Brothers and Sisters, I hate being in pain. Absolutely hate it. I hate suffering, and I hate being scared. I hate being sick, and being sad, and especially, I hate being inadequate or inept at something. Most of all, I absolutely hate that feeling that I get because of something I’ve done and shouldn’t have, or something I didn’t do and should have. I would much rather live a pain- free, sickness free life where I’m always happy, never scared, and I am not just adequate at some things, but exceptional at anything and everything.
But as is often the case in our mortal existence, what we want is not always what’s best for us. Sure, a life without trials, pains, and weaknesses would be great. But we wouldn’t learn anything from our experiences, we wouldn’t be able to feel true happiness, and we wouldn’t be able to grow. But luckily for us…actually, luck has nothing to do with it. Heavenly Father’s plan is not some cosmic coincidence composed of convenient conditions, but rather a distinctly doctored design that defines our divine destinies. So not luckily for us, but fatefully for us, our Father in Heaven sent His only begotten son, Jesus Christ, to die for us so that we may overcome those things that keep us from the presence of God.
That Atonement, that frees us from sin, also liberates us from many other distressing things in our lives. In Alma Chapter 7 verses 11-12, it says: “And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, 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.” So Christ suffered not only just the sins we have done, which in and of itself is an unbearable thought, he also felt our despair, sadness, frustration, pains, sicknesses, inadequacies, temptations, guilt, shame, sorrow, terror, helplessness, and every other form of trial or hardship that we have faced. Indeed, it is an infinite atonement, meaning that there is absolutely nothing that Christ hasn’t felt in our behalf.
As has become nearly custom in my sacrament meeting talks, I feel that there is a deep symbolism that connects the Gospel of Jesus Christ to food, and as the Gospel and food are two of my favorite things, when they become likened to each other, in my mind there is nothing that is greater.
I think of sandwiches as the ultimate food. All you need is two pieces of bread, something in between them and you have a sandwich. Ham and cheese, peanut butter and jelly, tuna fish, chicken salad, whatever it is, I have rarely met a sandwich that I didn’t like. For me, this is how it goes. Two slices of bread. Straight forward. Spread some nice Miracle Whip or mayonnaise on there, I’m a fan of both. A little bit of mustard, some lettuce, pickles, tomatoes then a slice of cheese, and some meat. Then put it together, and I have myself a beautiful thing.
But sometimes, not everything lines up just right for that perfect sandwich. Maybe the cheese in the fridge has gone moldy. The lettuce has wilted and turned brown. Rather than good mustard on there, I just got the juice stuff that comes, ya know? Maybe the tomatoes aren’t ripe and are gross and we ran out of meat and the cucumbers haven’t turned into pickles yet. Maybe the bread has gone soggy from mayo that’s expired. Those kinds of things are what make sandwiches less than enjoyable. And so sometimes when those things happen, I get sad and I give up on even making a sandwich, it doesn’t even sound good anymore. And so life is hard.
So bear with me for a second. Let’s say that all those ingredients for that terrible sandwich are things that happen in our lives. That cheese that has some mold on it? When we sin, our souls grow a little bit of mold. The longer you let that mold sit, the bigger it grows, until it has nearly overtaken you and is not just something on your soul, but has become almost a part of your soul. That wilted, brown lettuce might be a trial in your life, such as the death of a loved one, or financial troubles. It just adds an unwanted flavor to your sandwich. The juice of the mustard can be likened to temptations. It only starts with just a little bit, maybe something that might not seem that big of a deal. But we have been instructed to avoid the very appearance of evil, and choose good things. Just like that mustard juice looks more evil than it does good. Our sicknesses can be compared to those unripe tomatoes. No one likes to be sick, but it happens. We
aren’t always as healthy as we would like. The lack of meat can be the pains and afflictions that you deal with in your life, both physical and emotional. Some things in life just hurt. Just plain old cucumbers instead of pickles might be feelings of inadequacy or “I’m not good enough” in our lives. Sometimes we think that we’re not anything special. Just plain old me. Soggy bread can represent our sadness that we feel, our despair. When things just don’t go right. It kind of adds an unwelcome texture to our lives. I don’t know about all of you, but for me, these things are what make the kinds of sandwiches that I don’t like.
But in the Pre-Mortal Life, we all knew that there would be bad ingredients for our sandwiches every once in a while. But Heavenly Father, in his infinite wisdom, knew what to do in order to help us deal with our bad sandwiches. He sent His son, Jesus Christ to take upon Himself all of our infirmities and sicknesses and sins and pains, so that if we follow Him, we will be able to make our sandwiches more tasty, make our lives more worthy of Him. When we repent and trust in the Lord to guide us through hard times, He takes away our moldy cheese and replaces it with forgiveness and cleanliness. He takes away our wilted lettuce and gives us peace and the courage to move on. He takes away our mustard juice, and blesses us with the strength to overcome Satan and his temptations. He takes away our unripe tomatoes and makes us whole again. He takes our lack of meat and comforts and heals us. He takes away our plain old cucumbers and helps us realize that we are children of God and that makes us special, no matter how inadequate we feel. He takes away our soggy bread and gives us happiness. He gives us the Bread of Life. He gives us Himself. He takes away all of the bad ingredients and gives us better ones if we will just follow him. It’s not always easy, but it is always worth it.
