When Tragedy Strikes

The daily newspaper screamed the headlines: “Plane Crash Kills 43. No Survivors of Mountain Tragedy,” and thousands of voices joined in a chorus: “Why did the Lord let this terrible thing happen?”
Two automobiles crashed when one went through a red light, and six people were killed. Why would God not prevent this?
Why should the young mother die of cancer and leave her eight children motherless? Why did not the Lord heal her?
A little child was drowned; another was run over. Why?
A man died one day suddenly of a coronary occlusion as he climbed a stairway. His body was found slumped on the floor. His wife cried out in agony, “Why? Why would the Lord do this to me? Could he not have considered my three little children who still need a father?”

So begins a powerful essay by Spencer W. Kimball. He thoughtfully concludes that these questions are unanswerable without a precise understanding of God's motives. Yet too often we grow angry with God for allowing problems to happen. Or we choose to dwell in self-pity, blaming those who have caused our problems, not realizing that it poisons our own future growth and happiness.

President Kimball faced several health challenges that could have ruined his attitude toward life. Instead, he pressed forward with courage. In 1932 he began suffering from painful boils and infectious sores. In May 1948 in Arizona, he suffered severe chest pain from a heart attack. On his next assignment in Idaho, he again experienced chest pains, which escalated into another heart attack several days after his return. These^]chest pains returned during the next several years, particularly in times of greatest stress. Then, in early 1950, his throat began to be persistently hoarse. In late 1956, his hoarseness came back, coupled with occasional bleeding in the back of his throat. In early 1957 a doctor operated on his throat to remove some cancer and surgically removed one of President Kimball's vocal cords and half of the other, leaving him barely able to speak above a whisper. His voice remained raspy the rest of his life. In 1972, at age 76, he began having difficulty breathing and sleeping. Doctors discovered that he had serious heart disease and that his throat cancer had returned. Heart surgery was postponed so that he could undergo radiation on his throat, which was successful. On April 12, 1972, he underwent a 4.5-hour surgery, which was also successful.

After overcoming these severe health problems, President Kimball guided the Church through a period of dramatic growth. During the twelve years of his presidency, the number of missionaries increased by 50 percent, the priesthood was extended to all worthy male members, and the number of temples doubled.

Writing from this unique perspective of dealing with severe adversity, President Kimball discussed our premortal life and the attitude that we might adopt toward our challenges:

We knew before we were born that we were coming to the earth for bodies and experience and that we would have joys and sorrows, ease and pain, comforts and hardships, health and sickness, successes and disappointments, and we knew also that after a period of life we would die. We accepted all these eventualities with a glad heart, eager to accept both the favorable and unfavorable. We eagerly accepted the chance to come earthward even though it might be for only a day or a year. Perhaps we were not so much concerned whether we should die of disease, of accident, or of senility. We were willing to take life as it came and as we might organize and control it, and this without murmur, complaint, or unreasonable demands.

In the face of apparent tragedy we must put our trust in God, knowing that despite our limited view his purposes will not fail. With all its troubles life offers us the tremendous privilege to grow in knowledge and wisdom, faith and works, preparing to return and share God’s glory.⁹

What an inspiring example of pressing forward with faith and courage! For more on this topic, see https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-spencer-w-kimball/chapter-2?lang=eng.