Hey there, everybody. Welcome out season four of Redeemed Through His Blood. Scott Durfey here joined by the beautiful Debra Durfey. Say hi, Deb. Hello, friends. It's good to have you here, babe. Here we are, season four. This is episode one of season four. Deb and I are super excited about the transition happening here and being able to do this together. We wish Dave and Chris the best of luck on their mission as they depart soon for Sydney, Australia. Deb, I'm actually
super excited. I've loved doing this with David, but I'm super excited. You and I have done a lot of wonderful things, not completely unlike what we're going to do here as part of this podcast, but this is a totally different medium for us to do what we do. So I'm going to have you, Deb, if you don't mind, just take a few minutes, introduce yourself, but and tell us a little bit about you, why it is that you want to do a podcast
like this. I know you don't, but why you are doing a podcast like this and stuff like that. But before you do, I just want everybody to know that Deb's my best friend. We have been very close ever since we met and have been best friends for Most of that time, I'm happy and super excited to call her. I would hope all of that time, not
most of the time. Well, I just met, you know, it grew, we grew into it more and more, but Deb's my counselor, she's my cheerleader, she's my best friend, eternal companion, and everything else that I could think of that would be a positive descriptor, babe. Take it away, just tell us a little bit about you and whatever you want. That's very nice of you. So I grew up in Mapleton, Utah, little farm town. I was the sixth of nine children. I have six brothers, so I didn't do
a lot of girl things growing up. I did a lot of boy things. But Scott and I met in 1998. I was a facilitator for the LDS substance abuse mission. It had just come to Utah County. They had asked me to facilitate. in that meeting because I was there to fix somebody else and save them from their addiction. And I remember meeting, I started in 1996, but I met Scott in, I believe, November. It was, yeah, it was November of 1998.
Of 1998. And I remember when he introduced himself, and I was like, Scott Turvey, Scott Turvey, I know him. And it just sounded so familiar. Now I know why, but then I just kept thinking, I know him, I've met him somewhere. Anyways, as time goes on, and of course, I... instantly became friends with Scott and he became friends with everybody else. But four years into that, going to those meetings, we decided to blend a family
in August of 2002. And it was so awesome because I first off when Scott mentioned that he was even interested in dating me at all because I was I was literally his cheerleader for dating all these awesome women and you're going to find somebody that's going to be the best wife and I remember I mean, almost thumping on his chest saying. Not almost, you were thumping me on the chest. And I was like, you're gonna find a woman that appreciates you. Anyway, that is a true
story. Yeah, that was at the church in Lehigh. Anyway, and I had no clue at that time, not even a guess, that that would be me. But we got married in August 2002. My parents were on a mission in Nauvoo serving, and I remember living in my parents' basement at the time. while I was single and Calling my parents and saying I'm dating this guy and he is Like a knight in shining armor. He is like so it's I almost feel like I am Watching a Disney movie mom. I really I cannot believe
I'm dating this guy. I can't believe he's so perfect He's so wonderful. He loves the church. He loves the gospel. He has four kids and I I just I was so smitten absolutely smitten. And my mom just kept saying, I know it's because we're serving a mission. I know it's because we're serving a mission that you found him. Still
to this day, she says that 23 years later. I question this story every time I hear it because I can't imagine a mother being super excited about a daughter meeting her what would be unbeknownst to her at the time but what would be her future son -in -law in an addiction recovery program. You have no idea what my mother had seen previous to this. Holy moly. But thank goodness, you know, I'm grateful that Shirley was like that, and she still is. She still likes me, I think, a
little bit. And for our honeymoon, we went out to Nauvoo. We did. No, no, no, no. Oh, no, we went to Education Week. Education Week. Oh, my land. What a couple of geeks. What a derpy bunch. And we had our kids go with their other parents and we had just gotten our place put together. And so we went to education week and then we hopped a plane. Yes. And then the next month we hopped on a plane and I introduced my night and show you in armor to my parents in Navu.
