THE FAITH OF A CHILD

Now and then a Primary child speaks in church here in Tonga.  Recently little 9-year old ‘Ofa (means “love”) spoke about the power of prayer.  I offer her story in her own words (edited with her mother):

When I was six, I found out how important prayer is.  My family van was broken, and my mom was sick.  It was raining very hard, and the wind was very strong.  I had no raincoat, I had no umbrella.  My family had no telephone to call a taxi to take me to school.    It was very important for me to go to school that day, because I had a test to take.  But this was a hard day, because there was no help for me. I didn't want to get wet on the way to school and have to spend the whole day in wet clothes - I might get sick.

My dad had already left to go to work, and I was very sad.  I stood beside my mom and cried.  But then I got a very strong feeling that I should say a prayer.  I looked at my mom.  She told me we needed to kneel down and say a prayer together. Even though I was still crying, I said the prayer.  I asked Heavenly Father, “Please help me go to school today.”  

Even before I finished my prayer, I could hear that the rain had stopped.  I said “Amen” and looked out the window.  The wind was still blowing very hard.  The sky was still dark,  but there was no rain.  My brother, my mom and I stood in the doorway and said another prayer, this time thanking Heavenly Father for stopping the rain.  My brother and I ran all the way to school.

As soon as  I entered my classroom, the heavy rains began again, and continued all morning.  Because of this experience, my faith grew.  I knew after that day that I have a loving Heavenly Father who hears and answers my prayers.   My mom told me that President Kimball used to compare prayer to an umbrella or raincoat to protect us from danger.  On that day when I was six, I found out that I didn’t need an umbrella or a raincoat, as long as I remembered to pray, and exercise my faith.

I testify that Heavenly Father answers prayers.  I know the power of prayer.  I am now working on my Faith in God program, and because of prayer, I feel I am closer to my Father in Heaven, and I can feel that he really loves me. 

This little message brings me peace, because it makes me remember that God knows each one of us by name.  We are truly his children, and because he is a loving Father, he knows our names, he knows what we need (and not just what we want), and he knows how and when to help us.  Thank heaven for little girls who teach me such wonderful things.  

Happy Easter

Of all the wondrous events of Easter, of all the eternal scope of the purpose of Easter, of all the magnificence of the Atonement of Jesus Christ for all the sins of every person who has ever lived or who will ever live on the face of this earth, there are two small moments, both huge in portent, which have caused me long reflection this Easter season.

The first comes in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Christ is suffering the unimaginable agony of atoning for every sin ever committed, and he pleads with the Father to "remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." (See Luke 22:42.) 

As a result, our loving Father in Heaven sent down an angel. This angel is portrayed in a wonderfully tender pose in the painting by the 19th Century Danish painter Carl Bloch:

Can you imagine this angel's reaction when he was assigned by the Father to go strengthen and comfort the Savior?  Can you imagine what a treasure that assignment would be?  I am pretty sure that if I was watching from heaven, I would have been just a little bit jealous of the angel who got to go down to earth and put his arms around the Savior, telling him, "You can do this." What love was shown for the Savior by our Father in Heaven, to send an angel to strengthen him and support him as he went through the most anguish anyone has ever experienced. 

That circle of support, however, shrank steadily through the events of the midnight trial and scourging, and the harrowing walk to Calgary, where more physical torture awaited the Redeemer of mankind.  The second moment that has stayed on my mind is that of Jesus on the cross, when most of his mortal friends have left, and he realizes that his Father has left him to his own devices.  "My God, my God, why hast THOU forsaken me?" Both the prophet Brigham Young and the apostle James Talmadge have said that our Father in Heaven had to turn away, had to go hide in some far corner of heaven, so as to keep from interrupting this last portion of the Atonement.  He had to hide, to allow Jesus to finish the job on his own, but the Father had also reached his limit - he was ready to end his son's suffering, but knew he needed to let the Atonement come to completion.

The Empty Tomb.  Artist unknown.

The glory of the resurrection is the reason for Easter.  The promise of living forever is given to all, and the promise of the quality of that immortality is offered to those who follow Jesus Christ's example and our Heavenly Father's commandments.  May we come to appreciate the love of our elder brother Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven, and choose to align our lives with the words of Jesus Christ and the will of the Father.  Happy Easter.