The Atonement: as natural as bathing ourselves

I have a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I try to live it fully in my life, "try" being the keyword.  Am I perfect?  Absolutely not, and I make no pretense either to myself or others that I am perfect.  I embrace the Atonement, accepting that in this mortality, we cannot help but sin and we can find peace and happiness by regularly repenting of our sins. 

I wouldn’t dream of thinking that I can live my life in such a way that I never need to take a shower.  Washing my body is something that must be done often, even if I avoided physical activities that would cause my body to sweat.  Over time, my body would start to itch and smell, both small reminders that I need to shower.  Perhaps my skin would start showing sores and diseases.  And all because I decided I didn’t need to shower.  Personal hygiene is something that every human being should be concerned with; it is a great parable for our spiritual hygiene.  We should welcome the Atonement in our lives and embrace it instead of thinking of this as only a tool for sinners.  To specify the term sinners would suggest there are a group of people who don’t sin.  Jesus Christ is the only one who has lived on this earth and never sinned; everyone else is a sinner.  To rephrase the earlier sentiment, the Atonement is not simply a tool for sinners, it is a gift for all of us.

If you are one who feels they are above the Atonement, that you need to live your life such that you think you don’t need to repent, please stop living under that delusional burden.  If you want to be happy, you will accept that you are imperfect and that you are still an important person because you are a child of God.  You have nothing to prove to anyone, except your Heavenly Father which you should communicate in private.  Does this mean that one can throw all caution to the wind, to “eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die”?  We still strive to obey the commandments, but we don’t do them to show others how exceptional we are.  That’s an act that will wear someone out eventually.  What’s more, it builds enmity towards your fellow man, fostering a feeling that you are better than those around you.  That cankerous attitude also takes your eye off the mark and makes it difficult to follow the happier path that Heavenly Father has for you.  Obedience to the laws of the Gospel is simply the way we tell (or rather show) our Heavenly Father that we love Him.

May we use the Atonement daily that we free ourselves of the worldly burdens that would bring us down.  May we feel the lightness and joy of being spiritual clean that we can more effectively be about our Father’s business.  I know if we fully embrace the Plan of Happiness, that we can be, well,… happy.