The Lord's Side of the Line - George R. Hill III

The Lord's Side of the Line - George R. Hill III

President George Albert Smith often said that there are two influences in the world. “One is constructive and elevating and comes from our Heavenly Father; the other is destructive and debasing and comes from Lucifer.” When we “live on the Lord’s side of the line Lucifer cannot … influence us, but if we cross the line into his territory we are in his power.” (Improvement Era, May 1935, p. 278.)

A man may choose whether to listen to the Lord or to Satan. If he has a sincere desire to follow in the footsteps of the Master and if he has command of himself, he knows that Satan is unable to force him into evil. Satan may only suggest; he cannot force.  I feel that we can fortify our determination to stay on the Lord’s side of the line if we put into practice the principles below. A side-by-side list of the Lord’s methods and Satan’s schemes provides a clear comparison of the two plans  Because we know that the gospel plan is an all-encompassing, complete way of life, should we not recommit ourselves each day in our prayers to the Lord to keep His commandments? Each daily decision should include the conscious thought, “Is this in accord with gospel principles, or am I slipping across the line into Lucifer’s domain?”

Let us carry out all of our actions in harmony with the principles we know to be true.

The Lord’s Side the Gospel of Jesus Christ	Satan’s Side Lucifer and the World
1. The gospel is magnificent. It encompasses everything that is good and true.	1. Satan’s plan blends partial truths with lies and deception to entrap and destroy.
2. Every principle and law of the gospel, if lived, lifts man and makes him free.	2. The practices advocated by Lucifer degrade, enslave, and bind.
3. Every action we take in harmony with gospel principles improves our lives.	3. Every action we take with selfish goals in mind reduces our capacity to achieve true joy.
4. The gospel explains our eternal destiny as sons or daughters of God.	4. Lucifer’s deception, woven into the existential philosophies of men, proclaims that our short mortal span is all there is.
5. The gospel teaches us that we are free agents being tried and tested during our sojourn on earth.	5. Lucifer’s philosophy holds that our actions are merely responses to hereditary and environmental influences and that we are not responsible for what we do.
6. The gospel explains why good and evil exist in the world.	6. Lucifer teaches that the world and life are purposeless and governed by chance.
7. We enjoy forgiveness when we recognize our sins and choose to repent.	7. Lucifer teaches that there is no sin. We become subject to him when we fail to recognize sin and fail to repent.
8. The gospel teaches that all knowledge and intelligence gained in this life will rise with us in the Resurrection.	8. Satan teaches that death is the end of existence and that the only value of knowledge is to get ahead in this life.
9. We are granted gifts of the Spirit such as peace and joy when we live gospel principles.	9. We rule out the influence of the Spirit, including spiritual gifts, in our lives when we indulge in worldly practices.
10. The gospel teaches a law of health that, if lived, gives us strength, vigor, and reduced susceptibility to disease and illness.	10. Satan teaches, “Eat, drink and be merry! Indulge your passions and your desire for momentary pleasure.” This course is always followed by misery and sorrow.
11. We develop loving relationships and find happiness as we learn to love and to serve joyously.	11. We destroy loving relationships and bring on personal sorrow and loneliness when we follow Lucifer’s urgings.
12. We develop love and harmony among family members and happiness at home when we live gospel principles.	12. We create disharmony, distrust, and unhappiness at home when we live a worldly life-style.
13. The result of following the gospel is that others will develop confidence and trust in us if our actions are in harmony with gospel principles.	13. The result of following Satan is that others become suspicious of our motives and integrity because our actions are out of harmony with gospel principles.
14. We have the opportunity to enjoy an eternal, exalted family through living gospel principles.	14. Lucifer’s plan results in separation from family relationships forever.
15. The Lord has promised to share all that He has with those of His children who qualify themselves for the celestial kingdom.	15. Lucifer’s plan encourages momentary sensual pleasure for which, if there is no repentance, the reward is eternal separation from the celestial kingdom.
16. The Lord’s counsel: Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, and diligence. Qualify for the celestial kingdom where God and Christ dwell.	16. Lucifer’s counsel: Seek evil and indulge in backbiting, vanity, pride, lust, dishonesty, lasciviousness, adultery, pornography, and the use of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs. Qualify to be forever separated from where God and Christ dwell.

Faithful Friends - Henry B. Eyring

Faithful Friends - Henry B. Eyring

Living prophets of God have asked us to be faithful friends to those who come into the Church as converts and to go to the rescue of those who have drifted away. We can do it, and we will do it if we always remember the Savior. When we reach out to give succor and to lift a burden, He reaches with us. He will lead us to those in need. He will bless us to feel what they feel. As we persist in our efforts to serve them, we will more and more be given the gift of feeling His love for them. That will give us courage and strength to reach out again and again in faithfulness.

