Aloha Brothers and Sisters,
Have you ever wondered why you are here? Did you come to BYU–Hawaii for academics? Are you searching for your eternal companion? Or are you here for the same reason my youngest son was so excited to apply—for surfing? Whatever your reasons may be, you are here by divine design.
I have been doing some reflection on how I ended up at BYU–Hawaii as a young man in the pre-historic era of 1988. If you had told my younger self that he would leave Tonga for Hawaii, he would not have believed it. Like many of you, I realized early that education was key to a better life. My goal was to do well in school and attend university in New Zealand. When I was in middle school, I attended a devotional where the speaker taught about the power of fasting. I felt inspired to apply this principle in my life even though I did not fully understand it. I committed to fast regularly outside of first Sundays to make my dream of attending a university in New Zealand a reality.
Growing up with little, fasting felt like a big sacrifice, but I kept at it and worked hard in school. I was certain God would answer my prayers. However, after high school, I failed my entrance exams and was rejected by every school I applied to. I was shocked and could not understand why God had not blessed me in the way I wanted after all my efforts and sacrifices.
For two years, I drifted without direction. Then, BYU–Hawaii recruiters visited the hotel I worked at in Tonga. Despite not knowing me or my transcripts, they were inspired to invite me to attend BYU–Hawaii. Being stubborn, I initially refused, but they returned and invited me again, and I am forever grateful they did.
Looking back, I realized these recruiters were God’s response to my prayers. I was so focused on New Zealand that I forgot to focus on what God wanted for me. By bringing me to BYU–Hawaii, God forever altered the trajectory of my life. The blessings that He had in store for me were much greater than the ones I had imagined for myself.
From my experiences, I have learned an important principle: when you put your trust in God, you can be confident He will guide you to the best outcome, even when the path ahead is uncertain. My goal is threefold: to help you understand how to develop trust in God, how to find peace as we await His blessing, and to understand how trusting Him changes us.
With that in mind, let us first discuss how to develop trust in God.
How We Develop Trust In God
Trust is a big word. Think about the people you trust the most in your life. If you are to reflect on who those people are, I am sure that they have been in your life for a considerable amount of time. They have probably seen you at your best and worst and have given you good advice even when it is not the easiest to hear. You have grown to rely on them because you understand who they are and know that they have your best interests at heart.
Trust is a relationship and just like you have built relationships of trust with people in your life, we likewise need to build a relationship with God in order to trust Him. The good news is God already knows each of us perfectly. In order to build a relationship with him, we need to learn more about Him.
As We Learn of God, We Increase Our Trust in Him
As we learn about God, our relationship with Him strengthens. One of my favorite examples from the scriptures is the story of Saul, who later became Paul. In Acts chapter 9, we learn “… Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, [a]nd desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.” [1]
We know that Saul was a member of the Pharisees and, in his mind, he probably thought himself a God-fearing man. Yet, we have scriptural records that he was persecuting and overseeing the executions of Christian disciples. However, as Saul begins to understand who Christ is, his life undergoes a drastic change. The scriptural record continues, “And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest…” [2]
This was the beginning of Paul learning the character of Christ. As he came to understand that Christ is the Savior, he transformed from a persecutor of His church to one of his staunchest advocates. He was afflicted with numerous trials including imprisonment, beatings, stonings, and shipwrecks—all things I hope none of us will have to experience—yet his trust in God remained steadfast.
Not all of us will be privileged to see visions of Christ in mortality like Paul. However, we have been given these scriptural accounts so we can learn of Christ’s character. I invite you to study the scriptures with the goal of understanding the character of God. I believe the Book of Mormon is an especially powerful teacher. It serves as a witness that God was intimately involved in the lives of His people for over a thousand years. As we learn about Christ in the scriptures, we come to “…love him, because he first loved us.” [3] As a result of understanding the love that he has for us, we can trust Him to guide us to the best outcomes.
As We Follow Him, We Learn to Trust Him
In addition to learning the character of God, our trust in Him is built as we choose to follow Him. Beyond just following the commandments, we learn to trust Him by listening and acting upon His voice.
