"Behold thy mother" (John 19:27) - May 2, 2022

Spiritual Thought 

The scriptures record five phrases spoken by the Savior as he endured the agony of his crucifixion.  These statements were uttered by the Master from the cross itself as he completed his mortal mission.  Perhaps there is no better sermon on forgiveness than the simple sentence spoken by the Redeemer on Calvary: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."  Our hearts are comforted, even as we shed a tear of sorrow, to know we are not the first to feel abandoned as we ponder on the pitiful cry "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?".  However, there is one phrase which I fear is too often forgotten or overlooked.  Shortly before offering up His spirit the Savior looked at the small group of disciples gathered at the foot of the cross.  As he looked into their faces and saw the agony they were experiencing as they beheld such a grisly scene there was one face which I am confident drew his attention in a special way: His mother.  In this moment he certainly viewed her suffering as the Savior of the World.  However, I am confident this particular tear-stained face pricked his heart in a different way, as a son looking upon his grieving mother.  Even as his body shuddered in pain and he prepared for his imminent death his memory must have lingered, even briefly, in past moments spent with his mother Mary.  I wonder if thoughts of childhood games and bedtime stories with this woman crossed his mind.  I wonder if he remembered this elect lady, the one entrusted by His Heavenly Father Himself, teaching Him how to pray, how to communicate with the Father to whom he would shortly be reunited.  I wonder if he thought of the guiding and direction she had given to him as he grew into manhood.  I am confident he must have repeated a cry offered the evening before, but this time it was not uttered for Himself.  Surely he must have said something similar to "Father if it be possible, let this cup pass from her".  As these thoughts filled his mind he spoke to John, the Beloved Apostle, and gave this man an Apostolic responsibility.  Speaking to his disciple he said simply: "Behold thy mother".  Of the multitude of directives he could have given one of his Special Witnesses from the cross itself, this is what he felt was most important.  To ensure that his mother was cared for, comforted, and protected.  I am confident this command was not simply to feed and clothe Mary, but to console and reassure her as she dealt with the ordeal of watching her son be crucified.  

As we prepare to celebrate our own mothers in a special way this week my I extend the words of the Savior as an invitation to each of us: "Behold thy mother".  May we gain a greater appreciation for all our earthly mothers have done and continue to do for us.  Not the least of these blessings is the gift of mortal life itself.  Prophets have taught that nothing comes closer to approximating the divine love of the Savior than that of a mother for her child.  May I ask that we emulate the love our Savior had for his mother then that we demonstrate such a love to our own mothers.  That we may do so is my sincere prayer.

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Weekly Update 

Hello everyone,

This was definitely a good week to end another transfer with.  On Wednesday we were able to have another lesson with Edgar and his mom, Erica.  Edgar is still planning on being baptized this Saturday and we are very excited for that.  During the lesson we ended up talking with Erica more than Edgar.  She has been looking for the truth her entire adult life and has been to many different churches to try and find it.  All of these have left her feeling like there was something missing.  After we read Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision Erica became very emotional and said "I feel like I have found what the other churches do not have: a feeling of peace that is hard to describe.  It feels like there is a light inside of me when you talk about these things."  Talking to Erica about what she was noticing in the lesson was one of the most memorable and testimony strengthening moments of my mission so far.  We mentioned to Erica that after Edgar receives the priesthood he could baptize her.  She was very excited about that.  We are excited to see both Edgar and Erica progress.

Aside from Edgar and Erica a large part of our teaching pool decided to either get sick or go visit family in Mexico for Cinco de Mayo.  Speaking of Cinco de Mayo, I have been practicing my Mexican dancing in preparation.  Don't worry, it's been in private but I'm excited to be la vida de la fiesta at all post-mission Latino parties.  I told somebody in our ward that I'm practicing and now he calls me bailarista (dancer) because of it.

The transfer news is that I am changing areas and companions again.  I will be in the Kaysville Spanish ward and my new companion is Elder Underwood.  My goal has been to have a new companion at least every transfer and I have now made it all the way to my year mark doing so.  This is my eighth transfer and Elder Underwood is my tenth companion.  I'm excited for another transfer to tell all of you about! 

I hope you all have a great week!

Elder Payne

Pictures

Sorry, there aren't very many this week.  I'll do better next time.

Remember how I told you Elder Allen doesn't like having pictures taken of him?  Well, I've made it my quest to get pictures of him this transfer.  Apparently he is not only okay with being in pictures but will sit and pose if you tell him to do his best Justin Bieber impersonation.  We were at the chapel making some phone calls and I told him to look like Justin Bieber.  Then he posed for a whole photo shoot.  I don't know!

One of the people we are teaching has some puppies.  They look cute but I wish their parents would stop barking every time we go over.  They're about to get drop kicked.

We had a pretty big rainstorm yesterday and there were snails everywhere.  I kid you not, there were probably several thousand on the sidewalks.

I found this amazing picture.  Weird, but kind of funny!