Elder M. Russell Ballard shared on Facebooka deeply moving, yet surprisingly humorous, story of a friend who asked Elder Ballard to "tell God to let me die.” Elder Ballard's response teaches a lesson we all need to learn.
Here's the full story:
I have a dear friend who was dying of severe bone cancer. We served missions in Europe 65 years ago.
“Russ,” he said, “tell God to let me die.”
I replied, “I am not going to tell God to do anything, and neither are you! It doesn’t work that way. But I will give you a blessing to see what Father will have you do at this time.”
He said, “Well, if that is all you are going to do, then OK.” Shortly thereafter, he died.
My point in sharing this story is that we should never tell our Father what to do. I happen to believe that God must have a glorious sense of humor. People order Him around in prayers all the time! I often hear those prayers and think God must smile and think, “Someday they will understand.”
We should ask God for guidance and be patient. Move forward step by step in the plan of salvation and perform whatever He asks you to do. It is simple: have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in His plan for you.