Reach with a Rescuing Hand - Gordon B. Hinckley

Reach with a Rescuing Hand - Gordon B. Hinckley

I take you back to the general conference of October 1856. On Saturday of that conference Franklin D. Richards and a handful of associates arrived in the valley. They had traveled from Winter Quarters with strong teams and light wagons and had been able to make good time. Brother Richards immediately sought out President Young. He reported that there were hundreds of men, women, and children scattered over the long trail from Scottsbluff to this valley. Most of them were pulling handcarts. They were accompanied by two wagon trains which had been assigned to assist them. They had reached the area of the last crossing of the North Platte River. Ahead of them lay a trail that was uphill all the way to the Continental Divide with many, many miles beyond that. They were in desperate trouble. Winter had come early. Snow-laden winds were howling across the highlands of what is now western Nebraska and Wyoming. Our people were hungry, their carts and their wagons were breaking down, their oxen dying. The people themselves were dying. All of them would perish unless they were rescued.  I think President Young did not sleep that night. I think visions of those destitute, freezing, dying people paraded through his mind.  The next morning he came to the old Tabernacle which stood on this square. He said to the people:  “I will now give this people the subject and the text for the Elders who may speak. … It is this. … Many of our brethren and sisters are on the plains with handcarts, and probably many are now seven hundred miles from this place, and they must be brought here, we must send assistance to them. The text will be, ‘to get them here.’  “That is my religion; that is the dictation of the Holy Ghost that I possess. It is to save the people.  “I shall call upon the Bishops this day. I shall not wait until tomorrow, nor until the next day, for 60 good mule teams and 12 or 15 wagons. I do not want to send oxen. I want good horses and mules. They are in this Territory, and we must have them. Also 12 tons of flour and 40 good teamsters, besides those that drive the teams.  “I will tell you all that your faith, religion, and profession of religion, will never save one soul of you in the Celestial Kingdom of our God, unless you carry out just such principles as I am now teaching you. Go and bring in those people now on the plains” (in LeRoy R. Hafen and Ann W. Hafen, Handcarts to Zion [1960], 120–21).  That afternoon food, bedding, and clothing in great quantities were assembled by the women.  The next morning, horses were shod and wagons were repaired and loaded.  The following morning, Tuesday, 16 mule teams pulled out and headed eastward. By the end of October there were 250 teams on the road to give relief.  Wonderful sermons have been preached from this pulpit, my brethren and sisters. But none has been more eloquent than that spoken by President Young in those circumstances.  Stories of the beleaguered Saints and of their suffering and death will be repeated again and again next year. Stories of their rescue need to be repeated again and again. They speak of the very essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am grateful that those days of pioneering are behind us. I am thankful that we do not have brethren and sisters stranded in the snow, freezing and dying, while trying to get to this, their Zion in the mountains. But there are people, not a few, whose circumstances are desperate and who cry out for help and relief.  There are so many who are hungry and destitute across this world who need help. I am grateful to be able to say that we are assisting many who are not of our faith but whose needs are serious and whom we have the resources to help. But we need not go so far afield. We have some of our own who cry out in pain and suffering and loneliness and fear. Ours is a great and solemn duty to reach out and help them, to lift them, to feed them if they are hungry, to nurture their spirits if they thirst for truth and righteousness.  There are so many young people who wander aimlessly and walk the tragic trail of drugs, gangs, immorality, and the whole brood of ills that accompany these things. There are widows who long for friendly voices and that spirit of anxious concern which speaks of love. There are those who were once warm in the faith, but whose faith has grown cold. Many of them wish to come back but do not know quite how to do it. They need friendly hands reaching out to them. With a little effort, many of them can be brought back to feast again at the table of the Lord.  My brethren and sisters, I would hope, I would pray, that each of us, having participated in this great conference, would resolve to seek those who need help, who are in desperate and difficult circumstances, and lift them in the spirit of love into the embrace of the Church, where strong hands and loving hearts will warm them, comfort them, sustain them, and put them on the way of happy and productive lives.

A Potato for the Teacher - Bonny Dahlsrud

A Potato for the Teacher - Bonny Dahlsrud

As an elementary schoolteacher of more than 25 years, I have received a lot of interesting things from my young students. Silly notes, drawn pictures, and imaginative crafts are common gifts. Last year, however, was the first time I had ever received a potato.  “A potato for the teacher,” young Emma said proudly when she came to my desk, “because I didn’t have an apple.” It was a medium-sized potato, scrubbed clean, and beautiful as far as potatoes go. I thanked her and placed it on my desk. I saw Emma’s large blue eyes shine with pride whenever she looked at it throughout the day.  After school, when I was working at my desk, I couldn’t help but regard the potato with a tender smile. Children see things so simply, and with that common potato, Emma taught me something important. I left it on my desk for over a week because it served as a reminder to me.  As a visiting teacher and a sister in my ward, I wanted to serve others, but I was always waiting for an “apple” before I took time to help. If I was busy and couldn’t make an extra casserole or if I wanted to give a special flower but didn’t get to the floral shop, I ignored the still, small voice of the Spirit whispering of someone who needed my service.  “I’ll do something this weekend, when I have time,” I would convince myself. “Nobody needs me today.”  But what if someone really did need me? What if I hadn’t ignored the promptings to visit an elderly neighbor or the young widow who had just lost her husband? Could I have helped or served, even with what I could offer then—a “potato”?  I learned a great lesson from Emma that I am trying hard to put into practice. If I don’t have an apple, I give a potato instead, and I do it now. I don’t wait to make a casserole or my special lemon cream pie; I buy a box of cookies instead. I don’t often get to the florist, but I can drop in for a chat without the flower. A homemade card would be great, but so would a quick phone call. It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture of service every time. A small gesture of love is just as nice.  I have the potato at home now, but I don’t think I’ll ever eat it. It serves as a constant reminder to serve when I’m prompted. I give what I can now instead of waiting until later. A potato for the teacher really was the nicest gift.

Help Someone Sit in the Sun - Kenneth E. Behring

Help Someone Sit in the Sun - Kenneth E. Behring

Have you ever noticed that only when people become rich do they argue about how poor they were? Believe me, being poor is no great honor. In fact, what initially drove me in life was that I hated being poor.  I mention this because when I was poor, I didn't know what true poverty was. And when I became rich, I didn't know what true riches were. Now I know a little more about true poverty and true riches.I owe this blessing to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although I'm not a member, about three years ago the Church asked me if I had room on my plane to drop off 15 tons of canned meat for refugees in Kosovo. Then the Church said, "And is there any chance that you might have a little extra room to drop off some wheelchairs in Romania?"  I had never really thought about wheelchairs before. After that trip, I could think of little else.  When we dropped off the chairs, the doctor told me that disabled people in Third World countries are often just discarded, abandoned, or hidden in back rooms. I met a girl who had spent the last 23 years lying on a mattress, looking at the ceiling without the ability to move. Imagine not being able to see the outdoors unless someone carries you.  When we were in North Vietnam, we put an elderly lady in a wheelchair. Speaking through an interpreter, she said, "I'm 85 years old, and I've wanted to die but was not able to." Then she looked at me and said, "But now I don't want to die."  In Zimbabwe, a fellow crawled 17 kilometers on his elbows to get to us. We put him in the wheelchair, and he was going around and around with a big smile on his face. After a while, he pulled himself out of it and sat on the ground. We asked him why. He said, "I've had my turn." He didn't realize he could keep it. This year he came back with his children to show that the chair was just like new.  For millions of people, a wheelchair is not confinement. It is freedom—freedom to move, to go to school, to get a job. A chair is hope. Self-reliance. Independence. It is dignity.  Eleven years ago, a young South American woman who was going to school got hit by a truck. She spent the next 11 years in bed. After we gave her a wheelchair, she came back and said she had reenrolled and was starting her studies the next day.  These people's stories may seem far removed from this beautiful campus. So what do they have to do with you graduates? I think these stories reveal a number of truths about life and how we live it.  There is so much need out there in so many different ways. This wheelchair mission is the greatest thing that's happened to me in my life. I used to give money to good causes because I felt obligated to give back. Many people give because they feel obligated—which is good. But they don't feel the giving with their heart. Giving is not a duty; it is a joy.  I wish every one of you graduates could lift someone into a wheelchair and look into his or her eyes. I want you to feel such joy and humanity. Your lives are going to need similar experiences to be truly rich.  Let me close with one last story. When I was in Yugoslavia, a man told me about his teenage son who had stepped on a land mine and lost both legs up to his hips, an eye, and his hearing. Although they were refugees, they had a house and sufficient food to survive. And now, with this wheelchair, he could take his boy out to sit in the sun.  I don't think that the desire of a human being to sit in the sun is too much to ask.  As you graduates leave here today full of brightness and possibilities, I ask that you not forget those who lie in the lonely depths of darkened rooms—immobilized perhaps physically, mentally, or by poverty or despair.  I don't care how rich you become. I don't care what position of power you someday hold. I don't care what you invent or create or build. I ask only that along life's path you take time now and then to help your fellow man sit in the sun.

