Emie (one of our beautiful granddaughter's)bore a beautiful testimony in sacrament meeting on Sunday, and I(Tami) wanted to remember how special it was, and how much she touched me by the words she used, and the spirit I felt as she gave it. She talked about how she was talking with her cousin, my niece, this weekend when she was visiting. Her cousin told her that when it came to the church, she was a "lost cause". She is 17, and has just had a really hard life, and a really hard couple of months especially with some issues at home, and she just feels generally like people, namely God, have given up on her. Emie expressed how sad that this statement made her, and said how she felt in her heart that she knew that this wasn't true. She said that she was glad through reading the scriptures, and praying to her Heavenly Father, each of us can know that God loves us, and that he will never give up on us. To our Heavenly Father, NONE of us are a "lost cause". She expressed that she knew, through experiences that she has had, that Heavenly Father knows each of us individually, by name. If we will pray to him, we will know that he is there, and that he loves us.
I just wanted to post this here, in hopes that my niece will read it, and know that her cousin was thinking of her, and so am I. In the gospel of Jesus Christ, there is no such thing as a "lost cause". It doesn't matter what we have done, or how far from our Savior we think that we have wandered, he never stops loving us. Even when we turn our back on him, even when we think that there is no possible way back, even when we feel like we have wandered so far from where we should be, our Savior is still there, reaching out to us, ready to welcome us back to the fold. He told us this when he was on the earth, in the parable of the lost sheep. In Luke 15 it reads:
"Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.
And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And he spake this parable unto them, saying,
What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance."
I want to add my testimony to hers, that no one is ever "lost" in the kingdom of God. Our Heavenly Father, and our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd in this parable, never stop loving us, never stop reaching out to us, they never give up on us. They will never stop searching for those who think that they are lost, for we never are truly lost, to them. They know you, and they know your name, and they know your heart. You were our Heavenly Father's daughter, and our Savior's sister before you can even remember. But they DO remember. They know you, better than you know yourself. They love you, more than you know. When you doubt that, all you need to do is get on your knees and ask Him. He will tell you, in your mind and in your heart, by the spirit of the Holy Ghost, that these things are true. You will feel how much He truly loves you, and then you will truly know your worth.
So many people search for happiness in this world, in so many ways. Yet, you look around and see plenty of miserable people. People who thought they could find fun, and happiness, and only end up destroying themselves in the process. The world only offers false hopes of happiness, empty promises, disappointment. The way to happiness, the only way, is through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Through Him, we can truly be happy. Not just a happiness here on earth, but a happiness that will continue through eternity. That is happiness that is worth searching for.
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