I believe it was Elder Bednar that once said something like, "Reading your scriptures is like brushing your teeth, you've got to do it every day." Imagine how gross your teeth would be if you did not brush them for a whole month.
I've also heard a returned missionary say that repentance is like shaving, "If I didn't shave every day, I would have a long beard in no time" he said. There is nothing wrong with long beards. This missionary just came back from a mission and it is just an analogy.
The points to both of these analogies are clear though, our spiritual habits should be as important (if not more important) as our grooming habits. If spiritual routines were not a regular part of our days, our spirits would get dirty just as our bodies get dirty.
I'm sure you have many great spiritual daily routines. If you're like me, one of those is prayer. Prayer is a time for me to communicate with God and more important than God hearing what I have to say, is me saying it. For example, most of us open our prayer with gratitude for the blessings we receive, but just think about what a negative affect it would have on us if we stopped being grateful. God doesn't need to hear our gratitude as much as we need to cultivate an attitude that will help us to recognize His hand in our lives.
In that same spirit, I include in my prayers the things I could have done better at that day. Most of us are very aware of our mistakes. When I am spiritually in tune I am always eager to improve.
However, I think that we (and I fully include myself in this) only think of repentance as feeling bad for what we've done wrong. The word repentance in the New Testament comes from a greek word, metanoia, meaning to change ones mind, heart, and course. Alma taught it so clearly by asking "Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts?" (Alma 5:14).
But, we are quick to forget that improving and maintaining what we've done well is as much a part of repentance as removing the bad parts of our lives. Our hearts will continue to change as we seek to recognize what we've done well and magnify it. The enabling power of the Atonement will help us as we both remove the bad and continuing adding good. It takes faith in Jesus Christ and action on our part. I want to get better at this; it's one of the major reasons I'm writing this out.
Here is a video produced by the Church that I believe emphasizes this point well. Don't forget to remember in your prayers the things that you feel you have done well that day.
I've also heard a returned missionary say that repentance is like shaving, "If I didn't shave every day, I would have a long beard in no time" he said. There is nothing wrong with long beards. This missionary just came back from a mission and it is just an analogy.
The points to both of these analogies are clear though, our spiritual habits should be as important (if not more important) as our grooming habits. If spiritual routines were not a regular part of our days, our spirits would get dirty just as our bodies get dirty.
I'm sure you have many great spiritual daily routines. If you're like me, one of those is prayer. Prayer is a time for me to communicate with God and more important than God hearing what I have to say, is me saying it. For example, most of us open our prayer with gratitude for the blessings we receive, but just think about what a negative affect it would have on us if we stopped being grateful. God doesn't need to hear our gratitude as much as we need to cultivate an attitude that will help us to recognize His hand in our lives.
In that same spirit, I include in my prayers the things I could have done better at that day. Most of us are very aware of our mistakes. When I am spiritually in tune I am always eager to improve.
However, I think that we (and I fully include myself in this) only think of repentance as feeling bad for what we've done wrong. The word repentance in the New Testament comes from a greek word, metanoia, meaning to change ones mind, heart, and course. Alma taught it so clearly by asking "Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts?" (Alma 5:14).
But, we are quick to forget that improving and maintaining what we've done well is as much a part of repentance as removing the bad parts of our lives. Our hearts will continue to change as we seek to recognize what we've done well and magnify it. The enabling power of the Atonement will help us as we both remove the bad and continuing adding good. It takes faith in Jesus Christ and action on our part. I want to get better at this; it's one of the major reasons I'm writing this out.
Here is a video produced by the Church that I believe emphasizes this point well. Don't forget to remember in your prayers the things that you feel you have done well that day.
Well said brother! I'd also like to add this comment that goes on a tangent to what you mentioned about having God's hand in our lives and having a mighty change of heart. This comes from a book I'm reading called "Hearing the Voice of the Lord" by Gerald Lund. Here it goes:
ReplyDelete"Elder Neal A. Maxwell was fond of citing words from C. S. Lewis that aptly illustrate the tutoring nature of God: "Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. " I pray that we will willingly submit to these changes and repent. I know these principles are true. I hope this helps us all be better people and become more like our Father in Heaven.
This is a great quote! Thank-you for sharing! I love reading your comments.
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