Come What May, And Love It

Hello Sisters:

Today Chelsea Steffieri taught our lesson. She taught from a talk by Elder Wirthlin at our last General Conference. His talk was called, Come What May and Love It. Here is a link to the talk. Chelsea pointed out that this was the final talk given by Elder Wirthlin in a General Conference as he died a few weeks later at the age of 91.

Elder Wirthlin began his talk by telling the story of coming home as a young man very discouraged because his football team had lost a game. His mother's response to him was, "Joseph, come what may, and love it." He said, "I think she may have meant that every life has peaks and shadows and times when it seems that the birds don't sing and bells don't ring. Yet in spite of discouragement and adversity, those who are happiest seem to have a way of learning from difficult times, becoming stronger, wiser, and happier as a result."

Elder Wirthlin said that "whenever my steps led through seasons of sadness and sorrow, my mother's words often came back to me."

Chelsea then shared four things that have helped Elder Wirthlin through times of testing and trial.

1. Learn to Laugh - Elder Wirthlin taught us to laugh at ourselves. He told a very funny story about one of his daughters that could have been horrible embarrassing if she had not learned to laugh at herself. (Click the link above and enjoy the story.)

2. Seek for the Eternal - Look at the big picture. Elder Wirthlin says, "Learning to endure times of disappointment, suffering, and sorrow is part of our on the job training. These experiences, while often difficult to bear at the time, are precisely the kinds of experiences that stretch our understanding, build our character, and increase our compassion for others." Chelsea talked about the parable of the Olive Tree in Jacob 5. She reminded us that the Olive Trees had to be pruned and dug and grafted and that all of those things are painful processes. This subject reminded me of a story by Hugh B. Brown called "The Currant Bush." The link is here. This story reminds us that "God is the Gardener."

3. The Principle of Compensation - "The Lord compensates the faithful for every loss. That which is taken away from those who love the Lord will be added unto them in His own way. While it may not come at the time we desire, the faithful will know that every tear today will eventually be returned a hundredfold with tears of rejoicing and gratitude." Kerinda pointed out that this talk represented the principle of compensation to Elder Wirthlin's family as it was the last one he gave before he died. During those sad days after his death, imagine the peace and joy it gave all of them to know that he would want them to "Come what may, and love it."

4. Trust in the Father and the Son - Elder Wirthlin says, "The 4th thing we can do is put our trust in our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. The Lord Jesus Christ is our partner, helper, and advocate. He wants us to be happy. he wants us to be successful. If we do our part, He will step in. He who descended below all things will come to our aid. He will comfort us and uphold us. He will strengthen us in our weakness and fortify us in our distress. He will make weak things become strong."

Chelsea ended with this scripture.

"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed." D&C 123:17

We love you, Sisters. We wish for all of you joy and peace in your lives during these sometimes confusing and frightening times. Life is good. We have many blessings. As Sister Stange said during the lesson, "We have more than we don't have." May we all strive to cheerfully do all that we can so that we will be able to stand still with the utmost assurance to see the salvation of God.

Love,

Your Relief Society Presidency