Review and Revise Our View of the World

“Thanksgiving in and for the Gospel” by Destinee Bushman

I have prayed that each of us may hear the sweet voice of the Spirit.  My thoughts have taken a different turn than I expected so I hope that He will relay this message in a clear way to your minds and open hearts. Review and Revise

I am thankful for and feel blessed to have such a beautiful holiday set aside in our religious and secular world – Thanksgiving – which prepares us to remember the greatest blessing of all, the gift of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  This idea of taking a moment to be grateful and to ponder the blessings we have has been expounded upon by our modern-day prophets.  For instance, President Henry B. Eyring in his General Conference talk “O Remember, Remember” discusses a pattern that helps him to see and remember the bounteous blessings of the Lord upon him and his family:

I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?” As I kept at it, something began to happen. As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day. As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done.

More than gratitude began to grow in my heart. Testimony grew. I became ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. I felt more gratitude for the softening and refining that come because of the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ. And I grew more confident that the Holy Ghost can bring all things to our remembrance—even things we did not notice or pay attention to when they happened….

My point is to urge you to find ways to recognize and remember God’s kindness. It will build our testimonies…You … will be blessed as you remember what the Lord has done.

Tonight, and tomorrow night, you might pray and ponder, asking the questions: Did God send a message that was just for me? Did I see His hand in my life or the lives of my children? I will do that. And then I will find a way to preserve that memory for the day that I, and those that I love, will need to remember how much God loves us and how much we need Him. I testify that He loves us and blesses us, more than most of us have yet recognized.

Remembering and documenting, where possible, are great ways to show Heavenly Father that we are thankful for the gifts He’s given to us and our families.  We live in a time of turmoil and great sifting; I know that this pattern of remembering will be a strength in your lives especially as you seek to remain firm and steadfast in your testimony of Jesus Christ and His gospel.

A Change of Mind, A Fresh View

One of the greatest blessings we have received collectively as children of God is the gift of repentance.  We have been blessed with the opportunity to learn, make mistakes, and in those mistakes, to be able to reach out for the hand that is “stretched out still” as Nephi and Isaiah describe. The Bible Dictionary describes repentance as follows:

The Greek word of which this is the translation denotes a change of mind, a fresh view about God, about oneself, and about the world. Since we are born into conditions of mortality, repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God, and a renunciation of sin to which we are naturally inclined. Without this there can be no progress in the things of the soul’s salvation, for all accountable persons are stained by sin and must be cleansed in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. Repentance is not optional for salvation; it is a commandment of God

Rejecting Labels for That Fresh View

I would like to share an experience I had with a part of repentance I was not as familiar with.  Recently, in a book about trauma from a neuroscience perspective, I learned that our view of the world and the filters we use to see the world are shaped and developed at very young ages and can be based on how we were treated and cared for as well as the exposure to different facets of the world we received, healthy and unhealthy.  This could be words, actions, and experiences.  This stuck out to me as it brought to mind part of the definition of repentance in the Bible Dictionary: “a fresh view…about the world” and “naturally inclined.”  These experiences influence our thoughts which can in turn influence our actions if we so choose.

As a child, in an experience I still have not forgotten, an adult I looked up to told me something which could define and label who I am, and which if believed and latched onto would ultimately direct my course into painful experiences for me and those I love most.  It wasn’t until a few months ago that I realized that my life was following the trajectory upon which this adult unknowingly placed me.  I felt like all of my thoughts and actions revolved around and propelled me forward to this ultimate sadness and pain.  Before this realization, I felt like I had no power to change it, that somehow I was “meant” or “destined” for that course.  And because of my inadequacies and other failings as an adult, I found ample evidence in my life to support that idea.

As I pondered those feelings and compared them to what I know in the scriptures of agency and repentance (especially as it applies to a new view of the world and of God who lovingly placed us here to succeed,) I came to know that I was following incorrect assumptions and beliefs because of that initial thought that I internalized.

In 2 Nephi 2:27 we read,

Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.

These thoughts and feelings I allowed to grow inside me would eventually lead me to be miserable like the devil, alone and devastated.  I already felt the shackles around me as I had held to this idea without realizing it for decades.  And the thought of changing was almost inconceivable.

Acting Intentionally

With this knowledge and awareness, I have been able to take repentance to another level for myself.  I have been able to intentionally work through those thoughts.  I have had to intentionally act in direct opposition to how I internally felt like someone with that label would act.  I had to act in direct opposition to a thought and an idea that had been ingrained in my mind since I was a child and which felt completely true and accurate in my mind (since I had thought this same idea/thought over and over again.)  I have had to come out in open warfare within myself to reclaim my mind and to reclaim the agency that I was blessed with.  This is still something that I am working through, but I can see how my actions to turn the course, to turn to God, and to reshape my view of what my world can look like instead of following the temptation to just follow that thought through to fruition, have been a tremendous blessing to me and my family.

I understand with greater clarity the warnings from a Book of Mormon prophet King Benjamin:

But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not.

Elder Ulisses Soares, a modern-day prophet, also provided a similar warning in his talk “Seek Christ in Every Thought”:

When Moroni called upon the people to believe in Christ and to repent, he urged them to come unto the Savior with all their hearts, stripping themselves from all uncleanness. Furthermore, Moroni invited them to ask God, with unbreakable determination, that they would not fall into temptation. Applying these principles in our lives requires more than a mere belief; it requires adjusting our minds and hearts to these divine principles. Such adjustment requires a daily and constant personal effort, in addition to reliance on the Savior, because our mortal inclinations will not disappear on their own. Fighting against temptation takes a lifetime of diligence and faithfulness. But please know that the Lord is ready to assist us in our personal efforts and promises remarkable blessings if we endure to the end.

Through this experience, I have learned to rejoice in this facet of repentance.  What a remarkable blessing it is to be able to shape our lives with the agency we’ve been given and to combat any thoughts that do not coincide with our ultimate goal of eternal lives.  I’m grateful for a church and gospel that teaches us to study things out for ourselves and to compare what we are experiencing to the words and warnings of the prophets.

Review and Revise Our View of the World, of God, and of Our Fellowman

Every day we are blessed with miracles and tender mercies from our Heavenly Father through our Savior and Deliverer, Jesus Christ.  As we seek to remember these sweet ways He shows His love and supports us throughout our day, our testimonies of God will grow and be strengthened.  This will act as an additional tender mercy during times of trial and heartache as we are able to look back on the blessings and consistent love we have received from God.

As we seek to come nearer to Him, we will have the opportunity to repent, or in other words, review and revise our view of the world, of God, and of our fellowmen.  In so doing we can root out thoughts and actions from our lives that do not align with the will and plan of our Father in Heaven.  I know that His plan leads to happiness and joy.  I know that He lives and loves us.  He is the giver of the best gifts.