He fought his way out

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Young Women's Session of the April 2005 Conference.

I have occasionally heard people criticize the description "fighting a battle with cancer" or similar metaphors, because it implies that the only way to "win" the battle is to overcome the disease, and it implies that a person, no matter how brave, has "lost" if the outcome is bad. Instead, these arguments go, we should celebrate people's strength and value whether they "win" or not. I can see the wisdom of thinking of it that way. Someone who "loses a fight with cancer" has likely won many other things, having gained perspective, patience, experience, and so forth.

However, I still think the "fighting a battle" metaphor is an apt one for lots of experiences—and I have repeatedly been surprised how apt—especially for seeking hope amid discouraging circumstances. So I liked this characterization by Sister Susan W. Tanner, talking about Moroni:

Some of us feel we have not “whither to go” as we face our trials. But you and I can not only survive but prevail, as did Moroni, in our efforts to stand for truth in perilous times. What did he do when facing a lonely and hostile world? He, in faithful obedience to his father’s direction, finished the record on the gold plates. He became familiar with the writings of the prophets. Above all, he fought his way out of his discouragement by clinging to the Lord’s promises for the future. He clung to the covenants that God had made with the house of Israel to bless them forever.

"Fighting" and "clinging"—such intense, active words for something that seems fundamentally like "just a mindset." But it's true! It is hard to cling to God's promises when things aren't going well. It is a battle to maintain hope over discouragement. And it feels like it! And I think it helps to remember that! It takes an active, persistent, effectual struggle—and even then there are times it feels out of reach. But the more we know God's promises, the more we can cling to them. And the clinging, the fighting—it pays off in hard-won trust in God and His plan.