Do you remember me?

A young woman in another country applied to work as a journalist, but the official who assigned jobs was merciless. He said to her, “With my signature, I guarantee you will not become a journalist but will dig sewers.” She was the only woman digging sewers in a gang of men.

Years later this woman became an official. One day a man came in needing her signature for a job.

She asked, “Do you remember me?” He did not.

She said, “You do not remember me, but I remember you. With your signature, you guaranteed I never became a journalist. With your signature, you sent me to dig sewers, the only woman in a gang of men.”

She told me, “I feel I should treat that man better than he treated me—but I do not have that strength.” Sometimes that strength is not within us, but it can be found in remembering the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

When trust is betrayed, dreams shattered, hearts broken and broken again, when we want justice and need mercy, when our fists clench and our tears flow, when we need to know what to hold onto and what to let go of, we can always remember Him. Life is not as cruel as it can sometimes seem. His infinite compassion can help us find our way, truth, and life.


-Gerrit W. Gong
"Always Remember Him"
APRIL 2016

Grateful in Any Circumstances

Those who set aside the bottle of bitterness and lift instead the goblet of gratitude can find a purifying drink of healing, peace, and understanding.

Why does God command us to be grateful?

All of His commandments are given to make blessings available to us. Commandments are opportunities to exercise our agency and to receive blessings. Our loving Heavenly Father knows that choosing to develop a spirit of gratitude will bring us true joy and great happiness.

Some might say, “What do I have to be grateful for when my world is falling apart?”

Perhaps focusing on what we are grateful for is the wrong approach. It is difficult to develop a spirit of gratitude if our thankfulness is only proportional to the number of blessings we can count. True, it is important to frequently “count our blessings”—and anyone who has tried this knows there are many—but I don’t believe the Lord expects us to be less thankful in times of trial than in times of abundance and ease.

It is easy to be grateful for things when life seems to be going our way. But what then of those times when what we wish for seems to be far out of reach?

Could I suggest that we see gratitude as a disposition, a way of life that stands independent of our current situation? In other words, I’m suggesting that instead of being thankful for things, we focus on being thankful in our circumstances—whatever they may be.

We sometimes think that being grateful is what we do after our problems are solved, but how terribly shortsighted that is. How much of life do we miss by waiting to see the rainbow before thanking God that there is rain?

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"Grateful in Any Circumstances"
Apr 2014

The Fulness of the Story of Christmas

Christmas invites feelings of tenderness, joy, and love. And as any parent will attest, similar feelings typically attend the birth of each newborn child. Of course, Christ’s birth was unlike any other. The precious details—the journey to Bethlehem, an overcrowded inn, a lowly manger, a newfound star, and ministering angels—make His a birth story for the ages. Yet the story of the Savior’s birth represents only a part of why we feel the Spirit during the Christmas season. Christmas is not only a celebration of how Jesus came into the world but also of knowing who He is—our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ—and of why He came.

President Thomas S. Monson has taught: “Because He came to earth, … we [can] have joy and happiness in our lives and peace each day of the year. … Because He came, there is meaning to our mortal existence.”

Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem is not the beginning of the story, and Calvary is not the end.

-Craig C. Christensen
"The Fulness of the Story of Christmas"
2016 Christmas Devotional

A Yearning for Home

"Some monarch butterfly populations migrate 3,000 miles (4,800 km) each year to climes better suited for their survival. Leatherback turtles travel across the Pacific Ocean from Indonesia to the coasts of California. Humpback whales swim from the cold waters of the North and South Poles toward the equator and back. Perhaps even more incredibly, the arctic tern flies from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica and back every year, some 60,000 miles (97,000 km).

When scientists study this fascinating behavior, they ask questions such as “How do they know where to go?” and “How does each successive generation learn this behavior?”


When I read of this powerful instinct in animals, I can’t help but wonder, “Is it possible that human beings have a similar yearning—an inner guidance system, if you will—that draws them to their heavenly home?”

