Young Single Adult Gems - 13 November 2009

Becoming Submissive

“As one’s will is increasingly submissive to the will of God, he can receive inspiration and revelation so much needed to help meet the trials of life. In the trying and very defining Isaac episode, faithful Abraham ‘staggered not . . . through unbelief’ (Rom. 4:20).”

Neal A. Maxwell, “Swallowed Up in the Will of the Father,’” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 23–24

Topics: Righteousness

Young Single Adult Gems - 26 October 2009

Don’t Be Afraid

“Don’t be afraid to walk out of a movie, turn off a television set, or change the radio station if what’s being presented does not meet your Heavenly Father’s standards. In short, if you have any question about whether a particular movie, book, or other form of entertainment is appropriate, don’t see it, don’t read it, don’t participate.”

Thomas S. Monson, "Great Expectations,” CES fireside for young adults, Jan. 11, 2009

Topics: Righteousness

Daily Gems - 8 October 2009

A More Righteousness Generation

“With all my heart I hope and pray that you will be wise enough to learn the lessons of the past. You don’t have to spend time as a Laman or a Lemuel in order to know that it’s much better to be a Nephi or a Jacob. You don’t have to follow the path of Cain or Gadianton in order to realize that ‘wickedness never was happiness’ (Alma 41:10).”

M. Russell Ballard, “Learning the Lessons of the Past,” Ensign, May 2009, 33

Topics: Example, Righteousness

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.”

Henry B. Eyring, “Adversity,” Ensign, May 2009, 24

Topics: Righteousness, Atonement, Sacrifice

Family Gems - 28 September 2009

Set Your Homes in an Order Pleasing to the Lord

Russell M. Nelson, “Set in Order Thy House,” Liahona, Jan. 2002, 80–81

Topics: Righteousness, Example

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.”

Thomas S. Monson, “Great Expectations,” CES fireside for young adults, Jan. 11, 2009

Topics: Righteousness

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.”

Thomas S. Monson, “Standards of Strength,” New Era, Oct. 2008, 2

Topics: Holy Ghost, Righteousness

Daily Gems - 4 August 2009

Rising to Zion's Standard

"Zion is Zion because of the character, attributes, and faithfulness of her citizens."

D. Todd Christofferson, "Come to Zion, Ensign," Nov. 2008, 38

Topics: Righteousness

Young Single Adult Gems - 27 May 2009

Don't Judge Yourself

"Don't judge yourself by what you understand of your potential. Trust in the Lord and what He can do with your dedicated heart and willing mind (see D&C 64:34). Order your life more effectively and eliminate trivia, meaningless detail, and activity. They waste the perishable, fixed, and limited resource of time. Choose to emphasize those matters that have an eternal consequence.

"Permanent, worthwhile growth is attainable, but not without great effort and the honest application of truth. Worthy accomplishment is founded in integrity. Righteousness is fundamental to happiness and desirable attainment. Righteousness is rooted in a pure heart. And indeed it protects one from contamination and the filth of the world. Righteous love is the supreme motivation for constructive change. The examples of our Father in Heaven and the Savior and Their teachings are the perfect source of motivation and direction for life."

Richard G. Scott, "Making the Right Choices" (CES fireside for young adults, Jan. 13, 2002), 4

Topics: Righteousness

Daily Gems - 26 May 2009

Personal Revelation

"We can do the work of the Lord in His way when we seek, receive, and act on personal revelation. Without personal revelation, we cannot succeed. If we heed personal revelation, we cannot fail. The prophet Nephi instructs us that the Holy Ghost will show us 'all things what [we] should do' (2 Nephi 32:5). It was prophesied that in the latter days the Lord would pour out His Spirit upon His handmaids (see Joel 2:29). This will happen as we allow ourselves to be still enough and quiet enough to listen to the voice of the Spirit. Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught us that receiving revelation for our calling and in our personal lives 'requires serious mental effort on our part. . . . Revelation is not a matter of pushing buttons, but of pushing ourselves, often aided by fasting, scripture study, and personal pondering.

