In this essay I will attempt to outline what the scriptures teach regarding trials and dark times in our life. In brief: whatever our life situation is, we are taught to always pray that things will get better and attempt to align ourselves with Him. If we sincerely seek the Lord with a broken heart and contrite spirit, the Lord’s promises to us are truly great. As Psalm 91 explains, feelings of fear are unnecessary because the Lord will always protect his saints. At the end of this essay I have catalogued the scriptures my ideas are based on.
I am writing this essay because I had a dream about doing so last night (I also made this website because I was told to in a dream).
Ideas
Trials: God gives us trials for several reasons: 1) as a trial of our faith meant to refine us. 2) To force us to learn to always rely on Him so that our spiritual growth isn’t stunted. 3) To teach us how to succor others. 4) There has to be an opposition in all things in life – forces pulling towards the darkness, forces pulling towards the light, thus giving us the ability to make meaningful choices. To be able to succeed, we must be allowed to fail. To be able to help others, we must be allowed to also hurt others. 5) because God chastens those he loves, sometimes our trials are meant to show us our flaws so we can fix them. 6) To manifest the power of God by making week things become strong. 7) To test our faith so that we have a chance to earn eternal glory.
While still pondering what to write here, I felt inspired to research if Brigham Young has any relevant teachings (which is something not normal to me), and to my surprise found a treasure-trove from him! Here are some quotes:
“The people of the Most High God must be tried. It is written that they will be tried in all things, even as Abraham was tried
… Now if you possess the light of the Holy Spirit, you can see clearly that trials in the flesh are actually necessary
… We are now in a day of trial to prove ourselves worthy or unworthy of the life which is to come
… All intelligent beings who are crowned with crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal lives must pass through every ordeal appointed for intelligent beings to pass through, to gain their glory and exaltation.
… If we obtain the glory that Abraham obtained, we must do so by the same means that he did. If we are ever prepared to enjoy the society of Enoch, Noah, Melchizedek, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, or of their faithful children, and of the faithful Prophets and Apostles, we must pass through the same experience, and gain the knowledge, intelligence, and endowments that will prepare us to enter into the celestial kingdom of our Father and God. … Every trial and experience you have passed through is necessary for your salvation
… Should our lives be extended to a thousand years, still we may live and learn. Every vicissitude we pass through is necessary for experience and example, and for preparation to enjoy that reward which is for the faithful
… If the Saints could realize things as they are when they are called to pass through trials, and to suffer what they call sacrifices, they would acknowledge them to be the greatest blessings that could be bestowed upon them.
… We are the happiest people when we have what are called trials; for then the Spirit of God is more abundantly bestowed upon the faithful
… We have passed through a great many scenes, we may say, of tribulation, though I would have all my brethren understand that I do not take this to myself, for all that I have passed through has been joy and joyful to me; but we have seemingly sacrificed a great deal, and passed through many scenes of trial and temptations, no doubt of this. We have had to suffer temptations, more or less, and we have taken the spoiling of our goods joyfully. I have, myself, five times before I came to this valley, left everything that the Lord had blessed me with pertaining to this world’s goods, which, for the country where I lived, was not a very little
… As to trials, why bless your hearts, the man or woman who enjoys the spirit of our religion has no trials; but the man or woman who tries to live according to the Gospel of the Son of God, and at the same time clings to the spirit of the world, has trials and sorrows acute and keen, and that, too, continually
… Cast off the yoke of the enemy, and put on the yoke of Christ, and you will say that his yoke is easy and his burden is light. This I know by experience”
(DBY, 345-348)
Therefore, don’t take trials as evidence that God has abandoned you. Rather, see them as opportunities for growth. Turn your whole heart to God in all that you do and pray unceasingly. If we do these things, the master of the universe has promised us that comfort and relief will follow.
Condemnation: Another form of trial we experience in this life is the feeling of Condemnation. Sadly, this is a factor that has cut short the spiritual journey of many people. Due to their sins, they believe that it is too late for them. God has already judged them lacking. Therefore, there is no point in trying this religion thing anymore.
