Growing up, I loved snuggling next to my mom and hearing bedtime stories. Stories about pigs building houses out of sticks only to have them blown down by a big bad wolf; or about a beautiful damsel in distress being rescued by a handsome prince and living happily ever after. Of all the stories I was told, one sticks out as the greatest. This story is wonderful for many reasons but one of the reasons it’s the greatest, is because it isn’t a made-up fairy tale; but a true story of a man named Jesus Christ who walked this earth.
During his life, Christ did many, many amazing things. He cured disease, He loved unconditionally, and ultimately He atoned for all of our sins and for all the injustices in the world, so that we could one day return to our Heavenly Father. Because of Him, the outcast were cured of leprosy, the blind received sight, and the lame were able to walk. Because of Him, many people; children, the elderly, the sinner, poor; felt loved and valued. He cared for each person on a very individual level, loved unconditionally, and taught us to do the same. And because of Him, and His glorious atonement, everyone has the opportunity to be cleansed of their sins and have the promise that regardless of what they face in this life, they will never be alone; for Christ truly experienced all of the pain and sorrow that any of us will ever go through.
Although Christ lived a perfect life, not everyone recognized His divinity. Men, fearing His power, and angry at His claims of being the Son of God, sought to take away His life and had Him crucified. I have often pondered how dreadful the day of His crucifixion must have been. As Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin described, “On that terrible Friday the earth shook and grew dark. Frightful storms lashed at the earth. Those evil men who sought His life rejoiced. Now that Jesus was no more, surely those who followed Him would disperse. On that day those men stood triumphant. On that day the veil of the temple was rent in twain. Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of Jesus, were both overcome with grief and despair. The superb man they had loved and honored hung lifeless upon the cross.
On that Friday the Apostles were devastated. Jesus, their Savior—the man who had walked on water and raised the dead—was Himself at the mercy of wicked men. They watched helplessly as He was overcome by His enemies. On that Friday the Savior of mankind was humiliated and bruised, abused and reviled. It was a Friday filled with devastating, consuming sorrow that gnawed at the souls of those who loved and honored the Son of God. I think that of all the days since the beginning of this world’s history, that Friday was the darkest.”
Just as Christ’s disciples faced a time of doubt, fear, sadness, and despair we too, at times, will experience these emotions. As Elder Wirthlin explained, “Each of us will have our own Fridays—those days when the universe itself seems shattered and the shards of our world lie littered about us in pieces. We all will experience those broken times when it seems we can never be put together again. We will all have our Fridays.” But even in those times of grief and fear, we can take comfort in knowing that because of Christ’s atonement, we are not alone in our trials. As Alma 7:11-12 teach, “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.” Because of Christ’s infinite atonement, He knows exactly what we are experiencing and He knows best how to help us, and He will help us in these trying Fridays.
This past summer, I experienced my own Friday of sorts. Because of my school program, I was required to move to a small town in northern Utah, to complete a rural clinical rotation. I had moved into a complex where I knew no one, and unfortunately it was a bad environment where no one talked or socialized with one another. In the months leading up to my moving to this town, I had been sick and so just before I moved, I had finally gone to a physician. Being the naive and at times over confident student that I am, I had self-diagnosed my problem as non-threatening and so I was shocked when at my appointment a large tumor was discovered. So, at the time that I had moved away to this lonely place, I was awaiting biopsy results to learn if the mass that had been growing within me was cancerous.
During this time, a relationship that I loved and cherished also began to end and as a result I felt even more lonely.
For days, I assured all of my friends and family back in Salt Lake that I was happy, and that life was just fabulous. No one knew about my failing relationship, how lonely I felt, and very few people knew I was awaiting the results of a biopsy. But each night, after another long day of rotations, tears would stream down my face as I cried in prayer to my Heavenly Father pleading for comfort during my time of fear and asking that I would feel less alone. I remember one particularly bad night where I was afraid of what my future held and filled with a deep sense of loneliness. As I prayed, I distinctly remember saying, “Heavenly Father, I feel so alone and so afraid, I don’t know how I can go on. If you could just send someone to me in my day tomorrow, I know I’ll be okay.”
The next day, while I was on rotation, a friend of mine from Salt Lake, decided to take the day off of work and drove up to see me and spend the evening with me. This friend had no idea of what I was currently experiencing, and I know she was sent to me in my time of need. When this unexpected friend suddenly appeared, I knew that Heavenly Father was aware of me, and that Christ really did know exactly what I was feeling and knew exactly what I needed and sent someone to fulfill that need. In our Fridays of despair, Christ really is standing by our side and will help us.
If Christ’s story had ended that Friday on the cross, there would be no reason for us to be here today. But, that Friday didn’t last forever. As Elder Wirthlin explained, “The despair did not linger because on Sunday, the resurrected Lord burst the bonds of death. He ascended from the grave and appeared gloriously triumphant as the Savior of all mankind. And in an instant the eyes that had been filled with ever-flowing tears dried. The lips that had whispered prayers of distress and grief now filled the air with wondrous praise, for Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God, stood before them as the firstfruits of the Resurrection, the proof that death is merely the beginning of a new and wondrous existence.” Christ’s resurrection teaches us that there is always a reason for hope.
Because of Christ’s resurrection, we too can have hope that even death will not conquer us. For the day will come, when our spirits will once again be reunited with our perfected bodies. Can you imagine that? The day will come when we will not experience pain or sickness. The day will come when loved ones who we have lost to illness or injury will come back in a state much greater than the state they left in. What a beautiful promise.
But, Christ’s resurrection has an even deeper meaning than conquering death. Christ’s resurrection brought an end to the tears, distress, and grief of Mary and his apostles; and gives us hope that one day there will be an end to all of our tears, distress, and grief. The resurrection of Christ teaches us that all of Heavenly Father’s promises will be fulfilled. Regardless of what heartaches, trials, and pains we may experience in this life… the time will come when all of Heavenly Father’s promises will be fulfilled and everything will be made right. The message that Christ’s resurrection gives to each of us is a message of hope, there is no reason for us to fear. Christ has the power to make all things right, and He will. After the terrible Friday, comes the glorious Sunday.
I testify that Christ did rise up on the third day, and that His resurrection is not a fable. He is living today, and because of His resurrection, there is a reason for all of us to have hope in all things. Regardless of how terrible the Fridays we experience will be, whether they are physical, mental, emotional or even spiritual, eventually, Sunday will come and Christ will make everything right.