(In Mark 9) This is one of the greatest New Testament accounts we have probing the complexity of faith and the degrees one experiences in its development. The man's inital faith, by his own admission, is limited. But he has some faith. He did, after all, approach the disciples but, of course, met dissapointment there. With whatever remaining faith he has, he turns to Jesus and says, "If thou canst do any thing," please help us, hoping perhaps Jeus might be able to succeed where all others have failed.

Christ, ever the teacher, seizes on the man's very language and limited faith and turns it back on him "If thou canst believe," Christ says, "all things are possible to him that believeth." In that very instant, in the length of time it takes to have that two-sentence exchange, this man's understanding begins to be enlightened. The look in the Savior's eye or he tone of His voice or the majesty of His bearing or simily the words He spoke -something touches this man spiritually and an inexorable change begins. Up to that moment he had thought that everything depended on others -doctors, soothsayers, priests, the disciples, or, here at the very last, Jesus. Only now, in this exchange, does he grasp that a great deal of the answer to his quest rests upon his own shoulders, or, more accurately, in his own soul.

The question “Why me?” can be a difficult one to answer and often leads to frustration and despair. There is a better question to ask ourselves. That question is “What could I learn from this experience?”

The way we answer that question may determine the quality of our lives not only on this earth but also in the eternities to come. Though our trials are diverse, there is one thing the Lord expects of us no matter our difficulties and sorrows: He expects us to press on.

Make up your mind to be happy-even when you don't have money, even when
you don't have a clear complexion, even when you don't have the Nobel
Prize. Some of the happiest people I know have none of these things
the world insists are necessary for satisfaction and joy. Why are they
happy? I suppose it is because they don't listen very well. Or they
listen too well-to the things their hearts tell them. They glory in
the beauty of the earth. They glory in the rivers and the canyons and
the call of the meadowlark. They glory in the love of their families,
the stumbling steps of a toddler, the wise and tender smile of the elderly.
They glory in honest labor. They glory in the scriptures. They glory
in the presence of the Holy Ghost. One thing I know for certain: the
time we have here goes by far too quickly. Don't waste any more time
sitting on the bench watching life pass you by.

Faith is not only a feeling; it is a decision.

I believe in Christ as the rising sun-- not that I can see it, but that by it, I can see everything.

We cannot enjoy power in the priesthood until we learn to act by faith.

Where time and circumstances permit, members are encouraged to replace some leisure activities with temple service. . . .

All of the ordinances which take place in the House of the Lord become expressions of our belief in that fundamental and basic doctrine of the immortality of the human soul. As we redouble our efforts and our faithfulness in going to the temple, the Lord will bless us.