And it was such a tender, sweet. memory for me because I remember hearing stories that my dad was telling you, Scott, in their living room, telling them, um, telling him stories I had never heard before. So obviously it was an instant connection and instant love and appreciation. And they, evidently they trusted my taste. I think they had learned, uh, through sad experience that they didn't have a choice in that. Well, they still and have always loved you, but that
was a pretty magical. Anyway, we were able to go to the Nauvoo temple there and do some ceilings with my mom and dad, and that was a tender moment too. Anyway, we have, when we blended in 2002, our oldest two were 15 years old. They were actually born on the same day, same year, and they were in the same kindergarten class, which is so wild, but At 15 they weren't really big fans of each other Yeah back then we thought oh my gosh. These two are so polar opposite And as they get older,
they're very much alike. They're twins. Much alike. And then the youngest two, Kirby and Bowen were seven and eight and they were best of friends. They loved getting in mud and playing and running and jumping. And it was absolutely, I was in heaven. All I ever wanted to be when I grew up was a mom. And to have four bonus kids, man, I was in heaven. So grateful. So, so, so grateful. And the family just keeps growing because since 2002, we've had in -laws added and we've had
17 grandkids. We just got our new, our newest grandchild last month, little Molly in March. Our oldest grandkid is Xander who will turn 13 in June. So we have lots of littles. Our house is noisy, crazy, messy, chaotic, and I love every second of it. Perfect in every way, right? It's a perfect chaos. Yeah. Yeah, I do too. Well as you can see our our little love story is everything anything but Traditional I guess but but to us
Deb. I think it's perfect. It is perfect One of the signs in our bedroom says it's never too late to have a happily ever after and I love that sign What does the sign in our kitchen say as far as anyone knows our family is a nice normal
family? Yeah, we we have a lot of fun. This is a big family a great family We all you know kind of take different paths in this family We're not all perfectly aligned in our spiritual journey or a religious journey and We'll probably be talking a lot about that as we you know travel through this Podcast this season, but you know, I think but I think that that's okay I think that you know, Deb There's probably a lot of people in the church or not in the church people
that are listening to this podcast of many different face We know that there are the that are kind of like They my family's not just normal. It's just not like everybody else's family. It doesn't fit the mold and we certainly don't Well, I think normal is just a setting on a washing machine I don't know what normalism the more I get to know other people I I just think you know what we're all in a perfect Yeah, a glorious mess.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, and that's right, you know, and it's cool that we acknowledge it I think I mean is you know, whatever well, you know, thanks We'll get to know you more as we go through a couple of things that I might add Debs and I have just been having an absolute wonderful time teaching Institute for the last about five years now at BYU in a BYU stake. It's a calling. It's not a paid position or anything, but we've
been doing it nonetheless. And for those of you who have been following the podcast for the last three seasons know that the course that we teach is actually a divine gift of forgiveness. It's taken after the book written by Elder Neil L. Anderson helped to do that by our former co -host here, David Durfey . But Deb has just absolutely won the hearts of college students from all over the country that come here to BYU and UVU. Tell us a little bit about that. Well, when we first
got that calling, it was during COVID. And so we started on Zoom. And I remember being upstairs in my office, and you were downstairs in your office. And we would turn on the Zoom and be prepared to teach this lesson. And we'd get maybe one, maybe two kids on there. And I just thought. And when we first started, it was repentance using the atonement of Jesus Christ. Yeah, that's
right. remember getting completely discouraged thinking first off it intimidated me because I'm like I didn't go to college I mean I'm not I am NOT gonna teach college kids but of course then I read my patriarchal blessing and I said my prayers and Heavenly Father said yes you're gonna do this and so I said I will go and I will do. You've got a few of those inconvenient truths in that patriarchal blessing. I know, I know.
And my patriarchal blessing keeps reminding me I'm not in charge over and over and over again. I am a little bit of a control freak, but I'm learning to get out of the driver's seat and not be in charge. As soon as we went live in Institute, In person, meaning in person. Yes, sorry, not life. But in person, we started going over to the church or whatever and started teaching.
I was terrified. And I even told them one of my first classes, I said, I won't be afraid of you if you won't be afraid of me, because I'm terrified. Because I was so intimidated. And it has been such a gift. And I think more than anything is reading. Call, I get emotional quick. um, reading the book, the divine gift of forgiveness.
