On the first day of the Savior’s ministry on the American continent, He “commanded the multitude that they should kneel upon the ground.” Then, He also knelt and offered a prayer. What did He say? We don’t know, because “the things which he prayed cannot be written” or even spoken by a human being (3 Nephi 17:13-17).
But even though we don’t know the words of the prayer, we do know what He prayed for. As His listeners later testified:
No one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.
3 Nephi 17:17
In an 1831 revelation, the Savior introduced Himself as the One who is our “advocate with the Father, who is pleading [our] cause with him” (Doctrine and Covenants 45:3-5). Just as He prayed for those ancient inhabitants of America, the Savior prays for us. We may not see Him or hear Him, but He is pleads with the Father on our behalf. He wants us to have joy and to achieve our full potential. He wants us to be successful.
As Elder Dale G. Renlund pointed out, our Heavenly Father wants the same:
Jesus Christ, who allowed His will to be swallowed up in the will of the Father, would not champion anything other than what the Father has wanted all along. Heavenly Father undoubtedly cheers for and applauds our successes.
“Choose You This Day,” General Conference, October 2018
The gospel brings us joy for many reasons, but as Elder D. Todd Christofferson has taught:
The ultimate ‘joy of the saints’ comes in knowing that the Savior pleads their cause, “and no one can conceive of the joy which [will fill] our souls [as] we [hear Jesus] pray for us unto the Father.”
“The Joy of the Saints,” General Conference, October 2019
Today, I will remember that the Savior prays for us. I will remember that He wants me to be joyful and successful and that He is pleading with a loving Father on my behalf.
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