“Jesus Christ Offers Us Hope,” For the Strength of Youth, Sept. 2022.
Jesus Christ Offers Us Hope
As we serve others, Jesus Christ gives us hope that things will work out in our own lives.
Young men from Cusco, Peru, work together to give service.
This life is full of many challenges. You probably have experienced some already. There are many causes of stress and concern, fear and anxiety. When we experience these things, the tendency is for us to turn inward—to take care of ourselves and our own needs above all else. We think that if we spend our time and energy trying to “fix” things, we can work our way out of our problems.
But Jesus Christ shows us a better way. He taught: “Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it” (Luke 17:33). The quickest way to find hope in your trials is to turn your heart to the Savior and to follow His example and serve others.
The Healing at Bethesda, by Gary Smith
The Savior’s life was the perfect example of love and goodwill toward men. He always forgot Himself on behalf of others. His selfless acts were expressed in all He did every day of His life and were not limited to a specific season.
As we turn our hearts outward as the Savior did, I can assure you that we will find limitless opportunities to give of ourselves quietly and kindly to people who need us.
This will help us to come to know the Savior better and find for ourselves peace on earth even as we develop greater charity toward others. As you “lose your life” in helping others, following the example of the Savior, He will help you.
Everyday Angels
Often the Savior will direct others into our lives to help bring us the peace and comfort we need in times of trial. These blessed people feel to us like angels sent from heaven, for surely they are.
My family and I have experienced on several different occasions the feelings of comfort and peace that a modern-day angelic host can bring. I would like to reflect on one of those occasions. In 2003, we moved away from our home country of Brazil to Utah in the United States.
That winter, we had one of the biggest snowstorms Utah had had for several years. We had never seen anything like that in our lives, as we were raised among palm trees and sandy beaches. Our home was located on a corner on a hill that had a very long sidewalk.
When the snow started, my wife courageously started snow blowing the driveway and sidewalks. I was unable to help because I had slipped on ice and broken my wrist a few days before. That accident resulted in a surgery and a large cast on my arm.
As she started snow blowing for the first time in her life, my dear wife had no clue that she had to change the direction of the chute after cleaning one side of the driveway. So, when she went to the other side to clean, that was where the chute directed the snow. Back and forth she went, to no avail. What a mess!
Because of her prolonged exposure to cold, she got a double ear infection and was almost completely deaf for two months. At the same time, my 16-year-old son had injured his back while sledding and needed to stay in bed to heal. So there we were, one bedridden, one deaf, one in a cast, and all freezing.
I’m sure we were quite a sight for our neighbors. On one of those early, frigid mornings at about 5:00 a.m., I woke up to the sound of a snowblower outside my window. I looked outside and saw my neighbor from across the street, Brother Blaine Williams. At nearly 70 years of age, he had left his warm and comfortable home and had quietly come and cleared the snow from our driveway and sidewalk, knowing that we were not able to do it ourselves.
Photograph from Getty Images
Another friend, Brother Daniel Almeida, showed up at our home to drive me down to Salt Lake City for work, as I could not drive with my very cumbersome cast. They were there for me every morning, demonstrating their love with these simple acts of kindness, until my family healed and we were again able to do things by ourselves.
During that cold winter of 2003, these angelic brothers were sent to us. These two brothers followed our Savior’s example and thought of our needs before they thought of their own.
The Savior Offers Peace
Serving others gives us a higher and holier perspective. As we serve others, Jesus Christ gives us hope that things will work out in our own lives.
Turning our hearts outward as the Savior did will bless us with limitless opportunities to give of ourselves quietly and kindly to people who need us. Living as the Savior did also helps us develop greater Christlike charity toward others. This helps us find greater measures of love, peace, light, and renewed strength.
The Savior invites us to seek Him in every thought and to follow Him. This gives us the promise that we can walk in His light and that His guidance prevents the influence of darkness in our lives. As you “lose” your life in Him, He will help you find yourself.
Photograph from Getty Images
Turn to Christ, Always
I bear my solemn witness that Jesus rose from the dead and that He lives. I testify to you that through Him and His infinite Atonement, the Savior provided us the way to overcome death, both physically and spiritually.
In addition, He also offers us comfort and assurance in difficult times. I assure you that as we trust Jesus Christ and His supernal atoning sacrifice, enduring in our faith to the end, we will enjoy the promises of our beloved Heavenly Father, who does everything within His power to help us return to His presence one day.