If Thou Endure Well

Notes from “If Thou Endure Well”, Neal A. Maxwell, December 4, 1984 • BYU Devotional, BYU Link to MP3


"We all have enough strength to endure the misfortunes of others." Francois de La Rochefoucauld (Francois de La Rochefoucauld Quotes. BrainyQuote.com)

"For there was never yet philosopher that could endure the toothache patiently" (Much Ado About Nothing, Act 5 Scene 1, William Shakespeare, )

“I can endure my own despair, but not another's hope”(William Walsh, From GoodReads.com)

“Some of your hurts you have cured, and the sharpest you've even survived. But what torments of grief you've endured from evils which never arrived" (Ralph Waldo Emerson, From GoodReads.com)

“That toil of growing up; The ignominy of boyhood; the distress Of boyhood changing into man; The unfinished man and his pain.” (William Butler Yeats, From QuoteFancy.com)

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And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved.
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Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.
(2 Nephi 31:16,20)

"We are not simply to exist to the end. Rather we are to persist in following the example of the Son of the Living God. " - Neal A. Maxwell

“There is no disappointment we endure one-half so great as what we are to ourselves.” (Philip James Bailey, from quotefacncy.com)

Especially for Latter-day Saints, where we have great expectations; and then must endure the difference of what we could be and what we are. And try to make of that some useful, divine discontent rather than corrosive affliction of the self. 

This quality about which we are speaking therefore is graceful endurance. And it includes becoming and growing. It includes but is not limited to hanging on for one moment more. It is, as has been observed, a circumstance in which all virtues at the testing point, take the form of courage. And then after you and I have passed breaking points without breaking, our virtues take the form of endurance.

Besides, this life is not lineal. It is experiential. It is not really chronological, though we use clocks and calendars and wristwatches.

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The Standard of Truth

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The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done. (Joseph Smith, The Wentworth Letter, 1 Mar 1842, History of the Church, 4:540, p 540)

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"Seeketh so to do"

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When there was a controversy in the early Church regarding who was entitled to heaven’s blessings and who wasn’t, the Lord declared to the Prophet Joseph Smith, “Verily I say unto you, [the gifts of God] are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep … my commandments, and [for them] that seeketh so to do.” Boy, aren’t we all thankful for that added provision “and … seeketh so to do”! That has been a lifesaver because sometimes that is all we can offer! We take some solace in the fact that if God were to reward only the perfectly faithful, He wouldn’t have much of a distribution list. 

Please remember tomorrow, and all the days after that, that the Lord blesses those who want to improve, who accept the need for commandments and try to keep them, who cherish Christlike virtues and strive to the best of their ability to acquire them. If you stumble in that pursuit, so does everyone; the Savior is there to help you keep going. If you fall, summon His strength. Call out like Alma, “O Jesus, … have mercy on me.” He will help you get back up. He will help you repent, repair, fix whatever you have to fix, and keep going. Soon enough you will have the success you seek. ("Tomorrow the Lord Will Do Wonders among You", Jeffrey R. Holland, Apr 2016)

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