Application of Principles

I began the application process of this project by prayerfully selecting one of the eight topics to apply at this time in my life. My choice was family. Next, I developed a plan of implementation. Below is a list of tasks I set the goal to complete over the last three weeks of the semester. 

ü  Be sure that family scripture study and prayer happens each night.

ü If there is contention, play uplifting music to bring the spirit back into the home

ü  Talk to your grandparents at least once a week

ü  Work on your family history once a week

ü  Do a batch of indexing once a week

ü  Hang out with your brothers a little each day

ü  Go visit Kezza at least once before you leave

ü  Take GG’s name to the temple and do baptisms for her and maybe some other ancestors

At the end of each week, I recorded how each of the tasks went, and noted any differences in the peacefulness and presence of the spirit in my family’s home.

This first week I made an effort to keep the peace at home and ensured that family scripture study and prayer happened every day. Later in the week I talked to Jaja, my grandmother, on the phone and made plans to meet with her and my grandfather on Tuesday. I did a batch of indexing on Sunday and spent a few hours that week doing genealogy. I drove my brother, Bryce, home from school a couple days, and spent time with my other brother, Sandy, and our dog at the river. I also began to notice a lack of contention that first week.  

By the second week, all our plans changed dramatically because of Hurricane Harvey. My mother and brothers had extra days off of school so we spent a lot more time together. On Monday, we found out our house would flood so we worked together as a family that morning lifting up furniture on cinderblocks to save all that we could. By noon, we had evacuated to my Grandparent’s house. That Saturday, my grandparents and I drove down to the University of Houston to visit with my cousin, Kezza one last time before I leave. I was happy to visit with her and have missed having her around. Although it was a stressful week, the disaster helped unite our family as we worked together, and I am grateful to have spent more time with my Jaja and Papa.

As I review my plan to implement this project, the only thing that I think I have not succeeded at was taking my great-grandmother’s name to the temple who passed away a little over a year ago. Perhaps we should have taken her name sooner, but because the Houston Temple flooded, we are currently unable to do any temple work. Hopefully, we will be able to do her work by the end of this year after the temple opens again. I have noticed a difference in our family’s peacefulness, and we have grown closer as we worked together to clean up after the storm. Although the home I grew up in is gone, I know that my family is eternal and closer than ever. I am going to miss my parents, brothers, and grandparents when I go back to Rexburg, but I am grateful to have spent this summer with them.

Family

 I feel so blessed to have been born into a family with “goodly parents” and to have been taught from a young age the importance of eternal families. As I studied this topic of families over the course of the semester, I have renewed gratitude for my parents, my two younger brothers, and my grandparents. I was also reminded of the importance of not only the family that we have here on earth, but also those who have come before us. We have ancestors that are waiting for their temple work to be done, and are counting on us to do that work for them. I also noticed that one thing the prophets and apostles emphasized was having the presence of the spirit in our homes. He is vital to bringing peace and comfort. We need invite him in by holding family scripture study and prayer every day and avoiding contention.  

1)      April 2017, Thomas S. Monson, “Kindness, Charity, and Love”

"Brethren, we do not honor the priesthood of God if we are not kind to others."

2)      April 2017, Henry B. Eyring, “Gathering the Family of God”

"He wants His children to come to earth, following the eternal pattern of families that exists in heaven. Families are the basic organizational unit of the eternal realms, and so He intends for them also to be the basic unit on earth. Though earthly families are far from perfect, they give God’s children the best chance to be welcomed to the world with the only love on earth that comes close to what we felt in heaven—parental love. Families are also the best way to preserve and pass on moral virtues and true principles that are most likely to lead us back to God’s presence."

3)      April 2017, Henry B. Eyring, “Gathering the Family of God”

"Only a very small minority of God’s children obtain during this life a complete understanding of God’s plan, along with access to the priesthood ordinances and covenants that make the Savior’s atoning power fully operative in our lives…. Some may consider this unfair.... But you and I know, because of the truths restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith, that God’s plan is much more loving and just than that. Our Heavenly Father is anxious to gather and bless all of His family. While He knows that not all of them will choose to be gathered, His plan gives each of His children the opportunity to accept or reject His invitation. And families are at the heart of this plan."