Grandpa Wrote a Book - Lynn Clark Callister

Grandpa Wrote a Book - Lynn Clark Callister

When my father, Harold Glen Clark, was young, his grandfather told him stories. So my father, when he became a grandfather, wrote down some of his own stories and gave them to his grandchildren in the form of a ninety-page book. He told of experiences such as this:

“I was thinking about which one thing I had ever done might have pleased the Lord most. Then it came to me what it might be. It was when I was sixteen or seventeen years old. My mother, who often took in the unfortunate, had the care of two grandpas at one time. Someone said to her in jest, ‘Why don’t you put up a sign “Grandpas wanted!”’ But it wasn’t funny, because I was assigned to take care of Grandpa Benjamin Noble, who had to be bathed, dressed, and undressed and helped to the table to eat. Now, I was a fun-loving young man, and here I was too many times, nursing Grandpa while a good game of basketball was going on outside. Once when my pals were calling me, I was inside doing the tedious chore of taking off his wet pajamas. I was impatient and upset. Then I felt Grandpa’s trembling hand on mine. I turned and met his tearful countenance and heard him say, ‘God bless you, my boy. You will never regret doing this for me.’ I was so sorry I had been resentful, but my heart was light and my spirit had eagle’s wings. To this day I have a warm glow about this little service I performed for a quite helpless grandpa. I suppose doing something for someone which they cannot do for themselves brings you close to God, because that’s what he and his Son are doing all the time, out of pure love for us.

“So, when I step up to heaven’s entrance, this little service might be the most precious thing I ever did. I might even hear the words, ‘Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me’ (Matt. 25:40).”

Rise to Your Call - Henry B. Eyring

Rise to Your Call - Henry B. Eyring

I read this talk frequently.  It gives me assurance and peace every time.

And so, to everyone, man or woman, girl or boy, who has been called or who will yet be, I give you my counsel. There are a few things you must come to know are true. I will try to put them in words. Only the Lord through the Holy Ghost can put them deep in your heart. Here they are:

 First, you are called of God. The Lord knows you. He knows whom He would have serve in every position in His Church. He chose you. He has prepared a way so that He could issue your call. He restored the keys of the priesthood to Joseph Smith. Those keys have been passed down in an unbroken line to President Hinckley. Through those keys, other priesthood servants were given keys to preside in stakes and wards, in districts and branches. It was through those keys that the Lord called you. Those keys confer a right to revelation. And revelation comes in answer to prayer. The person who was inspired to recommend you for this call didn’t do it because they liked you or because they needed someone to do a particular task. They prayed and felt an answer that you were the one to be called.

 ...the second thing you need to know. It is that the Lord will guide you by revelation just as He called you. You must ask in faith for revelation to know what you are to do. With your call comes the promise that answers will come. But that guidance will come only when the Lord is sure you will obey. To know His will you must be committed to do it. The words “Thy will be done,” written in the heart, are the window to revelation.

 There is a third thing you need to know: Just as God called you and will guide you, He will magnify you. You will need that magnification. Your calling will surely bring opposition. You are in the Master’s service. You are His representative. Eternal lives depend on you. He faced opposition, and He said that facing opposition would be the lot of those He called. The forces arrayed against you will try not only to frustrate your work but to bring you down. The Apostle Paul described it this way: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world.” ¹

  You can have the utmost assurance that your power will be multiplied many times by the Lord. All He asks is that you give your best effort and your whole heart. Do it cheerfully and with the prayer of faith. The Father and His Beloved Son will send the Holy Ghost as your companion to guide you. Your efforts will be magnified in the lives of the people you serve. And when you look back on what may now seem trying times of service and sacrifice, the sacrifice will have become a blessing, and you will know that you have seen the arm of God lifting those you served for Him, and lifting you.

Learning to Hope - Mariama Kallon

Learning to Hope - Mariama Kallon

Sierra Leone was a sad place during my teenage years, but it was my home. For much of my life, my small West African country was torn by a civil war. The war affected everything. My family and I were constantly on the run, trying to escape the rebel soldiers. It was terrifying every time the rebels came through a city. Someone would see their torches approaching in the night, warn the others, and we would all run for the bush, grabbing whatever we could along the way.

About seven years after the war began, the rebels came to our city. My whole family was running to escape, but my parents, who were just a few steps behind me, were shot and killed. I was so sad to lose them, but I had to keep moving.

My brother, sister, and I moved to a safer place, and for a short while we were all right, but the rebels eventually hit that town, too. This time we didn’t have time to run away. My brother was taken and later killed. My sister and I were lined up outside with all the other women. The rebel soldiers were chopping limbs off of all the women in the line. We were all so frightened. Everyone was crying and praying—even people who had never believed in God before. I was not a member of the Church at the time, but I believed in God and prayed that His will would be done and hoped that He would find a way to save me.

My dear sister, who was several places ahead of me in line, had both of her legs cut off. But as the rebels reached the woman in front of me, our army came rushing in and the rebels ran away. I know that I was not better than the people who were in front of me or behind me, but I thanked God that I had been spared and prayed that I might understand His plan for me.

I moved to another village to live with a friend. As I was telling my story to my friend and some of her neighbors, one neighbor said, “Mariama, we don’t have anything to offer you except an invitation to church tomorrow. That’s where we find safety. That’s where we find hope.” I loved God already and needed comfort in my life, so I decided to go.

My first Sunday in that LDS branch is a day I will never forget. I learned of hope. You could just see that there was hope in those people, and I was drawn to them. I was given the Book of Mormon and started reading right away. I remember hearing in church about how families could be together again after death and then reading in Alma 11 where Alma teaches about how our bodies will be made perfect again in the Resurrection. I felt the Spirit so strong as I thought of my family. I knew that the Church was true and that we could be together forever—each of us well and whole.

