The Millionaire - Henry Edward Warner
I found this in my grandfather Alma G. Smith 'Gramps' things, written in his own handwriting.
It embodies the happiness that he had and the joy he found in the simple things in life.
I've got my name on the river,
I've got my name on the sea,
I've got my name on the summer skies,
They all belong to me.
I've got my name on the violets
That grow in their corner fair
I've got my name on the gardens
They are all mine to share.
I've got my name on the singing birds
That mate when the spring is new
But I won't be selfish with all these things
I'll share them friend, with you.
There is no deed to the river
There is no deed to the sea
Not all the power in the world
Can take their joys from me.
There is no fence in the heavens.
No vaults hold the sunset gold
And the earth is mine, and the heavens
Are forever mine to hold
And though I may be a pauper
And stand in my rags apart
I'm richer than all the Kings there are,
If peace is in my heart.
The stars are my thousand jewels
And life is my bread and wine
And all that I see is made for me
And all that I love is mine.
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Living by the Spirit - Joy Webb Rigby
Living by the Spirit - Joy Webb Rigby
A beautiful story of a mother who listened to the Spirit!
A beautiful story of a mother who listened to the Spirit!
My
husband and I were deeply touched when our daughter, Stephanie, shared
the following journal entry with us, written when she was in seventh
grade. I share it with her permission:
“One
day while we were reading our scriptures, we talked about how important
it is for each of us to have our own knowledge and testimony—and that
we must not put off asking Heavenly Father for this. That night I went
to my room and shut the door. I waited until everything was very quiet.
Then I knelt down by my bed and prayed. I asked Heavenly Father to
please send me an angel to tell me for sure if the gospel was true. He
answered that he would, and I was to get in bed and wait for the angel
to come. I felt very peaceful and happy, and I waited.
“The
house was very still, and I think I had dropped off to sleep. I woke up
when I heard a voice. It was Mother. She was kneeling beside my bed
praying. She was praying for me. I listened, and when she finished I
touched her hair so she would know I was awake. She put her arms around
me and held me and her face was wet. She told me I had a Father in
Heaven and that he loved me. She said she was glad he had let me come to
live in our family. She told me he sent his own Son here to give his
life so we could return to live with him if we obeyed his commandments.
She told me to always remember that the gospel had been restored, and I
must live it so I could go back to my Father.
“We
held each other for a while,” Stephanie continued, “and then Mother
left. After she left, Father in Heaven said to my mind, ‘I sent you your
angel.’”
When
she told us that story, my mission as a mother forever became more
holy. And my testimony of the importance of prayer was forever
strengthened.
Bridges and Eternal Keepsakes - Dennis B. Neuenschwander
Bridges and Eternal Keepsakes - Dennis B. Neuenschwander
First, family history builds bridges between the generations of our families.
If I want my children and grandchildren to know those who still live in my memory, then I must build the bridge between them. I alone am the link to the generations that stand on either side of me. It is my responsibility to knit their hearts together through love and respect, even though they may never have known each other personally. My grandchildren will have no knowledge of their family’s history if I do nothing to preserve it for them. That which I do not in some way record will be lost at my death, and that which I do not pass on to my posterity, they will never have. The work of gathering and sharing eternal family keepsakes is a personal responsibility. It cannot be passed off or given to another.
Second, family history builds bridges to activity in the Church.
Family history work solidifies converts and strengthens all members of the Church. Family history research and the preparation of names for the temple can be most valuable in the retention of new members. Faith and confidence grow as family members are included in the saving ordinances of the gospel. During a recent stake conference, I met John and Carmen Day, who were recently baptized. They told me that they had already prepared family names and were planning to enter the temple as soon as they could. Is retention a question here? A new member of the Church can be introduced to family history and temple work very quickly by missionaries, friends, neighbors, and priesthood and auxiliary leaders. Participation in temple ordinances is, after all, at the center of our gospel experience. No official call is required to participate in family history and the accompanying gospel ordinances.
Third, family history builds bridges to the temple.
Family history research provides the emotional bridge between the generations. Temple ordinances provide the priesthood bridge. Temple ordinances are the priesthood ratification of the connection that we have already established in our hearts. Mother Teresa said that “loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.” 7 The thought that this poverty of loneliness—this being unwanted and separated from loved ones—could extend beyond this life is truly sad. The promise of family history and temple work is eternal connection born of both love and priesthood ordinances.
First, family history builds bridges between the generations of our families.
If I want my children and grandchildren to know those who still live in my memory, then I must build the bridge between them. I alone am the link to the generations that stand on either side of me. It is my responsibility to knit their hearts together through love and respect, even though they may never have known each other personally. My grandchildren will have no knowledge of their family’s history if I do nothing to preserve it for them. That which I do not in some way record will be lost at my death, and that which I do not pass on to my posterity, they will never have. The work of gathering and sharing eternal family keepsakes is a personal responsibility. It cannot be passed off or given to another.
Second, family history builds bridges to activity in the Church.
Family history work solidifies converts and strengthens all members of the Church. Family history research and the preparation of names for the temple can be most valuable in the retention of new members. Faith and confidence grow as family members are included in the saving ordinances of the gospel. During a recent stake conference, I met John and Carmen Day, who were recently baptized. They told me that they had already prepared family names and were planning to enter the temple as soon as they could. Is retention a question here? A new member of the Church can be introduced to family history and temple work very quickly by missionaries, friends, neighbors, and priesthood and auxiliary leaders. Participation in temple ordinances is, after all, at the center of our gospel experience. No official call is required to participate in family history and the accompanying gospel ordinances.
Third, family history builds bridges to the temple.
Family history research provides the emotional bridge between the generations. Temple ordinances provide the priesthood bridge. Temple ordinances are the priesthood ratification of the connection that we have already established in our hearts. Mother Teresa said that “loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.” 7 The thought that this poverty of loneliness—this being unwanted and separated from loved ones—could extend beyond this life is truly sad. The promise of family history and temple work is eternal connection born of both love and priesthood ordinances.
An Unexpected Healing - Mary Whaley
An Unexpected Healing - Mary Whaley
Several
years ago my younger brother, Jon, was diagnosed with a terminal
illness. We were told there was nothing we could do: no medication, no
procedure, no therapy. Nothing was going to change the inevitable
outcome of his disease.
I cannot begin to describe the anguish our family
knew when we heard the diagnosis. We were heartbroken at the thought of
our brother suffering, at the possibility of his very small son growing
up without a father, and of his wife being denied his association.
Selfishly, I hated feeling pathetically inadequate and helpless to
change any of those things.
Then
my husband, Jay, and I remembered the law of the fast. We are converts
to the Church and feel grateful for truths learned through the restored
gospel. The law of the fast is one of those truths. Turning to this
divine spiritual practice, we realized we were not helpless after all;
here was something we could do. And because fasting with prayer is the
Lord’s law, it gave us access to all He can do—and He can do anything.
What a tremendous difference this realization made in our attitudes, our
outlook, our energies—to know that we were not necessarily limited by
the perspective of the worldly experts. Anything was possible, if it
were the Lord’s will.
In
the two and a half years following my brother’s diagnosis, Jay and I
fasted often and for many different reasons related to Jon’s health. We
fasted most often to know the Lord’s will in this situation, to
understand our part in bringing it to pass, and to ask for help in doing
our part in a manner pleasing to the Lord. And while there was no
miraculous physical healing for my brother, I witnessed a real and
miraculous healing in me.
My
feelings of insignificance gave way to a sure knowledge that Heavenly
Father loved me, He loved my brother, and He loved our family. My sense
of helplessness turned to a profound confidence in the vast resources
available to anyone who draws near to the Lord. The grief and broken
heart were replaced with an overwhelming sense of gratitude
for the blessing this brother had been in my life and for his example
of loyalty, of courage, and of living with a grateful heart.