4)      April 2017, Henry B. Eyring, “My Peace I Leave with You”

"Unity is necessary for us to have the Spirit in our class and in our family. But you know from experience, as I do, that such loving unity is hard to maintain. … The unity we seek in our families and in the Church will come as we allow the Holy Ghost to affect what we see when we look at one another—and even when we think of each other. The Spirit sees with the pure love of Christ."

5)      October 2010, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Of the Things That Matter Most”

"We must place high priority on our families. We build deep and loving family relationships by doing simple things together, like family dinner and family home evening and by just having fun together. In family relationships love is really spelled t-i-m-e, time. Taking time for each other is the key for harmony at home."

6)      April 2017, Dallin H. Oaks, “The Godhead and the Plan of Salvation”

“God the Father is the Father of our spirits. We are His children. He loves us, and all that He does is for our eternal benefit. He is the author of the plan of salvation, and it is by His power that His plan achieves its purposes for the ultimate glory of His children.”

7)      April 2017, Ronald A. Rasband, “Let the Holy Spirit Guide”

“First promptings are pure inspiration from heaven. When they confirm or testify to us, we need to recognize them for what they are and never let them slip past. So often, it is the Spirit inspiring us to reach out to someone in need, family and friends in particular.”

8)      April 2017, Ronald A. Rasband, “Let the Holy Spirit Guide”

“The Lord knows the needs of all His children—and He knows who is prepared to help.” 

  

9)      April 2017, D. Todd Christofferson, "The Voice of Warning"

"A crucial element of the parental duty to warn is to paint not only the demoralizing consequences of sin but also the joy of walking in obedience to the commandments."

10)  April 2017, Gary E. Stevenson, “How Does the Holy Ghost Help You?”

            “It is vital to our physical and spiritual safety that we keep the gift of the Holy Ghost. We begin to do so by striving to keep the commandments, having individual and family prayer, reading the scriptures, and seeking loving and forgiving relationships with family and loved ones.”

Atonement

      Through the eternal and infinite atonement of Jesus Christ, we are all saved and redeemed.  I am so grateful to have the knowledge that He suffered, blead, and died for me and all of mankind. His atonement was individual and personal; He knows me, my struggles, and my pains. Because of His sacrifice, I can be made whole, forgiven of my sins, and become perfect so that I can return home to our Father in heaven. I am grateful to have the knowledge of that sacrifice so that I may repent and become clean. As I studied this topic, I began to fully apprehend the importance of remembering the Savior when we partake of the sacrament. I am also thankful for the opportunity I have each week to partake of the sacrament and renew my baptismal covenants.

1)      April 2017, Henry B. Eyring, “My Peace I Leave with You”

"Those who do not see their weaknesses do not progress. Your awareness of your weakness is a blessing as it helps you remain humble and keeps you turning to the Savior. The Spirit not only comforts you, but He is also the agent by which the Atonement works a change in your very nature. Then weak things become strong."

2)      April 2017, Henry B. Eyring, “My Peace I Leave with You”

"Because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost will have a sanctifying and purifying effect on your spirit. You will then feel the peace the Savior promised to leave with His disciples. With that peace will come a bright hope and a feeling of light and love from the Father and His Beloved Son, who leads His kingdom on earth through revelation to His living prophet."

3)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

“It is doctrinally incomplete to speak of the Lord’s atoning sacrifice by shortcut phrases, such as “the Atonement” or “the enabling power of the Atonement” or “applying the Atonement” or “being strengthened by the Atonement.” These expressions present a real risk of misdirecting faith by treating the event as if it had living existence and capabilities independent of our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ…. There is no amorphous entity called “the Atonement” upon which we may call for succor, healing, forgiveness, or power. Jesus Christ is the source. Sacred terms such as Atonement and Resurrection describe what the Savior did, according to the Father’s plan, so that we may live with hope in this life and gain eternal life in the world to come.”

4)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

“As Latter-day Saints, we refer to His mission as the Atonement of Jesus Christ, which made resurrection a reality for all and made eternal life possible for those who repent of their sins and receive and keep essential ordinances and covenants.”

5)      April 2017, Dallin H. Oaks, “The Godhead and the Plan of Salvation”

“The Son, the greatest of all, was chosen by the Father to carry out the Father’s plan—to exercise the Father’s power to create worlds without number (see Moses 1:33) and to save the children of God from death by His Resurrection and from sin by His Atonement. This supernal sacrifice is truly called ‘the central act of all human history.’”

