My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee

Here Elder Holland bears testimony of the Lord's kindness. "Hold on thy way. Fear not," he says.

My Kindness Shall Not Depart from Thee

For a little while
Have I forsaken thee;
But with great mercies will I gather thee.
In a little wrath I hid my face from thee
For a moment.
But with everlasting kindness will I gather thee,
And with mercy will I take thee ‘neath my wings,
For the mountains shall depart,
And the hills shall be removed,
And the valleys shall be lost beneath the sea,
But know, my child,
My kindness shall not depart from thee!

Though thine afflictions seem
At times too great to bear,
I know thine every thought and every care.
And though the very jaws
Of hell gape after thee I am with thee.
And with everlasting mercy will I succor thee,
And with healing will I take thee ‘neath my wings.
Though the mountains shall depart,
And the hills shall be removed,
And the valleys shall be lost beneath the sea,
Know, my child,
My kindness shall not depart from thee!

How long can rolling waters
Remain impure?
What pow’r shall stay the hand of God?
The Son of Man hath descended below all things.
Art thou greater than He?

So hold on thy way,
For I shall be with thee.
And mine angels shall encircle thee.
Doubt not what thou knowest,
Fear not man, for he
Cannot hurt thee.
And with everlasting kindness will I succor thee,
And with mercy will I take thee ‘neath my wings.
For the mountains shall depart,
And the hills shall be removed,
And the valleys shall be lost beneath the sea,
But know, my child,
My kindness shall not depart from thee!
My kindness shall not depart from thee!

(From the oratorio composed by Rob Gardner: Joseph Smith the Prophet. See also Isaiah 54:7-8, D&C 122:7-8)

This is one of my favorite songs. I first heard it done by one of the BYU choirs and fell in love. It is such an important thing for all of us to remember. When we are doing our best to follow the Lord, He will be with us. We will experience the refiner's fire, but He shall never depart from us.

Trials are a fact of life. We must remember that we wanted to come and have a mortal experience or we would not be here. Remember who you are. Remember whose you are! You are a child of God, the Eternal Father, the Creator of Heaven and Earth and all that in them are. He has created the universe! But we are His greatest creations. He weeps over those who reject Him. (see Moses 7:28-36) He delights to honor those who serve Him in righteousness! (see D&C 76:5)

How great is our God, how endless His glory!

How grateful I am for the Savior's sacrifice. How grateful that He would descend below all things that He might know how to succor us!

How great, how glorious, how complete
Redemption's grand design
Where justice, love, and mercy meet
In harmony divine! (Hymn 195)