I love the feeling of renewal offered to us every Sunday. There is something so refreshing about the start of a brand new week. Partaking of the sacrament to renew our covenants with the Lord is a highly symbolic and sacred ordinance, which draws me closer to Him and gives me courage to face another week.
I have always loved the quote, "Today is the first day of the rest of your life." What a tremendous blessing it is to be able to repent of our mistakes of the past and focus our thoughts and efforts on what we can do today to live a great life and build others. A speaker in church recently shared the oft-quoted words of David O. McKay, "No success in life can compensate for failure in the home." But then he went on to define failure in a way that filled me with hope. He said, "Failure is when you stop trying." The adversary wants us to become discouraged and stop striving to overcome our weaknesses. He continually whispers... "Look at all the mistakes you've made. You're a lost cause. Your weaknesses have become habits and it's no use to try to overcome them. You can repent, but then you'll surely make the mistake again, so don't even bother." But because of Jesus Christ, our Savior, we can let go of all our past wrongs, make them right, and look forward with optimism and hope.
Last week I made too many mistakes to count. Little things usually... raising my voice here, a twinge of covetousness there, an argument here, overindulging in those brownies there... etc. so by the end of the week, the burden of it all seemed so heavy that it started to take it's toll. I find that if I don't take the time to repent each day and let go of all that baggage, I start dragging spiritually. What a blessing, to be able to try again every week, with an updated list of goals and a sense of newness and purpose for my life. It helps me remember that each day I can choose to be happy.
So during this beautiful season of gratitude I feel especially grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ which gives me hope each new day.
I have always loved the quote, "Today is the first day of the rest of your life." What a tremendous blessing it is to be able to repent of our mistakes of the past and focus our thoughts and efforts on what we can do today to live a great life and build others. A speaker in church recently shared the oft-quoted words of David O. McKay, "No success in life can compensate for failure in the home." But then he went on to define failure in a way that filled me with hope. He said, "Failure is when you stop trying." The adversary wants us to become discouraged and stop striving to overcome our weaknesses. He continually whispers... "Look at all the mistakes you've made. You're a lost cause. Your weaknesses have become habits and it's no use to try to overcome them. You can repent, but then you'll surely make the mistake again, so don't even bother." But because of Jesus Christ, our Savior, we can let go of all our past wrongs, make them right, and look forward with optimism and hope.
Last week I made too many mistakes to count. Little things usually... raising my voice here, a twinge of covetousness there, an argument here, overindulging in those brownies there... etc. so by the end of the week, the burden of it all seemed so heavy that it started to take it's toll. I find that if I don't take the time to repent each day and let go of all that baggage, I start dragging spiritually. What a blessing, to be able to try again every week, with an updated list of goals and a sense of newness and purpose for my life. It helps me remember that each day I can choose to be happy.
So during this beautiful season of gratitude I feel especially grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ which gives me hope each new day.