There were no missionaries in Sierra Leone at that time, so I took the lessons from my branch president and was baptized soon after. We were blessed in our town, because the Church sent food and humanitarian kits for the members of the Church and others. The food kept us all alive. Everyone was so grateful even to receive a small bag of rice or beans. I received a blanket and a hygiene kit that included a toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap, a comb, and a washcloth.

Not long after, the rebels hit again. They burned down the house I was living in, and as I was running to escape the flames, I took time to save only two things—my scriptures and my hygiene kit. We had to live on the run for a while after that, and I used my hygiene kit to help those around me. I would squeeze out one pinch of toothpaste for each person, or we would go to the river and carefully pass my bar of soap from person to person. The kit was so precious to us. The blanket, too, was invaluable. It sheltered us for many days until I used it to wrap an old woman who had died and had nothing to be buried in.

Eventually, I went back to my town and my branch. It was then that I decided I wanted to serve a mission. This was a difficult decision for me, because I had nothing and would be leaving behind people I loved. As I was trying to decide, I read D&C 84:81 and 88, which say, “Therefore, take ye no thought for the morrow, for what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed … for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.” I knew the Lord would care for me, so I turned in my mission papers and was called to the Utah Salt Lake City Temple Square Mission.

I arrived in Utah with practically nothing, but I insisted on bringing my hygiene kit, because it meant so much to me. One day, my companion and I were taking a tour of the Humanitarian Center in Salt Lake, and I recognized a blanket that had the Relief Society logo embroidered on it, just like the one I’d had in Sierra Leone. I looked around and saw hygiene kits like mine and familiar bags of beans and rice, and I began cry.

“This is where they came from!” I thought to myself. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I remembered what these things sitting in stacks in the Humanitarian Center in Salt Lake meant to my friends and to me in Sierra Leone. I was so grateful to the Lord for preserving me, for bringing the gospel into my life, and for allowing me to serve a mission. I knew that His angels truly had been round about me, to bear me up.

When I received my humanitarian kit, my stepsister received a school kit. She was the only child in her school who had paper. Carefully, she tore out one piece for each of her friends and broke her three pencils in half, giving one half to each friend. Every day, the children would write down their lessons and then gently erase everything each night so that they could use the sheet of paper again the next day. They were so grateful for the tools to learn.

The Consequences of Choosing Unbelief - N. Eldon Tanner

The Consequences of Choosing Unbelief - N. Eldon Tanner

 Consider Paul’s warning to the elders of the Church in Ephesus as he declared:

 “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

“For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

“Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” (Acts 20:28–30.)

To the faithful Latter-day Saint is given the right to know the truth, as God knows it; and no power beneath the celestial kingdom can lead him astray, darken his understanding, becloud his mind or dim his faith or his knowledge of the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It can’t be done, for the light of God shines brighter than the illumination of falsehood and error, therefore, those who possess the light of Christ, the spirit of revelation and the knowledge of God, rise above all these vagaries in the world; they know of this doctrine, that it is of God and not of man.” (Conference Report, October 1909, pp. 8–9.)

 

There is no happiness or peace of mind except through obedience to the commandments of God. There is no salvation or eternal life except through acceptance of the gospel and living according to its teachings. There are no problems facing the nations of the world or individuals for which answers cannot be found in the gospel of Jesus Christ. He came to earth for that purpose—to give us a plan of life and salvation through which we could enjoy happiness and eternal life.

May I remind us of Paul’s message to the Ephesians:

“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

“One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

“One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. …

“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craziness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

“But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.” (Eph. 4:4–6, 11–15.)

This, the Greatest of All Dispensations - Jeffrey R. Holland

This, the Greatest of All Dispensations - Jeffrey R. Holland

Sometime not long after 9/11, a missionary asked me in all honesty and full of faith, “Elder Holland, are these the last days?” I saw the earnestness in his face and some of the fear in his eyes. I said, “Yes, Elder, we are in the last days, but there is really nothing new about that. The promised Second Coming of the Savior began with the First Vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1820. We can be certain that we are in the last days—years and years of them.” I gave him a friendly shake of the hand and sent him on his way. He smiled, seemed more reassured to put all this in some context, and held his head a little higher as he left me.

I hasten to say that I do know what this young man was really asking. What he really meant was 

“Will I finish my mission? 

Is there any point in getting an education?

Can I hope for a marriage? 

Do I have a future?

Is there any happiness ahead for me?” 

And I say to you what I said to him, “Yes, certainly—to all those questions.”

  

Have Faith, Not Fear

I have just two things to say to you who are troubled about the future. I say them lovingly and from my heart.

First, we must never let fear and the father of fear (Satan himself) divert us from our faith and faithful living. Every person in every era has had to walk by faith into what has always been some uncertainty. This is the plan. Just be faithful. God is in charge. He knows your name and He knows your need.

Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ—that is the first principle of the gospel. We must go forward. God expects you to have enough faith, determination, and trust in Him to keep moving, keep living, keep rejoicing. He expects you not simply to face the future; He expects you to embrace and shape the future—to love it, rejoice in it, and delight in your opportunities.

God is eagerly waiting for the chance to answer your prayers and fulfill your dreams, just as He always has. But He can’t if you don’t pray, and He can’t if you don’t dream. In short, He can’t if you don’t believe.

Two Scriptures of Comfort

Here are two scriptures, both directed at those who live in perilous times.

The first is from section 101 of the Doctrine and Covenants. This revelation came as the Saints who were gathered in Missouri were suffering terrible persecution. I suppose, at its worst, this was the most difficult and dangerous time—may I say “terror filled”—that the Church had yet known.

Yet in that frightening time the Lord said to His people:

“Let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God.

“Zion shall not be moved out of her place, notwithstanding her children are scattered.

“They that remain, and are pure in heart, shall return, and come to their inheritances, they and their children, with songs of everlasting joy, to build up the waste places of Zion—

“And all these things that the prophets might be fulfilled” (D&C 101:16–19).

So let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion. And remember the most fundamental definition of Zion we have ever been given: those who are “pure in heart” (D&C 97:21). If you will keep your hearts pure, you and your children and your grandchildren shall sing songs of everlasting joy as you build up Zion—and you shall not be moved out of your place.