And it changed me. It literally, the stories in there, the things that they talk about, um, people's stories, the way people forgive, the way that people use the atonement in their own lives. I literally have read and listened to that book at least 12, a dozen times minimum. And mine is marked up the The book is white and mine is very handled dirty. If I could wash it, I would. But it's marked up and it's tattered. You wouldn't want to wash that. It would lose
its charm. Seriously, it's beautiful. It is one of the most cherished books I own. You say it changed you. How did it change you? I think more than anything helped me understand the atonement. I read The Miracle of Forgiveness when I was younger, and that book scared me, honestly. I just thought... you know, because of my path, because of things that I had done, I, I felt
like I was too far gone. And even though I had gone through the repentance process with so many things, I just kept thinking, but, but you, if you just knew this part and it's almost like I had to dig up more dirt to just prove that I wasn't worthy of, of that. And it was, I think when I read the divine gift of forgiveness and it, it helped me realize I'm not that special. Just like the rest of us. I'm not that you are subject to the effects of the fall of Adam and
Eve, just like the rest of us. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, again, we get to know you more and more as we go through. For those of us who know you, we love you. And for those of you who don't quite yet, you'll love her, too. You probably already do just sitting here listening to this. Deb's
got quite a story encourage you to go back. We'll be talking about it throughout the podcast But but I'm gonna I'll tell you what I will actually Provide a link to an interview that David and did with David and I did with Deb a couple of years ago And it goes through her complete story. Oh, it is not complete. Okay her story I know I know as soon as I said that I knew I was I was speaking in error, but But it goes through a lot of what she just referred to about, I just
didn't feel like I could do it. I didn't feel like I was enough and all of those things. So I'll put that link in the podcast show notes. So thanks, Deb, for doing that. As we transition here, we just came through the most holy week on the Christian calendar, that being the week of Easter. We had a complete episode, our last episode of season three. David and Deb and I all went through the week, the days and the events
of Holy Week one by one. Pretty exhaustive. I mean, we left a lot out, you know, it's just impossible to cover that all in a one hour podcast. And that was actually a one and a half hour podcast. We broke an all time record. We promised not to do that again. I'm not that talkative. But we extended a little extra grace being that it was David's last episode with us, at least for a year and a half. But so now we move into the
week after. Easter dub we've talked about this a couple of times even as recently as today is it's just like man We just need to make an effort to put Easter in our life all the time Yeah, and I think even the last episode in the recording when they said that some some traditions You know do the 40 days before and then 40 days after then we say he is risen and then you say Indeed, he is risen, that's right. And I said, we're gonna do that, so we're gonna keep practicing
that. I don't know if we're gonna do it perfect, but it's such a celebration. But as we, the Easter season, I so looked forward to the, to coming upon the Easter season and then to have general conference and then to be able to have so many, I like, when Easter is later in April because it makes it feel like the Easter season is longer. And as it as Holy Week was was ending, I just thought, oh, I don't want this to be over. But we had a tender little couple of tender experiences
with the Sunday Palm Sunday. Our kids come over every Sunday, not all of them, but a lot of them come over and I was going to make more waffles.
