“[Repentance] is a change of mind and heart that gives us a fresh view about God, about ourselves, and about the world.” – Gospel Topics, churchofjesuschrist.org

I used to think that repentance was just simply confessing and forsaking and that was it. Now I realize that it’s a process that includes many steps within each of those main pieces. I’m starting to understand just how vital repentance is to a happy life, regardless of how “serious” your sins are.

In recent years it’s been growing increasingly clear to me how important the process part of repentance is and what the steps of that process are. Many scriptures give the components of it. And even more give examples of people who have followed it.

At the core of repentance, as all of these scriptures show, there is this idea of changing one’s way of thinking. It’s a turning of the heart from what’s false to the truth. Or, even better, to the Christ.

I always knew this in my head, but it has only sunk in recently as I’ve realized from experience that the only way to make things permanently better is to change your beliefs and your heart. I’m seeing the truth of this in therapy, work, family, fitness, and everything else about my life.

When I’m believing lies, or limiting beliefs as they’re sometimes called, I suffer.

When I instead search for, discover, and work to believe in the truth, I follow the path of repentance to gain a fresh view of myself, God, and the world.

I begin to see that I’m not stuck in my ways. There is no “predestination” that I have to be a certain way. I can be whatever righteous things I want, and God wants to help me get there.

I start to realize that He won’t force me. There’s no sin or anything else about me that I go through that’s permanent. I can choose to get through and change anything about my life. I’m free to be who I want. His whole plan revolves around my freedom of choice and He even gave His son so I could have that agency.

Repentance also shows me the things in this world that are sins and reveals how they are never worth the price. As I gain a clearer vision of the truth, I grow to understand more and more why God commands the way He does. It all makes more and more sense when repentance is part of my daily life.

Repentance isn’t something to dread. It’s not shameful or something we should worry about having to do.

Repentance is enjoyable. It’s like turning on a light in a dark room. You find comfort in knowing where everything is. You can step over the things that would cause you to stumble. And it allows you to find what you want in the room, just like repentance shows you how to get the happiness that you want out of life.

Repentance brings peace like nothing else. It feels as if you’re slowly taking away everything that bothers you about you, the world, or even God. Not that you’re changing any of those things, though. Rather, you’re coming to a closer understanding of the truth and it’s setting you free.

I used to have a very surface level of repentance. As it’s grown deeper in the last few years, I’ve become more grateful for it. I’ve grown to want it in my life as much as possible. I can begin to see why this is all that Christ asks of us in order to be forgiven.

He doesn’t ask us to repent just so that we can be forgiven, but that He also asks us to repent so that we may experience the joy of turning on the light of truth in our lives as we change our hearts and minds and gain a fresh view of God, ourselves, and the world.