If I knew then what I know now...

If we knew in the spring what we know now, we would have changed that sand in our pool filter!

We knew that the sand in the filter of our pool needed to be changed right after we started our pool this spring!! As we consulted with our "pool people" they advised us that is was a nasty job to do since the sand was wet. Even with the help of Glenn, it would cost $200.00. So given the best information out there, we decided to limp to the end of summer by adding 2-3 times the amount of chemicals... thinking that the cost would be about the same and a lot less hassle!

Wrong choice. If we had known then. that the sand in the filter would not make it to the end of summer, that we would dump $200 worth of chemicals in the pool in three days, seeing no change, expect that the pool just gets greener...if only we had know then what we know now!

I am sharing this "tale of whoa" because my daughter-in-law started me thinking that there should be a lesson in all of this.

So, if you think "If I knew then what I know now..." there are several applications. We don't always know what the consequences of our choices will be, that there will be a consequence is for certain. "Cause and Effect!"

I think we have all wanted to have a crystal ball at one time or the other. I have said more than once when I needed to make a tough decision; "I wish there would be some writing on the wall."
There are some easy "cause and effect" things to see. We know that if we don't do the dishes, they will still have to get done. We know if we don't study, we will not do well in class. We know that if we do not practice good hygiene, we will get sick. The more we see of life the more we can begin to predict "cause and effect".

What a blessing for our youth to have parents and teachers who have "been there" and can help them make wise choices so that they don't have to learn every thing for them selves. "You marry who you date!" "Don't touch the hot plate or you will get burned." "Study a little every day, rather than a lot on one day!" Etc.

We can't always see the effect of our choices, even though we try to get all the information we can and we are careful and deliberate in making our choices. We may still make the wrong choice! BUT There are some things that we know for sure.

What I know for sure is that as we live The Gospel of Jesus Christ, we may still have trials and tribulations, because that is life but we can be assured that if we chose to keep the commandments and endure to the end, we shall have eternal life.

With all the vicissitudes that come into our life, we can be sure that the Lord lives, that He loves each of us, He knows us and he wants us to be happy. We know that through the Atonement of Christ, we will live again, a free gift to all mankind.

To keep our selves from going astray and getting all out of whack, like our pool, to know that we can return and live again with our Saviour we have been given some specifics: have faith in Jesus Christ, repent, be baptised by one having authority, receive the Holy Ghost and endure to the end. We have been advised by a living prophet Thomas S.Monson to practice faith in our homes through prayer, scripture reading, family home evening and living the commandments. The Family: A Proclamation to the World also has some teachings that will take the mystery out of the choices we make so that the out comes will be more predictable. These things are our "crystal ball" our "writing on the wall" if you will.

We all make wrong choices and when matters of eternity are concerned, through the Atonement we can repent, put our lives in order and be forgiven.

As far as our pool is concerned...we will be changing the sand out of the filter with the help of our friendly pool people on Friday! It will cost $200. Then we will probably have to add $50-$200 more of chemicals to get the water balanced, just so that we can put the pool to bed for the winter! If we had known then what we know now it would have saved us a lot of money and a lot of work, plus we would have been swimming all week, instead of dealing with a green pool.

Yes, we can repent and all will be forgiven, but why go through the agony of making wrong choices if we know what the consequences will be BEFORE we make the choice. In matters eternal, we could say "I know now what I need to know to make the right choice!"