The Steps of Repentance

The steps

Go at your own pace. Read each scripture in context if you can, and come back to any step as often as you need.

1. 1

   Step 1: Recognize and feel godly sorrow

   Be honest with yourself about what you did or didn't do. Let yourself feel sorrow, not as shame about who you are, but as care about what your choice did to your relationship with God and with others.

   Scripture

   • “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of”

   • “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”

   Reflect

   Is there something I've been avoiding looking at honestly? What would it feel like to bring it to God?

   Try this

   Write one sentence naming what you want to turn away from. Keep it private.

   Write your response

   Write one sentence naming what you want to turn away from. Keep it private.

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2. 2

   Step 2: Confess to God in prayer

   Pray and tell Heavenly Father plainly what you did. You don't need perfect words. If your choice hurt someone else, or is serious, you may also need to talk with that person or a church leader.

   Scripture

   • “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

   • “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”

   • Doctrine and Covenants 58:43

   Reflect

   What keeps me from being completely honest with God? What do I believe He feels toward me right now?

   Try this

   Find a quiet place today and say a prayer that includes plain, honest confession.

   Write your response

   Find a quiet place today and say a prayer that includes plain, honest confession.

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3. 3

   Step 3: Forsake it: stop and choose differently

   Make a real plan to stop. Think about what leads you toward the choice and what you'll do instead. Change often comes in small steps, and stumbling isn't the end. Keep turning back.

   Scripture

   • “cease to do evil; Learn to do well”

   Reflect

   What usually comes right before this choice? What could I put in its place?

   Try this

   Write down one specific change you'll make this week, and one person or habit that will help.

   Write your response

   Write down one specific change you'll make this week, and one person or habit that will help.

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4. 4

   Step 4: Make things right where you can

   If your choice hurt someone, do what you can to repair it: return what was taken, correct what was said, apologize sincerely. Some things can't be fully repaired. Do what is possible and trust the Savior with the rest.

   Scripture

   • Luke 19:8
   • Matthew 5:23–24

   Reflect

   Is there someone I owe an apology or a repair to? What would a sincere one sound like?

   Try this

   If it's safe and wise, take one step toward making something right this week.

   Write your response

   If it's safe and wise, take one step toward making something right this week.

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5. 5

   Step 5: Receive forgiveness through Jesus Christ

   Forgiveness comes through the Savior's grace, not through being perfect. When you have sincerely turned, let yourself believe you are forgiven. Holding on to guilt after God has let it go isn't humility.

   Scripture

   • “though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow”

   • Hebrews 8:12
   • Doctrine and Covenants 58:42

   Reflect

   Do I find it easier to believe God forgives others than that He forgives me? Why?

   Try this

   In prayer, thank Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ for forgiveness, even if you're still learning to feel it.

   Write your response

   In prayer, thank Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ for forgiveness, even if you're still learning to feel it.

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6. 6

   Step 6: Keep walking in a new life

   Repentance becomes a way of living. Keep praying, keep studying, keep serving, and keep turning back whenever you stumble. Look forward, not back.

   Scripture

   • “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

   • Philippians 3:13–14

   Reflect

   What would a "new creature" version of me do differently tomorrow morning?

   Try this

   Choose one daily habit (a morning prayer, a verse, a kind act) that helps you keep turning toward God.

   Write your response

   Choose one daily habit (a morning prayer, a verse, a kind act) that helps you keep turning toward God.

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