How do we get through our trials, and not just squeak by, but grow and become more than we were before?
That's the 100 million dollar question in this day and age. Allow me to share two different approaches. These come from a talk given by Carol Wilkinson at BYU that my mother shared with me a few years ago. It helped me change the way I was responding to my challenges the first time I read it. It did so again when it fell out of a folder that I had taken out from my memory box a couple of weeks ago. 
In her speech, Carol explains the following:
Our Father in Heaven wants us to become like Him, and in so doing He wants us to overcome the world and influence of Satan. Difficulties in life allow us to find out how much we need the divine strength and love of our Father. As we reach out to God, we can find and experience His goodness and want to be like Him. Satan also wants us to be like him-evil and miserable-and so he seeks to overcome us and thwart us. Elder Henry B. Eyring said, "The great test of life is...not to endure storms, but to choose the right while they rage."

As difficulties come into our lives, there are two ways to approach them. The first leads to allowing yourself to be influenced and overcome by Satan. It consists of not exhibiting any faith, ignoring spiritual promptings, and refusing to seek for divine help and instead relying on your own abilities. When difficulties come and they're not resolved quickly, you may just feel extremely irritated. 
It consists of the following steps.
Step 1: Your plan is thwarted; you become baffled and questioning
Step 2: Faith doesn't bring the desired results; you become hurt and doubtful
Step 3: You set conditions
Step 4: Your desire is not met; you become angry, bitter and rebellious

The second approach leads to overcoming the world and the influence of Satan through having faith in Christ. With this we are obedient, plead for help and exhibit faith. 
It consists of the following steps:
Step 1: Your plan is thwarted; you trust God and ask different questions.
Things are not going according to your plan. You don't understand why things are going wrong. You know Heavenly Father could solve the problem, as He is omnipotent. Yet you don't know the meaning of all things, so, remembering times when He has come through for you in the past, you decide to absolutely trust in God.
Step 2: Faith doesn't bring desired results; you ask for strength
When your faith doesn't bring the results you desire and you struggle with the trial, your need to ask for strength. I love that she doesn't say that your should pray for strength, but that you need to, you must pray for strength.  This is so important, and I realized that it was okay for me to pray for strength, in fact, that Heavenly Father wanted to give it to me, I just needed to ask for it.
Step 3: You are not consumed with the trial; you focus on the good things in your life
Focus on the good things in your life, not what you don't have.  Choose to be happy. This puts our happiness in our own court, for I do believe that to a certain extent, how we feel is our choice.
Step 4: You consecrate your life to God; you draw closer to Him
Continue to feast on the word of God and have faith. Be willing to spend more time with God; desire it with all your heart. Make the time to pray fervently while being willing to submit to His will, serve Him by serving others, spend time in meaningful meditation, and attend the temple with a worshipful attitude.

Shining individuals who are sensitive to others who are struggling-sensitive because of he pain they've felt, which helps them know better how to succor others-mirror in a very small way the way Christ succors us. Ultimately, through this process, we can become one with Him and our Father. So we become like Him and then overcome the world through faith in our Savior.




I think it is imperative that we realize that Satan is the one influencing us to choose approach number 1. Here's a good question to ask yourself when you are going through, well, anything: Whose agenda is this supporting?  If we are angry with the Lord because of what's going on in our lives, we are supporting Satan's agenda; we are giving in to him, exactly what he wants! I hope that in responding to our trials we will each choose to have faith, trust in our Father in Heaven absolutely, ask for strength, focus on the good, and draw closer to Him. 

Lots of Love,