I am amazed by the talks given by the brethren at General
Conference. In 10 short minutes they can
say so much; I sometimes talk for hours and really never say anything. I also gain so much by reading the talks
after the conference, my little brain can only take so much in and by the last
session I can hardly remember anything that has been said. For the past few weeks a short thought from
Elder Rasband has been constantly on my mind.
He said, “God is the same yesterday, today and forever. But we are not. Each day, ours is the challenge to access the
power of the atonement so that we can truly change, become more Christlike, and
qualify for the gift of exhaltation and live eternally with God, Jesus Christ,
and our families.” I have always
believed in the constant that God is the same.
I guess that means I trust Him.
But I have never considered the thought that I am not the same in quite
this way.
As with anything, when you have a thought in your mind you start
to see the same thought expressed in different ways or added to as you go through
your day. For instance, in our sacrament
hymn yesterday the final words expressed are “Pardon faults, Oh Lord we
pray. Bless our efforts day by day.” But before singing that hymn yesterday, as I
was studying my scriptures this week, I read Alma 34 where Amulek is teaching
the apostate Zoramites. He first
explains that because of the fall of Adam, all are hardened, all are fallen and
are lost and must perish except it be through the atonement of Christ. And then comes this thought that ties in with
Elder Rasband’s thought, Amulek says, “unto him that has faith unto repentance
is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption.”
So I’ve been thinking about having faith unto repentance. For me that is a different level of faith
than just believing. I actually believe
in a lot of things both within and without the framework of the gospel. For example, I believe that eating healthy is
important, but do I believe it enough to give up unhealthy food
completely? There are lots of examples
like that in my life. And so lately I’ve
been thinking about my faith. Do I believe enough to change, to access
daily the power of the atonement? Do I
have faith unto repentance?
For me, the most difficult changes are the ones that occur
within. I frankly like the way I do
things most of the time even if I know I should be better. I think it is also a challenge to use the
atonement to make and keep those changes that are needed. But it is something I want to get better at.
I know this isn’t a new thought, but it must be something I need
right now but the thought stays with me.
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