I found this quote tonight while searching for something else and basically fell in love with it!
“My young sisters, we have such hope for you. We have such great expectations for you. Don't settle for less than what the Lord wants you to be...
Give me a young woman who loves home and family, who reads and ponders the scriptures daily, who has a burning testimony of the Book of Mormon... Give me a young woman who is virtuous and who has maintained her personal purity, who will not settle for less than a temple marriage, and I will give you a young woman who will perform miracles for the Lord now and throughout eternity.”
― Ezra Taft Benson
Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Saturday, February 2, 2013
For Times of Trouble
This talk was given by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland on March 18, 1980. I share only a few quotes from this address that have helped me a lot recently as I've dealt with a great deal of depression and discouragement.
"In doing so, however, I wish at the outset to make a distinction F. Scott Fitzgerald once made, that "trouble" has no necessary connection with discouragement - discouragement has a germ of its own, as different from trouble as arthritis is different from a stiff joint". Troubles we all have, bu the "germ" of discouragement, to use Fitzgerald's word, is not in the trouble, it is in us. Or to be more precise, I believe it is in Satan, the Prince of Darkness, the Father of Lies. And he would have it be in us. It's frequently a small germ, hardly worth going to the Health Center for, but it will work and it will grow and it will spread. In fact, it can become almost a habit, a way of living and thinking, and there the greatest damage is done. Then it takes an increasingly severe toll on our spirit, for it erodes the deepest religious commitments we can make - those of faith, and hope, and charity. We turn inward and look downward, and these greatest of Christlike virtues are damaged or at very least impaired. We become unhappy and soon make others unhappy, and before long Lucifer laughs."
"As with any other germ, a little preventive medicine ought to be practiced in terms of those things that get us down. There is a line from Dante that says, "The arrow seen before cometh less rudely". President John F. Kennedy put the same thought into one of his state of the union messages this way: "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining." The Boy Scouts say it best of all: "Be prepared." That isn't just cracker-barrel wisdom with us; it is theology. "And angels shall fly through the midst of heaven, crying with a loud voice...Prepare ye, prepare ye" (D&C 88:92). "But if ye are prepared ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30). And fear is part of what I wish to oppose this morning. The scriptures teach that preparation - prevention if you will - is perhaps the major weapon in your arsenal against discouragement and self-defeat".
"If there is one lament I cannot abide - and I hear it from adults as well as students - it is the poor, pitiful, withered cry, "Well, that's just the way I am." If you want to talk about discouragement, that phrase is one that discourages me. Though not a swearing man, I am always sorely tempted to try my hand when I hear that. Please spare me your speeches about "That's just the way I am." I've head the from too many people who wanted to sin and call it psychology. And I use the word sin again to cover a vast range of habits, some seemingly innocent enough, that nevertheless bring discouragement and doubt and despair."
"In the gospel of Jesus Christ you have help from both sides of the veil, and you must never forget that. When disappointment and discouragement strike - and they will - you remember and never forget that if our eyes could be opened we would see horses and chariots of fire as far as the eye can see riding at reckless speed to come to our protection. They will always be there, these armies of heaven, in defense of Abraham's seed."
I have listened to this talk three times this week, and listened to it twice. I love it more and more each time and feel myself making more and more progress away from my depression and discouragement. Satan is good at what he does, but Heavenly Father is better. I'm making sure that I am prepared now in every aspect of my life so that I do not have to live in fear. I am staying on the side of light so that discouragement will not overpower me quite as easily.
"In doing so, however, I wish at the outset to make a distinction F. Scott Fitzgerald once made, that "trouble" has no necessary connection with discouragement - discouragement has a germ of its own, as different from trouble as arthritis is different from a stiff joint". Troubles we all have, bu the "germ" of discouragement, to use Fitzgerald's word, is not in the trouble, it is in us. Or to be more precise, I believe it is in Satan, the Prince of Darkness, the Father of Lies. And he would have it be in us. It's frequently a small germ, hardly worth going to the Health Center for, but it will work and it will grow and it will spread. In fact, it can become almost a habit, a way of living and thinking, and there the greatest damage is done. Then it takes an increasingly severe toll on our spirit, for it erodes the deepest religious commitments we can make - those of faith, and hope, and charity. We turn inward and look downward, and these greatest of Christlike virtues are damaged or at very least impaired. We become unhappy and soon make others unhappy, and before long Lucifer laughs."
"As with any other germ, a little preventive medicine ought to be practiced in terms of those things that get us down. There is a line from Dante that says, "The arrow seen before cometh less rudely". President John F. Kennedy put the same thought into one of his state of the union messages this way: "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining." The Boy Scouts say it best of all: "Be prepared." That isn't just cracker-barrel wisdom with us; it is theology. "And angels shall fly through the midst of heaven, crying with a loud voice...Prepare ye, prepare ye" (D&C 88:92). "But if ye are prepared ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30). And fear is part of what I wish to oppose this morning. The scriptures teach that preparation - prevention if you will - is perhaps the major weapon in your arsenal against discouragement and self-defeat".
