Pres. Nelson asked us to study “The Joy in Daily Repentance” the next six months.
What struck me most was his use of the word JOY…
Most people do not associate Joy with the word repentance…
Most think of repentance as a hard and heavy task…
With lots of negative emotion involved.
Like “feeling” bad, embarrassed, sorry, hurt, guilty, even shameful.
As I have studied repentance and applied it to my own life over the years…
I have come to realize that repentance IS actually Joyful!
And if done daily, it is the catalyst for personal development and growth.
It no longer feels heavy, it becomes a wonderful tool for growth and development.
This month I hope to inspire you to see repentance as JOYFUL…
And offer some new ways of thinking about repentance…
That will have you excited to try it out more and more.
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Why do we even NEED Repentance?
We know that no unclean thing can enter the presence of God.
And yet our goal is to live in His presence again…
God has rules and laws(boundaries) that govern His kingdom…
To keep it clean, pure, wholesome, and righteous—a place we all want to live in love, harmony, and unity.
God has expectations of those who are striving to live in His presence; or a certain lifestyle or way of living.
We were sent to this earth to learn and grow…
Part of the growing process is to discover what this lifestyle looks like…
What works and what doesn’t.
With that discovery comes trial and error – sin.
Because the Lord knew we would sin as we discovered how to live this Godlike lifestyle,
And would no longer be able to return to Him…
He graciously gave us the GIFT of repentance!
A way in which we could make mistakes, return and try again, until we figured it out…
And still come back into His presence one day… AND be more like Him through our practice here on earth.
When I remember that repentance is a GIFT to help me return to Him…
I feel deeply grateful!
And repenting with a heart filled with gratitude, feels so much better than repenting because I feel guilty.
–Do you repent from a feeling of gratitude and excitement for more growth, or from feeling guilty? Can both exist at the same time?