6)      April 2015, M. Russel Ballard, “The Greatest Generation of Young Adults”

“Do you think deeply about the Savior and His atoning sacrifice for you when you are asked to prepare, bless, pass, or partake of the sacrament?”

7)      April 2015, M. Russel Ballard, “The Greatest Generation of Young Adults”

“Lord Jesus Christ can help us fix anything that needs fixing in our lives through His atoning sacrifice. … Through the Atonement, the Redeemer took upon Himself our troubles, pains, and sins. The Savior of the world came to understand each of us individually by experiencing our dashed hopes, challenges, and tragedies through His suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross.” 

8)      April 2017, M. Russel Ballard, “Return and Receive”

“Despite our mistakes, shortcomings, detours, and sins, Jesus Christ’s Atonement allows us to repent, prepared to return and receive the matchless blessings God has promised—to live forever with the Father and the Son in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom.”

9)      April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

“The Savior’s compassion, love, and mercy draw us toward Him. Through His Atonement, we are no longer satisfied with our sinful state.”

10)  April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

            “Jesus Christ is our Good Shepherd, who loves and cares for us. He knows us and laid down His life for His sheep. He also lives for us and wants us to know Him and exercise faith in Him.”

Agency

I know that before we came to Earth, our Heavenly Father developed a Plan of Salvation for us. A vital piece of that plan is agency. There was a war in heaven because of it, and Lucifer and a third part of the hosts of heaven were cast out as a result. Satan wanted to take that agency from us, but our Father knows its importance. Because we have agency, we can make choices, and inevitably, some of those choices will be wrong. We will sin. I know that I sin more often than I would like, but we also can make good choices. Choices that will allow us to be cleansed from that sin by being baptized and partaking of the sacrament. We can choose to follow Him, and return to our heavenly home; this is His plan of Happiness. I know that our Heavenly Father does not leave us alone when we are faced with temptation. He sends us guidance, comfort, and his hands play an active role in shaping and guiding us to become who He needs us to be. 

1)      October 2016, Thomas S. Monson, “The Perfect Path to Happiness” 

"Our Father’s plan for our happiness and our salvation is shared by our missionaries throughout the world. Not all who hear this divine message accept and embrace it. However, men and women everywhere…  recognize its truths, and they plant their feet on the path that will lead them safely home. Their lives are forever changed.”

2)      April 2017, Neil L. Anderson, "Overcoming the World"

"Overcoming the world is not a global invasion but a private, personal battle, requiring hand-to-hand combat with our own internal foes."

3)      April 2017, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear”

"Our Father in Heaven’s love for us, His children, surpasses by far our ability to comprehend. Does this mean that God condones or overlooks behaviors that run contrary to His commands? No, definitely not! But He wants to change more than just our behaviors. He wants to change our very natures. He wants to change our hearts. He wants us to reach out and take firm hold of the iron rod, confront our fears, and bravely step forward and upward along the strait and narrow path. He wants this for us because He loves us and because this is the way to happiness."

4)      April 2017, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear”

"God motivates through persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, and love unfeigned. God is on our side. He loves us, and when we stumble, He wants us to rise up, try again, and become stronger. He is our mentor. He is our great and cherished hope. He desires to stimulate us with faith. He trusts us to learn from our missteps and make correct choices."

5)      April 2010, Henry B. Eyring, “Mountains to Climb”

"Our choosing the right consistently whenever the choice is placed before us creates the solid ground under our faith. It can begin in childhood since every soul is born with the free gift of the Spirit of Christ. With that Spirit, we can know when we have done what is right before God and when we have done wrong in His sight."

6)      April 2010, Henry B. Eyring, “Mountains to Climb”

"If we have faith in Jesus Christ, the hardest as well as the easiest times in life can be a blessing. In all conditions, we can choose the right with the guidance of the Spirit. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ to shape and guide our lives if we choose it. And with prophets revealing to us our place in the plan of salvation, we can live with perfect hope and a feeling of peace. We never need to feel that we are alone or unloved in the Lord’s service because we never are."

7)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

“My dear brothers and sisters, we live in a most difficult dispensation. Challenges, controversies, and complexities swirl around us. These turbulent times were foreseen by the Savior. He warned us that in our day the adversary would stir up anger in the hearts of men and lead them astray. Yet our Heavenly Father never intended that we would deal with the maze of personal problems and social issues on our own.”

