Sunday's Talk

They say that often the speaker or teacher learns more than the recipient. This was the case for me on Sunday, meaning I am sure that I got more out of preparing my talk than anyone did listening to it. I am definitely not the first person who should lecture or teach about repentance. It was a difficult subject to speak on. I typically choose a more fun approach to delivering talks, but this issue is one that should not be treated lightly. I hope it was well received. I know it was by me.

Good day brothers and sisters. It is good to be with you this afternoon. I am happy that my wife and daughter are here to support me as well. I hope each of you enjoyed a fun filled and safe holiday. More importantly, I hope you paused to reflect on the Savior's birth, life, death and resurrection. Thanks to this speaking assignment, I know I did. Incidentally, the last three talks I have given in the last year or so, I have had to prepare while on vacation. I prepared one talk in Puerto Rico, one talk in Mexico and this time, I prepared my talk while my family celebrated Christmas in the mountains near Ogden Valley!

It was so beautiful there and we were anxious to make memories with our loved ones. Once we arrived, some time before the rest of the family, we quickly unpacked. I was excited to get the presents under the tree so we could enjoy the excitement on the faces of my young nephews as they arrived to find the neatly stacked gifts wrapped in shiny paper with beautiful bows. As each new family arrived they brought with them gifts and packages and placed them under the tree next to ours. And they came. And they brought more and more presents until they gifts rose to the size of a small mountain under and next to the tree.

At some point, I became frustrated. Frustrated that I had "bought into" the commercialism of Christmas. While I understand that the gifts were given in the spirit of soooo much love, I still couldn't help to wonder if we, society as a whole and myself included, had become totally oblivious to this crazy run away train called Christmas. I have a little bit of "hippy" or "soul surfer" in me and I feel this side of me becoming stronger with each year I grow older. It seems like I struggle with this more and more each year during this season. I debate thoughts of abandoning the holiday as we celebrate it today and instead make it one of pure service; instead of gifts, acts of kindness, time and thought. Of course the reality is that gifts allow us to show kindness. They take time and some gifts require a great deal of thought and preparation. I understand the concept of gift giving is divine. We still must choose to focus and not lose sight each Christmas of the pure meaning of the holiday and gift giving; that of the gift of a Son, by our Heavenly Father. A Son that would provide many gifts to us, out of kindness, consideration and great sacrifice. Ultimately the gift of His life in death which was followed by His resurrection.

My family has a tradition of opening gifts Christmas morning one at a time. Of course, this delays the discovery of what Santa or loved-ones may have gotten for us, but the process allows the necessary time to enjoy the gift and, more importantly, appropriately express our gratitude to the giver. Each of us have undoubtedly given a gift to someone that maybe didn't appreciate the gift or didn't know how to properly express their gratitude. While this may sting at times, it is okay. We give gifts for reasons other than praise and thanks. It is a little more stinging to give a gift that maybe the recipient doesn't want or doesn't use. Some recipients may offer lip service regarding their love for the gift, but then promptly put it aside when the giver has departed. As I prepared my talk early Christmas morning, I pondered the Savior's life and this question; "How must Christ feel?" How does He feel knowing He has offered the world the most amazing gifts ever, that of freedom from death and freedom from sin? I know the gift of resurrection is one that we have no choice to receive or reject, but how does He feel when we choose not to accept the gift of His atonement for our sins. How does He feel when we offer lip service and draw near unto Him with our tongues, but then deny the power of the atonment to take full affect in our lives by repenting. If there was ever a gift to be appreciated and enjoyed and used to it's fullext capability, it surely must be this gift, the gift of repentance.

Jesus spoke to his people in darkness, "Yeah, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me, ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me." In the last general conference, Elder Anderson spoke of repentance and pointed out that the "scriptures speak of His arms being open, extended, stretched out and encircling. They are described as mighty and holy, arms of mercy, arms of safety, arms of love, lengthened out all the day long." The Lord's desier that we come unto him and be wrapped in His arms is an invitation to repent as is explained by Alma in the Book of Mormon, "Behold, He sendeth an invitation to all men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them, and he saith: repent and I will receive you."

Elder Anderson simply explains, "When we sin, we turn away from God. When we repent, we turn back towards God." Luckily, "the invitation to repent is rarely a voice of chastisement but rather a loving appeal to turn around and to 'Re-Turn' to God." Heavenly Father desires us to taste the fruit of love and the fruit of perfection through repentance. He will forgive those who seek it with a sincere desire. "Divine forgiveness is one of the sweetest fruits of the gospel, removing guilt and pain from our hearts and replacing them with joy and peace of conscience." For most, repentance is more of a journey than a one time event. it is not easy. To change is difficult, but it can be done. Repentance is turning away from some things and turning towards other things. it is "re-turning" to God.

