The Reach of Redeeming Love

April 8, 2026 / Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Backstory:
After a deeply meaningful Holy Week, I came across a quote from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland that changed the way I see the Crucifixion. He described the Savior’s outstretched arms not only as a symbol of His suffering, but as an open, eternal invitation to all of us. That image stayed with me—especially in my own moments of weakness and struggle. This writing grew out of that reflection, as I considered what it means that His arms are still reaching for me, for you, for everyone.

The Reach of Redeeming Love

Our Savior, Jesus Christ during His mortal ministry here,
Always had compassion on everyone and held them all dear.
He healed the lepers even though others looked down on them,
And He met with the sinner and with all men.

Then, Jesus with His amazing love for everyone
In the Garden, suffered for us 'til it was done.
He was bruised, spit upon and beaten
Then He was nailed to the cross without good reason.

His arms are always outstretched and open
To receive every one of us even if we feel broken.
We can individually go to Him and feel His embrace
Whenever we need hope and to feel His grace.

It doesn’t matter to Him what we have done wrong
When we go to Him, He can help our heart feel strong.
Because He has felt our every pain,
Only He knows how to shield us from life’s pouring rain.

So, if you ever feel lost and alone,
And like your worries and cares are a weight all your own.
Just go to your Savior, Jesus Christ
For you and for me, He paid the Ultimate Price.

The Takeaway: No matter where we are, how we feel, or what we carry, the Savior’s love is constant and personal. His arms are always open—wide enough to meet us in our pain, strong enough to lift us, and gentle enough to remind us that we are never alone.

What Can I Give Back to Jesus?

March 31, 2026April 1, 2026 / Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Backstory:
As Holy Week approached, I found myself reflecting more deeply on the Savior’s Atonement—not just as a beautiful, overarching act of love for the world, but as something deeply personal. I began to think about Gethsemane, the cross, and the Resurrection in a more intimate way: He didn’t just suffer for everyone—He suffered for me. That realization led me to a quiet question in my heart: If He gave everything for me, what can I give back to Him? This writing became my way of exploring that question—of remembering His sacrifice and considering how I can follow Him more intentionally in my everyday life.

What Can I Give Back to Jesus?

Jesus suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane for me,
He did this so from suffering I could be free.
He felt all of the pains and fatigue that my body feels every day,
And because of that, my love for Him is more than I can say.

In the Garden when He was suffering, He felt alone,
And because of Him, my worries and cares are never unknown.
He was beaten and afflicted by many people,
He felt it all so that my soul could feel peaceful.

Jesus carried His cross up the hill
So that my heart could be still.
When my burdens feel too heavy to bear,
He suffered so that I would know that He is always there.

He died on that cross and was laid in a tomb
So that hope could blossom and replace the gloom.
He rose again on the third day
So that my skies don’t need to feel gray.

So, what can I give back to the One who gave everything for me?
I can strive to be more forgiving so that I can feel free.
I can be more kind and loving to others
Because we are all sisters and brothers.

The Takeaway: Because of Jesus Christ, we are never alone in our pain, our struggles, or our imperfections. He chose to suffer for us with a full knowledge of who we are—and He loves us still. We can’t repay that kind of love, but we can respond to it. We can choose Him. We can strive to be more patient, more forgiving, more like Him. And when we fall short, we can keep coming back—because His grace was never meant to be a one-time gift, but a constant source of healing and hope.

January 31, 2026February 20, 2026 / Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Christ at the Heart of Christmas

January 28, 2026February 17, 2026 / Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Image by RDNE Stock project on pexels.com

Backstory:
Like most people, I have always loved the Christmas season. I remember the excitement I felt as a child at that time of year. I am the youngest of my parents' 3 daughters. We would come down the stairs and into the living room, usually oldest to youngest on Christmas morning to see what Santa brought for us. But some years I remember that my parents let me go first and that was always super exciting for me. For most children, Christmas is mostly about the presents Santa brings them. But as I have grown older, I have found a better meaning in Christmas than just the presents. There have been a couple years like last year for instance when I haven’t been very excited about the Christmas season. But most years I am more than ready to decorate my home for Christmas.