I
recognized that while I was losing much, it was possible only because I
had been given so much, and that the Lord continues to give abundantly. I
was given a testimony of the nature of eternity and the eternal nature
of families, and I was reminded of the promise given through the Prophet
Joseph Smith that the “same sociality which exists among us here will exist among us there, only it will be coupled with eternal glory” (D&C 130:2).
I
had prayed for the opportunity to enjoy my brother’s company on earth a
little while longer. Yet I have been given the opportunity to enjoy his
company through all eternity. And for the 31 years while Jon was with
us on this earth, I was given a preview of what that eternity with my
brother might be like.
I
have been given a testimony of our Heavenly Father’s unfailing love for
each of us. I can now say, as did the Apostle Paul, “For I am
persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor
depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the
love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38–39).
The
healing and peace I experienced through fasting several years ago
continue to be available to me today and are not limited to matters of
health. The power of fasting can be brought into many situations in all
our lives. I think of some of the concerns we face in our wards, our
families, or in our individual lives where we might feel there is
nothing we can do. The adversary, I am convinced, has a vested interest
in our believing that. If we believe there is nothing we can do, we will
do nothing.
The
adversary would have us believe there is nothing we can do to bring
back into activity an individual whose testimony has faltered, who has
shown no interest in Church activity for years. But fasting is something
we can do to invite the Spirit to touch that individual’s life with a
desire to come back and enjoy all the blessings of the gospel.
The
adversary would have us believe there is nothing we can do to obtain
secure employment in an uncertain economy. Fasting is something we can
do to connect ourselves and others with real opportunities. More
important, through fasting we can gain the absolute confidence that our
Heavenly Father, who feeds the fowls of the air and clothes the flowers
of the field, will surely provide for His children.
Maybe
we feel there is nothing we can do to change a lifelong habit of poor
financial management, or poor time management, poor home management, or
unhealthy habits related to nutrition and fitness, or attitudes and
temperament. But fasting is something we can do to see ourselves clearly
as the person Heavenly Father intended us to be and to gain insights
into how we can grow and progress through eternity.
I know God lives and loves us. I know Jesus Christ is His Son and the Savior of mankind.
I
do not know how the Atonement was accomplished, but I do know that
every good thing comes through it and I do know that it was something
only He could do, when there was nothing more we could do.
The Little Raindrop
A favorite story about giving, I'm not sure who wrote it.
Once upon a time there lived a family of raindrops. They were a happy bunch, bouncing about in a fluffy, gray cloud that floated over the big world below. Squirt was one of the youngest. He liked to play games with his fellow raindrops. But one day, Squirt didn't feel like playing. Instead he sat on the edge of the cloud, head drooping, feeling downright glum.
"How come you're not playing with your friends?" an old raindrop asked, coming up behind him.
Squirt sighed. "I want to make a difference in the world. But I am just one little raindrop, and I'll never amount to anything."
The old raindrop thought for a moment, then pointed toward a large brown field below and said, "The farmer who is growing that wheat thinks you're important."
"He does? Why?"
"Well, he knows his wheat won't grow without you."
Squirt looked at the old raindrop. "Without a little drop like me?"
"You know, squirt, I've been around this earth a few times and I've learned that while each of us is only one drop of water, something special happens when we all get together in a rainstorm."
"What?" Squirt asked.
"Well, we make rivers flow. We keep trees green. Occasionally we even put out forest fires. And we give the wheat water to drink so it grows tall and strong. Someday that wheat will feed thousands of people."
Squirt perked up. "Maybe a little raindrop like me can make a difference!"
"You will, too," the old raindrop said.
Suddenly Squirt sank back down, a worried look on his face. "But when it rains, will that be the end of me?"
The old raindrop laughed. "Oh, no. That's just the beginning! You'll go back up into new clouds and have many more opportunities to shower gifts over the earth. This is my 418th cloud and I can tell you that giving never gets old."
"Cool," said Squirt, noticing the other raindrops gathering on the edge of the blackening cloud. "Hey, it's really getting dark around here!"
The old raindrop winked. "Time to take my 419th plunge."
"And my first!" Squirt exclaimed.
"Grab my hand," the old raindrop said. "Jump when you see the lightening."
Squirt took the old raindrop's outstretched hand, and, with a flash of light, the little raindrop made a difference for the very first time.
And he gave happily ever after.
Once upon a time there lived a family of raindrops. They were a happy bunch, bouncing about in a fluffy, gray cloud that floated over the big world below. Squirt was one of the youngest. He liked to play games with his fellow raindrops. But one day, Squirt didn't feel like playing. Instead he sat on the edge of the cloud, head drooping, feeling downright glum.
"How come you're not playing with your friends?" an old raindrop asked, coming up behind him.
Squirt sighed. "I want to make a difference in the world. But I am just one little raindrop, and I'll never amount to anything."
The old raindrop thought for a moment, then pointed toward a large brown field below and said, "The farmer who is growing that wheat thinks you're important."
"He does? Why?"
"Well, he knows his wheat won't grow without you."
Squirt looked at the old raindrop. "Without a little drop like me?"
"You know, squirt, I've been around this earth a few times and I've learned that while each of us is only one drop of water, something special happens when we all get together in a rainstorm."
"What?" Squirt asked.
"Well, we make rivers flow. We keep trees green. Occasionally we even put out forest fires. And we give the wheat water to drink so it grows tall and strong. Someday that wheat will feed thousands of people."
Squirt perked up. "Maybe a little raindrop like me can make a difference!"
"You will, too," the old raindrop said.
Suddenly Squirt sank back down, a worried look on his face. "But when it rains, will that be the end of me?"
The old raindrop laughed. "Oh, no. That's just the beginning! You'll go back up into new clouds and have many more opportunities to shower gifts over the earth. This is my 418th cloud and I can tell you that giving never gets old."
"Cool," said Squirt, noticing the other raindrops gathering on the edge of the blackening cloud. "Hey, it's really getting dark around here!"
The old raindrop winked. "Time to take my 419th plunge."
"And my first!" Squirt exclaimed.
"Grab my hand," the old raindrop said. "Jump when you see the lightening."
Squirt took the old raindrop's outstretched hand, and, with a flash of light, the little raindrop made a difference for the very first time.
And he gave happily ever after.
The Desire to Be Appreciated - Richard L. Evans
The Desire to Be Appreciated - Richard L. Evans
The deepest hunger in human beings,” said William James, “is the desire to be appreciated.” A wife, a mother, can put up with faults and imperfections—with inadequate income, disappointments, difficult conditions—if there is kindness, consideration, appreciation. A father can work and worry, meet problems, debts, discouragement, and face the world, if there is kindness, consideration, and appreciation. A teacher can try harder to teach and labor patiently and long, if there is willingness to learn—and appreciation. A worker can work longer and do better if there is encouragement and appreciation. We can be driven by others only so far, but we can drive ourselves much further, if we feel there is fairness and appreciation. This is true in marriage, in the home, between parents and children, in business, and in all relationships of life. Hearts are broken, lives are blighted with unkindness. Talents and creative gifts are squelched and stifled without encouragement and appreciation. Children can be made to feel as nothing, and go nowhere and learn little, and young people never fulfill their possibilities, except for encouragement and praise and appreciation. A person can drive, exhort, intimidate, threaten, yet never realize the results that fairness and appreciation will produce. It isn’t the work of life that so much wears us away as the frictions and frustrations: not being noticed, not being recognized, not being appreciated, not being kindly considered. Men shrink with fear, withdraw from coldness, and with unkindness harden or break their hearts; but with kindness, encouragement, appreciation there can be peace and blessing in the home, satisfaction in service, and happiness in the heart. In this time of frustrations and too many tensions, let there be a renewal of appreciation for people, with loved ones coming closer, with families caring and encouraging, and with kindness, encouragement, appreciation for all that others do to lighten and lift the load of life. “The deepest hunger in human beings is the desire to be appreciated.”
