Sacrament Meeting

Sacrament meeting was unique and holy. It was reverent and special. I was deeply touched with a stronger testimony of my Savior and felt a deep sense of gratitude for his atonement.

Our Sacrament meeting begins at 9 AM. We are usually very good at being punctual, but last Sunday we looked at the clock and it was already 9:15, we were still at home, and not exactly ready to head out the door. We couldn't believe it. Since the actual administration of the Sacrament is the first part of the meeting, we completely missed it. The main reason we attend church on Sunday is to take the Sacrament, so Jared and I decided to skip out on part of our third hour lesson and attend another Sacrament meeting held in our building at 11 AM. I highly recommend sacrament meeting without kids - perhaps we listened more and prepared us better for today's sacrament meeting.

This morning, so as not to have a repeat of last Sunday, we tried hard to make it on time, and yet somehow were still walking in during the opening song. As it turned out, this was one Sacrament meeting I would have never wanted to miss. And one that will make it unlikely that I will be late again.

In a completely out of the ordinary* way, the hour of sacrament meeting was spent singing hymns about the Savior and listening to the Aaronic Priesthood brethren read statements from various prophets on their testimonies of Jesus Christ. Despite the sometimes cracked and nervous voices of the speakers, their message came to me with great force.

But I was most surprised by my reaction to the hymns, which were all centered on the Savior and his atoning sacrifice. Where previously I have only been singing, today I felt I was understanding, believing and testifying of the words I was singing. One of my favorite hymns, "I Stand All Amazed" says struck me with more than its usual power:

I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
Confused at the Grace that so fully He proffers me.
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified, that for me a sinner he suffered he bled and died.
Oh it is wonderful that he should care for me enough to die for me! Oh it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

I was trembling. I cried. Poor little Henry was so worried, "Why sad Mommy?" How could I possibly explain to him that it was not sadness, but an overwhelming sense of gratitude for my Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ that was so powerful that I couldn't contain it.

In conclusion before the administration of the Sacrament, the Bishop gave a most heartfelt and sincere testimony of the Savior’s words and actions at the Last Supper. He spoke of the mood- how before the Savior arrived it may have been a jovial gathering of friends. But it must have become so clear to them by the somber and serious nature by which the Savior conducted himself that this was no ordinary dinner time gathering.

My bishop was careful to point out that when he washed the feet of his disciples, itself an act of love and service, he even washed Judas’ feet, whom he knew in only few hours would be his betrayer. Such was His great love for all mankind. That Last Supper He could have emphasized many topics from his ministry-but he chose Love. Love one another. A central tenet of any disciple of Christ, “love one another” exemplifies all that the Savior did at Gethsemane and on the cross at Calvary. The personal nature of the atonement struck me with great force. He died for me, because he loved me.

After the bishop’s remarks we had the sacrament hymn, and then the sacrament was passed. But instead of the usual white loaf torn in pieces, there was pita bread. As I listened to Jared explain to Jack that the pita bread was unleavened, like the Savior had at the Last Supper, I just couldn’t hold back the tears. I was so touched by what that bread represented- the broken body of my dear Savior on my behalf. I felt the full impact and necessity of the Sacrament. That I really need it each week to renew the covenants I have made with my Heavenly Father. I need it as a poignant reminder that as I take upon myself the name of Christ, I must take upon myself his characteristics, the chiefest of those being love.

*For those of you unfamiliar with the Sunday proceedings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Sundays consist of three meetings, each approximately an hour in length. The first is called Sacrament meeting, where each Sunday we have the Sacrament (called communion in other churches) and then members of the congregation, who have been asked in advance, give mini-sermons (called simply "talks"). The next meeting is Sunday School, and the third is when the men and women get to have separate meetings.