“We stand today on a mountain peak, on a majestic, glorious peak
in the midst of the mountains of Israel. To gain this height, we have climbed
over peaks of peace and trudged through the valleys of despair.
Below us lie the deserts of sin and the forests of evil; below
us stretch the swamps of carnality and the plains of passion; below us rage the
roaring rivers of war and hate and crime, through all of which we have
struggled to reach this summit.
Above us, stretching crest on crest, are yet greater and grander
peaks. Each one is rimmed with rivers and forests and cliffs and crags. There
are deep canyons and steep precipices. … Our onward course will not be easy.
The way ahead will be blocked by a landslide of lasciviousness; an avalanche of
evil will bury the trail.
But our joy and rejoicing is not in what lies below, not in our
past—great and glorious as that is—but in our present and in our future.
Nor are the days of our greatest sorrows and our deepest
sufferings all behind us. They too lie ahead. We shall yet face greater perils,
we shall yet be tested with more severe trials, and we shall yet weep more
tears of sorrow than we have ever known before. … We have not been promised
that the trials and evils of the world will entirely pass us by.
…If we, as a people, keep the commandments of God; if we take
the side of the Church on all issues, both religious and political; if we take
the Holy Spirit for our guide; if we give heed to the words of the apostles and
prophets who minister among us—then, from an eternal standpoint, all things
will work together for our good.
…Is it any wonder that we both rejoice and tremble at what lies
ahead?”
Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “The Coming Tests and Trials and
Glory”, April 1980 General Conference
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