Area Leadership Message
God Can Save
God can liberate us from life’s situations which are far beyond our physical, mental, or spiritual capacity to endure.
Following His conversation with a rich man who wanted to know what to do to gain eternal life1, Jesus said to His disciples, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
“When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying Who then can be saved?
“But then Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”2
The question raised by the rich man was as relevant to Jesus’ disciples then as it is to each of us today, particularly to genuine seekers of eternal life. The Saviour’s statement to His disciples demonstrated God’s power and His unaffected love for the young man3 and for us.
Many years ago, I took my sons, Josh (6) and Jared (5), on a fishing excursion in the Tarawa lagoon. I had previously taken the boys on fishing trips to some beautiful lakes and creeks in Utah while attending BYU, but fishing in an ocean lagoon was a completely new experience for them. With a narrow canoe I had inherited from my father, I sat Jared in front of me and Josh behind my back. Then, with glittering moonlight on the horizon, we paddled out into a deeper part of the lagoon. The boys were excited to be with their father on an outrigger canoe.
While watching the boys enjoy the experience, I noticed it was late in the evening, and I should head home before they got tired and sleepy. As I was preparing to pull the anchor in, I heard a sudden splash behind me. I turned around and found Joshua had fallen off the canoe! I had made the mistake of not putting life jackets on us. Josh went straight down into the water.I dashed in after him without explaining to Jared what had happened. I caught Josh by the arm and was pulling him up to the surface when, to my horror, I saw another splash directly over my head. My four-year old son, Jared, also sunk into the water—what a terrifying moment.We’re all going die!” I thought.
Frantically, I grabbed Jared with my left arm and Josh was on the other, then joggled my legs as hard as I could to the surface. Struggling under these circumstances, my legs began to cramp, and I was about to sink with the boys in my arms. But like young Joseph Smith, who was seized upon by some powers and called upon God to deliver him from the power of his enemy4, I also called upon God to deliver us from the dooming power of the ocean.
Thankfully and miraculously, the Lord came to our rescue. My boys, who could barely swim at the time, started acting like extraordinary swimmers. They moved their arms and legs in such a fashion which pushed us to the surface so we could all catch our breath. All of this happened within seconds. But our struggle was not over yet. We discovered upon reaching the surface that our canoe had drifted a few meters away. With feeble legs and two boys in my arms, a few meters seemed to be an unbearable distance for us. Would we make it there? I cried. However, through constant effort and prayer, we finally reached our canoe, and with gratitude, we thanked God for saving our lives.
My purpose in sharing this personal story is to testify of God’s incredible love and unimaginable power to liberate from bondage those who put their trust and exercise faith in Him5. Faith is the access to God’s power and blessings. President Russell M. Nelson said, “Faith in Jesus Christ is the greatest power available to us in this life. All things are possible to them that believe.”6
Through His exemplary life and atoning sacrifice, the Lord has provided the way for us to receive eternal life through our obedience to sacred ordinances and covenants. As He declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”7