Counsel from the Sunday Morning Session - April 2011

Sunday Morning Session

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

·    “The truth is, those who diligently seek to learn of Christ eventually will come to know Him. They will personally receive a divine portrait of the Master, although it most often comes in the form of a puzzle—one piece at a time. Each individual piece may not be easily recognizable by itself; it may not be clear how it relates to the whole. Each piece helps us to see the big picture a little more clearly. Eventually, after enough pieces have been put together, we recognize the grand beauty of it all. Then, looking back on our experience, we see that the Savior had indeed come to be with us—not all at once but quietly, gently, almost unnoticed. This can be our experience if we move forward with faith and do not wait too long on the road to Damascus”

·    “To better hear His voice, it would be wise to turn down the volume control of the worldly noise in our lives. If we ignore or block out the promptings of the Spirit for whatever reason, they become less noticeable until we cannot hear them at all. Let us learn to hearken to the promptings of the Spirit and then be eager to heed them.”

·    “My dear brothers and sisters, let us strive to be among those whom the Lord can rely on to hear His whisperings and respond, as Saul did on his road to Damascus, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”

·    “My dear young friends, perhaps the Lord’s encouragement to ‘open [your] mouths’ might today include “Use your hands” to blog and text message the gospel to all the world! But please remember, all at the right time and at the right place.”

·    “Do not doubt. Remember, ‘Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.’”

·    “Brothers and sisters, dear friends, let us not wait too long on our road to Damascus. Instead, let us courageously move forward in faith, hope, and charity, and we will be blessed with the light we are all seeking upon the path of true discipleship.”

Paul V. Johnson

·    “We must be careful that we don’t resent the very things that help us put on the divine nature.”

H. David Burton

·    “Each generation is required to learn anew the foundational principles of self-reliance: avoid debt, implement principles of thrift, prepare for times of distress, listen to and follow the words of the living oracles, develop the discipline to distinguish between needs and wants and then live accordingly.”

·    “No matter how many temples we build, no matter how large our membership grows, no matter how positively we are perceived in the eyes of the world—should we fail in this great core commandment to ‘succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees,’ or turn our hearts from those who suffer and mourn, we are under condemnation and cannot please the Lord and the jubilant hope of our hearts will ever be distant.”

·    “The work of caring for one another and being ‘kind to the poor’ is a sanctifying work, commanded of the Father and divinely designed to bless, refine, and exalt His children. May we follow the Savior’s counsel to the certain lawyer in the parable of the good Samaritan: ‘Go, and do thou likewise.’”

Silvia H. Allred

·    “Church members all over the world have rejoiced in the past and should rejoice now at the opportunities we have to serve others. Our combined efforts bring relief to those who are poor, hungry, suffering, or distressed, thereby saving souls.”

·    “We can all contribute to the Lord’s storehouse when we pay our fast offerings and make all our resources available to the bishop to assist those in need.”

·    “Let us each renew our desire to be part of the Lord’s storehouse in blessing others.”

David A. Bednar

·    "I invite you to consider two experiences most of us have had with light. The first experience occurred as we entered a dark room and turned on a light switch. Remember how in an instant a bright flood of illumination filled the room and caused the darkness to disappear…The second experience took place as we watched night turn into morning. Do you recall the slow and almost imperceptible increase in light on the horizon? From these two ordinary experiences with light, we can learn much about the spirit of revelation.”

·    “Because the Spirit whispers to us gently and delicately, it is easy to understand why we should shun inappropriate media, pornography, and harmful, addictive substances and behaviors…Each of us should consider seriously and ponder prayerfully how we can reject the devil’s enticements and righteously 'apply unto it,’ even the spirit of revelation, in our personal lives and families.”

·    “As you appropriately seek for and apply unto the spirit of revelation, I promise you will ‘walk in the light of the Lord’ (Isaiah 2:5; 2 Nephi 12:5). Sometimes the spirit of revelation will operate immediately and intensely, other times subtly and gradually, and often so delicately you may not even consciously recognize it.”

Thomas S. Monson

·    “If you have been to the temple for yourselves and if you live within relatively close proximity to a temple, your sacrifice could be setting aside the time in your busy lives to visit the temple regularly. There is much to be done in our temples in behalf of those who wait beyond the veil.”

