Sabbath Devotional: Plenteous Redemption

Earlier this week during an offboarding conversation with an intern, I was asked a question about what strategies or perspectives help me continue doing work that can often be depleting and demoralizing. My answer was simple — I believe in redemption.

I sincerely believe that there is a powerful redemptive force at work in the world. That force, in all its many manifestations and forms, emanates from one source: Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice. I believe that this power was set in motion by a loving God, and that ultimately it will triumph over the forces of decay and destruction.

Redemption is a promise that ultimately all will be well. It is a power that compensates for loss, makes whole, repairs what is broken and will mete justice while extending mercy. It allows for us to change and transform as individuals, protecting us from becoming our worst mistakes. Ultimately it exists to bring us into fellowship with one another and into the presence of God.

My guess is that there are many people who would argue that they don’t see much evidence of this power at work in the world today, and I understand from lived experience why that might be the case. It is easy to see redemption as absolute — full relief that we either experience now or will experience at some distant future point. Like many of you, I have sometimes pleaded earnestly to be saved from pressing sorrow, asking God to manifest redemption by vanishing a burden or offering miraculous healing. At other times I have stoically soldiered forward believing in a redemption after this life, determined to endure to the bitter end.

But are these the only ways redemption comes? My experience on this earth has taught me that experiences of immediate and comprehensive salvation are rare. And in the face of deep sorrow and pain, a redemptive future can feel demoralizingly out of reach. So, I want to share how I am actively experiencing redemption in a fallen world, while facing seemingly intractable problems, during one of the most difficult periods of my life.

First, I am feeling redemption though lighter burdens and a stronger back. In Mosiah 24 we read the story of the people of Alma and their experience of captivity. Their suffering was real and tortuous, and wicked individuals taking part in corrupt systems were making their lives miserable. They prayed both publicly and in their hearts for any measure of relief.

God came to them in their affliction and promised escape but offered no timeline. In the moment he only promised to “ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs. . . and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.” (v. 14)

Prayers for total relief can be complicated for me, because I don’t always know with a surety how to exercise faith while leaving room for God’s will. And sometimes I already know in my heart that a given struggle will not be removed. But prayers for an eased burden and a stronger back? When asked in faith? These come freely and are being answered in ways I cannot deny. God has visited me in my afflictions and made them bearable — redemptive power is at work in my ability to carry impossible burdens on behalf of myself and others.

Another way that I experience Christ's redemptive power is through the gift of the Atonement. In Alma chapter 7 we read a remarkable narration of the breadth and depth of the ability God has to relive our sufferings. I have long loved this chapter because it articulates so beautifully the expansiveness of the Atonement — it is available to ease not just our sins, but every pain associated with our mortal experience. It witnesses that “the Redeemer liveth and cometh among his people.” (v.7)

So, what does that redemption look like for me right now? Some of my burdens are external to me, but others are OF me. And those are often the most crippling. The world seems to be ordered right now in a way that brings before us all of our imperfections. When things go wrong, even if they are not entirely (or at all) my fault, I nonetheless often feel that my mistakes, limitations, imperfections and ineptitudes compound the misery for myself and others. This can often lead to paralysis and regret in moments that require courage and hope.

As I turn to the Atonement to manage these feelings, I find that unlike other burdens, these are often completely lifted. I feel a sense that my imperfect offerings are sufficient and that my sacrifices are acceptable. Crippling self-doubt is replaced with confidence and the inspiration of the Spirit. Redemption is manifest as healing of my errors and magnification of my efforts.

Finally, I have felt the extraordinary blessing of redemption through the engagement and care of others. We all are familiar with Spencer W Kimball’s reminder that, “God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs.” It is a simple reminder that we are to be God’s hands in the world. But I also love the words of that speech that came after: “Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom. The people of the Church need each other’s strength, support, and leadership in a community of believers as an enclave of disciples.”

An enclave is a place where people of a distinct character and culture gather to take refuge. By coming together, a community of saints and disciples can grant to each other now, some of the blessings that will come later when we live in the presence of God. And this is the third way that I am feeling the force of redemption running through my life. It is being offered to me by other saints — disciples seeking to save, protect, redress and recompense.

Counterintuitively, there have also been deeply satisfying moments of joy in which in spite of my extremities, I have also had the opportunity to offer physical and emotional relief to others. This too is redemptive and has been a reminder that I am not just a passive victim of the forces arrayed against me, but that I can utilize the capacities given me through covenant and connection to heal and mend. In a community of disciples, I am more empowered to practice receiving and offering redemption.

Today I just want to share my witness that the power of redemption is real. It is supernal, and it cannot be overthrown by the forces of this world. Jesus Christ is the source of this power and as his disciples we have the right and ability to draw upon it as we seek to bring hope and peace to ourselves and his children.

Redemption is not just a far away promise. It can be experienced now and in unexpected ways. I sing with the Psalmist: “Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. (130:7)

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Jennifer Walker Thomas is a co-executive director at Mormon Women for Ethical Government.