LDS Gem Archives, January 2010
Young Single Adult Gems - 29 January 2010
The Importance of Quiet Time
“Because the Spirit is often described as a still, small voice, it is also important to have a time of quiet in our lives as well. The Lord has counseled us to ‘be still, and know that I am God.’ If we provide a still and quiet time each day when we are not bombarded by television, computer, video games, or personal electronic devices, we allow that still, small voice an opportunity to provide personal revelation and to whisper sweet guidance, reassurance, and comfort to us.”
Topics: Holy Ghost
Church History Gems - 29 January 2010
Devotion to God
"Most books contained in libraries of the world were authored for contemporary readers. And they were generally written for profit, with royalties accruing from successful sales.
"Not so with the Book of Mormon. It was written anciently for our day. It reveals the endless Lordship of Jesus Christ in accounts of two ancient American dispensations, preserved for the benefit of us who live in this dispensation of the fulness of times. Certainly no royalties came to its authors. In fact, they paid dearly for their privilege of participation. What motivated them? Their devotion to God! The book's four major writers—Nephi, Jacob, Mormon, and Moroni—were all eyewitnesses of the Lord, as was its martyred translator, the Prophet Joseph Smith."
Topics: Joseph Smith, Book of Mormon
Family Gems - 29 January 2010
We Must One Day Account for Our Family Relationships
“With respect to our stewardship for our families, some have taught that when we report to the Savior and He asks us to give an account of our earthly responsibilities, two important inquiries will relate to our families. The first will be our relationship with our spouse, and the second will be about each of our children (see Robert D. Hales, “Understandings of the Heart,” in Brigham Young University 1987–88 Devotional and Fireside Speeches [1988], 129; see also 2 Nephi 9:41).”
Topics: Family
Daily Gems - 29 January 2010
Love
"Love is the motivating principle by which the Lord leads us along the way towards becoming like Him, our perfect example. Our way of life, hour by hour, must be filled with the love of God and love for others."
Topics: Love
Daily Gems - 28 January 2010
Love, the Source of Both Blessings and Burdens
"Since the beginning of time, love has been the source of both the highest bliss and the heaviest burdens. At the heart of misery from the days of Adam until today, you will find the love of wrong things. And at the heart of joy, you will find the love of good things.
"And the greatest of all good things is God."
Topics: Love
Youth Gems - 28 January 2010
We Need to 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!”
Topics: Love
Church History Gems - 27 January 2010
Zion
"In the earliest years of this dispensation the people faltered in attempting to live the full economic plan of Zion, the united order. Because of their transgressions, the Lord chastened them. . . .
"The length of time required 'to accomplish all things pertaining to Zion' is strictly up to us and how we live, for creating Zion 'commences in the heart of each person.' (Journal of Discourses, 9:283.) That it would take some time to learn our lessons was seen by the prophets. In 1863 Brigham Young stated:
" 'If the people neglect their duty, turn away from the holy commandments which God has given us, seek their own individual wealth, and neglect the interests of the kingdom of God, we may expect to be here quite a time—perhaps a period that will be far longer than we anticipate.' (Journal of Discourses, 11:102.)
"Unfortunately we live in a world that largely rejects the values of Zion. Babylon has not and never will comprehend Zion. . . .
"This state of affairs stands in marked contrast to the Zion the Lord seeks to establish through his covenant people. Zion can be built up only among those who are the pure in heart, not a people torn by covetousness or greed, but a pure and selfless people. . . . No, Zion is not things of the lower, but of the higher order, things that exalt the mind and sanctify the heart.
"Zion is 'every man seeking the interest of his neighbor, and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God.' (D&C 82:19.) As I understand these matters, Zion can be established only by those who are pure in heart, and who labor for Zion."
Young Single Adult Gems - 27 January 2010
By Patience and Practice
“Have patience as you are perfecting your ability to be led by the Spirit. By careful practice, through the application of correct principles, and by being sensitive to the feelings that come, you will gain spiritual guidance. I bear witness that the Lord, through the Holy Ghost, can speak to your mind and heart. Sometimes the impressions are just general feelings. Sometimes the direction comes so clearly and so unmistakably that it can be written down like spiritual dictation.”
Topics: Holy Ghost
Daily Gems - 27 January 2010
Bearing and Living Our Testimony
"As disciples of the Savior, we are not merely striving to know more; rather, we need to consistently do more of what we know is right and become better.
"We should remember that bearing a heartfelt testimony is only a beginning. We need to bear testimony, we need to mean it, and most importantly we need consistently to live it. We need to both declare and live our testimonies."
Topics: Testimony
Daily Gems - 26 January 2010
Authorizing the Spirit to Teach You
"Impressions of the Spirit can come in response to urgent prayer or unsolicited when needed. Sometimes the Lord reveals truth to you when you are not actively seeking it, such as when you are in danger and do not know it. However, the Lord will not force you to learn. You must exercise your agency to authorize the Spirit to teach you. As you make this a practice in your life, you will be more perceptive to the feelings that come with spiritual guidance. Then, when that guidance comes, sometimes when you least expect it, you will recognize it more easily."
