“Tender Mercies”

Last updated on: September 5, 2018 at 9:52 am by Dan Peterson

“Tender Mercies” 2018-09-05T09:52:53-06:00 Dan Peterson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Not precisely relevant, but beautiful and inspiring
(Wikimedia Commons public domain)

On Sunday, the discussion topic in our quorum of elders was “tender mercies.” Members of the quorum were invited to share the tender mercies in their lives, and some did. We also briefly considered the question of how to distinguish such tender mercies from simple coincidences.

I think that such a distinction is easy in a few cases, but rather difficult in many others.

I thought of several such tender mercies, one of which I’ve told here before:

In the days immediately before and just after my father died, back in 2003, the words of a hymn that had never been among my favorites kept recurring to my mind.

Abide with me! fast falls the eventide;

The darkness deepens. Lord, with me abide!

When other helpers fail and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, O abide with me!

Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;

Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away;

Change and decay in all around I see;

O thou, who changest not, abide with me!

I was somehow not surprised to hear the melody of that hymn come through the hospital sound system more than two years later, when, having made the wrenching decision to take her off of life support, I watched my mother’s pulse dwindle, more quickly than I had expected, to the thirties, then to the twenties, and, finally, to zero.

Was that coincidence? It’s certainly possible. I can’t conceive of the prolonged and complex series of events that would be required to deliberately orchestrate such a happening. But it was remarkable to me. A “tender mercy.”

There’s something else about the concept of “tender mercies” that I think worth mentioning here:

The phrase “tender mercies” (which originates in 1 Nephi 1:20) became extraordinarily popular among the Latter-day Saints in the wake of an April 2005 conference address by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. It was titled “The Tender Mercies of the Lord.” The phrase has remained quite popular ever since, as illustrated by its use in my quorum meeting on Sunday.

Along with Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Elder Bednar had been sustained as one of the Twelve just six months before, at the October 2004 conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Someone that I know and who has excellent contacts at Church headquarters in Salt Lake City told me, years ago, that President Gordon B. Hinckley had been very concerned when he was considering the two vacancies in the Twelve that he needed to fill. He wanted to get the choices right. He was also concerned about the aging of the quorum at the time, so he wanted to call at least one much younger man. But calling a much younger man would also mean potentially calling a future president of the Church.

When he heard Elder Bednar’s “The Tender Mercies of the Lord” and saw the reaction of the Saints to it, he was thrilled. These things confirmed that he had, indeed, gotten it right.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

August 8, 2018

Positively medieval!

Next Post

August 10, 2018 For me personally, a high point of BYU's late Islamic Translation Series

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 March 2014 August 2013 February 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What did the devil tempt Jesus to turn into bread?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Fish Sand Stones Wood