, not realizing that pleasure can be of a temporary or passing nature only, while happiness and joy are permanent and enduring. ¶

An ancient prophet declared: "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." (2 Nephi 2:25.) As man travels down the pathway of this mortal life, trusting that his course will be such as to produce joy and happiness, he becomes aware of many obstacles in the road that interfere with his progress. The Lord designed this to be so, for he did not intend that this earthly existence should be easy. Adam was advised: ". . . cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; "Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat of the herb of the field. ¶

"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread " (Gen. 3:17-19.) The pathway was to be strewn with temptations and trials. Man was also to know good and evil and be allowed his free agency in choosing between the two. He was to learn the law of opposites: that there is sorrow as there is joy, pain as contrasted to pleasure, sickness as opposed to health; he was to taste the bitter as well as the sweet. ¶

From this testing process would come benefits, for the Lord has promised ". . . after much tribulation come the blessings." The poet Kilmer has expressed the same thought in the words: ¶

"They say that life is a highway, And its milestones are the years; And now and then there is a toll gate, Where you buy your way with your tears. ¶

"It's a rough road and a steep road, And it stretches broad and far, But at last it leads to a golden town Where the golden houses are." ¶

Perhaps during our lives we have been, or will be, required to gaze on the face of a loved one for the last time in mortality. In this hour of sorrow, the following appropriate words of the poet might well come as a message of comfort to us: ¶

"Be still, sad heart! and cease repining; Behind the clouds is the sun still shining: ¶

Thy fate is the common fate of all: ¶

Into each life some rain must fall, Some days must be dark and dreary." ¶

("The Rainy Day" — Longfellow) The Savior had his dark and dreary days, and in Gethsemane's garden he suffered untold agony as he contemplated the events that confronted him while fulfilling his exalted mission. ¶

We, too, will have our dark and dreary days in our search for that which brings joy and happiness. But always there is the assurance and promise that "every cloud has its silver lining." ¶

As the Latter-day Saints toiled westward across the trackless plains, leading from Nauvoo to the valleys here in the mountains, they suffered and endured many privations and hardships, but they were comforted and cheered as they sang at the close of the day these inspiring words: ¶

"Why should we mourn or think our lot is hard? ¶

'Tis not so; all is right! ¶

Why should we think to earn a great reward, If we now shun the fight? ¶

"Gird up your loins, fresh courage take, Our God will never us forsake. ¶

And soon we'll have this truth to tell — All is well! All is well!" ¶

("Come, Come, Ye Saints," William Clayton.) The gospel of Jesus Christ offers peace and comfort in times of illness, trouble, and sorrow. The Redeemer comforted his listeners with this beautiful and assuring admonition: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ¶

"Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: ¶

and ye shall find rest unto your souls. ¶

"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matt. 11:28-30.) As we go to the house of worship each Sabbath day and partake of the Sacrament, we covenant with our Heavenly Father that we will take upon us the name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and by remembering him and keeping his commandments, we may always have his Spirit to be with us. ¶

Keeping the commandments and living in harmony with the teachings of the Master will result in assurances of a righteous life, and a righteous life will bring joy and happiness to our souls. ¶

Then, even though "into each life some rain must fall," into each life also will come peace and contentment. ¶

From what has been said, my dear brothers and sisters, we can see how interested in and concerned about life people of every age and clime have been. They have struggled to analyze it, to understand it, to evaluate it. But its full meaning and purpose and duration cannot be comprehended except through the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. With the gospel to comfort, to assist, to inspire us, let us meet life head on; courageously, sincerely, and prayerfully, meet its joys, its sorrows, its rains and sunshine with full determination to keep all of God's commandments, which by so doing we know will bring us back into his presence to partake of that eternal joy he has in store for all his faithful children, for which I humbly pray, bearing you my testimony that I know that God lives, that the gospel is true, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