LDS Gem Archives, September 2009
Young Single Adult Gems - 30 September 2009
Ordinary People
“In my experience, there are very few people who are of true genius. While there are those who are gifted, most of the world’s work and some of the greatest contributions come from ordinary people with a talent which they have developed. An ordinary, garden-variety talent can be nurtured and nourished into a great gift through hard work.”
Topics:
Church History Gems - 30 September 2009
Magnitude of That Dream
"When our people first arrived in this valley 155 years ago, they saw with prophetic vision a great future. But I sometimes wonder if they really sensed the magnitude of that dream as it would unfold.
"The headquarters of the Church are in this city which recently hosted the 19th Winter Olympics. We made a deliberate decision that we would not use this as a time or place to proselytize, but we were confident that out of this significant event would come a wonderful thing for the Church. The great buildings which we have here—the Temple, the Tabernacle, this magnificent Conference Center, the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, Family History facilities, the Church Administration Building, the Church Office Building, our Welfare facilities, together with scores of chapels in this valley—could not be overlooked by those who walked the streets of this and neighboring cities. As Mike Wallace once remarked to me, 'These structures all denote something solid.'
"And beyond this, we had total confidence in our people, many thousands of them, who would serve as volunteers in this great undertaking. They would be dependable; they would be pleasant; they would be knowledgeable; they would be accommodating. The unique and distinctive capacity of our people in speaking the languages of the world would prove to be a tremendous asset beyond anything to be found elsewhere.
"Well, it all worked out."
Topics: Mission of the Church
Daily Gems - 30 September 2009
Our Test in Mortality
“Our challenges, including those we create by our own decisions, are part of our test in mortality. Let me assure you that your situation is not beyond the reach of our Savior. Through Him, every struggle can be for our experience and our good (see D&C 122:7). Each temptation we overcome is to strengthen us, not destroy us. The Lord will never allow us to suffer beyond what we can endure (see 1 Corinthians 10:13).
“We must remember that the adversary knows us extremely well. He knows where, when, and how to tempt us. If we are obedient to the promptings of the Holy Ghost, we can learn to recognize the adversary’s enticements. Before we yield to temptation, we must learn to say with unflinching resolve, ‘Get thee behind me, Satan’ (Matthew 16:23).”
Topics: Enduring to the End, Purpose of Mortality
Daily Gems - 29 September 2009
Learning by Personal Experience
“It is clear that for us to have [God’s] gift [of eternal life] and to be given [the] trust [of our Heavenly Father], we must be transformed through making righteous choices where that is hard to do. We are prepared for so great a trust by passing through trying and testing experiences in mortality. That education can come only as we are subject to trials while serving God and others for Him.”
Topics: Righteousness, Atonement, Sacrifice
Youth Gems - 29 September 2009
Preparation
“In academic preparation, I have found it a good practice to read a text with the idea that I will be asked to explain that which the author wrote and its application to the subject it covered. Also, I have tried to be attentive in any lecture in the classroom and to pretend that I would be called upon to present the same lecture to others. While this practice is very hard work, it certainly helps during test week!”
Church History Gems - 28 September 2009
Greater Faithfulness
"If Joseph saw what he claimed to have seen, and I testify that he did, then in sharing his vision he did more than any man who has ever lived to reveal the nature, character, and mission of the Lord Jesus Christ to the world. As a consequence, we Latter-day Saints have some duties and responsibilities.
"President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008) eloquently expressed himself in this regard:
" 'I read this morning a part of Joseph Smith's testimony of the First Vision. You are all familiar with it. His going into a grove, pleading with the Lord, a light shining above him, and then the appearance of the Father and the Son. I read that testimony and thought of it. I said to myself, "If every one of us knew in our hearts that that statement is true, then we would know that all else which follows it, which came through the restoration of the gospel, is true also." And we would walk and live with greater faithfulness.
" 'Tithing would not be a problem with us. Temple service would not be a problem with us. Keeping the Sabbath day holy would not be a problem with us. . . . Missionary service would be no problem with us.
" 'All else that follows would be true. We would know it in our hearts if we had a solid, firm, immovable conviction of the truth and validity of that great vision wherein God the Eternal Father and the risen Lord Jesus Christ appeared to the boy Joseph Smith and the Father said, "This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" ' (Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley [1997], 225–26)."
Topics: First Vision
Family Gems - 28 September 2009
Set Your Homes in an Order Pleasing to the Lord
Topics: Righteousness, Example
Daily Gems - 28 September 2009
Power through Covenants
“A covenant is an agreement between God and man, an accord whose terms are set by God (see Bible Dictionary, “Covenant,” 651). In these divine agreements, God binds Himself to sustain, sanctify, and exalt us in return for our commitment to serve Him and keep His commandments.
“We enter into covenants by priesthood ordinances, sacred rituals that God has ordained for us to manifest our commitment. . . . If we are faithful, we become inheritors not only of the celestial kingdom but of exaltation, the highest glory within the heavenly kingdom, and we obtain all the divine possibilities God can give (D&C 132:20).”
Topics: Temple Work, Priesthood Keys
Family Gems - 25 September 2009
Within Families Children Learn to Cope with This World
“Let us . . . honor the special place of the family. As James Q. Wilson wrote:
“ ‘We learn to cope with the people of this world because we learn to cope with the members of our family. Those who flee the family flee the world; bereft of the [family’s] affection, tutelage, and challenges, they are unprepared for the [world’s] tests, judgments, and demands’ (The Moral Sense [1993], 163).”