Well enough of that food metaphor. I want to now talk about some more food, but this food literally goes hand in hand with God’s plan. The food I am talking about is the bread and water of the Sacrament. Each week, we partake of bread and water that has been blessed and sanctified by priesthood power and authority to renew our baptismal covenants. In the prayers, we covenant to eat and drink “in remembrance of” the body and blood of Jesus Christ, “which was shed for” us. By doing so, we are showing Heavenly Father that we are willing to take Christ’s name upon us, and to remember Him, and to keep His commandments. Our Father covenants with us that He will give us the Spirit to always be with us, as long as we are faithful to the covenant. By taking upon ourselves Christ’s name, we promise to remember the sacrifice that He has made for us, namely the Atonement. We eat and drink symbolically the body and blood of Christ to show our commitment to that covenant, to remember that which was sacrificed in our behalf to give us the opportunity to repent and return to the presence of God.
So with all of our different afflictions, sins, pains, and sicknesses, Christ suffered in Gethsemane not only more than any mortal could suffer, but more than any mortal could comprehend. He bled from every pore, and begged His Father in Heaven: “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless, not my will, but thine, be done.” (Luke 22:42) The Son of God, who is the greatest of all, was in such agonizing pain that even though He knew that the Atonement must occur, He asked if there was any other way. Bruce R. McConkie said, “We do not know, we cannot tell, no mortal mind can conceive the full import of what
Christ did in Gethsemane…We know he suffered both body and spirit, more than it is possible for man to suffer, except it be unto death.”
In the Book of Mormon, Alma the younger had rebelled against God, and an angel visited him, and he was struck dumb for three days. Alma recalls that during those three days, “Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell…for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.” It took Alma three days to remember and be pained with his sins, and he describes it as torment, and “inexpressible horror.” Christ took upon himself all of the sins of not just the whole world, but the entire universe and all of the worlds that had been created. And he did so in the space of about three to four hours. We can’t even begin to understand the pain, the absolute anguish and despair that he felt. We can only imagine how it must have been. As Elder Yoshihiko Kikuchi said in the December 2009 New Era, “Can you see His face upon the ground? Can you hear his voice wailing? Can you see His fingernails scratching the bark of the olive tree because it is so painful? Can you hear His murmurous and broken agonizing voice? His utterance of atoning cries pierces our souls.”
Brothers and Sisters it hurts to realize that I caused Him who was above all so much agony. But also I can take great comfort from the knowledge that He has been through every single thing that I have, and so He knows exactly how I feel. Whenever I am having trouble I know that I can turn to Him and ask for strength and He will give it to me, and I know that the same can be said for all of you. Just do your best to follow Him and ask for His divine strength to rescue you and I promise you, everything will turn out okay.
I’m so excited to go serve the Lord in England, and to preach the Gospel of happiness to some crotchety old men that don’t know where to find the truth and to confused young people who don’t understand their purpose here. I want to thank all of the members of this ward for your support and your love and prayers, and for everything you have taught me. I want to say thanks for all of my priesthood leaders that have pushed me to do my best. I want to say thank you to all of my friends. You have been such an influence in my life, you don’t even know. Your examples, friendship, and love have definitely helped me through some tough times. I love you
And last but not least, the fam. I want to say thanks to all of my extended family for their continued support and for their awesome examples. I have the family in the world. And to my siblings and Mom and Dad: Thanks for putting up with how weird I am, the strange things I say and the stranger things I do. I’ve done a lot of stupid things. Yeah, I said a lot. But you guys never fail to welcome me back in. Pieface, thanks for making me laugh all the time and for being so excited to see me when I came home from USU. Brincess, thanks for being so sweet and for always helping me with whatever I needed. Barney, thanks for giving me some competition in the weirdest Ashcraft contest. But really thanks for being so eager to serve others
and for being such a great brother. Tugs, thanks for letting me beat you at sports and for being such a valiant example to me all the time. And for not judging me when I do dumb stuff. Bash, you’re a stud, I don’t care what they say about you. But thanks for putting up with me and for asking me advice about girls and stuff even though I have no idea what I’m doing. Stay true. I want to thank my big brother A Team for the example he has set for me and for everything he has done for me. I’m kinda bummed that he gets home only a week after I leave, but hey, you do what you gotta do. Shanrock, thanks for all your advice, and for letting me invade your house sometimes. And also for concert tickets and stuff. BBR, Thanks for taking care of my sister and for being such a boss. Mamasita, I can’t even begin to say thanks for everything you have done
for me. You have always taken such good care of me and have been quick to forgive me when I mess up. You’re always there to make everything better and to comfort me when I need it. I know that I haven’t been the easiest kid to raise, but you’ve stuck with me through the hard times and put up with my crazy ideas, and for that I will be forever grateful. I love you Mama. Big Papi, You’re my hero. You will never know the joy and the pride that has swelled within me every time someone would call me ‘Little Leon’ or said that I reminded them of you. Every time I have heard that, I have known that I am one step closer to fulfilling my childhood dream of becoming just like you. You are the hardest working man I know, and you have been the greatest example I could ask for. I don’t deserve to have you and Mom as parents, but I am grateful that I have you. I love you, Dad.
I know this church is the only true church on the face of the earth. I know that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and the Son and he translated the Book of Mormon through the power of God. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus Christ lives, that He atoned for my sins and all of my infirmities. He died for me. I know that He is the only way that we can get back to live with our Father in Heaven, and that if we obey His commandments and constantly strive to be the best that we can be, we will be eternally blessed. I love all of you, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Redeemer, amen.
