We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice In Christ: repentance

Showing posts with label repentance. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

All Together Now

Whenever it's time to change the drawing/phrase on my kitchen chalkboard, my kids all jump at the chance to be the one to create something for the board.

This one was created by my 8 year old Honor at the beginning of January, and I just thought it was an appropriate reminder for all of us during the politically charged day/week/season.

Ultimately, we're all in this together. WE have so many challenges to face, and we will certainly only beat the terrible things in our lives, when we do it together.

I wanted to also take a moment to thank those of you who have reached out to me and offered words of support, encouragement, and advice in my parenting woes.

I definitely needed that. I needed to not feel alone. And you, dear long-time readers, have done that for me, and I appreciate it.

We're all in this together.

In church this week, someone quoted the scripture that has always been the theme of this blog: 2 Nephi 25:26:

And we ^atalk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we ^bprophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our ^cchildren may know to what source they may look for a ^dremission of their sins.

...and I was reminded how much that scripture has meant to me and guided my parenting in the past. And I silently pondered to myself, "Do I really believe in this scripture? Am I still willing to let this scripture be my guiding light as a Mom? Because I've done the talking of Christ and the prophesying of Christ part for my kids, but am I ready to focus on the part where I just stand back and point them to Christ as the One who can help them with the remission of their sins part?" Because that's the part of parenting that I'm now at....the part where I let my past last 15 years of teaching speak for itself and I stand back and let them rely on Christ for the rest.

Anyway, I think I have enough faith, and you guys have helped me to be braver and lean a little/lot more on His merits this week. And I thank you. We're all in this together.

Continue reading... »

Sunday, April 7, 2019

The Path Foward: Repent Every Day

After that wonderful General Conference, in which we've been asked to "Do Better & Be Better," to "Repent every day," and to do the spiritual work necessary to know God lives and that this is His church, it's the perfect time to turn our minds to the Savior and really reflect on what He has done for us and on what role we want His sacrifice to play in our lives.

Will the Atonement of Jesus Christ be an afterthought? Something that we think of once a week as we take the Sacrament? Or will we start today to make a goal to repent of something EVERY DAY?

I realized as I was talking about President Nelson's admonishment to repent every day, that if we aren't doing this (which up until now, I really have not) then perhaps this is one major way that we are taking the Sacrament in vain...taking His name in vain. It will take great humility and personal committment, but I'm willing to try. And I believe that doing this one thing, at least in my life, will make a big difference.

It's interesting how at peace I feel after this General Conference. It all seems doable. I mean, I understand I have my own personal work to do and that it will be work, however, the gentleness and charity that I believe our leaders displayed in their tone and delivery of their talks, just distills so peacefully on my soul. I think in many ways we were rebuked, but it was done with such love, that I definitely see a clear path forward...and it's now up to me to take it, and to try my best every day...and repent and use the Atonement to help myself improve when I do mess up.

It seems so simple. It seems so right.

+++

Ok, as you know, we've done a lot of fun Easter Activies in our family over the years...(most of them linked here.)

This year, we're trying out a simple, new one, thanks to long-time blog friend Dana Cockrum, who is the creative mind behind an online shop called Home Centered.

Now, as you know, I very rarely promote anything that's a business, like almost never, however Dana has been around a long time supporting my blog, and I really do love the sign (pictured above) which will lead our family through the events of Christ's life during the week leading up to the Atonement and serve as a constant reminder of WHY we are doing what we do each day!

Here are a few things to know:

1. The Easter Countdown sign comes in black or white background. As you can see it's a really nice size and very well-made. Like, I was surprised at how pleased I was with the size, and my husband, who usually doesn't love me getting "decor" really loves the simple design and the icons. And he actually thanked me for getting this for our family. Ha!

2. It comes with a few scripture readings to do as a family each day which will help you focus on Christ during this special week (and the scriptures are on the back of the sign so you won't lose them!) In addition to the readings, I anticipate that my children will enjoy moving the small wreath each day.

I'm so excited to use this because a) it's beautiful and b) it's just SO simple, and simple is what I need in my life right now.

3. So, if you're interested, order yours today, and use the online code "HEISRISEN" when you order to receive 20% off.

4. Please, order by Tuesday, April 9 to receive it in time for Easter week!

You can view all of her stuff at Home Centered and follow her on Facebook by clicking here.

Thanks for reading, and have a great week! I'm going to be taking a look at my General Conference questions and sharing what I learned in an upcoming post...

Continue reading... »

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Repentance: the Hope-filled Path by Elder Scott

Since we have a wooded backyard with tons of fun paths to follow, I like to use that resource whenever I can for our family lessons and activities. When I read Elder Scott's talk "Personal Strength Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ" looking for something tangible to help my children remember his teachings, this line caught my eye, "...repentance is not punishment. It is the hope-filled path to a more glorious future."

To facilitate this lesson, I created two paths marked by signs. The signs of one path indicated the choice to cover up a mistake. The signs on the other path represented the steps we take when we choose to repent of a mistake that we have made.

We started the lesson by imagining a scenario where we have made a misstep. Standing in between both paths, we realized that we had a decision to make...whether to own up to what we have done and repent or to follow the other path of denial.

We ventured down the "non-repentant" path first. The signs marking this path included:

Lie about it.

Deny it.

Cover up your mistake.

Blame others.

Give logical reasons why you acted that way.

Explain why what you did "isn't really that bad."

Feel angry.

Feel guilty.

Feel sad.

Feel alone.

Pretend you don't care.

Hide the way your are really feeling from family and friends.

Do things to try to forget.

Feel even worse.

Deny what you once knew was true.

Attached to each path marker was a photo representing what was written (to help non-readers and) to more fully express the kinds of feelings that we experience when we travel on a non-repentant path.

Non-repentant Path

And of course, our path lead us right back to the beginning. Our path looked pretty welcoming at first. It was well-marked, even had pavers to walk on, but soon lead us through bushes and uncomfortable briars (even a dead end) and eventually we ended up where we started...no better off. Even worse off, because we ended by "denying what we once knew was true."

Repentant Path

So, we started over and chose a different path. We chose the path of repentance. The signs marking this path were as follows:

Realize we've done wrong.

Feel sorry for our sin.

Confess our sin.

Change our behavior.

Ask for forgiveness.

Make restitution, if possible.

Forgive others and ourselves.

Feel peace.

Feel happiness.

Feel God's love.

Earn a testimony of truth.

Accept any short or long-term consequences of our poor choices. (Specifically mentioned in Elder Scott's talk)

Know that breaking a covenant with the Lord is never ok. (from Elder Scott's talk)

Fortify yourself by following the Prophet's advice so you don't fall into old ways. (from Elder Scott's talk)

Seek strength through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. (from Elder Scott's talk)

The path to repentance looked rockier at first. The pictures of Godly sorry (real photos of my kids mostly!) didn't look that alluring, and the path meant, at first anyway, we'd have to traverse some ice. But soon, the blessings of repentance became more promising and appealing. Instead of walking aimlessly in the woods, our path took us to a higher elevation, onto the porch, and then into our warm home, where we feel safe and happy and loved, and where a bowl of left-over Valentine's Day Candy was waiting for us! (Sorry, that's all I had to end our trail with...perhaps "fruits of the spirit" would have been better!)

I am so thankful for the imagery that Elder Scott used and that our yard helped bring his teachings to life. (You could recreate at a similar wooded area or in your own home using obstacles of another kind.) I hope that we can refer to this experience often as we remember that repentance is not a punishment, but a hope-filled path to a more glorious future.