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Mar 2007 Issue
by Andrea Lauritzen
And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.” (3 Nephi 9:20). So the Savior commanded those who wanted to come unto Him. This is the sacrifice we are to offer the Lord.
A broken heart hurts, but we know that the Savior “descended below all things,” so He has felt it too. He was unafraid of the pain of this life, and He asked us to become like Him.
Yet, we live in a world where people are afraid of pain. We pop an ever-expanding array of pills to dull every ache, be it physical, emotional or spiritual.
There are times when drugs are necessary. However, as a society we tend to drug ourselves instead of going to the Savior, offering our broken hearts, and asking for His peace.
By dulling the pain we simply postpone the healing of it. Thus, our hurts remain unhealed.
We must feel before we can heal and often this can be a painful process.
A friend explained to me that when we work a muscle it actually tears the tissue. The body then builds scar tissue which makes the muscle bigger and stronger. Our physical and spiritual hearts need a good workout to become strong. God allows life’s trials to give us a workout so we can be strengthened and gain compassion.
The Savior has compassion for us because of his unique understanding of our feelings. He has felt them himself. We gain compassion for others when we go through similar experiences or because we have suffered some trauma or grief. It makes our hearts strong, but compassionate.
Have you ever noticed that the people who have the biggest hearts, the strongest spirits, and the most empathetic feelings are those who have suffered the deepest hurts? Like the Savior, they understand because they’ve been there.
So, embrace the pain, then take it to the Savior. He will give you rest.
