I’d Put in the Spiritual Work. When Would My Blessings Come?

By Lucy Boom

It can be easy to have an “instant blessings” mindset when it comes to our relationship with Heavenly Father.

an illustration of a figure pulling a rope attached to a stack of books and a clock

A few years ago, I was in a heartbreaking situation that turned out differently than I’d expected it to. I was sad and frustrated because I felt like I’d been doing everything right.

I think many of us have felt this way before. Sometimes we’re waiting on Heavenly Father for answers, and when we’re living righteously, it can be so easy to think that solutions will come shortly after.

But when things don’t work out how we want or expect, it’s easy to feel disappointed, frustrated, and even forgotten.

During those times, we can learn what it truly means to trust the Lord.

Waiting on the Lord

We live in a world of instant gratification. When we have a question, we can use Google and receive an immediate answer. When we’re bored, we can instantly find endless entertaining video feeds on social media. So it can be easy to have this “instant blessings” mindset when it comes to our relationship with Heavenly Father.

We might find ourselves thinking, “I’ve put in the work, so where are my blessings?” And we might grow increasingly bitter and unsatisfied the longer we wait for those blessings to come.

But as Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

“We ought not to think of God’s plan as a cosmic vending machine where we (1) select a desired blessing, (2) insert the required sum of good works, and (3) the order is promptly delivered.

“… We do our best but must leave to Him the management of blessings, both temporal and spiritual.”

When life wasn’t going the way I expected it to, I really struggled! I felt entitled to blessings for being faithful. What was the point of being faithful or obedient if it was all for nothing? Was Heavenly Father just trying to withhold good things from me?

But when I thought about how much Heavenly Father cares about and loves each of His children, I knew that these thoughts couldn’t be true. I realized that choosing to trust Heavenly Father when only good things were happening would be easy.

It’s those challenging moments we aren’t always prepared for that make trusting Him more meaningful, more refining, and more powerful.

For Our Good

There will always be moments when the blessings we want so badly aren’t coming as soon as we hoped. But when we are doing our best to walk the covenant path, we can always trust we are in Heavenly Father’s hands and that He sees the bigger picture.

What brings me the most joy as I wait is knowing that I am a divine child of Heavenly Father and that I have a Savior who understands everything about me. In every hardship I’ve been through, when I choose to focus on my covenants, I feel Their perfect love and remember They have my best interests at heart.

Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles recently testified, “When we trust God and His love for us, even our greatest heartbreaks can, in the end, work together for our good.”

That’s been true for me. No matter how low I feel, I feel joy in knowing that Heavenly Father’s plan is perfect. As I trust in the Savior, He can help me allow the hard things in life to strengthen my faith.

Choose to Trust

If you are struggling to stay positive or hopeful as you wait for revelation and promised blessings, I know how you feel.

But I also know how powerful choosing to trust can be. Talk to Heavenly Father, connect with Him and Jesus Christ each day, and you will see that you are not alone. They are always leading you in the right direction if you continue to turn to Them.

Let your heart be willing to wait on Their perfect timing.

They have not forgotten you.