" 'Most of all, revelation requires us to have a sufficient degree of personal righteousness, so that on occasion revelation may come to the righteous, unsolicited' ('Revelation,' First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 11, 2003, 5)."

Julie B. Beck, "Fulfilling the Purpose of Relief Society," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 111

Topics: Revelation, Righteousness

Family Gems - 25 May 2009

Blessings Will Come When We Make Our Home a Sanctuary

"Let us make our homes sanctuaries of righteousness, places of prayer, and abodes of love that we might merit the blessings that can come only from our Heavenly Father. We need His guidance in our daily lives."

Thomas S. Monson, "To Learn, to Do, to Be," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 61

Topics: Righteousness

Daily Gems - 18 May 2009

Worthy of the Lord's Delight

" 'My soul delighteth in the things of the Lord' " (2 Nephi 4:16)—His law, His life, His love. To delight in Him is to acknowledge His hand in our lives. Our gospel duty is to do what is right and to love and delight in what is right. When we delight to serve Him, our Father in Heaven delights to bless us. 'I, the Lord, . . . delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end' (D&C 76:5). I want to be worthy always of His delight."

Susan W. Tanner, "My Soul Delighteth in the Things of the Lord," Ensign, May 2008, 83

Topics: Righteousness, Love, Gospel of Jesus Christ

Daily Gems - 22 April 2009

Women's Part under the Plan

"To do our part under the plan of the Lord, we are to increase our faith and personal righteousness. Membership in the Church requires faith, which we nourish throughout our lives with great 'diligence, and patience, and long-suffering' (Alma 32:43). In the common heritage we share, we have remarkable examples of faith in the early women of the Church. Early pioneer women were driven from homes and perseuted because of their faith. Others survived fires and floods. They crossed oceans and walked thousands of miles, tolerating dirt, illness, and near starvation to help build the Lord's kingdom on the earth. Many of them buried husbands, children, parents, and siblings along the way. Why did they do this? They did it because the fire of their faith burned in their souls. . . . Like you, they had a conviction and a testimony that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ was true and that the Lord needed them to do their part in establishing His kingdom on the earth. Their pursuit of personal righteousness was a daily effort to become more like the Savior through repentance, scripture study, prayer, obedience to commandments, and through seeking after everything 'virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy' (Articles of Faith 1:13)."

Julie B. Beck, "Fulfilling the Purpose of Relief Society," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 109–10

Topics: Testimony, Faith, Righteousness

Daily Gems - 18 March 2009

Rising to Zion's Standard

"Under the direction of the Prophet Joseph Smith, early members of the Church attempted to establish the center place of Zion in Missouri, but they did not qualify to build the holy city. . . .

"Zion is Zion because of the character, attributes, and faithfulness of her citizens. Remember, 'the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them' (Moses 7:18). If we would establish Zion in our homes, branches, wards, and stakes, we must rise to this standard. It will be necessary (1) to become unified in one heart and one mind; (2) to become, individually and collectively, a holy people; and (3) to care for the poor and needy with such effectiveness that we eliminate poverty among us. We cannot wait until Zion comes for these things to happen—Zion will come only as they happen."

D. Todd Christofferson, "Come to Zion," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 37–38

Topics: Zion, Righteousness

Daily Gems - 13 March 2009

Gathering the Saints

"Today the Lord's people are gathering 'out from among the nations' as they gather into the congregations and stakes of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that are scattered throughout the nations. Nephi foresaw that these 'dominions' would be small but that the Lord's power would descend 'upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, . . . who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they [would be] armed with righteousness' (see 1 Nephi 14:12–14). The Lord calls upon us to be beacons of righteousness to guide those who seek the safety and blessings of Zion."

