Primary 40 - Heaven can be a place on earth

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[You] cannot in your present state understand eternity…But you can get some likeness of it if you say that both good and evil, when they are full-grown, become retrospective…All this earthly past will have been Heaven to those who are saved…All their life on earth too will then be seen by the damned to have been Hell. That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of some temporal suffering, “No future bliss can make up for it,” not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backward and turn even that agony into glory. And of some sinful pleasure, they say “Let me but have this and I’ll take the consequences”: little dreaming how damnation will spread back and back into their past and contaminate the pleasure of the sin. Both processes begin even before death. The good man’s past begins to change so that his forgiven sins and remembered sorrows take on the quality of Heaven: the bad man’s past already conforms to his badness and is filled only with dreariness. And that is why, at the end of all things…the Blessed will say, “We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven,” and the Lost, “We were always in Hell.” And both will speak truly.

(C. S. Lewis, The Great Divorce, Ch. 9, 67-68.) Brothers and Sisters, We are asked at times to endure hardships that could terrorize us and make us quit. We could, at times, not see the end of our struggles. During these times we want you to know that your sacrifice will mean more to the Lord than your increase (D&C 117:13). It is also said that your hardships will be but a moment (D&C 121:7-8). Life has ups and downs. We win some and lose some but if we make this our homes heaven on earth or where ever we are heaven we will find the peace that heaven provides through the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is your constant companion when you let Him be. Some say that times ahead will be tough but know this, Father in Heaven will help you any way He can. Brother Bingham works in a laundry and always tells his friends that he is living the dream. He continues to show joy in his work and even sings and dances to the radio. This doesn't change the difficulty but the joy grows and the smiles are there because he wants work to be as fun as he can. Brother Keller has been applying for management jobs at work for a while but kept seeing others get the jobs. It kept getting frustrating and depressing at times. As he looked back he has seen the Lord's hand directing his life. He would have had to move to swing or grave shift. This would have drastically changed the time he would have to get to spend with his family. It has also motivated him to learn and grow as a person. We might not understand why things happen the way they do at the time but as we rely on the Lord we can look back and see His hand in all things. We testify that hard times become light when you let the Lord be part of the experience. Have a great week and know we love you. Challenges  1) Read D&C 121-123 2) Write down a difficult experience that you have had. How did the Lord support and bless you?