Proved Before God and Yourself

As we trust that trials are for our good, we will be proved before God and ourselves. 

Life can be a struggle, a pain, and a test of endurance. Sometimes it’s easy to view the trials in our lives as evidence that God doesn’t care about the difficulties we face—or even that he doesn’t really love us. However, Elder Henry B. Eyring shares a message about the purpose of trials that has reshaped my pain and anxiety into hope and peace. In his general conference talk “Proved and Strengthened in Christ,” Elder Eyring teaches that “these [proving] moments are not evidence that the Lord has abandoned you. Rather, they are evidence that He loves you enough to refine and strengthen you.”

When I first heard Elder Eyring share this testimony, I was feeling alone and inconsequential. His testimony helped me recognize God’s love and feel seen by my Heavenly Father—not just despite my trials, but because of them. God does care, and he is aware of us. However down we may feel, God’s love is constant and our worth remains the same.

Elder Eyring’s words remind me that trials not only prove us before God, but also prove us to ourselves. We can gain comfort in knowing that God doesn’t just want us to prove to him that we can become better; he also wants us to know for ourselves that we can become like him. By learning for ourselves that we can overcome weakness through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can build confidence inwardly and before God.

God wants us to receive eternal life (see Moses 1:39). However, he does not leave us alone in learning how to become like him; he shows us the way through his Son, Jesus Christ. As we trust in our Savior, our trials can help us become more like him—and eventually, we can be refined and sanctified into beings who can stand before God with confidence in him and ourselves.

Read and watch Elder Henry B. Eyring’s general conference address, “Proved and Strengthened in Christ,” to learn more about how your challenges are evidence of God’s love for you and his confidence in you.

Source: General Conference

—Katrina Rudd, Latter-day Saint Insights

FEATURE IMAGE BY SNAPWIRE

Find more insights 

Check out Elder Stanley G. Ellis’s general conference talk “Do We Trust Him? Hard Is Good” to gain more insights on trusting God despite difficult times in our lives.

Read Elder Gerrit W. Gong’s general conference address “All Things for Our Good” to learn more about how God strengthens us through our trials.