Seeking forgiveness is rarely a simple task. It takes courage, humility and faith. Repentance may require an uncomfortable conversation with your Bishop. It may require long periods of painful remorse or a period of prayerful repentance. It may require a simple change of habits or behavior. Change is difficult for most and nearly impossible for others, but change is necessary in the quest to become Christlike. Always remember these two things...Firstly, as I stated before, repentance is more a journey than a one time event. Whatever you do, take heed to the words of Alma to each of us, "And now, my brethren, I wish from the inmost part of my heart, yea with great anxiety even unto pain, that ye would hearken not unto my words, and cast off your sins and not procrastinate the day of your repentance. The time is now. there are no benefits in waiting to turn over this leaf. It is one of such importance and weight, or as Almas says, "Do not endeavor to excuse yourself in the least point." In other words, there is no better time than the present.

Secondly, take comfort in the fact that you are not alone. Your Elder Brother has felt your pain. Christ declared, "I have engraven thee upon the palms of my hands." Listen as he speaks directly to YOU and ME regarding this great sacrifice, "I have engraven THEE upon the palms of my hands." On the slope of the Mount of Olives, Christ suffered for each of us so that we may gain compassion, empathy and understanding regarding the pains suffered by us. Without that atonement, we would be forever lost in our sins. We would never experience a release from the bonds of spiritual death. With Christ's pending death and resurrection, He knew that we would also be resurrected and be forever doomed to suffer for our sins. He knew from the beginning that there must be a way provided for each of us to shed the burden of our sins so that we may have the opportunity to become perfect. thus, he bled from every pore in the Garden of Gethsemane.

In this sacrifice, this perfect man, who knew not the woes of sin, gained the perfect knowledge of what sin did to mankind. The feelings included in the sin itself, the emotions of struggling to make the decisions to sin or not to sin, and most important, the soul wrecking after-affects of the sin. This allews Him to have mercy on us so that we may be forgiven by Him. He has engraven each of us upon the palms of His hands. This is the greatest gift of all. Let us not be like so many others and fain appreciation for this gift. let us not be that ungrateful recipient. Let us show our gratitude for Him, but not with lip service. Let us take advantage of this gift. We must repent daily, weekly and each time we err. We must resign now to make this our commitment.

This time of the year is special. We are perfectly primed to make repentance part of our daily lives. In November, we are reminded of our many blessings as we celebrate Thanksgiving. We spend December reflecting on the birth and life of Christ and in January, we ponder the accomplishments of yesteryear and set goals for the next. The goals we set should be such that we progress in areas of Health, Wealth, Mental Capacity and Spritual Growth. What better time than now to set this goal of repentance and begin or renew our efforts to become perfect in Christ. If we do so, we will progress toward the goal of perfecton and over time, we just may get there. The most important thing to do is to simply progress. "Don't be discouraged. If you are striving and working to repent, you are in the process of repenting."

Perfection is clearly impossible as it is our nature to make mistakes and it is the plan of our Heavenly Father ot make such mistakes so that we may learn and grom from experience. Perfection is possible in Christ. He has paved for us the way with the example of His perfect life. He then bridged the gap for us with His atonement and suffered for each of our sins. When we take advange of this great gift, our sins are forgiven. Though our garments are red as scarlet, through Him, they may be white as snow. When I was fifteen I attended a youth conference where the Spirit touched me. I wrote a poem about Christ. The poem was not great and forgettable, but the closing line stated my understanding of the atonement. "With every sin I've yet to bore, causes my Savior to suffer more. I hope that in my future life, I ease my Elder Brother's strife." I would like to ease His suffereing. I can do so by minimizing my mistakes. I know my efforts to do so are appreciated by Him. I would like to believe that when I repent of my sins, that through Him, they are no more and thus somehow reverse His suffering. Of course, this is the gospel according to Q, but a wonderful thought none the less.

I know my Heavenly Father loves me. I see evidence of His love for me in everything I see. I know my Redeemer lives. I know their love for me is intense. I know they want happiness for me and there is no happiness to be found in sin. I know the atonement is real. it is my prayer that this New Year we each make a renewed effort to seek Their forgivenss and repent of our sins so that we may progress toward eternal life with them. In Christ's name, Amen.