When I was a little girl, I was invited to spend a hot summer day at the beach with my best friend and her family. My friend and I had a great time playing in the cool, salty waves, but she was a much better swimmer than I was and more daring in the surf. Before I knew it I found myself barely able to keep my head above the continual waves and being carried away from my friend to deeper water by an undercurrent. I was swept farther and farther out, despite my attempts to swim toward shore. I just wasn't a strong enough swimmer. The waves turned me end over end and the salty water got in my nose and mouth and eyes as I struggled to find the surface and breathe. 
When I did break the surface, I saw a huge rock jutting up from the water. I decided to make that my goal. I kicked my little legs and reached for the edge of the rock and grabbed ahold of it. I held on for dear life as the waves knocked me into it. Climbing onto the safety of one of the rock's ledges, I started screaming for help and scanning the shore for my friend and her family. I was so relieved when I saw my friend's mother running into the water toward me. She was much taller and a much stronger swimmer, and she managed to coax me into her arms and she carried me safely to the shore. Once safe on the hot sand, she held me in her arms as I cried, soothing and comforting me, assuring me that I was fine and all was well.
Looking back, I see how this experience at the beach is the perfect metaphor for my testimony of the Savior. In my life there have been times that the currents of sin have swept me into their grasp, farther and farther away from gospel standards. Similarly, the trials and challenges of mortality often seem like insurmountable waves turning me end over end, and I struggle just to keep my head above water. In both circumstances, keeping my sight on Jesus Christ and reaching for Him has given me something solid to hold onto when the waves of life are crashing all around me. I think of the words, "Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that you must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." (Helaman 5:12)
Jesus Christ is my rescuer, my Savior. As I call out to Him in humility, recognizing my own weakness and helplessness in the face of sin, I realize He is my only hope to be able to return to my Heavenly home. He never fails to come to my aid, to rescue me, and bring me back once again to the safe shore of His gospel. Through it all, He is my Comforter. He promises to succor me and comfort me. Indeed, I know that I am "encircled about in the arms of His love." (2 Nephi 1:15)
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