Mormon Musings

In the end, the central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ—faith that They exist; faith in the Father’s plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know “the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent” (John 17:3). The word of God, as Alma said, is like a seed planted in our hearts that produces faith as it begins to grow within us (see Alma 32:27–43; see also Romans 10:13–17). Faith will not come from the study of ancient texts as a purely academic pursuit. It will not come from archaeological digs and discoveries. It will not come from scientific experiments. It will not even come from witnessing miracles. These things may serve to confirm faith, or at times to challenge it, but they do not create faith. Faith comes by the witness of th...

The truth of God refers to the core truths that underlie His plan of happiness for His children. These truths are that God lives; that He is the Heavenly Father of our spirits; that as a manifestation of His love, He has given us commandments that lead to a fulness of joy with Him; that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and our Redeemer; that He suffered and died to atone for sins on condition of our repentance; that He rose from the dead, bringing to pass the Resurrection of all humankind; and that we will all stand before Him to be judged, that is, to account for our lives. 18 Alma 33:22 22 ... cast about your eyes and  begin  to believe in the Son of God, that he will come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to  atone  for their sins; and that he shall  rise  again from the dead, which shall bring to pass the  resurrection , that all men shall stand before him, to be  judged  at the last and judgment day, according to ...

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649250159001

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649255347001

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649250157001

“Do you want conversion for yourself? I can tell you how that can happen, but it must be something you want. The gospel cannot be written in your heart unless your heart is open. But if your heart is open and willing, like the heart of a child (see Matthew 18:3–4), let me tell you what you can do to be converted. Lay aside any feeling of pride that is so common in the world today. By this I mean the attitude that rejects the authority of God to rule in our lives. Willingly submitting to God’s authority is the first step in conversion. Know the gospel and grow to understand it more fully. That means you will study it. When I say ‘study,’ I mean something more than reading. For conversion, you should care more about the amount of time you spend in the scriptures than about the amount you read in that time. Pray about everything in your life. Your Heavenly Father wants you to pray about your hopes and fears, your friends and family, your school and work, and the needs of those arou...

"In reality, there aren’t many things in a day that are totally without significance. Even the mundane and repetitious can be tiny but significant building blocks that in time establish the discipline and character and order needed to realize our plans and dreams. Therefore, as you ask in prayer for your daily bread, consider thoughtfully your needs—both what you may lack and what you must protect against. As you retire to bed, think about the successes and failures of the day and what will make the next day a little better. And thank your Heavenly Father for the manna He has placed along your path that sustained you through the day." —D. Todd Christofferson, " Recognizing God's Hands in Our Daily Blessings ",  Liahona and Ensign , January 2012

The central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ---faith that They exist; faith in the Father's plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know 'the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent' (John 17:3)." Elder D. Todd Christofferson (Ensign, May 2010, 34)

"Good men sometimes make mistakes. A man of integrity will honestly face and correct his mistakes, and that is an example we can respect.   Sometimes men try but fail. Not all worthy objectives are realized despite one's honest and best efforts. True manhood is not always measured by the fruits of one's labors but by the labors themselves--by one's striving." -D. Todd Christofferson, "Let Us Be Men," Ensign, Nov. 2006, 47-48.

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2004/04/when-thou-art-converted?lang=eng

In reality, there aren’t many things in a day that are totally without significance. Even the mundane and repetitious can be tiny but significant building blocks that in time establish the discipline and character and order needed to realize our plans and dreams. Therefore, as you ask in prayer for your daily bread, consider thoughtfully your needs—both what you may lack and what you must protect against. As you retire to bed, think about the successes and failures of the day and what will make the next day a little better. And thank your Heavenly Father for the manna He has placed along your path that sustained you through the day. —D. Todd Christofferson, "Recognizing God's Hands in Our Daily Blessings",  Liahona and Ensign , January 2012

http://www.lds.org/study/prophets-speak-today/unto-all-the-world/repentance-cause-for-celebration?lang=eng

https://www.lds.org/youth/video/you-can-meet-gods-expectations?lang=eng

“In the end, the central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ—faith that They exist; faith in the Father’s plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know ‘the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent’ (John 17:3).” D. Todd Christofferson ,  “The Blessing of Scripture,” Ensign, May 2010, 34

In the end, the central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ—faith that They exist; faith in the Father’s plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know ‘the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent’ (John 17:3). D. Todd Christofferson ,  “The Blessing of Scripture,” Ensign, May 2010, 34

“As Many as I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten” D. Todd Christofferson Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles The very experience of enduring chastening can refine us and prepare us for greater spiritual privileges. Our Heavenly Father is a God of high expectations. His expectations for us are expressed by His Son, Jesus Christ, in these words: “I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect” ( 3 Nephi 12:48 ). He proposes to make us holy so that we may “abide a celestial glory” ( D&C 88:22 ) and “dwell in his presence” ( Moses 6:57 ). He knows what is required, and so, to make our transformation possible, He provides His commandments and covenants, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and most important, the Atonement and Resurrection of His Beloved Son. In all of this, God’s purpose is that we, His children, may be able to experience ultimate joy, to be with Him eternally, and to become even as He is. Some years ago Elder Dallin H. Oaks explained: “The...

Asking God for our daily bread, rather than our weekly, monthly, or yearly bread, is also a way to focus us on the smaller, more manageable bits of a problem. To deal with something very big, we may need to work at it in small, daily bites. Sometimes all we can handle is one day (or even just part of one day) at a time. Let me give you a nonscriptural example. A book I read recently, titled  Lone Survivor,  recounts the tragic story of a four-man team of U.S. Navy SEALs on a covert mission in a remote sector of Afghanistan five and one-half years ago. When they were inadvertently discovered by shepherds—two men and a boy—these specially trained Navy servicemen had a choice either to kill the two or let them go, knowing that if they let them live they would disclose the team’s location and they would be attacked immediately by al Qaeda and Taliban forces. Nevertheless, they let the innocent shepherds go, and in the firefight that followed, only the author, Marcus Luttrell, surv...

Look to God for What Is Needed Each Day In Luke it is recorded that one of His disciples asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples” ( Luke 11:1 ). Jesus then gave a pattern for prayer that has become known as the Lord’s Prayer. The same is recorded in Matthew as part of the Sermon on the Mount (see  Matthew 6:9–13 ). Included in the Lord’s Prayer is the petition “Give us this day our daily bread” ( Matthew 6:11 ) or “Give us day by day our daily bread” ( Luke 11:3 ). I believe that we would all readily acknowledge that we have needs each day that we want our Heavenly Father’s help in dealing with. For some, on some days, it is quite literally bread—that is, the food needed to sustain life that day. It could also be spiritual and physical strength to deal with one more day of chronic illness or a painfully slow rehabilitation. In other cases it may be less tangible needs, such as things related to one’s obligations or activities in that day—teaching a ...

“The Savior’s use of moral agency during His lifetime is an instructive example for us. At one point in His teaching He revealed the principle that guided His choices: ‘He that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.’ (John 8:29) I believe that much of the Lord’s power is attributable to the fact that He never wavered in that determination. He had a clear, consistent direction. Whatever the Father desired, Jesus chose to do…So, being Jesus’ obedient disciple—just as He is the Father’s obedient disciple—leads to truth and freedom… … Some think that they should be spared from any adversity if they keep God’s commandments, but it is ‘in the furnace of affliction’ (Isaiah 48:10) that we are chosen. This is the battle we expected when we ‘shouted for joy’ (Job 38:7) at the prospect of this time on earth. I believe the challenge of learning to make and hold onto correct choices in the face of opposition appealed to us when God...