Ted E. Davis -The Church Audit Committee Report
F. Michael Watson -Statistical Report, 1997
- Total membership: 10,070,524
- What a great blessing it would be if every member of the Church memorized the Articles of Faith and became knowledgeable about the principles contained in each. We would be better prepared to share the gospel with others.
- The first article anchors our belief in God, our Eternal Father, in His son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
- The second and third articles announce our belief in the Atonement of our Lord and Savior, that through Him all mankind will be blessed with immortality.
- The fourth and fifth articles refer to our belief in the first principles of the Gospel.
- The sixth article tells us that an organization is necessary, and the same organization that existed in the primitive Church has been restored.
- The seventh and ninth articles profess that the heavens are not closed, that God continues to reveal His will to mankind; as He has in the past, He does now in the present, and He will in the future.
- The eight article states our belief in the Bible as the "word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God."
- Article 10 tells of our belief "in the literal gathering of Israel," that Zion will be built again and Christ will return and "reign personally upon the earth."
- The 11th and 12th articles profess our belief in religious liberty, tolerance, and agency.
- The 13th article provides a special insight into how we should conduct our lives and present ourselves before the people of the earth.
- We all need at least three things to remain firmly in the faith--a friend, a responsibility, and "[nourishing] by the good word of God.
- Inspired teaching must never become a lost art in the Church, and we must make certain our quest for it does not become a lost tradition.
- "Effective teaching is the very essence of leadership in the Church. Eternal life," President Hinckley continued, "will come only as men and women are taught with such effectiveness that they change and discipline their lives. They cannot be coerced into righteousness or into heaven. They must be led, and that means teaching."
- We do have a legitimate worry about the new member, wanting each one to stay with us and enjoy the full blessings of the Church. I am just simple enough to think that if we continue to teach them --with the same Christlike spirit, conviction, doctrine, and personal interest the missionaries have shown them--new converts will not only stay with us but, quite literally, could not be kept away. The need for continuing such solid teaching is obvious. In times like ours we all need what Mormon called "the virtue of the word of God" because, he said, it "had[a] more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them." When crises come into our lives--and they will--the philosophies of men interlaced with a few scriptures and poems just won't do. Are we really nurturing our youth and our new members in a way that will sustain them when the stresses of life appear? or are we giving them a kind of theological Twinkie--spiritually empty calories? President John Taylor once called such teaching "fried froth," the kind of thing you could eat all day and yet finish feeling totally unsatisfied. During a severe winter several years ago, President Boyd K. Packer noted that a goodly number of deer had died of starvation while their stomachs were full of hay. In an honest effort to assist, agencies had supplied the superficial when the substantial was what had been needed. Regrettably they had fed the deer but they had not nourished them.
- I love what President J. Reuben Clark said of our youth well over a half century ago. The same thing can be said of new members. "[They] are hungry for the things of the spirit," he said; "they are eager to learn the Gospel and they want it straight, undiluted. ...
- "... You do not have to sneak up behind [them] and whisper religion in [their] ears; ... you can bring these truths [out] openly."
- Satan is certainly not subtle in his teachings; why should we be?
- "Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee. ... arise, and speak unto them."
- From all of us who have been taught to all of you who teach--we say thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.
- "Some may ask why we as a people and church quietly and consistently seek to change individuals while there are such large problems about us. ... But decaying cities are simply a delayed reflection of decaying individuals. ... The commandments of God give emphasis to improvement of the individual as the only real way to bring about the real improvement of society."
- The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of the people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. ... Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature."
- "There never was a set of men since God made the world under a stronger responsibility to warn this generation, to lift up our voices long and loud, day and night as far as we have the opportunity and declare the words of God unto this generation. We are required to do this. This is our calling. [This] is our duty. [This] is our business."
- The Lord's kingdom is no means a closed community. The Lord invites all people to travel this perfecting pathway of divine truth. He promises joy and everlasting happiness as the reward. The entry fee: a broken heart, a contrite spirit, and a willingness to continue in His footsteps.
- As we move towards perfection, it is easy to feel that we fall short. We can take confidence that the Lord knows us ultimately; He knows the intent of our hearts. He will surely show us the way as we humble ourselves, are obedient, and work toward continual improvement. Even now, He prepares us in ways that we can't yet see. The eyes of our understanding will be opened as we keep the commandments and seek to serve Him. We have the potential to eventually become perfected in Christ. This is a divine inheritance.
- First, we must eliminate the individual tendency to selfishness that snares the soul, shrinks the heart, and darkens the mind. ...
- Second, we must cooperate completely and work in harmony one with the other.
- Third, we must lay on the altar and sacrifice whatever is required by the Lord.
- First, "Parents have a scared duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live."
- Second, "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ."
- Education--particularly spiritual education--is consistently stressed by the Lord. We cannot be saved in ignorance, but the Lord can only reveal light and truth to us as we are prepared to receive it.
- 'Ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father hath ... prepared for you. ... Ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along. The kingdom is yours and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours."
- Family love is wonderful. Nothing is as specific as the love of a baby for its mother. Nothing is as predictable as the love of children for their parents or the love of parents for their children.
- "We want the Latter-day Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it. ... This is the will of the Lord to his people."
- To those with access to computers, I say: "Reach out! Have hope! Try!
- "The Lord has inspired skilled men and women in developing new technologies which we can use to our great advantage in moving forward this sacred work."
- "With God nothing shall be impossible."
- My grandfather's watch reminds me that our grandparents watch--and wait--for us to identify them, be linked to them, and provide temple ordinances for them.
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!
-Sarnic Dirchi
The Dream
I was in a library...ish sort of place. Top floor. I was in the middle of a scavenger hunt, relating to case of Sherlock Holmes. The first 'case' scavenger hunt lead me to this library place, where there was a laser pen and I had to hit a certain hole in the wall to create multiple laser reflections to create some sort of star picture (I never managed to) but I did discover the next 'piece' a book titled after one of the cases "the great game?' and notes written inside....
Then the unholy tones of daylight pulled me away....
and I became myself again. :)
-S.N.D
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