Sure Provisions

On January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 took off from New York City’s LaGuardia Airport. Three minutes later, the plane struck a flock of Canada geese and lost all engine power. Unable to reach any airport, pilot in command Chesley Sullenberger glided the plane to a water landing in the Hudson River. All 155 people aboard were rescued. This incident came to be known as the "Miracle on the Hudson."

Afterward, Sullenberger was asked what he had done that led to the rescue of everyone. He said: “One way of looking at this might be that for 42 years, I've been making small, regular deposits in this bank of experience, education, and training. And on January 15 the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal."[1]

Chesley Sullenberger was a military fighter pilot before flying commercial planes for 29 years. He had spent tens of thousands of hours in the air.^[2] The daily checklists he had followed, the simulators he had practiced in, all the little things that happened throughout his career prepared him so he could act appropriately when an emergency presented itself. In a similar way, the small actions, the righteous deeds, the prayers, the covenants we make, all the good we perform in our lives over the years accumulate cent by cent until they are large enough to be drawn upon when we are impacted by the truly difficult moments of this mortal life. And although different for each of us, those moments will come sooner or later.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, three Jews living captive in Babylon approximately 2,600 years ago experienced such a moment. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered a golden image made, and all were commanded to worship it. These Jews worshipped the true God of Israel and refused to bow down to the golden image. Upon learning this, the king was enraged and said they would be cast into a burning fiery furnace. The men’s response was powerful: “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.”[3] This was not what the king wanted to hear, and the three were thrown into the furnace where they were miraculously preserved by the power of God. What I have always admired about these men is not necessarily their faith to be saved but their ability to trust in God no matter what. President Dallin H. Oaks, in his message to all of us last week, talked about this meaning of faith, that it is “trust in God’s will, trust in His way of doing things, and trust in His timetable . . . We must trust Him enough that we are content to accept His will, knowing that He knows what is best for us.”[4]Such trust is embedded in the scriptural phrase, “But if not.” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego recognized that it might not be the Lord’s will for them to be preserved, but nevertheless they would still trust in Him. Amulek learned this from Alma the Younger as they were forced to watch the burning of the righteous

women and children in the city of Ammonihah. Alma taught: “The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory.”[5]

The Book of Abraham in the Pearl of Great Price illustrates this principle in a brief, often overlooked description. Abraham 1 recounts how it became necessary for Abraham to find a new place to live because his own father tried to kill him by offering him as a sacrifice to pagan Gods. ^[6] Facsimile 1 shows a drawing of the altar Abraham was tied to before being miraculously saved by an angel of God. This altar had tragically held many previous victims. Verse 11 states: “Now, this priest had offered upon this altar three virgins at one time, who were the daughters of Onitah. . . . These virgins were offered up because of their virtue; they would not bow down to worship gods of wood or of stone, therefore they were killed upon this altar.”[7]

I wish we knew the names of those three virtuous, righteous women. I imagine they had just as much faith as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, or Abraham. Yet their end was martyrdom. I envision them saying, “But if not, we will still not serve thy gods,” as they went to their eternal reward. Elder Neal A. Maxwell, who knew much of suffering as he dealt with the trials of leukemia and chemotherapy in the last eight years of his life, wrote about faith and trust in God: “There have been and will be times in each of our lives when such faith must be the bottom line: We don’t know what is happening to us or around us, but we know that God loves us, and knowing that, for the moment, is enough.”[8] In referring to the phrase “but if not,” he expounded: “There will be times in each of our lives when our faith must not be conditioned upon God’s rescuing or relieving us, because in fact He may not—at least, not as we would choose to be rescued.”[9]

The scriptures are replete with examples on both sides of this phrase, “But if not.” For every David beating Goliath, Nephi being preserved multiple times from his murderous brothers, or Daniel being protected in the lion’s den there is Abinadi’s death by fire, the prophet Zenock being stoned to death, or the Apostle Paul who suffered with “a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me.”^[10] It is no different in our dispensation. Alma Smith’s hip was miraculously healed after being shot at Hawn’s Mill—but he also lost his father and older brother that day in the massacre. President Spencer W. Kimball suffered with boils, heart failure, and throat cancer; George Albert Smith battled recurring depression for years. ^[11] Yet all trusted in God.

