Little Tender Mercies

The last couple weeks I've been on a kind of up & down, mood swing roller coaster for life. Half of the time you ask me how I'm doing & I'll tell you that life is great & it probably couldn't get better considering the circumstances. The other half of the time I'll probably give you an "Ehh," while lifting my shoulders & making some face to go along with it. I'm sure we all can be that way though. Life isn't always perfect, but that's okay. If it were we would never grow & that's the whole point of life. So yay imperfections!! *insert sarcasm here*

Tonight as I was reading my scriptures I had the time to reflect on this "Ehh" part of my life. I recently started 2 Nephi (again) & in the first chapter it discusses Lehi praising God. He mentions all the "great things the Lord had done for them" & "the mercies of God..."

Now if you know the stories told in 1 Nephi, you know this journey was NOT an easy one. Nephi & his brother went back multiple times to Jerusalem alone to get the plates & women to marry (ugh women). Then they had to journey to the ocean on foot & their wives were even pregnant during some of the journey (you go girls)!! Nephi's bow even broke & he had to make another by hand just so they could eat. Once to the ocean they had to build a ship (& the tools to build the ship), then journey to this new land!! 

I look at all that & think, "Wow... That sucks." But after all that, Lehi is looking at all of the blessings & all of the tender mercies the Lord has provided them with. 

In verses 3-4 Lehi says:

"3 And he also spake unto them concerning the land of promise, which they had obtained--how merciful the Lord had been in warning us that we should flee out of the land of Jerusalem.

4 For, behold, said he, I have seen a vision, in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed; and had we remained in Jerusalem we should also have perished."

After EVERYTHING Lehi & his family went through, he still saw the tender mercies of the Lord. He not only saw them, but he acknowledged them & he praised God for them. 

As I read this I reflected on the roller coaster of my life the last few weeks. What tender mercies have I missed? What things have I been given that I've asked for but not acknowledged because I was feeling "Ehh" & "Woo is me"? 

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain. Life may be hard, but that's a good thing. It's means you're growing. The Lord didn't say it would be easy, but He did say it would be worth it & I know it will be. Sometimes you just have to be patient (& I may lack that quality). 

This doesn't mean you can't be sad, because you definitely can't always be strong. Just know that when you're feeling down, the Lord wants to hear from you. He wants to help remind you of those little things. Because you don't always need big things to make you go from "ehh" to "super fantastic!!" I've learned that a beautiful sunset on a crappy day can be God's way of saying, "I made this so you can be happy." Life is meant to be so much more than just endured, it's meant to be endured well.