The Lord’s purpose is to bless our lives. He loves us. This is why we are chastened—so that we will not forget our God. Elder Neal A. Maxwell offers these wise words concerning the passage of scripture just cited: “It is difficult for the Lord’s people, even when they reach prosperity through obedience and righteousness, to be able to sustain those same conditions without lapsing back into patterns of unrighteousness. The maxim about not being able to ‘stand a little prosperity’ appears to be soberingly accurate. We are so quick to forget our God” (We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1984], 117). Yes, it is hard to remember the goodness of God when everything is going well—but at such times it is paramount for us to remember. Everyday we should count our blessings and give credit to our Heavenly Father for these blessings. There is the encouraging example during the time of Moroni and Helaman where the people prosper and still remember His goodness towards them in all things (see Alma 62:49–50). We too should be humble and grateful for all things. President Harold B. Lee reminds us:
When people prosper, many forget God. It is frightening to observe that in places where there is the greater prosperity, there is the unmistakable evidence that, like the peoples of other dispensations, when they prosper they forget God. They are seemingly rich in things that money can buy, but they are devoid of most of the precious things money cannot buy. (The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, ed. Clyde J. Williams [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1996], 327)