"There are so many things to be endured: illness, injustice,
insensitivity, poverty, aloneness, unresponsiveness, being misrepresented and
misunderstood, and, sometimes, even enemies. Paul reminds us that meek and
lowly Jesus, though the Lord of the universe, “endured contradiction of sinners
against himself.” (Heb. 12:3.) Smaller variations of these contradictions or
hostilities will be felt by His disciples.
We tend to think only in terms of our endurance, but it is
God’s patient long-suffering which provides us with our chances to improve,
affording us urgently needed developmental space or time. (See Alma 42:4–5.)
Paul observed, “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to
be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit
of righteousness.” (Heb. 12:11.) Such “peaceable fruit” comes only in the
appointed season thereof, after the blossoms and the buds.
Otherwise, if certain mortal experiences were cut short, it
would be like pulling up a flower to see how the roots are doing. Put another
way, too many anxious openings of the oven door, and the cake falls instead of
rising. Moreover, enforced change usually does not last, while productive
enduring can ingrain permanent change."
- Neal A Maxwell
What more can be said than that?
