"Your words have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee?
Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?
And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.
Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not."
Malachi 3:13-18
What I see here is a complaint that is focused on the current moment rather than long-term patience. God is basically saying "wait and see" because he knows all of those complaints are based on mortal short-sightedness. Which is understandable on one hand, because we are mortal and we can't see God's whole plan. But if we truly believe in God and his plan, then we have to look further. I use the analogy all the time I know, but it works. God is writing this story, and yeah, maybe the bad guys are winning in Chapter 5, but they do NOT win in the end. Let's keep that in mind as we navigate this day, and our lives in general. God is talking about the entire plot, not just this chapter, and we haven't read the rest yet, and we have no room to judge until we do. There is a difference, and we will see it in time.
I think it is also important to note that God is *not* saying that we just have to suffer... that our lives will be awful be we will rise in the resurrection and suddenly be happy. He says earlier in this chapter "Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Malachi 3:10). Mormon 9:14 reminds us that at the judgement that "He that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still." In the scriptures God gave people power to "submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord" even when they were mistreated slaves, and he will give us the same power if we turn to him. As Russell M. Nelson taught, "The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives."
Today, let's stop comparing ourselves with the bad guys, and focus on God, and on the good in the world around us. Let's make things better for others. Let's serve and love and reach out to bless others. As we do, we will find happiness, blessings, and purpose... we'll be able to find joy in fulfilling the Lord's plan for us individually and on making a difference where we are. These early chapters are the backstory of how we become the triumphant hero that we are destined to be in the end. :)
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