No Minimum Time For Repentance

“As he walked toward the Savior, Peter was frightened by the wind and began to sink. But when Peter realized what was happening, he did not try to tread water on his own or swim back to the ship. Rather than let go of his faith in Christ, he held on more tightly, crying, ‘Lord, save me.’

‘And immediately Jesus Stretched forth his hand, and caught him.’” (Elder Adrian Ochoa, April 2022 General Conference). There is no minimum time for repentance. When Peter sank into the water, Christ did not tell him he lost his privilege to walk on the water because of his doubts and now he has to swim back to the boat. Christ didn’t tell Peter, I’ll save you... eventually, but first I want you to sit there and drown for a minute until I think you’ve learned your lesson. Christ doesn’t get upset when we immediately call out for Him to save us the moment we realize we’ve made a mistake. He doesn’t get mad, but rejoices. He wants us to cry out to Him the moment we realize we’re sinking. He knows us perfectly and He knows that sometimes trying to hold onto our faith or the covenant path can be like trying to walk on water in the middle of a storm. He knows despite our best efforts we sometimes let the waves of doubt and fear crash over us and carry us under and He is anxiously waiting for us to call out to Him to save us. We do not need to tread water and we do not need to swim back to the boat. The moment we choose to repent is the moment the Savior pulls us up out of our doubts and invites us to walk the miraculous walk of faith once more with Him by our side.