Continuing from Neal A. Maxwell, and a previous post . . . :
Jesus’ atonement was not a limited atonement, “And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken to his voice. . . .” (2 Nephi 9:21.) With immortality assured by Jesus’ atonement, and full forgiveness made possible by the same divine act, we have no justifiable basis for ultimate unhappiness; and if there is no basis for ultimate despair, there is no real basis for daily despair. After all, a wise man observed, “Joy is the serious business of heaven.”
When Jesus told his disciples to “feed my sheep” he laid on us an awesome responsibility. Sidney Jourard wrote with insight of the challenging dimensions of inter-personal relationships with which each of us must come to grips: “. . . if I love someone, not only do I strive to know him, so that I can devote myself more effectively to his well being; I also display my love by letting him know me.”3
Allowing for individual differences means using caution in stereotyped approaches, it requires that we take more time with each other for listening, assessing, sharing—and ultimately, knowing, and being known. With this kind of knowing, one can better serve every kind of individual.
Abraham H. Maslow has called attention to the fact that many of us may be like the friend of Galileo who did not want that which he so firmly denied. Some of us may not want to look closely at ourselves and at each other, but if we are genuinely concerned with our growth and development and the growth and development of others, it will require willingness to confront the reality of our universe of inter-personal relations with all its variety and challenge. We can neither rejoice in the individual differences nor deal with their consequences unless we know that such differences exist.
~Neal A. Maxwell, A More Excellent Way (Salt Lake City, Deseret Book, 1967), 66-67
(Personal note from kdm. . . . Many times the reason something is posted here, happens because I stand convicted . . . and need the lesson myself!)
