"Behold, it was expedient when you commenced; but you feared, and the time is past, and it is not expedient now;
For, do you not behold that I have given unto my servant Joseph sufficient strength, whereby it is made up? And neither of you have I condemned.
Do this thing which I have commanded you, and you shall prosper. Be faithful, and yield to no temptation."
Doctrine and Covenants 9:11-13
This is sometimes a hard lesson... that an opportunity has passed, and we need to move on. We often have regrets and we want to go back and start over, but we can't. But God isn't trying to give us a guilt trip about these things, and it isn't some essential part of our soul that we are losing because we can't turn back time. God asks us to move on, to focus on what he is asking us *now,* and to find joy and gather blessings anyway.
I think that is part of the blessing of parables like the workers in the field or the prodigal son... God teaches us that we'll be blessed whenever we learn our lesson and come to him. It wasn't too late for the woman taken in adultery or for Zeezrom although I am sure that they both probably missed some opportunities. What mattered though is that they came to God after their mistakes, repented, and were blessed.
For some things that we miss out on in life, there will be renewed opportunities in the Millenium. For others, we have eternity, and it is likely that we will have even better things to participate in. :)
Today, let's let go of our lost opportunities of the past and of lingering regret. Let's listen to God, move on, and do what he is asking of us *today.* That's enough.
No comments:
Post a Comment