Mormon Musings

To do right, can be reduced to perfect simplicity in a few words, viz., from this time henceforth, let no person work or transact any kind of business whatever, that he cannot do in the name of the Lord, and let him sink wholly into His will, whether it oppose his prejudices, or not, or is decidedly objectionable to his feelings. The Lord will ultimately lead such persons into the fullness of His joy by a way that may sometimes appear dark to them… … Will all the people be damned who are not Latter-day Saints?   Yes, a great many of them, except they repent speedily.   I will say further, that many of the Latter-day Saints, except they learn their lessons better, will likewise be judged in the same way.   That is my candid opinion.” Brigham Young, “ Comprehensiveness of True Religion ”, December 5, 1853 ( Journal of Discourses , Volume 1)

“Associated as we are with the kingdom of God, we may reasonably expect, so long as we do our duty before the Lord, to have continual developments of light, truth, and intelligence, that emanate from the great God, for the guidance, direction, salvation, and exaltation of this people, whether it relates to time, or to eternity; for everything we have to do with is eternal; and when we speak of time and eternity, they are only relative terms which we attach to things that are present, and things that are to come, and things that are past. But in relation to ourselves as individuals, we are eternal beings, although we occupy a certain space of eternity called time; in relation to the Gospel we preach, it is eternal; in relation to the Priesthood, it is eternal; in relation to our covenants and obligations, they are eternal; in relation to our promises, prospects, and hopes, they are eternal. And while we are acting upon this stage of being, we are merely commencing a state of things t...

“When we first heard the revelation upon the Word of Wisdom many of us thought it consisted merely in our [not] drinking tea and coffee, but it is not only [not] using tea and coffee and our tobacco and whisky, but it is every other evil which is calculated to contaminate this people.   The Word of Wisdom implies to cease from adultery, to cease from all manner of excesses, and from all kinds of wickedness and abomination that are common amongst this generation—it is, strictly speaking, keeping the commandments of God, and living by every word that proceedeth from His mouth.   This is the way I understand the Word of Wisdom, consequently we have to keep all the commandments…in connection with the Word of Wisdom, in order to obtain the blessings, for unless we do keep the commandments of God, and not offend in any one point, we have not full claim upon the blessings promised in connection with this portion of the word of the Lord.” Ezra T. Benson, “ The Word of Wisdom ”, Ap...

"Let me encourage you by telling you a story. It was told to me by my father. He told it with the intent to chuckle at himself. It was a story about his trying to do his duty, just the way you try to do your duty.  Now you have to know a little bit about my father. His name was Henry Eyring, like mine. He had done some of the things students of this university are preparing to be able to do. His work in chemistry was substantial enough to bring the honors some of you will someday have, but he was still a member of a ward of the Church with his duty to do. To appreciate this story, you have to realize that it occurred when he was nearly eighty and had bone cancer. He had bone cancer so badly in his hips that he could hardly move. The pain was great. Dad was the senior high councilor in his stake with the responsibility for the welfare farm. An assignment was given to weed a field of onions, so Dad assigned himself to go work on the farm.   Dad never told me how hard it w...

“May I…suggest five reasons why all of us, rich or poor, longtime member or newest convert, should faithfully pay our tithes and offerings. First, do so for the sake of your children and grandchildren, the rising generation, who could now, if we are not careful, grow up in the Church with absolutely no understanding as to how their temples, chapels, seminaries, and socials are provided. Teach your children that many of the blessings of the Church are available to them because you and they give tithes and offerings to the Church. Teach them that those blessings could come virtually no other way.  Then take your children to tithing settlement with you, just as President Howard W. Hunter's grandson was taken with his father several years ago. In that experience the bishop indicated his pleasure in young Brother Hunter's wanting to pay a full tithing. In the process of receiving the coins, he asked the lad if he thought the gospel were true. As the boy handed over his full tithing...

