Moroni 7:6-8

For behold, God hath said a man being evil cannot do that which is good; or if he offereth a gift or prayeth unto God except he shall do it with real intent, it profiteth him nothing.

For behold, it is not counted unto him for righteousness.

For behold, if a man being evil giveth a gift he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God.

Mormon continues to explain more in the following verses but by now we see the point. He is directing us to the higher law where what is in our heart is more important than our actions. God is always looking to change our hearts, to bring us closer to being like Him.

Every parent has had the experience of having two children caught fighting. As a mom, I have asked my children to apologize and say they are sorry. But all I got was an resentful "I'm sorry!" spoken angrily.

Am I like that child? Have I been caught saying words with my mouth when my heart was filled with anger?

The gifts Mormon talks about are not packages wrapped in colored paper and ribbons. They are the spiritual gifts we can bestow upon each other: forgiveness, unconditional love, an apology, mercy.

These gifts bless the giver as much as the recipient and are at the heart of all human relationships. We cannot live together in peace without changing our hearts and thus our ability to sincerely offer such gifts.

Grace - the freely given, unmerited love of God, must become our mode of operation also. Can we become so filled with God's love that it could begin to pour forth from us?

That would be my wish for myself.

I believe we can only become that person if we truly believe that God is a God of love. If we are stuck in the old Protestant model of God as the great judge, we will find ourselves judging others, wanting and waiting for them to change before they deserve our love and attention.

At the Christmas devotional last evening , Elder Brent H. Neilson was sharing part of his father's history from World war II. In one of his father's last letters home he told about attending church for the first time in 3 years. He said he "didn't care too much for the talk."

"Mother, a lot of things seem very trivial to me now that once we're so very important, that is probably as strong as ever, but I look on God as a person who is loving and understanding rather than one [who] is always standing over you to punish you for every mistake you make. 

I say AMEN to his words!!

Quoting from page 93 The Christ Who Heals:

"We do not know the endmost depths of the human heart; it is revealed only to love. But those who condemn have generally little love, and therefore the mystery of the which they judge is closed to them."

"It is impossible to know another completely and not love that person deeply."

Oh, there is so much to learn about human beings. I am just a novice.