Best of Me : The Power of Positivity

Hello! You may have noticed that as of late I have not been able to post something new every week. This is because I am in the throes of a new calling: Ward Clerk. This takes up much of my time on Sundays, which keeps me from writing. So, I decided today to do a "best of me" post, one which I thought I put extra thought into that I wrote over the past couple of years. I hope you enjoy this repeat!

"Accessing the Atonement and the Power of Positivity"

ORIGINAL POST DATE: December 20, 2009

This week I would like to center my thoughts on the battle that rages between the positive and the negative in life. It is a product of the larger war between good and evil, versus the Spirit of God and the Spirit of the Devil. It the former seems less consequential than the latter at times, but make no mistake: our attitude (be it positive or negative) is a catalyst to these respective spirits.

Let me provide a case example to elucidate. I know an individual who several months ago was diagnosed as having a level 4 glioblastoma in his brain the size of a baseball. Glioblastoma are cancerous tumors, and they are assigned five levels, based on their pervasiveness in the brain matter. This individual could have given up, and taken a negative attitude toward his pathology. He could have looked at the odds of survival (which were not good with the cancer at such a stage), and accepted defeat to his imperfect body. But he somehow knew that Heavenly Father had more for him to do on this Earth, and fought, and continues to fight. His neurosurgeons have told him that he is not just beating the odds, but is "clobbering" them. This individual is my former mission president, Jeffrey R. Morrow. To read the latest on his recovery, click here: http://jeffreymorrow.blogspot.com/2009/12/7th-inning-and-clobbering-odds.html.

President Morrow has been positive throughout, and in so doing has had the Spirit breathe life into him (Abraham 5:7). So what is it about people like Jeffrey Morrow that sets them apart? And why are there so few that have such a strong attitude, that it is necessary that those who do "beat the odds?" I have given much contemplation to these questions, and have resolved that the best answer is often the simplest: it is the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

The negative in life must needs exist that we learn in this life, and aptly prepare to meet God ( 2 Nephi 2:11, Alma 34:32). But those who stay positive, are filled with joy, and move forward despite hardship are those who truly apply the Atonement in their lives. We read in Alma 7:12:

And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.

It was a great revelation to me several years ago when I learned that the Atonement is not just for those things that I have done wrong, but for all that afflicts me. "Infirmities" is much like the Spanish "enfermedades," which means "sicknesses." Anything that causes me to be unwell was felt by the Savior in the Garden, and on the Cross. And what joy it is to actually believe that! And what joy it is to actually know that! I know that is the Atonement, as well, that helps me remain positive in the face of trial. I stay positive because I know that I can turn to the Savior, and make the negative go away as I access the powers of that supernal Gift. I am able to grow in faith, and change my view of the world around me. I like to think I got much of this from Jeffrey Morrow, as well as from my parents, grandparents, and all those who found joy in the Savior.

For those of us who find that it is easier to be miserable, understand that happiness is real. I cringe when I look around at scores of people contented to live in discontent. Life is better than that; it includes the Savior Jesus Christ; it includes his infinite Atonement. Especially in this Christmas season, let us celebrate how positive our lives can be because of Christ's life, teachings, death, and resurrection. He lives. I know this with all my heart. May we all believe this is my prayer, that we may access the Atonement, and feel the power that comes into our lives as we change and become "new creatures" in Christ. (Mosiah 27:26, 2 Cor 5:17)