Several years ago, while I was out running errands, I tuned the radio to a news station hoping for an update on a concerning national event. As I listened to reports of anger, division, and violence, my heart ached with despair. I was deeply concerned for the world my children would grow up and raise their own families in. Hours later, as I prepared for bed, my mind and heart were still racked with worry for my children’s future. I knelt and prayed for Heavenly Father to help me find peace.
I don’t normally remember my dreams, but that night, a vivid dream helped my heart to trust Heavenly Father’s plan and “be not troubled” (Matthew 24:6).
In my dream, my six children and I were exploring a beautiful place. The kids were excited and ran in all different directions. Suddenly, I noticed a son standing at the very edge of a cliff. I ran to him and pulled him to safety just in time to turn and see a daughter, in the opposite direction, about to jump over a deep crevice. Over and over, I sprinted from child to child pulling them to safety, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t keep up. I grew more and more frustrated and exhausted.
Just then, the perspective of my dream changed. Instead of seeing through my eyes, I was now viewing the scene from above and could finally recognize where we were. My kids and I stood in the middle of two clasped hands. Heavenly Father’s hands. The cliffs were the edges of His palms, and the crevices were the interlocking lines of His fingers. I’d been running myself so ragged trying to save my children that I hadn’t noticed He was holding us the whole time.
In the Hands of God
“Know ye not that ye are in the hands of God? Know ye not that he hath all power . . . ?” (Mormon 5:23).
Because I love them so fiercely, I sometimes forget that “saving” my children isn’t my job. Yes, I’ve raised them, nurtured, protected, and taught them. But the reason they came to earth was to follow Jesus Christ, to know Him, to become like Him. True saving can only come through Him. And my dream that night reminded me that they are carefully held in His hands.
Elder W. Craig Zwick said: “To be in the hands of God would suggest that we are not only under His watchful care but also that we are guarded and protected by His wondrous power.”
I’m not sure that my heart will ever fully stop worrying over my family—that seems to be part of the job description—but Sister Tamara W. Runia recently reminded us how worry can distort our view of God’s knowledge and power.
“Is there something difficult in your life right now, something you’re worried can’t be resolved? Without the eye of faith, that might feel like God has lost oversight of things, and is that true?”
To answer Sister Runia’s question, No. That is never true. The prophet Nephi taught: “For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it” (2 Nephi 9:20). And that includes all that we hope and pray for our families.
Sister Runia offers this comforting testimony: “This—all of this—is going to turn out so much better than we could ever imagine! With an eye of faith on Jesus Christ, may we see that everything will be all right in the end and feel that it will be all right now.”
As we focus on Jesus Christ, and trust in His constant care, He will help our troubled hearts to “be not troubled” (Matthew 24:6).
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▶ The prayer that brought Elder Renlund peace during his wife’s cancer treatments
▶ Elder Uchtdorf’s simple suggestion for when you feel discouraged
