Mormon Musings

"The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater" J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

"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." —Dieter F. Uchtdorf, " The Love of God ",  Liahona and Ensign , November 2009

Mother Teresa said: It is never too small. We are so small we look at things in a small way. But God, being Almighty, sees everything great. Therefore, even if you write a letter for a blind man or you just go and sit and listen, or you take the mail for him, or you visit somebody or bring a flower to somebody–small things–or wash clothes for somebody or clean the house. Very humble work that is where you and I must be. For there are many people who can do big things. But there are very few people who will do the small things. Mother Teresa of Calcutta,  Life in the Spirit: Reflections, Meditations, Prayers,  ed. Kathryn Spink   (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1983), 49

"Heavenly Father loves all His children. This is an immensely powerful idea that children can begin to understand through the love and sacrifice of their earthly parents. Love is the most powerful force in the world. I pray that every parent is providing the kind of loving example that encourages the rising generation to understand the love of God toward them and the great desire of our Heavenly Father that all of His children on earth do what is necessary to qualify for the choicest blessings of eternity." —Dallin H. Oaks, " The Gospel Culture ",  Liahona and Ensign , March 2012

"Because love is the great commandment, it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, in our Church callings, and in our livelihood. Love is the healing balm that repairs rifts in personal and family relationships. It is the bond that unites families, communities, and nations. Love is the power that initiates friendship, tolerance, civility, and respect. It is the source that overcomes divisiveness and hate. Love is the fire that warms our lives with unparalleled joy and divine hope. Love should be our walk and our talk." -Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "The Love of God," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 21

It is by loving and not by being loved that one can come nearest to the soul of another. ( George MacDonald Anthology,  Geoffrey Bles, London, 1970.) 

“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!” Dieter F. Uchtdorf ,  “The Love of God,” Ensign, Nov. 2009, 21-22

Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no! It is an ever fixed mark That looks on tempest and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken. Within his bending sickle’s compass come; Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me be proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved. - Shakespeare , Sonnet cxvi