My Talk on Storms and Faith

Yesterday, I had the privilege of speaking in sacrament meeting. It was our first time back since March, when life had drastically changed. We were in the later session with families named I-Z. I had never seen the chapel so sparse of people, but it felt more intimate for sure. It was very quiet and had a noticeable reverence. There were about fourteen families in attendance and only five of those families (including mine) had kids. The other families were couples or single individuals all spread out. The first six pews were empty, as people preferred to sit in the back of the chapel.

Prior to speaking, the bishop greeted me and told me that there was no time constraint. There was no pressure to fill time, nor was there a problem if I were to go over the ten minute allotted speaking time. I said to him, "I really like that!" and he responded, "We do too." With no pressure either way, it felt as though the spirit could really flow, and it did!

After the bishop announced that I would be speaking, he said we would close with the hymn, "True to Faith". My heart lit up. I had planned to read the lyrics to "True to the Faith " in my talk as I had felt inspired to the night before. The Lord is amazing!

I ended up speaking for about fifteen minutes, and after the meeting had ended, some of my friends and neighbors asked me if they could have a copy of my talk. I didn't feel I had anything adequate to share, I had given my talk from a paper filled with bullet points and quotes. So, today I took the time to type up what I shared in yesterday's sacrament meeting, as well as the parts I skipped over. Here it is.

I was asked to speak about the fruits of our faith, and finding refuge from life’s storms. It felt very fitting with the Come Follow Me lesson from this last week as well as everything going on in the world right now. As I pondered this topic, three things came to mind;

First, there have been a lot of storms since now and last March, when life drastically changed for everyone.

Second, during this time, I have come to know of many people who have suddenly taken their life. Enough to count on two hands.

Third, in the last seven days, I’ve witnessed two friends renounce their faith and walk away from the gospel. As far as I'm concerned, that’s two people too many.

During these hard times, I’ve seen many friends and family struggle, as I am sure many of us have. I’ve also noticed that those who don’t believe in God, or have abandoned Him, seem to struggle the most. They struggle because they try to face the storms on their own. Alone.

Storms will do one of two things; they will either make our testimony, or break it.  It all depends upon our faith. We have been reading about faith in Alma this last week in Come Follow Me, and I have been reflecting on this topic all week. I'd like to share with you one of the storms that our family has been dealing with.

Earlier this year, prior to COVID, we decided to get a dog. We bought an English Labrador Retriever puppy who we named "Ace". He has been so good for our kids, especially during these crazy times. Yes, he has been our greatest joy and also our greatest trial.

Last week he injured his foot and it has required 24/7 care. Just when the wound starts healing he manages to reopen it and he leaves a trail of bloody paw prints through the house. This trial has been exhausting, and there have been days when every one of us has said, "I'm done. I give up. I can't do this anymore." It has definitely been hard.

The other day I decided to make a list of all of the difficult feelings I have felt during these last few months. I have felt;

• Uncertain
• Alone
• Uneasy
• Anxious
• Frustrated
• Cluster phobic
• Defeated
• Annoyed
• Disappointed
• Exhausted

Which have led to me feeling, Humbled.

Because of this, I am grateful for life's storms and challenges. You see, they make us even more dependent upon the lord. They humble us. And as Alma taught, humility softens our heart. When our heart is soft, seeds of faith can be planted.

Often when I think of faith, I think of my pioneer ancestors. This week we'll be celebrating Pioneer Day. Again, the timing of this topic couldn't have been more perfect.

I have a wonderful heritage of pioneer ancestors who immigrated from Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, England, and Ireland. Some of them sacrificed everything for the gospel and to come to America. Others were so poor that they didn't have much to give up, the gospel is what gave them hope and something to live for. My ancestors experienced many trials on their journey to America, including being disowned by family, kidnapped by Indians, robbed of all possessions and family heirlooms, attacked by mobs and persecuted for their beliefs, betrayed by friends, afflicted with sickness, and experiencing the sudden and unexpected deaths of parents, spouses, and young children.

One of these ancestors, my Great, Great, Great, Great, Grandmother Elizabeth Mills Oakden Whitaker (whose home is a museum in Centerville) shared in her biography some reflection on her own storms and the storms of the Saints.

While reflecting on the martyrdom of the prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum she said,

“This scene occurred in America. ‘the land of the free, and the home of the brave,’ to which our ancestors fled for religious freedom, where the dear old flag yet waves.

Oh the things I have seen in my life! I saw the Nauvoo temple burn. What a terrible thing that was. All that beautiful work. The terrible sacrifices the Saints made to build it and all gone up in smoke. We all wept. Even the little children. I was little then too, but I cried as if my heart would break. 

