Tender Mercies of the Lord

Today I'm thinking about the tender mercies of the Lord. I read this passage in The Book of Mormon this morning: "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."

I am learning that the Lord chooses us if we have faith in Him and try to keep His commandments. And He often doesn't remove our trials, but He makes us mightier than we could ever be alone, and He helps us to improve our own circumstances, or cheerfully persevere through challenges we can't control.

And then I listened to this wonderful talk by Elder David A. Bednar. I got pretty choked up at one point while listening. Although I can't understand why so many very difficult things happen to people who are trying so hard to do good, I do know that God watches over us, and He blesses us.

Elder Bednar mentions tender mercy that the Lord is blessing me with now: "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."