One Grain of Sand
Recently I was asked to write a message to my ward, the Huntington Beach Mid-Singles Ward. As I thought about what I might share, something from one of my walks along the beach came to mind.
I’m grateful to be part of the Huntington Beach Mid-Singles Ward with so many wonderful people. As most of you know, I recently moved into Dan Harker’s home by the sea, and one of the blessings of living here is being able to take a daily walk down to the beach for a few minutes to unwind, swim, relax, and think.
A couple of days ago I was sitting in the sand, looking closely at the individual grains and all of the seashells around me. I picked up a handful of sand, and it reminded me of the Lord’s promise to Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the sands of the sea.
In Abraham 3:14, the Lord says:
“If thou canst count the number of sands, so shall be the number of thy seeds.”
How Can He Possibly Know Me?
As I looked at those countless grains of sand, it struck me how impossible it is for my finite mind to comprehend the vast number of Heavenly Father’s children. Even His works are without end.
Then a question came into my mind:
Yet He does.
If our Heavenly Father has that many children, how incredible it is that He still knows each of us personally.
He knows us. He loves us. He is mindful of us. He hears our prayers, understands our struggles, and is aware of the righteous desires of our hearts.
No matter what we may be facing, we have not been forgotten.
He has prepared all things for our benefit and eternal growth. And because He is not bound by time as we are, He has all the time for us that we need, even individually.
I Will Not Forget Thee
I thought of the words recorded in 1 Nephi 21:15–16:
“Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. … Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.”
I’m grateful for the reassurance that although I may sometimes feel like just one grain of sand among countless others, I am known to Him.
And the same is true for each one of us.
The Savior knows your name. He knows everything about you, and He loves you perfectly, regardless of anything that we may think makes us unlovable.
He has time for you and for me. His love is not generic or distant. It is perfect and personal.
Not Just One in the Crowd
Among all the billions of people who have ever lived, and among all of Heavenly Father’s children, you are not simply part of a crowd to Him.
That is difficult for my finite mind to comprehend. I can pick up a handful of sand and barely distinguish one grain from another. Yet God’s capacity to know His children is not limited in the ways mine is. But what is mind blowing to me it that someday we will comprehend even the mind of God. .... Doctrine and Covenants 93:28: “He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things.”
He knows where we are. He knows what we have experienced. He knows what we hope for, what we regret, what we fear, what we are trying to become, and what weighs on our hearts when no one else knows.
Sometimes we may feel insignificant because the world is so large and there are so many people in it. But our value to Heavenly Father is not determined by how noticeable we are to the world.
We matter because we are His.
I hope each of us can feel His love a little more deeply and recognize that no matter how small we may sometimes feel in this enormous creation, we are never unnoticed by Him.
Sometimes I look at the sand and see countless grains.