84- 9/16/24 REpentance

 Hello Family,


I hope you’ve had a great week as you get deeper into school, and Bug, good luck with starting your new semester today!


This week in Come Follow Me we learned more about the message of Samuel the Lamanite, which was repentance and preparation for the first arrival of Jesus Christ. In our day, the message is the same. Repentance and preparation for the second coming of Jesus Christ.


Graham, for his part of Come Follow Me was given a talk by President Nelson back from 2019 at the Priesthood Session of Conference entitled Be Better and Do Better. I had recently read that talk and had written some notes I had learned into the margin of my scriptures. It was so cool to me when Graham gave his part of our lesson. He shared these same things I had written down. They were powerful to me, and they were powerful to him. So I thought I would share these thoughts with you this week.


One of the things President Nelson has taught us with more clarity is how to apply repentance in our lives. He said; “Repentance is not an event; it is a process.” A process that should be occurring in our minds and hearts daily. What does this mean to us individually?  What does our daily “process” look like?


President Nelson taught, “… when Jesus asks you and me to “repent,” He is inviting us to change our mind, our knowledge, our spirit—even the way we breathe. He is asking us to change the way we love, think, serve, spend our time, treat our wives, teach our children, and even care for our bodies.”


Invitation: Reread the above paragraph. Consider these different aspects of your life:


  • Who do we show love to? How can we increase that love we show to others?
  • What do you think about during the day? How do you remember the Savior in all that you are involved throughout your day?
  • In what ways can we serve others during our day at work or school?
  • How do we spend our time each day? Do we feel like we are giving the Lord a fair share of our time?
  • How do we treat our family? Where can we improve in this regard?
  • How do we care for our bodies, spiritually and physically?


If you think about what the prophet is teaching us, by humbly evaluating these different aspects of our lives, we can begin to more clearly see how daily repentance is needed, and how it can be applied. We begin to understand the “process”, and how repentance is not something to fear, or dread, but rather seek for, as we strive to become more like Jesus Christ.


President Nelson encouraged us to, “Experience the strengthening power of daily repentance—of doing and being a little better each day.” He said “We allow the Savior to transform us into the best version of ourselves. We choose to grow spiritually and receive joy—the joy of redemption in Him. When we choose to repent, we choose to become more like Jesus Christ!” I love that promise!


In closing, here is one of the quotes that stood out to Graham. I thought it was so sweet and impressive that these words of our prophet resonated with him. “Nothing is more liberating, more ennobling, or more crucial to our individual progression than is a regular, daily focus on repentance. It is the key to happiness and peace of mind. When coupled with faith, repentance opens our access to the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.”


Like in Samuel the Lamanite’s day, there were those few who heeded his warning, and a greater portion who chose not to heed the words of a prophet. Let us be found as those who not only hear, but follow our living day prophet. Let us learn better how to apply the process of repentance everyday of our lives. 

I love you all so much, and hope you have a great week.


Dad


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