This week Christians all over the world began to celebrate the final week of our Savior Jesus Christ’s life. As you can see from the pictures in this post, I REALLY enjoy decorating for Easter! This year I made a mini-resurrection garden as well as a new Hosanna banner. My Easter decorations seem to grow each year, and I LOVE that! Bunnies, chicks, baskets and eggs all have their place, but Easter is really ALL about Jesus Christ.

I have said this before, it doesn’t matter to me what religion you are, whatever you are, be a good one! This message today is extremely personal, and sacred for me. My hope is that whatever religion you may be, that you feel of His love for YOU each and every day! Believing in Jesus Christ is the only way I know of to get through the trials and struggles of this life. The word Hosanna is often used during Easter. Hosanna is an expression of praise and pleading that means, “please save us”.

I am so grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ! I believe we are children of God. Because of this, we are all brother’s and sister’s here on this Earth. One of the main focus’ of my faith is the importance of the family. We believe we can live together as families for all Eternity if we live the commandments and covenants, or promises, we make with our Heavenly Father! God loves ALL of His children, and He wants us to be happy.

Many times when we think of the Atonement, we focus on the part where our sins are concerned; we do our part to repent to the best of our ability, and the Savior meets us the rest of the way through His grace.

Today I’d like to bear witness of some of the other blessings of the Atonement as it relates to all of us today. He not only took on our sins, but also our pain and suffering - sickness and infirmities.

Through His suffering, Jesus redeemed the souls of all men, women, and children “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.” In doing so, Christ “descended below all things”—including every kind of sickness, infirmity, and dark despair experienced by every mortal being—in order that He might “comprehend all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth.”

Jesus Christ was the only one capable of making such a sacrifice and carrying out the Atonement for all mankind. The only way for us to be saved is for someone else to rescue us. As we take on the challenge to Minister as He did, we become instruments in His hands giving light and hope to those who are struggling.

I used to help with pioneer trek leadership training seminars at Martin’s Cove, in Wyoming - and one of the things I always shared with groups planning large scale pioneer youth treks was this – “If you want to hear the Lord laugh, tell Him what YOUR plans are.” As life has thrown us some pretty hard curve balls the past 14 years, I have come to regret that statement, because Ron has quoted it back to me more times that I care to admit. The Lord knows what we need even before we know we need it.

I chose to get through life by deeply burying the physical and emotional pain and suffering I experienced growing up in an extremely dysfunctional family. On the outside looking in, we appeared to be a “normal” Latter-Day-Saint family. However, the things that went on behind the walls of our home were anything but normal, and certainly not acceptable.

Thankfully, Heavenly Father knew I would need to be strong; and so He blessed me, by instilling a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ into my soul before I was born. I believe this to be true!

For the longest time I wondered why I hadn’t had one of those lightning bolt experiences that I could relate of when I actually KNEW the Gospel was true? As I got older, I came to the realization that I had just always known.

By not talking to ANYONE about the pain and suffering, I had experienced, I thought I was moving on from it. And no one really wants to hear all that stuff anyway, right? I had forgiven those who had hurt me for the things they had done to me, and did my best to try and serve them.

It wasn’t until we moved almost 14 years ago, where I learned through a kind and loving Bishop that I could not progress without dragging these things out from the depths of where they were buried and processing through them. Otherwise I would be living them subconsciously on a daily basis.

One statement that had always been elusive to me was, “You just need to give it all to the Lord.”

It used to make me so angry when someone would say that to me. I would think, Oh if you only knew how badly I want to do that, HOW do I do that?!!!! Just tell me, and I’ll do it!!!! It’s not as easy as packing it all up, putting it in bags and throwing it in the garbage can.

As I’ve sought help spiritually and professionally the burdens have seemed to go away, even though the trials and struggles are often still there. I don’t know how it’s happened that I’ve come to find PEACE, with FAITH and HOPE in the future, but I can testify that it can and does happen!!! Maybe Heavenly Father finally just said, she’s banged her head against the wall long enough, I will take it so that she can move on. Or maybe that is how I finally figured out how to turn it over to Him, I’m still not sure . . . Letting Go is a difficult task, but also liberating at the same time.

As we go through life, sometimes those we are supposed to trust the most, are the ones who end up hurting us the worst. I’ve learned it’s ok to cut the lifelines to those toxic relationships. Heavenly Father does not expect us to go through life being consistently abused. When this happens, He sends others to fill those roles in more healthy ways.

In return, we can use the gift of the Atonement, as we Minister to others to help plug the holes in their buckets and fill them with Hope and Faith.

From before the Creation of the earth, the Savior has been our only hope for “peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (Doctrine & Covenants 59:23).

All people who have ever lived on the earth and who ever will live on the earth will be resurrected and brought back into the presence of God to be judged. Through the Savior’s gift of mercy and redeeming grace, we will all receive the gift of immortality and live forever in glorified, resurrected bodies.

I know that Heavenly Father sends angels on both sides of the veil to succor us, and buoy us up in the depths of our trials and struggles. It is my hope and prayer that I may be receptive to the promptings of the Spirit and do my part to pay it forward for the blessings I have received.

I have a testimony that God lives, Jesus Christ died on the cross and atoned for our sins so that we may live together as families again in Heaven. But most of all, He wants us to be Happy!!! May we help others through the darkness as we share our own Light!

Have a wonderful blessed Easter week!

Love Ya, Les