The deepest hunger in human beings,” said William James, “is the desire to be appreciated.” A wife, a mother, can put up with faults and imperfections—with inadequate income, disappointments, difficult conditions—if there is kindness, consideration, appreciation. A father can work and worry, meet problems, debts, discouragement, and face the world, if there is kindness, consideration, and appreciation. A teacher can try harder to teach and labor patiently and long, if there is willingness to learn—and appreciation. A worker can work longer and do better if there is encouragement and appreciation. We can be driven by others only so far, but we can drive ourselves much further, if we feel there is fairness and appreciation. This is true in marriage, in the home, between parents and children, in business, and in all relationships of life. Hearts are broken, lives are blighted with unkindness. Talents and creative gifts are squelched and stifled without encouragement and appreciation. Children can be made to feel as nothing, and go nowhere and learn little, and young people never fulfill their possibilities, except for encouragement and praise and appreciation. A person can drive, exhort, intimidate, threaten, yet never realize the results that fairness and appreciation will produce. It isn’t the work of life that so much wears us away as the frictions and frustrations: not being noticed, not being recognized, not being appreciated, not being kindly considered. Men shrink with fear, withdraw from coldness, and with unkindness harden or break their hearts; but with kindness, encouragement, appreciation there can be peace and blessing in the home, satisfaction in service, and happiness in the heart. In this time of frustrations and too many tensions, let there be a renewal of appreciation for people, with loved ones coming closer, with families caring and encouraging, and with kindness, encouragement, appreciation for all that others do to lighten and lift the load of life. “The deepest hunger in human beings is the desire to be appreciated.”
Sunday, April 26, 2015
Hanging Out, Hooking Up, and Celestial Marriage - Bruce A. Chadwick
Hanging Out, Hooking Up, and Celestial Marriage - Bruce A. Chadwick
Many years ago a couple asked if I would provide them marriage counseling. I resist such requests since I am not a trained counselor—and, besides, I really don’t enjoy doing it. But occasionally circumstances conspire against me and I am forced to do so. This was one of these cases. I had worked with the couple for several weeks, and they had not made any real progress in reducing the anger and conflict. One evening as I waited for them to come to our home, I had a few minutes and opened the scriptures. I decided to read the New Testament to get me in a spiritual mood. One of my favorite sections of the New Testament is the Sermon on the Mount. When I read Matthew 5:43–44, I was struck with a powerful insight.
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
But I say unto you, 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. [Matthew 5:43–44]
When the couple arrived, I had the husband wait in the living room while I met with the wife in the family room. When I asked her if we could kneel and pray for her husband, she looked at me like I was crazy. When I explained that I did not want her to pray that he would get run over by a large truck, develop a disfiguring disease, or obey her every wish but rather wanted her to sincerely pray for the Father to bless her husband with those things that would bring him true happiness, she simply replied, “I can’t do it.” I had anticipated this response. It is not easy to love your enemy or to do good to him. But I was hoping we could at least pray for him. I asked if we could kneel and pray that she be given the compassion, mercy, and love necessary to do so. We both took turns voicing a prayer, and after she shed a few tears she informed me she was ready to pray for her husband. She then offered a beautiful prayer for him. A remarkable change in her demeanor toward her husband was immediately obvious. This was real progress.
I ushered her into the living room and invited the husband into the family room. We repeated the same sequence of events. His initial reaction to my request was one of shocked dismay. But later, after offering a sincere prayer for his wife, his attitude and his feelings toward her changed, and some of the earlier love reappeared. I could see it in his countenance, and he could feel it in his heart.
This was our last counseling session. I think the story had a happy ending for the couple. I haven’t seen them for several years, but the last time we had contact they were still happily married.
I don’t know whether they ever repeated this simple exercise. But I learned a great lesson that has affected how I live my life, and I pass it on to you as my fifth suggestion: “Pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” Most of us probably don’t like those who hate us, and, sadly, these feelings of dislike canker our souls. Amazingly, praying for our enemies reverses our feelings. Maybe the person still hates you, but that does not matter. What matters is that your heart is softened and the Spirit abides with you. Usually a change in your feelings and subsequent actions will initiate a reduction of the other person’s hatred of you. Perhaps even reconciliation may occur.
Many years ago a couple asked if I would provide them marriage counseling. I resist such requests since I am not a trained counselor—and, besides, I really don’t enjoy doing it. But occasionally circumstances conspire against me and I am forced to do so. This was one of these cases. I had worked with the couple for several weeks, and they had not made any real progress in reducing the anger and conflict. One evening as I waited for them to come to our home, I had a few minutes and opened the scriptures. I decided to read the New Testament to get me in a spiritual mood. One of my favorite sections of the New Testament is the Sermon on the Mount. When I read Matthew 5:43–44, I was struck with a powerful insight.
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
But I say unto you, 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. [Matthew 5:43–44]
When the couple arrived, I had the husband wait in the living room while I met with the wife in the family room. When I asked her if we could kneel and pray for her husband, she looked at me like I was crazy. When I explained that I did not want her to pray that he would get run over by a large truck, develop a disfiguring disease, or obey her every wish but rather wanted her to sincerely pray for the Father to bless her husband with those things that would bring him true happiness, she simply replied, “I can’t do it.” I had anticipated this response. It is not easy to love your enemy or to do good to him. But I was hoping we could at least pray for him. I asked if we could kneel and pray that she be given the compassion, mercy, and love necessary to do so. We both took turns voicing a prayer, and after she shed a few tears she informed me she was ready to pray for her husband. She then offered a beautiful prayer for him. A remarkable change in her demeanor toward her husband was immediately obvious. This was real progress.
I ushered her into the living room and invited the husband into the family room. We repeated the same sequence of events. His initial reaction to my request was one of shocked dismay. But later, after offering a sincere prayer for his wife, his attitude and his feelings toward her changed, and some of the earlier love reappeared. I could see it in his countenance, and he could feel it in his heart.
This was our last counseling session. I think the story had a happy ending for the couple. I haven’t seen them for several years, but the last time we had contact they were still happily married.
I don’t know whether they ever repeated this simple exercise. But I learned a great lesson that has affected how I live my life, and I pass it on to you as my fifth suggestion: “Pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” Most of us probably don’t like those who hate us, and, sadly, these feelings of dislike canker our souls. Amazingly, praying for our enemies reverses our feelings. Maybe the person still hates you, but that does not matter. What matters is that your heart is softened and the Spirit abides with you. Usually a change in your feelings and subsequent actions will initiate a reduction of the other person’s hatred of you. Perhaps even reconciliation may occur.
Loose Him and Let Him Go - Eric B. Shumway
Loose Him and Let Him Go - Eric B. Shumway
Katsuhiro Kajiyama was among the first students who came (to BYU Hawaii) from Japan. Now a professor of Japanese on our campus, he reminisced about his rescue, Lazarus-like, from soul death. His tomb was a dark hopelessness; his graveclothes a bitter cynicism and hatred toward Americans. As he said in the account he sent to me: “I lived numbly, desensitized, and cold.”
He remembered as a child the joy of his family, his prayers to the Buddha and Kami. But especially he remembered his mother—beautiful, soft, kind, gentle. His home was a place of peace. Their hometown was Hiroshima. On the morning of August 6, 1945, Kats was playing with a friend at school. He was just seven years old. These are his words:
The loud air raid alarm pierced our ears. . . . As I crouched down to the edge of the front door, an extraordinarily bright flash of light exploded as if a thousand flash photos had been taken, the light enveloping the whole building and sky. . . . There was a thunderous blast and a gust of force so strong that it shook the entire building and ground. . . . I screamed. . . . All around me there were noises of things being crushed and of shattered glass cascading to the floor.
Kats described the panic that ensued. Covered with blood, he escaped from under heavy fallen doors and ran out into a world surreal in its horror: houses on fire, whirling dust and smoke, hysterical crying and screaming from every direction. “Floating, groping along in the chaos,” he had visions of his beautiful mother waiting for him at home. He longed for her comfort, her soft, gentle touch. However, when he arrived at the spot, he said:
I [encountered] a strange woman in baked, dirty clothes with a grotesquely swollen face and burnt, short, kinky hair. . . . Severe burns disfigured my beautiful mother into a stranger of bloated face with red and dark-brown blotches and scratches. I looked on in disbelief as her sweet voice called my name, “Kacchan.” I cried for relief that it was she, but also [in terror for her dreadful look].
