Throughout the holy scriptures, and even in nature and in our history, we can find examples of love and sacrifice, writes Tamatoa Jonassen of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

There is a poem titled “Footprints in the Sand” that helps us reflect on our relationship with our Saviour:

One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
“Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You’d walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don’t understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me.”

He whispered, “My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you.”

As we strive to follow the Saviour and apply His teachings in our lives, we are striving to “walk with the Lord”.

His saving power will carry us through the important challenges we may face in life.

On the island of Aitutaki we also have a story about footprints in the legend of One Foot Island. While a father and son were being chased by warriors, the father had his son run in front of him. The father then followed his son and stepped on his son’s footprints so the warriors only saw one set of footprints rather than two. Hiding his son up a tree, the father’s footprints led the warriors away ensuring the son would survive. The legend of One Foot Island tells a story of a father’s love and sacrifice that is symbolised by footprints, the very island being in the shape of a foot.

Throughout the holy scriptures, and even in nature and in our history, we can find examples of love and sacrifice.

However, the ultimate love and sacrifice was the everlasting atonement of our Saviour Jesus Christ. As He submitted His will to God and took upon Himself mankind’s sins and transgressions, satisfying the demands of divine justice, He bled from every pore in the Garden of Gethsemane. As He was crucified, nailed to the cross, he broke the bonds of death and completed His mortal ministry. Through His divine gift of the atonement, we can all overcome physical and spiritual death, and we can be healed and made whole. The print of the nails in His hands and feet are testaments of His love for us.

Let us all strive to always remember our Savior and have His love imprinted in our hearts. By doing so, may the footprints we make in our own life’s journey emulate the saving grace of our Lord. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen