Young Adults
Overcoming Opposition

“Overcoming Opposition,” My Plan: A Guide for the Returned Missionary and Mentor (2019)

“Overcoming Opposition,” My Plan: A Guide for the Returned Missionary and Mentor

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Overcoming Opposition

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The Lord has taught us that facing opposition is a necessary part of our mortal experience. Trials and opposition present us with opportunities to build faith and forge strong character. Without trials we cannot become what our Heavenly Father wants us to become.

Bonnie D. Parkin

“Mercies and blessings come in different forms—sometimes as hard things. Yet the Lord said, ‘Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things’ [Doctrine and Covenants 59:7]. All things means just that: good things, difficult things—not just some things. He has commanded us to be grateful because He knows being grateful will make us happy. This is another evidence of His love” (Bonnie D. Parkin, “Gratitude: A Path to Happiness,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2007, 35).

“For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.

“Wherefore, it must needs have been created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation. Wherefore, this thing must needs destroy the wisdom of God and his eternal purposes, and also the power, and the mercy, and the justice of God” (2 Nephi 2:11–12).

Discuss

  • What is the role of trials and opposition in Heavenly Father’s plan?

  • What opposition have you faced since returning home from your mission? How did your mission prepare you for these challenges? How are you overcoming them?

  • How has the Lord blessed you or others during trials and challenges?

Activity

Think of times on your mission when you overcame opposition. How did you rely on the Spirit? Write in your study journal the habits you had as a missionary that helped you overcome opposition.

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Invitations

  • To fulfill the Father’s plan for your life and to reach your great potential, you will need to rely on the Savior, who overcame all things, to accomplish whatever the Father may require of you. Find examples in the scriptures of how Christ overcame challenges.

  • From the activity in this section, you identified specific habits that have helped you overcome opposition. Set a goal for one habit you want to start developing this week.