Emily Snyder's life has been full of the unexpected. The latest step in that journey is getting married for the first time at 46 years old. And while she is excited for the opportunity, so much about her life is about to change. To navigate the emotions of the unexpected, Emily leans on the example of women in scripture and Church history.
On a recent episode of the Magnify podcast, Emily said:
I would love to be friends with Emma Smith. I would love to be friends with Rebecca and with Sarah. [But] how can I be friends with somebody if I don't have some sort of a similar depth of understanding? And they went through some things and they went through a lot of unexpected moments in their lives and figured out how to embrace them. And I want to be friends with them. And so I want to figure out how to do similar things in my sphere.
Learning from the Experiences of Others
The challenges faced by Emma Smith; Rebecca and Sarah in the Old Testament; and Sariah, Abish, and the mothers of the stripling soldiers in the Book of Mormon are shared with us today for a reason. Think of these women as a girlfriend telling you her story: Her trial may be different than yours, but if she were sitting at your dining table, what would she tell you about what she learned? If you were en route to a movie theater, what insights would she share? If you were out on an evening walk together, how would she tell you her story?
In the same way, when I think about my own closest friends, they are the women who have been vulnerable with me and allowed me to be vulnerable with them. My closest friends aren't necessarily women I’ve known my entire life, not always women who have had similar life experiences, and not even always women my own age.
True friends were willing to listen to me mourn our struggles with infertility, and, in turn, share what they’ve learned from their own unique struggles.
Trials May Be Different; Spiritual Takeaways Can Be the Same
Each of our earthly trials may be dissimilar, but the spiritual takeaways are often universal and can bond us together as we share what we’ve learned and how we’ve grown. Listening to the unique trials of others can give us new ideas on how to approach our own earthly challenges.
Emily has found a theme to the challenges in her life—they have all been “unexpected”—and she has looked for answers and insights around that theme in the stories of other righteous women.
If we also dive into the stories of these faithful women in the scriptures wanting to learn more, wanting to glean more from their experiences, we might just find a “similar depth of understanding” and—like Emily is hoping for—”figure out how to do similar things in our own sphere.”
You can hear more from Emily Snyder on the Magnify podcast here.
▶ Sad to see TOFW end? Start a new chapter with Magnify events, coming to a city near you
Seek and Expect Miracles
Check out more great articles on friendship in the links below:
► 3 things good listeners always do
► Easy conversation starters to help you find connection at church
► I thought I only wanted friends my age—then older couples invited us into their lives
