Keeping the Commandments is IMPORTANT

“In spite of the prosaic and commonplace aspects of this subject, I have long been convinced, my brethren and sisters, that the most challenging, dramatic, and vital thing in our lives is this ‘keeping the commandments.’ It tests every fiber of our beings. It is at once a demonstration of our intelligence, our knowledge, our character, and our wisdom.”
--Pres. Stephen L Richards

Staying Warm

“If we are not careful, we can be injured by the frostbite of frustration; we can be frozen in place by the chill of unmet expectations. To avoid this we must—just as we would with arctic coldness—keep moving, keep serving, and keep reaching out so that our own immobility does not become our chief danger.”
-William Law

Coming Close

“It is by loving and not by being loved that one can come nearest to the soul of another.”
-- George MacDonald.

(The Velveteen Rabbit)

Finding Yourself/Serving

We become more significant individuals as we serve others. We become more substantive as we serve others—indeed, it is easier to find ourselves because there is more of us to find.
-Pres. Kimball

Why Happiness Helps...

This attitude is what will pull us through whatever comes our way. It will not remove our troubles from us but rather will enable us to face our challenges, to meet them head on, and to emerge victorious.

-Thomas S Monson

Love God

God the Eternal Father did not give that first great commandment because He needs us to love Him. His power and glory are not diminished should we disregard, deny, or even defile His name. His influence and dominion extend through time and space independent of our acceptance, approval, or admiration.

No, God does not need us to love Him. But oh, how we need to love God!

For what we love determines what we seek.

What we seek determines what we think and do.

What we think and do determines who we are—and who we will become.

-Pres. Uchtdorf

Real Strength

Sometimes the strongest people are the ones who love beyond all faults, cry behind closed doors and fight battles that nobody knows about.

-Unknown

Gratitude

"It is not happy people who are thankful; it is thankful people who are happy."  -Unknown

Robins and Snakes

The back windows of our home overlook a small flower garden and the woods which border a small stream. One wall of the house borders on the garden and is thickly covered with English ivy. Most years this ivy has been the nesting place for house finches. The nests in the vines are safe from foxes and raccoons and cats that are about.

One day there was a great commotion in the ivy. Desperate cries of distress came as 8 or 10 finches from the surrounding woods came to join in this cry of alarm. I soon saw the source of the commotion. A snake had slid partway down out of the ivy and hung in front of the window just long enough for me to pull it out. The middle part of the snake’s body had two bulges—clear evidence convicting it of taking two fledglings from the nest. Not in the 50 years we had lived in our home had we seen anything like that. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience—or so we thought.

A few days later there was another commotion, this time in the vines covering our dog run. We heard the same cries of alarm, the gathering of the neighborhood finches. We knew what the predator was. A grandson climbed onto the run and pulled out another snake that was still holding on tightly to the mother bird it had caught in the nest and killed.

I said to myself, “What is going on? Is the Garden of Eden being invaded again?”

There came into my mind the warnings spoken by the prophets. We will not always be safe from the adversary’s influence, even within our own homes. We need to protect our nestlings.

Choices, but Consequences

"You get to choose.  If it's too hard, it's okay to give up.  But if you choose to live and do the hard things, you will live an extraordinary life and do extraordinary things."  
-James Artimus Owen

The Atonement can HELP YOU!

If the adversary should take you prisoner due to misconduct, I remind you that you hold the key that will unlock the prison door from the inside. You can be washed clean through the atoning sacrifice of the Savior Jesus Christ.
You may in time of trouble think that you are not worth saving because you have made mistakes, big or little, and you think you are now lost. That is never true! Only repentance can heal what hurts. But repentance can heal what hurts, no matter what it is.
If you are slipping into things that you should not slip into or if you are associating with people who are pulling you away in the wrong direction, that is the time to assert your independence, your agency. Listen to the voice of the Spirit, and you will not be led astray.
I say again that youth today are being raised in enemy territory with a declining standard of morality. But as a servant of the Lord, I promise that you will be protected and shielded from the attacks of the adversary if you will heed the promptings that come from the Holy Spirit.
-Boyd K Packer

"Fast and Slow"

The old crow is getting slow.