8)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

 “We choose to have faith in Him and follow Him. True disciples of Jesus Christ are willing to stand out, speak up, and be different from the people of the world. They are undaunted, devoted, and courageous.”

9)      April 2017, Dallin H. Oaks, “The Godhead and the Plan of Salvation”

“The Savior promised that the Comforter will teach us all things, bring all things to our remembrance, and guide us into all truth (see John 14:26; 16:13). Thus, the Holy Ghost helps us discern between truth and falsehood, guides us in our major decisions, and helps us through the challenges of mortality.”

10)  April 2011, Dallin H. Oaks, “Desire”

 “Let us remember that desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions. In addition, it is our actions and our desires that cause us to become something, whether a true friend, a gifted teacher, or one who has qualified for eternal life.”

Addictions

      We have been blessed with a few words of wisdom that advise to avoid addictive substances. As we heed this prophetic council and overcome the wants of the natural man, we can be blessed more than there is room enough to receive. We are faced with temptation on a daily basis, and must constantly focus on choosing what is right. Satan wants to make us miserable like himself, and remove our ability to choose with addictive substances. When you become addicted to something, you need it. You have no other choice but to have it, and your agency in the matter is taken from you. However, if you avoid those things, you can overcome the natural man, and will be blessed with strength, health, and stamina. 

1)      October 2016, Thomas S. Monson, “Principles and Promises”

"May we care for our bodies and our minds by observing the principles set forth in the Word of Wisdom, a divinely provided plan."

2)      October 2016, Thomas S. Monson, “Principles and Promises”

"John silently cried unto God, telling Him that he had always kept the Word of Wisdom and had lived a clean life—and he now desperately needed the promised blessings. … When he reached the deck, his breathing was normal and not the least bit labored. The blessings of added health and stamina promised in the Word of Wisdom had been his."

3)      October 2016, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “O How Great the Plan of Our God”

"When we passed through the veil and entered this mortal life, we knew that we would no longer remember the life before. There would be opposition and adversity and temptation. But we also knew that gaining a physical body was of paramount importance for us. Oh, how we hoped that we would quickly learn to make the correct choices, withstand the temptations of Satan, and eventually return to our beloved Parents in Heaven."

4)      April 2011, Dallin H. Oaks, “Desire”

“Readjusting our desires to give highest priority to the things of eternity is not easy. We are all tempted to desire that worldly quartet of property, prominence, pride, and power. We might desire these, but we should not fix them as our highest priorities.”

5)      April 2011, Dallin H. Oaks, “Desire”

“If our righteous desires are sufficiently intense, they will motivate us to cut and carve ourselves free from addictions and other sinful pressures and priorities that prevent our eternal progress. We should remember that righteous desires cannot be superficial, impulsive, or temporary. They must be heartfelt, unwavering, and permanent. So motivated, we will seek for that condition described by the Prophet Joseph Smith, where we have ‘overcome the evils of [our lives] and lost every desire for sin.’”

6)      April 2017, M. Russel Ballard, “Return and Receive”

“Because of his premortal choices, Satan can neither return nor receive. The only thing left for him is to oppose the Father’s plan by using every possible enticement and temptation to bring us down and make us miserable like unto himself.”

7)      February 2015, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Be Not Afraid, Only Believe”  

“Such diverse influences on the young as the increased availability of birth control, the morally destructive rise of pornography, an increased disaffiliation with institutional religion, the pervasive quest for material goods generally, the rise of postmodern thought with its skepticism and subjectivity and you see the context for anxiety and fear that a rising generation can feel.”

8)      April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

“The Savior said that He ‘cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance;’ so how can He look at us, imperfect as we are, without recoiling in horror and disgust? The answer is simple and clear. As the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ views disease in His sheep as a condition that needs treatment, care, and compassion. This shepherd, our Good Shepherd, finds joy in seeing His diseased sheep progress toward healing.”

9)      April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

“While God is empathetic, we should not mistakenly believe that He is accepting and open-minded about sin. He is not. The Savior came to earth to save us from our sins and, importantly, will not save us in our sins.”

10)   January 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

            “We live in a world that is filled with filth and sleaze, a world that reeks of evil. It is all around us. It is on the television screen. It is at the movies. It is in the popular literature. It is on the Internet. You can’t afford to watch it, my dear friends. You cannot afford to let that filthy poison touch you. Stay away from it. Avoid it.”