The other verse I refer to is from the Savior, spoken to His disciples as He faced His Crucifixion and as they faced fear, disarray, and persecution. In His last collective counsel to them in mortality, He said: “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Three Prophetic Quotes

Here is a favorite quote of mine from the Prophet Joseph Smith (1805–44): “The building up of Zion is a cause that has interested the people of God in every age; it is a theme upon which prophets, priests and kings have dwelt with peculiar delight; they have looked forward with joyful anticipation to the day in which we live; and fired with heavenly and joyful anticipations they have sung and written and prophesied of this our day; … we are the favored people that God has [chosen] to bring about the Latter-day glory.” ¹

Note this similar affirmation from President Wilford Woodruff (1807–98): “The Almighty is with this people. We shall have all the revelations that we will need, if we will do our duty and obey the commandments of God. … While I … live I want to do my duty. I want the Latter-day Saints to do their duty. … Their responsibility is great and mighty. The eyes of God and all the holy prophets are watching us. This is the great dispensation that has been spoken of ever since the world began. We are gathered together … by the power and commandment of God. We are doing the work of God. … Let us fill our mission.” ²

Lastly, let me share this from President Gordon B. Hinckley, our modern prophet, who currently guides us through the challenging times of our present hour: “We of this generation are the end harvest of all that has gone before. It is not enough to simply be known as a member of this Church. A solemn obligation rests upon us. Let us face it and work at it.

“We must live as true followers of the Christ, with charity toward all, returning good for evil, teaching by example the ways of the Lord, and accomplishing the vast service He has outlined for us.

“May we live worthy of the glorious endowment of light and understanding and eternal truth which has come to us through all the perils of the past. Somehow, among all who have walked the earth, we have been brought forth in this unique and remarkable season. Be grateful, and above all be faithful.” ³

  

Live with Confidence

Is there a happy future for you and your posterity in these latter days? Absolutely! Will there be difficult times when those ominous latter-day warnings and prophecies are fulfilled? Of course there will. Will those who have built upon the rock of Christ withstand winds, hail, and the mighty shafts in the whirlwind? You know they will. You have it on good word. You have it on His word! That “rock upon which ye are built … is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men [and women] build they cannot fall” (Helaman 5:12).

Lessons on Healing - Elaine S. Marshall

Lessons on Healing - Elaine S. Marshall


This is one of my all-time favorite articles! 

Healing Hurts

First, healing hurts. When I was a young nurse in the hospital, hardly a day went by that a patient did not ask, “Will it hurt?” If I had been truthful, the whispered answer would nearly always have been, “Yes, it will hurt.” I have learned that healing hurts. Life hurts. Healing really begins only when we face the hurt in its full force and then grow through it with all the strength of our soul. For every reward of learning and growing, some degree of pain is always the price. Author M. Scott Peck suggests that if you do not want love or pain, you “must do without many things.” ² I think you would do without friendship, dating, working, getting married, or having children.

Healing Is Active

My second lesson is that healing is active—you have to participate. Your friend, your husband or wife, your mother cannot do it for you. You have to face the problem and the pain. To begin healing, you must acknowledge and feel the hurt. Only those who don’t feel, those without conscience, cannot heal.

Healing Is Private

My third lesson is that healing is private. The hymn “Lord, I Would Follow Thee” describes “hidden sorrow” in a “quiet heart.” ⁴ Saint-Exupéry wrote, “It is such a secret place, the land of tears.” ⁵

To say that healing is private is not to diminish the marvelous power that comes from the help and compassion of others. Indeed, private healing often may not happen without the help of others. Nevertheless, much of the work of healing is done alone, inside the heart, in the company of the Spirit of the Lord.

Such secret healing is not a single event. It happens as a process of living. You cannot simply take a day off and return healed. It happens quietly, while you face the pain, and over time as you live, work, study, and give to others.

Healing Teaches Us

The fourth lesson of the healer’s art is that healing teaches us. When we have a terrible loss or pain, we may seek to get back to normal or to the way things were before, but they will never be the same. Pain changes us but not in the same way healing teaches us. Healing can help us become more sensitive and more awake to life. Healing inspires repentance and obedience. Healing invites gifts of humility and faith. It opens our hearts to the profound complexities of truth, beauty, divinity, and grace.

We Must Help Others Heal

The fifth lesson of learning the healer’s art is the obligation and great gift it is to help others heal. President Gordon B. Hinckley has admonished: “As members of the Church of Jesus Christ, ours is a ministry of healing, with a duty to bind the wounds and ease the pain of those who suffer. Upon a world afflicted with greed and contention, upon families distressed by argument and selfishness, upon individuals burdened with sin and troubles and sorrows, I invoke the healing power of Christ.” 8

Healing Is a Divine Gift

The last and greatest lesson of healing is that it is a divine gift always available from a loving Heavenly Father. If you have a pain or sorrow or disappointment or sin or just a grudge that needs healing, the Savior simply says, “Come unto me.”

 President Hinckley has promised: “Jesus of Nazareth healed the sick among whom He moved. His regenerating power is with us today. … His divine teachings, His incomparable example, His matchless life, His all-encompassing sacrifice will bring healing to broken hearts, reconciliation to those who argue and shout, even peace to warring nations if sought with humility and forgiveness and love.” ¹⁰ 

Your Jericho Road - Thomas S. Monson

Your Jericho Road - Thomas S. Monson

Each of us, in the journey through mortality, will travel his own Jericho Road. What will be your experience? What will be mine? Will I fail to notice him who has fallen among thieves and requires my help? Will you?

Will I be one who sees the injured and hears his plea, yet crosses to the other side? Will you?

Or will I be one who sees, who hears, who pauses, and who helps? Will you?

 One day while in a reflective mood, Louis Jacobsen told me of his boyhood. He was the son of a poor Danish widow. He was small in stature, not comely in appearance—easily the object of his classmates’ thoughtless jokes. In Sunday School one Sabbath morning, the children made light of his patched trousers and his worn shirt. Too proud to cry, tiny Louis fled from the chapel, stopping at last, out of breath, to sit and rest on the curb which ran along Second West in Salt Lake City. Clear water flowed along the gutter next to the curb where Louis sat. From his pocket he took a piece of paper which contained the outlined Sunday School lesson and skillfully shaped a paper boat, which he launched on the flowing water. From his hurt boyish heart came the determined words, “I’ll never go back.”

Suddenly, through his tears Louis saw reflected in the water the image of a large and well-dressed man. Louis turned his face upward and recognized George Burbidge, the Sunday School superintendent.

“May I sit down with you?” asked the kind leader.