Topics: Family
Daily Gems - 25 September 2009
How We Receive Inspiration
“When the winds blow and the rains pour, they blow and pour on all. Those who have built their foundations on bedrock rather than sand survive the storms (see Matthew 7:24–27). There is a way to build on bedrock by developing a deep personal conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ and knowing how to receive inspiration. We must know—and know that we know. We must stand spiritually and temporally independent of all worldly creatures (see D&C 78:14). This begins by understanding that God the Father is the Father of our spirits and that He loves us, that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and Savior, and that the Holy Ghost can communicate with our minds and our hearts (see D&C 8:2–3). This is how we receive inspiration. We need to learn how to recognize and apply these promptings.”
Topics: Conversion
Young Single Adult Gems - 25 September 2009
Avoid Pornography
“Avoid any semblance of pornography. It is dangerous and addictive. If you continue to view pornography, your spirit will become desensitized and your conscience will erode.”
Topics: Righteousness
Church History Gems - 25 September 2009
Heart Filled with Love of God
"Our hearts can only be drawn out to God when they are filled with love for Him and trust in His goodness. Joseph Smith, even as a boy, gave us an example of how we can come to pray from a heart filled with the love of God and then pray unceasingly through a life filled with trials and blessings.
"Joseph started for the grove to pray with faith that a loving God would answer his prayer and relieve his confusion. He gained that assurance reading the word of God and receiving a witness that it was true. He said that he read in James, 'Let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him' (James 1:5). His faith to ask of God in prayer came after pondering a scripture which assured him of God's loving nature. He prayed, as we must, with faith in a loving God.
"He prayed with the intent not only to listen but to obey. He did not ask only to know the truth. He was committed to act upon whatever God would communicate to him. His written account makes clear that he prayed with real intent, determined to comply with whatever answer he received."
Daily Gems - 24 September 2009
That Which Perisheth Not
“With all the love I have in me and with the Savior’s love through me, I invite you to come unto Him and hear His words: ‘Wherefore do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted’ (2 Nephi 9:51).”
Topics: Commandments, Temptation, Atonement
Youth Gems - 24 September 2009
Faith and Knowledge
“Faith and knowledge require equal effort and commitment. We cannot expect to have faith at the center of our lives if all of our efforts are expended on knowledge, sports, hobbies, making money, or other pursuits.”
Topics: Faith
Young Single Adult Gems - 23 September 2009
The Lord Knows Us
“The Lord knows who we really are, what we really think, what we really do, and who we really are becoming.”
Topics: Children of God
Church History Gems - 23 September 2009
Humblest of All Servants
"Daniel Tyler, an associate of the Prophet, recalled an important occasion: '. . . I attended a meeting . . . where "Joseph" [Smith] presided. Entering the school-house a little before [the] meeting opened, and gazing upon the man of God, I perceived sadness in his countenance and tears trickling down his cheeks. . . . A few moments later a hymn was sung and he opened the meeting by prayer. Instead of facing the audience, however, he turned his back and bowed upon his knees, facing the wall. This, I suppose, was done to hide his sorrow and tears.
" 'I had heard men and women pray . . . from the most ignorant, both as to letters and intellect, to the most learned and eloquent, but never until then had I heard a man address his Maker as though He was present listening as a kind father would listen to the sorrows of a dutiful child. Joseph was at that time unlearned, but that prayer, which was to a considerable extent in behalf of those who accused him of having gone astray and fallen into sin, [was] that the Lord would forgive them and open their eyes that they might see aright—that prayer, I say, to my humble mind, partook of the learning and eloquence of heaven. There was no ostentation, no raising of the voice as by enthusiasm, but a plain conversational tone, as a man would address a present friend. It appeared to me as though, in case the vail were taken away, I could see the Lord standing facing His humblest of all servants I had ever seen. . . . It was the crowning . . . of all the prayers I ever heard' (Juvenile Instructor, Feb. 1892, 127–28)."
Topics: Humility
Daily Gems - 23 September 2009
Reverence in Our Meetings
“As parents and leaders, we must set the example of reverent behavior in our Church meetings. Our chapels provide places for many different functions, but on Sunday they are places of worship.”
Topics: Spirituality, Worship
Youth Gems - 22 September 2009
Standards of Strength
“Precious young people, make every decision you contemplate pass this test: What does it do to me? What does it do for me? And let your code of conduct emphasize not ‘What will others think?’ but rather ‘What will I think of myself?’ Be influenced by that still, small voice. Remember that one with authority placed his hands on your head at the time of your confirmation and said, ‘Receive the Holy Ghost.’ Open your hearts, even your very souls, to the sound of that special voice that testifies of truth.”
Topics: Holy Ghost, Righteousness
Daily Gems - 22 September 2009
Inspiration of the Spirit
“Our Church leaders have taught and we have felt the Spirit invite the use of inspired questions given of the Spirit to help us learn of God and His will for us (see Henry B. Eyring, “Elder David A. Bednar: Going Forward in the Strength of the Lord,” Ensign, Mar. 2005, 16-21).”
Topics: Spirituality, Prayer
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