First Principles - 2 Nephi 9:23

And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.

This verse is emphasizing the first three principles and ordinances of the gospel: Faith, Repentance and Baptism. Notice that baptism is a one-time event, while faith and repentance are ongoing things. Before and after baptism, we must continuously repent and cultivate faith. Baptism is really the consummation of a commitment to faith in Christ and continuous repentance and reliance upon his mercy and grace.

It is interesting how a man of faith is more likely to feel his faults (and more accutely) than he of little faith. Faith will drive us to repentance, and repentance will drive us to faith. It is in the realization of our faults that we more earnestly feel after the Holy One for enabling grace and forgiving mercy.

There is not enough that can be said about repentance. We all need it and much more than we understand. But without faith in Jesus Christ, repentance is relegated to simply something akin to "self-improvement". In repentance and faith, we move toward complete dependence on God. Now, this is a great paradox because "complete dependence" sounds like we're pulling a cop-out and letting God do all of the work and make all of our decisions for us. There could be nothing further from the truth.

The reality is that when we put ourselves in His employ, we put ourselves in a situation where we have access to all wisdom as He is willing to give it, then we put ourselves in full responsibility for our actions. In this manner, it is more akin to walking a tight-rope than getting a free ride. The point though, is that when we can put our trust in Him, miracles happen. Real miracles. And life becomes even more exciting and fulfilling. You see, we were made for much greater things than to simply follow our own mediocre whims. Because His plan for us is spectacular and stellar. But it requires faith, repentance and diligence on our part.