Dating

      I am at the point in my life where dating is important to me. I have been taught from a young age the importance of the temple. There are so many blessings which can only come by making covenants with the Lord in His holy home. One of these blessings is an eternal marriage. I know that if I marry in the temple I can be with my husband beyond “till death do us part.” I fully realize the importance of a temple marriage; for me, the hard part is finding my eternal companion. I am grateful for the council of our apostles and prophets in the matter.

1)      April 2011, Dallin H. Oaks, “Desire”

“All should desire and seriously work to secure a marriage for eternity. Those who already have a temple marriage should do all they can to preserve it. Those who are single should desire a temple marriage and exert priority efforts to obtain it.”

2)      April 2011, Dallin H. Oaks, “Desire”

“I am sure that some anxiously seeking young men would want me to add that there are some young women whose desires for a worthy marriage and children rank far below their desires for a career or other mortal distinctions. Both men and women need righteous desires that will lead them to eternal life.”

3)      October 2008, Elder Russel M. Nelson, “Celestial Marriage”

“The noblest yearning of the human heart is for a marriage that can endure beyond death. Fidelity to a temple marriage does that. It allows families to be together forever. This goal is glorious. All Church activities, advancements, quorums, and classes are means to the end of an exalted family.”

4)      October 2008, Elder Russel M. Nelson, “Celestial Marriage”

“The full realization of the blessings of a temple marriage is almost beyond our mortal comprehension. Such a marriage will continue to grow in the celestial realm. There we can become perfected.”

5)      April 2015, M. Russel Ballard, “The Greatest Generation of Young Adults”

“And don’t forget that classes and activities offered at your local institute or through your young single adult ward or stake will also be a place where you can be with other young men and young women and lift and inspire one another as you learn and grow spiritually and socialize together.”

6)      April 2015, M. Russel Ballard, “The Greatest Generation of Young Adults”

“You single adults need to date and marry. Please stop delaying! I know some of you fear family formation. However, if you marry the right person at the right time and in the right place, you need not fear. In fact, many problems you encounter will be avoided if you are “anxiously engaged” in righteous dating, courting, and marriage.”

7)      February 2015, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Be Not Afraid, Only Believe”  

“Many of our youth and young adults are terrified to get married. In extreme cases, they are fearful that the world is about to end in blood and disaster—something they don’t want to take a spouse or child into. In less severe, more common cases, they are fearful that the world will just get more difficult, that jobs will be too hard to find, and that one should be out of school, out of debt, have a career, and own a home before considering marriage.”

8)      February 2015, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Be Not Afraid, Only Believe”  

“We have our work cut out for us to preserve and perpetuate both the holiness and the happiness of marriage.”

9)      January 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

“It is better, my friends, to date a variety of companions until you are ready to marry. Have a wonderful time, but stay away from familiarity. Keep your hands to yourself. It may not be easy, but it is possible.”

10)  January 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

“There is no place for arrogance in our lives. There is no place for conceit. There is no place for egotism. We have a great work to do. We have things to accomplish… We need help in choosing an eternal companion.”

Education

      Education is one of the main focuses of my life at the moment. I feel so blessed for the opportunities which I have been given to learn. I also feel blessed to have the capacity to understand and comprehend the information I receive as part of my education. I love that the church emphasizes the importance of receiving an education and gaining knowledge. This applies not only to secular learning, but also to the gospel. We are instructed to learn the principles of the gospel, and that is a process which will continue to occur throughout eternity. I hope that even after I finish my schooling, I continue to learn and grow and become. It is through this process that our wonderful Heavenly Father shapes us into who He wants us to be. 

1)      October 2010, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Of the Things That Matter Most”

"They flood the open spaces in their time with lists of meetings and minutia—even during times of stress and fatigue. Because they unnecessarily complicate their lives, they often feel increased frustration, diminished joy, and too little sense of meaning in their lives."

2)      October 2010, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Of the Things That Matter Most”

"I think most of us intuitively understand how important the fundamentals are. It is just that we sometimes get distracted by so many things that seem more enticing."

3)      April 2017, Dallin H. Oaks, “The Godhead and the Plan of Salvation”

“The effort to know God and His work began before mortality and will not be concluded here. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, ‘It will be a great while after you have passed through the veil before you will have learned … all the principles of exaltation.’ We build on the knowledge we acquired in the premortal spirit world…. As spirit children of God, in an existence prior to mortality, we desired a destiny of eternal life but had progressed as far as we could without a mortal experience in a physical body.”

