Miraculous Encouragement
Christ’s Atonement allows for the greatest miracle of all: changing hearts.
Daughter Arise, by Simon Dewey
In the October 2022 general conference, President Henry B. Eyring, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, described Moroni chapter 7 as encouraging, but what he said struck me as odd.1 Moroni 7 is a letter from Moroni’s father, one of the last Nephites and a faithful commander of an unfaithful people. What possible encouragement could Mormon, who had to watch his people die because they abandoned their faith, offer?
Mormon asks, “Has the day of miracles ceased?” while naming all the reasons why it has not—the biggest reason of all being that we are not outside the reach of Christ’s Atonement (see Moroni 7:41).
Mormon establishes this in verses 27–48. That is the ultimate encouraging message: Christ is always there no matter what we do or what happens. Many prophets and apostles have assured us of this truth.
We Can Always Access Christ’s Atonement
I have felt the power of Jesus Christ and the blessings of His Atonement in many facets of my life. But the most precious redemption I ever received took a long time to change me.
When I was a teenager, I thought I had to be mean to survive high school with my self-esteem intact, so I developed a “they punch you, you punch back harder” mentality, though all my punching was verbal. I tried to live two separate lives as two parts of me fought for control: the natural woman and the daughter of God (see Mosiah 3:19). At school, I was not acting like the daughter of God I knew I could be, while at church and at home, I did my best to fulfill my divine potential.
The school-me was caustic and self-centered, put down others, promoted unkindness, never cared about others’ feelings, and felt she was superior.
The me everywhere else tried to forget who I was at school. She tried to be meek, kind, forgiving, allowing, considerate, compassionate, encouraging, faithful, and loving. But living like this wasn’t working.
Come to Christ
I must thank a friend for helping me realize why I was consumed by frustration. She was the only person who saw me at school and at church. I don’t think she said anything, but I saw my actions through her eyes and realized I was acting hypocritically, and I couldn’t be two different people any longer.
I had to change, which meant I had to repent. I had to come to Christ and seek the blessings of His Atonement because He was the only person who could help me override my darker instincts and help me act like the person I wanted to be.
I started by praying that God would soften my heart and help me break my bad habits. It took months to break the bad habits and put new, good ones in their place. I replaced insults with compliments, put-downs with pep talks, sneers with smiles, arrogance with confidence, and acknowledgment with admiration. Every morning on my way to school, I would tell myself to keep being the person I had just been at seminary. I decided daily who I would be.
Days of Miracles
I ask for Heavenly Father’s forgiveness when I slip up and plead for His help and strength as I keep trying to improve. I can honestly say that He changed me then, and He continues to change me now. Don’t get me wrong; it’s still taking a while to become the person I want to be. But no matter what happens, Christ will always be waiting with open arms.
President Eyring’s talk about Moroni 7 reminded me that encouragement can be found wherever God speaks, whether through general conference or the scriptures.
Just as in Moroni’s day, these are miraculous days where hearts and minds change for the better in this fallen world. People can find the Light of Christ in their hearts and use it to develop charity, which is the pure love of Christ (see Moroni 7:17–19, 47). This truth is so encouraging. Jesus Christ can show us the goodness everyone is capable of when they turn to Jesus Christ, especially our own.