Love: Part Two

The Truth About His Love

Our Father in Heaven is always waiting and wanting to show us just how much He loves us. He does so in many ways. Whether it be the tender mercies we receive at His hand day by day, or the miracles he sends as we have faith in our Savior. Even when times may seem hard and the world may be after us, we can always have hope in the Lord. "...But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance" (1 Nephi 1:20).

Our Savior's Example:

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" 

(John 15:13)

"If ye love me, keep my commandments"

(John 14:15) 

As always, Jesus Christ has provided a perfect example of love. He laid down his life, He forgives us of sins, He cheers us on as we strive to keep His commandments. People sometimes ask why in the world He would do what he did for us. The answer really is simple. HE LOVES US! We never need to despair and think that God doesn't want to be our friend anymore. Sometimes he allows us to wade through affliction and struggle with things, but how else could we ever learn? This is one of my favorite descriptions of what Christ does for each of us. 

"11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.  

12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."

(Alma 7:11-12)

He understands us. He felt what we feel. His love and his mercy are all encompassing.  "It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines" (It Is Never Too Late, Jeffrey R. Holland).

  

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

(Romans 8:35-39)

I am a witness to this kind of love. He loves each of us. I am so grateful for the love and forgiveness He has extended to me. I love Him. He loves you. His love is real and this is His truth, that He will always love you. He wishes for you to follow Him. He will always lead you to do what is right if you will but listen. I testify of this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. 

What is Love?

Love: Part One

Love is Forgiving,

Love is Divine,

Love is Redeeming,

Love is The Vine.

God is Love.

We Have a Father who Loves us.

The greatest love we feel comes from no earthly source. We are all loved by the most powerful being in the Universe. How amazing is that? Because of our Heavenly Father we live, breathe, love, and enjoy our existence here on earth. "It is significant that of all the titles of respect and honor and admiration that are given to Deity, He has asked us to address Him as Father" (Father, Consider Your Ways). God is our Father. He loves us more than we can comprehend. As we go through this life away from Him we are given glimpses and insights into how much He really does love us by the attention He pays to our personal needs. 

Prayer in a Rainstorm:

When I was a little boy living in Northern Utah, we had one day a large thunderstorm roll through. Living in a desert, as Utah is, storms are not too common. So all the rain was an exciting and at the time, scary adventure. In many Utah homes you have what are called window wells, which are holes dug down into the ground so that you can have natural light in your basements. Usually these window wells are lined with corrugated metal or plastic and if they don't have a proper drainage system they can get filled with water during big storms. This happened to be the predicament in which one of our neighbors had found themselves. Water had started leaking into their basement and so my dad went out to help them. I remember standing on the landing in our garage looking out at the driving rain and being worried about my dad out in the rain. He really wasn't in any danger, but my young mind was worried. With my earthly father out in the storm and me needing comfort, I turned to my Father in Heaven. With the faith of a child a prayer was said and down from the heavens came the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, a gift from my Father to reassure and calm my worried heart. I remember the warmth and peace that only come from on High. I remember feeling that all was going to be okay and that I didn't have to be worried about a thing.

I was a little child worried about something rather insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but my Heavenly Father, the one who holds all the cosmos in balance reached out to tell me that everything would be okay. Ever since then I have looked and found, sometimes in hindsight, the evidence of His love in my life. I know that He lives and loves us. How grateful I am for that. I know that as we seek the Lord, He will show himself unto us in our daily lives. I am grateful for the opportunity to know Him. I testify that He is always there waiting for us. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

 "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" 

(John 16:33).