Believing in Jesus Christ

By Lauren Madsen

Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up. —3 Nephi 18:24

"There's too much Jesus in this book." That was the explanation for a 1 star review on a Christmas ABC book I wanted to buy on Amazon a few years back. I sat there staring at my screen, eyebrows furrowed, thinking: Well, it IS a Christmas book...I mean, His name IS IN Christmas…Christmas celebrates HIS birthday…

After a huge eye roll from me, I started to wonder about this reviewer. What was her story? She evidently didn't believe in the divinity of Jesus, but what did she believe? 

I thought about the way Jesus has carried me through miscarriages, the deaths of beloved grandparents, tough parenting experiences, and so much more. I thought about how He has brought peace to my soul. How I look to His example. How I hold on to His words. How I want to love as He does.

I soon regret the eye roll.

This person doesn't know what she's missing, I concluded (and I meant it in the least prideful, most compassionate way). How could she know what she's missing if has never known Him? Knowing Christ means learning about Him, believing in Him, trusting Him, and relying on Him. Knowing Him leads to loving Him. Until a person has done that, how could they possibly know what they would be missing without Him? If this reviewer didn’t really understand who Jesus Christ is, or what His mission was on earth, or what He did for her and for all of us, why would she want to see him in a picture book?

I remember as an 8th grader during math class the numbers became harder and harder to see on the dry erase board. My mom took me to the eye doctor, I ordered my glasses, and two weeks later we picked them up. When I put them on for the first time, I could see things I didn’t know I couldn’t see. Out our kitchen window I looked to the Wasatch Mountains and saw trees—individual trees! They were no longer a big green mass, but thousands of tiny, distinguishable trees! I didn’t know it was possible to see them the way I was then experiencing them, and I was amazed. 

The book reviewer and my pre-glasses self had something in common: we were both unaware. I knew I couldn’t see math problems on the board, but I didn’t know what else I was missing. When I was able to see everything more clearly, I was so grateful. I just hadn’t known any different until then. I hope someday the book reviewer will be able to get to know Jesus, so that she too, will see clearly in a way she doesn’t know is possible.

For me, the fruits of choosing Jesus, of knowing Jesus, and loving Him sweeten every part of my life. Knowing Him makes me a better person. Knowing Him makes me whole. 

I hope it can be said of me one day, "There's too much Jesus in her." I would take it as the ultimate compliment.