endurance.

I was listening to this General Conference talk given by Richard J. Maynes this morning and wanted to share it with you.

After we have been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost we can't just stop there. That isn't enough. We must then endure until the end of our lives and then we will receive eternal life (see 2 Nephi 31:15-20).

In the Merriam-Webster dictionary the word endurance means "the ability to withstand hardship or stress, fortitude".

I then looked up the word fortitude and found a very beautiful definition which says, "a strength of mind that enables one to meet danger or bear pain or adversity with courage".

Just because we enter the straight and narrow path by being baptized, doesn't mean that we will be free from pain, temptations, and trials. Bad days will still come. Sometimes we will make a wrong choice. There will be times we feel we can't handle it any more.

"And ye shall be
hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Mark 13:13)
It takes dedication, perserverance, and self-discipline to build spiritual strength enough to endure. It is not easy. We might be persecuted and hated for it. But, we can never give up. We must strive to choose the right every day, no matter what.

Preach My Gospel defines enduring to the end as "remaining true to the commandments of God, despite temptation, opposition and adversity thoughout life".

I know that as we continually choose to follow God's commandments, develop perserverance, dedication and self-discipline, and bear our trials with courage, we will have the strength to endure. Peace will come into our lives and we will realize that although we are not perfect and life is sometimes very hard, we will one day return to God's presence and He will recognize the effort we have put in and we will be rewarded with eternal life in His presence. "This is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God." (2 Nephi 31:21)

"The quality of our eternal future is proportional to our ability to endure in righteousness...our ability to endure to the end in righteousness will be in direct proportion to the strength of our testimony and the depth of our conversion." -Richard J. Maynes