Many times in my life I've heard people offer someone the advice "give it all to Jesus." "Give your problems to Him." "Give your worries to Him." I had no idea what that meant or how you did that. Google wasn't terribly helpful.
Eventually I tried to imagine how He would respond if I confessed I had no idea how to give Him my burdens. The response I came up with was, "You just ask Me. Ask Me to take it, and let go of it. Stop worrying. Trust Me." A scene came to mind. He was kneeling in front of me with an open backpack I had been carrying that was filled with stones. He handed me each one and asked what problem, worry or fear it represented. I told Him what it was and asked if He would take it from me. He said yes, and took each one from me until my backpack was empty.
So now when I have a burden, I imagine myself holding a stone with Jesus standing in front of me. I say, "Jesus, I'm worried about ________________. Will You take this burden from me?" He says yes and takes it from me. I demonstrate my trust in Him by not worrying about it anymore.
I made a list of burdens I've given to Him so I can remind myself what I'm not going to worry about, and so I can see the results as time goes by. I have been pretty good about not stressing over most of them, trusting them to His care - although on occasion I've tried to take one back, only to have to let go of it again!
My testimony of this concept has been greatly strengthened in the last few months. I was very worried about a certain confrontation happening. Twice now opportunities for that confrontation to happen have arisen. Both times I gave Him the burden and stopped worrying about it (though I did occasionally remind Him I was counting on Him!). The opportunities were averted both times. His solutions were far better than any ideas I had come up with own my own. (And He's probably the only one who could have averted them anyway!)
Now that I have had these experiences, I know for sure that giving Him my burdens is a much better solution than worrying, stressing, and trying to solve my problems myself! It's better to let go of the anxiety and stress and trust that everything is in His hands.
Taking Christ’s Name Upon Yourself
The concept of taking Christ's name upon oneself is mentioned all over the Book of Mormon. What exactly does this mean? I thought about times we "take" someone else's name upon us. For instance - when you adopt someone, s/he takes on your surname. When a woman marries, usually (but not always) she takes on her husband's surname. Taking on someone's surname can be seen as a symbol of linking or joining two people together.
Here are four ways you take Christ's name upon yourself.
Joining His Church
You take Christ's name upon yourself by becoming a member of His church - a Christian.
"...And it came to pass that whosoever were desirous to take upon them the name of Christ, or of God, they did join the churches of God." Mosiah 25:23
Becoming His Child
You take His name upon yourself when you become one of His children through spiritual rebirth (similar to the adoption example above - taking on your father's surname).
"And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters." Mosiah 5:7
Emulating His Character
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word "shm" is usually translated as "name," but in ancient Hebrew culture, it meant far more than just a way to identify someone. The Ancient Hebrew Lexicon (AHL) defines "ShM" as breath: "The breath of a man is character, what makes one what he is." (link) So another way you take Christ's name upon yourself is by emulating His "shm," or character. This involves doing what He would do, saying what He would say, and serving as He would serve.
Saving and Delivering Others
The AHL definition of "ShM" continues: "The name of an individual is more than an identifier but descriptive of his character or breath." So a name represented character, but the definition of the name also was supposed to describe that person's character. The meaning of Jesus's name, Yeshua, is "deliverer or savior." You also take His "shm" upon you when you submit your will and desires to His, uniting with Him to save and deliver others.
Here are four ways you take Christ's name upon yourself.
Joining His Church
You take Christ's name upon yourself by becoming a member of His church - a Christian.
"...And it came to pass that whosoever were desirous to take upon them the name of Christ, or of God, they did join the churches of God." Mosiah 25:23
Becoming His Child
You take His name upon yourself when you become one of His children through spiritual rebirth (similar to the adoption example above - taking on your father's surname).
"And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters." Mosiah 5:7
Emulating His Character
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word "shm" is usually translated as "name," but in ancient Hebrew culture, it meant far more than just a way to identify someone. The Ancient Hebrew Lexicon (AHL) defines "ShM" as breath: "The breath of a man is character, what makes one what he is." (link) So another way you take Christ's name upon yourself is by emulating His "shm," or character. This involves doing what He would do, saying what He would say, and serving as He would serve.
