Thank you for that beautiful number. It brought the spirit and what could be better than feeling our Savior's love.
Brothers and sisters, aloha! I would like to ask each of you what do you know about camels?
The camel is an interesting and fascinating animal.
Here are some fun camel facts.
- A camel’s hump is not full of water. Instead, mounds of fat, up to 80 pounds, fill the hump. It diminishes in size as they use the fat storage to give them energy and water in times of need for sustenance. [1]
- Camels can drink 30 gallons of water in 10 minutes. [2]
- Camels have evolved to survive in an incredible range of temperatures. They have double rows of extra-long eyelashes to help keep the sand out of their eyes. They can completely close their nostrils between breaths to keep the sand out. [3]
- Thanks to their thick pads of skin on their knees and stomach, camels can comfortably sit in very hot sand. [4]
- Camels are amazing pack animals. They can carry up to 400-500 pounds and walk an average of 25 miles a day. They can travel in hot conditions and go for long periods of time without water.
- They have special two-toed feet that spread out when they touch the ground, so they don’t sink into the sand.
- Camels are fast. “They can travel at up to 40 miles per hour—the same as a racehorse!” [5]
- A camel can be cute in its own way.
- But it isn’t one of the most beautiful animals.
- It has thick, matted hair that falls off in clumps.
- It has very knobby knees.
- And it has a big hump on its back.
Regardless of its looks or mannerisms, a camel is loved by its Master.
The camel has a secret.
Each night, at the end of a long day, the camel kneels before his master. His master carefully lifts the heavy burden from the camel’s back so it can rest comfortably through the night.
The next morning, the camel kneels again before his master, and the master gently places the burden on the camel’s back for another day.
Throughout Jesus Christ’s life, the Savior was referred to as “Master.” Jesus Christ, our Master, loves us dearly.
I testify that He loves us, you and me, unconditionally, regardless of our looks or mannerisms.
I also testify that He can ease the burdens that are placed upon our backs.
Like the camel, we can kneel at the feet of our Master each night and ask Him to lift our burdens, that we may rest comfortably.
In the morning, we can again kneel before our Master and realize that He knows our pain, our suffering and our sorrows, for He felt and carried them all for us.
He loves us individually and He knows exactly the burdens we carry. If we ask, He can make our burdens lighter. He has said,
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” [6]
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. [7]
President Howard W. Hunter said, “…the personal burdens of life vary from person to person, but every one of us has them. …each trial in life is tailored to the individual’s capacities and needs as known by a loving Father in Heaven …To one and all, Christ said, in effect: As long as we all must bear some burden and shoulder some yoke, why not let it be mine? My promise to you is that my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”. [8]
I love the story in Mosiah 24:14-15 we read about the people of Alma who are in bondage and how Amulon has placed heavy burdens upon their backs that seem unbearable. They plead for these burdens to be lifted.
“And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; 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. [9]
Verse 15 adds, “And now it came to pass that the burdens laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.” [10]
When I think about you and me, and our individual lives and the heavy burdens we carry, I am again reminded of what the Lord does for the people of Alma in Mosiah 24:14-15. Our Savior can, and will, help us with our problems if we are willing to cry out to Him.
When Sunday School General President, Paul V. Johnson, was a member of the Seventy, he said, “Each of us faces challenging trials at times in our lives. Each of us also has access to the power of the Atonement to help us through difficult times and to bring peace and joy into our lives. Sometimes the help comes by removal of the burden. Many times the promised rest and peace come into our lives even though the burden is still present.” [11]
We have a painting that hangs in our home of Christ and his disciples on the boat when a great storm arose on the sea of Galilee. We love the caption below the painting that reads, “Sometimes God calms the storm, but usually He lets the storm rage and calms the child.”
When we are weighed down with heavy burdens like the camel, Christ can give us the strength to bear them. It is the Atonement of Jesus Christ that enables us to bear the burdens we carry and keep walking 25 miles a day like the camel, if necessary.
I pray that when you feel life pressing down on you so hard and it seems almost impossible to go on and take another step, that you can remember camels and our Savior, Jesus Christ. He knows us individually and is waiting for us to cry out unto Him that He can make our burdens light.
I testify that Heavenly Father loves us. I testify that Jesus Christ is our Savior and is always ready to help us. I testify that Joseph Smith was the prophet of the restoration and translated the Book of Mormon which is the word of God and has changed my life forever.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes:
[1] Sarah Crupi, “Truth or tail: A camel’s hump.” Cleveland Zoological Society, April 6, 2021
[2] Sarah Crupi, “Truth or tail: A camel’s hump.” Cleveland Zoological Society, April 6, 2021
[3] “Camel Fact Sheet.” Nature. Public Broadcasting Service, September 17, 2020.
[4] “13 Fun Facts About Camels.” SPANA
[5] “13 Fun Facts About Camels.” SPANA
[6] Matthew 11:28
[7] Matthew 11:30
[8] Howard W. Hunter, “Come unto Me”, Liahona, October 1990, 18
[9] Mosiah 24:14
[10] Mosiah 24:15
[11] Paul V. Johnson, “Lessons from the New Testament: ‘My Burden Is Light’,” Ensign, March 2007