Feeling the Savior’s love can be difficult, but he shows us just how far his love extends.
Since an early age, I have always had the fundamental knowledge that Jesus loved me. However, as I have grown and matured, I have found that simple belief to be difficult to hold on to at times. In her general conference talk “Your Repentance Doesn’t Burden Jesus Christ; It Brightens His Joy,” Sister Tamara W. Runia emphasizes just how much Christ loves us, regardless of the struggles we may face in actually feeling that love.
Sister Runia asks, “If you could hear the Savior praying for you, what do you think He would say?” That statement was powerful for me. It filled me with the most overwhelming sense of peace, and I realized that, even when my life is busy and my tasks are difficult to manage, Jesus Christ is proud of what I am able to accomplish. I think that when—when, not if!—he prays for us, he prays that we will remember that we don’t have to do it alone. He prays for us to have the courage to turn to him and his Atonement when life gets heavy. Not only does he pray for us to use the Atonement but also that we understand and remember the reason for his sacrifice: “Our Savior was willing to suffer the pain of His Atonement because He loves you. In fact, you are ‘the joy that was set before him’ while He suffered.” If Jesus Christ turned to his love for us during his ultimate trial, we can just as easily turn to him in ours.
Sister Runia’s talk reminded me of my knowledge that Jesus loves me. We can all reflect on when we have felt the Savior’s love and what we can do to better feel it now. We can ask ourselves what he might say as he prays for us. Sister Runia closes her talk with words her father wrote to her while she was in college: “May the Lord of Lights wrap you in His arms and console and love you continually.” Jesus is never too far away. We are loved without limits.
Read and watch Tamara W. Runia’s general conference address “Your Repentance Doesn’t Burden Jesus Christ; It Brightens His Joy” for more insights on Jesus Christ’s love.
Source: General Conference
—Maya Burnett, Latter-day Saint Insights
FEATURE IMAGE BY DIANA
Find more insights
To read more about love and repentance, look at “My Mind Caught Hold upon This Thought of Jesus Christ” from Elder Neil L. Andersen.
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf shares “Five Messages That All of God’s Children Need to Hear” to read about how much God loves you.
Take a look at the poem “Footprints in the Sand” by Mary Stevenson for a reminder that Jesus is always by your side.