It took 20 agonizing days for his mother to finally die. His brother was never found, except for the remnant of a sock with his name written on it with a black marker.
Motherless and reduced to abject poverty, Kats was tormented by the images of the pain and death of his mother and brother. He longed to hear “the sweet, gentle call” of his mother. “It seemed that [he] would never find peace in this cruel and harsh existence,” until one day an American named Elder Gary Roper spoke to him: “How is school? Do you live nearby? I see you often in the streetcar. Would you like to join an activity for young people?”
Kats said he was amazed by this American’s indescribably tender smile.
I was unfamiliar with this type of gentleness from foreigners. . . . Until then I had [believed] all Americans were heartless monsters who willingly sought to hurt and degrade the Japanese people.
After Elder Roper, it was Elder Green. One year had passed since his first introduction to the Church. He was still reluctant to join, but at a district conference in Hiroshima, the voice of Christ from the mouth of mission president Paul C. Andrus commanded, “’Come forth.’ Be baptized.”
In contrast to the horrific flash of light in the atomic bomb blast, Kats wrote of his baptism:
At that moment . . . I felt as though the brightest sun had broken through the clouds and streamed through the building. The whole auditorium seemed to be brightly lit and glowing. I was . . . filled with incomprehensible happiness and joy.
You can guess the rest of the story. The graveclothes of his tortured past were now unwrapped. The cynicism, hatred, and bitterness were gone. Kats was called on a mission to his native Japan. As a missionary he helped teach and baptize 80 people.
After his mission, thanks to generous donors and a work-study scholarship program, he went to BYU—Hawaii, which was then the Church College of Hawaii. He married his wife, Hilda, in the temple. He had further schooling, coming to the Provo campus to finish his bachelor’s degree and to complete his master’s degree in art. The graveclothes of ignorance and prejudice were further removed. He and his wife have raised a family of brilliant, devoted children. Both their daughters are now embarking on missions for the Church—one to Japan and one to Hong Kong.
Nearly every true conversion or repentance sequence is an analogue of the story of Lazarus.
One interesting question is: What if Lazarus, exercising his agency even as a spirit, had decided he did not want to return to a decaying, tortured body? He might prefer to let dead bodies lie. Or what if those present were squeamishly reluctant to touch the death wrappings of a man who clearly had been dead? It is not difficult to identify parallels among us today: people who would not be inclined to obey either commandment. Obedience to both commandments is central to the restoration of life.
Sometimes the wrappings of death are manifest in the clothes of addiction and behavioral patterns that paralyze righteous thought and action, such as alcoholism, gambling, drug use, pornography, anger, and violence. These wrappings are made of coarse cloth and smell of hell, and they bind people in a tomb of hopeless illusion and despair.
But what about the death wrappings of a finer texture: the silken wrappings of pride and self-importance, of obsession with one’s appearance, of wealth devoid of any generous impulse? Many of these finer-textured addictions are mutations of things that satisfy basic needs; for example, the need we all have for encouragement morphing into a desperate search for praise and flattery. A dependency on “praise from above and flattery from below” has doomed more than one rising leader in nearly every profession (Stanley M. Herman, The Tao at Work: On Leading and Following [San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994], 40).
The acts of helping to remove someone’s “graveclothes,” as it were, are the essence of a Latter-day Saint’s errand from the Lord. You may ask yourself, “Am I an unbinder or am I a binder? Do I help loose or remove the graveclothes of others, or do I wrap their graveclothes more tightly around them?”
Katsuhiro Kajiyama was among the first students who came (to BYU Hawaii) from Japan. Now a professor of Japanese on our campus, he reminisced about his rescue, Lazarus-like, from soul death. His tomb was a dark hopelessness; his graveclothes a bitter cynicism and hatred toward Americans. As he said in the account he sent to me: “I lived numbly, desensitized, and cold.”
He remembered as a child the joy of his family, his prayers to the Buddha and Kami. But especially he remembered his mother—beautiful, soft, kind, gentle. His home was a place of peace. Their hometown was Hiroshima. On the morning of August 6, 1945, Kats was playing with a friend at school. He was just seven years old. These are his words:
The loud air raid alarm pierced our ears. . . . As I crouched down to the edge of the front door, an extraordinarily bright flash of light exploded as if a thousand flash photos had been taken, the light enveloping the whole building and sky. . . . There was a thunderous blast and a gust of force so strong that it shook the entire building and ground. . . . I screamed. . . . All around me there were noises of things being crushed and of shattered glass cascading to the floor.
Kats described the panic that ensued. Covered with blood, he escaped from under heavy fallen doors and ran out into a world surreal in its horror: houses on fire, whirling dust and smoke, hysterical crying and screaming from every direction. “Floating, groping along in the chaos,” he had visions of his beautiful mother waiting for him at home. He longed for her comfort, her soft, gentle touch. However, when he arrived at the spot, he said:
I [encountered] a strange woman in baked, dirty clothes with a grotesquely swollen face and burnt, short, kinky hair. . . . Severe burns disfigured my beautiful mother into a stranger of bloated face with red and dark-brown blotches and scratches. I looked on in disbelief as her sweet voice called my name, “Kacchan.” I cried for relief that it was she, but also [in terror for her dreadful look].
It took 20 agonizing days for his mother to finally die. His brother was never found, except for the remnant of a sock with his name written on it with a black marker.
Motherless and reduced to abject poverty, Kats was tormented by the images of the pain and death of his mother and brother. He longed to hear “the sweet, gentle call” of his mother. “It seemed that [he] would never find peace in this cruel and harsh existence,” until one day an American named Elder Gary Roper spoke to him: “How is school? Do you live nearby? I see you often in the streetcar. Would you like to join an activity for young people?”
Kats said he was amazed by this American’s indescribably tender smile.
I was unfamiliar with this type of gentleness from foreigners. . . . Until then I had [believed] all Americans were heartless monsters who willingly sought to hurt and degrade the Japanese people.
After Elder Roper, it was Elder Green. One year had passed since his first introduction to the Church. He was still reluctant to join, but at a district conference in Hiroshima, the voice of Christ from the mouth of mission president Paul C. Andrus commanded, “’Come forth.’ Be baptized.”
In contrast to the horrific flash of light in the atomic bomb blast, Kats wrote of his baptism:
At that moment . . . I felt as though the brightest sun had broken through the clouds and streamed through the building. The whole auditorium seemed to be brightly lit and glowing. I was . . . filled with incomprehensible happiness and joy.
You can guess the rest of the story. The graveclothes of his tortured past were now unwrapped. The cynicism, hatred, and bitterness were gone. Kats was called on a mission to his native Japan. As a missionary he helped teach and baptize 80 people.
After his mission, thanks to generous donors and a work-study scholarship program, he went to BYU—Hawaii, which was then the Church College of Hawaii. He married his wife, Hilda, in the temple. He had further schooling, coming to the Provo campus to finish his bachelor’s degree and to complete his master’s degree in art. The graveclothes of ignorance and prejudice were further removed. He and his wife have raised a family of brilliant, devoted children. Both their daughters are now embarking on missions for the Church—one to Japan and one to Hong Kong.
Nearly every true conversion or repentance sequence is an analogue of the story of Lazarus.
One interesting question is: What if Lazarus, exercising his agency even as a spirit, had decided he did not want to return to a decaying, tortured body? He might prefer to let dead bodies lie. Or what if those present were squeamishly reluctant to touch the death wrappings of a man who clearly had been dead? It is not difficult to identify parallels among us today: people who would not be inclined to obey either commandment. Obedience to both commandments is central to the restoration of life.
Sometimes the wrappings of death are manifest in the clothes of addiction and behavioral patterns that paralyze righteous thought and action, such as alcoholism, gambling, drug use, pornography, anger, and violence. These wrappings are made of coarse cloth and smell of hell, and they bind people in a tomb of hopeless illusion and despair.