Nonsense! By the grace of Christ, you can always be forgiven as long as you petition God with a contrite heart and sincere desire to change. And you are promised that your sinful nature will eventually be erased as you continue approaching God. Therefore, we should feel conviction, not condemnation.
Remember, God loves you. God knows everything. God knew you would make these mistakes before you even decided to do them and still loved you back then as he does now. He is surprised by nothing; what you are struggling with likely is common among man. Ultimately, you are a child of God. All he wants is for you to remember him and return back to him. So, press onwards saints and salvation awaits!
Spiritual Numbness: When our trials are self-inflicted, a secondary problem we can feel is a sense of numbness. In my view, repeated actions contrary to the commandments eventually lead us to feeling numb. At this points, actions which would normally have filled us with revulsion and horror now result in no feelings at all. But we can become spiritually numb in many ways: if we consistently make decisions that go against our future prosperity, eventually we will stop having the ability to care about the future. If we consistently make decisions to pursue worldly things, eventually we won’t be able to feel the peace that gospel living brings.
Another term for this is spiritual sleep: during such sleep, you feel incapable of feeling that you care about higher things. Prayer and scripture study don’t seem important and are not on the radar. Such an attitude can be seen here: “[God] hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words” (1 Nephi 17:45).
And given the fallen nature of the world, sadly your friends likely aren’t going to help pull you out of this rut (I’ve found the opposite to be true sadly). Therefore, usually the only way for God to wake us up is with a rude awakening – a trial that reminds us that we are always reliant on Him.
So be aware of the phenomenon of spiritual numbness. When you feel like you just don’t care anymore, be aware that this is happening to you. Then, Wake Up! God has been waiting for you your whole life! Finally return to him!
Fear: Fear can be a barrier in our spiritual journey because it discourages us from doing things that we need to do to improve and progress (and by progress and mean in all facets that are needful). Moreover, fear is also a barrier to feeling happiness and peace, which God wants us to feel (of course).
Therefore, in the scriptures we are taught to not have fear but rather faith. Even when things are looking down, we are to believe and hope for divine assistance and relief, which we are promised as long as we put our whole trust in Him. Therefore, the only thing we are to fear is God. As Paul wrote, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
Prayer: In order to get through the times of darkness that inevitably come in our lives, we are told again and again in the scriptures to pray. Moreover, we are to not be shy in our prayers: We should be praying over everything in our lives – our work, our families, our hopes, and fears, everything. However, we are particularly told to confess sins and ask to be delivered from temptations during prayer. We also learn that we should not be praying to be seen of men, but rather that our prayers should be offered in secret.
How should we pray? In my view the book of psalms is a pretty good blueprint of what prayers should look like. In a prayer, we start by addressing our father in heaven, then we make know our petitions, confess sins, express gratitude for blessings, offer praises to the lord, and finally close in the name of Jesus Christ. So here is an example: “Dear heavenly, thank you for this Job, I pray I might do well in it and that I might be delivered from temptations today. Please forgive me for […]. Lord, thy ways are higher than ours and all we need to do is follow thee. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen”. How often should we pray? In my view at least in the morning and the evening, but as we learn in the scriptures: “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Now this discourse wouldn’t be complete without discussing the timing of prayers. In the scriptures we learn that God will always provide relief to those who earnestly seek him in prayer with a broken heart (fasting also magnifies the power of prayers). However, this relief may not always be what we expect, and the timing of the relief may not match our time tables. Sometimes he answers our prayers right away, sometimes he teaches us to wait on the lord, and sometimes he answers come by the way of increased peace and comfort (though our trials may still persist).
As Isaiah teaches us, “as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9). In other words, we will not always be able to understand why God does somethings or what his plan is. But there is a plan. Sometimes God doesn’t answer our prayers with huge manifestations, but instead in small and clever ways for “by small and simple things are great things brought to pass” (Alma 37:6). If we press forward in faith and hope, with a broken heart and contrite spirit, God will provide relief to us in our trials.