4)      April 2017, Dallin H. Oaks, “The Godhead and the Plan of Salvation”

“In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the plan of salvation and the gospel of Jesus Christ challenge us to become something.”

5)      April 2017, M. Russel Ballard, “Return and Receive”

“Our beloved Heavenly Father’s plan includes giving us a growing, stretching, learning, physical mortality through which we can become more like Him.”

6)      January 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

"The Lord wants you to educate your minds and hands, whatever your chosen field. …   You will bring honor to the Church and you will be generously blessed because of that training.  There can be no doubt, none whatever, that education pays.”

7)      January 2001, President Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

“These are the words of the Lord who loves you. He wants you to train your minds and hands to become an influence for good as you go forward with your lives. And as you do so and as you perform honorably and with excellence, you will bring honor to the Church, for you will be regarded as a man or woman of integrity and ability and conscientious workmanship. Be smart. Don’t be foolish. You cannot bluff or cheat others without bluffing or cheating yourselves.”

8)      February 2015, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Be NotAfraid, Only Believe”  

“Our youth have no need to be afraid or tentative about themselves or about their future. What they do need to do is believe and to rise up to make the most of the remarkable day in which we live.”

9)      September 2007, David A. Bednar, “Seek Learning by Faith”

“As we look to the future and anticipate the ever more confused and turbulent world in which we will live, I believe it will be essential for all of us to increase our capacity to seek learning by faith.”

10)  September 2007, David A. Bednar, “Seek Learning by Faith”

“Endowed with agency, we are agents, and we primarily are to act and not only to be acted upon—especially as we seek to obtain and apply spiritual knowledge. Learning by faith and from experience are two of the central features of the Father’s plan of happiness. The Savior preserved moral agency through the Atonement and made it possible for us to act and to learn by faith.”

Repentance

      I am so grateful to know that I can repent. I make mistakes far too often, but through the process of repentance I can be forgiven of my sins and be clean again. Repentance would not be possible without the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Because he suffered for our sins, we do not have to. Through this repentance process, we learn, and we become something new, clean, whole; who He wants and needs us to be. I am thankful for the repentance, the sacrament, and Jesus Christ, who makes it all possible. I pray that as I undertake this process in my life, I will be able to align my will with our Heavenly Father’s so that I can become who He needs me to be. 

1)      April 2017, Neil L. Anderson, "Overcomingthe World"

"His divine birth, His perfect life, His infinite Atonement at Gethsemane and Golgotha assured the Resurrection of each of us. And with our sincere repentance, He alone is able to cleanse us from our sins, allowing us to return to the presence of God. 'We love him, because he first loved us.'"

2)      April 2017, Neil L. Anderson, "Overcomingthe World"

"Praying, repenting, following the Savior, and receiving His grace lead us to better understand why we are here and who we are to become."

3)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

“Under the Father’s great eternal plan, it is the Savior who suffered. It is the Savior who broke the bands of death. It is the Savior who paid the price for our sins and transgressions and blots them out on condition of our repentance. It is the Savior who delivers us from physical and spiritual death.”

4)      April 2017, Russel M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives”

“As faithful disciples, we repent and follow Him into the waters of baptism. We walk along the covenant path to receive other essential ordinances.”

5)      April 2017, M. Russel Ballard, “Return and Receive”

“As we increase our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ’s power to give rest unto our souls by forgiving sins, redeeming imperfect relationships, healing the spiritual wounds that stifle growth, and strengthening and enabling us to develop the attributes of Christ, we will more deeply appreciate the magnitude of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

6)      April 2017, M. Russel Ballard, “Return and Receive”

“Find time to review your life’s goals and your plans, and make sure they align with our Heavenly Father’s great plan for our happiness. If you need to repent and change, then consider doing so now. Take the time to prayerfully think about what adjustments are needed to help you keep your ‘eye single to the glory of God.’”

7)      April 2017, D. Todd Christofferson, "The Voice of Warning"

"Far from being anxious to condemn, our Heavenly Father and our Savior seek our happiness and plead with us to repent, knowing full well that 'wickedness never was [and never will be] happiness.'"

