Wet His Feet With My Tears

I love this talk by Elder Bruce R. McConkie - what an amazing and powerful testimony of Christ:


And now, as pertaining to this perfect atonement, wrought by the shedding of the blood of God—I testify that it took place in Gethsemane and at Golgotha, and as pertaining to Jesus Christ, I testify that he is the Son of the Living God and was crucified for the sins of the world. He is our Lord, our God, and our King. This I know of myself independent of any other person.

I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears.

But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way.

God grant that all of us may walk in the light as God our Father is in the light so that, according to the promises, the blood of Jesus Christ his Son will cleanse us from all sin.

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

As we read scriptures last night, I asked the kids how they would feel if they met the Savior.  They all said they'd feel okay, like there is no unrepentant sin that they have that would be pricking their conscience.  I told them that was good, and they're doing great.  But, I believe, as we truly come to understand what Christ has done for us, we will be in tears too, tears of thankfulness for His great gift to us.

Paintings of Christ

On page 19 of the book/manual Teaching of the Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, is this picture of Christ by C. Bosseron Chambers. It took me a while to find a picture of it on the internet. It was one of President Lee's favorites. Due to the similarities, I think Del Parson's "The Lord Jesus Christ" was based on Chambers' painting. This picture of Christ below is the one I most associate with my childhood - I remember it being the picture that was in the primary room when I went to church. It is titled "Head of Christ" by American artist Warner Sallman -More recently, I am impressed with the story behind Akiane Kramerik's picture of Christ, titled "Prince of Peace", and also a second witness to her painting from Cloton Burpo in the Heaven Is For Real book (p. 141-145 in my copy) Colton went to heaven in a near death experience and saw Jesus, and people would ask him about what Jesus looked like and if "this one" was right, but the paintings never were, so they'd instead start to ask "What's wrong with this one?" But when he saw this painting by Akiane...He stared at it without speaking for a few moments and then told his father "Dad, that one's right." 

I also loved the story behind casting Tomas Kofod as the Savior in the LDS film "The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd" - Some day I know I will see him again and I believe, as it has been said by others, that I might be surprised at how familiar his face it. I pray for and will continue to work so I may have his spirit with me and have his image in my countenance.

A Broken Heart

I love Elder Hafen's Conference address "The Atonement, All for All" and in my continued quest to understand the Atonement better, I requested this book above and it was on hold for me at the Library (my first time ever holding a book, go me!) and I just got it and started it, eventhough I've still got 1, 2, 3... 4 other books that I've started and haven't finished yet. I've got a book in each room so I can read wherever I am! :)

But this one looks good. I feel like my life is so easy, how can I apply the Atonement when everything is smooth sailing and I'm not being steamrolled by trials? Part of me feels like I need to be brought to my knees with urgency and intensity, but I'm trying even though there's nothing urgent in my life, of course I try to make sure I don't let anything become a Problem, cause if I have faith, then we trust the Lord in our problem-ish situations, right? I've got some little challenges, but nothing like the trials I see so many other's endure. For example, we watched 17 Miracles last night, wow - poor, homeless, starving, tired, exhausted, what more could they give?



I hope I can come to know the Savior in my life, even if I'm not in such extremities as they were. I know Christ lives and He loves me, I know I will live again because He lives and was resurrected for us all. He died to make men holy, let us live to make men free, while God is marching on ~

Interview with Tomas Kofod

I've been looking for different portrayals of Christ today - As I looked for some pictures of Tomas Kofod (I heard him speak at a fireside several years ago) I found this article and used google to translate this interview from this Danish online newspaper:

Danish Mormon Known as Jesus in the USA
by Sidsel Fabricius
24 Feb 2012
Hundreds of thousands of American Mormons know him best as Jesus because of his role in two American-made Mormon movies.

Here at home, the 43-year-old Tomas Ambt Kofod, however, a relatively normal life, where he balances between the role of a modern family man, actor and practicing Mormon. Best known from the stage as Ambt Tomas Kofod, he has played leading roles in musicals such as 'Les Miserables' (listen to him singing here - beautiful!!!) and 'The Phantom of the Opera' at the New Theatre.

But early in Tomas Ambt Kofod's career as an actor, he was cast to playing Jesus in the two films The Testaments: Of One Fold and One Shepherd, and Finding Faith in Christ, both produced by the U.S. Mormon church. Therefore, the Dane now known and admired by many more than you'd think and is particularly popular among Mormons in Utah.

Day to day, the 43-year-old Tomas Kofod Ambt lives in Søborg with his wife and their two children. Their family is among about 4,500 Mormons living in Denmark, or just over 14 million worldwide.

On student exchange with a Mormon family in Utah

It all started when Tomas Kofod Ambt as 17-year-old traveled to the USA as an exchange student and ended up in a Mormon family in Utah. The encounter with the Mormons in the United States would prove to be crucial for Ambt Tomas Kofod, which today has been a practicing Mormon for nearly 20 years.

"When I came to the U.S., I was both young and very immature, but the Mormon family gave me both the space and room to be me, while I got an insight into how life in a Mormon family worked," says Tomas Ambt Kofod, who himself was not raised with religion at home.

