Child of God

I've been thinking a lot about trials and how some people are burdened with trials that seem almost too great to bear. A good friend of mine recently revealed that he is gay. He served a mission, he's been very actively involved in church, and he's one of the nicest guys I know. I've thought a lot about him lately and his struggles. My heart goes out to him and the "personal hell" he has lived for so long. I love my friend and I will never stop being his friend but I also admit that I am confused. In an effort to understand something that seems almost impossible for me to understand, my sister sent me the following link. This is a great article--it is hopeful and much of it focuses on the Atonement and the plan of salvation.
It ends with this quote from Brigham Young.

http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/public-issues/elder-bruce-c-hafen-speaks-on-same-sex-attraction


Brigham Young’s words describe the promise and the fulfillment of that homeward journey: “Your spirits when they came to take [earthly] tabernacles were pure and holy. There is no spirit among the human family that was begotten in hell; none that were begotten by angels, or by any inferior being. They [are all the children of] our Father in heaven. He is the Father of our spirits; and if we could know, understand, and do His will, every soul would be prepared to return back into His presence. And when they get there, they would see that they had formerly lived there for ages, that they had previously been acquainted with every nook and corner, with the palaces, walks, and gardens; and they would embrace their Father, and He would embrace them and say, ‘My son, my daughter, I have you again;’ and the child would say, ‘O my Father, my Father, I am here again.’” [xxxviii]

This quote brings tears to my eyes every time I read it and I think about James and his first week in Sunbeams. We came home and while he was eating lunch he said, "I'm going to go look at myself in the mirror and say 'I am a child of God.'" And he ran to the bathroom.
Yesterday I heard him messing around in the bathroom and then overheard him say, "I am a child of God." I thought to myself how different this world would be if everyone knew and believed that about themselves. I hope James never forgets how precious he is and whose son he really is.