Topics: Holy Ghost
Youth Gems - 26 January 2010
Reflections of Love
“The relationship between love and appropriate action is demonstrated repeatedly in the scriptures and is highlighted by the Savior’s instruction to His Apostles: ‘If ye love me, keep my commandments’ (John 14:15). Just as our love of and for the Lord is evidenced by walking ever in His ways (see Deuteronomy 19:9), so our love for spouse, parents, and children is reflected most powerfully in our thoughts, our words, and our deeds (see Mosiah 4:30).”
Topics: Love
Young Single Adult Gems - 25 January 2010
The Divinity of the Book of Mormon
“I testify that one cannot come to full faith in this latter-day work—and thereby find the fullest measure of peace and comfort in these, our times—until he or she embraces the divinity of the Book of Mormon and the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it testifies. If anyone is foolish enough or misled enough to reject 531 pages of a heretofore unknown text teeming with literary and Semitic complexity without honestly attempting to account for the origin of those pages—especially without accounting for their powerful witness of Jesus Christ and the profound spiritual impact that witness has had on what is now tens of millions of readers—if that is the case, then such a person, elect or otherwise, has been deceived; and if he or she leaves this Church, it must be done by crawling over or under or around the Book of Mormon to make that exit.”
Topics:
Family Gems - 25 January 2010
A Loving Family Requires Selflessness
“Just as Jesus used a child in His mortal ministry as an example for the people of the pure love they must and could have to be like Him, He has offered us the family as an example of an ideal setting in which we can learn how to love as He loves.
“That is because the greatest joys and the greatest sorrows we experience are in family relationships. The joys come from putting the welfare of others above our own. That is what love is.”
Daily Gems - 25 January 2010
Line upon Line
"Revelation need not all come at once. It may be incremental. 'Saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more' (2 Nephi 28:30). Patience and perseverance are part of our eternal progression."
Topics: Faith, Revelation, Prayer
Church History Gems - 25 January 2010
Able to Understand the Truth
"Worthy music . . . has the power to persuade. We learn this lesson from the writings of John Jaques. He was born in England in 1827, a son of Wesleyan Methodist parents. In his youth John earnestly sought the true religion. He studied intensively with Latter-day Saint missionaries and, at the age of 18, became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
" 'John's austere father, upset upon hearing this news, wrote: "I wished you . . . to attend the Wesleyan Chapel. They [the Mormons] do not teach you . . . [to] honor and obey your parents. I . . . hope you will give up the idea of belonging to such a party. . . . It is fiction."
" 'John's reply, written March 14, 1847, when he was but twenty years of age, included these words: "Dear Father: I would pray . . . that I may understand the things of the Kingdom of God and carry my ideas to you. . . . Since I [joined the Church] my eyes have been opened, and I have been able to understand the truth. I can bear testimony to the truth . . . of the doctrines . . . in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." ' Three years later, at age 23, John Jaques wrote the words to this hymn that we know and love:
"Oh say, what is truth? 'Tis the fairest gem
That the riches of worlds can produce,
And priceless the value of truth will be when
The proud monarch's costliest diadem
Is counted but dross and refuse. . . .
["Oh Say, What Is Truth?" Hymns, no. 272]
"John stood firm in his conviction of the truth. He remained true and faithful and ultimately served as assistant to the Church historian from 1889 until his death on June 1, 1900."
Family Gems - 22 January 2010
Family Divisions Should Not Detract from Loving One Another
“When family members are not united in striving to keep the commandments of God, there will be divisions. We do all that we can to avoid impairing loving relationships, but sometimes it happens after all we can do.
“In the midst of such stress, we must endure the reality that the straying of our loved ones will detract from our happiness, but it should not detract from our love for one another or our patient efforts to be united in understanding God’s love and God’s laws.”
Church History Gems - 22 January 2010
Lord's Latter-day Servant
"The words of William W. Phelps's great hymn always stir me: 'Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah! Jesus anointed that Prophet and Seer. Blessed to open the last dispensation, kings shall extol him, and nations revere' ("Praise to the Man," Hymns, no. 27).
"The life and ministry of the Prophet Joseph Smith are indeed the substance of great things and remarkable events. They have created a legacy that will continue to increase among mankind. He was the Lord's latter-day servant who was chosen to bear witness anew of the resurrected Christ. . . .
". . . He sealed that testimony with his life's blood, dying a martyr to the truths of which he had spoken concerning the Redeemer of the world, in whose name he had carried on his ministry."
Topics: Music, Joseph Smith
Young Single Adult Gems - 22 January 2010
We Are Surrounded by Those in Need
“My brothers and sisters, we are surrounded by those in need of our attention, our encouragement, our support, our comfort, our kindness—be they family members, friends, acquaintances, or strangers. We are the Lord’s hands here upon the earth, with the mandate to serve and to lift His children. He is dependent upon each of us.”
Topics: Service
Daily Gems - 22 January 2010
Love, the Defining Characteristic
"We are created in the image of our heavenly parents; we are God's spirit children. Therefore, we have a vast capacity for love—it is part of our spiritual heritage. What and how we love not only defines us as individuals; it also defines us as a church. Love is the defining characteristic of a disciple of Christ."
Topics: Love
Youth Gems - 21 January 2010
Sacred Places
“There are places where it is easier to feel the Spirit. Testimony meetings and general conference are some of those places. Certainly temples are another. The challenge for each of us is in providing an environment where the Spirit can be felt daily in our homes and weekly at church.”
Topics: Spirituality
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