Robert W. Cantwell -Church Auditing Department Report, 2009
Brook P. Hales -Statistical Report, 2009
- Total Church Membership: 13,824,854
- Full-Time Missionaries -51,736
L. Tom Perry -Mothers Teaching Children in the Home
- While times may change, a parent's teaching must never be devalued.
- There is no such thing as overpreparing to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ, for gospel insights, whether or not they are used during class time, can always be taught in the home.
D. Todd Christofferson -The Blessing of Scripture
- The scriptures also enlarge our memory by helping us not forget what we and earlier generations have learned. Those who either don't have or ignore the recorded word of God eventually cease to believe in Him and forget the purpose of their existence.
- God uses scripture to unmask erroneous thinking, false traditions, and sin with its devastating effects. He is a tender parent who would spare us needless suffering and grief and at the same time help us realize our divine potential.
- 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 the Holy Spirit to our souls, Spirit to spirit, as we hear or read the word of God. And faith matures as we continues to feast upon the word.
Koichi Aoyagi -Helping Hands, Saving Hands
- I know many of you privately extend your loving and saving hands each day.
- I do not have time to tell you about all the good things I see Church members do. They follow the counsel of the prophet--not out of duty or responsibility but of their own free will, anonymously and joyfully.
- Sometimes we feel that we are weak and lack the strength to rescue others, but the Lord reminds us, "Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Bruce A. Carlson -When the Lord Commands
- Obedience to the Lord's commands, in spite of how trivial or unimportant we believe them to be, will surely brings His promised blessings.
- The Lord's response when we obey His commandments is sure. He has promised us, "If you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life."
David A. Bednar -Watching with All Perseverance
- The convincing and converting powers of the Book of Mormon come from both a central focus upon the Lord Jesus Christ and the inspired plainness and clarity of its teachings.
- Youth of all ages, even infants, can and do respond to the distinctive spirit of the Book of Mormon.
- "Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man."
- Are you and I helping our children become agents who act and seek learning by study and by faith, or have we trained our children to wait to be taught and acted upon?
Jeffrey R. Holland -Place No More for the Enemy of My Soul
- Immoral activity is not just a man's problem, and husbands aren't the only ones offending. The compromise available at the click of a mouse--including what can happen in a chat room's virtual encounter--is no respect of persons, male or female, young or old, married or single. And just to make sure that temptation is ever more accessible, the adversary is busy extending his coverage, as they say in the industry, to cell phones, video games, and MP3 players.
- Someone said once that true love must include the idea of permanence. True love endures.
- True love we are absolutely giddy about--as I am about Sister Holland; we shout it from the housetops. But lust is characterized by shame and stealth and is almost pathologically clandestine--the later and darker the hour the better, with a double-bolted door just in case. Love makes us instinctively reach out to God and other people. Lust, on the other hand, is anything but godly and celebrates self-indulgence. Love comes with open hands and open heart; lust comes with only an open appetite.
- These are just some of the reasons that prostituting the true meaning of love--either with imagination or another person--is so destructive. It destroys that which is second only to our faith in God--namely, faith in those we love. It shakes the pillars of trust upon which present--or future--love is built, and it takes a long time to rebuild that trust when it is lost. Push that idea far enough--whether it be as personal as a family member or as public as elected officials, business leaders, media stars, and athletic heroes--and soon enough on the building once constructed to house morally responsible societies, we can hang a sign saying, "This property is vacant."
- Let's speak of what some personal actions can be.
- When we face such temptations in our time, we must declare, as young Nephi did in his, "[I will] give place no more for the enemy of my soul." We can reject the evil one. If we want it early and deeply enough, that enemy can and will be rebuked by the redeeming power of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!
-Sarnic Dirchi
No comments:
Post a Comment