I believe that every man, woman, and child has felt the call of heaven at some point in his or her life. Deep within us is a longing to somehow reach past the veil and embrace Heavenly Parents we once knew and cherished.

Some might suppress this yearning and deaden their souls to its call. But those who do not quench this light within themselves can embark on an incredible journey—a wondrous migration toward heavenly climes."

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"A Yearning for Home"
OCTOBER 2017

Satan has somehow managed to make covenants and commandments seem like curses

"Around the Church I hear many who struggle with this issue: “I am just not good enough.” “I fall so far short.” “I will never measure up.” I hear this from teenagers. I hear it from missionaries. I hear it from new converts. I hear it from lifelong members. Satan has somehow managed to make covenants and commandments seem like curses and condemnations. For some he has turned the ideals and inspiration of the gospel into self-loathing and misery-making.

To put this issue in context, may I remind all of us that we live in a fallen world and for now we are a fallen people. We are in the telestial kingdom; that is spelled with a t, not a c. As President Russell M. Nelson has taught, here in mortality perfection is still “pending.”

-Jeffrey R Holland
:"Be Ye Therefore Perfect—Eventually"
Oct. 2017

Hope for Parents of Wayward Children

“The Prophet Joseph Smith declared—and he never taught a more comforting doctrine—that the eternal sealings of faithful parents and the divine promises made to them for valiant service in the Cause of Truth, would save not only themselves, but likewise their posterity. Though some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them, and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in this life or the life to come, they will return. They will have to pay their debt to justice; they will suffer for their sins; and may tread a thorny path; but if it leads them at last, like the penitent Prodigal, to a loving and forgiving father’s heart and home, the painful experience will not have been in vain. Pray for your careless and disobedient children; hold on to them with your faith. Hope on, trust on, till you see the salvation of God”

-Joseph Smith



“Let the father and mother, who are members of this Church and Kingdom, take a righteous course, and strive with all their might never to do a wrong, but to do good all their lives; if they have one child or one hundred children, if they conduct themselves towards them as they should, binding them to the Lord by their faith and prayers, I care not where those children go, they are bound up to their parents by an everlasting tie, and no power of earth or hell can separate them from their parents in eternity; they will return again to the fountain from whence they sprang”

-Brigham Young



“If you succeed in passing through these trials and afflictions and receive a resurrection, you will, by the power of the Priesthood, work and labor, as the Son of God has, until you get all your sons and daughters in the path of exaltation and glory. This is just as sure as that the sun rose this morning over yonder mountains. Therefore, mourn not because all your sons and daughters do not follow in the path that you have marked out to them, or give heed to your counsels. Inasmuch as we succeed in securing eternal glory, and stand as saviors, and as kings and priests to our God, we will save our posterity”

-Lorenzo Snow



“The measure of our success as parents … will not rest solely on how our children turn out. That judgment would be just only if we could raise our families in a perfectly moral environment, and that now is not possible.

“It is not uncommon for responsible parents to lose one of their children, for a time, to influences over which they have no control. They agonize over rebellious sons or daughters. They are puzzled over why they are so helpless when they have tried so hard to do what they should.

“It is my conviction that those wicked influences one day will be overruled. …

“We cannot overemphasize the value of temple marriage, the binding ties of the sealing ordinance, and the standards of worthiness required of them. When parents keep the covenants they have made at the altar of the temple, their children will be forever bound to them”

-Boyd K. Packer

The Merciful Obtain Mercy

When it comes to our own prejudices and grievances, we too often justify our anger as righteous and our judgment as reliable and only appropriate. Though we cannot look into another’s heart, we assume that we know a bad motive or even a bad person when we see one. We make exceptions when it comes to our own bitterness because we feel that, in our case, we have all the information we need to hold someone else in contempt.

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Romans, said that those who pass judgment on others are “inexcusable.” The moment we judge someone else, he explained, we condemn ourselves, for none is without sin.