But what about the death wrappings of a finer texture: the silken wrappings of pride and self-importance, of obsession with one’s appearance, of wealth devoid of any generous impulse? Many of these finer-textured addictions are mutations of things that satisfy basic needs; for example, the need we all have for encouragement morphing into a desperate search for praise and flattery. A dependency on “praise from above and flattery from below” has doomed more than one rising leader in nearly every profession (Stanley M. Herman, The Tao at Work: On Leading and Following [San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994], 40).
The acts of helping to remove someone’s “graveclothes,” as it were, are the essence of a Latter-day Saint’s errand from the Lord. You may ask yourself, “Am I an unbinder or am I a binder? Do I help loose or remove the graveclothes of others, or do I wrap their graveclothes more tightly around them?”
Saturday, April 18, 2015
Beggars - Dale E Monson
Beggars - Dale E. Monson
What are the differences among the beggars I’ve met in my life? In uptown Manhattan near one of the music conservatories, I often passed a young man who played his violin on the sidewalk, his open instrument case usually stuffed with cash. His feigned artistic idealism appealed to the yuppie crowds, who blindly financed his chauffeured limousine. On the other hand, what of the young, filthy woman with an outstretched hand I passed in Milan, Italy, sheltering an obviously sick child in a rancid quilt, the two of them huddled tightly together against the cold? I remembered at the time the advice of a relative living in Mexico City, who warned me of beggars with rented children, preying on the pity of rich American tourists. If a person was truly in need, how was I to know?
In the summer of 1987 a young boy there asked me for money in a subway station, and I ineptly shook my head and glanced away. At first I blamed my poor Neapolitan dialect for not understanding him (except for his open hand), but when others also looked puzzled, I realized that he too was foreign. I watched him go as he walked the length of the station.
It was always the same. He took a few slow steps, bent his right arm at the elbow, and rested it on his bony hip, his left hand behind his back reaching through to grab his upper-right arm. His right hand was cupped near to his body and almost closed, weakly drifting back and forth. He shifted all his thin weight to his left leg, turned his other foot to its outside edge, and bent his back in a slow arch. He never looked those he confronted in the face; his gaze went past you, about chin height. He repeated the same incomprehensible words over and over, and after each rejection he scuffed his feet, shuffled a bit sideways, and moved on, first to this group, and then that—a businessman, a mother, some imitation punk rockers, a factory worker, a man in uniform. He went to each person in the crowded station, a captive audience for his pitiful performance, and no one gave him anything. A few laughed. The teenagers mocked him. Most just ignored him.
As I watched the scene unfold, I thought, "He’s about the same age as my own 11-year-old son, about the same height, same hair color, same complexion, same awkward, uncomfortable posture that all 11-year-old boys have." Then suddenly, as I stood in that crowded Neapolitan mélange of humanity, I saw my son in his face as he stumbled into the press around me. I panicked and wanted desperately to go after him. But my train arrived, and I got on, maneuvering myself next to the window to search for him. I saw him standing there, alone in the deserted station, and then he was gone.
The face of that young boy in a subway station will be one of those images that will never leave me. Like the face of my young brother, years ago, as I led him into a hospital room to say goodbye to our father, or the face of my firstborn child, the face of that young beggar was the face of need. I’ve thought a good deal about beggars since then. The young boy had no money, and I had no will to help him. Which of us was the beggar? "For behold, are we not all beggars?" was the question posed by King Benjamin (Mosiah 4:19).
When blind Bartimaeus, at the roadside, heard it was the Christ passing by, he could not be silenced,
but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? [Mark 10:48–51]
Throughout my life I’ve wondered when I would next see that boy’s face—the face of need—and, even more, what I would do when he approached me once again. What will he ask of me this time, and what will I offer? I’ve often thought of how Christ responded to Bartimaeus: "What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?" For each time I see that boy’s face now, I think, "What can I do?" and these days he, like Bartimaeus, almost never asks for money.
For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?
And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy. [Mosiah 4:19–20]
Who, then, was that blind beggar Christ met on the road but each of us, blind and begging in our own ways, crippled by emotions, pride, tragedy, a fainting heart, doubt, or sin. At times we seem surrounded by darkness. It can be so difficult to see the tree, the path, and the iron rod. As Nephi warned us, "The mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost" (1 Ne. 12:17). There to one side you might come across a young girl without hope or a young man confused by the iridescent reality of a hectic modern world. There are people all around us, in our classes in school, in our workplaces, in our homes and families, who cry, like Bartimaeus, "Have mercy on me." And we, in turn, reflect on the Savior’s answer to Bartimaeus:
What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way. [Mark 10:51–52]
What are the differences among the beggars I’ve met in my life? In uptown Manhattan near one of the music conservatories, I often passed a young man who played his violin on the sidewalk, his open instrument case usually stuffed with cash. His feigned artistic idealism appealed to the yuppie crowds, who blindly financed his chauffeured limousine. On the other hand, what of the young, filthy woman with an outstretched hand I passed in Milan, Italy, sheltering an obviously sick child in a rancid quilt, the two of them huddled tightly together against the cold? I remembered at the time the advice of a relative living in Mexico City, who warned me of beggars with rented children, preying on the pity of rich American tourists. If a person was truly in need, how was I to know?
In the summer of 1987 a young boy there asked me for money in a subway station, and I ineptly shook my head and glanced away. At first I blamed my poor Neapolitan dialect for not understanding him (except for his open hand), but when others also looked puzzled, I realized that he too was foreign. I watched him go as he walked the length of the station.
It was always the same. He took a few slow steps, bent his right arm at the elbow, and rested it on his bony hip, his left hand behind his back reaching through to grab his upper-right arm. His right hand was cupped near to his body and almost closed, weakly drifting back and forth. He shifted all his thin weight to his left leg, turned his other foot to its outside edge, and bent his back in a slow arch. He never looked those he confronted in the face; his gaze went past you, about chin height. He repeated the same incomprehensible words over and over, and after each rejection he scuffed his feet, shuffled a bit sideways, and moved on, first to this group, and then that—a businessman, a mother, some imitation punk rockers, a factory worker, a man in uniform. He went to each person in the crowded station, a captive audience for his pitiful performance, and no one gave him anything. A few laughed. The teenagers mocked him. Most just ignored him.
As I watched the scene unfold, I thought, "He’s about the same age as my own 11-year-old son, about the same height, same hair color, same complexion, same awkward, uncomfortable posture that all 11-year-old boys have." Then suddenly, as I stood in that crowded Neapolitan mélange of humanity, I saw my son in his face as he stumbled into the press around me. I panicked and wanted desperately to go after him. But my train arrived, and I got on, maneuvering myself next to the window to search for him. I saw him standing there, alone in the deserted station, and then he was gone.
The face of that young boy in a subway station will be one of those images that will never leave me. Like the face of my young brother, years ago, as I led him into a hospital room to say goodbye to our father, or the face of my firstborn child, the face of that young beggar was the face of need. I’ve thought a good deal about beggars since then. The young boy had no money, and I had no will to help him. Which of us was the beggar? "For behold, are we not all beggars?" was the question posed by King Benjamin (Mosiah 4:19).
When blind Bartimaeus, at the roadside, heard it was the Christ passing by, he could not be silenced,
but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? [Mark 10:48–51]
Throughout my life I’ve wondered when I would next see that boy’s face—the face of need—and, even more, what I would do when he approached me once again. What will he ask of me this time, and what will I offer? I’ve often thought of how Christ responded to Bartimaeus: "What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?" For each time I see that boy’s face now, I think, "What can I do?" and these days he, like Bartimaeus, almost never asks for money.
For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?