When I was fresh out of college with an accounting degree under my belt, I did what I thought I was supposed to and took a job as a junior accountant at a company in downtown Honolulu. I still lived in an apartment at the point. This meant that my commute on the bus started at 4:00 in the morning and I did not get home until late at night. I quickly realized that not only did I not enjoy the long bus commute, I did not enjoy the very thing that I had studied for the past four years—at least not all day, every day. Within a couple of months, it became apparent that I could not continue to go down this life path, but once again, I felt I did not know what to do. At this uncertain time in my life, I turned to God in the best way I knew how: through regular prayer and fasting.
As I turned to Him, I felt prompted to reach out to a construction company that I had met as an accounting student at BYU–Hawaii. When this thought came to mind, I at first dismissed it because I knew they were not in a good position to take on any new hires. But the prompting was clear that I needed to reach out to them. Trusting in God, but not understanding why He would want me to do this, I decided to leave my job in Honolulu and take on employment at this construction company. When I made this change, I thought I had made a mistake. Some weeks, I would work and there would be no paycheck waiting for me. I was newly married, and my wife’s job supported our first two years of marriage. She supported me during this time because she understood that if God wanted me to work at this job despite the challenges, it was for a good reason.
Now that I am looking back more than twenty-five years later, I can see that God was once again preparing me for a future greater than I had envisioned for myself. During the years that I worked at this construction company, I learned the skills necessary to become a successful contractor. Because of these experiences, I am able to provide for my family and have the ability to serve God and His people with the things that He has blessed me with.
I have come to know with certainty the truthfulness of the scripture, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” [4] As we have the faith to receive and act on the promptings we receive from our Heavenly Father, our trust in Him will grow. As we build this trust, we can feel confident that God will bless us. However, one challenge is being able to find peace as we await God’s blessings.
How To Find Peace As We Await God's Blessings
President Holland is often quoted as saying, “Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don’t come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come.” [5]
I think this principle is both comforting and distressing at the same time. We can have full confidence that God will bless us, but the uncertainty of when those blessings will come—that they might not even come during our mortality—can be a cause of great anxiety. In the experiences I have shared, I have been able to see the blessings because I have decades of perspective behind me. But, in those moments, as I was following God in the darkness, I felt a lot of unease and at times felt lost. One of the benefits of being over half a century old is experience. I have since learned that I do not have to be fearful when I put my trust in God, even when things seem uncertain. I found a few ways to help me trust in God’s divine timing.
Seek for His Tender Mercies
The first thing that I have found helpful is to seek for his tender mercies. Elder Bednar explained the beautiful nature of God’s tender mercies. He has said the following: “…[they] are the very personal and individualized blessings, strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindnesses, consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because of and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Truly, the Lord suits ‘his mercies according to the conditions of the children of men.’” [6] In addition to what Elder Bednar said, I believe we are given tender mercies to remind us that He is guiding us, even when we are going through turmoil. even when we are going through turmoil.
Lockdown during COVID-19 was challenging for our family, as I am sure it was for many of you. The circumstances of the lockdown caused a latent health challenge to surface in one of our family members. Because of the pandemic, it was exceedingly difficult to find and schedule an appointment with the very specialized type of medical professional that this family member needed. After praying about how to address this challenge, my wife was inspired to search for a specialist online. We were guided to the perfect specialist who was located in Mexico.
Due to COVID, doctors had begun meeting with patients virtually, which made it possible for this family member to get very specific help from a medical professional thousands of miles away. Lockdown was still challenging and there are certain card games my family is not allowed to play anymore, but despite the challenges, God still showed us His mercies.
I know that as you intentionally seek them, you will see God’s mercies in your life, and they will help buoy you up as you await His promised blessings.