The more we allow the love of God to govern our minds and emotions—the more we allow our love for our Heavenly Father to swell within our hearts—the easier it is to love others with the pure love of Christ. As we open our hearts to the glowing dawn of the love of God, the darkness and cold of animosity and envy will eventually fade.

Jesus said it is easy to love those who love us; even the wicked can do that. But Jesus Christ taught a higher law. His words echo through the centuries and are meant for us today. They are meant for all who desire to be His disciples. They are meant for you and me: “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”

The pure love of Christ can remove the scales of resentment and wrath from our eyes, allowing us to see others the way our Heavenly Father sees us: as flawed and imperfect mortals who have potential and worth far beyond our capacity to imagine. Because God loves us so much, we too must love and forgive each other.

Remember, heaven is filled with those who have this in common: They are forgiven. And they forgive.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"The Merciful Obtain Mercy"
APRIL 2012

Broken Bread for Sacrament

Elder Oaks said his second thought about the sacrament concerns the nature of the broken bread of which Church members partake.

Referencing Christian churches that participate in communion—in many cases partaking of identical wafers or crackers, Elder Oaks said Latter-day Saints partake of bread that has been broken in their presence.

“Because it is broken and torn, each piece of bread is unique, just as the individuals who partake of it are unique,” he said. “We all have different sins to repent of. We all have different needs to be strengthened through the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom we remember in this ordinance. Strive to think of His sacrifice as specific and unique to you.”

Faith, Fortitude, Fulfillment: A Message to Single Parents

In the general Relief Society meeting of September 2006, President Gordon B. Hinckley related an experience shared by a divorced single mother of seven children then ranging in ages from 7 to 16. She had gone across the street to deliver something to a neighbor. She said:

“As I turned around to walk back home, I could see my house lighted up. I could hear echoes of my children as I had walked out of the door a few minutes earlier. They were saying: ‘Mom, what are we going to have for dinner?’ ‘Can you take me to the library?’ ‘I have to get some poster paper tonight.’ Tired and weary, I looked at that house and saw the light on in each of the rooms. I thought of all of those children who were home waiting for me to come and meet their needs. My burdens felt heavier than I could bear.

“I remember looking through tears toward the sky, and I said, ‘Dear Father, I just can’t do it tonight. I’m too tired. I can’t face it. I can’t go home and take care of all those children alone. Could I just come to You and stay with You for just one night? …’

“I didn’t really hear the words of reply, but I heard them in my mind. The answer was: ‘No, little one, you can’t come to me now. … But I can come to you.’”

David S. Baxter

"Faith, Fortitude, Fulfillment: A Message to Single Parents"

APRIL 2012

Abide in the Lord's Territory

“May I provide a simple formula by which you can measure the choices which confront you. It’s easy to remember: ‘You can’t be right by doing wrong; you can’t be wrong by doing right’

There is a line of demarcation well defined between the Lord’s territory and the devil’s territory. If you will stay on the Lord’s side of the line you will be under his influence and will have no desire to do wrong; but if you cross to the devil’s side of that line one inch you are in the tempter’s power and if he is successful, you will not be able to think or even reason properly because you will have lost the Spirit of the Lord”

-Elder Ulisses Soares
"Abide in the Lord’s Territory!"
APRIL 2012

We can't help everyone

"We can't help everyone,but everyone can help someone."

-Ronald Reagan

Priesthood Quorum is more than a Class

"I am confident that the Lord intended that a priesthood quorum should be far more than a class in theology on Sunday mornings. Of course, the building of spirituality and the strengthening of testimony through effective gospel teaching is an important priesthood responsibility. But this is only a segment of the quorum function. Each quorum must be a working brotherhood for every member if its purpose is to be realized. …

… The priesthood quorum is the Lord’s organization for men of the Church, just as the Relief Society is the Lord’s organization for women of the Church. Each has among its responsibilities, basic to its reason for being, the assisting of those in need.

