“Behold, ye are little children and ye cannot bear all things now; ye must grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth. Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world" (see Doctrine and Covenants 50:40-41).
Within the next few weeks we will have received three remarkable gifts: the dedication of the Provo City Center Temple, rebuilt from the Provo Tabernacle; the observance of Easter, in remembrance of the resurrection of the Lord, and another general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where a living prophet will speak to us.
Light, knowledge, guidance and truth are all given to us because we are God’s children. Jesus overcame the world for our sakes. His love for us is the love of someone who knows us well; who loves, admires and appreciates the qualities of our spirits, and is intimately acquainted with us as his brothers and sisters. This is why he rejoiced to know that his love, borne on the wings of suffering and prayer, could make it possible for us to grow, progress, fulfill the divine measure of our creation and come home, to become like the Father, whom the Savior so perfectly loves. We learn for ourselves by becoming closer to our Father.
“And the Father and I are one. I am in the Father and the Father in me; and inasmuch as ye have received me, ye are in me and I in you” (Doctrine and Covenants 50:43).
Can we do it? Can we accept the understanding, the patience, the faith of our Father in heaven, and rise, step by step, toward him? When he looks down upon this earth and remembers us with a tenderness that never ceases to reach out to us, he sees only children, his children, and he does not ever forget. It is we who forget!
Brigham Young, the second president of the LDS Church, addressed this reality boldly when he told the early Saints: “I want to tell you, each and every one of you, that you are well acquainted with God our Heavenly Father, or the great Elohim … there is not a soul of you but what has lived in his house and dwelt with him year after year; and yet you are seeking to become acquainted with him, when the fact is, you have merely forgotten what you did know” (see “Journal of Discourses,” vol. 4).
This knowledge ought to thrill us throughout our beings and make us sit up with hearts bright with gratitude as we listen to the words of the prophet and apostles. We are not only John, who failed to get the promotion, or Mary, who burns everything she tries to bake, or Jane, who cannot control her 4-year-old. We are, even in our weakness and struggling, so much more. What did Brigham Young say?
“God has made his children like himself to stand erect, and has endowed them with intelligence and power and dominion over all his works, and given them the same attributes which he himself possesses” (see “Journal of Discourses,” vol. 11).
Our existence, now and in the eternities, is all about love, because no one is loved more than children. He loves us, his little ones — we, in turn, seek to draw ever closer in love to him.
We feel at home in our Father’s houses here on Earth. We reverence them, we feel our hearts and minds expand with love and light. We feel we belong there, and the Spirit comforts and encourages us.
Oh, let us strive to feel the blessed reality which President Young so tenderly describes:
“He is the Father of our spirits; and if we could know, understand, and do his will, every soul would be prepared to return back into his presence. And when they get there, they would see that they had formerly lived there for ages, that they had previously been acquainted with every nook and corner, with the palaces, walks and gardens; and they would embrace their Father, and he would embrace them and say, ‘My son, my daughter, I have you again’; and the child would say, ‘O my Father, my Father, I am here again’” (see “Journal of Discourses,” vol. 4)
He is my Father, how can I walk in fear,
Knowing his tender protection is ever near.
He is my Father, he’s mindful of me,
He loves me as a Father loves his child.
He is my Father, and I know his voice,
Knowing him and loving him,
Happily I rejoice.
(“He Is My Father,” lyrics by Susan Evans McCloud, music by Richard Smith)
Susan Evans McCloud is author of more than 40 books and has published screenplays, poetry and lyrics, including two songs in the LDS hymnbook. She has six children. She blogs at susanevansmccloud.blogspot.com. Email: susasays@broadweave.net