Recieving Christ

{This is a talk I gave in church yesterday so it's a little more "religious" than I usually get on this blog, but I thought I'd put it out there anyway--it's from my heart. kisses, B}


This week as I was having a hard moment, I wondered whether I was receiving my Savior into my life. I thought about his birth that we are going to celebrate on Friday. The juxtaposition of the rough hay and the softness of his newborn skin; of the joy of the birth of a child, the savior at that, and the harshness of the circumstances Joseph and Mary were in during that time.

As I drove down the street, my heart heavy, the bright sun was shining in my eyes and then was blocked by the trees, and this pattern of brightness and darkness was happening so quickly as I drove down the street that it seemed that there were both brightness and darkness overlapping. I thought about how that is like life. We can be in the midst of darkness and yet there is such a brightness that can be ours when we receive the gifts that Jesus Christ has given us. Hope and joy can live among our troubles.

When I was in college I took a sculpture class. At the end of the course, we were assigned to sculpt a self portrait of our face and head that was to be about life sized, and we had several weeks to do so. It counted as our final exam, and as I worked through my three hour class times adding bits of clay and blending them in, and taking bits of clay away carefully, I realized that it would take many more hours than I had during class time. I went at nights to the studio and watched as the clay received impressions from my hands and tools. I was reminded of this recently and have reflected on the process of adding and taking away. Of stroking the clay and making it smooth and watching the form take shape.


Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved. 2 Ne 10: 23-24


Is this what it is like to receive Christ? To let Him sculpt us into masterpieces? Am I palatable as my Savior adds substance and takes away pieces that detract from my beauty? Do I resist as he tries to make impressions?

A huge and important aspect to being human is the freedom to choose. Whom will we receive? We cannot be forced, so Christ has continued to persuade us to come to him; to believe in Him; to choose Him; to receive Him.

The sun rises and gives light to my little corner of the world.
I receive it joyfully and I see my savior in its beauty.

My children greet me in the morning
their faces full of innocence and hope.
I receive them with open arms
and see the Lord in their divine potential.

I pray that my weaknesses will not be so overwhelming
as to make them question my love
or their goodness.


I find that I need to choose to receive my Savior not only daily, but hourly and sometimes by the minute. Sometimes this gets me down that my weaknesses are so apparent and that I have so many blessings, yet I struggle in my trials.

Ye cannot behold with your natural aeyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the bglory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much atribulation come the bblessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be ccrowned with much dglory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.
D & C 58: 3-4


In the Book of Mormon we read about the prophet Nephi. He is one of my very favorites. He is so straightforward and simple. He seems to be the very example of obedience and integrity. A prophet who has seen angels and acted with the authority of God says:

My heart exclaimeth: O bwretched man that I am! Yea, my heart csorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities. I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily abeset me…Awake, my soul! No longer adroop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the benemy of my soul. Do not aanger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions. Rejoice, O my aheart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the brock of my salvation.
2 Nephi 4:17-26

The Lord says to us:
Will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may cheal you? Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will acome unto me ye shall have beternal life. Behold, mine carm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me.
3 Nephi 9: 13-14

If I receive Christ in my life He will heal my wounds. If I choose Christ, He will show me truth. If I receive my Savior, He will show me joy through my trials and strengthen me in my weakness. If I receive, He will continue to sculpt me into a masterpiece even though I yield to sin.

These things, which I know to be true, I am ever grateful for.