Thinking About it in My Daily Life
A while back I was offered a job — a promotion. When asking my coworker about the job she said, “I am only telling you this because I like you, don’t take the job. It is draining and you are reliant on so many people that don’t care if your load is hard.” With that warning from a friend, I did not take the job.
I avoided doing the harder job even though the rewards could have been greater because I would’ve gotten a higher hourly wage.
As I look back on this experience, I have no regrets with turning down the job, but I ponder how that job would be different if Christ had been the person that I’d been reliant on.
I imagine it’s God, my Heavenly Father, offering me a job, a promotion. Rather than settling with being a good person He asked if I’d be willing to become a disciple of Jesus Christ. A family member describes the job to me and cautions me, it can be draining. Sometimes the load is very hard and you will be heavily reliant on Jesus Christ.
Well… I know that Jesus Christ genuinely cares for me. I know that He knows my limits. I know that He’d help me if I reached out and prayed for help. I know that He would support me every step of the way — doing the harder job.
So to that job I say, “Sign me up!” The job may be harder, but I know the reward is priceless!
I learned from the October 2020 session of General Conference (A meeting from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) how to become a better disciple of Jesus Christ.
Desire
It begins with a desire — a yearning to transform ourselves beyond the natural man. Such desires come from knowing Jesus Christ, which we can do from reading the Scriptures.
Knowing Jesus Christ
From the New Testament: (I mainly studied from Matthew and Luke)
- We learn that Jesus Christ is a beloved son of God, born of the virgin Mary, in whom God is well pleased (Matthew 3:17)
- We learn that Christ increased in favor and stature with God (Luke 2:52)
- We learn that Christ knows the scriptures Himself and uses them to combat temptation (Matthew 4)
- We learn that Christ is charitable and powerful as He performed miracles and healed the sick (Matthew 8)
- We learn that Christ is a leader and a teacher and He taught of God and of goodness (Most of Matthew and Luke).
- We learn that Christ is humble and he gave credit to God (John 8:54, Luke 2:49
- We learn that Christ is obedient. He was baptized, diligently went about His Father’s work, and said at the hardest moment, “Not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42).
- We learn that Christ is wise and could not be ensnared by the tricks of the pharisees (Matthew 22:21).
- We learn that Christ is selfless. He endured agony, and atoned for the sins of every person that they might repent and be saved (Matthew 26:36–44, Luke 22:39–46).
- We learn that Christ had compassion upon the people, even for his mother while he was on the cross (John 19: 16–28).
- We learn that Christ is a man of love and forgiveness — he preached it (Matthew 5–6, and 22) and he lived it even until his death when He prayed for his abusers. He said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
- We learn that Christ died for us and then conquered death and was resurrected after 3 days (Matthew 28).
From the Book of Mormon we receive even more testaments of Jesus Christ:
- We learn that Christ is the source by which we can repent. King Benjamin wrote: “Salvation cometh to none except it be through repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Mosiah 3:12).
- We learn that Christ loves the world and is selfless. Nehpi wrote: “He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation” (2 Nephi 26:24).
- We learn that Christ is charitable. Moroni wrote: “But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him” (Moroni 7:47).
- We learn that Christ is the true Messiah as he fulfilled the messianic prophecies (Helaman 14, 3 Nephi 1&8), like the signs of His coming and of his death.
- In the Book of Mormon (3 Ne 9), We HEAR CHRIST’S VOICE! In the midst of the darkness and chaos following His death, Christ speaks! We learn that over 15 great cities were destroyed and their inhabitants — being buried by the earthquakes, waters, and fires, and this was because of the wickedness of the people.
To put this into perspective, if this were to happen today to a “great city” that could easily be 20,000 people per city if cities back then were comparable to Highland UT to up to 8.4 million people per city which we have in New York NY today. In 66–73 AD, which was the closest I could find to 34 AD, the population of Jerusalem was estimated at around 600,000 persons according to Google search and since Jerusalem was a city that Christ listed as being destroyed, I’m sure that there were significant numbers of wicked people destroyed during this period after Christ’s death. I wouldn’t be surprised if it were millions.
Christ says to the people that were spared, “Many great destructions have I caused to come upon this land, and upon this people, because of their wickedness and their abominations. O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?”
“If ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive and blessed are those who come unto me. Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name… I am the light and the life of the world. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.” (3 Ne 9:14–15, 18)
“[For] behold, I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.” (3 Ne 9:21)
After this there was silence for many hours and then Christ spoke again and He promised to gather His people as a hen gathers her chickens (3 Ne 10). After the 3 days of darkness passed and the tumult and trembling ceased, it says, “the mourning, and the weeping, and the wailing of the people who were spared alive did cease; and their mourning was turned into joy, and their lamentations into the praise and thanksgiving unto the Lord Jesus Christ, their Redeemer.”
From this we learn that Jesus Christ has the power of God. He has power to speak to all people, he has the power to create worlds, move mountains, destroy the wicked, offer eternal life, save people from their sins, and help those who are mourning to have pure joy.
