Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Love

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

I really can't think of a better example of love right there.

How can we ever be worthy of such a gift and sacrifice?

For a long time I felt unworthy of that gift. I felt unworthy to even talk with God or ask for help for things. I let myself become estranged from the one thing that would help me feel worthy. It was a loop that I couldn't escape. I went around and around. I felt hopeless and because of that, I never attempted to get out of the circular thinking.

Mosiah 4:7 I say, that this is the man who receiveth salvation, through the atonement which was prepared from the foundation of the world for all mankind, which ever were since the fall of Adam, or who are, or who ever shall be, even unto the end of the world.

I don't see any exceptions there. It is available for everyone! Even one such as I!

I know I'm not perfect and that sin is inevitable. Why can't I pay for it myself? Why can't I do the suffering? Why do I need the atonement?

I was reading a book, Believing Christ, that was recommended to me by a very good friend. There is a passage in it that says this:
A covenant is a contract, an agreement with terms and obligations binding upon both parties. In modern times we validate a contract and make it binding and legal by having both parties sign it. In ancient times covenants were validated and made binding by shedding the blood of a sacrificial animal. Hence, the Hebrew idiom for making a covenant is "to cut a covenant." The blood of the sacrificial victim was called "the blood of the covenant," and when it was shed, the terms of the contract were considered to be in force and binding upon both contracting parties.

Jesus is the sacrificial victim for the atonement. That's why he is referred to as the Lamb of God. By the shedding of this innocent blood, it makes the contract or covenant valid and binding. It seems a bit barbaric but that was how covenants were made back then. Christ had to be perfect because it called for a sacrifice. He never had to suffer those things because he never committed the sins in the first place. He had the ability to choose the suffering. We suffer because of the consequences of the inevitable sins we commit. We don't have the ability to choose to suffer or not.

People suffer for sins every day. Is that suffering enough to atone for the mistake? The Mosaic law was introduced to help people atone for their sins. It was a just way to pay for those sins because the world didn't have the atonement yet. An eye for an eye etc. If you cause someone to lose an eye and you lose yours in return, isn't that a sufficient punishment to satisfy the conditions of the sin? I believe we have two sets of consequences for sins we commit. There are earthly consequences and heavenly consequences. We experience the earthly consequences when we break the law. We have to pay fines or go to jail. The atonement is our heavenly get out of jail card but it isn't for free. As imperfect humans, we do ALL we can to atone for the sin we have committed. Let's say you did poke someone's eye out and you lose your eye in return. What about the loss of sight that you can never restore? You can't fully atone for what you did because you can't make that eye grow back. We can't cross that gap ourselves, that is where the atonement comes in. God requires of us to do all we can, then he will take care of the rest. He knows we can't do it all ourselves and he knows that we will never be perfect except through the atonement. If I feel unworthy of that gift, then I'm calling God a liar. Seems harsh doesn't it? He created us all in his image. We have God potential in all of us. If he created us to be that amazing and awesome, then we are. Simple! You are worthy of forgiveness and don't you forget it.

This stuff I've just spouted. It's what I believe in. I have faith that God will help me cross that gap. I trust that he will forgive me once I've done my part. I feel worthy of that forgiveness because He thinks I'm worthy.

That is love. He loves us unconditionally. Even in sin he loves us. He wants to keep his promises to us but we have to do our part.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Faith

Alma 32:21
And now as I said concerning faith—faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.

With hope, faith is possible!

Faith is the first principle of the gospel.

Mark 9:23
Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

What a great promise! We just have to humble ourselves and trust in the Lord. It says ALL things are possible. If you don't think it's possible, then you are disrespecting God.

You can't have faith without hope. They go hand in hand.