When the Relief Society was organized the Prophet Joseph said of the women of the Society: “They will fly to the relief of the stranger; they will pour in the wine and oil to the wounded heart of the distressed; they will dry up the tears of the orphan and make the widow’s heart to rejoice”. I would hope that the same might be said of the men of the priesthood."

-Gordon B. Hinckley

To the Person Who Didn't Take the Sacrament Today

To the person who didn’t take the sacrament today:

I noticed today that when I passed you the tray full of broken bread—the sacred symbol of our Savior’s body and sacrifice—that you didn’t take any. You immediately handed it to the person next to you.

I noticed that you did the same thing when the water—the sacred symbol of our Savior’s blood and Atonement—was passed to us by the same innocent deacon in a starched white shirt.

I noticed when you did this that you never looked up, shifting uncomfortably in your seat, and I felt a little embarrassed at the culture we live in, where repentance and personal worthiness are sometimes looked on as a thing of shame.

I have to be honest; I’ve judged you in the past. You didn’t know it because I respectfully half-smiled and looked away when you didn’t take the sacrament before handing me the tray, but I’m ashamed to admit that the thought crossed my mind about what sin you’d committed that made you unworthy to take one small piece of bread and one small plastic cup of water.

What right or reason did I have to judge you? None.

I saw the mote in your eye before I saw the beam in mine, and I forgot that it takes more courage to acknowledge a weakness than to acknowledge a strength. While I wasn’t a good disciple the day I judged you, you taught me some lessons that I want to thank you for.

Thank you for showing me what true discipleship looks like.

You reminded me that a true disciple of Christ is focused on coming closer to Christ, not on measuring how close to Christ everyone else is. We are each on an individual path of repentance. Being a disciple is difficult and takes work, and you reminded me to reflect on the weaknesses I need help overcoming and that I am not judged by man but by God. So are you. You already know whose opinion matters most.

Thank you for teaching me what repentance is and where it comes from.

You reminded me that repentance is personal and that it's a process I need to be engaged in weekly. I have made my own poor decisions, and sometimes that includes forgetting to truly focus on changing myself, not simply asking for forgiveness and calling it a day. As I thought back through my own week, I remembered many things that I needed to correct, and that I need my Savior to do it. You are miles ahead of me in that lesson.

Thank you for reminding me what the sacrament is really about.

You reminded me that if I’m focused on what those around me are doing, my mind is not focused on the sacred emblems I am partaking of. It is not just one small piece of bread and plastic cup of water. It is a symbol and a reminder of a covenant I made and need to keep. What has perhaps become a habit for me still represents a serious covenant and a sincere desire to change and improve to you. Thank you for helping me recognize my "check box" attitude.

Thank you for teaching me humility.

Maybe your head was actually bent toward the ground in worship more than mine. You remind and show me that you recognize God's power and your need for His help. Pride often gets the better of me, but your humble attitude reminds me how to truly worship. Instead of lifting my head and watching others, I could do a better job of reflecting on myself and worshipping my Savior. Your posture reminded me of this.

Thank you for teaching me love.

As I've thought about this situation, I've realized that we need to show Christlike love for others at all times, but especially when others are struggling. Instead of judging, I could have reached out a hand in love. We don't need to know a person's past or struggles to love them. We need to encourage and treat each other the way the Savior would and does. Thank you for reminding me that Christ is the only one who can truly heal us, but we can still help soothe wounds.

In short, thank you for taking the sacrament seriously. You reminded me of the weight of the ordinance offered each week, and I am grateful.

I look forward to sitting next to you again next Sunday.

With love,

A fellow Latter-day Saint

Overcoming Adversity

"Those who suffer great adversity and sorrow and go on to serve their fellowmen develop a great capacity to understand others. Like the prophets, they have acquired a higher understanding of the mind and will of Christ.

For some, the true trial of our faith is to remain faithful, without murmuring against the Lord, when we lose earthly position, family members, or even when we are required to give our very lives.

Only when we fix our gaze on the heavenly things do we begin to understand the eternities. Only with the help of Christ can we fully overcome tragedy."