The scriptures however do offer a warning: if one refuses to heed the council of the Lord’s messengers, the Lord likely will not heed their prayers when disaster strikes. Therefore, we should not be the type of people who only pray when really bad things happen and are left with no other options. Rather, we should always be approaching God, even during the good times.
Here is a personal story about prayer:I was hiking in the Austrian Alps at night and (extremely foolishly) decided to take a shortcut through the forest to get down a mountain faster by bypassing switchbacks. On this shortcut, my phone fell out of my pocket off a cliff!
So I climbed down the cliff to start searching for my phone. But there was a large area where the phone could be seeing that the slope just kept going all the way to the base of the mountain, and it was very dark. The good thing was I was listening to the scriptures through wireless headphones, and so when I was too far away from my phone the signal would falter; therefore I had a very rough idea of the location.
I tried pausing and playing but that didn’t light up my phone screen, so I proceeded to pray asking God for help. Immediately after the prayer, I saw my phone screen light up for 2 seconds in a place I was looking. The phone had fallen into a deep crack that was partially covered in rocks and leaves, and there is no way I could have found it by myself even in the daylight. So, I am very grateful the Lord helped me find my phone!
Also, while I was researching in the scriptures about prayer for this article, this song came up: Celtic Woman “Sometimes a Prayer Will Do” which I thought was an interesting coincidence. Weirder still is the first time I heard this song was when I was writing about prayer for my spiritual warfare article. To me these are synchronicities.
Putting these teachings into practice (to overcome procrastination)
– When we wake up and go to sleep, we should pray and read the scriptures.
– Part of our daily planning should involve praying over all the things we will do.
– Pray to know what we should do
– Pray to be woken up from spiritual slumber and to not avoid that which is needful.
– Pray not to be afraid, but to see instead everything as an opportunity to see week things become strong, and small things become great. We should praise the Lord.
– Pray to be grateful for our trials, since every single one of them is necessary for our refining and testing.
– Pray to not be tempted by procrastination.
– Pray that God will protect us so that we don’t need to fear.
– Pray for guidance so that we don’t need to fear the unknown.
– Pray that God will consecrate our efforts so that even the small and simple things we do make a difference.
– Pray to have our hearts changed to not be focused on dark things but rather on light.
– Pray against temptation and pray to turn outwards to others.
– When we go to bed, we should pray for forgiveness for all of our mistakes that day.
– We should pray to let our entire selves be filled with joy, hope, and peace.
The world has many different tactics against procrastination, but they all fail. However, it is my belief that if we truly follow the plan outlined above, we will be protected against procrastination. Procrastination after all is but a product of fearing the world, however as we learn in the scriptures, God will always take care of us as long as we trust in him. Therefore, fear is never necessary and only is a temptation (much like doubt is a temptation).
Fear (scriptures)
One quote attributed to Joan of Arc is relevant
“I am not afraid… I was born to do this.”
Doctrine and Covenants 6:36
Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.
2 Timothy 1:7
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
Joshua 1:9
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
similar verses: Deuteronomy 31:6, Isaiah 41:10
Isaiah 12:2
2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
2 Corinthians 4:8–18
8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you.
13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.
15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Nephi 1:23
Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust.
Matthew 10:28
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Psalm 27:3–5
3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.
4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.
5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
Psalm 46:1–3
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Ether (scriptures)
Ether 12:4
And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.
Similar to 2 Corinthians 12:9–10
Ezekiel 36:26
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
Ether 12:4
Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.
Ether 12:6
And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.
Hope during Affliction (scriptures)
Psalm 91 – one of the most marvelous chapters I have ever read. If there is one scripture for you to read here, it should be Psalms 91. I encourage you to read it and meditate on it frequently.
2 Nephi 2:2
Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God; and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain.
Mosiah 24:14
And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.
Alma 36:3 – if we will trust in God, he will support us in our trials.
2 Nephi 31:20
Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.
Psalm 34:17–19
17 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.
