Character

"I am under the strongest impression, that the most valuable consideration, and that which will be of the most service when we return to the spirit world, will be that of having established a proper and well defined character as faithful and consistent Latter-day Saints in this state of probation."

" . . . establish a character before God that could be relied upon in the hour of trial, and that would fit them to associate with the holy beings and with the Father himself when they have passed into the spirit world."

"Righteous character traits develop within us gradually as we exercise faith and repent of our wrongdoings. Such traits are not the products of accident or chance, neither are they acquired in a day, a week, a month, or a year, but are gradual developments, the result of continued faithfulness to God and to truth, independent of the plaudits or criticisms of men."

"Our character, as Latter-day Saints, should be preserved inviolate, at whatever cost or sacrifice."

- Lorenzo Snow - (Teachings of Presidents of the Church Lorenzo Snow, Lesson 8)

Know My Heart

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."

- Psalms 139: 23-24 -

With Our Hearts Right

"I ask the Lord of Israel to bless the Latter-day Saints and that we may be prepared for the events of the near future, with our hearts right before the Lord."

- Lorenzo Snow - (at the funeral of Franklin D. Richards)

Kindness

"Kindness is the power that God has given us to unlock hard hearts and subdue stubborn souls and bring them to an understanding of His purposes."

"Live in such a way, in love and kindness, that peace and prayer and thanksgiving will be in you homes together."

"It is our duty -- I should say it is our privilege as well as our duty to take sufficient time to surround our children with safeguards and to so love them and earn their love that they will be glad to listen to our advice and counsel."

- George Albert Smith -

Gatsby

"For Daisy was young, and her artificial world was pleasant, cheerful snobbery, and orchestras which set the rhythm of the year, summing up the sadness and suggestiveness of life in new tunes."

"They were careless people, Tom and Daisy. They . . . smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together and let other people clean up the mess they had made."

"His dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him. Somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night . . . Gatsby believed in the . . . future, that year by year recedes before us.  It alluded us then, but that's no matter. Tomorrow, we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther, and one fine morning. So we beat on -- boats against the current -- borne back ceaselessly into the past."

- F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby

Persuasion

"Persuasion is an art that begins in charity, not in righteousness."

- Reid Buckley - Speaking in Public

The True Mind-enhancing Drug

"The true mind-enhancing drug that the generation of the 1960s and those of the decades since have been searching for is literature."

- Reid Buckley -

Fat Books

"Don't be discouraged by fat books. In every fat book, there's a little thin book trying to get out."

- Paul Zindel - The Pigman and Me

The Birds of Sadness

"You can't keep the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair."

- Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons

Trust

"Trust, and not submission, defines obedience."

- Joan W. Blox -
A Gathering of Days: A New England Girl's Journal 1830-32 (Winner of the Newbery Medal)

A Day No Pigs Would Die

"One chore done good beats two done ragged."

"Papa works all the time. He don't never rest. And worse than that, he works inside himself. I can see it on his face. Like he's been trying all his life to catch up to something. But whatever it is, it's always ahead of him, and he can't reach it."

"That's what being a man is all about, boy. It's just doing what's got to be done."

"It's hell to be poor!"

"When you're the only one to do something, it always gets done."

"Somewhere down under all that Vermont clay was my father, Haven Peck. Buried deep in the land he sweated so hard and longed to own so much. And now it owned him."

Robert Newton Peck

If Not Forgotten

"If not forgotten, not gone."

- David McCullough -

I Will Go Forward

"I will go forward . . . I will smile at the rage of the tempest, and ride fearlessly and triumphantly across the boisterous ocean of circumstance . . . and the 'testimony of Jesus' will light up a lamp that will guide my vision through the portals of immortality."
- Eliza R. Snow - (from Daughters of My Kingdom, p. 59)

All My Favorite Ideas

"In the year 1837, I totally relinquished all my favorite ideas."
- Lorenzo Snow -

Pain vs. Quitting

"Pain is temporary. Quitting is forever."
- Anonymous

Being Thin

"Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels."
- Anonymous -

Harry's Rules to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise

1. Exercise six days a week for the rest of your life.
2. Do serious aerobic exercise four days a week for the rest of your life.
3. Do serious strength training, with weights, two days a week for the rest of your life.
4. Spend less than you make.
5. Quit eating crap!
6. Care.
7. Connect and commit!

- Henry S. Lodge, MD - 

I Sin Differently Than You

"Don't judge me because I sin differently than you."
- Dieter F. Uchtdorf -

Achieve your Eternal Destiny

"As important as it is to lose every desire for sin, eternal life requires more. To achieve our eternal destiny, we will desire and work for the qualities required to become an eternal being. For example, eternal beings forgive all who have wronged them. They put the welfare of others ahead of themselves. And they love all of God’s children. If this seems too difficult—and surely it is not easy for any of us—then we should begin with a desire for such qualities and call upon our loving Heavenly Father for help with our feelings. The Book of Mormon teaches us that we should 'pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that [we] may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ' (Moroni 7:48)."
- Dallin H. Oaks -

The Divine Potential of Priesthood Service

"When you grasp the divine potential of your priesthood service, the Spirit of God will fill your hearts and minds; it will shine in your eyes and faces."
- Dieter F. Uchtdorf - Apr 2, 2011 General Conference

I Care for Myself

"Who in the world cares for you, or who will be injured by what you do?
I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself. I will keep the law given by God . . . Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this . . . If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth--so I have always believed. Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot."

- Charlotte Bronte in  Jane Eyre -

Grace Is . . .

"Grace is the presence of God's power. Grace is not the light at the end of the tunnel. It is the light that energizes you through the tunnel."
- Brad Wilcox -

Philosophy and Vain Deceit

"Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ."
Colossians 2:8

The Living Christ

THE LIVING CHRIST

THE TESTIMONY OF THE APOSTLES THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite

virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth.

He was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). Though sinless, He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38), yet was despised for it. His gospel was a message of peace and goodwill. He entreated all to follow His example. He walked the roads of Palestine, healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. He taught the truths of eternity, the reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the potential for the sons and daughters of God in the life to come.

He instituted the sacrament as a reminder of His great atoning sacrifice. He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvary’s cross. He gave His life to atone for the sins of all mankind. His was a great vicarious gift in behalf of all who would ever live upon the earth.

We solemnly testify that His life, which is central to all human history, neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the flesh, the Redeemer of the world.

He rose from the grave to “become the firstfruits of them that slept” (1 Corinthians 15:20). As Risen Lord, He visited among those He had loved in life. He also ministered among His “other sheep” (John 10:16) in ancient America. In the modern world, He and His Father appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, ushering in the long-promised “dispen- sation of the fulness of times” (Ephesians 1:10).

Of the Living Christ, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:

“I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (D&C 110:3–4).

Of Him the Prophet also declared: “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

“That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C 76:22–24).

We declare in words of solemnity that His priesthood and His Church have been restored upon the earth— “built upon the foundation of . . . apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20).

We testify that He will someday return to earth. “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (Isaiah 40:5). He will rule as King of Kings and reign as Lord of Lords, and every knee shall bend and every tongue shall speak in worship before Him. Each of us will stand to be judged of Him according to our works and the desires of our hearts.

We bear testimony, as His duly ordained Apostles— that Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son.

THE FIRST PRESIDENCY THE QUORUM OF THE TWELVE

January 1, 2000

© 1999 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA. English approval: 12/99

How to Change Behavior

"The study of the gospel will change behavior faster than the study of behavior will change behavior."

- Boyd K. Packer -