It Is Finished

The words uttered by the Savior as he hung on the cross are three of the most fulfilling and eternal words ever spoken. The brought wholeness, completeness, and legitimacy to the faith and hope and prayers of many "who believed on His name." When Christ said, "it is finished," it was a statement in recognition of the grandeur of the act that had just been accomplished. He endured, held out, and literally suffered all. He chose to continue on, to press forward, because He loved us. He died on the cross to pay for our sins, and He rose from the tomb to conquer death. My heart is full of gratitude for my Lord, my Redeemer, the Only Begotten of the Father. Because He lives, we all can live and love forever.

I Stand Amazed

My life is like anyone else's - full of commitments, obligations, trials, and a wide spectrum of emotions. I am imperfect and sometimes, I recognize that it's okay to be imperfect and I cope with that fairly well. Other days, I struggle more - frustrated that I'm not overcoming an imperfection at the rate I desire. The marvelous gift of the Gospel though, the focal point of it all, is Jesus Christ. He is my Savior and He knows me. He loves me and He cares about me. He voluntarily entered the Garden of Gethsemane so that He could suffer to know how I suffer; He chose to live through the pain so that I don't have to, and He died that I might live forever.

The titles of two LDS hymns adequately describe the dependency on, and reverence for, the Savior that I feel every day. One is "I Need Thee Every Hour" and the other is "I Stand All Amazed" - combined, I feel they express my appreciation for what the Savior has done for me and they testify of the His power, love, and grace. I need it; I need Him. Life is hard and without Him, I know it would be much harder. I wish I could find the words to describe how I feel. I wish I had the vast amount of time I would like to have to truly explore my relationship with Him. I guess that's what daily prayer and scripture study is for, but I wish it were different. I do know however that I am grateful for His sacrifice. Through His power, through the Atonement, by coming unto Him and following Him, I know that He has prepared a way for the sinner to repent and be forgiven, for the offended to be made whole, and for all of us to live once more with the weights and burdens of this world lifted from our shoulders. As Matthew records the Savior's perfect and eternally valid statement: "Come unto me... and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).

Time Under Tension

In weight lifting, the term "time under tension" refers to how long the lifter is placing his/her muscles under the rigor (or tension) of lifting weights. Increasing time under tension breaks down the muscles more, allowing them to grow strong once they're given a break and allowed to rest and recover. While this principle is widely recognized in the weight lifting world, it is often a stumbling block for many when it comes to matters of faith and spirituality.

Those who would try to disprove the reality of Christ’s ministry – and even more-so the existence and actuality of an infinite Atonement – argue that if the Atonement were real there would be no suffering or overwhelming burdens. Yet, I would argue that hardships and challenges in this life directly help to prove that the Atonement truly is real. As stated in the book of Moses, God’s great plan is for the benefit and salvation of mankind (Moses 1:39). Because it has always been about “the one” and helping that “one” to progress and improve and change, Christ’s Atonement was never intended to be a power which would eliminate all worry and difficulty; rather, it is “the rock foundation upon which all hope in this life and eternity is predicated” and the means whereby life’s challenges can be conquered. Nephi valiantly stated that he knew he could accomplish anything the Lord commanded Him because a way had been prepared (1 Nephi 3:7), and Christ taught His disciples that He is “the way” (John 14:6).

While suffering under great persecution, the Lord tells Alma and his people that “I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage” (Mosiah 24:14). “And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease” (Mosiah 24:15). Disciples of the Savior can find comfort in remembering that the Lord has promised that there is a way prepared, He has promised to help when help is needed, and He is bound so long as His commandments are obeyed (D&C 82:3).

The Lord understands perfectly the concept of time under tension, and He will put us in situations that cause our spiritual muscles to be flexed and used and exhausted and broken down, because that is how they are made stronger.