Keep Your Covenants
Another way we can find peace as we wait on God’s timing, is by keeping our covenants. The prophet has taught, “The reward for keeping covenants with God is heavenly power—power that strengthens us to withstand our trials, temptations, and heartaches better. This power eases our way. Those who live the higher laws of Jesus Christ have access to His higher power. Thus, covenant keepers are entitled to a special kind of rest that comes to them through their covenantal relationship with God.” [7]
As we keep our covenants, we can find rest and can be bolstered by the Savior as we await His promised blessings. When we are keeping our covenants, we can be confident that we are aligning our lives with God’s will. We are blessed with a measure of his Spirit and given a degree of peace regardless of our life’s turmoil.
Serve Others
Part of our baptismal covenant is to serve others, and I found that this is an excellent way to be strengthened during times of difficulty. It is counterintuitive, but when we are tired and we have challenges of our own, we are given energy and comfort as we turn our focus outwards. Regarding this matter, Isaiah said, “And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the Lord shall guide thee continually…” [8]
There was one night I was working on some important reports that I had to finish before the next day. I had spent all day working on them. When my wife called me in the evening to ask for help at a ward activity, I was completely exhausted and still had a lot of work to finish. I decided to go anyways, unsure of how I would finish what I needed to do on time. But after I left the ward activity, instead of feeling more tired, God reinvigorated me. I know in college, you have a lot of obligations, but I also know that as you take time to serve others, God will also bless you in your endeavors. I invite you to find the peace that comes from service.
I hope that these recommendations of searching for God’s tender mercies, keeping your covenants, and engaging in service will help you to find peace as you await God’s blessings.
How Trusting God Changes Us
As we do these things consistently, we begin to change as a result of our increased trust in God. One of the changes that you might notice is that you will gain an increased resilience to the challenges of mortality. By choosing to trust God first, you will learn by experience that God truly is guiding your life. You can feel confident that regardless of how difficult your circumstances are, following God’s direction will always lead you to the best outcome.
When you choose to first put your trust in God, your life will be greatly simplified. As President Nelson taught, “When your greatest desire is to let God prevail…so many decisions become easier. So many issues become nonissues! ...You know what you want to accomplish. You know the kind of person you really want to become.” [9]
Another change you might notice is that you will find yourself asking less for the things you want and more for God to direct you to the things you need. A lot of our frustration, like what I felt when I was rejected from college, stems from asking God for things that may not be the best for us. By making a habit of trusting God first, your desires will be aligned with God’s will. You can avoid the disappointment that comes from not receiving the answers that you are expecting.
When I shared my experience of applying to a university in New Zealand, I have to admit that trusting in God was difficult at the time, even though everything worked out in the end. Facing challenges that require us to act solely on faith can definitely be unsettling at first, but God transforms us so that we do not always have to feel that way when confronted with uncertainty.
Conclusion
Brothers and sisters, your Heavenly Father loves you deeply and He asks you to put your trust in Him because He wants you to feel confident in His love. I hope that the Spirit was able to touch your heart as we discussed how to develop trust in God, how to find peace as we await His blessings, and how trusting in Him changes our very nature.
I invite you to prayerfully seek ways to increase your trust in God and to act on any promptings you receive. As you do so, you will develop an unwavering confidence in God’s ability to guide you to the best outcomes, even when the path ahead of you is uncertain.
I know that God lives. He loves each one of us. I have personally felt His love. I am grateful for the inspired men that had enough trust in God to invite a little Tongan boy like me to come to this university. I know that we are led by a living prophet and that God speaks to us in this very day and age.
I can, with full confidence, proclaim with Alma that, “…whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day.” [10]
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes:
[1] Acts 9:1-2
[2] Acts 9:3-5
[3] 1 John 4:19
[4] Proverbs 3:5-6
[5] Jeffrey R. Holland, "An High Priest of Good Things to Come," Ensign or Liahona, October 1999,38
[6] David A. Bednar, "The Tender Mercies of the Lord," Ensign or Liahona, April 2005, 99
[7] Russell M. Nelson, "Overcome the World and Find Rest," Ensign or Liahona, October 2022,96
[8] Isaiah 58:10-11
[9] Russell M. Nelson, "Let God Prevail," Ensign or Liahona, October 2022, 94
[10] Alma 36:3