My family, like all of you, has also dealt with both sides of this phrase. In 2012, my twelve-year-old son Brian was diagnosed with an inoperable golf-ball-sized brain tumor. He had a high risk of death, blindness, or permanent one-sided paralysis. Through many prayers, fasting, and over time, due to God’s grace he was miraculously healed and is now a student at this university. This is a photo of my sister Angela. She was born without bile ducts. Those don’t sound essential, but they are critical for proper functioning of the liver. Treatment now is usually with a liver transplant, but that was unavailable when Angela was born. My parents were told to take her home, love her, and make her comfortable. She lived six months.

The righteous are rewarded, but not necessarily preserved in this life. For each of us, it won’t always be a life-or-death situation we have to endure, but trials come sooner or later and often in multiples. We must each apply “but if not” daily as we determine if we are to stay on the covenant path no matter what comes our way. I testify that the Lord has given us many helps or provisions to assist us in such moments. I invited each of you in the discussion board to share who or what has helped you with the trials of life you experience. Your answers were diverse and inspiring! I would like to discuss three particular provisions that have allowed me to get through my “but if not” moments.

Help 1: other people. On the devotional discussion board, Matt Stewart wrote, “I've noticed that God has helped me through my trials. But I've noticed it has been through other people like family or friends.” This corresponds to what was taught by President Spencer W. Kimball when he said, “God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs. Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom. The people of the Church need each other’s strength, support, and leadership in a community of believers as an enclave of disciples . . . So often, our acts of service consist of simple encouragement or of giving mundane help with mundane tasks, but what glorious consequences can flow from mundane acts and from small but deliberate deeds!” [12]

While our family was dealing with the trial of Brian’s brain tumor, we received great help from those around us. Just a few examples include ward members and friends secretly gave us money to help with medical expenses; one ward member picked up a CD with an MRI scan on it in Rexburg and drove it down to the hospital in Salt Lake City so physicians could get it as soon as possible; numerous food items dropped off at our house; family members watched our other young children so my wife and I could be with Brian; many ward members, friends, family members and even classmates and school teachers fasted for him on the day of his seven hour tumor removal surgery; when Brian finally came home from the hospital, ward members lined our driveway to welcome him home; President Thomas S. Monson even became aware of his situation and sent him a personal letter that buoyed him up in between his two surgeries. A quote from this letter still helps me in my daily trials. It states: “Undoubtedly you have had many questions and concerns about your future and what lies ahead. At times it may be difficult to understand why we are faced with certain challenges in this life. While we may not fully comprehend our Heavenly Father’s plan for us individually, we do know if we bear our burdens well, we will be eternally blessed.”^[13] Our family was truly strengthened by all these people’s service.

No matter your own current trials and “but if not” moments, I invite you to prayerfully consider who you can serve and lift up during their moment of hardship. I testify that God will answer your prayers and guide you to that person and direct you as to what you can do to aid them in their current struggle, and by doing so your own struggles will become easier to bear.

Help 2: angels from God. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said the following about the divine help we receive from our Heavenly Father: “From the beginning down through the dispensations, God has used angels as His emissaries in conveying love and concern for His children. . . . Usually such beings are not seen. Sometimes they are. But seen or unseen they are always near. Sometimes their assignments are very grand and have significance for the whole world. Sometimes the messages are more private. Occasionally the angelic purpose is to warn. But most often it is to comfort, to provide some form of merciful attention, guidance in difficult times.”^[14]

After Brian returned home from the hospital, our family was discussing his numerous medical bills and our gratitude for highly trained medical professionals. Brian said, "I bet the bill from the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit will be high because they have to pay that one guy a lot for staying in my room the entire time." We asked if he was referring to a nurse. He said, "No, this guy wasn't a nurse. In fact, the other nurses never acknowledged him or looked at him when they came in. This guy just sat on the floor next to my bed writing things down the whole time." We told him no one was there. Brian was adamant this man stayed the entire time and even described him to us. Now it is important to note, Brian had his eyes closed most of the time he was in the PICU because they were swollen and hurt to open, plus he was only allowed to have his parents as visitors. We truly felt Brian had an angel with him during his time there that helped protect, strengthen, and comfort him during the traumatic post-brain-surgery pain and recovery. This is in line with what Elder Holland taught: “I testify that angels are still sent to help us, even as they were sent to help Adam and Eve, to help the prophets, and indeed to help the Savior of the world Himself.” [15]

