Tender Mercies

I did not write any of my Gratitudes for November so I decided to write my Tender Mercies for this next month.

“But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance” (1 Nephi 1:20).

So my tender mercy for this day may seem a bit strange.  I was ill yesterday.  Today, while I no longer felt like throwing up, I still did not feel well.  So, I stayed home from church.  I decided I would spend the day listening to KBYU, reading my scriptures, or listening to BYU roundtable discussions.  I listened to a discussion that would have been today's lesson in Sunday School.  It would have been the last chapters of Mormon.  Moroni is the only one left to write the sad tale of his people.  He writes directly to US.  He saw our day.  He knew what we would be going through.  He knew our strengths and our weaknesses.  He knew what had caused the fall of his people and knew that those same things could destroy us if we allow it to.  Pride was a major force that brought down his nation.  Pride is bringing our nation down too.

President Esra Taft Benson said: "The antidote for pride is humility--meekness, submissiveness.  It is a broken heart and contrite spirit... God will have a humble people.  Either we can choose to be humble or we can be compelled to be humble.... Let us choose to be humble."

So my tender mercy for the day is my desire to break the pride circle.  Today I choose to be humble.

The Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works.  (Psalms 145:9)