Psalm 37:23–25
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.
24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.
25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
2 Nephi 4:19–20 (Nephi’s Psalm)
19 And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.
20 My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.
Hebrews 6:19
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
John 16:33
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Why We Have Trials (scriptures)
Romans 5:3–5
3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5 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.0
James 1:2–4
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
1 Peter 1:6–7
6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
2 Nephi 2:11-27 – There needs to be an opposition in our lives, a force pulling us to the good and another to the bad, to allow us to make our own decisions and refine us.
Hebrews 12:6
6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Psalm 119:71
It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.
Deuteronomy 8:2–3 – Israelites lead the wilderness to humble them, prove them, and teach them to always rely on God.
Mosiah 23:21–22
21 Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people; yea, he trieth their patience and their faith.
22 Nevertheless—whosoever putteth his trust in him the same shall be lifted up at the last day. Yea, and thus it was with this people.
Helaman 12:3
And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror, and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember him.
2 Corinthians 1:3–4
3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
For some reason Romans 8 is really good (scriptures)
Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Romans 8:15
For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Romans 8:18
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:31
What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Waiting on the Lord (scriptures)
Isaiah 40:29-31
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Psalm 37:7-9
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
Psalm 27:14
Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
Micah 7:7-8
7 Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
8 ¶ Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me.
Isaiah 49:23
23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
Do not feel condemnation (scriptures)
we should feel conviction not condemnation
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Mosiah 26:30
Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me.
Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 7:10
10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
1 John 3:20
20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
The Power of Prayer (scriptures)
Matthew 6:6
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
Matthew 7:7–8
7 ¶ Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Matthew 21:22
And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
Psalm 34:17
17 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing.
2 Chronicles 7:14
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
John 14:13–14
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
Psalm 145:18–19
18 The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.
2 Nephi 32:8–9
8 And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts; and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing. For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray, ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.
9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.
3 Nephi 18:18–21
18 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation; for Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.
19 Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;
20 And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.
21 Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.
Alma 34:17–27 – long discourse urging to pray continuously over everything in our life and through all situations.
Daniel 10:12–13 – Prayer of Daniel was delayed for 20 days because the angels needed time to deal with the prince of Persia.
Isaiah 55:8–9 – God’s ways are higher than our ways, his thoughts higher than ours. It’s always worth pondering this verse when waiting for a prayer to be answered.
Pray to be Saved from Temptation (scriptures)
Matthew 6:5-13
5 ¶ And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Matthew 26:41
Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Luke 22:40 – very similar
Alma 13:28
But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be led by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, meek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering;
Alma 34:39, 3 Nephi 18:15, 18 – very similar
Romans 1:21-28
21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
…
24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
…
26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Great things proceed from the Small and Simple
1 Corinthians 1:27–28
27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
Alma 37:6–7
6 Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.
7 And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls.
1 Nephi 16:29
… And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about great things.
Seeking the Lord (scriptures)
Doctrine and Covenants 88:63
Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Jeremiah 29:13
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
2 Chronicles 15:2
…The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.
Hosea 10:12
Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
Ezekiel 36:26
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
Seek the Lord before your trials, not after (scriptures)
Isaiah 55:6
Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Proverbs 1:24–28
24 ¶ Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
Zechariah 7:11–13
11 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.
12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts.
13 Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts:
Micah 3:4, Jeremiah 11:11, Isaiah 1:15 – similar messages.
Wake up from spiritual sleep (scriptures)
2 Nephi 1:13
O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.
2 Nephi 1:23
Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust.
Jacob 3:11
11 O my brethren, hearken unto my words; arouse the faculties of your souls; shake yourselves that ye may awake from the slumber of death; and loose yourselves from the pains of hell that ye may not become angels to the devil, to be cast into that lake of fire and brimstone which is the second death.
Moroni 10:30–31
31 And awake, and arise from the dust, O Jerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of Zion; and strengthen thy stakes and enlarge thy borders forever, that thou mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled.
Romans 13:11
11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Ephesians 5:14
Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
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