The Pleasing Word of God

The parts I heard sounded good. He talked about things that hold us back in our spiritual progress.

Many of us who are meeting to participate in this conference have come “to hear the pleasing word of God, yea, the word which healeth the wounded soul.” That word can be found in the scriptures and in the messages from our leaders, bringing us hope and comfort in the darkness of affliction.

Through our experience in life, we learn that joy in this world is not full, but in Jesus Christ our joy is full. He will give us strength so we will not have to suffer any manner of afflictions save they are swallowed up in His joy.

Unlike when Jacob spoke of the pleading weird of God, Elder Viñas didn’t need to harrow up our souls.

In those difficult moments in our lives, the pleasing word of God that heals the wounded soul brings the following message of comfort to our heart and mind:

“Peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;

“And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high.”

The pleasing word of God fills us with hope, because we know that those who are faithful in tribulation will have the greater reward in the kingdom of heaven and that “after much tribulation come the blessings.”

If we attempt to appease our conscience by trying to “excuse [ourselves] in the least point because of [our] sins” or by trying to hide them, the only thing we will accomplish is to offend the Spirit and delay our repentance. This type of relief, besides being temporary, will ultimately bring more pain and grief into our lives and will diminish our possibility of receiving a remission of our sins.

It is important that we realize that just like the remission of sins, repentance is a process and not something that happens at one particular moment. It requires consistency in each of its steps.

For example, when we partake of the sacrament, we show the Lord that we are going to remember Him always and keep His commandments. That is an expression of our sincere intent.

The moment we begin to remember Him and keep His commandments every day—and not just on the Sabbath day—is when the remission of our sins begins to gradually take effect and His promise of having His Spirit with us begins to be fulfilled.

In addition to comforting us, the pleasing word of God warns us that this process of receiving a remission of our sins can be interrupted when we become entangled “in the vanities of the world,” and it can be resumed through faith if we sincerely repent and humble ourselves.

What might be some of those vanities that can interfere in the process of receiving a remission of our sins and that are associated with keeping the Sabbath day holy?

Some examples include arriving late for sacrament meeting without a valid reason; arriving, without previously having examined ourselves, to eat the bread and drink from the cup unworthily; and arriving without first having confessed our sins and having asked God for forgiveness for them.

Other examples: being irreverent by exchanging messages on our electronic devices, leaving the meeting after partaking of the sacrament, and engaging in activities in our homes that are inappropriate for that sacred day.

The pleasing word of God that we share today shows us the need for continuous repentance in our lives so we can keep the influence of the Holy Ghost for as long as possible.

Having the companionship of the Spirit will make us better people. “It will whisper peace and joy to [our] souls, … it will take malice, hatred, envying, strife, and all evil from [our] hearts; and [our] whole desire will be to do good, bring forth righteousness, and build up the kingdom of God.”

With the influence of the Holy Ghost, we will not be offended, nor will we offend others; we will feel happier, and our minds will be cleaner. Our love for others will increase. We will be more willing to forgive and spread happiness to those around us.

We will feel grateful to see how others progress, and we will seek the good in others.