·    “If you have not yet been to the temple or if you have been but currently do not qualify for a recommend, there is no more important goal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to the temple. Your sacrifice may be bringing your life into compliance with what is required to receive a recommend, perhaps by forsaking long-held habits which disqualify you. It may be having the faith and the discipline to pay your tithing. Whatever it is, qualify to enter the temple of God. Secure a temple recommend and regard it as a precious possession, for such it is.”

·    “Now, my young friends who are in your teenage years, always have the temple in your sights. Do nothing which will keep you from entering its doors and partaking of the sacred and eternal blessings there. I commend those of you who already go to the temple regularly to perform baptisms for the dead, arising in the very early hours of the morning so you can participate in such baptisms before school begins. I can think of no better way to start a day.”

·    “To you parents of young children, may I share with you some sage advice from President Spencer W. Kimball. Said he: ‘It would be a fine thing if … parents would have in every bedroom in their house a picture of the temple so [their children] from the time [they are] infant[s] could look at the picture every day [until] it becomes a part of [their lives]. When [they reach] the age that [they need] to make [the] very important decision [concerning going to the temple], it will have already been made.’”

Our Spiritual Purpose

I have had a portion of this quote by Elder Bednar in the header to my blog for some time now and today I came across his following words and had to share:

"The gospel of Jesus Christ encompasses much more than avoiding, overcoming, and being cleansed from sin and the bad influences in our lives; it also essentially entails doing good, being good, and becoming better. Repenting of our sins and seeking forgiveness are spiritually necessary, and we must always do so. But remission of sin is not the only or even the ultimate purpose of the gospel. To have our hearts changed by the Holy Spirit such that 'we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually' (Mosiah 5:2), as did King Benjamin's people, is the covenant responsibility we have accepted. This mighty change is not simply the result of working harder or developing greater individual discipline. Rather, it is the consequence of a fundamental change in our desires, our motives, and our natures made possible through the Atonement of Christ the Lord. Our spiritual purpose is to overcome both sin and the desire to sin, both the taint and the tyranny of sin."

"Clean Hands and a Pure Heart," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 81-82

Wow...that could make you think for a minute. I think in many ways my goals might be set too low and I could and should be seeking the power of the Atonement more fervently as I strive to reach the higher goal of doing good continually not just merely repenting after I make mistakes but having no desire to sin. As Elder Bednar states, this is "our spiritual purpose".

Understanding and Explaining "Why?"

I posted this about a month ago but I found it saved as a draft and no longer on the blog so I thought I'd try once again, so enjoy!

"It isn't always easy to give a 'why' for everything. But we owe it to you of the coming generation to do more than just say, 'Don't'" -President Boyd K. Packer

I recently purchased a new book that strays so perfectly away from the method of saying "Don't" and instead uses modern apostles, stories, and statistics to explain "Why". It is titled, "Why?: Powerful Answers and Practical Reasons for Living LDS Standards" (you can read a excerpts from the book here). The message and idea behind the book is powerful and essential. It is particularly written for the youth of the Church but boy does it have a wonderful message for all of us. This book answers why we do the things we do and why asking why and knowing why is so important.

Even if you don't rush out and buy this book I hope that we will all begin to ask and come to understand why we do the things we do...this is important:

Elder David A. Bednar explains this importance:
"It concerns me as I see young people in our Church who know all the correct things they should do and do not have a clue as to why...Do we understand why? If we do not understand the why, then the power available to us through the doctrine of Christ will not be evident in our lives."

Last night for scripture study my husband shared a scripture found in Joseph Smith - History 1:20, I'll share a portion of that scripture here:

"He again forbade me to join with any of them; and many other things did he say unto me, which I cannot write at this time. When I came to myself again, I found myself lying on my back, looking up into heaven. When the light had departed, I had no strength; but soon recovering in some degree, I went home. And as I leaned up to the fireplace, mother inquired what the matter was. I replied, “Never mind, all is well—I am well enough off.” I then said to my mother, “I have learned for myself that Presbyterianism is not true.”