D. Todd Christofferson, "Come to Zion," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 37

Topics: Mission of the Church, Righteousness

Daily Gems - 3 February 2009

Maintaining a Firm Stance

"It requires courage to make good choices, even when others around us choose differently. As we make righteous choices day by day in little things, the Lord will strengthen us and help us choose the right during more difficult times.

"The teachings and values we cherish the most are not embraced by a secular world. To maintain a firm stance for ourselves and our children, the message of the restored gospel must be firmly planted in our hearts and taught in our homes."

W. Craig Zwick, "We Will Not Yield, We Cannot Yield," Ensign, May 2008, 98

Topics: Righteousness, Courage, Choice and Accountability

Youth Gems - 18 December 2008

God's Expectations

"Long ago, the renowned author Charles Dickens wrote of opportunities that await. In his classic volume entitled Great Expectations, Dickens described a boy by the name of Philip Pirrip, more commonly known as Pip. Pip was born in unusual circumstances. He was an orphan. He wished with all his heart that he were a scholar and a gentleman. Yet all of his ambitions and all of his hopes seemed doomed to failure. Do you young men sometimes feel that way? Do those of us who are older entertain these same thoughts?

"Then one day a London lawyer by the name of Jaggers approached little Pip and told him that an unknown benefactor had bequeathed to him a fortune. The lawyer put his arm around the shoulder of Pip and said to him, 'My boy, you have great expectations.'

"Tonight, as I look at you young men and realize who you are and what you may become, I declare, 'You have great expectations'--not as the result of an unknown benefactor, but as the result of a known benefactor, even our Heavenly Father, and great things are expected of you."

Thomas S. Monson, "The Call for Courage," Ensign, May 2004, 54

Topics: Righteousness

Daily Gems - 18 November 2008

Breaking the Cycle of Bad Examples

"Elder Robert D. Hales said: 'If the example we have received from our parents was not good, it is our responsibility to break the cycle. . . . Each person can learn a better way and in so doing bless the lives of family members now and teach correct traditions for the generations that follow' ("How Will Our Children Remember Us?" Ensign, Nov. 1993, 10).

"Remember, 'the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children' ("The Family: A Proclamation to the World," Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102). Eternal families are made up of individuals. 'Do your part to build a happy home' (For the Strength of Youth, 10). Establish patterns of righteousness in your life. And be an example of the believers. The Lord is depending on you to assist in the exaltation of your eternal family."

Mary N. Cook, "Strengthen Home and Family," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 13

Topics: Righteousness

Daily Gems - 14 October 2008

Seeking and Nurturing Faith

"Faith . . . is a heavenly gift, but it can be sought and cultivated. As our Bible Dictionary suggests, often 'faith is kindled by hearing the testimony of those who have faith' (Bible Dictionary, "Faith," 669). Faith is then nurtured as we allow ourselves to believe. Like all other virtues, faith is strengthened as we practice it, as we live and act as if our faith were already deep. Faith is the product of righteous desire, belief, and obedience."

David S. Baxter, "Faith, Service, Constancy," Ensign, Nov. 2006, 13-14

Topics: Obedience, Faith, Righteousness

Daily Gems - 1 October 2008

The Lord's Directions and Warnings

"The Lord blesses His children through our priesthood service. To help us be successful in faithfully rendering priesthood service, He gives us directions and warnings. He has done that in the scriptures and continues to guide us through our leaders and through the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

"The scriptures contain many passages of direction and warning to holders of the priesthood. One of the best is section 121 of the Doctrine and Covenants. In those few verses the Lord teaches us that the priesthood can only be exercised in righteousness. We should treat others with persuasion, patience, and kindness. He reminds us of the importance of charity and virtue in having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

"That section also warns us of those attitudes and actions that will cause us to lose our priesthood power."

Stanley G. Ellis, "He Trusts Us!" Ensign, Nov. 2006, 51

Topics: Righteousness, Melchizedek Priesthood, Scripture