For my Friends in Primary

Okay, so I was actually in Primary, not Relief Society, today. But, I didn't have to teach a lesson or prepare sharing time or worry about Ward Conference or ANY of the other things required of my sweet friends serving in Primary. Instead, I was able to read through the Joseph Smith lesson and ponder some of the questions in the study guide while I waited for my brownies to cook last night!

When I served in Primary, I never had time to read the RS lessons. So, I thought I would share some of my favorite parts with those faithful ladies who have responsibilities outside of Relief Society right now.

Chapter 5

Repentance

"God is merciful; therefore, repent of that which thou hast done."

I never get tired of reading about God's mercy. He is merciful. And because His mercy is real, we have no need to fear God's wrath or judgement if we repent of the wrong things we have done. It is necessary for us to feel remorse, but not fear. That is very reassuring for me.

"All hearts must repent and be pure, and God will regard them and bless them in a manner that they could not be blessed in any other way."

This is my very favorite quote from the lesson. God knows we will sin. That is why he provided a way for us to return to His presence. He also reserved certain blessings for those who go through the process and actually repent. ONLY by repenting can we receive those blessings. I love that. (It makes me want to repent!)

"If you wish to go where God is, you must be like God... Is not God good? Then you be good; if He is faithful, then you be faithful. Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, and seek every good thing."

I want to go where God is.
To return to His presence is eternal life- the ultimate goal for faithful Saints. We often teach that obedience to God's commandments is the way to achieve that goal but I love what Joseph Smith says- that we must choose to be like God. Not just in our actions, but also in our attitude and our purpose.

"Search your hearts, and see if you are like God. I have searched mine, and feel to repent of all my sins."

One of the study questions says, "take time to search your heart as the Prophet counseled." In less than 5 minutes, I came up with 5 things I'd like to work on to become "more like God." What's in your heart?

"Thus you see... the willingness of our Heavenly Father to forgive sins, and restore to favor all those who are willing to humble themselves before Him, and confess their sins and forsake them, and return to Him with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy, to serve Hiim to the end."

This comes from a letter Joseph Smith wrote to Harvey Whitlock, who had apostatized from the church but wanted to come back. Again, Heavenly Father wants to forgive us! We just need to humble ourselves. I looked up 'humility' in the Topical Guide and learned a great deal about why humility is part of the repentance process.

• If you are humble, you are submissive. That means you are willing to follow God and do as He asks.
• If you are humble, you are teachable. That means that you will learn from your mistake and accept what is right.
• If you are humble, you have a contrite heart. Contrite means sincere regret or sorrow. If you feel sorrow, you will acknowledge your mistake and not want to repeat it.
• If you are humble, you are meek. A meek person is patient- patient with themselves, with others and with the Lord.

I love the last phrase, "return to Him with full purpose of heart." I need to be determined to give all I have to Him. I can't just try to obey or choose which things I will follow. My resolve must be complete.

It will require humility, but if I do it, the Lord has reserved special blessings for my efforts.
How grateful I am for repentance and for my Savior, Jesus Christ, who made it possible for me to repent and receive these blessings- the greatest being eternal life.
I love the gospel!!

"All are within the reach of pardoning mercy,
who have not committed the unpardonable sin."
-Joseph Smith