Louis nodded affirmatively. There on the gutter’s curb sat a good Samaritan ministering to one who surely was in need. Several boats were formed and launched while the conversation continued. At last the leader stood and, with a boy’s hand tightly clutching his, they returned to Sunday School.

Later Louis himself presided over that same Sunday School. Throughout his long life of service, he never failed to acknowledge the traveler who rescued him along a Jericho Road.

When I first learned of that far-reaching experience, I reflected on the words:

He stood at the crossroads all alone,

The sunlight in his face.

He had no thought for the world unknown—

He was set for a manly race.

But the roads stretched east and the roads stretched west,

And the lad knew not which road was best.

So he chose the road that led him down,

And he lost the race and the victor’s crown.

He was caught at last in an angry snare

Because no one stood at the crossroads there

To show him the better road.

 

Another day at the self-same place

A boy with high hopes stood.

He, too, was set for a manly race;

He, too, was seeking the things that were good.

But one was there who the roads did know,

And that one showed him which way to go.

So he turned from the road that would lead him down,

And he won the race and the victor’s crown.

He walks today the highway fair

Because one stood at the crossroads there

To show him the better way.

  

The road signs of life enticingly invite every traveler: This way to fame; this way to affluence; this way to popularity; this way to luxury. Pause at the crossroads before you continue your journey. Listen for that still, small voice which ever so gently beckons, “Come, follow me. This way to Jericho.”

 

Five Roads to Jericho - Lorin F. Wheelwright

Five Roads to Jericho - Lorin F. Wheelwright

The five roads to Jericho are traveled by strangers and neighbors. At every turn the eternal question repeats: “Who is my neighbour?"

In our mind’s eye we saw the first road as a trail blazed by some ancient adventurer seeking new land. Perhaps he was pursuing a new trade route, searching for new friends, or fleeing from an enemy. His path was crooked like the wandering of a lost animal trying to find its way. Without him, there would never have been the road to Jericho of which the Savior spoke.

The second road seemed to be that of the predator, the thief who plunders the unwary. Here he lurks around the unexpected turn. This is the road of deception and violence, where twisted minds malinger on a twisted trail.

The third road seemed to be a highway of the aristocrat. He travels in churchly robes, or as a Levite whose tribal rank places him above that of other men. He and his retinue appear safe because of their prominence and power.

The fourth was the road of the outcast, whose mission took him through hostile country but whose persecuted heart did beat to the rhythm of mankind.

The fifth road was straight and smooth. It seemed to be the road that has taken two thousand years to build. It invites all men to abandon the twisted and hazardous trails and follow its direct route to Jericho.

These five roads to Jericho are mute evidence that men of all stations travel by whatever routes they choose. However, they share a common destiny: a perilous highway of life. When abandoned to evil, this highway leaves no man safe. Evil can stalk in the treachery of thieves or in the hypocrisy of priests. On it goodness can travel in the cloth of the forsaken and in the heart of the persecuted. No man knows who may attack or who may heal, who may act as a stranger or who may act as a neighbor.

These roads to Jericho tell us that safety lies only in the hearts of men. Therein dwell empathy and friendliness, generosity in spite of hurt, blessedness in spite of abuse. These roads teach us to travel by the straight way, whether we be adventurers, men of piety, men of honored origin, or victims of prejudice—and that way encourages us to be watchful for those less fortunate, helpful to those who hurt, and mindful of those doomed by neglect.

These roads teach us what a neighbor really is.

A neighbor is one who will serve a stranger without ceremony.

A neighbor is one who does not flee disaster but lingers to examine and relieve distress.

A neighbor is one who is prepared to help when help is needed.

A neighbor is one who may be lonely and despised yet is compassionate.

A neighbor is one who acts generously out of love, not out of duty alone.

A neighbor is one who refutes slander by good deeds.

A neighbor is one who thinks well of himself and loves others as himself.

A neighbor is one who sees his fellowmen not as Jews, Levites, or priests but as men --

one who thinks of himself as a man among men who are all equal in the sight of God.

Lessons from Liberty Jail - Jeffrey R. Holland

 
Lessons from Liberty Jail - Jeffrey R. Holland

1. Everyone Faces Trying Times

The first lesson from Liberty Jail is inherent in what I’ve already mentioned—that everyone, including, and perhaps especially, the righteous, will be called upon to face trying times. When that happens we can sometimes fear that God has abandoned us, and we might be left, at least for a time, to wonder when our troubles will ever end. As individuals, as families, as communities, and as nations, probably everyone has had or will have an occasion to feel as Joseph Smith felt when he cried from the depth and discouragement of his confinement: “O God, where art thou? … How long shall thy hand be stayed … ? Yea, O Lord, how long shall [thy people] suffer … before … thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?” (D&C 121:1–3).

2. Even the Worthy Will Suffer

Second, we need to realize that just because difficult things happen, it does not mean that we are unrighteous or that we are unworthy of blessings or that God is disappointed in us. Of course, sinfulness does bring suffering, and the only answer to that behavior is repentance. But sometimes suffering comes to the righteous too. You will recall that from the depths of Liberty Jail when Joseph was reminded that he had indeed been “cast … into trouble,” had passed through tribulation and been falsely accused, had been torn away from his family and cast into a pit and into the hands of murderers, nevertheless, he was to remember that the same thing had happened to the Savior of the world, and because He was triumphant, so shall we be (see D&C 122:4–7). In giving us this sober reminder of what the Savior went through, the revelation from Liberty Jail records, “The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?” (D&C 122:8).
 

3. Remain Calm, Patient, Charitable, and Forgiving

Third, remember that in the midst of these difficult feelings when one could justifiably be angry or reactionary or vengeful, wanting to demand an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, the Lord reminds us from the Liberty Jail prison-temple that “the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only [or ‘except’] upon the principles of righteousness” (D&C 121:36). Therefore, even when we face such distressing circumstances in our life and there is something in us that wants to strike out at God or man or friend or foe, we must remember that “no power or influence can or ought to be maintained … [except] by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; … without hypocrisy, and without guile” (D&C 121:41–42; emphasis added).
 

Do All Things Cheerfully

As a valedictory to the lessons from Liberty Jail, I refer to the last verse of section 123: “Therefore … let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed” (D&C 123:17; emphasis added).

 

Resurrection - Dallin H. Oaks

Resurrection - Dallin H. Oaks

 The resurrection is a pillar of our faith.
 It adds meaning to our doctrine, motivation to our behavior, and hope for our future.

