We had been poor for so long.
And I didn't want to be poor, and so I worked hard.
I worked really hard.
An then things came together, and we had more than enough.
One day, driving down a road, got in a horrible accident,
and all of that was taken away.
Life changed in that moment in ways
I wouldn't have even imagined.
We were pretty struggling for, like, about eight years.
After eight years, man, it popped
and life started to happen.
We were able to do a lot of good and tried
to live what the Savior had taught and had
a great time doing that.
I had life by the tail, you know.
We were down visiting family.
We were heading north, and a Ford F-350--fully loaded,
heading south--came across three lanes of traffic and blew
through the side of us.
I ended up losing my financial agency.
We had two years of savings, and I thought--I had a disability
policy for three months.
I figured if I was disabled, it'd be about three months--as
long as I'd be disabled.
That came and went.
And two years came and went, and I was still disabled.
We had lost everything.
We were at that point.
With a traumatic brain injury come mood challenges,
frustration, and anger.
And the interesting thing is, too,
you don't feel like you're different,
but you know you're different.
I realized, through the process of going
through all the trauma and all that was taken away,
I learned to be more OK with receiving help.
There was a talk given by another ecclesiastical leader,
Jeffrey R. Holland.
He talks about fathers looking into the eyes of their children
and wondering if they're going to make it,
if they're going to be able to be the dad they need,
or if they're going to be able to provide for their kids,
for their wife.
And it was a hard--it was a hard thing for me to take because I
had worked so, so hard to become successful in my career.
And when that was ripped away from me
because of the inconsistent decision of another person who
decided to text while they were driving, it was hard.
Ugh, sorry.
That was hard to take.
During all of this process and all that we faced,
it changes the man.
I was already very loving to people
and really compassionate, but not at the level that I am now.
That accident robbed me of my financial security
and of a career that I had worked so hard to build.
But it softened me even more than I already was.
And my compassion level for those who suffer
became greater than I could have ever imagined.
At the point when our backs have been against the wall
and we've done everything that we could do,
Heavenly Father has never just left us completely without.
He's always been there.
The evidence of Christ's love is not in monetary success;
it's not in the good or the bad that has happened
or that's happening to me.
It's in the intrinsic values that I get to enjoy.
It's in having a family with children that love me.
It's in a wife that is committed and kind to me.
Being able to go to church on Sunday
and feel the influence of the Holy Ghost,
feel peace and love in my life.
And knowing that no matter what's
happening right now, that there are good things to come.
And that hope has always been validated.
It's always been validated.
And had I not faced all that I faced,
I wouldn't know Him like I know Him today.
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC]