Pioneer Day Reflections

Often I think that the biggest tests of our faith and courage aren't necessarily in the trials and struggles that we understand and go through.  Instead, I think some of the biggest tests of our trust in God are in the moments where there is such uncertainty and doubt, and nothing seems clear about what is next.  That is one of the reasons that I am so grateful for the Pioneer heritage that we have.
I thought about that a lot today, as we celebrate the life and history of the pioneers, they were willing to leave absolutely everything they knew and understood to travel across a vast wilderness that was little understood to resettle in a land that nobody seemed to really want.  Mountain men who traveled the region bet them they would never be able to grow crops there, the past empire builders had left it largely untouched.  But these brave men and women left their homes, their temples, literally everything that would not fit into a wagon or handcart and left.  When they arrived they truly transformed a desert, making it bloom.  Frequently once settled they would be called to leave their new homes, and go to settle another forsaken and barren region.  And they did it.
Often, I feel that we are called to do the same.  While we are not asked to settle deserts, or create new towns we are asked to put our trust in the Lord, unfailingly, even when we don't understand or cannot see the end result.  We are asked to leave our comfort zones, and trust that the Lord has a plan, and that He will ensure that we are taken care of.  In essence, we are asked to "be of good comfort."  In some ways I feel that this is the hardest part of the Gospel plan, is to take those steps outwards, and move into the unknown and do so with faith and not fear.
In those times, I love the words of the hymn that "Come, come ye Saints, no toil nor labor fear, but with joy wend your way, though hard to you this journey may appear, grace shall be as your day."  Might I share one more story of pioneers that is closer to my home.  Many years ago, my mother and her family joined the Church after hearing the lessons taught by the missionaries.  It was many years before my grandparents finally were baptized, but in the end my mother and her entire family were sealed together.  They too left the things that they had known, and because of their courage I have the blessings of the gospel and of an eternal family.  So I am grateful for the examples of generations of pioneers, who serve as examples of faith and trust, and remind us in our moments of fear and uncertainty that there are greater things ahead, if we will just place our trust in our Heavenly Father and in our Savior Jesus Christ.