Christ at the Heart of Christmas

Growing up in a great Christian family, I always loved Christmas, but mostly because of what Santa brought me every year,
I think that most children are more focused on the presents than on the reason why this time of year is so dear.
I think that’s only natural for children, but as an adult my mindset has changed to something more sincere,
And now I want to talk about what Christmas means to me as I have put my mind into gear.

Instead of focusing on gifts, I like to focus more on who the Christmas season is about,
Christmas is supposed to be about the birth of my Savior, but sometimes in this material world, this important birth we seem to leave out.
I love to put up my Christmas tree and decorations probably because of the memories this reminds me of beyond all doubt,
I also love the feeling of love and kindness that we all feel this time of year when it feels like sometimes with kindness the world has been in a drought.

Yes I am human and I also get excited when people give me presents at Christmastime,
I think that feeling is normal and is not a crime.
But if that’s all I focus on then I should probably listen to the beautiful sounds of a bell chime,
For the “most wonderful time of the year” should be more about the birth of my Savior than about what I can get for a dime.

I love reading Christmas stories around this time of year about people being more kind,
They help me feel my mind unwind.
Then I feel better about the future of mankind,
But the greatest Christmas story ever told helps my mind and body feel more aligned.

Because Jesus was born and lived on the earth, the world around us can feel more peaceful,
Even when the world is all crazy and all we feel around us is evil.
During Christmastime and all year round we can be happier people,
And because of Jesus we can feel more cheerful.

The Takeaway: We all like getting gifts, especially at Christmastime. But we should focus more on the wonderful gift of our Savior and how we can be more like Him. We should learn from His example and try to emulate Him.

Because of Him, There is Hope

January 28, 2026February 17, 2026 / Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Image by Rino Adamo on pexels.com

Backstory:
I listened to a podcast episode the other day. The hosts were talking about the phrase, “Confident Expectation”. I looked it up in Google and it defines this as “in a religious context to describe the trust in God’s promises to fulfill good things in the future.” I really love that definition and I think it goes really well with the hope we all feel during the Christmas season and that we should feel all year round because of Jesus.

Because of Him, There is Hope

Because of the Babe born in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago,
We can have hope that a miracle happened that night and we can feel that Christmas glow.
Because of that night we can believe that miracles can happen for us today and this we can know,
We can feel hope even when we feel like our trials are so huge that we can’t face another blow.

Because His mother Mary accepted the call to be the mother of the Son of God,
We can accept whatever God expects of us even when the request might seem odd.
I’m sure Mary felt overwhelmed and inadequate when the angel told her of her mission but she knew that she just needed to obey and nod,
This should give us hope and we should remember that even when we feel overwhelmed we always have someone up above rooting for our squad.

We can learn from Jesus’ teachings to always be kind and loving to those around us,
Because of Him we should never look at another person’s imperfections and make a fuss.
For Jesus was always loving to everyone He saw no matter what and this we should more thoroughly discuss,
Because of Him we always have someone to be there for us and this is a huge plus.

Because of Jesus’ suffering in Gethsemane we can feel a confident expectation that He knows how we are feeling,
At any given moment even when we feel alone we can feel His touch instead of squealing.
We can believe that He suffered everything that we will ever suffer and this can be for us very healing,
When we feel down and in the dumps all we need to do is kneel in prayer and this should feel more appealing.

So when we think about Christmas and at other times of the year we should be confident that because of the precious baby there is always hope,
Even when we feel like the world is too evil and we are at the end of our rope.
Because of Jesus we can always feel like we have a friend and we can better cope,
Also because of Him we can feel clean from our sins like when we wash our skin with soap.

The Takeaway: When we feel like our problems are too much to bear we just need to remember that Jesus is always there for us no matter what. He will always be by our side to help us when we feel overwhelmed.