All my life, I have been taught to close my prayers in Jesus’ name.  If you have learned the same thing, have you ever wondered why that is?  I’d like to share with you some personal insight that I’ve recently had.

This is a shorter post today, and I pray that you can read it in the same spirit that it’s given in.  It’s hard for me to write on things so sacred and dear to my heart because sometimes there are just no words to describe how I feel.

Nonetheless, this is something that I want to share, so I’ll do my best to convey my message.

I think it’s more well known that one reason we end our prayers in Jesus’ name is because we have taken His name upon us at baptism, and therefore what we say in our prayers ought to reflect what He Himself would say.

Elder Bednar recalls the story of Nephi asking for the strength to burst his bands, instead of merely asking God to take them off.

Instead of asking God to change our circumstances, I see that it is more in line with Jesus’ name to ask Him to give us the strength to either change or deal with our circumstances.

That is something I learned long ago, and over the past several months, I have had an additional take on praying in Jesus’ name.

It started when my mother-in-law shared a video around Easter time, titled “The Awful Arithmetic of the Atonement”.  It is a long video, and I wasn’t sure if I’d get around to watching it, but after hearing what others had to say about it, I decided I’d better make time for it.

And I’ll be forever grateful that I did.

Not only were my eyes opened, but my heart and understanding as well.  I was changed forever in the way I view Jesus Christ and His atonement for you and I. 

I gained an unspeakable reverence for what He did for me, and I feel deeply and tenderly loved by Him.

To say the least, I came to know that He see’s all of us.  And I don’t mean that in the plural sense… I’m saying He see’s “all of me”.  And “all of you”.

He knows our pains and our struggles –which is not news to any of us, but it took on a whole new meaning for me.

Because He knows all the hurt inside of us, He completely understands why we make the choices that we do.

He sees the pain behind our anger.

He sees the broken heart that led to closing the door on Him.

He is aware of our lack of knowledge and understanding for things.

He knows every experience you have had that has molded who you are today.

He sees you. 

Every part of you. 

He is your advocate because He gets it.

He is the only one who can plead for you because He has lived through everything you’ve gone through.

Same for me.

And I can’t help but think that when I pray in His name…

He is there… offering my prayer to Heavenly Father…

…telling Him that this is all I know, this is where I’m at in life, and asking Him to accept my words and answer my prayer.

When I say a blessing on the food –the nutrient deficient food that I’ve put on the table for my family… when I ask Heavenly Father to bless the cereal or mac and cheese so that it will give our bodies nourishment and strength… I have recently felt very sheepish asking such a thing when I haven’t exactly “done my part” in preparing a healthy meal.

And this is where I’ve noticed myself pausing at the end of my prayer… while ending it in Jesus’ name… because He knows how it is to be me…

He understands where I’m at, why I buy shelf-stable food, and how hard it is for me to “eat clean” 100% of the time.

There are reasons why I do what I do.  And even if I can’t put my finger on it every time, He can.  He knows.  He gets it.

He knows I’m trying to provide healthier foods for my family, and He doesn’t expect me to automatically jump to somewhere where I’m not.  It takes time to grow and progress, and I feel like He can see all of my journey, and therefore can plead my case as acceptable.

Can He say, “Father, she’s only on the verge of truly understanding the importance of clean eating.  The effort that it took her to stop what she was doing and go boil some water to make ramen noodles is more significant than it looks.  Please give her and her family the nourishment she asked for at this time, while she continues to try to do better.”…?

I know that sounds silly, and I don’t mean for it to be so.  In all serious reverence, that is what I imagine.  That is a real true scenario for myself. 

I don’t have any scriptures to back this idea up, other than everything I have been taught about Jesus and the atonement, which is that He makes up the difference for our imperfections.

Where we lack, He picks up the rest.

We can be perfect in and through Him.

Does the atonement not cover every aspect of our lives?  Then why not all the daily little things that we do?

He knows you are not perfect, and He will make up the difference if you ask.

I hope you are picking up what I’m putting down, and that I’ve spoken clearly enough for you to do so.

Again, I do not propose this as doctrine, and I encourage you to ponder and pray on this yourself to receive personal insight on the matter.

I do though, know that Jesus indeed treasures you.

You are so special and important to Him.

I believe He sincerely loves and accepts you as you are.

And so do I.

Sending my love.

Have a great week!

Kayleen

SDG

God loves you.  Do you love you?  If you’d like some help in that area, I’m happy to share these 2 posts:

3 Steps to Fully Loving Yourself and Stop Telling Yourself That You’re Enough