And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy. [Mosiah 4:19–20]
Who, then, was that blind beggar Christ met on the road but each of us, blind and begging in our own ways, crippled by emotions, pride, tragedy, a fainting heart, doubt, or sin. At times we seem surrounded by darkness. It can be so difficult to see the tree, the path, and the iron rod. As Nephi warned us, "The mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost" (1 Ne. 12:17). There to one side you might come across a young girl without hope or a young man confused by the iridescent reality of a hectic modern world. There are people all around us, in our classes in school, in our workplaces, in our homes and families, who cry, like Bartimaeus, "Have mercy on me." And we, in turn, reflect on the Savior’s answer to Bartimaeus:
What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way. [Mark 10:51–52]
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be? H. David Burton
What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be? H. David Burton
Bishop Burtons golf story is priceless to me.
What manner of men and women ought ye to be? In my ponderings, I continue to ask: What are the attributes of a Christlike life? What is the appropriate pattern to use in coping with the challenges of life? What does it mean to be “even as I am”? I certainly don’t know all that is expected, but attributes like love of God and fellowmen, compassion, example, obedience, service, and keeping covenants may be just a few.
Pray for Help in Making Decisions
Many of you are at a stage of life when you will be making decisions that will shape your earthly lives as well as your eternal lives. Some of you are in the process of making decisions about your education. Others of you may be contemplating a mission. Many may be endeavoring to decide what you wish to do for a career or life’s work. Perhaps some of you may be trying to decide if someone is the right person to be your eternal companion. These decisions will be much easier if you take them before the Lord in prayer.A few of you may be struggling with sin and are trying to decide if you wish to be cleansed by the atoning power of Jesus Christ. Some of you may be faltering in your testimonies of the gospel and trying to determine what can be done to reverse the direction. Decisions about these and other important matters will have a huge impact on what manner of men and women you will be and what you will accomplish during your lifetime.
Bishop Burtons golf story is priceless to me.
What manner of men and women ought ye to be? In my ponderings, I continue to ask: What are the attributes of a Christlike life? What is the appropriate pattern to use in coping with the challenges of life? What does it mean to be “even as I am”? I certainly don’t know all that is expected, but attributes like love of God and fellowmen, compassion, example, obedience, service, and keeping covenants may be just a few.
Pray for Help in Making Decisions
Many of you are at a stage of life when you will be making decisions that will shape your earthly lives as well as your eternal lives. Some of you are in the process of making decisions about your education. Others of you may be contemplating a mission. Many may be endeavoring to decide what you wish to do for a career or life’s work. Perhaps some of you may be trying to decide if someone is the right person to be your eternal companion. These decisions will be much easier if you take them before the Lord in prayer.A few of you may be struggling with sin and are trying to decide if you wish to be cleansed by the atoning power of Jesus Christ. Some of you may be faltering in your testimonies of the gospel and trying to determine what can be done to reverse the direction. Decisions about these and other important matters will have a huge impact on what manner of men and women you will be and what you will accomplish during your lifetime.
Don't be Discouraged
I sometimes worry and am somewhat embarrassed, frankly, that my generation has burdened your generation with issues and challenges that we should have resolved. While much progress has been made in making life better, longer, safer, and more fulfilling, there remains much to lament relating to greed, relationships, and environment, to name just a few. We are facing the uncertainties that arise out of the turbulent times we are in. It could be very easy to be discouraged and perhaps even be a little depressed as we think about the array of potential impacts. The uncertainties of the job market coupled with significant economic dislocation all add to the uneasiness of our day. Nations continue to contend against one another.
I sometimes worry and am somewhat embarrassed, frankly, that my generation has burdened your generation with issues and challenges that we should have resolved. While much progress has been made in making life better, longer, safer, and more fulfilling, there remains much to lament relating to greed, relationships, and environment, to name just a few. We are facing the uncertainties that arise out of the turbulent times we are in. It could be very easy to be discouraged and perhaps even be a little depressed as we think about the array of potential impacts. The uncertainties of the job market coupled with significant economic dislocation all add to the uneasiness of our day. Nations continue to contend against one another.
In spite of all of this, my young friends, we need not fear nor take counsel from our fears. The scriptures remind us that if we are prepared, if we are obedient, and if we are members of the Lord’s Church, we need not fear what the future holds. “The righteous need not fear” (1 Nephi 22:22; see also Alma 1:4; D&C 10:55). What manner of men and women we will be, in part, will be influenced by how well we handle the fearsome and unforeseen aspects of life. Realizing that real life is made up of struggles, problems, mistakes, opportunities, and lessons, please remember the old Chinese proverb that says, “The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials.” Stated in the Lord’s terms, “For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things” (2 Nephi 2:11).
Focus on What Is Most Important
Ambition and hard work are vital ingredients in achieving worthy objectives. You are a generation of great promise. You have been endowed with many God-given gifts. You’re bright; you’re intelligent. Those of you who use your intelligence to achieve well-conceived goals are destined to be successful. But those of you who are intelligent, goal-oriented, and ambitious will likely be the manner of men and women our Father in Heaven is depending upon to move His kingdom forward.
Ambition and hard work are vital ingredients in achieving worthy objectives. You are a generation of great promise. You have been endowed with many God-given gifts. You’re bright; you’re intelligent. Those of you who use your intelligence to achieve well-conceived goals are destined to be successful. But those of you who are intelligent, goal-oriented, and ambitious will likely be the manner of men and women our Father in Heaven is depending upon to move His kingdom forward.
Near the end of my mission, the World Cup Golf Tournament was held at the Royal Melbourne golf course in Melbourne, Australia, and amateur golfers were given an opportunity to play with a professional in the pre tournament practice rounds. On the very last day of my mission, I was able to participate in this practice round, although I won’t bore you with the details of how that occurred. When it was my turn to draw from the hat the name of the professional I was to play with that day, I drew the name of Arnold Palmer. Talk about intimidation associated with speaking at general conference! That level of intimidation was only a very small part of the amount I felt the second I saw “Arnold Palmer” on my slip. I, of course, hadn’t had a golf club in my hands for over two years, and I was, to use the vernacular of today, totally stressed out!
I don’t remember much about the round of golf except that I played very poorly. On the 17th hole we hit our tee shots. We walked a few feet, and I hit my second shot, and shortly thereafter my third before we arrived at Mr. Palmer’s ball. The young Australian man caddying for Mr. Palmer was trying very, very hard to please him. I overheard the caddy tell Mr. Palmer that on the left the topography sloped, with a stream meandering down and hidden from view. He then said that on the right the grass had been allowed to grow very, very long and was really difficult to swing a club through.
Mr. Palmer very precisely placed his club back into the bag and quietly but firmly said to the young caddy, “Please don’t clutter my mind with what is out on the right, and I’m not terribly interested in what is on the left. The only piece of information that I require from you is the exact distance from this ball to the flag on the green.”
My, that was a powerful learning experience for me. I suddenly realized the criticality of focusing on what is important and not being distracted by what may be on the left or what might be on the right. Focus is so essential in achieving our goals. Too many of us are concerned about what’s on the right and what’s on the left, and we fail to adequately focus on the principal objective that is right down the middle. When we fail to focus on the right things, it is difficult to become the manner of men and women that we desperately want to be. In this endeavor, remember that the Lord has promised: “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” (D&C 84:88).
Monday, April 13, 2015
The Power and Protection of Worthy Music - Russell M. Nelson
The Power and Protection of Worthy Music - Russell M. Nelson
I absolutely love the Hymns of the Church!
Prophets through all generations have taught the importance of worthy music in our expressions of worship.
1. Music has power to provide spiritual nourishment.
(See“The Nourishing Power of Hymns,” Ensign, May 2007, 11–13.)
2. Music has healing power. (See “The Healing Power of Hymns,”
Ensign, Apr. 2008, 66–69.)
3. Music has the power to facilitate worship, allowing us to contemplate the
Atonement and the Restoration of the gospel, with its saving principles and
exalting ordinances.
4. Music provides power for us to express prayerful thoughts
and bear testimony of sacred truths.
