Conversion

I had such a marvelous conversation on the playground with a new Jewish friend that I have made.  She mentioned that she was going through a crisis of faith.  In talking to her it seemed that her crisis stemmed from trying to reconcile terrible things that have happened to her and to those she loves with a loving and caring God.  I truly empathized with her concerns because she has gone through many things that my family has experienced.

I thought of so many scriptures that I wanted to share with her all at once.

I quoted to her 1 Nephi 11:17 of Nephi saying that he knew that God loveth his children, nevertheless he knoweth not the meaning of all things.

I refrenced 2 Nephi 2 about men being free to choose for themselves and said, "God gives to man freedom to choose and he will not take that from us.  That means that bad things happen to good people, but he has the power to heal the bad."

I shared with her one of my favorite nuances from  Alma 36:3.  That God doesn't take away our hardships, but "...whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day."

I didn't say the smallest part of what I felt. I wanted to say, "I know you are a daughter of God and that He loves you.  I know He loves you for what you have done for your daughters.     It will all be made right. ..all of those sorrows.  Keep praying, keep believing.  Go to Synagogue and teach your children about all of the marvelous things that He has done for you in your life and of how he parted the sea for your ancestors .  You are the seed of Abraham and are a part of God's covenant people and so He will not forget you!!"

The irony of the situation had me chuckling all day long.  I thought to myself, "I think I just tried to use the Book of Mormon to prove to my Jewish friend that her church was true."