CHAPTER 15
Patience is related almost directly to faith and hope, and if we have
these qualities, we are really just showing God our trust in him and
his timetable.
1 Orson F. Whitney said: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we
experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the
development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and
humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when
we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts,
expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more
worthy to be called the children of God … and it is through sorrow and
suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we
come here to acquire and which will make us more like our Father and
Mother in heaven” (cited in Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the
Miracle, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1972, p. 98).
2 Dictionaries define patience in such terms as bearing pain or sorrow
calmly or without complaint; not being hasty or impetuous; being
steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity.
3 Even so, the Lord has made no secret of the fact that He intends to
try the faith and the patience of His Saints. (See Mosiah 23:21.) We
mortals are so quick to forget the Lord: “And thus we see that except
the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions … they will not
remember him.” (Hel. 12:3.) However, the Lord knows our bearing
capacity, both as to coping and to comprehending, and He will not give
us more to bear than we can manage at the moment, though to us it may
seem otherwise. (See D&C 50:40; D&C 78:18.) Just as no temptations
will come to us from which we cannot escape or which we cannot bear,
we will not be given more trials than we can sustain. (See 1 Cor.
10:13.) Therefore, given the aforementioned grand and overarching
reasons to rejoice, can we not “be of good cheer” in spite of stress
and circumstance?
4 Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or
suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious. It is the
ability to do God’s will and accept His timing. When you are patient,
you hold up under pressure and are able to face adversity calmly and
hopefully. Patience is related to hope and faith--you must wait for
the Lord’s promised blessings to be fulfilled.
5 Paul wrote of how, even after faithful disciples had “done the will
of God,” they “[had] need of patience.” (Heb. 10:36.) How many times
have good individuals done the right thing initially only to break
under subsequent stress? Sustaining correct conduct for a difficult
moment under extraordinary stress is very commendable, but so is
coping with sustained stress subtly present in seeming routineness.
Either way, however, we are to “run with patience the race that is set
before us” (Heb. 12:1), and it is a marathon, not a dash. When you and
I are unduly impatient, we are suggesting that we like our timetable
better than God’s. And thus, while the scriptural phrase “in process
of time” means “eventually,” it also denotes an entire spiritual
process: “The Lord showed unto Enoch all the inhabitants of the earth;
and he beheld, and lo, Zion, in process of time, was taken up into
heaven.” (Moses 7:21)
6 Ye are not able to abide the presence of God now, neither the
ministering of angels; wherefore, continue in patience until ye are
perfected.
7 From Harry Emerson Fosdick we read, “The most extraordinary thing
about the oyster is this. Irritations get into his shell. He does not
like them. But when he cannot get rid of them, he uses the irritation
to do the loveliest thing an oyster ever has a chance to do. If there
are irritations in our lives today, there is only one prescription:
make a pearl. It may have to be a pearl of patience, but, anyhow, make
a pearl. And it takes faith and love to do it.” (In The Treasure
Chest, ed. Charles L. Wallis, New York: Harper & Row).
8 “Being human, we would expel from our lives physical pain and mental
anguish and assure ourselves of continual ease and comfort, but if we
were to close the doors upon sorrow and distress, we might be
excluding our greatest friends and benefactors. Suffering can make
saints of people as they learn patience, long-suffering, and
self-mastery.” (Faith Precedes the Miracle, Deseret Book Co., 1973,
pp. 97–98.)
9 He is well disciplined who develops patience in his dealings with
his fellowmen. In conversation he is considerate and knows how to
listen. A courteous conversationalist is not a boaster, a babbler, or
a boor. Wise is the man who says what needs to be said, but not all
that could be said.
10 Have you ever been following a slowpoke car that is doddering along
with the driver looking at everything along the way, and you know that
if he doesn’t speed up you are never going to get through on that
green light? But then he does speed up--just enough to get through on
the yellow light--and you have to stop. This has a great tendency to
test the patience. Sometimes we even start thinking rather
derogatorily about him as he drives away. However, it just may be that
the Lord is protecting us from an accident two miles down the road
because we stopped at that light, even though we did it reluctantly.