5. Music has power to overcome language barriers.
6. Music has a sweet power to promote unity and love in the family.
7. Worthy music has the power to make us humble, prayerful, and grateful.
8. Worthy music also has the power to persuade.
9. Hymns can also help us withstand the temptations of the adversary.
(Hymnbook preface)
10. Hymns invite the Spirit of the Lord
11. Hymns create a feeling of reverence.
12. Hymns provide a way for us to offer praises to the Lord.
13. Hymns move us to repentance and good works, build testimony and faith.
14. Hymns comfort the weary, console the mourning, and inspire us to
endure to the end.
15. Hymns provide a pattern of worship that is pleasing to God.
I absolutely love the Hymns of the Church!
Prophets through all generations have taught the importance of worthy music in our expressions of worship.
1. Music has power to provide spiritual nourishment.
(See“The Nourishing Power of Hymns,” Ensign, May 2007, 11–13.)
2. Music has healing power. (See “The Healing Power of Hymns,”
Ensign, Apr. 2008, 66–69.)
3. Music has the power to facilitate worship, allowing us to contemplate the
Atonement and the Restoration of the gospel, with its saving principles and
exalting ordinances.
4. Music provides power for us to express prayerful thoughts
and bear testimony of sacred truths.
5. Music has power to overcome language barriers.
6. Music has a sweet power to promote unity and love in the family.
7. Worthy music has the power to make us humble, prayerful, and grateful.
8. Worthy music also has the power to persuade.
9. Hymns can also help us withstand the temptations of the adversary.
(Hymnbook preface)
10. Hymns invite the Spirit of the Lord
11. Hymns create a feeling of reverence.
12. Hymns provide a way for us to offer praises to the Lord.
13. Hymns move us to repentance and good works, build testimony and faith.
14. Hymns comfort the weary, console the mourning, and inspire us to
endure to the end.
15. Hymns provide a pattern of worship that is pleasing to God.
A
New Testament scripture counsels us to have a well of good music
within, “speaking to [ourselves] in psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs, singing and making melody in [our] heart to the Lord;
“Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19–20).
Another New Testament verse says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in
you … ; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16).
Absolute Truth - Spencer W. Kimball
Absolute Truth - Spencer W. Kimball
This entire article is worth our attention and study, it is truly remarkable.
The earth is spherical. If all the four billion people in the world think it flat, they are in error. That is an absolute truth, and all the arguing in the world will not change it. Weights will not suspend themselves in the air, but when released will fall earthward. The law of gravity is an absolute truth. It never varies. Greater laws can overcome lesser ones, but that does not change their undeniable truth.
This entire article is worth our attention and study, it is truly remarkable.
The earth is spherical. If all the four billion people in the world think it flat, they are in error. That is an absolute truth, and all the arguing in the world will not change it. Weights will not suspend themselves in the air, but when released will fall earthward. The law of gravity is an absolute truth. It never varies. Greater laws can overcome lesser ones, but that does not change their undeniable truth.
The
watchmaker in Switzerland, with materials at hand, made the watch that
was found in the sand in a California desert. The people who found the
watch had never been to Switzerland, nor seen the watchmaker, nor seen
the watch made. The watchmaker still existed, no matter the extent of
their ignorance or experience. If the watch had a tongue, it might even
lie and say, “There is no watchmaker.” That would not alter the truth.
If men are really humble, they will realize that they discover, but do not create, truth.
The Lord has defined truth as being a “knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come.” (D&C 93:24.) God’s existence is a reality. Immortality
is a reality. These realities will not go away simply because we have
different opinions about them. These realities will not be dissolved
just because some have doubts about them.
Opinion?
Of course, there is a difference of opinion; but again, opinion cannot
change laws or absolute truths. Opinions will never make the earth to be
flat, the sun to dim its light, God to die, or the Savior to cease
being the Son of God.
May I repeat, the time will come when there will be a surrender of every
person who has ever lived on this earth, who is now living, or who ever
will live on this earth; and it will be an unforced surrender, an
unconditional surrender. When will it be for you? Today? In twenty
years? Two hundred years? Two thousand or a million? When?
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Preparation for the Second Coming - Dallin H. Oaks
Preparation for the Second Coming - Dallin H. Oaks
We should look inward and answer for ourselves each question (in bold below) that is asked.
Today I have felt prompted to speak of the importance of preparation for a future event of supreme importance to each of us—the Second Coming of the Lord.
Four matters are indisputable to Latter-day Saints:
(1) The Savior will return to the earth in power and great glory to reign personally during a millennium of righteousness and peace.
(2) At the time of His coming there will be a destruction of the wicked and a resurrection of the righteous.
(3) No one knows the time of His coming.
(4) The faithful are taught to study the signs of it and to be prepared for it.
We should look inward and answer for ourselves each question (in bold below) that is asked.
Today I have felt prompted to speak of the importance of preparation for a future event of supreme importance to each of us—the Second Coming of the Lord.
Four matters are indisputable to Latter-day Saints:
(1) The Savior will return to the earth in power and great glory to reign personally during a millennium of righteousness and peace.
(2) At the time of His coming there will be a destruction of the wicked and a resurrection of the righteous.
(3) No one knows the time of His coming.
(4) The faithful are taught to study the signs of it and to be prepared for it.
Biblical and modern prophecies give many signs of the Second Coming. These include:
- The fulness of the gospel restored and preached in all the world for a witness to all nations.
- False Christs and false prophets, deceiving many.
- Wars and rumors of wars, with nation rising against nation.
- Earthquakes in divers places.
- Famine and pestilence.
-
An overflowing scourge, a desolating sickness covering the land.
- Iniquity abounding.
- The whole earth in commotion.
- Men’s hearts failing them.
These signs of the Second Coming are all around us and seem to be
increasing in frequency and intensity. For example, the list of major
earthquakes in The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2004 shows
twice as many earthquakes in the decades of the 1980s and 1990s as in
the two preceding decades (pp. 189–90). It also shows further sharp
increases in the first several years of this century. The list of
notable floods and tidal waves and the list of hurricanes, typhoons, and
blizzards worldwide show similar increases in recent years (pp.
188–89). Increases by comparison with 50 years ago can be dismissed as
changes in reporting criteria, but the accelerating pattern of natural
disasters in the last few decades is ominous.
Another sign of the times is the gathering of the faithful (see D&C 133:4).
In the early years of this last dispensation, a gathering to Zion
involved various locations in the United States: to Kirtland, to
Missouri, to Nauvoo, and to the tops of the mountains. Always these were
gatherings to prospective temples. With the creation of stakes and the
construction of temples in most nations with sizeable populations of the
faithful, the current commandment is not to gather to one place but to
gather in stakes in our own homelands. There the faithful can enjoy the
full blessings of eternity in a house of the Lord. There, in their own
homelands, they can obey the Lord’s command to enlarge the borders of
His people and strengthen her stakes (see D&C 101:21; D&C 133:9, 14).
In this way, the stakes of Zion are “for a defense, and for a refuge
from the storm, and from wrath when it shall be poured out without
mixture upon the whole earth” (D&C 115:6).
The Lord
said, “And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable
be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins” (D&C 45:56).
Given
in the 25th chapter of Matthew, this parable contrasts the
circumstances of the five foolish and the five wise virgins. All ten
were invited to the wedding feast, but only half of them were prepared
with oil in their lamps when the bridegroom came. The five who were
prepared went into the marriage feast, and the door was shut. The five
who had delayed their preparations came late. The door had been closed,
and the Lord denied them entrance, saying, “I know you not” (Matt. 25:12). “Watch therefore,” the Savior concluded, “for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh” (Matt. 25:13).
The
arithmetic of this parable is chilling. The ten virgins obviously
represent members of Christ’s Church, for all were invited to the
wedding feast and all knew what was required to be admitted when the
bridegroom came. But only half were ready when he came.
What
if the day of His coming were tomorrow? If we knew that we would meet
the Lord tomorrow—through our premature death or through His unexpected
coming—what would we do today? What confessions would we make? What
practices would we discontinue? What accounts would we settle? What
forgivenesses would we extend? What testimonies would we bear?
If
we would do those things then, why not now? Why not seek peace while
peace can be obtained? If our lamps of preparation are drawn down, let
us start immediately to replenish them.