I. The Resurrection of Jesus
The universal resurrection became a reality with the Resurrection of Jesus Christ (see Matt. 27:52–53). On the third day after His death and burial, Jesus came forth out of the tomb. He appeared to several men and women, and then to the assembled Apostles. Three of the Gospels describe this event.
II. The Resurrection of Mortals
The possibility that a mortal who has died will be brought forth and live again in a resurrected body has awakened hope and stirred controversy through much of recorded history. Relying on clear scriptural teachings, Latter-day Saints join in affirming that Christ has “broken the bands of death” (Mosiah 16:7) and that “death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54; see also Morm. 7:5; Mosiah 15:8; Mosiah 16:7–8; Alma 22:14).
 Many living witnesses can testify to the literal fulfillment of these scriptural assurances of the resurrection. Many, including some in my own extended family, have seen a departed loved one in vision or personal appearance and have witnessed their restoration in “proper and perfect frame” in the prime of life. Whether these were manifestations of persons already resurrected or of righteous spirits awaiting an assured resurrection, the reality and nature of the resurrection of mortals is evident. What a comfort to know that all who have been disadvantaged in life from birth defects, from mortal injuries, from disease, or from the natural deterioration of old age will be resurrected in “proper and perfect frame.”

III. The Significance of the Resurrection
When we understand the vital position of the resurrection in the “plan of redemption” that governs our eternal journey (Alma 12:25), we see why the Apostle Paul taught, “If there be no resurrection of the dead, then … is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain” (1 Cor. 15:13–14). We also see why the Apostle Peter referred to the fact that God the Father, in His abundant mercy, “hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet. 1:3; see also 1 Thes. 4:13–18).

IV. The Resurrection Changes Our View of Mortality
The assurance of resurrection gives us the strength and perspective to endure the mortal challenges faced by each of us and by those we love, such things as the physical, mental, or emotional deficiencies we bring with us at birth or acquire during mortal life. Because of the resurrection, we know that these mortal deficiencies are only temporary!

V. The Resurrection and Temples
“Temples stand as a witness of our conviction of immortality. Our temples are concerned with life beyond the grave. For example, there is no need for marriage in the temple if we were only concerned with being married for the period of our mortal lives.”  Gordon B. Hinckley
 

Teachings Concerning the Spirit World

Teachings Concerning the Spirit World

The night after our son passed away, I couldn't sleep at all.  My grief was intense and I needed comfort.  I got up in the middle of the night and went to the computer and did a Google search - 'Spirit World'.

This document is what popped up - and I think it was no accident.  

I read this entire document and studied it the rest of that night.   I feel that it was an answer to my yearnings and pleadings for answers/comfort.

"Repentance opens the prison doors to the spirits in hell; It enables those bound with the chains of hell to free themselves from darkness, unbelief, ignorance and sin.  As rapidly as they can overcome these obstacles - gain light, believe truth, acquire intelligence, cast off sin, and break the chains of hell - they can leave the hell that imprisons them and dwell with the righteous in the peace of paradise."  Mormon Doctrine, page 755

This quote gave me so much hope on one of the darkest nights of my life.   Surely my son experienced darkness, unbelief, ignorance and sin.     But I fully believe what the rest of that quote teaches.   That as rapidly as he GAINS LIGHT, BELIEVES TRUTH, ACQUIRES INTELLIGENCE, CASTS OF SIN AND BREAKS THE CHAINS OF HELL, he can dwell with the righteous in the peace of paradise.   I am thankful beyond measure for this knowledge - and I believe that he is now doing these things to qualify himself for that place of  peace.   
 

Which Road Will You Travel? - Thomas S. Monson

Which Road Will You Travel? - Thomas S. Monson

Each must ask the questions: 
Where am I going?
How do I intend to get there?
What is my divine destiny?

 First, we must visualize our objective. What is our purpose? The Prophet Joseph Smith counseled: “Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp. 255–56.) In this one sentence we are provided not only a well-defined goal, but also the way we might achieve it.

 Second, we must make continuous effort. Have you noticed that many of the most cherished of God’s dealings with His children have been when they were engaged in a proper activity? The visit of the Master to His disciples on the way to Emmaus, the good Samaritan on the road to Jericho, even Nephi on his return to Jerusalem, and Father Lehi en route to the precious land of promise. Let us not overlook Joseph Smith on the way to Carthage, and Brigham Young on the vast plains to the valley home of the Saints.

Third, we must not detour from our determined course. In our journey we will encounter forks and turnings in the road. There will be the inevitable trials of our faith and the temptations of our times. We simply cannot afford the luxury of a detour, for certain detours lead to destruction and spiritual death. Let us avoid the moral quicksands that threaten on every side, the whirlpools of sin, and the crosscurrents of uninspired philosophies.

 Fourth, to gain the prize, we must be willing to pay the price. The apprentice does not become the master craftsman until he has qualified. The lawyer does not practice until he has passed the bar. The doctor does not attend our needs until internship has been completed.

One who listened and who followed was Elder Randall Ellsworth. While serving in Guatemala as a missionary, Randall Ellsworth survived a devastating earthquake, which hurled a beam down on his back, paralyzing his legs and severely damaging his kidneys. He was the only American injured in the quake, which claimed the lives of some eighteen thousand persons.

After receiving emergency medical treatment, he was flown to a large hospital near his home in Rockville, Maryland. While Randall was confined there, a television newscaster conducted with him an interview that I witnessed through the miracle of television. The reporter asked, “Can you walk?”

The answer: “Not yet, but I will.”

“Do you think you will be able to complete your mission?”

Came the reply, “Others think not, but I will.”

With microphone in hand, the reporter continued, “I understand you have received a special letter containing a get-well message from none other than the President of the United States.”

“Yes,” replied Randall, “I am very grateful to the President for his thoughtfulness; but I received another letter, not from the president of my country, but from the president of my church—The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—President Spencer W. Kimball. This I cherish. With him praying for me, and the prayers of my family, my friends, and my missionary companions, I will return to Guatemala. The Lord wanted me to preach the gospel there for two years, and that’s what I intend to do.”

I turned to my wife and commented, “He surely must not know the extent of his injuries. Our official medical reports would not permit us to expect such a return to Guatemala.”

