Will You Stand With Me?
Will You Stand With Me?
by Kathy Penrod
Sometimes being a disciple of Christ is difficult. Not difficult in the sense that it's too hard and you don't want to do it, but difficult in the sense that sometimes it can be a lonely place to be. And while God will never leave you alone, it is still difficult to listen to people flippantly refer to your beliefs as simpleminded or preposterous. Sometimes, you are just mocked, bullied and belittled.
Even with the intermittent difficulties of being a disciple of Christ, nothing can replace the thrill and joy that comes from standing up for Jesus Christ.
We have done it before, you know. In the pre earth life, when we were given the choice to follow Jehovah or Lucifer, we all chose Jehovah, the Savior of us all. The evidence of that is that we are here on earth.
Since then, humankind has had the chance to make that choice over and over. The scriptures record so many examples; Adam, Moses, Daniel, Isaiah, Job, Peter, Stephen, John the revelator, Nephi, Abinidi, Alma, Amulek, Joseph Smith and every living Apostle and Prophet we have today... These are just a fraction of those recorded that have given their life to stand up for Jesus Christ.
But what about all the ones we don't know about? What about your neighbor down the street? What about the clerk at the gas station? What about you?
Christians throughout the world are given daily chances to stand up for Jesus Christ. When we embrace a child, fraught with fear, and offer our love, we are standing for Christ because that is what He would have done. When we choose to follow the commandments, be kind and withhold unrighteous judgment, we are standing for Christ. When we live to be the best we can, we are standing for Christ. When we stay true to the sacred priesthood covenants we have made, we are standing for Christ.
The thing is, sometimes, we don't recognize that while we may be standing for Christ, many, many others are doing the same thing.
We recently had a massive, late spring snowstorm. Over 2 feet of snow in 36 hours. My 9 year old daughter said, "Mom, can you believe that all this snow is just a bunch of tiny little snowflakes?” She looked around in awe, and then continued, “Each one is so small but look how much snow there is. There must be so many snowflakes."
I have thought on this little lesson she taught me. So many little individual snowflakes create a glorious blanket of snow over the entire landscape. Can you imagine, if we stand together as Christians, defending Christ, the impact we would have? Like tiny little snowflakes, gathering together on my tree branches, we would make a significant impact- together.
What does following Christ and standing for Christ look like to you? How will you act as a devoted disciple of the Savior? What choices will you make? For me, it means hugging my children more, serving my husband and family more devotedly, reading the scriptures daily, and taking every possible opportunity to declare His goodness.
So, will you stand with me? Will you testify and defend Jesus Christ? As we gather as Christians everywhere and say, "Praise God for redeeming us through the blood of His Lamb!" We will be as a million snowflakes, with the power to change the landscape of the world, standing for Christ.
Anyone can sit back and watch this crazy world plummet past in chaos. It takes someone stronger to stand for Jesus Christ and make a difference.
Will you stand?
