The Atonoment of Christ as Illuminated by My Mother

For Mothers Day, a few thoughts about my own dear Mother and the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

There is truly no one else in this world who shares my joys and my pains like my mother. During my hardest struggles, she cries with me. At my greatest successes, she rejoices with me. Sometimes I have wondered if certain trials I've faced have been even harder for her than for me. I know she rejoices right along with me as I follow Heavenly Father through my life and make good choices and taste the happy fruit of those choices. She knows what I've experienced throughout my life and how those experiences have shaped me into who I am.  She understands how I think. She loves me, and she "gets" me. I can not adequately express how much this means to me. While, on one hand, I don't like that she ever experiences pain over me, that is outweighed by how sweet and wonderful and comforting it is to know that there is someone who loves me and knows me so well.  I am never alone. I can always count on her prayers. I can always count on her being right there with me through thick and thin.  It is so comforting to be able to talk to her and know she not only really, really cares, but really understands too. I don't have words to express how grateful I am for my mother's love and caring, and the wonderful relationship we have.

Now here is the truly amazing thing. In the above paragraph, you could take out the word "mother" and replace it with "Savior," and it would be just as true. There is actually someone who knows me, loves me, and understands my joys and sorrows even better than my mother does. Thats amazing in itself. And He doesn't just understand how I feel because he knows me. He understands how I feel because He has felt it himself, in the exact context of how I feel it, in the same way that I feel it (see Alma 7:11-12). I can't really fathom the kind of love my mother has for me, and He actually has more!

How thankful I am for my amazing mother.  Her love for me is not only a blessing in itself, but it  illuminates my relationship with my Savior and His love for me. Many, many thanks to my amazing mother, and many thanks to my amazing Savior, Redeemer, and friend.