When I first heard President Deiter F. Uchtdorf's talk, Four Titles, I was so caught up in how well it answered a question I had, that I seem to have missed part of it. But when my mom watched it again recently, I heard the part that I had missed.
We have all seen a toddler learn to walk. He takes a small step and
totters. He falls. Do we scold such an attempt? Of course not. What
father would punish a toddler for stumbling? We encourage, we applaud,
and we praise because with every small step, the child is becoming
more like his parents.
Now, brethren, compared to the perfection of God, we mortals are
scarcely more than awkward, faltering toddlers. But our loving
Heavenly Father wants us to become more like Him, and, dear brethren,
that should be our eternal goal too. God understands that we get there
not in an instant but by taking one step at a time.
I do not believe in a God who would set up rules and commandments onlyThis message gives me a lot of hope. I know that I stumble far more frequently than I should, and I often have to pray for God to be patient with me. I'm grateful to hear that God "rejoices in our every effort to stand tall and walk toward Him." I may not be very good at that, but I'm glad to know that He's pleased with me just for trying.
to wait for us to fail so He could punish us. I believe in a Heavenly
Father who is loving and caring and who rejoices in our every effort
to stand tall and walk toward Him. Even when we stumble, He urges us
not to be discouraged—never to give up or flee our allotted field of
service—but to take courage, find our faith, and keep trying.
We all struggle. As President Uchtdorf said, we are very much like toddlers. No one understands that better than God does, and yet, no one loves us more than God does. He sees our weakness, but He also sees our potential, and He sees how hard we're trying to live up to it. I stumble frequently, but I'm still tottering forward, one baby step at a time. I'm growing slowly, but I'm growing, and I know that someday I'll grow up to become what I was born to be.
1 comment:
Again and again our leaders, especially President Uchtdorf, it seems, give us words of encouragement. And I know I need them. It is so easy to become tired and discouraged and wonder why even try. But think of how we love babies and little children. And really, aren't babies basically useless and a lot of work? But we love them! and we love their wonderful potential. I had 8 useless little babies. Look at the wonderful adults they are now! how much each of the contributes to our family and their little corners of the world! and we are still growing. I am so grateful taht God is patient and loving. Be still (still your worries and self-criticism) and know that God is love.
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