That mighty change of heart

The book of Enos is short but powerful. Only 27 verses long it begins by giving thanks that his father had taught him the nurture and admonition of the Lord. It’s true we don’t all have the kind of earthly father, or mother for that manner, who will teach us the nurture and admonition of the Lord. However, the Lord will provide someone at some point in our lives to show us the light. Some of us were born into abusive, and difficult situations, but at some point there will be an opportunity for us to make that decision to come unto Christ.

“I will tell you of the wrestle which I had before the God before I received a remission of my sins.”  (Enos 1:2)

He’s not complaining here of what someone did to him and whose fault it is. He’s looking at what is good in his life and giving thanks. He also looks at what is not good… what he himself needs to repent of.  I am so grateful for a father who taught me that anger over what someone else did would canker my soul and destroy me. The focus is on what can “I” do? I cannot change anything that has already happened. All I can do is changed how I feel about it.

Enos went to hunt beast in the forest, and he remembers what his father said about eternal life and the joy of the saints. And he says, “My soul hungered, and I knelt down before my Maker and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul…All day long and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens, and there came a voice unto me saying, Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shall be blessed.”  (Enos 1:4-5)

This reminds me of the night in a little Baptist Church when I walked down the aisle and accepted the invitation to be Saved. I need to say here that there has been nothing in my life that has ever discredited or diminished that experience in that little Baptist Church. Every religious experience I have had since that time has only added to that original decision to be Saved.

The thing I did not realize at the time was that, being saved is not just a onetime thing.  There is that life changing moment such as Enos had when you realize the big picture and accept the atonement of our Lord Redeemer and Savior, but repentance is a daily thing. At least daily and most likely many more times than that we repent of the daily infractions.

From that momentous moment of accepting Christ our life can be changed and we have an opportunity to exercise outward tokens of our inward change with covenants and ordinances such as baptism and taking of the sacrament and so on. I say can because it is up to us what we do with the wonderful gift of repentance and salvation. Then when the time comes for us to depart this life, and if we have stayed on the path, we can say as Enos did, “For I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me; Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansion of my Father. Amen.” ( Enos 1:27)