Strength through the Lord

1 Nephi 3 :7 "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father; I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

"I confess that I wince a little when I hear that promise quoted so casually among us. Jesus knew what kind of commitment would entail and so now does Nephi. And so will a host of others before it is over. That vow took Christ to the cross on Calvary and it remains at the heart of every Christian covenant. 'I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded'? Well-we shall see."
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

How did the Savior find strength?

St. Luke 22: 41-43
41. "And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
42. "Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
43. "And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

Can angels strengthen us today?

"In a Sunday school class there was sharp criticism of the ill-fated Martin and Willie Handcart companies, which met with tragedy because of their late start on their trek to the Salt Lake Valley.

An elderly man arose and said 'I ask you to stop this criticism. You are discussing a matter you know nothing about. Cold historic facts....give no proper interpretation of the questions involved. Mistake to send the handcart company out so late in the season? Yes. But I was in that company and my wife...too. We suffered beyond anything you can imagine and many died of exposure and starvation, but we became acquainted with God in our extremities.

"'I have pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from illness and lack of food that I could hardly put one foot in front of the other.I have looked ahead and seen a patch of sand or a hill slope and I have said, I can go that far and then I must give up, for I cannot pull the load through it....I have gone onto that sand and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me. I have looked back many times to see who was pushing my cart, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the angels of God were there.

"'Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart? No. Neither then or any minute of my life since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay, and I am thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcart Company.'" Elder Robert L. Backman, "Faith in Every Footstep" Ensign, Jan 1997, 7

"Come, Come ye Saints" by Julie Rogers

Can Prayer strengthen us?

Luke 22:44 "And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground."

St. Mark 15:34 "And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachtani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

St. Luke 23: 46 "And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit; and having said thus, he gave up the ghost."

"The work of devil and of darkness is never more certain to be defeated than when men and women, not finding it easy or pleasant but still determined to do the Father's will look out upon their lives from which it may seem every trace of God has vanished, and asking why they have been forsaken, still bow their heads and obey." Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

Can the scriptures strengthen us?

1 Nephi 5:21 "And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children."

1 Nephi 19:23 "And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning."

"...[The Book of Mormon] can help with personal problems in a very real way. Do you want to get rid of a bad habit? Do you want to improve relationships with your family? Do you want to increase your spiritual capacity? Read the Book of Mormon! It will bring you closer to the Lord and His loving power."
Elder Russel M. Nelson, "A Testimony of the Book of Mormon" Ensign, Nov. 1999

Additional Scriptures on receiving strength through the Lord

Genesis 18:14 "Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son."

Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me."

I Nephi 17:3, 50 "And thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled. And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God, he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; wherefore he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness."

Doctrine and Covenants 5:34 "Yea, for this cause I have said: Stop, and stand still until I command thee, and I will provide means whereby thou mayest accomplish the thing which I have commanded thee."