forum and I said hey before we before they all come let's let's go for well a motorcycle ride and you know let's just buzz around it was a beautiful sunny day and so Scott tried to start his motorcycle and the battery was dead and which is interesting because I had just ridden it the day before and it was not dead yeah well you'll find out why it was dead so he said let's just get on the e -bikes Well, we live really close
to a trail that is amazing. And one of our favorite rides, and it had to be really short because I had kids coming soon, was over to the Linden Utah Temple. So you get on this little paved trail, and we ride these electric bikes, and it's literally a Sunday cruise. And we started
riding over to the Linden Temple. And on the drive, um, or on the ride, I noticed on the path there, somebody had taken time and artfully had drawn, he is risen, there is hope, Jesus loves you, Gethsemane, all along this path, just so such beautiful messages as we were on that trail. And I even said, let's, let's go to the temple. And I was like, man, this is like they're preparing us to go to the temple. It was overwhelming. Especially yeah, I you know, I tell him you're
overwhelmed. Yeah. Well, yeah, Debs kind of I'm pretty sensitive. I'm emotional. I I cry. I don't necessarily like them, but I'm glad you do. But it's who I am. I when I get when I feel the spirit,
that's just what happens to me. And. I guess I'm kind of like my grandpa Fagan that way, you know when he'd bless the food he would cry You do that, you know sometimes but So we I cross the road and then as I get on to that part of the path That's what I saw in big beautiful pastel color Sidewalk chalk he is risen, you know Happy Easter and all the things that you said and at the first the first one I saw I I was you know, we had We had been to church already. We had
had some tender experiences. Testimony. Taken. Yeah, it was fast Sunday, right? We had we had we had done that. We had taken the sacrament. And just like we challenge our kids in Institute each week, I try to make the sacrament extremely meaningful. I know you do, too. And so, you know, it was a day of worship. It was just a day of worship. We had kept the Sabbath day holy and
holy. Indeed, it was. And so we hop on that trail and it became even holier to me because I see this and And I know where I'm going, you know, the representation of Jesus Christ on earth, the temple. And here I am seeing these messages
and I become kind of overcome. By the spirit, you know, I'm wiping tears from my eyes people are looking at me like who's this weird guy on this bike riding on this But I don't really care, you know, that's just I don't care But anyway continue on anyway as we there's the it's a it's
a wet windy Trail. Yeah, and as we were going around corners and reading these sweet messages We came around that final corner and there is this big beautiful white temple and it's still under construction so we like to go over there often and see the progress of the temple And as we went over, as we were getting closer, it's almost like majestic. Literally, it was a majestic feeling to just have that overwhelm and just, and I have such a love for the temple. It's such
a sacred, sacred place for me. And when it's finished and dedicated, it will be our temple. So I, I definitely have even a tender, more tender. place for that. I'm just so anxious for it to be done. Anyways, as we were getting closer, I noticed there's a lot of people on the trail. And as we got almost right in front of the temple, like I said, the trail is windy. see a big group of people walking towards the temple from the other direction. And they all have palms, palm
leaves. And I can hear singing and hymns. And the first one we heard was, I Feel My Savior's Love, wasn't it? Yeah. Yeah. And I stopped, we both stopped, pulled our bikes over like dead in our tracks almost. We just stood there with
our jaws dropped like, what is happening? And as we watch this group of people more and more and more people came singing and waving these palms, young and old, like little kids, strollers and older couples, people that, uh, and I remember seeing wheelchairs and people just singing and praising. And I just, I kept thinking, wow, is this what it was like when the savior came in? And that triumphal entry and I get to eyewitness this on Palm Sunday. What a sacred, sacred, tender
mercy that your motorcycle didn't start. I mean, what a gift. What a gift. So I had a couple of experiences while that was happening too. There was a young man. I don't have any idea how old he would be. Probably my guess would be in his late teens, early 20s, who had some sort of handicap and was in a wheelchair. My guess would be cerebral palsy, but I don't know for sure. But obviously had a handicap and and singing. I feel my Savior's love at the top of his lungs. He was grinning.
Oh, he was so excited. So excited, so excited to be going to the house of the Lord, right? So excited to be in the procession to welcome the King of Kings. And then I saw this old couple. I mean, old couple. I mean, we're kind of old, but I mean, older than us. Even older than our
parents, I think. Walking with Cain's very very deliberately and it was painful for them, you know But I white hair and and kind of hunched over and and just making the best Yeah with what the kind of hope they had and and it occurred to me, you know is and it not in the moment it didn't but it has since and occurred to me that you know, maybe the faiths of those people on that day were Pretty similar to the faith of those that were literally there when they saw
Jesus himself. Yeah, it was overwhelming to see. There ended up being around 1 ,300 people gathered that day. And the reason why we knew that is because right there at the temple, there's a path that goes into the lawn just south of that temple. And they all gathered there, had a microphone, and they had Andrew Skinner there talking about um, holy week and talking about his experience in Jerusalem. And we stood there and on, I was like, Oh gosh, I gotta go home and make waffles.
