8 And it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light;
9 Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life—
10 Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?
Mourn with Those That Mourn – Mosiah 18:8-10
We all know that “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10) and that God’s commandments help us to “live after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27). Happiness is the outcome of a righteous life, but that does not mean that sadness goes away. As Alma teaches in the verses above, one of the obligations we take on as disciples of Jesus Christ is to “mourn with those that mourn.”
The Savior set the perfect example of love, and as a result, He felt sorrow when other people suffered. (See, for example, John 11:32-36). If we want to be His disciples, then we need to learn to love as He loves, and therefore to feel others’ pain as though it were our own. That is part of what we promise to do when we choose to be baptized.
I am grateful for the Savior’s perfect example of love. Today, I will choose to notice the people around me and to feel genuine empathy for them. I will choose to rejoice with those who rejoice and to weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15). I will seek to follow the Savior’s example of perfect love.
Hello Paul, I have mourned for/with a family member and done all I can to support her for years and years, but she doesn’t recognize it because I haven’t made it explicit. I have begun saying these exact words to her: “I see your suffering.” “I care about your suffering.” It has made all the difference.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I do think that it is often important to let people know that we are mourning with them. The awareness that they are not mourning alone may be what lightens their load.