Choose the Right, Sin, Repent, Repeat.

This is a talk that I gave in my church meeting today! This is the longer version. I had to cut part of it out in order to not speak over my given time. Enjoy! (P.S. Sorry about not so many posts, It will be fixed this week!)

Good morning brothers and sisters. It is my pleasure to be speaking to you today. I was asked to speak like everyone else does. You see them coming down the hall. You look at them. You see that they are looking right back at you. And then you know. There’s no way out. You run, but they catch you. It’s inevitable. When Brother Cutler asked me to speak to you this morning, I was delighted. And when I found out that I got to choose my topic, I was even happier. I have chosen to speak about the two topics of Agency and Repentance. These two very important principles of the Gospel work off of each other. Agency, according to Webster’s Dictionary, is the capacity, condition, or state of acting or of exerting power. Our definition of agency is a little different. Agency is the ability to choose right from wrong and to act for yourself. That definition is a little more personal and has more meaning to it.

We have always had the power to choose. We have never lost it, and never will. In 2 Nephi 2:27 we are given a choice: liberty and eternal life or captivity and death. Almost a month ago, I attended Youth Conference and the theme was “Choose You This Day” from the scripture Joshua 24:15. In the whole verse, it reads: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” That last part to me is really important because it is a choice, a confident decision, to serve our Lord and Savior. However, we are not free to both make our initial choice and then also choose the consequence of that choice. Bad choices might bring short-lived pleasure, but in the long run, they will not bring true happiness. In the Book of Mormon, Nephi foresees the destruction of those that are unrighteous, and I would hope that none of us here are this deep in sin. “And when these things have passed away a speedy destruction cometh unto my people; for, notwithstanding the pains of my soul, I have seen it; wherefore, I know that it shall come to pass; and they sell themselves for naught; for, for the reward of their pride and their foolishness they shall reap destruction; for because they yield unto the devil and choose works of darkness rather than light, therefore they must go down to hell” (2 Nephi 26).  Having the consequences laid out for you makes the decision easier doesn’t it? Hmm…eternal life or hell? On this Earth, everyone has their difficulties. It’s the truth; life can sometimes be hard. But we can choose for ourselves to do the right things, to be happy, to uplift others, and provide service to those in need. We can choose to do that. And when we choose to do good things we will be blessed immensely. Additionally, our Heavenly Father has given us talents that we are commanded to develop. In True to the Faith, it states, “You are also responsible for developing the abilities and talents Heavenly Father has given you. You are accountable to Him for what you do with your abilities and how you use your time. Do not idle away your time. Be willing to work hard. Choose to do many things of your own free will.” We need to be like the man who received five talents and make five more. It will be great to hear Him say to us: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. . .” (Matt. 25:21). In our daily lives though, there are constant temptations from Satan and peer pressure that can lead us into sin.

In Matthew 6:24, it says that “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” President Spencer W. Kimball talks of this scripture in his book, “The Miracle of Forgiveness”. He states, “Sin, then, is service to Satan.” We do not want to be known as Satan’s servants. Once we sin, we must repent quickly, because if we don’t, we may think that it is not required that we repent. And if we have that mindset, we will be committing those little sins in our everyday lives, not even thinking about it. And that will cause us to fall deeper and deeper in sin. This is Satan’s strategy. President Kimball tells a story in his book that I would like to share with you: “When I was a young boy I took care of a Jersey bull which became vicious and charged me several times. All I needed to do to halt his attack was to jerk the chain attached to his ring in his nose and he became docile and manageable. As he became less tractable, I added a long bamboo pole fastened to the ring in his nose. I now had him under total subjection, for I could hold him back or lead him forward. He was under my control. So does sin, as a ring in the nose, have the sinner under subjection. So is sin like handcuffs on the wrists, a ring in the nose, and slave bands around the neck.” Satan can get us that easily. His main purpose is to slow down the work of God. And we are his toughest competition ever. He is trying his hardest to tempt us. We were chosen to be on the earth at this time for a reason though; we can defeat Satan. We were held in reserve for this time when his influence would become almost unbearable. He is that very tempting little voice that says, “Oh this isn’t that big of a deal, there are people out there doing way worse things than me!” He is a professional at what he does. President Kimball continues, “the devil is decidedly a person. He is also clever and trained. With thousands of years of experience behind him he has become superbly efficient and increasingly determined.” He may have a lot of experience with what he does on a daily basis, but it is easy to avoid His temptations. On my bedroom wall, I have taped the following statement, “Return to an Environment where Spiritual Truths are Spoken.” I do not remember where I got this, but I love it so much because it is so true. If we are not in a righteous place, we cannot hear the influence of the Holy Ghost. He is our friend and will help us with whatever we need. If we are not in his earshot, it is like rejecting a friend that has always been there for you. For me, looking at it from that perspective, I feel a little guilty. Because I am not perfect person. However, through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can be made perfect one day.