So I'm texting them saying, Hey, we got, we got stuck. on purpose. Yeah, they all ended up coming up with this. Anyway, it was it was just such a wonderful, wonderful experience. You know, some of the things that I reflected on, Deb, while that was taking place is, you know, Jesus, when he entered into Jerusalem, he was fully aware of what was ahead of him. Yeah. Can you
imagine? He was fully aware. And and you know his gentleness his courage his commitment To save even knowing the cost you know like we mentioned in the podcast last last episode You know even considering the cost of what he was going to do He did it willingly and then you know and then I thought of the contrast You know and we heard them waving the palms and singing hymns and and shouting hosanna hosanna What is that the whole saying hosanna hosanna? Yeah, it means
save us Save us now. Yeah, it seemed like there was something more to it But anyway, they're waving the palms and shouting hosanna and you know, which means save us now hosanna to the most high God which means save us now like you just said but But I wondered I wonder how many of the original crowd as we've talked about in there Episode last time I wonder how many of that original crowd not only yelled hosanna as he came into the city But then through the confusion
and because it wasn't exactly the way they thought it should be You know They thought that this Messiah was going to come and save him from their political oppression and all of that other stuff And they're saying hosanna hosanna here He comes he's you know and many of them are thinking that the government is now going to be overthrown But then when they find that it was not going to be that way. I wonder how many of those it was that we're yelling Hosanna on Sunday, we're
yelling crucify him Friday morning. Yeah, yeah. It's a lot to think about. Yeah. You know, and as we as we as I reflected on the Easter that that holy week, we had a really awesome opportunity to spend Good Friday in the temple. It's one thing that we've been doing for the last few years is. taking Good Friday off and spending the sacred day in the Lord's house and filling His Spirit. That was so, so, so sweet. We kind
of make it a point to try and be there. I know that the timelines don't align between here and the Holy Land, but we do it nonetheless out of our own, just the way we do it. But we try to be there between noon and three. That would have been during the time that Jesus hung even without the father's support. That's when the father had turned and Jesus, one of his seven statements while he was on the cross, why hast thou forsaken me? Anyway, you know, so that kind of a poignant
point for sure. Yeah, and then that evening we went to the Tulip Festival with my brother Evan and his sweet wife back. And as we walked through the Book of Mormon part and then the New Testament part at the Thanksgiving point. So this is at Thanksgiving Point there in Lehigh, Utah. But they have figurines of all these different... They're probably more like statues than figurines. They are statues. You said figurines. I did say figurines. They are statues. They're not figurines,
babe. They're human -sized figurines. No, they're larger than that. Anyway, they have a lot of the story, and as we were walking through there, my sweet, sweet sister Bec says to me, I call her my sister in love, she said to me, my New Year's resolution this year is more Jesus. That really touched my heart, and I just thought, yeah, me too. I'm not going to do it on January 1st, but I'm going to do it on April 20th or
April 19th. And I just thought, what a sweet way to keep the Holy week very much alive in our lives. And I love, um, in October of 2024, when president Nelson talked about having a relationship with the savior. He gave a promise in that talk that says, here is, here is my promise to you. every sincere seeker of Jesus Christ will find him in the temple. You will feel his mercy. You will find answers to your most vexing questions. You will better comprehend the joy of the gospel."
And I just thought, man, that is quite a promise. And you know, I remember a time in my life when I couldn't go in the temple but being among those holy grounds just like on those bikes. feeling that power and that connection, just being on the grounds or near a temple. What do you think it means to have more Jesus in my life? Definitely. I caught you off guard because you didn't know I was going to ask you that question, but it just, it just, it just occurs to me. That's probably
something that we should all contemplate. Right? What does that even mean? What does that look like? How would I behave differently? So, I don't know. What are your thoughts babe? Let's phone a friend To me I have really been reflecting on that since she's told me that and You know, I I thought you know, I can definitely up my attendance in the temple. I can definitely up
my My personal scripture study. There's nothing I get up quite early to read and and study the scriptures that come follow me the And I love to be in the Book of Mormon, and I am loving the more that I study them. But it's, I feel like, well, I will tell you this. This last year, I have got a highlighter. And in my Book of Mormon and in my Doctrine and Covenants, I have highlighted Holy Ghost, Comforter. Savior, Him in capital letters, anywhere that I see the Savior, I have
highlighted that to find more Jesus. I think I was doing that sort of, I just didn't realize it, that I really needed to intentionally say, you know, find Jesus, find more Jesus. I think that's so key. to everything in our lives. I mean, literally everything is to put him at the center of our lives. Right. I mean, you remember a year or so ago, we did a little kind of a series for our ward on how to heal mental illness and those types of things through the atonement of