I remember taking my father’s lunch to him when he worked on it when it was being built, and the Prophet holding me on his knee, stroking my hair. I remember his strong, beautiful face, his deep powerful voice, mellowed with a gentle kindness impossible to describe. Then, he was dead, the beautiful temple destroyed. What next? But behind the anguish and despair, there was no thought of giving up among those faithful saints, just the pain of witnessing the cruel destruction of that sacred structure that tore at our hearts. We all knew we would go on an endure to the end.”

Just the other day I heard someone say, “I didn’t come this far in life to give up now”. I imagine the pioneers saying that as they faced obstacle after obstacle on their journey to Zion. “I didn’t come this far, all this way, to give up now”. Their sacrifices have built my own faith. What they gave up so that I could have the gospel means more to me than they probably ever knew. No, I don’t want their sacrifices to be in vain. I am a fruit of their faith. We are a fruit of their faith. Our children are the fruit of our faith. The gathering of Israel taking place right now on both sides of the veil, is the fruit of someone’s faith.

So, what is it that helped their faith endure? Elder Ricardo P. Giménez of the Seventy said in his talk, “Finding Refuge from the Storms of Life”,

"As I have seen the storms that affect people’s lives, I have concluded that no matter what kind of storm is battering us—regardless of whether there is a solution to it or whether there is an end in sight—there is only one refuge, and it is the same for all types of storms. This single refuge provided by our Heavenly Father is our Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

I am reminded of Helaman 5:12  -

 Remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

All week long, the hymn "True to the Faith" has come into my mind, especially the second verse and the chorus;

While we know the pow’rs of darkness
Seek to thwart the work of God,
Shall the children of the promise
Cease to grasp the iron rod? No!

True to the faith that our parents have cherished,
True to the truth for which martyrs have perished,
To God’s command, Soul, heart, and hand,
Faithful and true we will ever stand.


I've been reading President Nelson's biography, and last week I read an experience he shared that goes along with faith. He shared how he had taken his family on a rafting trip down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. They encountered some rapids and a drop in the river which catapulted President Nelson from the raft. For a while he was trapped under the raft and thought that he just might drown. Eventually his family spotted him and pulled him up to safety.

They pulled off to the side for a break and when it was time to head back down the river President Nelson counseled his family, “No matter what happens, the rubber raft will remain on top of the water. If we cling with all our might to the ropes secured to the raft, we can make it. Even if the raft should capsize, we will be all right if we hang tightly to the ropes.”

Forty years later reflecting on this experience he said, “If anything good came from that experience, it was a powerful lesson for me. We are all, metaphorically speaking, on a rafting trip through life. Some of the trip is beautiful and peaceful, but at some point we all hit rapids. As we face the churning challenges of our lives, the greatest, and only real safety comes, as we hold on to the raft, which is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Clinging to others can help as we minister to each other, but not if it means letting go of the raft."

What wise counsel from our prophet! I imagine the raft also being the iron rod, and I like to imagine that when we hold to the iron rod we are holding the Savior's hand. We should never let go.

The storms in life are inevitable, and in the year 2020 we have definitely hit the rapids. Now, we can face these storms and rapids alone, or with the Lord. So my question is, WHY DO IT ALONE?

When we hold to the rod (the Lord's hand), and stay on the covenant path, we have his power to help us. Power from our covenants.

Sheri Dew said in a 2003 devotional, “You were recommended to help run the last leg of the relay that began with Adam and Eve because your premortal spiritual valor indicated you would have the courage and the determination to face the world at its worst, to do combat with the evil one during his heyday, and, in spite of it all, to be fearless in building the kingdom of God.

You simply must understand this, because you were born to lead by virtue of who you are, the covenants you have made, and the fact that you are here now in the 11th hour.”

Let’s not forget that. I believe this speaks for all of us.

Truly, I am so grateful for life's storms. Yes, I'm grateful for 2020, because without trials we wouldn’t know the miracles. As I look back on my life, my greatest miracles came from my greatest trials. I’ve come to learn that it’s not the trial itself that grows our faith, it’s the miracles which are the fruits. If 2020 has shown us some pretty wild storms, we can expect that some pretty incredible miracles await on the horizon.

Back to the feelings that I listed above; our Savior experienced them all in the garden. He sacrificed and suffered, so that I don’t have to. I don’t want to take that for granted. I know that as we verbally hand over our pain and suffering to the Lord, he will gladly take it. He wants to lighten our burdens.
That’s how we’ll be able to endure until He returns.

I say this in Jesus' name amen.