[It was my turn to write the introductory message for our church congregation's newsletter this month, and this is what I came up with. Thought I'd share...]
In a remote valley near the Red Sea thousands of years ago, a group of people were preparing for a long trip. They knew the journey would be filled with uncertainty and challenges. They would travel into a wilderness, leaving the comforts and security of civilization far behind. And what is more, they didn't exactly know the way, nor did they know where their ultimate destination was—just that it was a land of promise.
In the midst of this uncertainty, the patriarch of the family, Lehi, had a dream. In this dream he saw a tree with fruit that was "desirable to make one happy" (1 Ne. 8:10). Many people wanted to eat the tree's fruit, and fortunately, the way to the tree had a clearly marked path with a helpful handrail.
With a path and a handrail, it should have been easy to get to the tree, but it wasn't. A thick mist of darkness covered the path, and in the middle of that darkness, travel became confusing. The people could no longer see the tree, and they probably couldn't even see the path they were walking on. In such darkness, if travelers stepped off the path, they may not have noticed at first that the ground was a little different. They may have thought they were continuing on course when they were actually becoming lost.
The only way to stay on course through the darkness would have been to hold fast to the rod of iron. Some people likely held to the rod for a time and then began to doubt that the rod was going in the right direction. Their own senses may have led them to think they should veer to the right, or they may have felt that the rod was veering too much to the left. So they let go. Others may have held to the rod for a long time. As they became used to the feel of the path and of the rod, they may have become confident. After so long following and holding, surely they knew the path and the rod well enough to let go for a minute. Then two minutes. Then half an hour. Soon they would have stumbled on an unexpected rock, and they would have reached for the rod to discover they were nowhere near it. Only those who held continually to the rod made it through this difficult, confusing time of darkness.
For Lehi's family, the next few years after the dream must have been much like walking through that mist of darkness. Most of the travelers did not know the way through the wilderness; they could see neither their destination nor the path. Instead, they had to trust in the prophet and in a compass given them by God. But in the face of hunger or sickness or fatigue or desert sandstorms, that trust may not have been so easy.
Likewise, we all face times when the way may not be clear to us. We may become frustrated or confused. We may not be able to remember clearly where we are going or why we are going there. Fortunately, like those in Lehi's dream, we have a rod of iron. As we hold firmly, and continually, to that rod—as we study the scriptures faithfully—we will find our way through difficulties and we will stay on course toward our ultimate destination. As your bishopric, we testify that the rod of iron will lead you in the right direction and that rich rewards await those who faithfully travel to the end of the path. As you make the scriptures your lifeline and then hold fast, you will be strengthened against temptations and trials and evil. You can make it through the darkness, and like the faithful travelers in Lehi's dream, you will come forth and fall down before the tree and partake of the blessings of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
May you be strengthened to hold firmly to the rod and may you find peace and hope and joy as you do so.
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