I can't say it any better than this

I've been busy trying to work on a lesson for Relief Society for February and helping my husband do research for a talk so I've been reading a lot of good stuff lately. The following quotes have nothing (directly) to do with my lesson or David's talk, but they were too profound to just skim over and not share. I know a lot of people are going through different trials right now and I love the hope and the comfort that these thoughts bring.

“Into every adult human life come experiences like unto the battling of the storm-tossed voyagers with contrary winds and threatening seas; ofttimes the night of struggle and danger is far advanced before succor appears; and then, too frequently the saving aid is mistaken for a greater terror. [But,] as came unto [these disciples] in the midst of the turbulent waters, so comes to all who toil in faith, the voice of the Deliverer—’It is I; be not afraid’ ” (Jesus the Christ [1916], 337).

I LOVE the part about the saving aid being mistaken for a greater terror. It's scary to grow and stretch, but those same frightening experiences often help us to gain more confidence in the Lord and in our own abilities, and the opportunities we are given can be a saving aid to help us through present troubles and situations we may face in the future.

"Though our view of eternity is reasonably clear, it is often our view of the next mile which may be obscured! Hence the need for the constancy of the gift of the Holy Ghost. I think you will see this a number of times in your lives. You have cast your minds forward and are fixed on the things of eternity, and all of that is proper and good, but there is sometimes fog in the next hundred yards. You can make it through, but don’t be surprised when it is the short-term obscurity through which you must pass as a result of your faith in the long-term things."
-Neal A. Maxwell, "Jesus, the Perfect Mentor," Ensign, Feb 2001,8

I grew up in Northern California, where fog was a common occurence. There were many times that the fog was so thick I couldn't see what was beyond the beams of my headlights. At those times a knowledge of the road I was on helped me to make it safely to my destination. In the same way if we learn to stay on the right path in this life we will make it through the fog and reach our eternal destination.

Isn’t it marvelous that, as happy as you have been in certain moments of your life, you know the happiest days lie ahead because of the hopefulness of the gospel? Isn’t it interesting that in the moments when you have felt most illuminated, nevertheless the brightest days still lie ahead? The blessings of the Lord can take you far beyond where you thought you could go.
-Neal A. Maxwell, “Jesus, the Perfect Mentor,” Ensign, Feb 2001, 8

I keep hitting moments in my life when I look back and see how far I've come and I think "Wow- life is really great compared to how it was 5 years ago." or "Who would have thought I'd be doing _________ today?" The longer I live the gospel, the more amazing and beautiful my life becomes. I could have never imagined having such great light in my life 10 years ago, and each year it seems to get better and brighter. The Lord really does take us so much farther than it ever would have occured to us that we could go.