In For the Strength of Youth it states, “Repentance is more than simply acknowledging wrongdoings. It is a change of mind and heart. It includes turning away from sin and turning to God for forgiveness.” That statement is so true, when we turn to our Heavenly Father for forgiveness, we are agreeing to never commit that sin again. Repentance is a key to this life. If we do not repent of our sins, we cannot live with our Heavenly Father in the celestial kingdom. Our daily goal needs to be to repent after we commit a sin. In Helaman 12:23 it says, “Therefore, blessed are they who will repent and hearken unto the voice of the Lord their God; for these are they that shall be saved.” It is plain and simple. Our Heavenly Father will never turn his back on us. He is here for us. However, if we do not repent, President Kimball, referring to King Benjamin’s words in Mosiah 2:38, tells us of what could happen, he warns: “This is the state of those who knowingly fail to live the commandments in this life. They will bring upon themselves their own hell.” King Benjamin’s words are as follows: “Therefore if that man repenteth not, and remaineth and dieth an enemy to God, the demands of divine justice do awaken his immortal soul to a lively sense of his own guilt, which doth cause him to shrink from the presence of the Lord, and doth fill his breast with guilt, and pain, and anguish, which is like an unquenchable fire, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever.” May we always repent, and turn to our Heavenly Father when we are going through the repentance process. A couple months ago, I taught a lesson in Priesthood on the topic of Christ-Centered Repentance. And in the lesson, it laid out 7 Steps to Full Repentance; I liken it to The GPS to get us back on the Strait and Narrow. Number one, We need to Recognize our sins. We cannot repent without knowing we are sinning. Those who have been baptized and confirmed, have the Gift of the Holy Ghost to help them choose the right and see what they have done wrong. Number two, We must feel sorrow for our sins. If we know we are sinning, and do not feel bad about what we have done, the full power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ cannot cleanse us. Number three, we need to have faith in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. In the Garden of Gethsemane, our elder brother, felt what we felt, He knows how it feels from getting a paper-cut, all the way to a terrible death. We need to believe that the Atonement can heal us. Because it is real and works in our everyday lives. Number four, we must confess our sins, to those we have wronged, and to our Heavenly Father. Admitting that we have sinned means that we are determined to repent, and want to get back on the Strait and Narrow. The fifth step is to abandon our sins. Once we have confessed our sins to our Father in Heaven, he will “remember them no more.” (D&C 58:42). Number six, We need to make restitution for our sins. To make restitution is to make amends or to restore something to its original state. Once we do this, we have been fully forgiven. The last step, is to Keep His Commandments and Endure to the End. We can use this GPS every day. It never runs out of battery. I would like to close with a quote from President Spencer W. Kimball, he says: “There is never a day in any man’s life when repentance is not essential to his well-being and eternal progress. . . Repentance is for every soul who has not yet reached perfection.” I know that this Church is true, and that if we let the Atonement work in our daily lives that we will be happy and I know that we have the power in us to stand up against evil and choose the right. And I know that the Book of Mormon is true and I know that My Redeemer lives and loves all of us so much. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.