SO, the week has been fantastic so far; Labor Day weekend was a dream. Of course, I used it to study up on my scripture reading, and I came upon an excellent verse in 2 Nephi 2:13. To give you a little bit of scriptural context:

This scripture was given before Lehi passes away, as some advice for his sons. The scripture heading of Chapter 1 tells us that he exhorts his sons to put on the armor of righteousness. These are some of the words he tells his son Jacob in Chapter 2:

13 And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God. And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore, all things must have vanished away.

As I have been going about my life – waking up at 6:00, going to class until 5:00, doing homework and then eating dinner, and then dancing late into the evening, I find there are often obstacles in my way. I get frustrated with things being difficult, and being hard to accomplish – tired of all the hard work I have to put in. But I find comfort in this scripture as it so gently reminds me that we cannot exist without opposition; that change and development is necessary. Even our own bodies are consistently working hard and adjusting to problems to keep us healthy and happy. We are created to adapt. We are created to create joy. But these things cannot exist without the adversary trying to pull us down.

From this scripture, I believe all of us can also find comfort in our daily trials, which are necessary for us to become like God.

I leave my testimony with you,

Mallorie