An Awesome Comparison from an Awesome Book

I've been reading the Continuous Atonement by Brad Wilcox--highly recommend it. I came upon an awesome little comparison today and felt like sharing it!

"Most of us try to avoid touching a hot stove, but if it happens we recognize the problem and withdraw our hand quickly. The pain prompts swift action, which keeps us from damaging ourselves further. Who among us is going to leave his hand on the stove and try to convince himself it doesn't really hurt? Committing sin is like touching a hot stove. In normal cases, the pain of guilt leads to recognition, which leads to quick repentance (see Packer, "The Touch of the Master's Hand," 23). This is exactly what Alma taught when he said, "Let your sins trouble you, with that trouble which shall bring you down unto repentance" (Alma 42:29)...

"In the context of touching a hot stove, consider some of the most common excuses for sin:

• Just one touch won't hurt.
• I'm afraid if I take my hand off I won't be able to leave it off.
• I deserve this.
• The only reason I feel pain is because of my Mormon culture.
• But I was born with the desire to touch the stove.
• It's my parents' fault. They're the ones who bought the stove.
• I just need to adjust to the burning rather than try to overcome it.
• I want to be excommunicated so it won't hurt when I touch the stove.
• No one told me touching the hot stove was bad.
• It may hurt, but at least I am touching it with someone I love.
• It's not like it's totally wrong. It's a gray area.
• Everyone else is touching it.
• I'll touch it if I want. It's my right. Nobody is going to tell me what to do or not do.
• Stove? What stove? I don't see any stove.
• I just don't care anymore. I'm numb to it.
• I know it's wrong, but I'll move my hand tomorrow.
• You can't go without touching the stove all the time.
• I've blown it now. I might as well touch it more.
• Those who don't touch are so old-fashioned.
• At least it's just my hand and not my whole face.
• How will I know it hurts unless I touch it myself?
• At least the other stove touchers accept me and don't judge.
• There are others who touch it more than I do.
• If God iddn't want me to touch the stove, He wouldn't have given me a hand.

Obvisouly, it is easier to find excuses than it is to find God..."


Isn't that incredible? Those excuses seem SO stupid and yet we use them all the time! It was cool to see it in comparison to something we all know will hurt us and so I thought I'd share :D

Happy Sabbath!