We
need to make both temporal and spiritual preparation for the events
prophesied at the time of the Second Coming. And the preparation most
likely to be neglected is the one less visible and more difficult—the
spiritual. A 72-hour kit of temporal supplies may prove valuable for
earthly challenges, but, as the foolish virgins learned to their sorrow,
a 24-hour kit of spiritual preparation is of greater and more enduring
value.
What
is the state of our personal preparation for eternal life? The people
of God have always been people of covenant. What is the measure of our
compliance with covenants, including the sacred promises we made in the
waters of baptism,
in receiving the holy priesthood, and in the temples of God? Are we
promisers who do not fulfill and believers who do not perform?
Are
we following the Lord’s command, “Stand ye in holy places, and be not
moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly”? (D&C 87:8).
What are those “holy places”? Surely they include the temple and its
covenants faithfully kept. Surely they include a home where children are
treasured and parents are respected. Surely the holy places include our
posts of duty assigned by priesthood authority, including missions and
callings faithfully fulfilled in branches, wards, and stakes.
“Wherefore,”
the Savior tells us, “be faithful, praying always, having your lamps
trimmed and burning, and oil with you, that you may be ready at the
coming of the Bridegroom—For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you,
that I come quickly” (D&C 33:17–18).
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
The Healing Power of Forgiveness - James E. Faust
The Healing Power of Forgiveness - James E. Faust
In the beautiful hills of Pennsylvania, a devout group of Christian
people live a simple life without automobiles, electricity, or modern
machinery. They work hard and live quiet, peaceful lives separate from
the world. Most of their food comes from their own farms. The women sew
and knit and weave their clothing, which is modest and plain. They are
known as the Amish people.
A 32-year-old milk truck driver lived with his family
in their Nickel Mines community. He was not Amish, but his pickup route
took him to many Amish dairy farms, where he became known as the quiet
milkman. Last October he suddenly lost all reason and control. In his
tormented mind he blamed God for the death of his first child and some
unsubstantiated memories. He stormed into the Amish school without any
provocation, released the boys and adults, and tied up the 10 girls. He
shot the girls, killing five and wounding five. Then he took his own
life.
This shocking violence caused great anguish among the Amish but no anger. There was hurt but no hate. Their forgiveness
was immediate. Collectively they began to reach out to the milkman’s
suffering family. As the milkman’s family gathered in his home the day
after the shootings, an Amish neighbor came over, wrapped his arms
around the father of the dead gunman, and said, “We will forgive you.”
1
Amish leaders visited the milkman’s wife and children to extend their sympathy, their forgiveness,
their help, and their love. About half of the mourners at the milkman’s
funeral were Amish. In turn, the Amish invited the milkman’s family to
attend the funeral services of the girls who had been killed. A
remarkable peace settled on the Amish as their faith sustained them
during this crisis.
One
local resident very eloquently summed up the aftermath of this tragedy
when he said, “We were all speaking the same language, and not just
English, but a language of caring, a language of community, [and] a
language of service. And, yes, a language of forgiveness.”
2
It was an amazing outpouring of their complete faith in the
Lord’s teachings in the Sermon on the Mount: “Do good to them that hate
you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.”
3
The family of the milkman who killed the five girls released the following statement to the public:
“To our Amish friends, neighbors, and local community:
“Our
family wants each of you to know that we are overwhelmed by the
forgiveness, grace, and mercy that you’ve extended to us. Your love for
our family has helped to provide the healing we so desperately need. The
prayers, flowers, cards, and gifts you’ve given have touched our hearts
in a way no words can describe. Your compassion has reached beyond our
family, beyond our community, and is changing our world, and for this we
sincerely thank you.
“Please
know that our hearts have been broken by all that has happened. We are
filled with sorrow for all of our Amish neighbors whom we have loved and
continue to love. We know that there are many hard days ahead for all
the families who lost loved ones, and so we will continue to put our
hope and trust in the God of all comfort, as we all seek to rebuild our
lives.”
4
How
could the whole Amish group manifest such an expression of forgiveness?
It was because of their faith in God and trust in His word, which is
part of their inner beings. They see themselves as disciples of Christ
and want to follow His example.
Hearing of this tragedy, many people sent money to the Amish to
pay for the health care of the five surviving girls and for the burial
expenses of the five who were killed. As a further demonstration of
their discipleship, the Amish decided to share some of the money with
the widow of the milkman and her three children because they too were
victims of this terrible tragedy.
Forgiveness
comes more readily when, like the Amish, we have faith in God and trust
in His word. Such faith “enables people to withstand the worst of
humanity. It also enables people to look beyond themselves. More
importantly, it enables them to forgive.”
6
One of my favorite books is 'Amish Grace - How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy' by Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt and David L. Weaver- Zercher. Such a fascinating and wonderful book!
Teaching by the Power of the Spirit - Loren C. Dunn
Teaching by the Power of the Spirit - Loren C. Dunn
One of the most powerful articles I have ever read on teaching.
The ideal teaching situation is given us by the Savior: “When ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act.” (D&C 43:8.) To instruct is one thing, but to instruct and edify is something more. To edify would be to instruct by the power of the Spirit. When a person edifies or teaches by the Spirit, it inspires those who hear to want to do better—to in some way act on what they have been taught.
One of the most powerful articles I have ever read on teaching.
The ideal teaching situation is given us by the Savior: “When ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act.” (D&C 43:8.) To instruct is one thing, but to instruct and edify is something more. To edify would be to instruct by the power of the Spirit. When a person edifies or teaches by the Spirit, it inspires those who hear to want to do better—to in some way act on what they have been taught.
1. Graciousness. The
Savior opened his ministry with these words from Esaias: “The Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel
to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, … to set at
liberty them that are bruised.” (Luke 4:18.)
To those in the synagogue, the Savior then said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
“And all … wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.” (Luke 4:21, 22.)
There
is a graciousness about those who teach the gospel by the Spirit. It
seems to be influenced by individual humility, personal faith, and a
deep and abiding love for people.
2. Testimony. “For I will forgive you of
your sins with this commandment—that you remain steadfast in your minds
in solemnity … bearing testimony to all the world of those things which
are communicated unto you.” (D&C 84:61.)
3. Scriptures. “And
they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men
of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures
diligently, that they might know the word of God.” (Alma 17:2.)
The
Lord has given the scriptures to the Church as a guide. By scriptures,
we not only refer to the four standard works but also to the inspired
writings of modern Apostles and prophets and other Church leaders as
they are “moved upon by the Holy Ghost.” (D&C 68:4.)
4. Prayer. “And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith.” (D&C 42:14.)
The
most important step in spiritual preparation is prayer. Prayer is a
means of seeking help and understanding. It is recognition that “man
doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.” (Mosiah 4:9.)
As Paul tells us, “The things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:11),
and that Spirit comes to the teacher who prays seriously and intently
as he or she prepares the lesson and seeks the inspiration to know how
to proceed. With this prayerful preparation, the teacher builds a
foundation of faith, and this faith is not “in the wisdom of men, but in
the power of God.” (1 Cor. 2:5.)
President
Spencer W. Kimball tells us: “He stands and knocks. If we do not
listen, he will not sup with us nor give answer to our prayers. We must
learn how to listen, grasp, interpret, understand. The Lord stands
knocking. He never retreats. But he will never force himself upon us. If
our distance from him increases, it is we who have moved and not the
Lord. And should we ever fail to get an answer to our prayers, we must
look into our lives for a reason. We have failed to do what we should
do, or we have done something we should not have done. We have dulled
our hearing or impaired our eyesight.” (Faith Precedes the Miracle, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1972, p. 208.)
And
so we see the great governing principle for all teachers in the Church
is to teach the gospel by the power of the Spirit. In fact, Joseph Smith
said that “all are to preach the Gospel, by the power and influence of
the Holy Ghost; and no man can preach the Gospel without the Holy
Ghost.” (History of the Church, 2:477.)
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