I have faith that the atonement is for everyone. Nobody, except Jesus Christ, is exempt. We aren't perfect. I have faith that if I live righteously, then God will bless me and everything will work out according to plan. I have faith that if his plan doesn't match mine, his will be better. Always. I want to benefit from the blessings of righteous living. I want to be an example to my children. With God, all things are possible. My weaknesses will be made strong, my children will benefit from my example, if I teach my kids good things, then they can pass that on and affect many future generations. I have faith that God hears my prayers. He knows what is best, I will trust him and he will help lighten my load. I've already experienced that. It's up to me to thank Him and to be worthy of his abundant unselfish-ness.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Hope

Hopelessness

This is a feeling that we have all experienced at one time or another. I have felt it on and off through out my life. I had periods of it this last week. Tonight I was thinking about it and I wondered why it came and went. Why did I feel so hopeful one day and then the next day I felt such a crushing weight upon me, one that I couldn't remove?

Satan wants to end hope. He wants us to feel hopeless because then we won't try. We won't work towards being better people. If we don't have hope that there is better out there for us or that we can become better, then why even try? We would just live life day to day and react to what is thrown at us. I don't want to live like that. I want to shape the world around me. I want to be a force of good and light! I want to have the control in my life to act instead of just react to everything. This is extremely hard for me. It's easier to procrastinate at the time but then it's harder to fix things because we are always reacting to one chain of events or another. If we are always doing the things needed to be a better person, then as a side effect, it takes care of certain things in our life.

Everything is SO mental. If we believe we can, then we do. If we think we are worthy and worth it, then we don't settle for mediocrity. If we think that life is too hard and that God expects too much out of us, then we are looking at things the wrong way. Shouldn't you be flattered that someone out there thinks that you CAN do it? God knows we have the potential, that's why He expects so much. If He thinks we are that awesome, then why can't we think that way about ourselves too? Do we think we know better than God?

There is a fine line between being humble and feeling inferiority. Satan is going to do everything in his power to push us towards that negativeness.

I am starting to remind myself that if I feel hopeless, inferior, and unworthy, then that isn't me thinking. That is never how God would want his creations to feel. Those feelings aren't of God so that means they are from Satan. Banish that thought process right now.

I've made too many mistakes in my life that are the result of those ungodly mindsets. I have settled, I haven't ever thought that I am deserving of happiness. Well that's just silly. If I think everyone deserves that, why don't I? Sure I've made mistakes, some worse than others. Everyone makes mistakes, it's part of the learning process. They aren't valuable if you don't actually learn from them, move on, and change.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Living alone!

So I've been jealous of my brother lately because he lives alone. I asked him what the best thing is about living alone and he said this...Being able to shower with the bathroom door open so that the mirror doesn't fog up.

I teased him about that being the BEST thing and the first thing he thought of. It must really be awesome. I was thinking of other benefits to the bachelor lifestyle. This is what I came up with.

Being able to eat cake mix and not feel guilty about never getting around to baking the cake.

You always get the prize in the cereal box.

Being able to leave the toilet seat in whatever position you want to.

Drinking milk out of the carton

Being able to take your time in the bathroom without kids banging on the door demanding your immediate attention.

Wearing clothes that aren't stained by children's bodily functions or dinner.

Sleeping when you want, where you want, how you want, clothing optional.

No remote control sharing.

No zit juice splattered on the mirror from someone else!

I think that really all I am jealous of is his privacy. After having kids, that is something you give up. I think that the benefits are worth the sacrifice though. Unconditional love is rare and should always be treasured.

just a little something

Ether 12:27

And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness, I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

I think I'll be needing this scripture in my life for the foreseeable future. I have so many weaknesses that I need Godly help with! This verse is so my fav at the moment.

I have really enjoyed reading the scriptures and finding verses that help me. I think all the scriptures will be helpful because I need a lot of help. This particular scripture has given me a lot of hope. I have been doing a lot of self-discovery and I am always trying to fix the faults and weaknesses I have. That's easier said than done. Some of my faults make it hard to be productive in that particular endeavor.

Anyhow, onward and upward!