But, why do we NEED a Savior?

     Jesus said once (or maybe more than that), "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (St John 8:12, King James Version). He told us, "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (verse 36). He taught us that, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me" (St John 10:27).
     This year I had a an institute teacher who taught us that there will be times in our lives when everyone will seem to let us down, when everything seems to go wrong, when we feel so alone, when we wonder if we even have a friend. "...You do. You absolutely do."

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     In Relief Society this week, we were taught about Christ - that He is the way. "A prominent theme in President Howard W. Hunter’s teachings," and I'm pulling this straight from the lesson, "is that true peace, healing, and happiness come only as a person strives to know and follow Jesus Christ. President Hunter taught that 'Christ’s way is not only the right way, but ultimately the only way to hope and joy.'"

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     I think I'm really starting to learn what Christ meant in Matthew 11:28-30 when he said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." He's not asking us to let him take our yokes. Why did I ever read it that way? He is not saying, "Take a break, I got this." That has never, ever been the plan. This life isn't for breaks. Which is so, so overwhelming for me sometimes. That time doesn't slow down, and life doesn't stop for me to catch my breath.

     All growing up, my parents have been runners. My mom would run 5ks and half marathons. Or she'd just be in running groups and go out a few nights a week with "the ladies" on runs. My dad ran half marathons and full marathons. One time he was running in a marathon and collapsed like 100 yards away from the finish line. He tried getting back up but just fell again. So, he crawled his way to the end. Hard core, man.
     I've never been that into running. Like, ever. I think you're crazy if you just enjoy running naturally without forcing yourself to do it until you're good. But, because my parents always ran, I still grew up knowing that running is a good way to stay in shape, and its a good skill and hobby to have. So sometimes, when I really pull my life together and have the motivation, I'll start trying to run again. Right now, for instance. I've been going on runs every day. Short ones. Maybe a mile and a half, tops. But because I'm not a real runner yet, and because I don't do it regularly enough throughout the year, when I run, I run for about five minutes, and then I have to slow down and jog, or walk. Sometimes, when it hurts enough, and when I get those awful, unavoidable cramps under my ribs, I have to stop all together and take a water break before I get get back up and run again.
     Then, unintentionally, I end up convincing myself that I can stop and take breaks when things get hard. That I can back things up, and slow things down a little, and then maybe later I'll try again. But that's just wrong. Christ said, "I will give you rest," but right afterwards, he follows up by saying, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me. ...For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." He's telling us that when we learn of him, and follow him, and do his work, our souls will find rest. Rejuvenation, peace, but NOT water breaks.

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     So yes, Christ gives us all this. He gives us hope, he give us joy, he gives us peace. But why do you need that? Why should you have to give up all of yourself for him? Why can't we do it on our own?
     I mean, there's the obvious reason. Without Jesus being born to this earth, without his life, his atonement, his sacrifice, his resurrection, we literally cannot be restored with our bodies again, and we cannot live with our Heavenly Father again. So we need him for at least that. But I can't accept that that is the only reason he is called our Savior and Redeemer.

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      I live right on the side of the mountain in Logan, Utah. It's the highest elevation I think I've ever lived. And before I moved here, I was SO pumped about hikes and rock climbing and all that jazz. Because I had done all of it back east, I really, really planned on doing it a ton when I moved to the mountains. I thought I was ready. ...I was not. I was so far from ready it's hilarious. I registered for this class that took place the week before school started. We learned better studying habits, we learned what the university offers, we learned how to budget and all these things that would help us in our further education, as they like to call it. One of the days, my class took a hike up this trail in the canyon. At the top, there are caves commonly known as the wind caves. They're breathtakingly beautiful, and the view is fantastic. Or so I've heard. I never actually got to the top. We started the hike out, and I had the right clothes and shoes and I had water and my hair tied back. I was ready. I had even spent the summer running and working out so that I could be in better shape for these kinds of activities. But after five minutes of walking up the steep mountainside (what is with me and five minutes??), I was just really struggling to keep pushing. I wasn't used to the elevation. I had already run out of water - it was so dry. We went in the middle of the day when the sun was beating down on us like crazy. My legs were weaker than I had expected, and halfway up, I sat in the shade for a couple minutes to catch my breath and rest my already sore feet. It dawned on me that I was not even close to being prepared to hike this mountain, and that I wouldn't be able to make it all the way up. I was already behind almost everyone in the class. I ended up slowly making my way back down, tripping and falling a few times and getting a few cuts and bruises. What was a wonderful memory of hard work and then incredible reward for everyone else ended up being a shameful memory of weakness and regret for me.
     In the past months since that experience, I've looked back on it a lot. Why didn't I just push myself harder? It would have been worth it in the end! Why didn't I realize that it would be hot and dry? Why didn't I think to consider the elevation when training that summer? Why wasn't I more prepared? And how, how in the world, did I let myself turn around and walk back down the mountain without even giving it one more shot?
     In Alma 7:12 in the Book of Mormon, we're taught that "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."

