By Sister Kristin M. Yee
Second Counselor in the RS General Presidency

Repenting allows us to feel God’s love and to know and love Him in ways we would never otherwise know. Of the woman who anointed the Savior’s feet, He said, “Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” She loved Jesus much, for He had forgiven her much.

There is such relief and hope in knowing that we can try again—that, as Elder David A. Bednar taught, we can receive an ongoing remission of our sins through the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost as we truly and sincerely repent.

The redeeming power of Jesus Christ is one of the greatest promised blessings of our covenants. Ponder this as you participate in sacred ordinances. Without it, we could not return home to the presence of our Father in Heaven and those we love.

I know that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is mighty to save. As the Son of God, who atoned for the sins of the world and laid down His own life and took it up again, He holds the power of redemption and resurrection. He has made possible immortality for all and eternal life for those who choose Him. I know that through His atoning sacrifice, we can repent and truly be cleansed and redeemed. It is a miracle He loves you and me in this way.

He has said, “Will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?” He can heal the “waste places” of your soul—the places made dry, harsh, and desolate by sin and sorrow—and “make [your] wilderness like Eden.”

Just as we cannot comprehend the agony and depth of Christ’s suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross, so we “cannot measure the bounds nor fathom the depths of [His] divine forgiveness,” mercy, and love.

You may feel at times that it’s not possible to be redeemed, that perhaps you are an exception to God’s love and the Savior’s atoning power because of what you are struggling with or because of what you’ve done. But I testify that you are not beneath the Master’s reach. The Savior “descended below all things” and is in a divine position to lift you and claim you from the darkest abyss and bring you into “his marvellous light.” Through His sufferings, He has made a way for each of us to overcome our personal weaknesses and sins. “He has all power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet for repentance.”

Just as it required work and pleading for heaven’s help to repair the painting, it takes work, sincerity of heart, and humility to bring “forth fruit meet for repentance.” These fruits include exercising our faith and trust in Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice, offering to God a broken heart and a contrite spirit, confessing and forsaking sin, restoring that which has been damaged to the best of our ability, and striving to live righteously.

To truly repent and change, we must first be “convinced of our sins.” A person does not see the need to take medicine unless they understand that they are ill. There may be times we may not be willing to look inside ourselves and see that which really needs healing and repair.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2024/10/32yee?lang=eng

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