Jesus Christ. Well, and I don't remember the exact year, but we use the talk a lot from President Nelson. And I don't remember the name of the talk, but in it he said that Jesus is literally
the answer to everything. To say it to I want to have more Jesus in my life I think you know a more reverent way to say that would be I want to align myself More with his will for me, you know I because I think about how this is so important in every aspect of our life and automatically immediately because maybe the biggest impetus for me to understanding the necessity of Jesus's atonement in my in his power through his atonement in my life was through my alcoholism because
of that experience and then knowing now what I know because of the cleansing experience, there was just nothing. There was just no way that that I could ever have any semblance of peace, let alone happiness, but any semblance of peace in my life. When I was on the collision course with disaster, like I was for so many years with
my with my alcoholism and addiction. Well, when I found Alcoholics Anonymous and when I was directed there by a good, loving stake president one day, and and I and I and I really found out You know, step one is pretty obvious. My life's unmanageable. I'm powerless over alcohol. My life's unmanageable. But step two has come to believe that a power greater than myself could restore me to sanity. And then three is to make a decision to turn my will and my life over to the care of God as
I understand him. It took alcoholics anonymous, Deb. It took alcoholics anonymous to help me know. what it looks like to have a deeper relationship with Jesus, where I feel like He's more present in my life through the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, like you just said. Yeah, can I share a quick story about that? I remember being in those same rooms and I remember a gentleman walking in, tatted up, something that I would have... considered in the past extremely scary.
He was large. He was bald. He was intimidating, to be honest with you. He came in and sat down in those meetings and they opened the meetings to share your experience, strength and hope. And this gentleman changed me, literally changed me. I will never forget this. He had just gotten out of prison and he talked about how he had read the Book of Mormon and how it had changed him and how grateful he was to his Savior Jesus
Christ. And I literally, that was the first time I had tangible experience with the Atonement. He just wept and there was not a dry eye in that room talking about how much he needed and how scared he was to be on the outside of those prison doors and how much he still relied on. Him, I will never, and that was probably 20 plus years ago, I will never forget that day because it was such a tangible experience for me. And I thought, wow, I need to know Jesus better. So
powerful, so tender. And, you know, we see a lot of that, don't we? There and just in life.
Yeah. You know, we go to church. And it's great and it's this is how it should be, you know We go to church and everybody's there in their white shirt and ties and they're nice pretty clothes and Dresses and everything else and we just tend to bring our best selves there and we should you know We should do that because we're there to worship the Lord We should be respectful and we should come as we do there's no question to me But but I think sometimes that that gets that
gets we get confused with that's us approaching the Lord and we have to be in a certain demeanor in order for us to approach him or to have his blessings affect our lives. And that's just wrong. I love that you shared that about the guy with the tattoos. He scared me by appearance, but man, by the time that man left that meeting, I hugged him and thanked him like I have never hugged and thanked somebody before for testifying
of the Savior Jesus Christ like he did. Because only true and lasting change comes through Jesus Christ. There is no other source. that true and lasting change can come from, especially the true and lasting change that will draw us peace, that will draw us closer to our Heavenly Father, that will put us on a covenant path that will allow Him, you got that right, allow Him to bless us. He just wants to bless us. We just have to
align with those blessings. And the greatest blessing of all that He's given us is His Son, that we could be redeemed from the fallen world. Yeah. I was just reminded when you said that about the talk from Sister Roonya at this last conference, the invitation to repent is an expression of God's love. And saying yes to that invitation is an expression of ours. That's all he wants. He just wants us to come to him. The only thing
we have that he doesn't is our agency. And when we come to him with an open, broken heart and a contrite spirit, what a gift. Do you think we sometimes get confused on what it looks like to come to him though? Absolutely, and we get distracted life's busy. I am number one offender for me is Busyness and it it takes conscious effort for me to pause and be still And it's
it's sometimes hard. It's harder than being busy Being still being still is harder to me than than being busy Yeah, it's it's definitely such a distraction definitely definitely absolutely definitely absolutely definitely that way for me as well, you know dub I think that a little more of Jesus Christ in our Heavenly Father and and they Holy Ghost in our lives would definitely