-Carlos H. Amado
"Overcoming Adversity"
OCT 1989

True freedom lies in obedience to the counsels of God.

"The way of the gospel is a simple way. Some of the requirements may appear to you as elementary and unnecessary. Do not spurn them. Humble yourselves and walk in obedience. I promise that the results that follow will be marvelous to behold and satisfying to experience.

True freedom lies in obedience to the counsels of God. It was said of old that “the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light.” (Prov. 6:23.)

The gospel is not a philosophy of repression, as so many regard it. It is a plan of freedom that gives discipline to appetite and direction to behavior. Its fruits are sweet and its rewards are liberal."

-Gordon B. Hinckley

Four Cornerstones of Religious Freedom

"As we walk the path of spiritual liberty in these last days, we must understand that the faithful use of our agency depends upon our having religious freedom.

There are four cornerstones of religious freedom that we as Latter-day Saints must rely upon and protect.

The first is freedom to believe. No one should be criticized, persecuted, or attacked by individuals, or governments either, for what he or she believes about God.

The second cornerstone of religious liberty is the freedom to share our faith and our beliefs with others.

The third cornerstone of religious liberty is the freedom to form a religious organization, a church, to worship peacefully with others.

The fourth cornerstone of religious liberty is the freedom to live our faith—free exercise of faith not just in the home and chapel but also in public places."

-Robert D. Hales
"Preserving Agency, Protecting Religious Freedom"
APRIL 2015

Freedom came as a Gift from Christ

"This freedom which we enjoy did not originate with the Founding Fathers. This great boon of freedom and respect for the dignity of man, came as a gift from the Creator. "

-Ezra Taft Benson

Press On

"Often those who struggle with adversity ask the question “Why did this happen to me?” They spend sleepless nights wondering why they feel so lonely, sick, discouraged, oppressed, or brokenhearted.

The question “Why me?” can be a difficult one to answer and often leads to frustration and despair. There is a better question to ask ourselves. That question is “What could I learn from this experience?”

The way we answer that question may determine the quality of our lives not only on this earth but also in the eternities to come. Though our trials are diverse, there is one thing the Lord expects of us no matter our difficulties and sorrows: He expects us to press on.


Some think of enduring to the end as simply suffering through challenges. It is so much more than that—it is the process of coming unto Christ and being perfected in Him."

-Joseph B. Wirthlin
"Press On"
OCTOBER 2004

Eyes to See and Ears to Hear

"In 1982 my parents were called to serve in the Philippines Davao Mission. When my mother opened the letter and saw where they were called, she exclaimed to my father, “No! You’ve got to call them and tell them we can’t go to the Philippines. They know you have asthma.” My father had suffered with asthma for many years, and my mother was very worried about him.

A few nights later my mother woke up my dad at about 2:30 a.m. She said, “Merlin, did you hear that voice?”

“No, I didn’t hear any voice.”


“Well, I have heard the same voice three times tonight, saying, ‘Why are you worried? Don’t you know that I know he has asthma? I will take care of him, and I will take care of you. Get yourself ready to serve in the Philippines.’”

My mother and father served in the Philippines and had a marvelous experience. The Holy Ghost was their companion, and they were blessed and protected. My father never had any problems with his asthma. He served as the first counselor in the mission presidency, and he and my mother trained hundreds of missionaries and thousands of faithful Latter-day Saints in preparation for the coming of wards and stakes on the island of Mindanao. They were blessed with eyes to see and ears to hear."

-Kim B. Clark
"Eyes to See and Ears to Hear"
OCT. 2015

How to reach God's view

“Scripture reading enables [man] to see life, not alone from the human point of view, but in some degree from God’s".

-Victor L. Brown
"Finding One’s Identity"
APRIL 1983

Finding One’s Identity

“Scripture reading enables [man] to see life, not alone from the human point of view, but in some degree from God’s.