The Prophet Joseph Smith learned so much at such a young age and that because he simply went to ask, not particularly to ask why, but to ask a question of the Lord. I love his words when he says, "I have learned for myself..."

Those words were very noticeable as my husband read and I determined then that if we can help our children truly learn for themselves at a young age,at an early enough age that Satan cannot take hold of them, they will stand tall in this wicked world. So if we can help our children gain testimonies of there very own when they are young they will know why we do the things we do, they will learn for themselves.

It is our job as parents and teachers to help our children learn for themselves what they should do and why they should do it.

Sister Julie B. Beck shares her thoughts on this:
" I think we underestimate youth. They’re in a searching age—it’s the “why” age. There’s a reason for that: the Lord wants them to get their own testimonies. It’s leaders’ and parents’ job to give them the doctrinal “whys” and to back up standards by teaching about the reasons for them."

As I have been thinking about all of this a statement well known by parents came to mind, "Because I said so." When we know why a boundary or standard or commandment as been given we are more likely to obey. We are more likely to understand and not have to ask "why?" again and again and not have to be reprimanded again and again.

Elder Richard G. Scott once said,
"All too often in the world, a teacher's relation to a student is one of giving counsel with...no explanation of the reasons why there are commandments, rules, and standards."

As Elder Scott said all too often we don't explain why and as Elder Packer said "...we owe it to you of the coming generation to do more than just say, 'Don't'"

Let us strive to understand why we do the things we do. Let us all strive to say more than "Don't" or "Because I said so." to our children. Let us learn why and explain why. Let us help our children learn for themselves so that they have the foundation and know the reasons why they have the standards and commandments they do.

As we do these things we will be creating something beautiful:
"Of all the creations of the Almighty there is none more beautiful, none more inspiring than a lovely daughter (son) of God who walks in virtue with an understanding of why she should do so." -President Gordon B. Hinckley.

Becoming a Missionary

Missionary work has been on my mind a lot lately as I have been recognizing the opportunities for missionary experiences in my neighborhood. I have never lived in a place where there are many missionary opportunities and now I am surrounded by people who are not members or who are not active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The opportunities are there yet it can be difficult to take them. I have taken a few small steps in the right direction and even then I was nervous. I felt impressed to give two sisters that I visit teach (both are not active) copies of the conference issue of the Ensign. This obviously was nothing too big but it was kind of a leap for me. I am not sure if they have read any of it or plan to, but I feel good knowing that I received a prompting and I followed it.

With all of that said about my recent experiences with missionary work now I will mention the real reason for writing this post. My husband has been reading his mission journal lately and thus has shared stories with me that I have never heard. I was absolutely blown away at some of the experiences he had. I am not talking about wonderful experiences of baptizing a family, or teaching a wonderful sister, or anything of the sort. I was shocked by the unreal experiences he had with a few very disobedient and heartless companions (this was before the bar was risen).

After he shared one particular experience I responded with a line of this sort - "If I found out that my son was that kind of missionary I would be heart broken and dissapointed...we can't let our children be missionaries like that." Then I asked him if their parents knew that their sons were missionaries like that and he said that they probably didn't. Then I asked him, "So how will we know if our sons are good missionaries?" We came to this conclusion...we will know long before they ever leave what kind of missionary they will be.

This brings me to this wonderful talk by Elder David A. Bednar called Becoming a Missionary. He perfectly answers what one must do to prepare for a full-time mission and further suggests that in every area of our lives we must focus more on becoming rather than going. Enjoy portions of the talk below or click on the link above for his full talk:

“In meetings with young members of the Church around the world, I often invite those in attendance to ask questions. One of the questions I am asked most frequently by young men is this: “What can I do to prepare most effectively to serve as a full-time missionary?” Such a sincere question deserves a serious response.

“My dear young brethren, the single most important thing you can do to prepare for a call to serve is to become a missionary long before you go on a mission. Please notice that in my answer I emphasized becoming rather than going. Let me explain what I mean.

“In our customary Church vocabulary, we often speak of going to church, going to the temple, and going on a mission. Let me be so bold as to suggest that our rather routine emphasis on going misses the mark.