We Are The Lost Sheep

As I think about the parables Christ taught, the three "lost" parables - the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son - come to mind as incredibly relevant and applicable to each of us today. I know that for me, there've been times in my life where I've felt lost. Sometimes, it's been because I'm not sure what the next step is that I should take, sometimes it's been a direct result of my decisions and actions, and sometimes it's been a result of the situation around me. However, I know that as long as we are following the Savior, we are never truly lost. He loves us and He wants what's best for us. By choosing to try our best, to follow Him and keep His commandments, we allow His guidance and love to protect us. And yes, He allows light and hope to shine where we wouldn't otherwise think it to be possible. No decision or action or situation will ever cause us to be outside the reach of the Savior's arms. We can never wander "too far away" for the Atonement and the blessings of the Gospel to restore, replenish, and return hope and peace to our lives. Luke 15 teaches that with the three parables, and in each of them, they end with joyful celebration because that is how the Savior feels when we return to Him. We are all like the lost sheep because no one is perfect and the other ninety-and-nine didn't need repentance. So, yes, we will each be lost at some point in our lives. It's the decision to remain humble and continue to seek repentance that will restore happiness and love to our lives.

Overcoming Our Will To Do His Will

I think one of the most frustrating - but also the most rewarding and fulfilling - things is trying to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. It is impossible to be perfect in this life; and a new perspective was illuminated to me this week. In a gathering where the focus was on discussing the social customs of various countries with regards to business, it was determined that Americans are very clear-cut and direct with their business purposes. When a business idea is formed, a business meeting almost always follows soon after - whether that's pitching the idea to a potential financial backer, to a development and production team, etc - and it's expected that the meeting will last only as long as necessary to clarify details and the vision of the project. However, in other countries, especially in the Middle East, a business deal is only formed after a friendship is established - and the business deal usually quickly and unanimously follows once the friendship and trust is built.

I think this is often the case with the Gospel and our relationship with our Heavenly Father. We take the American business mentality of "give me the 10-step plan, set a deadline, show me the guidelines, and I will do everything I can to get it done in that amount of time." And yet, this isn't how the Gospel is. It's not meant to focus on a deadline or to be a checklist of to-do items; it's about learning who we are and who are Heavenly Father is. Once we know who He is, we must learn how He acts and thinks and speaks and interacts, because the purpose of the Gospel is for us to become like Him. We will continue to make mistakes and the Atonement is there as a powerful correctional tool to aide us in eventually achieving what Heavenly Father expects of us. In fact, once the relationship is established and trust in Him truly is there, the blessings and results of the Gospel, the commandments, and the Atonement become very evident in our lives.

Thus, we must surrender our instinctive desires and do as Christ did when He said "not my will but thine be done." Truly, His will is one of patience, long-suffering, enduring, adapting, overcoming, learning, growing, changing, and improving. It's a process- and it guarantees the best outcome for us.

My Storms, My Fear, His Peace

Mark's biblical account of Christ's ministry teaches us an invaluable lesson about the Master. One verse in Mark 4 reads: "And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm" (Mark 4:39). As we navigate through the storms of life, we must remember that Christ is in our ship, and that He is all-powerful. He truly can do all things. If we ask Him, "all things are possible..." and He will turn our worldly fears into godly fear. He will calm our souls and our lives. Christ is the equilibrium that we so desperately seek. As prophets of God prepare to speak in about a month, my personal goal is to thoroughly evaluate my life to determine areas that are not so "calm" and "still" because I know that if I prepare my heart and mind, I can receive counsel and guidance for my life. My storms and my fear will be tempered with the sweet peace that is only His to give.

The Process of Perfection

In Matthew 5, Christ gives the following command: "Be ye therefore perfect." The simple reality is that, in this life, we will never attain perfection. The process of perfection, though, is one that we can follow and in doing so, we can learn more about ourselves, Christ, and the love that He has for all of us. The Savior, the Master Teacher, taught us that "strait is the way and narrow is the gate" that leads to eternal life; and the only way we can be on track to make it through that gate and along the way that He has prepared is by following Him. Because perfection is a process, one of the most important things we must remember is to be patient with ourselves. Life is hard. There are a lot of things that potentially stand in the way between where we are now and the "perfect" that we are commanded to be. Maybe it's best to add another command that Christ often gives: "come." So maybe we are supposed to be perfect by coming unto Him; in other words, maybe what He's really asking is that we try our best, that we "learn of [Him]" and strive to be more like Him, recognizing that we can work to be-come perfect over time, rather than striving to be perfect right now.