Of the time with his American host family, he recalls, among other daily life, their religion took a large part in their day to day life:

"They were nice to take me to church and to give me a sense of how their faith worked in daily life. And it made a big impression on me, "says Tomas Kofod Ambt and explains:

"You feel very closely connected to each other as family, because there's this eternal perspective within the Mormon church. As a family they do some things together to make this world here a better place. It could be very small things like washing cars, cleaning up in people's basements, help the elderly in the neighborhood with cooking, housekeeping, and the kind deeds. It is to reach out to each other. It was a very positive experience. "

About being a Mormon in Denmark

Although one would think that there was a world of difference between teenage life at home in Denmark and to get behind the walls of the faithful family in Utah, there was still something about the Mormon way of life that seemed very familiar to Kofod.

"From my parents' side, I've been brought up with a great sense of justice and has always taught that one should live his life conscientiously, loving and friendly."

In his meetings with the Mormon church, Kofod didn't feel like give something up. Instead, the Mormon faith was a really good extension of the core values ​​he had learned from home.

When Kofod took leave of the Mormon family in Utah, they gave him a Book of'Mormon to take with him. In the years after he came home, he occasionally took the book down from the shelf to read a little into it.

"At one point I was sufficiently curious. I, I had to know something more about what it was that I had experienced over there. "

So Kofod in 1993, at the age of 24 years, was baptized into the church. He has been practicing Mormon since.

The Kofod family works in many ways like an ordinary Danish family.

"We want as many others simply do something good for society and want our children grow up and become sweet and harmonious people," says Kofod.

But since the Mormons are a relatively small movement in Denmark, Kofod sometimes meets people who are a bit prejudice when they hear about his faith.

"Overall, I think people are incredibly sweet and good to ask about religion - sometimes even too sweet and too cautious with their questions. Mormons have often been seen as a sectarian and closed society, but nothing could be more wrong, "says Kofod.

"We love visitors, but we do not force. Well, you can easily get rid of us again. So it is not for the foot-in-door method, "he smiles and explains:

"One of the most fundamental principles of the church is precisely that we should be able to choose for ourselves."

About the grief of losing

Kofod recently experienced the loss of his father, to whom he was very close. In his fathers' passing, Kofod really felt how his faith helped him. He saw how the Mormon belief in eternal life after death, in many ways made the grief easier to bear:

"Having a complete fundamental belief that we will meet again on the other side and that we can be together as a family forever, and not just in this life, gives me an inner peace and solace," says from a clearly affected Ambt Tomas Kofod, who continues:

"I do not feel that the grief was so profound and oppressive as I really had expected. I know that he is just over on the other side, and it's just a matter of time before we can meet again. "

In this way, faith made the grieving process easier for Kofod, also through prayer he finds inner strength and power to get through the difficult aspects of life, such as losing.

Role of Jesus

Playing the role of Jesus was not a very common challenge for the actor Kofod, when he was a Mormon has a special relationship with Jesus.

He looks back at some of the many thoughts, he made himself during the preparation for the role:

"How can I, as little useless man, radiate the kind of love that Jesus did?"

As part of preparations for the role, Kofod thoroughly read all the places in the Bible where Jesus appears and spent much time both to think and meditate upon him.

"It was all in all a very humbling experience," remembers Kofod, explaining that during his time in his youth playfulness, said yes, because it was the first major movie role, he was offered. And he got the offer today, he probably thought one more time about it, he says.

"But it has undoubtedly been a very big piece of my spiritual and personal development to be allowed to delve into such a role," he says. He has subsequently visited several countries such as Germany, Estonia, Lithuania , Poland, Sweden and the U.S. for talks on how he prepared himself to play the role of Jesus, and what impact it has had on him afterwards.

"As I have grown older as man and had more experience, I also got myself thoroughly looked in the mirror. The differences between oneself and the Savior appears therefore more clearly. The more one learns about life, the more apparent it becomes how great the Savior is and how far from him, you yourself are. I also found out that I am immortally less than I thought. "

Is Anyone Beyond His Reach?

I want to briefly type up some other thoughts that I had after listening to Elder Holland's address from the post yesterday, particularly something he says in the last part of his talk where he makes this point:

I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines.

In this world we live in with digital photographs and videos and internet websites, our past mistakes might be recorded for many people to see and remember for years to come. People might think those images display who we are even if we've repented and changed and have moved forward in a new and better direction.

Is there any sin that would make us unable to be saved? Is there any immoral behavior that we cannot repent of and be freed from? I say no. From what Elder Holland says, it is not possible for us to be so deep in sin that Christ cannot rescue us. If there is a voice in your head saying you cannot be forgiven or change, you can know that that voice is the voice of the devil. He would have us believe all is lost, there is no going back, we're in too deep, it would be too hard or impossible for us to change. Satan would have us give up, but no Christ. Jesus Christ shows us that there is hope through Him. He is the way, he made the way possible for us, we just need to believe that it is true and follow Him. It is amazing that it is not possible for us to sin and sink so low that we are out of Christ's grasp to help and save.


Even one who has murdered another can confess and seek forgiveness and be forgiven by those he has so terribly hurt. It's not easy, but it is possible (see Alma 39:6). (part 1 and part 2 - I thought that was an insightful article). Really the only thing that is needed for a person to have a change of heart is a desire, faith, or belief that it is possible. I think that might be one way that a person could "deny the Holy Ghost" which the scriptures teach is the one sin that is unpardonable. (Alma 39:6 again). Maybe it's unpardonable because you can't be pardoned if you're not seeking pardon and don't believe it is possible. Does that make sense? That's one thought I've had about the unpardonable sin. What do you think of that interpretation? That the only way it is not possible for Christ to save us is if we forever deny his hand reaching out to save us. He can't save us if we deny His outstreched arms or if we deny the Holy Ghost which whispers to us to turn and look at the Savior reaching out for us as we drown in our sins.