8)      April 2017, D. Todd Christofferson, "The Voice of Warning"

"How much better to repent and rise to the gospel standard than to pretend there is no right or wrong and languish in sin and regret."

9)      April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

“Like the true shepherd He is, He seeks us and finds us to offer relief and hope. Understanding His compassion and love helps us exercise faith in Him—to repent and be healed.” 

10)  April 2017, Dale G. Renlund, “Our Good Shepheard”

“He loves us so much that He provided the way for us to repent and become clean so we can return to Him and our Heavenly Father. In doing so, Jesus Christ also set the example for us to follow—to show respect to all and hatred toward none.”

Forgiveness

This is one of the most difficult topics for me; to forgive myself. I know that as I repent, Heavenly Father forgives and forgets my mistakes, and often I can as well. However, there are moments where I reflect back on something years or months ago, and wish that I had never made that mistake. There are many things that I know I need to forgive myself of, and I have become better at doing that. I am thankful for the words of guidance and comfort that the prophets and apostles give. They remind me of our Father’s grace, mercy, generosity, and love. I know that if He can forgive me, then I certainly can forgive myself.

1)      April 2017, Neil L. Anderson, "Overcomingthe World"

"Sincerely changing and repenting of sins is no longer restraining but liberating, as 'sins [of] scarlet … [become] white as snow.'"

2)      October 2016, Henry B. Eyring, “Gratitude on the Sabbath Day”

"Of all the blessings we can count, the greatest by far is the feeling of forgiveness that comes as we partake of the sacrament. We will feel greater love and appreciation for the Savior, whose infinite sacrifice made possible our being cleansed from sin. As we partake of the bread and water, we remember that He suffered for us. And when we feel gratitude for what He has done for us, we will feel His love for us and our love for Him."

3)      October 2016, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “O How Great the Plan of Our God”

"Our Savior, Jesus Christ, had pledged to come to earth, live a sinless life, and voluntarily lay down His life in an eternal sacrifice. We knew that if we gave our heart to Him, trusted Him, and strived with all the energy of our soul to walk in the path of discipleship, we could be washed clean and once again enter the presence of our beloved Father in Heaven.

4)      October 2016, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “O How Great the Plan of Our God”

"That Day of Judgment will be a day of mercy and love—a day when broken hearts are healed, when tears of grief are replaced with tears of gratitude, when all will be made right. Yes, there will be deep sorrow because of sin. Yes, there will be regrets and even anguish because of our mistakes, our foolishness, and our stubbornness that caused us to miss opportunities for a much greater future. But I have confidence that we will not only be satisfied with the judgment of God; we will also be astonished and overwhelmed by His infinite grace, mercy, generosity, and love for us, His children."

5)      April 2017, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Songs Sung and Unsung”

“Believe in yourself, and believe in Him. Don’t demean your worth or denigrate your contribution. Above all, don’t abandon your role in the chorus. Why? Because you are unique; you are irreplaceable. The loss of even one voice diminishes every other singer in this great mortal choir of ours, including the loss of those who feel they are on the margins of society or the margins of the Church.”

6)      April 2017, Jeffrey R. Holland, “Songs Sung and Unsung”

“With divine imperatives of love and faith, repentance and compassion, honesty and forgiveness, there is room in this choir for all who wish to be there. ‘Come as you are,’ a loving Father says to each of us, but He adds, ‘Don’t plan to stay as you are.’ We smile and remember that God is determined to make of us more than we thought we could be.”

7)      January 2001, Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

“Now, if there be any who have stepped over the line, who may already have transgressed, is there any hope for you? Of course there is. Where there is true repentance, there will be forgiveness. That process begins with prayer.” 

8)      January 2001, Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Prophet’s Council and Prayer for Youth”

“I offer a word of prayer concerning you... Save them from the mistakes that could destroy them. If they have erred, forgive their trespasses and lead them back to ways of peace and progress.”

9)      April 2014, Gary E. Stevenson, “Your FourMinuets”

“Now, you may be thinking to yourself, 'I already blew it. My four minutes are already a disaster. I may as well give up.' If so, stop thinking that, and never think it again. The miracle of the Atonement can make up for imperfections in our performance.”

10)  April 2014, Gary E. Stevenson, “Your FourMinuets”

“Remember, you are not alone. The Savior has promised that He will not leave you comfortless. You also have family, friends, and leaders who are cheering you on.”