“For a Little Season”:
Moving Forward with Life
When Life Doesn’t Seem to Move Forward
Scott C. Esplin
Church History and Doctrine
Brigham Young University
2009 OPAC Conference
Misunderstandings in Scripture
Think of prominent misunderstandings or
misinterpretations in scripture, times when the person
or people misunderstood the Lord’s will for them.
What patterns or lessons do you see?
Doing Right at the Right Time
“In all the important decisions in
our lives, what is most important
is to do the right thing. Second,
and only slightly behind the first,
is to do the right thing at the right
time. People who do the right
thing at the wrong time can be
frustrated and ineffective. They
can even be confused about
whether they made the right choice when what was
wrong was not their choice but their timing. . . . Faith
means trust—trust in God’s will, trust in His way of
doing things, and trust in His timetable. We should not
try to impose our timetable on His.”
Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign, Oct. 2003, p. 10
The “Whys” of Life
“When you face adversity, you can be led
to ask many questions. Some serve a useful
purpose; others do not. To ask, Why does
this have to happen to me? Why do I have
to suffer this, now? What have I done to
cause this? will lead you into blind alleys. It
really does no good to ask questions that
reflect opposition to the will of God. Rather
ask, What am I to do? What am I to learn
from this experience? What am I to change? Whom am I to
help? How can I remember my many blessings in times of trial?
Willing sacrifice of deeply held personal desires in favor of the
will of God is very hard to do. Yet, when you pray with real
conviction, “Please let me know Thy will” and “May Thy will be
done,” you are in the strongest position to receive the maximum
help from your loving Father.”
Richard G. Scott, Conf. Report, Oct. 1995, p. 18
What Am I to Change?
• Facing Fear with Faith
– D&C 9
– D&C 67
• Moving Forward Without an Answer
– D&C 58:26-27
– D&C 60:5; 61:22; 62:5, 7
• How to Act “For the Present Time”
– D&C 48:3-6; 51:16-17
Facing Fear with Faith
“I would like to have a dollar for every
person in a courtship who knew he or
she had felt the guidance of the Lord
in that relationship, had prayed about
the experience enough to know it
was the will of the Lord, knew they
loved each other and enjoyed each
other's company, and saw a lifetime of wonderful
compatibility ahead--only to panic, to get a brain
cramp, to have total catatonic fear sweep over them.
They "draw back," as Paul said, if not into perdition at
least into marital paralysis. (cont.)
Facing Fear with Faith
“I am not saying you shouldn't be very careful about
something as significant and serious as marriage. And I
certainly am not saying that a young man can get a revelation
that he is to marry a certain person without that young woman
getting the same confirmation. I have seen a lot of those oneway revelations in young people's lives. Yes, there are cautions
and considerations to make, but once there has been genuine
illumination, beware the temptation to retreat from a good thing.
If it was right when you prayed about it and trusted it and lived
for it, it is right now. Don't give up when the pressure mounts.
You can find an apartment. You can win over your mother-inlaw. You can sell your harmonica and therein fund one more
meal. It's been done before. Don't give in. Certainly don't give in
to that being who is bent on the destruction of your happiness.
He wants everyone to be miserable like unto himself. Face your
doubts. Master your fears. "Cast not away therefore your
confidence." Stay the course and see the beauty of life unfold
for you.”
Jeffrey R. Holland, BYU Speeches, March 2, 1999
What Am I to Change?
• Facing Fear with Faith
– D&C 9
– D&C 67
• Moving Forward Without an Answer
– D&C 58:26-27
– D&C 60:5; 61:22; 62:5, 7
• How to Act “For the Present Time”
– D&C 48:3-6; 51:16-17
Moving Forward Without an Answer
“Usually the Lord gives us the overall objectives to
be accomplished and some guidelines to follow, but
he expects us to work out most of the details and
methods. The methods and procedures are usually
developed through study and prayer and by living so
that we can obtain and follow the promptings of the
Spirit. Less spiritually advanced people, such as those
in the days of Moses, had to be commanded in many
things. Today those spiritually alert look at the
objectives, check the guidelines laid down by the Lord
and his prophets, and then prayerfully act -- without
having to be commanded ‘in all things.’ This attitude
prepares men for godhood. . . . (cont.)
Moving Forward Without an Answer
“Sometimes the Lord hopefully
waits on his children to act on
their own, and when they do not,
they lose the greater prize, and
the Lord will either drop the entire
matter and let them suffer the
consequences or else he will have
to spell it out in greater detail.
Usually, I fear, the more he has to spell it out,
the smaller is our reward.”