"If there is one lament I cannot abide - and I hear it from adults as well as students - it is the poor, pitiful, withered cry, "Well, that's just the way I am." If you want to talk about discouragement, that phrase is one that discourages me. Though not a swearing man, I am always sorely tempted to try my hand when I hear that. Please spare me your speeches about "That's just the way I am." I've head the from too many people who wanted to sin and call it psychology. And I use the word sin again to cover a vast range of habits, some seemingly innocent enough, that nevertheless bring discouragement and doubt and despair."
"In the gospel of Jesus Christ you have help from both sides of the veil, and you must never forget that. When disappointment and discouragement strike - and they will - you remember and never forget that if our eyes could be opened we would see horses and chariots of fire as far as the eye can see riding at reckless speed to come to our protection. They will always be there, these armies of heaven, in defense of Abraham's seed."
I have listened to this talk three times this week, and listened to it twice. I love it more and more each time and feel myself making more and more progress away from my depression and discouragement. Satan is good at what he does, but Heavenly Father is better. I'm making sure that I am prepared now in every aspect of my life so that I do not have to live in fear. I am staying on the side of light so that discouragement will not overpower me quite as easily.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Preparing for Your Spiritual Destiny
I recently inherited an iPhone and I'm SOOO in love with it, but probably not for all the reasons you may think. Sure, I can now check my emails, play games, even get directions wherever I am, but none of those are the reasons I LOVE it. I love it because I can listen to the scriptures and any general conference talk or BYU address ever given, basically. I am learning so much thanks to this amazing gift of technology!
Today I listened to a talk given by Elder Neil L. Andersen on January 10, 2010 (three years ago TODAY - pure coincidence or divine inspiration??) entitled Preparing for Your Spiritual Destiny. I just had to share a few quotes from Elder Andersen.
1. "Take comfort in knowing that you are joined by thousands and hundred of thousands in the challenges you face and in the important purposes you feel"
2. "Our premortal life was not a passive existence. We had choices to make there as we do here. We had progressed and were in need of a physical body and the experiences of mortality. We needed to prove our willingness to live by faith. Our Heavenly Father presented a plan to us. Central to that plan was the role of His Only Begotten Son to provide a way back for us. We accepted the Father's plan and rejoice in the chosen Savior. Our foreordained opportunities and responsibilities help shape what we are to do in mortality. In ways not fully understood, "our actions in the spirit would influence us in mortality."
3. "Have you ever wondered: Why is it that I am who I am? Why is it I feel the way I feel? Why have I chosen to believe so fully in the Lord Jesus Christ? Why do I choose to keep His commandments when others do not care about them? Why do I feel the way I do about the Book of Mormon?" ..."You were chosen and foreordained to have the gospel in your life and to be a leader in the cause of the restored gospel."
4. "Spiritual preparation will uncover your own inner resources. There is power in prayer. There is strength in the scriptures."
5. "And personal righteousness is essential to having the gift of the Holy Ghost. We will not be guided by the Holy Ghost if we are casual about our obedience."
And finally:
6. "Your spiritual destiny will have obstacles, delays, and equipment malfunctions. There will be mistakes. You may wonder if you are going to make it. Don't be discouraged! You will also have moments of hope and faith as doors open and obstacles are overcome. Continue, persist, above all, believe in Christ and learn to follow Him and His prophets; endure, as Nephi said, with a "brightness of hope" (2 Nephi 31:20). As you do, I promise you, one day you will hear your name. You will make it."
To read the full address, click here.
Today I listened to a talk given by Elder Neil L. Andersen on January 10, 2010 (three years ago TODAY - pure coincidence or divine inspiration??) entitled Preparing for Your Spiritual Destiny. I just had to share a few quotes from Elder Andersen.
1. "Take comfort in knowing that you are joined by thousands and hundred of thousands in the challenges you face and in the important purposes you feel"
2. "Our premortal life was not a passive existence. We had choices to make there as we do here. We had progressed and were in need of a physical body and the experiences of mortality. We needed to prove our willingness to live by faith. Our Heavenly Father presented a plan to us. Central to that plan was the role of His Only Begotten Son to provide a way back for us. We accepted the Father's plan and rejoice in the chosen Savior. Our foreordained opportunities and responsibilities help shape what we are to do in mortality. In ways not fully understood, "our actions in the spirit would influence us in mortality."
3. "Have you ever wondered: Why is it that I am who I am? Why is it I feel the way I feel? Why have I chosen to believe so fully in the Lord Jesus Christ? Why do I choose to keep His commandments when others do not care about them? Why do I feel the way I do about the Book of Mormon?" ..."You were chosen and foreordained to have the gospel in your life and to be a leader in the cause of the restored gospel."
4. "Spiritual preparation will uncover your own inner resources. There is power in prayer. There is strength in the scriptures."
5. "And personal righteousness is essential to having the gift of the Holy Ghost. We will not be guided by the Holy Ghost if we are casual about our obedience."
And finally:
6. "Your spiritual destiny will have obstacles, delays, and equipment malfunctions. There will be mistakes. You may wonder if you are going to make it. Don't be discouraged! You will also have moments of hope and faith as doors open and obstacles are overcome. Continue, persist, above all, believe in Christ and learn to follow Him and His prophets; endure, as Nephi said, with a "brightness of hope" (2 Nephi 31:20). As you do, I promise you, one day you will hear your name. You will make it."
To read the full address, click here.
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