create that peace for us, right? That I think so many of us feel like we're missing those of us who have have just feel like we've gone too far. I know that I have felt that way multiple
times, like I have just gone too far. You know, this time, I mean, I mean I have just felt like I have gone too far beyond the reach and I and I remember back to a story that David used to tell about when Elder Anderson would come to the prison and and he would talk to him about the atonement of Jesus Christ and how Heavenly Father loves him and one time there's this person man that was sitting there with his arms folded and just looking down and Elder Anderson approach
team and and the guy and I'm paraphrasing he would have to go back and find the episode where David told the story but he says I've gone too far there's nothing that can save me and David said that Elder Anderson every time David tells a story says Elder Anderson almost come out of his shoes there has nothing there is nothing that you have done or no you have not gone so far as to be beyond the reach of the atonement of Jesus Christ and I don't think we understand
that I really don't feel like, I mean, because I feel like we all have this unique story and we have this. If you only knew. Yes. If what I, I remember working through some, some truths and my sponsor said to me, what I don't want you to know about me is, and I just thought, Whoa, that is overwhelming with how honest am I willing to get? Because you know what? We don't surprise him. There's, I mean, that's that. But numerous times I would say, I'm taking that to
the grave. I'm taking that to the grave. And I remember feeling like I'm too far gone. And I think that's where this book and the scriptures has helped me find that hope and help me understand no matter how deep and dark and ugly and horrible our messes are, We have a God bigger than us that, I mean, we're not gonna fix it, but he can. You felt that way. I have felt that way. Like we're just beyond the reach, right? Like we've just gone too far. And I know that we're
not alone. You and I have had an opportunity now to meet with and be with hundreds of Institute, young, single adult age men and women. home off of their missions sometimes, sometimes not going on missions. And I have to say, they are so valiant and so good. They are so good. They don't have to be there on a Wednesday night to seek for the Spirit, but they come thirsting. And they too battle with this. Maybe I'm just not good enough for that. Maybe it just doesn't... include
me. Maybe my mental illness is too big. Maybe my abuses and the PTSDs that I have to go through now are just too big for me to overcome. Maybe and on and on and on and on it goes. You know I've had numerous times where some of the kids mostly women because I tell them I'm gonna puke
truth on you. I'm gonna tell you things that Have happened or things that I have learned in my life because I don't want anyone To feel the way I felt when I was going through some of my challenges in in my life because I was raised a active member of the church and I remember certain things that happened to me and certain things that I had done to other people and Things that I were that I was participating in that I just thought there is no hope for me. And I
don't belong in this church. I don't belong in this if they only knew. And I, I, I told them, I said, I don't want anyone to feel like they don't deserve a seat in that chapel, in that ordinance room to re to connect and to renew sacred covenants with Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ. If I could stand on a mountain and just say, please don't let the accuser tell you these lies, because it's not true. We are literally divine sons and daughters of divinity.
I mean, we are direct descendants of the divine. So when you say that quit listening to the accuser, that takes me to Revelations, right? Of course you have a scripture for that. Revelations chapter
12. And in here, this is one of the... few places that satan is actually refute referred to as the accuser and this is something that we're going to talk about more as the season as the season goes along what is the accuser how does that actually i mean what how does that accuser of what what is how does that apply to us we'll find out but a lot of it is is just exactly what you've been talking about i'm not good enough that's an accusation where's that accusation
come from doesn't come from god right um i'm I've gone too far, where does that accusation come from? That's from the accuser, the enemy, the accuser. So this is in Revelation chapter 12 verse 10, and I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, now has come the day of salvation, now has come salvation and the strength and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ, for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before God day and night.
So, you know when and obviously this is talking about us when we're in the pre -existence and and how did we? Overcome the accuser. What was it by what power were we able to overcome the accuser there? Well, obviously the same power that we're able to overcome the accuser here And here's what it says and they overcame him by the blood of the lamb the blood of the lamb we are redeemed through his blood. There's a reason we call this podcast, Redeemed Through
His Blood. They overcame him by the blood of the lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto the death. So the testimony, you know, the burning within, that was important. And the blood of the lamb, the testimony of the blood of the lamb. Well.
