Immediately Blessed
I was doing a little cleaning the other day (hard to believe, I know), and for whatever reason, my mind started drifting towards King Benjamin's address in the Book of Mormon. I was thinking specifically about his comments on man's indebtedness to God, and this verse came to my mind:
And I'll confess that verse had me feeling perplexed. I really have been blessed in my life, my too-frequent complaints and lamentations notwithstanding. But there have been times when I've felt like I could really use a particular blessing in a particular circumstance and haven't got it—times when I've tried to do the right thing, but not been blessed at what I thought was the right time.
In other words, it's the word 'immediately' that's been throwing me. I know that I've been blessed; I just don't feel like the blessings have always been immediate, or even timely.
When I graduated from high school, I received a $50 savings bond for something or other. I took it with me to college. And one day during my freshman year when I felt a little strapped for cash, I took it to the bank to redeem it. I was surprised and disappointed to discover that I couldn't get $50 for it. It wasn't worth $50—yet. It would be, one day, but not at that time. It had a maturity period of which I was unaware.
It occurred to me as I was cleaning the other day that the Lord's blessings might just be like that. While God does bless us immediately for our obedience, the effects of the blessings may be—frequently are, actually—deferred.
We may want certain blessings at certain times. But what we want and what we need, and what is actually best for us, are often very different things. An omniscient and perfectly loving Heavenly Father is not content simply to give us what we feel we want in a moment of desire or longing, even if we really deserve it. Instead, He gives us what we really need, at the time and in the circumstances when we need it most.
There's a reason that patience is a virtue.
And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast? (Mosiah 2:24, emphasis mine)
And I'll confess that verse had me feeling perplexed. I really have been blessed in my life, my too-frequent complaints and lamentations notwithstanding. But there have been times when I've felt like I could really use a particular blessing in a particular circumstance and haven't got it—times when I've tried to do the right thing, but not been blessed at what I thought was the right time.
In other words, it's the word 'immediately' that's been throwing me. I know that I've been blessed; I just don't feel like the blessings have always been immediate, or even timely.
When I graduated from high school, I received a $50 savings bond for something or other. I took it with me to college. And one day during my freshman year when I felt a little strapped for cash, I took it to the bank to redeem it. I was surprised and disappointed to discover that I couldn't get $50 for it. It wasn't worth $50—yet. It would be, one day, but not at that time. It had a maturity period of which I was unaware.
It occurred to me as I was cleaning the other day that the Lord's blessings might just be like that. While God does bless us immediately for our obedience, the effects of the blessings may be—frequently are, actually—deferred.
We may want certain blessings at certain times. But what we want and what we need, and what is actually best for us, are often very different things. An omniscient and perfectly loving Heavenly Father is not content simply to give us what we feel we want in a moment of desire or longing, even if we really deserve it. Instead, He gives us what we really need, at the time and in the circumstances when we need it most.
There's a reason that patience is a virtue.
posted by Michael at
7:51 AM
3 Comments:
I feel really strange quoting the Rolling Stones in reference to something scriptural, but "You can't always get what you want, but sometimes you get what you need".
My life circumstances right now really bear that out. I'm not where I wanted to be, but I really think that the loss of job, mobile home and consequently and paying off all the credit cards, something that might not have happened if we moved into a "real" house, were blessings, not hardships.
By
Lord Mhoram, At
January 06, 2009 8:57 AM
"There's a reason that patience is a virtue."
Yeah, yeah patience how long will that take? - Ed Gruberman
By
Lord Mhoram, At
January 06, 2009 8:58 AM
I have been reading the beginning of this post on my google reader since you read it, but just didn't want to read the whole subject. Now I know why. I needed it. Dang it. :) Thanks for writing that, Michael. It was timely.
By
Wendy, At
January 18, 2009 9:18 PM
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