The young crow is not.

Of what the young crow does not know

The old crow knows a lot.

At knowing things the old crow

Is still the young crow’s master.

What does the slow old crow not know?

—How to go faster.

The young crow flies above, below,

And rings around the slow old crow.

What does the fast young crow not know?

—Where to go. ¹

 

^{-John Cairdi} 

ENDURE! one day at a time...

“I have so many problems, such real concerns. I’m overwhelmed with the challenges of life. What can I do?” I have offered to them, and I now offer to you, this specific suggestion: seek heavenly guidance one day at a time. Life by the yard is hard; by the inch it’s a cinch. Each of us can be true for just one day—and then one more and then one more after that—until we’ve lived a lifetime guided by the Spirit, a lifetime close to the Lord, a lifetime of good deeds and righteousness. The Savior promised, “Look unto me, and endure to the end, and ye shall live; for unto him that endureth to the end will I give eternal life.”<sup>6

-Thomas S Monson</sup>

Believe! In what? In this...

Believe that you are a daughter of Heavenly Father, that He loves you, and that you are here for a glorious purpose—to gain your eternal salvation. Believe that remaining strong and faithful to the truths of the gospel is of utmost importance.
-Thomas S Monson

The Lighthouse

Is there a way to safety? Is there an escape from threatened destruction? The answer is a resounding yes! I counsel you to look to the lighthouse of the Lord. I have said it before; I will say it again: there is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gale so strong, no mariner so lost but what the lighthouse of the Lord can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. It calls, “This way to safety. This way to home.” It sends forth signals of light easily seen and never failing. If followed, those signals will guide you back to your heavenly home.
-Thomas S Monson

"Climb 'til your Dreams come True"

Often your tasks will be many,
And more than you think you can do.
Often the road will be rugged
And the hills insurmountable, too.
But always remember,
The hills ahead
Are never as steep as they seem,
And with Faith in your heart
Start upward
And climb 'til you reach your dream.
For nothing in life that is worthy
Is ever too hard to achieve
If you have the courage to try it,
And you have the faith to believe.
For faith is a force that is greater
Than knowledge or power or skill,
And many defeats turn to triumph
If you trust in God's wisdom and will.
For faith is a mover of mountains,
There's nothing that God cannot do,
So, start out today with faith in your heart,
And climb 'til your dream comes true!

-Helen Steiner Rice 

"More" --a Song

MORE

(written by Kenneth Cope)

More steady, more sure

More trusted, more pure

Some say it doesn’t matter

More trained and more aware

More aim to get me there

I climb this far

You raise the bar

You want my heart

 

 

More fierce desire

To stand against the wind

More blazing fire

When dark is closing in

More love inspired change within

So there’s more and more of me to give

 

More words to learn and know

More etched upon my soul

Some say it doesn’t matter

More tried, more true

Less me, and much more You

I stretch this tall

You sound the call

You want my all

 

More fierce desire

To stand against the wind

More blazing fire

When dark is closing in

More love inspired change within

So there’s more and more of me to give

 

 

You keep reaching out

—

You’re calling out to me for

More strengthened shoulders

To face the war with sin

More wise and bolder

To save the souls of men

A more faithful soldier to the end

You want more and more of me to give

More and more of

me to give

More love, more light, more purpose, more serve with all my might

I need more hope, more faith, more patience, each day I pray for more

More and more of me to give

More fire, more zeal, more spirit to know what’s real

More courage, more joy, more, more and more of me to give

More grateful, more true, more humble to trust and do

You call, I hear

I’ll walk the path that’s set in stone

My heart is fixed on getting home

And what on earth could ever matter more?