This perspective fills two of man’s important needs—a sense of individual worth and a feeling of self-subordination. Either of these are achievable alone. But how easy it is for a sense of personal worth to turn to an intolerable egoism and self-conceit—or a sense of self-subordination—to turn into a false humility or morbid self-depreciation."

-Victor L. Brown
"Finding One’s Identity"
APRIL 1983

A City Set Upon a Hill

"Unless the world alters the course of its present trends (and that is not likely); and if, on the other hand, we continue to follow the teachings of the prophets, we shall increasingly become a peculiar and distinctive people of whom the world will take note. For instance: As the integrity of the family crumbles under worldly pressures, our position on the sanctity of the family will become more obvious and even more peculiar in contrast, if we have the faith to maintain that position.

It is not always easy to live in the world and not be a part of it. We cannot live entirely with our own or unto ourselves, nor would we wish to. We must mingle with others. In so doing, we can be gracious. We can be inoffensive. We can avoid any spirit or attitude of self-righteousness. But we can maintain our standards. The natural tendency will be otherwise, and many have succumbed to it."


-Gordon B. Hinckley
"A City Set Upon a Hill"
OCTOBER 1974

Holy Ghost makes what is good more attractive and temptation less compelling.

"The companionship of the Holy Ghost makes what is good more attractive and temptation less compelling. That alone should be enough to make us determined to qualify for the Spirit to be with us always."

-Henry B. Eyring
"The Holy Ghost as Your Companion"
OCTOBER 2015

Let the Holy Spirit Guide

"We must be confident in our first promptings. Sometimes we rationalize; we wonder if we are feeling a spiritual impression or if it is just our own thoughts. When we begin to second-guess, even third-guess, our feelings—and we all have—we are dismissing the Spirit; we are questioning divine counsel. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that if you will listen to the first promptings, you will get it right nine times out of ten.

Now a caution: don’t expect fireworks because you responded to the Holy Ghost. Remember, you are about the work of the still, small voice."

-Ronald A. Rasband
"Let the Holy Spirit Guide"
APRIL 2017

Why do we serve?

"At times of attention and visibility, it might be also be profitable for us to answer the question, Why do we serve? When we understand why, we won't be concerned about where we serve."

-Howard W.Hunter
“No Less Serviceable”
APRIL 1992

#BecauseofHim

"We may, in fact, make wrong choices, bad choices, hurtful choices. And sometimes we do just that, but that is where the mission and mercy of Jesus Christ comes into full force and glory. He has taken upon himself the burden of all the world’s risk. He has provided a mediating atonement for the wrong choices we make. He is our advocate with the Father and has paid, in advance, for the faults and foolishness we often see in the exercise of our freedom."


Howard W. Hunter
"The Golden Thread of Choice"
OCT. 1989

Knight in Shiny Armor

Our Father, Our Mentor

"Our Father in Heaven knows His children's needs better than anyone else. It is His work and glory to help us at every turn, giving us marvelous temporal and spiritual resources to help us on our path to return to Him."

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"Our Father, Our Mentor"
JUNE 2016

unkind things are not usually said under the inspiration of the Lord

 “unkind things are not usually said under the inspiration of the Lord. The Spirit of the Lord is a spirit of kindness; it is a spirit of patience; it is a spirit of charity and love and forbearance and long suffering. …

“… But if we have the spirit of fault finding … in a destructive manner, that never comes as a result of the companionship of the Spirit of our Heavenly Father and is always harmful.

“… Kindness is the power that God has given us to unlock hard hearts and subdue stubborn souls.”

-Teachings of Presidents of the Church: George Albert Smith (2011), 225, 226, 228; emphasis added.

To Whom Shall We Go?

"If any one of you is faltering in your faith, I ask you the same question that Peter asked: “To whom shall [you] go?” If you choose to become inactive or to leave the restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where will you go? What will you do? The decision to “walk no more” with Church members and the Lord’s chosen leaders will have a long-term impact that cannot always be seen right now. There may be some doctrine, some policy, some bit of history that puts you at odds with your faith, and you may feel that the only way to resolve that inner turmoil right now is to “walk no more” with the Saints. If you live as long as I have, you will come to know that things have a way of resolving themselves. An inspired insight or revelation may shed new light on an issue. Remember, the Restoration is not an event, but it continues to unfold.

