What I Know About The Atonement

If you see the date on my most recent post on this blog, you'll figure out that blogging is clearly not my forte. But once in a while I get the urge to post something here, like right now! A lot of things have happened between my last post and this new one. And I mean, A LOT.

Tonight for FHE (Family Home Evening), my "family" drove to Cocoa Bean for some AMAZING hot chocolate and then we drove up to a neighborhood and to a shopping center (Riverwoods) to see some lights. I'd say that it was a low-key activity, but I really enjoyed it. I felt that it gave us more opportunities to talk to each other, and if you know me well, you would know that I LOVE to talk.

On the way home, our FHE "dad" Moises asked us what we have accomplished this year. When it was my turn to talk, I did not have to think a lot about what I was going to say. I said that this year, I have grown to have a much better comprehension of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

When I compare what I knew about the Atonement to what I know now, I realize that I knew absolutely nothing about the Atonement. I used to think that I would never need it in my life. What an incredibly foolish thought! Years passed and I realized some things had to change in my life. Perhaps one of the hardest and most courageous things I have ever done is that I tried to make things right with my Father in Heaven. I can tell you that it is a long and difficult process. As I drew closer to Him, I realized that I was not doing this by myself. I came to know later that the power of the Atonement was what helped me make this much-needed reform in my life.

I cannot perfectly describe what it feels to have the Atonement on your side to help you, but I can tell you that it is very real and very powerful. When we were sent to this mortal existence, our Father knew very well that we will make mistakes. He knew that we will be not able to attain perfection by ourselves, and so He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to perform the Atonement, so that we would have a way to return to His presence.

The marks on the hands of Jesus Christ is a sure reminder of His Atonement. Photo courtesy of lds.org

As I studied the Atonement, I have come to realize that it is a lot more powerful and wider in scope than I have ever imagined. The Atonement allowed Jesus Christ to feel all the pains and sorrows of humankind, so that when we go through them ourselves, He will be right beside us, succoring us in our deepest trials. The Atonement is powerful enough that it rids us of the the guilt and the pain of our past sins. It also changes our very nature, so that the natural man that is inside each of us will never prevail. The Atonement gives us the power to keep pressing forward in righteousness so that we can stay on the straight and narrow path. The Atonement allows us to do the things that we otherwise could not do by ourselves.

The Atonement became more and more real to me as I personalized it to my life. I don't claim to have a perfect understanding of the Atonement, and I don't know that I ever will in this life. But I am absolutely sure of its reality. When things become uncertain or incomprehensible in my life, at least I will know that I can take comfort in the marvelous power of the Atonement.

One day, when I become a full-time missionary, I will gladly share that message of hope and love to those around me because of my understanding of the Atonement. Yes, one day, I will be a full-time missionary. You can consider this a little prize for reading all the way to the end of this post. When my original mission call to the California Oakland/San Francisco Mission got cancelled, I felt confused and a bit hopeless. I have moved on from it, but I still refrain from discussing that with many people. I'm sorry if I'm not too open about this, it's just a very personal thing to me. So if you're still reading, yes, I still have a desire to go on a mission. When things finally get straightened out, I will serve wherever the Lord would send me.I still could not forget that very clear voice in my head that told me to go on a mission. Even though it has been two years since I received that prompting, I'm still holding on to it and I will never let go until it is fulfilled.