He Alone Knows

And the elders of the church, two or more, shall be called, and shall pray for and lay their hands upon them in my name; and if they die they shall die unto me, and if they live they shall live unto me. Doctrine & Covenants 42:44

We live in a fallen world, a world in which things break down. None of us is immortal, and it is inevitable that no matter how prudently we eat and exercise, we will eventually come to the end of our mortal existence. Thankfully, our benevolent Lord steps into history occasionally and brings to pass a miracle. People are healed, the sick are made well, the blind are made to see, and the dead are raised. But knowing as we do that death is a significant part of “the merciful plan of the great Creator” (2 Nephi 9:6), we humbly acknowledge that not all of the sick will be healed, and not all of our prayers and administrations will be answered affirmatively. We trust in the Almighty, in his eternal purposes and timetable. He alone knows who should live and who should die. Surely that is a burden, an overwhelming responsibility that no mortal would want to bear. Mercifully, such decisions rest with our Heavenly Father. (Robert L. Millet and Lloyd D. Newell. Draw Near Unto Me: Daily Reflections on the Doctrine and Covenants. 112)