Never abandon the great truths revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Never stop reading, pondering, and applying the doctrine of Christ contained in the Book of Mormon.

Elder Neal A. Maxwell once said, “We should not assume … that just because something is unexplainable by us it is unexplainable.”

So before you make that spiritually perilous choice to leave, I encourage you to stop and think carefully before giving up whatever it was that brought you to your testimony of the restored Church of Jesus Christ in the first place. Stop and think about what you have felt here and why you felt it. Think about the times when the Holy Ghost has borne witness to you of eternal truth.

Where will you go to find others who share your belief in personal, loving Heavenly Parents, who teach us how to return to Their eternal presence?

Where will you go to be taught about a Savior who is your best friend, who not only suffered for your sins but who also suffered “pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind” so “that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities,”7 including, I believe, the infirmity of loss of faith?

Where will you go to learn more about Heavenly Father’s plan for our eternal happiness and peace, a plan that is filled with wondrous possibilities, teachings, and guidance for our mortal and eternal lives? Remember, the plan of salvation gives mortal life meaning, purpose, and direction.

Where will you go to find a detailed and inspired Church organizational structure through which you are taught and supported by men and women who are deeply committed to serving the Lord by serving you and your family?

Where will you go to find living prophets and apostles, who are called by God to give you another resource for counsel, understanding, comfort, and inspiration for the challenges of our day?

Where will you go to find people who live by a prescribed set of values and standards that you share and want to pass along to your children and grandchildren?

And where will you go to experience the joy that comes through the saving ordinances and covenants of the temple?"

Elder M. Russell Ballard
"To Whom Shall We Go?"
Oct 2016

Service is not something we endure on this earth

"Service is not something we endure on this earth so we can earn the right to live in the celestial kingdom. Service is the very fiber of which an exalted life in the celestial kingdom is made."

-Marion G. Romney
"The Celestial Nature of Self-reliance"
OCT 1982

Gospel Likened unto Hikers

Brothers and sisters, accepting and living the gospel of Christ can be challenging. It has always been thus, and it ever will be. Life can be like hikers ascending a steep and arduous trail. It is a natural and normal thing to occasionally pause on the path to catch our breath, to recalculate our bearings, and to reconsider our pace. Not everyone needs to pause on the path, but there is nothing wrong with doing so when your circumstances require. In fact, it can be a positive thing for those who take full advantage of the opportunity to refresh themselves with the living water of the gospel of Christ.


The danger comes when someone chooses to wander away from the path that leads to the tree of life.

Elder M. Russell Ballard
"To Whom Shall We Go?"
Oct 2016

You have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love

In a past general conference, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland declared: “However late you think you are, however many chances you think you have missed, however many mistakes you feel you have made … , or however far from home and family and God you feel you have traveled, I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines.”

To me, the greatest miracles in life are not the parting of the Red Sea, the moving of mountains, or even the healing of the body. The greatest miracle happens when we humbly approach our Father in Heaven in prayer, fervently plead to be forgiven, and then are cleansed of those sins through the atoning sacrifice of our Savior.

-Linda S. Reeves
"The Great Plan of Redemption"
Oct 2016

It is not always easy to live in the world and not be a part of it.

"It is not always easy to live in the world and not be a part of it. We cannot live entirely with our own or unto ourselves, nor would we wish to. We must mingle with others. In so doing, we can be gracious. We can be inoffensive. We can avoid any spirit or attitude of self-righteousness. But we can maintain our standards. …

As we observe these and other standards taught by the Church, many in the world will respect us and find strength to follow that which they too know is right."

-Gordon B. Hinckley

Am I good enough as a person? Will I make it?

