The Tender Mercies of the Lord

Do you wonder if the Lord is aware of you? How could he really be concerned about my insignificant problems and me personally? These examples show that the Lord is aware of all his children and his tender mercies are there for us when we need it the most.

In 1 Nephi 1:20 Nephi says:

“But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance.”

Elder David A. Bednar, of the Council of 12 Apostles, in a 2005 General Conference address said:

“I testify that the tender mercies of the Lord are real and that they do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence. Often, the Lord’s timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them. (

…as you and I face challenges and tests in our lives, the gift off faith and an appropriate sense of personal confidence that reaches beyond our own capacity are two examples of the tender mercies of the Lord. Repentance and forgiveness of sins and peace of conscience are examples of the tender mercies of the Lord. And the persistence and the fortitude that enable us to press forward with cheerfulness through physical limitations and spiritual difficulties are examples of the tender mercies of the Lord. “

In that talk Elder Bednar tells of a stake leader that took the time to memorize the names of all the youth in his stake. One night he had a dream about one of the young men. In the dream the young man was a missionary and with his companion was teaching a family about the Book of Mormon. He was holding the Book of Mormon in his hand and was testifying of the truthfulness of it. Later he saw the young man in a stake priesthood meeting and asked if he could talk with him. He told him of the dream and then asked what he thought it meant. The young man said: “It means God knows who I am.”  Elder Bednar then says:

“That young man received the Lord’s tender mercies through an inspired priesthood leader. I repeat again, the Lord’s tender mercies do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence. Faithfulness and obedience enable us to receive these important gifts and, frequently, the Lord’s timing helps us to recognize them.”  (The Tender Mercies of the Lord, Elder David A. Bednar, General Conference, April 2005)

President Reutzel, President of the Logan Utah Married 1^st Stake, in a Stake Council meeting was teaching this principle and he read the scripture in Moses 7:28-30

 "28 And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains?

 29 And Enoch said unto the Lord: How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?

 30 And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning to the number of thy creations; and thy curtains are stretched out still; and yet thou art there, and thy bosom is there; and also thou art just; thou art merciful and kind forever;"

President Reutzel then said:

“How is it that the God of Heaven who is without sin has set his heart on something as menial as us. He has graven our image on the palm of his hand and weeps for us. What does that tell us of our God? Does he live in a realm that is untouched and unblemished to our suffering and pain? Is his willingness to weep for us evidence of his love and the nature of being a God?

He is involved in the intimate details of our lives and he makes himself vulnerable to those things that hurt us and make themselves vulnerable to pain because they love us.” (President D. Ray Reutzel to Logan Utah Married 1^st Stake Council, November 28, 2012)

I would like to share an experience that I had the shows that the Lord is in the details of our lives and we can experience his tender mercies when we need it the most. I have always been active in sports both as an athlete in high school and college and for the past 30 years I have continued to be active in sports as a referee. I have also participated in 12 marathons and several triathlons including an iron man triathlon. I am seldom sick and had never spent a day in the hospital until 2004.

On July 31, 2004 I felt sick and ended up going to the emergency room and finally had a few tests taken and they determined that I was suffering from pancreatitis. I had no idea what a pancreas was let alone how serious it was. I found out that many people die from it. I spent the next 21 days in the hospital, 11 days of it in intensive care. The doctor told my wife that he did not know if I would survive or not and that it would be best to call in our children. For four days, they did not know if I would die or not. My Bishop at that time was Boyd Rowley, who is now the Bishop of the 2^nd Ward here in the 1^st Stake. He came and gave me a blessing. In that blessing he told me that it was not my time to go and that the Lord had more work for me to do. He also said that there would be angels watching over me and that those who cared for me would know what they needed to do.

At the same time I was going through this, my wife who has multiple sclerosis was going through a difficult time with that disease. She had a hard time walking and was in constant pain. Now her husband was in the hospital and she did not know if I would live or not. Two days after I started my problems our oldest son called and said the our youngest son was hit while running across I-15 and was flown by life flight to the University Hospital in Salt Lake and he was not expected to live.

My wife did not know what to do. Should she stay here with me or go to the hospital in Salt Lake and be with her son. She was given a blessing and was told to stay with me. My oldest son went to be with our youngest and helped him as best as he could. He survived, but I have no idea how. He was hit by one car and thrown under another car that ran over him. Both his legs were broken and he had other life threatening injuries.

We were able to get through this time because of the tender mercies of the Lord rested upon us and we felt his peace comforting us. These experiences have strengthened our relationship and brought us closer as husband and wife. There are other very sacred experiences we had during this time that helped us know that Heavenly Father is aware of us and will help us in our time of need.

It is my testimony that our Father in Heaven and our Savior Jesus Christ can be in the details of our lives if we allow them. They want to bless us and will be there to comfort us in our hour of need if we live worthily and invite them in. It is because of God, our Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ that we are here in mortality and through the atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, can live with them again as eternal families. I am truly grateful to know they love us enough to be in the details of our lives.

Your comments and questions are welcome.