More and more of me to give

More

 

 

Confidence from God

Our only confidence can be in God; our only wisdom obtained from Him; and He alone must be our protector and safeguard, spiritually and temporally, or we fall
--Joseph Smith

Work = HAPPINESS!

For thou shalt eat the labor of thy hands; happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
--Psalms 128:2

"Four Things"

Four things a man must learn to do
If he would mke his record true:
To think without confusion clearly;
To love his fellowman sincerely;
To act from honest motives purely;
To trust in God and Heaven securely.

Our Scriptures... like Cellphones?

I wonder what would happen if we treated our scriptures like we treat our cell phones?

What if we carried them around in our purses or pockets?

What if we turned back to go get them if we forgot them?

What if we flipped through them several times a day?

What if we used them to receive messages from the text?

What if we treated them like we couldn’t live without them?

What if we gave them to kids as gifts?

What if we used them as we traveled?

What if we used them as a standard part of our lives AND for emergencies?

Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phones, we really don’t have to worry about our scriptures being disconnected because Christ already paid the bill… 

--Unknown 

"Excuse this House"

Some houses try to hide the fact
That children shelter there,
Ours boasts it quite openly,
The signs are everywhere.

For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges are on the doors
I should apologize, I guess
For toys strew on the floor.

But I sat down with my child
And we played and laughed and read
And if the doorbell doesn’t shine,
His eyes will shine instead.

For when at times I’m forced to choose
The one job or the other,
I’d like to cook and clean and scrub,
But first I’ll be a mother.

--Unknown

How do we teach about Christ?

We do not draw people to Chrst by loudly discrediting what they believe, by telling them how wrong they are, and how right we are, but by showing them a light that is so lovely that they want with all their hearts to know the source of it.

--Madeline L'Engle

Christ-- The Light

Mosiah 16:9 He is the light and the life of the world; yeah a light that is endless, that can never be darkened; yeah, and also a life which is endless, that there can be no more death.

Endurance in the Gospel

Revelation 2:7, 10-11, 17, 26-28
7...To him that ^bovercometh will I give to eat of the ^ctree of life, which is in the midst of the ^dparadise of God.
10 ...be thou faithful unto ^cdeath, and I will ^dgive thee a ^ecrown of life.
11... He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second ^adeath.
17 ... To him that ^aovercometh will I give to eat of the hidden ^bmanna, and will give him a ^cwhite ^dstone, and in the stone a new ^ename written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
 26  ^aAnd he that ^bovercometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give ^cpower over the nations:

 27 And he shall rule them with a ^arod of iron; as the ^bvessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

 28 And I will give him the morning ^astar.

Revelation 3: 5, 12, 21

5 He that ^aovercometh, the same shall be clothed in ^bwhite ^craiment; and I will not ^dblot out his name out of the ^ebook of life, but I will ^fconfess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

 12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the ^aname of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is ^bnew Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

 21 To him that ^aovercometh will I grant to ^bsit with me in my ^cthrone, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

LOVE!

Leviticus 19: 18 ¶Thou shalt not ^aavenge, nor bear any ^bgrudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt ^clove thy ^dneighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

Mark 12: 30 And thou shalt ^alove the Lord thy God with all thy ^bheart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy ^cstrength: this is the first commandment.

 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Power!

When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in that moment God will endow us with power.
--Larry H Miller

Friends

Surround yourself with associates of your choice, who are powerful in a good way, and who will be a blessing to you.

The Devil doesn't like you

Alma 30:60 And thus we see the end of him who ^aperverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the devil will not ^bsupport his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to ^chell.

"Washed Clean"

In ancient times the cry “Unclean!”

Would warn of lepers near.

“Unclean! Unclean!” the words rang out;

Then all drew back in fear,

Lest by the touch of lepers’ hands

They, too, would lepers be.

There was no cure in ancient times,

Just hopeless agony.

No soap, no balm, no medicine

Could stay disease or pain.

There was no salve, no cleansing bath,

To make them well again.