"There are two influences ever present in the world. One is constructive and elevating and comes from our Heavenly Father; the other is destructive and debasing and comes from Lucifer. We have our agency and make our own choice in life subject to these unseen powers. There is a division line well defined that separates the Lord's territory from Lucifer's. If we live on the Lord's side of the line Lucifer cannot come there to influence us, but if we cross the line into his territory we are in his power. By keeping the commandments of the Lord we are safe on His side of the line, but if we disobey His teachings we voluntarily cross into the zone of temptation and invite the destruction that is ever present there. Knowing this, how anxious we should always be to live on the Lord's side of the line ." (emphasis added) George Albert Smith,  Improvement Era,  May 1935, p. 278 "For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know goo...

"It is one of the most common and generally accepted superstitions to attribute some particular leading quality to every man--to say of him that he is kind, wicked, foolish, energetic, or dull. This is wrong. We may say of a man that he is more frequently kind than cruel, wise than foolish, energetic than apathetic, or vice versa--but it could never be true to say of a man that he is kind or wise, and of another that he is wicked or foolish. Yet this is our method of classifying mankind and a very false method it is. Men are like rivers. The water is alike in all of them, but every river is narrow in some places and wide in others; here swift and there sluggish, here clear and there turbid; cold in winter and warm in summer. The same may be said of men. Every man bears within himself the germs of every human quality, displaying all in turn; and a man can often seem unlike himself--yet he still remains the same man ." Leo Tolstoy, Resurrection , p. 190

"We all need to build a personal ark, to fortify ourselves against the rising tide of evil, to protect ourselves and our families against the floodwaters of iniquity around us. And we shouldn’t wait until it starts raining, but prepare in advance. This has been the message of all the prophets.   When it starts raining, it’s too late to build the ark 1 … We need to listen to the Lord’s spokesman. We need to calmly continue to move ahead and prepare for what will surely come. We need not panic or fear, for if we are prepared, spiritually and temporally, we and our families will survive any flood. Our arks will float on a sea of faith if our works have been steadily and surely preparing for the future." W. Donn Ladd, General Conference, November 1994 1 In the words of President Monson, “when the time for performance has come, the time for preparation has ended.”

"Sometimes, during solitude, I hear truth spoken spoken with clarity and freshness; uncolored and untranslated it speaks from within myself in a language original but inarticulate, heard only with the soul, and I realize I brought it with me, was never taught it nor can I efficiently teach it to another." Hugh B. Brown   There are certain ideas of God, and futurity, and the nature and fitness of things implanted in the human bosom, even while in the world; for there are many things which lead to reflection. John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, 5:244

"There is but one path of safety to the Latter-day Saints, and that is the path of duty. It is not testimony, it is not marvelous manifestations, it is not knowing that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true, . . . it is not actually knowing that the Savior is the Redeemer, and that Joseph Smith was His prophet, that will save you and me, but it is the keeping of the commandments of God, the living the life of a Latter-day Saint."   Heber J. Grant,  Improvement Era,  November 1936, p. 659

"It matters not whether you or I feel like praying, when the time comes to pray, pray.  If we do not feel like it, we should pray till we do." Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young , p. 44 "When you have labored faithfully for years, you will learn this simply fact--that if your hearts are aright, and you still continue to be obedient, continue to serve God, continue to pray, the Spirit of revelation will be in you like a well of water springing up to everlasting life. Let no person give up prayer because he has not the spirit of prayer, neither let any earthly circumstance hurry you while in the performance of this simple duty. By bowing down before the Lord to ask him to bless you, you will simply find this result--God will multiply blessings upon you temporally and spiritually." Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young , p. 46

" In our individual study and classroom instruction, we repeatedly emphasize the importance of recognizing the inspiration and promptings we receive from the Spirit of the Lord. And such an approach is correct and useful. We should seek diligently to recognize and respond to promptings as they come to us. However, an important aspect of baptism by the Spirit may frequently be overlooked in our spiritual development. We should also endeavor to discern when we 'withdraw [ourselves] from the Spirit of the Lord, that it may have no place in [us] to guide [us] in wisdom's paths that [we] may be blessed, prospered, and preserved' ( Mosiah 2:36 ). Precisely because the promised blessing is  that   we may always have His Spirit to be with us,  we should attend to and learn from the choices and influences that separate us from the Holy Spirit. The standard is clear. If something we think, see, hear, or do distances us from the Holy Ghost, then we should stop thinking, seeing, ...