“The issue is not going to church; rather, the issue is worshipping and renewing covenants as we attend church. The issue is not going to or through the temple; rather, the issue is having in our hearts the spirit, the covenants, and the ordinances of the Lord’s house. The issue is not going on a mission; rather, the issue is becoming a missionary and serving throughout our entire life with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength. It is possible for a young man to go on a mission and not become a missionary, and this is not what the Lord requires or what the Church needs.

“My earnest hope for each of you young men is that you will not simply go on a mission—but that you will become missionaries long before you submit your mission papers, long before you receive a call to serve, long before you are set apart by your stake president, and long before you enter the MTC” (Ensign, Nov 2005, 44).

Let us all focus on becoming missionaries now and help our children to do the same. I loved Elder Bednar's suggestion to emphasize things differently - to focus on the more important issues and become better people rather than just go through the motions of going to church, going on a mission, or going to the temple. Let us not only go but become.

Becoming a Latter-Day Saint

I've decided that I am going to start something new on what this blog is actually called - Becoming LDS. In the following weeks I will be adding many more insights of characteristics or things that we can strive to become that will help us to reach our overall goal to become more like our Savior.

Some examples of things to look forward to are: to become charitable, to become clean, or to become quick to observe. I am starting out with the thing which all others fall under- we should be striving to become a saint, someone who is pure and holy, someone who is an exceptional example, someone who is a follower or a desciple of Christ. We should be striving to become perfect in Christ. We call ourselves Latter-day Saints and therefore we should be striving to become what we profess to be.

Becoming a "Latter-Day Saint"
David A. Bednar, “Clean Hands and a Pure Heart,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 80–83

"The gate of baptism leads to the strait and narrow path and to the destination of putting off the natural man and becoming a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord (See Mosiah 3:19).

Mosiah 3:19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

The purpose of our mortal journey is not merely to see the sights on earth or to expend our allotment of time on self-centered pursuits; rather, we are to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4), to become sanctified by yielding our hearts unto God (see Helaman 3:35), and to obtain “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16)...The infinite Atonement is for both the sinner and for the saint in each of us.

The requirement to put off the natural man and become a saint, to avoid and overcome bad and to do and become good, to have clean hands and a pure heart, is a recurring theme throughout the Book of Mormon. In fact, Moroni’s concluding invitation at the end of the book is a summary of this theme.

“Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ. … “And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot” (Moroni 10:32–33; emphasis added)."

We should be continually striving to become a Saint, to become holy without spot, and to become perfected in Christ. Then one day we may be like Him:

Moroni 7:48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.

Obedience

I was asked to give a talk this last Sunday and I thought I would just share a portion of it here.

5 Aspects of Obedience that Will Bring Blessings When Applied in our Lives

1 - Be Quick to Obey:

David A. Bednar - Sister Bednar and I are acquainted with a returned missionary who had dated a special young woman for a period of time. He cared for her very much, and he was desirous of making his relationship with her more serious. He was considering and hoping for engagement and marriage. This relationship was developing during the time that President Hinckley counseled the Relief Society sisters and young women of the Church to wear only one earring in each ear.

The young man waited patiently over a period of time for the young woman to remove her extra earrings, but she did not take them out. This was a valuable piece of information for this young man, and he felt unsettled about her nonresponsiveness to a prophet’s pleading. For this and other reasons, he ultimately stopped dating the young woman, because he was looking for an eternal companion who had the courage to promptly and quietly obey the counsel of the prophet in all things and at all times.

Elder Wirthlin - Jesus is our perfect example of obedience and in this case our perfect example of prompt obedience. Learn to do as He did when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness. Even though He was weakened by fasting, His answer was quick and firm: “Get thee behind me, Satan.” 19 Elder Neal A. Maxwell said this of the Savior’s example in resisting temptation: “Jesus noticed the tremendous temptations that came to Him, but He did not process and reprocess them. Instead, He rejected them promptly. If we entertain temptations, soon they begin entertaining us!” 20 When Satan comes calling, cast him out as quickly as possible. Do not let temptation even begin to entertain you.

Elder Wirthlin and Maxwell allude to the idea that even a slight hesitation or a momentary consideration may lead to our downfall. We must be quick to observe the commandments of God.