But there was One, the record shows,

Whose touch could make them pure;

Could ease their awful suffering,

Their rotting flesh restore.

His coming long had been foretold.

Signs would precede His birth.

A Son of God to woman born,

With power to cleanse the earth.

The day He made ten lepers whole,

The day He made them clean,

Well symbolized His ministry

And what His life would mean.

However great that miracle,

This was not why He came.

He came to rescue every soul

From death, from sin, from shame.

For greater miracles, He said,

His servants yet would do,

To rescue every living soul,

Not just heal up the few.

Though we’re redeemed from mortal death,

We still can’t enter in

Unless we’re clean, cleansed every whit,

From every mortal sin.

What must be done to make us clean

We cannot do alone.

The law, to be a law, requires

A pure one must atone.

He taught that justice will be stayed

Till mercy’s claim be heard

If we repent and are baptized

And live by every word. …

If we could only understand

All we have heard and seen,

We’d know there is no greater gift

Than those two words—“Washed clean!”

--President Packer

Confidence!!

“You can’t live your life worrying that the world is staring at you. When you let people’s opinions make you self-conscious you give away your power. … The key to feeling [confident] is to always listen to your inner self—[the real you.]” ⁸ And in the kingdom of God, the real you is “more precious than rubies.”

--Elder Holland (Oct. 2005, "To the Young Women") (but it is for EVERYONE)

How to Cheer up!

Good cheer is something more than faith in the future, it is gratitude fo the past, and joy in the present.
--Unknown

"If you can't be a Pine"

 








 If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill
Be a scrub in the valley--but be
The best little scrub by the side of the rill;
Be a bush if you can't be a tree.

 

If you can't be a bush be a bit of the grass,
And some highway some happier make;
If you can't be a muskie then just be a bass--
But the liveliest bass in the lake!

We can't all be captains, we've got to be crew,
There's something for all of us here.
There's big work to do and there's lesser to do,
And the task we must do is the near.

If you can't be a highway then just be a trail,
If you can't be the sun be a star;
It isn't by size that you win or you fail--
Be the best of whatever you are!

--Douglas Malloch.

"Carry On"

It’s easy to fight when everything’s right,
And you’re mad with thrill and the glory;
It’s easy to cheer when victory’s near,
And wallow in fields that are gory.
It’s a different song when everything’s wrong,
When you’re feeling infernally mortal;
When it’s ten against one, and hope there is none,
Buck up, little soldier, and chortle:

      Carry on! Carry on!
   There isn’t much punch in your blow.
You are glaring and staring and hitting out blind;
You are muddy and bloody, but never you mind.
      Carry on! Carry on!
   You haven’t the ghost of a show.
It’s looking like death, but while you’ve a breath,
       Carry on, my son! Carry on! 

And so in the strife of the battle of life
It’s easy to fight when you’re winning;
It’s easy to slave, and starve and be brave,
When the dawn of success is beginning.
But the man who can meet despair and defeat
With a cheer, there’s the man of God’s choosing;
The man who can fight to Heaven’s own height
Is the man who can fight when he’s losing.
   
      Carry on! Carry on!
   Thing never were looming so black.
But show that you haven’t a cowardly streak,
And though you’re unlucky you never are weak.
      Carry on! Carry on!
   Brace up for another attack.
It’s looking like hell, but – you never tell.
      Carry on, old man! Carry on!

There are some who drift out in the desert of doubt
And some who in brutishness wallow;
There are others, I know, who in piety go
Because of a Heaven to follow.
But to labor with zest, and to give of your best,
For the sweetness and joy of the giving;
To help folks along with a hand and a song;
Why, there’s the real sunshine of living.

      Carry on! Carry on!
   Fight the good fight and true;
Believe in your mission, greet life with a cheer;
There’s big work to do, and that’s why you are here.
      Carry on! Carry on!
   Let the world be the better for you;
And at last when you die, let this be your cry!
      Carry on, my soul! Carry on!