We're accused every day. You know, when you say, I don't feel like I belong here, when I feel like I don't belong here, when I feel like I've gone too far, when I feel like when I look at some of the trials that some of my kids are going through and I blame myself, when I accuse myself, I overcome that through the blood of the lamb. through the blood of the lamb. And so that's gonna be our invitation through the entirety of this podcast season. Season four is to invite
you to come out of the accusations. You do belong. You are here. You are his. Already you are his. You don't have to qualify to be his. You have to qualify for the blessings that are available to us. But sometimes that qualification looks much different, Deb, than we think. than we think, so. And I think, you know, just remembering that the accuser is the thief of hope. And if there's anything I could testify of, is there is hope
no matter where and what you've been in. I've been in those holes where I feel like I've gone too far and I cannot get out. I have pictures to go with those words. And you know, it's not earned. I don't earn it. it's offered through the blood of the lamb. Exactly, we qualify it for it by aligning with his will. We're gonna talk about that throughout the season. Oh, thank heavens for our covenants, yeah. I know, right?
I just kinda wanna maybe draw it all to a close as we kind of wrap this first episode of season four with a scripture from Alma. This is one of my very favorites. Our students at Institute hear it. frequently and they love it too, you know, they don't get tired of it. They love it too because of the hope that it breathes within each one of us. So this is in Alma 7, we're going to start in verse 11, probably go through 13.
now he being Jesus, right? He shall go forth suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind. And I always stop, you know, when we read this in class, I stop every time almost and say how many kinds? And they repeat back every kind. This is all inclusive. This leaves nothing out, sweetie. Nothing is left out of here. He suffered the pains, the afflictions and temptations. of every single stinkin' kind, right? That's not what it says in there. I know,
but it does. And this, that the word might be fulfilled which saith that he will take upon him the pains and sicknesses of his people. So he's taken upon him our pains and sicknesses. I'm not sure exactly how that works, just based on what we've read here so far, but as we go through the podcast season, we will. And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death, which bind his people. There's two types of death that bands are loosed because
of this. Physical death. and spiritual death spiritual death and physical death exactly right we're going to talk about the ramifications and and how all of those the effects of all of that as well 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 there it is mercy that's what we are that's all that's all we want it's just a little mercy according
to the flesh that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people." So that was, again, Alma 7, and it was only verses 11 and 12. But, you know, I think as we just kind of wrap up tonight, our hope is there. Our hope is that he's done it. We don't have to do it. He did it. He suffered all the pain and all the punishment and penalty for sin. Pain, penalty, and punishment for sin was answered by Jesus
Christ. We don't do that. So how do we then tap into and access the blessings of the atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives? And those are blessings, just to kind of summarize those. You know, we think of the atonement of Jesus Christ as being important to us for the forgiveness of sin. And
it is. Definitely is there are other there are other blessings that come to us though by way of Jesus's Atonement and and the two main category three main categories are redemptive and that's where the sin falls in Enabling and strengthening that's one category strengthening blessings and
enabling blessings. We'll talk about those throughout the podcast and then finally the Compensatory blessings were compensated and so our invitation is going to be as we go through this is just to keep coming back, keep coming back and enjoy and joining us in what we're doing here. So as we close today, we just wanna say wherever you are, however you're feeling, you're welcome here. Jesus isn't just waiting for you to clean everything up before you come to him. He meets us right
where, right in the middle of our mess. That's where his grace shines brightest. So come as you are, broken. hopeful, questioning, searching. You're not alone. And we'd love to stay connected with you. So if you have thoughts or questions, if you have stories you want to share, and if you want to send some words of encouragement to Deb for just kicking this thing off with us, that'd be great, too. You can do that. He redeems
us at gmail .com. We read every email. We'll try and respond to all that we can, either in person or on the podcast itself. And if this episode or any other episode touched your heart, we hope you'll share it with someone you love. A friend, a family member, anyone who could use a little more hope right now. So next week we're going to talk about who we are. and whose we are, why that's important in the grand scheme
of things. And we're going to build on how to access and the importance of the atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives one step at a time. Thank you so much for being with us, friends. And remember, there's always hope through Him, because you have been, and I have been, redeemed through His blood. Thanks for being with us, everybody. We look forward to being with you again, and until then... See you next time. Be well