2 – Willingly and Cheerfully Obey:

D&C 123:17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us acheerfully bdo all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the csalvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.

1 Nephi 3:7 –Nephi’s Courage:

The Lord commanded Nephi to go and get the plates
From the wicked Laban inside the city gates.
Laman and Lemuel were both afraid to try.
Nephi was courageous. This was his reply:

Chorus
“I will go; I will do the thing the Lord commands.
I know the Lord provides a way; he wants me to obey.
I will go; I will do the thing the Lord commands.
I know the Lord provides a way; he wants me to obey.”

3 - Be Steady in Obedience:

This is an experience from Elder Wirthlin’s youth that taught him the importance of constant obedience.

Our university [football] team faced the University of Colorado in a contest for the conference championship. We were well coached and really well prepared. The star of the Colorado team was Byron “Whizzer” White, an all-American who was a tremendous athlete. He was a fast and powerful quarterback.

Our wise coach was Ike Armstrong. His warnings before the game included two simple instructions: one, do not kick off or punt the ball to Whizzer White, and two, never let him get past the line of scrimmage.

We followed his instructions and held Colorado scoreless throughout the first half. Early in the second half, however, Whizzer White kicked a field goal. We answered with a touchdown and kicked the extra point. We were ahead seven to three at the end of the third quarter.

On the second play of the fourth quarter, we punted. The ball sailed deep into the corner of the field, near their end zone. Whizzer White plucked the tumbling ball out of the air at his fifteen-yard line and dropped back to his five-yard line to evade the first of our tacklers. Then with the speed, strength, and agility that had built his reputation, he started upfield and sidestepped every player of our team. I managed only to touch him with my little finger. He ran the entire length of the field for a touchdown—thrilling for Colorado, but disappointing for us.

Later in the fourth quarter, Whizzer dashed around his own right end and beyond the line of scrimmage and ran fifty-seven yards for another touchdown. The game ended with a score seventeen to seven. Colorado won the game and the conference championship.

Though we lost, I learned the importance of constant obedience to detailed instructions of our leader. Failure to obey our coach’s two pregame warnings for just two plays—two brief lapses in an otherwise outstanding effort—cost us the game and the conference championship. That is all it took for us to lose something we had worked so hard to achieve.

Just like Elder Wirthlin and his team we can’t afford to have even brief lapses in our obedience. We need to be constant and steady in our obedience.

4 - Obey with Exactness:

2,000 Stripling Warriors: Alma 57:21 - Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness;

1 Samuel 15 - Saul commanded to smite and destroy the Amalekites and all that they have. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them (so that they could give sacrifice): but every thing that was vile they destroyed utterly. The Lord said, “he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments.” Later Samuel tells Saul, “Behold, to cobey is better than dsacrifice.”

Elder Glenn L. Pace. - There are some of our members who practice selective obedience. A prophet is not one who displays a smorgasbord of truth from which we are free to pick and choose. However, some members become critical and suggest the prophet should change the menu.

Elder Wirthlin: Some people choose to follow the teachings of the Lord and of his living prophet only when convenient, but reject them when sacrifice or deeper commitment is required.

We should be exactly obedient in all things.

5 – Selflessly and Lovingly Obey: Our motivation for obeying should not be to merely gain a blessing or reward.

Dallin H. Oaks - in ascending order from the lesser to the greater reasons for [obedience].
1 - Some may [obey] for hope of earthly reward or blessing.
6 - The last motive I will discuss is, in my opinion, the highest reason of all. In its relationship to [obedience], it is what the scriptures call “a more excellent way.” (1 Cor. 12:31.) It is the pure love of Christ.” (Moro. 7:47.) Our [obedience] when motivated by our love of the Lord is the highest reason of all.

John 14: 15 - If ye love me, keep my commandments.

President Monson - When faced with the agony of Gethsemane, where He endured such pain that His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground, He exemplified the obedient Son by saying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42).

He demonstrated his love for his Father and for us by his willingness to do something that was so difficult and painful that it lies beyond our comprehension. He suffered for our sins without having committed any sins himself.