When Christ showed himself unto the people of Nephi after He was resurrected (3 Ne 11), it said that the multitude “thrust their hands into His side, and did feel the prints in His hands and feet; and… did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come.”
Jesus Christ taught the Nephites:
- “And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.” (3 Ne 11:38)
He taught:
- “blessed are the poor in spirit who come unto me,
- blessed are all they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.
- blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
- blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.
- blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
- blessed are all the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
- blessed are all the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.
- blessed are all they who are persecuted for my name’s sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (3 Nephi 12)
“For ye shall have great joy and be exceedingly glad, for great shall be your reward in heaven”
“Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect.” (3 Ne 12:48)
After many teachings, the multitude were:
“in tears and did look steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer with them. And he said unto them: Behold, my bowels are filled with compassion towards you. Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither.” (3 Ne 17:5–6) and Christ healed their sick and then he commanded the children be brought forth and it says:
“No tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.” and then “[Christ] wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them. And when he had done this he wept again” (3 Ne 17:17,21–22).
We learn that Christ was resurrected and even though He was an all powerful resurrected eternal being, His priority was to come down to spend time with His people, teaching them, healing them, praying for them, and providing them with the hope, knowledge, and power they would need to be happy and live with God again. From this we learn that Christ is compassionate, loving, merciful, wise, and sensitive. He is our perfect example and our Savior.
These characteristics and details of Christ’s life that I’ve shared from the New Testament and Book of Mormon barely scratch the surface of what can be learned of Christ and His life. There is more in the scriptures, and we can also learn more as we pray to our Father in Heaven, and seek out knowledge from other good sources like the words of the Prophets.
Pray and Try to Improve — One Attribute at a Time
Once we know of Christ and what is expected of us, we can pray to our Father in Heaven to lovingly show us our weaknesses so that we can know where to start in our work to become more like Jesus Christ. Focusing on just one of Christ’s attributes at a time to work on makes this process seem more manageable.
As Elder Scott Whiting pointed out:
“By focusing deeply on one needed attribute, as you progress in obtaining that attribute, other attributes begin to accrue to you. Can someone who is focusing deeply on charity not increase in love and humility? Can someone who is focusing on obedience not gain greater diligence and hope? Your significant efforts to gain one attribute become the tide that raises all boats in the harbor.” (October 2020 Session of General Conference)
The attribute that I am working on currently is managing my time better. Jesus Christ used His time deliberately. He was actively engaged in His Father’s work and His actions showed that He let God prevail in His life.
For a couple of weeks now, I have reflected each night on how I managed to use my time during the day. I realized that I wasted a lot of time on my phone. I started to change this habit by putting a time limit on how long I could use my social media and time wasting Apps. I also made goals of what activities I wanted to work on during my free time when I wasn’t at work. I prioritized having time for personal scripture study, making healthier meals, exercise, planning ways to love and serve others, and finding ways to strengthen my relationship with my spouse.
I realized that it can be very challenging and tiresome to be so deliberate in trying to be productive everyday, but I find a balance by having a very diverse set of productive options to choose from, and by praying for help. I may choose to practice beginners spanish, start a sewing project, or spend a lot of time researching a spiritual topic on one day and on another I might choose to make a treat with my spouse and watch some wholesome media and talk about it as a way of strengthening our friendship. Naps are also productive in my book!
Eventually, I chose to completely delete many of the time-wasting Apps and not use them at all anymore. That helped me to have even more time.
As I have become more choosy about how I spend my time, I have seen blessings come from it. For starters: I feel more fulfilled and happy as I have been able to see my accomplishments: like creating a blog, sewing baby blankets, trying new foods and recipes and executing them well, becoming healthier, laughing and spending more quality time with my family, and actually having meaningful scripture studies more often because I was motivated to spend more time pondering and exploring ideas and applications.
Another blessing that I have seen is an increase in love. I have felt my Savior’s love more often since I have been trying to dedicate more time to knowing and becoming more like Him and I also feel like I have strengthened my relationships which has brought me joy and helps me to feel and show more love.
I have been better at expressing and feeling gratitude and I have become more positive and hopeful during my trials.
These blessings have also prompted me to spend more time thinking about ways to improve and to utilize the Atonement in my life.
President Russell M. Nelson lovingly taught: “When we choose to repent, we choose to change! We allow the Savior to transform us into the best version of ourselves. We choose to grow spiritually and receive joy — the joy of redemption in Him. When we choose to repent, we choose to become more like Jesus Christ.”
I have seen the benefits of accepting the call to become a disciple of Jesus Christ. It is the greatest promotion that I have ever been offered and accepting that offer has impacted so many of my choices for the better and it has provided me with so many blessings. I know that if I learn of Christ, repent, and try to become perfect as he is, step by step, then I can be blessed with eternal life, a family that will be forever, and eternal happiness!
I am so grateful to my Savior, Jesus Christ, and my Father in Heaven. I love them and I am grateful that they love me too. (And they love you too!)
