Lately, one of my favorite things to do is to separate the various doctrines and principles of the gospel and sort them by subject. From there, I'll pick one particular principle or doctrine and ponder back to the time when I first gained my testimony of that thing. 

On my mission I did this several times and kept noticing that the experiences I had with each subject kept increasing and I was creating a repertoire within parts of my testimony. Not only did it help me to continue and grow this week, but it is something that will continually help me. 

The more I study the scriptures, serve, and continually try to progress, I know that the Lord will bless me with chances to grow spiritually. Though we are far away from our Heavenly Father's presence, we can never be that far away. 

After this self-reflection, I knelt down on my knees and asked God to confirm the points of my testimony that I considered well-developed. I also asked Him to help me to realize any points that I could improve in my testimony. It was such a great opportunity to openly communicate with my Heavenly Father and speak to him like He was sitting right next to me.

This week in particular I have been pondering the Atonement and what it means to me. I thought back to how I was growing up, not really knowing for sure if the Atonement was real, but still bearing testimony of it. For me to truly gain a testimony of the Atonement I had to hit closer to rock bottom. I had to be able to truly experience the pain, just a small fraction, of what Christ felt in Gethsemane. 

The Atonement has changed my life. I know that as we continue to repent daily and fear God more than man, we can lead happy lives full of progression, development, and joy.