In His own time and way

Matthew 11:28-30

28¶^aCome unto me, all ye that ^blabour and are heavy laden, and I will give you ^crest.

29Take my ^ayoke upon you, and ^blearn of me; for I am ^cmeek and ^dlowly in ^eheart: and ye shall find ^frest unto your souls.

30For my yoke is ^aeasy, and my burden is light.

by

Elder L. Whitney Clayton

Many years ago I walked at dawn through the narrow cobblestone streets

of Cusco, Peru, high in the Andes Mountains.

I saw a man from a local indigenous group walking down one of the streets.

He was not a big man physically, but he carried an immense load of firewood

in a huge burlap sack on his back.

The sack seemed to be as big as he was.

The load must have weighed as much as he did.

He steadied it with a rope that looped under the bottom of the sack

and circled up around his forehead.

He gripped the rope tightly on both sides of his head.

He kept a rag on his forehead underneath the rope to keep it from cutting into his skin.

He leaned forward under his burden and walked with deliberate, difficult steps.

The man was carrying the firewood to the marketplace,

where it would be sold.

In an average day he might make just two or three round-trips

across the town to deliver similarly awkward, heavy loads.

The memory of him bent forward, struggling down the street

has become increasingly meaningful for me with the passage of years.

How long could he continue to carry such burdens?

Life presses all kinds of burdens on each of us,

some light but others relentless and heavy.

People struggle every day under burdens that tax their souls.

Many of us struggle under such burdens.

They can be emotionally or physically ponderous.

They can be worrisome, oppressive, and exhausting.

And they can continue for years.

No matter the burdens we face in life as a consequence of natural conditions,

the misconduct of others, or our own mistakes and shortcomings,

we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father,

who sent us to earth as part of His eternal plan for our growth and progress.

 Our unique individual experiences can help us prepare to return to Him.

The adversity and afflictions that are ours,

however difficult to bear, last, from heaven's perspective,

for "but a small moment; and then, if we endure it well,

God shall exalt us on high." We must do everything we can to bear our burdens "well"

for however long our "small moment" carrying them lasts.

Burdens provide opportunities to practice virtues that contribute to eventual perfection.

They invite us to yield "to the enticings of the Holy Spirit,

and put off the natural man and become a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord,

and become as a child,

submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love,

willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon us,

even as a child doth submit to his father."

Thus burdens become blessings,

though often such blessings are well disguised and may require time,

effort, and faith to accept and understand.

Further, bearing up under our own burdens can help us develop a

reservoir of empathy for the problems others face.

 "bear . . . one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ."

 we should be "willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;

yea, and be willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort."

Through it all, the Savior offers us sustaining strength and support,

and in His own time and way,

He offers deliverance.

 "I will . . . ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders,

that . . . 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.

I remember that man in Peru, hunched over and struggling to carry

that enormous sack of firewood on his back.

For me, he is an image of us all as we struggle with the burdens of life.

I know that as we keep the commandments of God and our covenants,

He helps us with our burdens.

He strengthens us. When we repent,

He forgives us and blesses us with peace of conscience and joy.

 May we then submit cheerfully

and with patience to all the will of the Lord,

I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.