My Testimony of the Savior
I would like to share my testimony of my Savior, Jesus Christ. The way he lived his life each day, the way he handled persecution, and the way that he purely loved is a light to the every day living of my life. When I was little my favorite song in Primary was, “I Am A Child of God” and the words, “Lead me, guide me, walk beside me” from that song still play a vital role in each day of my life. Although the song talks about Heavenly Father, it is through following the Savior’s earthly example that the words of the song are fulfilled.
There have been a few times that I had the thought that Jesus didn’t have it as rough as we do in our lives. He had an extra perk from being the literal son of our Heavenly Father. But when I get through that rebellious and somewhat lazy thought, I realize that our Savior probably lived his life in a very similar way to what we have. The only thing that was different was his focus.
We don’t know very much about his childhood, but I would imagine that the other children he came in contact with might have possibly teased him for being such a goody-goody. It doesn’t seem to matter in this mortal life how kind and loving a person is, there are always those who will persecute you for it and make fun of you for trying to do your best.
Even the Savior went through his teenage years and perhaps his parents got on his nerves at times like most parents of teenagers do. Yet, he never rebelled or treated them badly. Do you know how I know that? Because all through the Savior’s life, he kept the commandments and one of them is that he would honor his parents. The commandment doesn’t say that we must honor our parents as long as they shall be the coolest and most generous and patient parents in the world that let us stay up all night and eat cheese fries and deep-fried Twinkies as often as we want. It simply says Honor Thy Parents. And he did that. I would imagine that as he did that, his parents did become the coolest parents around because HE viewed them differently.
As Jesus Christ walked miles and miles of dusty roads, he shared his light with everyone he came in contact with. I have always been impressed with how his whole life was filled with purpose. I often ask myself, “Am I fulfilling my purpose?” It is so easy to lose our focus with the every day demands we put on ourselves. Somehow the Savior never did though! When people were cruel and spat upon him, he was able to remain calm and under control. When people doubted his abilities, it didn’t faze him because he knew what his mission was and he was focused on fulfilling it. When people accused him of being a liar, he carried on and lived the truth. When faced with all the temptations of gaining power, having excess, and showing off, he remembered who he was and that it was Heavenly Father that he served. And when he was going through the most difficult challenge of his life—a life that was filled with challenges—and he did pray that Heavenly Father would remove the cup, or the challenge, of having to carry the weight of the sins and transgressions of every soul that would step foot on this earth, he hung in there and waded through the most difficult trial of his life. He only made it through because of his focus and the help of Heavenly Father.
Often our lives are filled with living through the consequences of the choices others make. The decisions of others bring us pain and sorrow. These are often the most difficult burdens to bear. We often feel picked on and even angry because others have messed with our lives. Challenges are brought into our lives and we often wonder why we have to go through them. We want them over with as quickly as possible so our lives can get back to “normal.” Some trials only last a little time and others a lifetime but I would venture to say that the trials that are long enough to drag us to our knees in the agony of our soul—those are the ones that make something of us.
By Jesus’ wading through the Atonement process, the most excruciating pain that only He could have born, he fulfilled Heavenly Father’s plan and gained the privilege of standing on the right hand of God. He could not have taken a shortcut or even given a substitute to achieve what was achieved through his sacrifice. Although this man was totally innocent of our choices, he had to feel the weight of them. Those seem like such simple words but the consequences of our choices almost crushed our brother and he didn’t do anything to deserve it—except that he loved us with an unimaginable measure of love. He showed us the way through any trial—especially the ones that come through the choices of others.
Another way that I have felt those words, “Lead me, guide me, walk beside me,” is when I pray. So many times I have heard people say that their prayers are not answered. I would really like to just hit them up’side the head. A prayer of real intent is ALWAYS answered. Again, a prayer of REAL INTENT is ALWAYS answered. I have read of the Savior and how he prays. I am amazed at how often he just stops, kneels, and prays. He never forgets to give thanks or to bless the food. You never read of him lying in bed to say his prayers because he is too tired to kneel. If you wonder how Jesus could be so focused through his life, my thought is that it is because of this trait that he has of constant communication with Heavenly Father. He was focused on Heavenly Father and the desires that His Father had and that became the desire of his own life because his focus was to please The Father.
The only two instances that I can recall that Jesus questioned Heavenly Father was when he asked if the cup could pass (the trial of Gethsemane) and when he was on the cross and he could not feel Heavenly Father’s presence for the first time in his life. He exclaimed, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Yes, there will be times when we feel like our prayers are not being heard but it does not mean that our Heavenly Father is not aware of our need. At these times, usually during our greatest hardships and trials, we need to think of a baby learning to walk. There is a point during that scary but exciting process that we actually have to let go of their hands and they have to walk on their own. Our trials are learning experiences and there is often a point where we do feel quite alone and without support. Those are the times that our Heavenly Father is whispering in our ear, “Walk! You can do it! I am here to catch you if you fall, but you must try to walk on your own.”
Our Savior had to experience this feeling of relying totally on his own strength. He had to complete the Atonement process with his own spiritual strength. I would imagine that letting go of his son was also one of the most difficult things for our Heavenly Father to experience—as I am also sure that it is difficult for him to allow us to stand on our own strength at times.
The life of the Savior teaches us everything we need to know about how to deal with this earth life. This God who came to earth to show us the way was humble, meek, he mourned for our sorrows, he prayed for guidance, he prayed out of gratitude, he was kind to those who were cruel to him, he was a person of peace, and he suffered greatly because of the choices of others while still holding a great love and hope for them. When he was betrayed, vengeance never entered his mind. He never tried to get back at others for hurting him and he never seemed to talk about the cruelty of others toward him with his friends. Never once have I read of him complaining or murmuring because of what he didn’t have or how rough was his life. He led a pure life of focus and purpose. “Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, and help me find the way. Teach me all that I must do to live with him someday.” Although I still have a very long way to go and a whole lot of natural (wo)man to overcome, I am grateful for the life of my Savior and his pure path that I to aspire to follow.
1 comment:
Thanks mom! I am going to print it out if that is ok with you? Love you mom!
Post a Comment