Written by Carter
The biggest news for this week is the birth of Jacob Antonio Mayberry to Jacob and Gracia in Riverton, Utah. Mother and baby are doing well. When President Trejo gave me a priesthood blessing and set me apart as a missionary, the Lord blessed me that our family would be watched over and protected while we were serving our mission. This was one definite fulfillment of that promise.
I’m reminded of other examples of how our family has been watched over and protected as we have served: Our daughter and her family were able to sell their house, move into our house while their new home went through escrow and are now living in that new home. Her husband, a dentist, has been protected from COVID, so he has been able to continue to work. Their daughter had her tonsils out two days ago and her mother had to stop her from riding her scooter yesterday! One of our sons received the military assignment that he and his wife had been hoping and praying for. Gracia was protected during her pregnancy. She was blessed with the right doctor with the right training and experience to manage her delivery so that she and Jacob Antonio are doing remarkably well!
During Gracia’s labor and delivery, I was reminded of the pregnancy, labor and delivery of each of our precious children! What a blessing each of them are for us and for the world! What a miracle is the birth of a new person onto this earth! Each baby born is evidence to me of God’s existence.
I listened to a BYU devotional by President Spencer W. Kimball entitled “Tragedy or Destiny?” In it, he talks about how many people blame their loved ones’ deaths on God. President Kimball gave some very poignant responses to those concerns. I recommend it to anyone with questions about how death fits into God’s plan for our eternal existences. As he spoke, I thought of Ashton’s suicide: Was it Ashton’s “destiny” to die by suicide? I really don’t know. What I do know is that I trust God and His plan for Ashton and for our family. I also thought of how one of the purposes for our coming to this earth is to learn and to grow. One way we grow is through adversity, pain and suffering. As a doctor, I sometimes recommend shots for children. Do they hurt? Of course they do. Are they for the child’s best good? I believe they are. Does the child understand why it’s important for them to get a shot? No…all they know is that it hurts. As a doctor and parents, we know more than they do about the “big picture.” We know that some pain now is worth it to prevent worsening disease or even death later. As I’m passing through trials, I am sometimes like the child getting a shot. It hurts! It helps if I remind myself that God knows what’s best for me. It has been said that “He is more interested in my character than in my comfort. He is more interested in making my life holy than He is in making my life happy.”
September 10th is World Suicide Prevention Day. There will be a Virtual Candlelight Ceremony, where all participants will be invited to light a candle wherever they are as a symbol of support for suicide prevention and to remember those we have lost to suicide. Those who would like to participate in this worldwide Zoom event are invited to register at this link.
Last week, I mentioned that I was working on helping a sick missionary get off one of the Pacific islands and return home to his family on another Pacific island. I have been working closely with Elder Nattress, a General Authority Seventy and a member of the Area Presidency. He has a wonderful sense of humor! He said to me, “I may call you again about this! I’m going to be your General Authority in your back pocket!” My response: “That’s why I’m here, Elder Nattress! That’s why I’m here!”
Faye showed me the Youth Music in the Gospel Library app. I have been listening to them and especially enjoyed “He Will Never Change,” which talks about Christ being “…like a mountain in the storm…” How true that is! What peace and comfort that knowledge brings to me…the “peace that passeth all understanding!”
I testify that, as a companion scripture to the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies that our loving Father in Heaven has a divine plan for our lives.