Beginning Anew – Sunday, January 20, 1980
Oh divine Redeemer…turn me not away…grant me pardon and…remember not my sins… oh divine Redeemer. 1
Those lyrics touch the inner reaches of one’s soul. They bring a message that reminds us of the Lord’s great gifts to mankind—the principle of repentance and forgiveness, the opportunity to begin each day anew. The concept should touch our lives daily, because it is a principle designed to strengthen our lives and our patterns of living.
Each new day means a fresh start in our search for happiness. Each day is a new opportunity to improve personal habits and resolve problems. Each day offers a new vision of personal growth and a new understanding of that paradoxical fact that in order to be happy we must do things we don’t want to do and deny ourselves things we want.
The divine concept of forgiveness encourages us to renew the desire to develop our own potential, to become more aware of our full range of abilities. Self-improvement, both mental and physical, is an important objective. Spiritual advancement should also rank high. But in our daily review we should not overlook the need to strengthen our relationships with our fellow humans, especially family. These relationships begin in our homes and in our neighborhoods. They begin with family and with friends.
In the scriptures we are told how to proceed: “I the Lord will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men.”2 “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”3 And so we are told that we must forgive those who may have offended us, even as the Lord forgives His children
Our forgiveness of others must be as complete as the Lord’s forgiveness of each of us.
Offenses should not only be forgiven, but also forgotten. When Peter came to the Savior and asked if he should forgive his brother as many as seven times, Jesus replied: “I say not unto thee, until seven times: but, until seventy times seven.”4
And so in his infinite love, the Lord provided us an example of forgiveness. Let us begin each new day with a vow to embrace that example in our own relationships with others.
1 O Divine Redeemer, Charles Gounod.
2 Doctrine and Covenants, Section 64:10.
3 New Testament, Matthew 6:14.
4 New Testament, Matthew 18:22.
“The Spoken Word” heard over KSL and CBS from the Tabernacle, Temple Square. Salt Lake City, Utah, January 20, 1980 11:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Eastern Time Copyright 1980 Bonneville Productions
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January 20, 1980
Broadcast Number 2,631