As with my own experience, our members often ask, “Am I good enough as a person?” or “Will I really make it to the celestial kingdom?” Of course, there is no such thing as “being good enough.” None of us could ever “earn” or “deserve” our salvation, but it is normal to wonder if we are acceptable before the Lord, which is how I understand these questions.

Please, my beloved brothers and sisters, we must stop comparing ourselves to others. We torture ourselves needlessly by competing and comparing. We falsely judge our self-worth by the things we do or don’t have and by the opinions of others. If we must compare, let us compare how we were in the past to how we are today—and even to how we want to be in the future. The only opinion of us that matters is what our Heavenly Father thinks of us. Please sincerely ask Him what He thinks of you. He will love and correct but never discourage us; that is Satan’s trick.

“However many chances you think you have missed, however many mistakes you feel you have made … , I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines.”

-Elder J. Devn Cornish
"Am I Good Enough? Will I Make It?"
Oct 2016

Our individual contribution may be small, but it is not unimportant.

"We must never lose sight of the greater picture, the large composite of the divine destiny of this work. It was given us by God our Eternal Father, and each of us has a part to play in the weaving of its magnificent tapestry. Our individual contribution may be small, but it is not unimportant."

-Gordon B. Hinckley

Holy Ghost enriches our lives

The companionship of the Holy Ghost makes what is good more attractive and temptation less compelling. That alone should be enough to make us determined to qualify for the Spirit to be with us always.

Beware of Pride

Pride is a sin that can readily be seen in others but is rarely admitted in ourselves. Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top, such as the rich and the learned, looking down at the rest of us. (See 2 Ne. 9:42.) There is, however, a far more common ailment among us—and that is pride from the bottom looking up.

Set your heart upon things not of this world

"To covet means to desire, to long for, to crave that which belongs to another person. The desire to acquire good things is not a violation, but the desire to take them away from another unlawfully is a wrong. In this respect it is well for us to understand that good or evil commences not when the act occurs, but when one sets his heart upon a thing."

-Howard W. Hunter

Faith in the Future

"Knowledge is related to the past because our experiences of the past are those things which give us knowledge, but faith is related to the future—to the unknown where we have not yet walked."




-Howard W. Hunter

Christ the Physician

"When people have infections or diseases they do not feel ashamed to go to medical doctors for help, so why should they feel ashamed to admit to God that they need his spiritual help? We go for medical help when we have problems because we have faith in the doctor's ability to cure us. Why, then, when we have spiritual problems, are we reluctant to go to the greatest Physician of all? The medical doctor does not "look down" on a person for having a problem. Rather, he welcomes the opportunity to help restore the person's health. He respects that person for caring enough to take the appropriate action. Will God respect us less for coming to him for help? "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28). Our repentance will be a thousand times more difficult without him than it would be if we humbly trust him to love us even in our imperfections." (Steven A. Cramer, Putting on the Armor of God)

Richard G. Scott said:
If your life is in disarray and you feel uncomfortable and unworthy to pray because you are not clean, don’t worry. He already knows about all of that. He is waiting for you to kneel in humility and take the first few steps. Pray for strength. Pray for others to be led to support you and guide you and lift you. Pray that the love of the Savior will pour into your heart. Pray that the miracle of the Atonement will bring forgiveness because you are willing to change. I know that those prayers will be answered, for God loves you. His Son gave his life for you. I know they will help you. (Ensign, Nov 1988)

A man does not have to be perfect right now to receive an answer to his prayers, but he has to be humble in his heart and trying his best to fulfill the commandments. Then the Lord will assist him. (Gene R. Cook, New Era, Dec. 1988)

Satan Never Satisfied

A lion stops hunting once his belly is full and he feels satisfied, but Satan is never satisfied no matter how many victims he captures, his war is relentless and unceasing.

"We must remember that Satan is always on the job, determined to destroy the work of the Lord and to destroy mankind, and as soon as we deviate from the path of righteousness, we are in great danger of being destroyed."

-N. Eldon Tanner
Dec 1971