Given the Room to do So

I wish I knew what to write, I've tried two different things at this point and I feel no closer now then when I started.

Our Heavenly Father is much more full of mercy than we give him credit. I know that we are to live according to a certain law and that there is much we are required to give up in our journey as we try to become more like our Heavenly Father. We are called to remove the world from our hearts as we strive to live a more Christ like life. I recently sat in conversation with a friend and heard a montra of all the things we need to do in order to qualify for the kingdom of God, I truly hope I'm not condemning myself, but in that conversation I felt differently. The first part is simply having a desire to do the work of God, the next part is to live the commandments to the best of our ability so we can have the Spirit to be with us. The reason we are given commandments is to protect us from the destructive influences of the adversary and to be worthy, to have a clear mind and heart so that when we receive direction we recognize it and act.

Living a Christ like life is what we covenant to do each Sunday, we promise to retain His name in our hearts and remember Him always. We promise to try. That is what living our covenants mean, we just keep trying. Our Heavenly Father sees the long view, He sees that sometimes we have to take smaller steps then we think we need because He realizes just how long the journey will be. He realizes that smaller degree shifts means more lasting change because we changed our hearts and not just behaviors. Cultivating an understanding of why we change and desiring that change is just as important as actually making those changes. Our purpose is to change, progress and become better, yet Heavenly Father desires our hearts and He realizes that love, not coercion will make repentance a sanctifying process. We are required to change, to give things up and to become clean, we are also given the room to do so.

I am constantly amazed by the tender mercies and inspiration given when least expected and seemingly least deserved. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by feelings of falling short of the mark and having so far to go, those feelings never come from Heavenly Father, more often than not He is saying "you're doing better than you think you are". Allow Him to give you hope because then you have the power to make the change.