Epiphany - Crab Apples

I have been thinking for several months about an experience that I had while doing a bit of yard work at my aunts house with my sons this past spring.  In my small Idaho town spring usually comes late and winter early, so we were fortunate to have a warm sun to move us along.  

Initially, the invitation was for my boys but I just knew that my younger son would lose interest and want to quit before the work was done, so I essentially invited myself to keep him going.  He is a good kid.  Just not interested in hard work yet. 

One of the most difficult tasks was that of raking up crab apples that had been falling throughout the winter.  I would rake, and rake, and rake making piles of the pesky little pieces of fruit only to turn around and see more crab apples that I had missed!  It did not matter what type of rake I used, I struggled to gather all of the tiny apples into a nice big pile.  Many of them had sunk deep into the grass and the only way to get them up was to keep going.

I found myself getting frustrated as blisters were forming on my hands and the crab apples seemed to be multiplying!  I was sure that there had to be a better way to clean them up.  But no, there wasn't!

It was then that I realized that the crab apples were like trials.  Each one different.  Some bigger and some more difficult than others.  The rake and the effort to rake was patience.  I discovered the effort and patience to rake the crab apples to be monumental.  

However, as I was working it was interesting to note that when life gets hard, when burdens become heavy we can make a choice.  Either we can give up and rebel or keep moving forward.  

God allows us have experiences that are wonderful and we wish that life can always be that way, but He also let's us experience pain, sadness, discouragement, and fear.  There is no one who can take our trials away or show us an easy way out.  We must look to Christ - to His redeeming love to keep us going.  I know if we can trust and have faith in Jesus Christ and be patient that we will make it through the stormy waters each of us must face in our lives. 

I know that Jesus is the Christ!  His word is the living water that so many thirst for.  Just as the Israelites were commanded to look toward the Brass Serpent to live, we must look to the Savior.  It is through His sacrifice that we can gain eternal life!

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"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father:  Ye shall have eternal life."

-2 Nephi 31:20