Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole

President Nelson recounted this experience in general conference several years ago: “On a recent flight, our pilot announced that we would encounter turbulence during our descent and that all passengers must fasten their seat belts securely. Sure enough, turbulence came. It was really rough. Across the aisle and a couple of rows behind me, a terrified woman panicked. With each frightening drop and jarring bump, she screamed loudly. Her husband tried to comfort her but to no avail. Her hysterical shouts persisted until we passed through that zone of turbulence to a safe landing. During her period of anxiety, I felt sorry for her. Because faith is the antidote for fear, I silently wished that I could have strengthened her faith.” After the flight this husband came to President Nelson and said, “I’m sorry my wife was so terrified. The only way I could comfort her was to tell her that ‘Elder Nelson is on this flight, so you don’t need to worry.’” President Nelson then commented, “I’m not sure that my presence on that flight should have given her any comfort, but I will say that one of the realities of mortal life is that our faith will be tested and challenged.” If we are to successfully navigate life’s challenges, we need faith in Jesus Christ to help us through our fears and difficulties. The Savior’s words to Peter surely could be spoken to each of us in our moments when, like this woman, we let our fears overcome our faith: “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (Matthew 14:31) The world would have us put our confidence in mortals and whatever is most popular, but it is only the Savior who has all power to help us. President Nelson summarized it this way: “We might each ask ourselves, where is our faith? Is it in a team? Is it in a brand? Is it in a celebrity? Even the best teams can fail. Celebrities can fade. There is only One in whom your faith is always safe, and that is in the Lord Jesus Christ. And you need to let your faith show!”

            One of the stories in this week’s Come, Follow Me lesson is that of blind Bartimæus, and he is an example to us of showing great faith. As Jesus went from Jericho, this man called out, “Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.” For some reason the people around him “charged him that he should hold his peace” but he continued calling, “Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.” He did not stop seeking Jesus no matter what others around him said. Jesus eventually commanded him to be brought, asking, “What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?” Bartimæus asked of course that he receive His sight, to which the Savior responded, “Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole” (Mark 10:46-52). I love this man’s example because he persisted in seeking Jesus even when those around him tried to silence him. And he showed that sometimes we don’t get the help and strength we are looking for the first time we call out. We must exercise our faith by continuing to call on Him even when the world around us seeks to discourage us. It might take a lot more than one prayer for us to receive the help we are seeking, and so we have to keep calling on Him. Last night as my daughter struggled with a homework assignment I suggested that she say a prayer and ask for help. She said she had already prayed in the morning so she didn’t need to, but I think this story would suggest otherwise: we all need to keep calling out to the Lord for help, even when we have asked many times before. As we persist in seeking Him, and as He sees our faith, He will hear and grant our righteous desires. We need not fear, even if our plane is falling, for we know in whom we trust, and as we let our faith show He will see and strengthen us just like blind Bartimæus.