After some debate, I've decided to finally post this.
(The debate was because these thoughts are pretty personal)
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound!
While babysitting Friday evening, the two oldest girls, Hannah and Ella, got in a fight. After multiple happenings, a distraught Hannah and I were talking. Hannah left me with some interesting thoughts.
Hannah: Why does she get to play when she didn't help build it (a fort out of blankets and chairs) at all?! It isn't fair! She shouldn't get to play! We set the timer for her to come downstairs, out of hiding, and she didn't come! We already added a few minutes! Why should we give her another chance? She doesn't deserve it!
Well, Hannah, we don't deserve it either. Another chance, I mean. Why should we get to repent and start over after making mistakes? We shouldn't deserve the Kingdom of God after making mistakes! But somehow, miraculously, we can return to His kingdom. For some reason-incomprehensible love, probably- a perfect being, Jesus Christ, willingly gave us a way to live as exalted beings when he suffered our pains, sicknesses, heartaches, EVERYTHING, in the Garden of Gethsemane.
That's another thing.
He didn't just say, follow these commandments and I'm sure you'll be able to make it back.
He bled for us.
He cried with us.
He eventually died.
For us.
Imperfect beings. Humans. Worldly, vain, prideful, undeserving, 'natural' men.
He felt our pain.
He bore our sins.
And He overcame death.
Even with the weight of the world on His shoulders, Jesus Christ "loosed the bands of death," providing a way for us to return to our Heavenly Father.
Miraculously,
through His grace
(the atonement)
we can be saved.
Amazing Grace.
*Pictures by Greg Olsen*
While babysitting Friday evening, the two oldest girls, Hannah and Ella, got in a fight. After multiple happenings, a distraught Hannah and I were talking. Hannah left me with some interesting thoughts.Hannah: Why does she get to play when she didn't help build it (a fort out of blankets and chairs) at all?! It isn't fair! She shouldn't get to play! We set the timer for her to come downstairs, out of hiding, and she didn't come! We already added a few minutes! Why should we give her another chance? She doesn't deserve it!
Well, Hannah, we don't deserve it either. Another chance, I mean. Why should we get to repent and start over after making mistakes? We shouldn't deserve the Kingdom of God after making mistakes! But somehow, miraculously, we can return to His kingdom. For some reason-incomprehensible love, probably- a perfect being, Jesus Christ, willingly gave us a way to live as exalted beings when he suffered our pains, sicknesses, heartaches, EVERYTHING, in the Garden of Gethsemane.
That's another thing.He didn't just say, follow these commandments and I'm sure you'll be able to make it back.
He bled for us.
He cried with us.
He eventually died.
For us.
Imperfect beings. Humans. Worldly, vain, prideful, undeserving, 'natural' men.
He felt our pain.
He bore our sins.
And He overcame death.
Even with the weight of the world on His shoulders, Jesus Christ "loosed the bands of death," providing a way for us to return to our Heavenly Father.
Miraculously,
through His grace
(the atonement)
we can be saved.
Amazing Grace.*Pictures by Greg Olsen*