Our Lord Jesus Christ Knows Us Individually

by Ashley Bell , jesus.christ.org

Do you ever wonder if anybody knows what you are going through, or if anybody cares? Sometimes that thought crosses my mind, but then I am reminded by the whispering of the Still Small Voice (the Holy Ghost) that the Lord knows exactly what I am going through and that He does care. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the “Mormon Church” by friends of other faiths), I am a firm believer that Jesus Christ suffered all things, and because of that He knows how to “succor His people” (see the Book of Mormon, Alma 7:11-12).
In a book titled, Be Not Afraid—Only Believe, written by Ted L. Gibbons, and published in 2009 by Cedar Fort, Inc. Ted shares examples of how the Lord is aware of individuals:

Our lives, difficult though they often are, must be grounded in the reality that He knows what is happening to us. He is aware of every problem, need, pain, sorrow, and sickness. He hears our prayers. In His own time and way, He answers them.

Listen to the Lord’s testimony of His awareness: “Behold and hearken, o ye elders of my church, who have assembled yourselves together, whose prayers I have heard, and whose hearts I know, and whose desires have come up before me. Behold and lo, mine eyes are upon you” (D&C 67:1–2).

Because the Lord hears our prayers, knows our hearts, and understands our desires, He is able to interact with us in ways that can help us…

When the Lord entered into Jericho on His way to Jerusalem and the final days of His mortal ministry, He met a man “little of stature” (Luke 19:3) and the “chief among the publicans” (Luke 19:2). Publicans were tax collectors in the service of either Rome or Herod. They were despised by the Jews, and anyone who per- formed this work was excommunicated from the congregation of faithful Israelites (Bible Dictionary, “Publicans,” 755).

This man’s name was Zacchæus.

Zacchæus wanted to see the Savior, but the crowd and his small size made this impossible, so he raced ahead of the throng and climbed a sycamore tree from where he hoped to get a glimpse of this remarkable man (Luke 19:1–4).

“And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchæus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house” (Luke 19:5).

The Savior knew his name, and, as subsequent verses indicate (Luke 19:6–9), He knew his heart as well. Here was a man who was despised, rejected, and cast out. But the Savior knew him. He knew his heart, and He loved him.

What was true then is true now. He is aware of us and knows our hearts. The following story comes from the journal of Joseph Millett, from an entry written in 1871.

One of my children came in and said that Brother Newton Hall’s folks was out of bread, had none that day.

I divided our flour in a sack to send up to Brother Hall. Just then Brother Hall came.

Says I, “Brother Hall, are you out of flour?”

“Brother Millett, we have none.”

“Well, Brother Hall, there is some in that sack. I have divided and was going to send it to you. Your children told mine that you was out.”

Brother Hall began to cry. He said he had tried others, but could not get any. He went to the cedars and prayed to the Lord, and the Lord told him to go to Joseph Millett.

“Well Brother Hall, you needn’t bring this back. If the Lord sent you for it you don’t owe me for it.”3

The reaction of Brother Millett to this experience is deeply moving. He wrote the following sentence in his personal journal. “you can’t tell me how good it made me feel to know that the Lord knew there was such a person as Joseph Millett.” He knows our names. He is aware when we are out of flour, or hope, or love. Our perception of that comprehensive awareness ought to bring us to our knees frequently with an outpouring of gratitude. That witness ought also to encourage us to “come boldly before the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). He knows us. He knows all about us. He will help us. We need not fear.
James taught this: “Known unto God are all [the works of men] from the beginning of the world” (Acts 15:18). Ammon told Lamoni that God “looketh down upon all the children of men; and he knows all the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Alma 18:32).

Solomon, in his dedicatory prayer of the temple, said of God, “For thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men” (1 Kings 8:39).

David taught Solomon that “the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts” (1 Chronicles 28:9). (pages 58-61)

My heart goes soft as I read the stories of Zacchæus and of Joseph Millet. I know and believe that the Lord is just as aware of you and me as He was of them. And I testify that as we try to live in accordance to God’s law we will be able to stand back, in awe, recognizing that the Lord is not only watching out for mankind, but for every man and woman. I invite you to feel the power from the words of Elder David A. Bednar, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who said, “The Lord knows who we really are, what we really think, what we really do, and who we really are becoming” (“Things as They Really Are,” CES fireside for young adults, May 3, 2009). I also invite you to learn more about Jesus Christ and His role in our individual lives by meeting with Mormon missionaries—whose mission is to help bring others closer to Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. And please always remember that you are a child of God, and He loves you.