Saving and Delivering Others
The AHL definition of "ShM" continues: "The name of an individual is more than an identifier but descriptive of his character or breath." So a name represented character, but the definition of the name also was supposed to describe that person's character. The meaning of Jesus's name, Yeshua, is "deliverer or savior." You also take His "shm" upon you when you submit your will and desires to His, uniting with Him to save and deliver others.
Atonement Application Program - Step Three: Trust in God
Key Principle: Decide to turn your will and your life over to the care of God the Eternal Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
Step 3 was one I had been dreading. I am a pretty determined person. I have plans for my life. I have goals and dreams. I tend to take things into my own hands. I am a bit of a control freak. Giving up my will sounded terrifying. I don't have the kind of trust in God other people have. I questioned whether I could do it. What if I say I'll do His will and then don't do it? What if He asks me to do something I don't want to? I feel like I hardly know Him. Can I really trust Him? Does He really love me and have my best interests at heart?
The thing is, I do want to do God's will, at least sometimes. I try to keep the commandments - that's His will. I try to serve others - that's His will. I would like to be a force for good in the world and make a difference - that's His will too. At a high level I want to do His will. But when you get into the little details, it can get a lot less appealing. Changing my plans to do something He asks me to do. Asking me to get out of my comfort zone. Asking me to do something inconvenient. To do something I don't want to do. To give up my to do list. That is where the struggle is.
As I worked up the courage to take this step, I did a lot of journaling and reading online about others' thoughts about and experiences of giving their wills to God. Listening to a playlist I made about submitting to God provided a way for the Spirit to assure me that yes, I could do this. And eventually, I did.
So far the problem hasn't been so much Him asking me to do things I don't want to do, but more of having no idea what He wants me to do. I pray and listen and don't get any ideas. It's a little frustrating. I kind of feel like if I've made this commitment, I should get some instructions!
I've been reassuring myself that it isn't until step 11 that you actually start praying and meditating to know and follow God's will. My hope is by the time I get there, I'll be more capable of knowing what He wants me to do. It's frustrating that you commit to giving your will to God in step 3 but don't actually start doing it till step 11, but I guess if you don't commit to giving your will to God, you'll never make it through the rest of the steps!
Step 3 was one I had been dreading. I am a pretty determined person. I have plans for my life. I have goals and dreams. I tend to take things into my own hands. I am a bit of a control freak. Giving up my will sounded terrifying. I don't have the kind of trust in God other people have. I questioned whether I could do it. What if I say I'll do His will and then don't do it? What if He asks me to do something I don't want to? I feel like I hardly know Him. Can I really trust Him? Does He really love me and have my best interests at heart?
The thing is, I do want to do God's will, at least sometimes. I try to keep the commandments - that's His will. I try to serve others - that's His will. I would like to be a force for good in the world and make a difference - that's His will too. At a high level I want to do His will. But when you get into the little details, it can get a lot less appealing. Changing my plans to do something He asks me to do. Asking me to get out of my comfort zone. Asking me to do something inconvenient. To do something I don't want to do. To give up my to do list. That is where the struggle is.
As I worked up the courage to take this step, I did a lot of journaling and reading online about others' thoughts about and experiences of giving their wills to God. Listening to a playlist I made about submitting to God provided a way for the Spirit to assure me that yes, I could do this. And eventually, I did.
John Pontius recommended keeping a notebook with you and writing down all the good actions that come to your mind during the day, then recording whether you did each one and what the outcome was. I've tried that but have yet to really learn much, and I'm not sure it's that accurate. I can't spend my whole day doing every. little. thing. that comes to mind. My brain is perfectly capable of thinking of good things on its own, thankyouverymuch.
I've been reassuring myself that it isn't until step 11 that you actually start praying and meditating to know and follow God's will. My hope is by the time I get there, I'll be more capable of knowing what He wants me to do. It's frustrating that you commit to giving your will to God in step 3 but don't actually start doing it till step 11, but I guess if you don't commit to giving your will to God, you'll never make it through the rest of the steps!
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