--Robert Service 

Service!

I slept and dreamt that life was joy,
I awoke and saw that life was servie,
I acted, and behold, service was joy.
--Rabindranath Tagore

"If you Think you are Beaten"

“If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you'd like to win, but think you can't
It's almost a cinch you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you've lost,
For out in the world we find
Success being with a fellow's will;
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you're outclassed, you are:
You've got to think high to rise.
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the one who thinks he can.” 

 --Walter D Wintle

Peace

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

"True Nobility"

Who does his task from day to day
And meets whatever comes his way,
Believing God has willed it so.
Has found real greatness here below.
Who guards his post, no matter where,
Believing God must need him there,
Although but lowly toil it be,
Has risen to nobility.
For great and low there's but one test:
`Tis that each man shall do his best.
Who works with all the strength he can
Shall never die in debt to man.

--Edgar Guest 

"The Fellowship of the Unashamed"

I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed.
The dye has been cast.
I have stepped over the line.
The decision has been made;
I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.
I won’t look back, let up, slow down, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and
my future is secure.
I’m finished and done with low living,
small planning, smooth knees,
Colorless dreams, tinted visions, worldly talking,
cheap giving, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, positions,
promotions, plaudits, or popularity.
I don’t have to be right, first, recognized, praised,
regarded, or rewarded.

I now live by Faith, lean on His presence,
walk with patience.
I am uplifted by prayer, and labor with power.
My face is set, my gait is fast,
my goal is heaven.
My road is narrow, my way is rough,
my companions few, my Guide is reliable,
my mission is clear.

I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured,
lured away, divided or delayed.
I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice,
hesitate in the presence of the adversary,
negotiate at the table with the enemy,
ponder at the pool of popularity,
or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed
up, stored up, and paid up for the cause of Christ.

I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all
know, and work till He stops me.  And when He returns for His Own, He will have no problem
recognizing me.  My Banner will be clear.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it
is the power of GOD unto Salvation to every one
that believeth…” Romans 1:16.

Some thoughts from Confucius

I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.

Study the past if you will define the future.

Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star.

Mens' natures are alike, it is their habits that carry them far apart.
 
What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others.

The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved. 

When anger arises, think of the consequences

Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.
 
Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.

It does not matter how slowly you go, so long as you do not stop. 

Respect yourself and others will respect you 

He who excersizes government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it.
 

Trust in God=Happiness

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

--D&C 123:17

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance,

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

--William E Henley.

Answer to Invictus/"The Soul's Captain"

Art thou in truth? Then what of him

Who bought thee with his blood?

Who plunged into devouring seas

And snatched thee from the flood?

Who bore for all our fallen race

What none but him could bear. –

The God who died that man might live,

And endless glory share?

Of what avail thy vaunted strength,

Apart from his vast might?

Pray that his Light may pierce the gloom,

That thou mayest see aright.

Men are as bubbles on the wave,

As leaves upon the tree.

Thou, captain of thy soul, forsooth

Who gave that place to thee?

Free will is thine -- free agency

To wield for right or wrong;

But thou must answer unto him

To whom all souls belong.

Bend to the dust that head "unbowed,"

Small part of Life's great whole!

And see in him, and him alone,

The Captain of thy soul

--Elder Orson F Whitney

Leadership

"A good leader is not the person who does things right, but the person who finds the right things to do" -- Anthony T Dadovano

"The Lord needs builders, not just cartakers" --Charles W Dahlquist 

"Leading is teaching." David Bednar

"The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers" --Ralph Nader

"Leaders don't force people to follow--they invite them on a journey" Charles S Lauer

"My Symphony"

To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion, to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly, to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart, to bear all cheerfully, to do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never. In a word, to let the spiritual unbidden and unconscious grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony.

--William Henry Channing

House-Building

Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace.

--C S Lewis 

 

"Good Timber"

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.

--Douglas Malloch