That means that every time we mess up, he will know the regret we feel, he will know the sadness, the pain, and the remorse for our mistakes. But further than that, he took upon him our infirmities, our little flaws and weaknesses. Jesus Christ, and only he, can fill in the gaps of infirmities in us. He can enable us to do more than we can do on our own. In the Bible Dictionary, under the word "grace" it says this: "It is through the grace of the Lord Jesus, made possible by His atoning sacrifice, that mankind will be raised in immortality, every person receiving his body from the grave in a condition of everlasting life. It is likewise through the grace of the Lord that individuals, through faith in the Atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance of their sins, receive strength and assistance to do good works that they otherwise would not be able to maintain if left to their own means. This grace is an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts."
     Because of this enabling power, when our feet get tired of pushing further, when our legs are weak, when our throats are dry and our heads are pounding, when we think we can't go any further up that mountain without collapsing, we do not have to go alone. We don't have to sorrowfully stop and turn around. We don't have to keep falling, we don't have to feel hopeless or tired. We don't have to miss out on the wind caves at the top. We don't have to lose the chance to overcome. And let's be real - the reward of enduring this life faithfully will be so much greater than any view or cave on a mountain in Utah.

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"Why do I need Christ? This is a question that I just feel like I can’t put justice to. I have nowhere to start, but I do know that the hymn Be Still My Soul is the first thing that came to mind. This is my very favorite hymn, because it has helped me continue through some very hard times. Times I have struggled with my testimony, times when I have felt alone, times that I have felt stressed. I need my Savior, my Redeemer, my dear brother Jesus Christ because he gives me hope that I can endure and that I can return to him and my Heavenly Father. He is on my side, and helps bares the burdens that I have. He will never leave us, and if we rely on him we will find a joyful end. I need Christ because he gives me hope." -Bryanna

"Christ gives us something to hope for and work towards. Without Him, with no resurrection, with no life after death, we only have this life and everything it can give to us. That just seems like a waste, doesn't it? Of course there are things that are important in this life, but without Him, what's the most we could hope for? To live like a celebrity? No, we need Christ so that we can have hope of eternal families and of renewal and rebirth. We need Him so we can have hope every day that we are working towards something that is worth it." -Wade

"We need a Savior to have true and everlasting happiness and peace. To be able to live in eternal families in the celestial kingdom in the presence of our Heavenly Father. And to allow us to repent and be unspotted before him." - Chase

"We need Jesus Christ because we are imperfect beings who make lots of mistakes. We can never reach our full potential by ourselves. With Jesus Christ we can feel peace, love, and true happiness. We can understand who we are and why we are here. We need Jesus Christ to help us imperfect beings become more perfect through him. We need him in order to be able to feel peace again when we mess up. Jesus Christ enables us to try again and again and again. Because without him we would never be enough, we would never know true happiness, we would have no light. Jesus is the reason that there is hope and love in the world. He is the greatest person who will ever live. And he is ultimately who we are trying to become like." -Katie

"The main answer is that there are two obstacles standing in our way from us returning to our Heavenly Father. They are death and sin. We cannot overcome these alone and NEED a Savior / Redeemer to overcome them for us. Then with us choosing to use His help, He can help us overcome them both. But the personal answer for me is that we are mortal. Each day we fall short of God's perfection and thus fall short of the possibility of being in His presence. Through the Atonement of Christ daily He can cleanse us of these mistakes and sins. Each day through His Atonement we can be lifted up, feel our burdens made light, feel hope to try harder the next day, and know that there was One that went before us who overcame it all. Life without Christ is filled with darkness and confusion. There is no purpose and no hope of eternal life. With Christ we are filled with light, we know who we are and what we can become. We have greater strength to resist temptation and give more because He is by our side. Without Him we have no advocate pleading our cause, no one to wipe away our tears. With Him we have solace, comfort, and the ability to confront and overcome any challenge that comes in our path. In summary, without Him we have nothing; with Him we have everything that matters most." -Justin

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     So, why do we need a Savior? Because although our physical bodies can survive a lifetime without Jesus Christ, that won't be enough to sustain our souls. Just like my body every once in a while needs a good bowl of ice-cream or a piece of Dove chocolate to feel okay, my soul too needs a little hope sometimes, a little peace, a little forgiveness, a little light and direction. Because without Him, we would never be enough. That's why we need a Savior.
     I can't make it without Him. I can't make it a day, let alone a life time without Christ. I have too many insecurities, too many bad habits, too many fears, too many worries, too many trials. Too many flaws, weaknesses, tears, temptations, lusts. Too many shortcomings, too many pains, and too many afflictions.

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     We will always need a Savior. We will always owe him more than we can give, we will always need his strength and we will always need him as an advocate. We will always need his Atonement, we will always need his example. And we will always, always need his love.
     President Howard W. Hunter declared, "We must know Christ better than we know him; we must remember him more often than we remember him; we must serve him more valiantly than we serve him."
     May we open the door a little more each day to let him into our lives. May we search for him in our darkest moments, and in our brightest moments may we walk with him. May we remember that though at times we will feel alone and forgotten, and wonder if we have anyone there to help us, "...You do. You absolutely do."

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     1 Nephi 13:37 (Book of Mormon):

"...and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be."