If you entertain these kinds of thoughts, it may have a tendency to
make you thankful instead of irate or angry, which is much better for
your digestion.
11 George Q. Cannon wrote in Gospel Truths: “So it is with all of us.
We have great afflictions from time to time. It seems to be necessary
that we should be tried and proved to see whether we are full of
integrity or not. In this way we get to know ourselves and our own
weaknesses; and the Lord knows us, and our brethren and sisters know
us. Therefore, it is a precious gift to have the gift of patience, to
be good-tempered, to be cheerful, to not be depressed, to not give way
to wrong feelings and become impatient and irritable. It is a blessed
gift for all to possess.” (Jerreld L. Newquist, ed., Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1957, 2:198.) Yes, there are obstacles and
challenges. Men sometimes become cynical. Some despair and lose hope
and faith in the future, but the message stands: do not abandon, for
the Lord lives. He is our Savior and Redeemer; he is the Prince of
Peace. The great assurance of life, the great reason for eternal life,
is the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no other way.
12 Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and
your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree
to bring forth fruit unto you.
13 Again, as one reviews the various areas of life’s activities and
appreciates the many human inadequacies, the great value of patience
is seen as an important part of being a peacemaker. Sometimes we are
misunderstood, even by those who are closest to us. Under such
circumstances, patience will develop within us the capacity to accept
criticism if warranted or not. The ability to exercise forbearance
under provocation means that we are following the Savior’s teachings
to do good to those that despitefully use us and to turn the other
cheek. (See Matt. 5:39, 44.) Patience is truly a mighty virtue and can
be developed as we become peacemakers and make up our mind to be
patient within our own life as well as with others. I am grateful that
the restored gospel of Jesus Christ incorporates the remarkable
principle of patience. I am most thankful for the patience my Father
in Heaven has evidenced with me in my life.
14 And now my beloved brethren, I would exhort you to have patience,
and that ye bear with all manner of afflictions; that ye do not revile
against those who do cast you down, lest ye become sinners like unto
them; but that ye have patience, and bear with those afflictions, with
a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions.
15 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that
tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and
experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God
is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
16 Friends and loved ones often offer strength and support when our
own resolve is weak. In turn, our own strength and capacity will be
doubled when we help others endure. I pray that God will help us to
endure well, with purpose and power. When we so do, the meaningful
declaration in 2 Tim. 4:7 will take on a new dimension: “I have fought
a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”
17 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great
recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye
have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
18 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud
of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so
easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set
before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;
who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising
the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Younger Elder Brooksby
1-“After Much Tribulation Come the Blessings” by Adney Y. Komatsu,
October 1979 General Conference
2-Patience, a Key to Happiness by Joseph B. Wirthlin, April 1987
General Conference
3-“Be of Good Cheer” by Neal A. Maxwell, October 1982 General Conference
4-Preach My Gospel Chapter 6: How Do I Develop Christlike Attributes?
5-“Endure It Well” by Neal A. Maxwell, April 1990 General Conference
6-D&C 67:13
7-Adversity and You by Marvin J. Ashton, October 1980 General Conference
8-Gifts of the Spirit by James A. Cullimore, October 1974 General Conference
9-Proper Self-management by Marvin J. Ashton, October 1976 General Conference
10-That Ye May Have Roots and Branches by Hartman Rector, Jr., April
1983 General Conference
11-To Follow or Not, That Is the Question by Charles Didier, October
1981 General Conference
12-Alma 32:43
13-Be a Peacemaker by Franklin D. Richards, October 1983 General Conference
14-Alma 34:40-41(edited)
15-Romans 5:3-5
16-“If Thou Endure It Well” by Marvin J. Ashton, October 1984 General Conference
17-Hebrews 10:35-36
18-Hebrews 12:1-2
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