“And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness; yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost. And it came to pass that I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree.” (1 Nephi 8:23-24). Sometimes on our journey through life the mists of darkness are so thick that we can't see our own hand in front of our face, much less where to put our feet. We have no choice but to cling tightly to the rod of iron so that when we are walking blindly down a treacherous and rocky path we don't stumble and fall and lose our way. The mist may make the iron rod wet with condensation, so that we have to be extra careful of our grip. There may be times where the path has become so narrow that it is all we can do to hang onto the iron rod so that we don't plummet into a bottomless gorge. Why is it so necessary that we must be kept so much in darkness and confusion even when we are on the right path and reading and studying and pondering and holding fast to the scriptures as we pray for guidance? The truth is, the mists of darkness can be a mercy. If we were to see the whole path laid out before us in the cold light of day, with all of its precipitous climbs and drops and razor thin footholds over dizzying ravines, then most certainly our hearts would fail us and we would give up before we began. When we feel the most lost and confused and we feel almost like we can't breathe because the mist of darkness is so thick, so that all we can do is hold onto the iron rod as tight as we possibly can and test each new step with the greatest of care, perhaps that is when the path is the most impossible and it is only through a combination of faith and sheer ignorance that we could ever make it through that part of the path. God loves us and knows us perfectly. If He is allowing us to pass through a particularly thick patch of the mists of darkness, we can trust that He has a very good reason for it.
