I Have Confidence in Me! But Mostly in Jesus

Today I read a wonderful talk, titled, Approaching the Throne of God, given by elder Jorg Klebingat during the Saturday afternoon session from this last general conference. I loved all of the different points that he covered in this talk (it is a great read by the by, I would highly recommend checking it out!), here are some of the ideas that stuck out most to me:

• My faith in God and in Christ is linked to the faith I have in myself
• Satan knows this, so he does all he can to put doubt and distance between us and our confidence in ourselves and in God's love for us
• Common lies as told by the devil himself: Heavenly Father is disappointed in me, I am not worthy to change, the atonement is beyond my reach, there's no point in trying, etc.
• There is a difference between pride in oneself, and fully, whole heartedly accepting and believing in oneself because of one's trust and faith in God
• "I can do all things through Christ, which strengthenth me" vs I can do it all by myself

It's really hard to accomplish much of anything if we don't believe we are worthy of God's love, or if we believe that the atonement doesn't apply to us because of what we've done. Satan knows that using these techniques to prevent us from gaining access to the atonement, hoping by doing so He will stop our eternal progression. But if we realize that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers, and that our weaknesses can draw us closer to God, we end up becoming stronger and more prepared to become like our Father in Heaven.

Elder Klebingat then comes up with 6 practical suggestions on how we can accept the atonement more fully into our daily lives, and here they are:

1. Take responsibility for your own spiritual well being- NO ONE CAN DO THIS BUT YOU!
2. Take responsibility for your own physical well being
3. Embrace voluntary,  whole hearted obedience to God and His commandments
4. Become really, really good at repenting quickly and thoroughly
5. Become really, really good at forgiving
6. Accept trials, setbacks, and "surprises" as part of your mortal experience

All these ideas are so simple. And I am learning it is in the small tweaks and changes we make that the biggest differences occur. I am really excited to keep applying these truths into my life this year- I know I have a ton to improve on and adjust, and I know I won't have it all figured out this year. But I am excited to start now and become better than I was last year. And today I am excited to be better than I was yesterday. 

I am so grateful to know that I have power, through the atonement of Jesus Christ to do whatever I put my mind to. I have felt the enabling power of the atonement in my life where I honestly thought I couldn't go any further. But through continual faith and repentance on my part, I have been strengthened beyond my natural capacity to overcome trial after trial, as well as my own weaknesses to where I am today. I am so grateful for the atonement of Christ in my life. I know that I can be much better at showing my gratitude for it in how I live. I want the way I live to be a reflection of my gratitude for this beautiful gift. I know I can do whatever I put my mind to with God's help and with the help of Christ if I do my part. I am excited for what lies ahead.

I love you!

Emily