Ezra Taft Benson, C.R., April 1965, p. 121-122
Moving Forward Without an Answer
“What do you do when you have prepared
carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a
reasonable time for a response, and still do not
feel an answer? You may want to express
thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence
of His trust. When you are living worthily and
your choice is consistent with the Savior’s
teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. As you are
sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, one of two things will
certainly occur at the appropriate time: either the stupor of
thought will come, indicating an improper choice, or the peace or
the burning in the bosom will be felt, confirming that your choice
was correct. When you are living righteously and are acting with
trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning
impression if you have made the wrong decision”
Richard G. Scott, Ensign, May 2007, p. 10
What Am I to Change?
• Facing Fear with Faith
– D&C 9
– D&C 67
• Moving Forward Without an Answer
– D&C 58:26-27
– D&C 60:5; 61:22; 62:5, 7
• How to Act “For the Present Time”
– D&C 48:3-6; 51:16-17
Making the Most of “Now”
“This is our one and only chance at
mortal life—here and now. The longer
we live, the greater is our realization
that it is brief. Opportunities come, and
then they are gone. I believe that
among the greatest lessons we are to
learn in this short sojourn upon the
earth are lessons that help us distinguish between
what is important and what is not. I plead with you not
to let those most important things pass you by as you
plan for that illusive and nonexistent future when you
will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead,
find joy in the journey—now. (cont.)
Making the Most of “Now”
“I am what my wife, Frances, calls a
‘show-a-holic.’ I thoroughly enjoy
many musicals, and one of my
favorites was written by the American
composer Meredith Willson and is
entitled The Music Man. Professor
Harold Hill, one of the principal
characters in the show, voices a caution that I share
with you. Says he, ‘You pile up enough tomorrows,
and you’ll find you’ve collected a lot of empty
yesterdays.’”
Thomas S. Monson, Ensign, November 2008, 84
What to Do in the Meantime?
“The timing of marriage is
perhaps the best example of an
extremely important event in our
lives that is almost impossible to
plan. Like other important mortal
events that depend on the
agency of others or the will and
timing of the Lord, marriage cannot be anticipated or
planned with certainty. We can and should work for
and pray for our righteous desires, but despite this,
many will remain single well beyond their desired time
for marriage. (cont.)
What to Do in the Meantime?
“So what should be done in the
meantime? Faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ prepares us for whatever life
brings. This kind of faith prepares
us to deal with life’s opportunities—
to take advantage of those that are
received and to persist through the
disappointments of those that are
lost. In the exercise of that faith, we
should commit ourselves to the priorities and standards we
will follow on matters we do not control and persist
faithfully in those commitments, whatever happens to us
because of the agency of others or the timing of the Lord.
When we do this, we will have a constancy in our lives that
will give us direction and peace.”
Dalliin H. Oaks, Ensign, Oct. 2003, p. 10
Putting the Lord First
“Whatever the circumstances
beyond our control, our
commitments and standards can
be constant. . . . Wise are those
who make this commitment: I will
put the Lord first in my life, and I
will keep His commandments.
The performance of that
commitment is within everyone’s control. We can fulfill
that commitment without regard to what others decide
to do, and that commitment will anchor us no matter
what timing the Lord directs for the most important
events in our lives. . . . (cont.)
Putting the Lord First
“If we have faith in God and if
we are committed to the
fundamentals of keeping His
commandments and putting
Him first in our lives, we do
not need to plan every single
event—even every important
event—and we should not feel rejected or depressed if
some things—even some very important things—do
not happen at the time we had planned or hoped or
prayed.”
Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign, Oct. 2003, p. 10
What Am I to Learn?
• Trust in God’s Timing
– D&C 35:24-25
– D&C 88:68
– D&C 64:31-32
– Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
• The “Process of Time”
– Moses 7:21
– Destination vs. Process
• Take the Long View
An Experience of Profound Trust
“This life is an experience in profound
trust—trust in Jesus Christ, trust in His
teachings, trust in our capacity as led
by the Holy Spirit to obey those
teachings for happiness now and for a
purposeful, supremely happy eternal
existence. To trust means to obey
willingly without knowing the end from
the beginning. . . . To exercise faith is
to trust that the Lord knows what He is doing with you
and that He can accomplish it for your eternal good
even though you cannot understand how He can
possibly do it. We are like infants in our understanding
of eternal matters and their impact on us here in
mortality. Yet at times we act as if we knew it all.”
Richard G. Scott, Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 16
Eternal Growth and Happiness
“If all matters were immediately
resolved at your first petition, you
could not grow. Your Father in
Heaven and His Beloved Son love
you perfectly. They would not
require you to experience a
moment more of difficulty than is absolutely
needed for your personal benefit or for that of
those you love.”
