Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles delivered what was for me, the defining address of the conference.
His special dedication set the tone:
...it is directed in a special way to those who are alone or feel alone or, worse yet, feel abandoned. These might include those longing to be married, those who have lost a spouse, and those who have lost—or have never been blessed with—children. Our empathy embraces wives forsaken by their husbands, husbands whose wives have walked away, and children bereft of one or the other of their parents—or both. This group can find within its broad circumference a soldier far from home, a missionary in those first weeks of homesickness, or a father out of work, afraid the fear in his eyes will be visible to his family. In short it can include all of us at various times in our lives.
To all such, I speak of the loneliest journey ever made and the unending blessings it brought to all in the human family. I speak of the Savior’s solitary task of shouldering alone the burden of our salvation. Rightly He would say: “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me. . . . I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold [me].”
If this opening strikes particularly to your heart, as it did mine, then we are on the same page.
Read it yourself, and see...
2 comments:
I have been re-reading the new testament and just finished Matthew. This struck me for the first time today - how alone the Savior was in His time of need. Oh, there were people around, but they were mocking Him. He did not respond to their jibes, much as He probably would have liked to... And in the end, he cried to the Father in anguish - Why have you forsaken me? Can anyone really understand that feeling? Have any of us really ever been truly forsaken - like Christ was?
The other interesting point I gleaned from this morning's reading was regarding the mocking - the priests and elders told Him to save Himself. He who needed no saving... He did not save Himself from the agony of the atonement so that He could save all of us. He descended below all things so that He could lift us up in His mighty and merciful arms.
Bill,
We lead an insular an lonesome existence. Sometimes, our circumstances make it worse because we choose that path.
Don't go that way. Stick with the ones who love and care about you, even if you encounter trouble. It will only be for a short season.
There will be sadness in our lives, but we should live for the joy of life.
We struggle to live after the manner of happiness...
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