Help 3: the atoning power of Christ. This is the most essential provision we receive in our “but if not” moments. Jesus Christ knows perfectly what we go through as He has experienced all things as part of His incomprehensible Atonement. Alma the Younger taught this beautifully to the people of Gideon. In Alma 7:11–12, he said, “And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.”  [16] What love! What power this gives us! Christ perfectly knows all of our pains, our illnesses, afflictions, and temptations. Everything! Do we really internalize this?

Sister Chieko Okazaki, who served as first counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency from 1990 to 1997, wrote about how Christ understands us. She directed her remarks to women but what she said applies to all:

It’s our faith that [Christ] experienced everything— absolutely everything. Sometimes we don’t think through the implications of that belief. We talk in great generalities about the sins of all humankind, about the suffering of the entire human family. But we don’t experience pain in generalities. We experience it individually. That means He knows what it felt like when your mother died of cancer—how it was for your mother, how it still is for you. He knows what it felt like to lose the student body election. He knows that moment when the brakes locked and the car started to skid . . . He knows about drug addiction and alcoholism. . . . He understands your . . . pain when a bully picks on your fifth­grader, when your daughter calls to say that the new baby has Down syndrome . . . He knows the pain you live with when you come home to a quiet apartment where the only children are visitors, . . . when your fiftieth wedding anniversary rolls around and your husband has been dead for two years. He knows all that. He’s been there. He’s been lower than all that. He’s not waiting for us to be perfect. Perfect people don’t need a Savior. He came to save His people in their imperfections. He is the Lord of the living, and the living make mistakes. He’s not embarrassed by us, angry at us, or shocked. He wants us in our brokenness, in our unhappiness, in our guilt and our grief.” [17]

What a powerful description of what the Savior has experienced. It is not just our sins and illnesses, but all things, all our experiences! Because of that, He can and will comfort us, buoy us up, and save us, if we will let Him and do what He asks of us.

One of my favorite hymns not in the hymnbook is a paraphrase of Psalm 23 by Isaac Watts, the English Christian minister and hymn writer who wrote 750 hymns, including “Joy to the World.” It is called “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need.” Its three verses perfectly encapsulate how the Savior helps us through our “but if not” trials.

I testify that the Savior’s Atonement encompasses anything and everything that we are currently experiencing or will ever experience in our “but if not” moments. His grace will sustain us as we pray to Heavenly Father for Christ’s help and succor and trust in Him. He will help us endure all things as He knows perfectly what we are going through and how best to bolster us so we can find peace and strength even during our darkest moments. This, coupled with the provisions of earthly angels around us and the divine angels sent from God to assist us, will give us the ability to survive and even thrive through whatever “but if not” experiences we encounter. This I know, for He has done and does so for me. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Notes

[1] Bill Newcott, “Wisdom of the Elders,” AARP Magazine, May 2009, 52.

[2]Wikipedia, “Chesley Sullenberger.”

[3] Daniel 3:17–18, emphasis added.

[4] Dallin H. Oaks, “Faith,” BYUI devotional, Nov. 16, 2021.

[5] Alma 14:11.

[6] Abraham 1:1.

[7] Abraham 1:11.

[8] Neal A. Maxwell, Not My Will, But Thine, 1996, 119.

[9] Ibid., 120.

[10] 2 Corinthians 12:7.

[11] Jeffrey R. Holland, “Like a Broken Vessel,” Ensign, Nov. 2013.

[12] Spencer W. Kimball, “Small Acts of Service,” Ensign, Dec. 1974.

[13] Thomas S. Monson, personal correspondence, letter in possession of Brian Andreasen.

[14] Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Ministry of Angels,” Ensign, Oct. 2008.

[15] Ibid., emphasis added.

[16] Alma 7:11–12.

[17] Chieko N. Okazaki, Lighten Up, 1993, 174.

[18] Isaac Watts, “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” Ensign, Sept. 2015, emph