" Into every adult human life come experiences like unto the battling of the storm-tossed voyagers with contrary winds and threatening seas; ofttimes the night of struggle and danger is far advanced before succor appears; and then, too frequently the saving aid is mistaken for a great terror. As came unto Peter and his terrified companions in the midst of turbulent waters, so comes to all who toil in faith, the voice of the Deliverer— 'It is I; be not afraid .'"  (emphasis added) James E. Talmage Jesus The Christ,  pp. 313-14

“You remember the Prophet [Joseph] saw in panoramic vision at least nine of the Twelve in a foreign land. (He doesn’t say England, but that is where they eventually went.) He saw them gathered in a circle, without shoes, beaten, tattered, discouraged. Standing above them in the air was the Lord Jesus Christ. And it was made know to the Prophet that He yearned to show Himself to them, to reach down and lift them. But they did not see Him. The Savior looked upon them and wept. We are told by two of the brethren who hear Joseph rehearse that vision that he could never speak of it without weeping himself. Why? Why should he be so touched? Because Christ willingly came to earth so that all of the Father’s family could come to Him boldly, knowing that He knows what is taking place in us when we sin, that He knows all our feelings and cares. The greatest tragedy of life is that having paid that awful price of suffering 'according to the flesh that His bowels might be filled with compas...

"When answers to urgent prayer don’t seem to come, it can be that we don’t understand some truths about prayer, or because we don’t recognize answers when they come.   Communication with our Father in Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in response to faith, obedience, and the proper use of agency. It is a mistake to assume that every prayer we offer will be answered immediately. Some prayers require considerable effort on our part. Don’t worry about your clumsily expressed feelings. Just talk to your Father. He hears every prayer and answers it in His way. When we explain a problem and a proposed solution, sometimes He answers yes, sometimes no. Often, He withholds an answer, not for lack of concern, but because He loves us perfectly. He wants us to apply truths He has given us.  For us to grow, we need to trust our ability to make correct decisions. We need ...

“When we are filled with the Holy Spirit we will not sin. We will be filled with wisdom, and we will be able to have the fruits to heal the wounds of the afflicted and to build a community of Saints. It is also obvious that without constant efforts, it will be very difficult to always be focused on our most righteous desires. Therefore, I want to share with you a vehicle, an instrument, that I developed some time ago for myself and for my family. It can assist us to reach our focus as we read the suggested vision of true discipleship as a Latter-day Saint. It helps when, from time to time, we ponder and seek identification with the following thoughts: ·        Embrace this day with an enthusiastic welcome, no matter how it looks. The covenant with God to which you are true enables you to become enlightened by him, and nothing is impossible for you. ·        When you are physically sick, tired, or in despair, steer your thought...

"Brothers and sisters, whatever your distress,  please  don't give up and  please  don't yield to fear. I have always been touched that as his son was departing for his mission to England, Brother Bryant S. Hinckley gave young Gordon a farewell embrace and then slipped him a handwritten note with just five words taken from the fifth chapter of Mark: 'Be not afraid, only believe.'(Mark 5:36 ).  I think also of that night when Christ rushed to the aid of His frightened disciples, walking as He did on the water to get to them, calling out, 'It is I; be not afraid.' Peter exclaimed, 'Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.' Christ's answer to him was as it  always  is  every  time: ' Come,'  He said. Instantly, as was his nature, Peter sprang over the vessel's side and into the troubled waters.  While his eyes were fixed upon the Lord, the wind could toss his hair and the spray could drench his robes, but all was well—h...