How grateful am I that the day of faith and the age of miracles are not past history but continue with us even now.  The newspapers and the television cameras turned their attention to more immediate news as the days turned to weeks and the weeks to months. God did not forget him who possessed a humble and a contrite heart, even Elder Randall Ellsworth. Little by little, the feeling began to return. In his own words, Randall described the recovery: “The thing I did was always to keep busy, always pushing myself. In the hospital I asked to do therapy twice a day instead of just once. I wanted to walk again on my own.” When the Missionary Department evaluated the medical progress Randall Ellsworth had made, word was sent to him that his return to Guatemala was authorized. Said he, “At first I was so happy I didn’t know what to do. Then I went into my bedroom and I started to cry. Then I dropped to my knees and thanked my Heavenly Father.”  Randall Ellsworth walked aboard the plane that carried him back to the mission to which he was called and back to the people whom he loved. Behind he left a trail of skeptics, a host of doubters, but also hundreds amazed at the power of God, the miracle of faith, and the reward of determination. Ahead lay thousands of honest, God-fearing, and earnestly seeking sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. A modern-day Paul, who had overcome his “thorn in the flesh,” had returned to teach them the truth, to lead them to life eternal. From Elder Ellsworth, they heard God’s word. They learned His truth. They accepted His ordinances.  Like Randall Ellsworth, may we know where we are going, be willing to make the continuous effort required to get there, avoid any detour, and be willing to pay the often very high price of faith and determination to win life’s race.

A More Excellent Way - Joseph B. Wirthlin

A More Excellent Way - Joseph B. Wirthlin

“In the gift of his Son hath God prepared a more excellent way” (Ether 12:11)

 Jesus, the Christ
The third guiding light I wish to speak with you about is that of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Oh, that I had the voice of an angel, that I could convey the depth of the feelings of my heart for this man among men, who is my Savior.

He lived that we may live forever. He lived that we may experience a fullness of joy. He lived that our sojourn - not only through these few years we pass in mortality, but through the infinite reaches of limitless eternity - may be glorious and our hearts and minds filled with a fullness of love, joy, and peace.

He rebuked death and raised those whose spirits had departed this life. He commanded the sick, the lame, and the afflicted to be healed and they were healed. He commanded the earth and the skies and they obeyed. He stood in majesty before those who would destroy him and bore solemn testimony of the truth. He took a few morsels of food and fed thousands. He rebuked Satan and the evil one departed.

Though Jesus could command legions of angels - though the ocean, earth, and sky, obeyed his word - the man from Galilee was meek and humble and mild. Often he knelt in prayer and supplication as He communed with His Father in Heaven.

Because of the sublime words of Jesus Christ, we understand what it means to love our neighbor, become holy, and we understand the true power of faith.

Because of You - Lawrence Heywood

Because of You - Lawrence Heywood

I was standing in the foyer waiting for church to begin when he walked in. He came right over to me, called me by name, and asked, “Do you know why I’m here?”

His pointed query took me off guard. Who is this guy? He looks familiar, but I sure don’t know him. And why should I know why he’s here? “No,” I answered, feeling a little awkward.

“I’m here because of you,” he said bluntly.

That got my attention. Though there was a vague familiarity, I couldn’t remember ever meeting him before. I had no idea who he was, yet he was standing there saying he was at church because of me.

My face must have revealed my incredulity. “We have the same P.E. class at college,” he explained. When I graduated from high school, I decided to go to a community college near my home just outside Los Angeles. He was in my gym class with about 100 other guys.

“I’ve been watching you,” he said.

Watching me? What does he mean by that?

“I noticed right off that you were different,” he continued. “You never swear. You don’t lose your temper. You don’t smoke. You never tell dirty jokes or even listen to them. You’re never involved in all the filthy talk that goes on. I really admire you. You’re exactly the kind of person I want to be,” he said. “So I started asking around about you. I found out your name, that you’re a Mormon, and that this is where you go to church. That’s why I’m here.”

There are probably a dozen words I could use to describe how I felt at that moment. I just tried to live the way I’d always been taught, and I probably hadn’t done that especially well. I was preparing to go on a mission, but I certainly wasn’t perfect. And he’d been watching me. That was the scary part. Had I done anything I should be ashamed of? I hoped not.

He stayed for church, and over the next few weeks he took the missionary lessons and was baptized. A year later, just before I left on my mission, he left on his. He served faithfully, returned, and was married in the temple. He is one of the happiest and most peaceful persons that I know.

I take no credit for his conversion. I was just a Mormon kid trying to live the standards I’d always been taught and believed were right. It wasn’t really me he was watching—it was those standards. But today, every time I read the Savior’s admonition to “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16), I remember the day he walked up to me and said, “I’m here because of you.”

The Companionship of the Holy Ghost - Carlos E. Asay

The Companionship of the Holy Ghost - Carlos E. Asay

Would you like to have powers of discernment—the power to identify truth?

Would you like to have at your command the power and means by which you may be cleansed and born again—“born” of God?

Would you like to have the power to hear, feel, and know the revelations of God?

Would you like to enjoy spiritual gifts—powers to heal, be healed, speak in tongues, for example?

 Would you like convincing powers of speech—the power to speak like an angel?

 Would you like the power to ward off and resist temptation?

Would you like to obtain perfect peace and assurance in all that you do?

Would you like the power to perform beyond your natural abilities?

Would you like the help of unseen powers in all that you do? I refer to the power to speak with convincing authority—even the power to receive promptings that enable you to say things that you had not planned. I speak of the power to receive impressions, which, if heeded, bring blessings to you and others.

Here are five things we must do to attract and retain the Holy Spirit.

1. We must keep our bodies clean. We must not pollute our mortal tabernacles in any way. We must live the Word of Wisdom; we must not misuse our powers of procreation; we must do whatever is possible to avoid disease or other enemies of our physical bodies. “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” (1 Cor. 3:16–17.)

 2. We must keep our minds clean. We must guard against all suggestive and carnal notions and other satanic influences. From the Doctrine and Covenants, we receive this advice and promise: “Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven. The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion.” (D&C 121:45–46.)

 3. We must exercise faith and reserve a place in our hearts for the Holy Spirit. Manifestations of the Spirit of God, we are told, are forfeited in the absence of faith. Moroni spoke openly of the gifts of the Spirit, including healing and tongues, then cautioned: “All these gifts of which I have spoken, which are spiritual, never will be done away, even as long as the world shall stand, only according to the unbelief of the children of men.” (Moro. 10:19.)
 

4. We must avoid all iniquity, all manner of wickedness. As stated previously, gifts of the Lord cease when faith is missing. The same applies, and the problem is compounded, when iniquity is present.

Alma said, “No unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven.” (Alma 11:37.) Similarly, no unclean person can achieve a lasting relationship with the Spirit of God.

If you will do these things, you need never be alone, for you will have the most important companion of all—the Holy Ghost.