Richard G. Scott, Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 16
Trusting God’s Timing and Plan
“The issue for us is trusting God enough to
trust also His timing. If we can truly believe He has
our welfare at heart, may we not let His plans unfold
as He thinks best?”
Neal A. Maxwell, Even as I Am, p. 93
“I assure you, my brothers and sisters, that
our Heavenly Father is aware of us, individually and
collectively. He understands the spiritual, physical,
and emotional difficulties we face in the world today.
In fact, they are all apart of his plan for our eternal
growth and development.”
M. Russell Ballard, Ensign, Nov. 1992, p. 31
What Am I to Learn?
• Trust in God’s Timing
– D&C 35:24-25
– D&C 88:68
– D&C 64:31-32
– Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
• The “Process of Time”
– Moses 7:21
– Destination vs. Process
• Take the Long View
Zion – In Process of Time
“This promised Zion always
seems to be a little beyond
our reach. We need to
understand that as much
virtue can be gained in
progressing toward Zion as
in dwelling there. It is a
process as well as a destination. . . . Many are
perfected upon the road to Zion who will never
see the city in mortality.”
Robert D. Hales, Ensign, May 1986, p. 28
What Am I to Learn?
• Trust in God’s Timing
– D&C 35:24-25
– D&C 88:68
– D&C 64:31-32
– Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
• The “Process of Time”
– Moses 7:21
– Destination vs. Process
• Take the Long View
Taking the Long View
“Do not rely on planning every
event of your life–even every
important event. Stand ready to
accept the Lord's planning and
the agency of others in matters
that inevitably affect you. Plan, of
course, but fix your planning on
personal commitments that will
carry you through no matter what happens. Anchor
your life to eternal principles, and act upon those
principles whatever the circumstances and whatever
the actions of others. Then you can await the Lord's
timing and be sure of the outcome in eternity. (cont.)
Taking the Long View
“The most important principle of
timing is to take the long view.
Mortality is just a small slice of
eternity, but how we conduct
ourselves here–what we become
by our actions and desires,
confirmed by our covenants and
the ordinances administered to
us by proper authority–will shape our destiny for all
eternity. As the prophet Amulek taught, "This life is the
time for men to prepare to meet God" (Alma 34:32).
That reality should help us take the long view–the
timing of eternity. (cont.)
Taking the Long View
“As President Charles W. Penrose
declared at a general conference
memorializing the death of President
Joseph F. Smith:
‘Why waste your time, your
talents, your means, your influence in
following something that will perish and
pass away, when you could devote
yourselves to a thing that will stand
forever? For this Church and kingdom, to which you belong, will
abide and continue in time, in eternity, while endless ages roll
along, and you with it will become mightier and more powerful;
while the things of this world will pass away and perish, and will
not abide in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord our God.’
[CR, June 1919, 37]”
Dallin H. Oaks, “Timing,” BYU Speeches, Jan 29, 2002
The “Whys” of Life
“I have come to understand how
useless it is to dwell on the whys,
what ifs, and if onlys for which there
likely will be given no answers in
mortality. To receive the Lord’s
comfort, we must exercise faith.
The questions Why me? Why our
family? Why now? are usually
unanswerable questions. These
questions detract from our spirituality and can
destroy our faith. We need to spend our time and
energy building our faith by turning to the Lord and
asking for strength to overcome the pains and
trials of this world and to endure to the end for
greater understanding.”
Robert D. Hales, Ensign, Nov. 1998, p .14
The Closing and Opening of Doors
“Our Father in Heaven has invited
you to express your needs, hopes, and
desires unto Him. That should not be
done in a spirit of negotiation, but
rather as a willingness to obey His will
no matter what direction that takes. His
invitation, “Ask, and ye shall receive”
(3 Ne. 27:29) does not assure that you will get what
you want. It does guarantee that, if worthy, you will get
what you need, as judged by a Father that loves you
perfectly, who wants your eternal happiness even
more than do you. (cont.)
The Closing and Opening of Doors
“I testify that when the Lord closes one
important door in your life, He shows
His continuing love and compassion by
opening many other compensating
doors through your exercise of faith.
He will place in your path packets of
spiritual sunlight to brighten your way.
They often come after the trial has
been the greatest, as evidence of the
compassion and love of an all-knowing Father. They
point the way to greater happiness, more
understanding, and strengthen your determination to
accept and be obedient to His will.”
Richard G. Scott, Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 16
“The Promise of Good Things to Come”
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
General Conference, October 1999