"To Draw Closer to God"

by Henry B. Eyring

"To me, the best directions about how to get help of the Holy Ghost, directions that I have tested and know to be true, were given by President Marion G. Romney. I will give you his instructions in his own words. Then together let us see if we can figure out how we can work to prepare for that Sunday School teacher or quorum leader or sacrament meeting speaker to whom we will listen next Sunday.
"Here are President Romney's instructions: 'If you want to obtain and keep the guidance of the Spirit, you can do so by following this simple four-point program. One, pray. Pray diligently. Pray with each other. Pray in public in the proper places...Learn to talk to the Lord; call upon his name in great faith and confidence. Second, study and learn the gospel. Third, live righteously; repent of your sins by confessing them and forsaking the,. Then conform to the teachings of the gospel. Fourth, give service in the Church.'
"And then President Romney concludes this way: 'If you will do these things, you will get the guidance of the Holy Spirit and you will go through this world successfully, regardless of what the people of the world say or do.'
"That four-point program makes no distinction between the moments we seek the Spirit when we are alone in our scripture reading and those moments when we are listening to a human being. I bear testimony that it works in both settings. It takes some extra effort sometimes when the words come from people instead of from the gilt-edged pages of scripture with which you have had long and sacred experience, but it can be done. Let us see how we might make that effort."
(Pages 14-15)

The Missing Piece

Bishopric Message for Sept 2010

My message this month is based on a talk by Elder Wirthlin a couple years back on charity.  In it he quotes the scriptures where the Pharisees ask Christ which is the great commandment.  Of course Christ's answer was "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and all thy mind."  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."  And from this I discovered what I think are three different types of true love:
First is the love that we have towards our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  As children looking for guidance from their earthly father, we must trust and come to know our Heavenly Father.  Let me make a comparison with getting to know a friend.  We can get to know a person in many different ways--talking face to face, being with them and doing things together, phone calls, or through emails or letter.  While coming to know our Heavenly Father and Savior better, we are unfortunately unable to use most of these methods.  If it's not too much of a stretch, imagine the scriptures as emails or letters we receive from Heavenly Father to guide us and to teach us about him and to help us to come closer to him.  By reading the scriptures and coming unto him, we show our love for him and get to know him better.
The Savior set the perfect example of love for our Father by setting His own will aside and letting the Father's direct His actions.  Mosiah chapter 15 verse 7 says that "even so shall he be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father."  I've felt this love and am grateful for it, not only the love Christ showed by performing the Atonement for us, but also for being an example of true love and for teaching it to us.  One place I really like in the scriptures where Christ teaches this love to us is in John chapter 21 verse 15.  "So when they had dines, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.  He saith unto him, Feed my lambs."  The fish gave their lives under the Savior's command.  Would I do the same?
This leads me to the second type of love. Second is the love that we are asked to give to our neighbor, or each other, as ourselves.  Enos is a perfect example of this.  After obtaining forgiveness of his sins he immediately desired that his brethren (the Lamanites) could be forgiven as well.  The Savior also taught this principle to us in Matthew chapter 25 verse 37 through 40 by explaining that when we show love to others we show it to Christ as well.  Understanding better what I call the first type of love, or love for our Heavenly Father, I think better helps us to understand love for our fellow man.  As we look to President Monson as our new and dear prophet, it's very hard to overlook the great service for others he has done throughout his life.  One of his many stories of service, to summarize, was when he was inspired to visit a sister in the ward on the way home from work.  She was so glad to see him because no one else had remembered her birthday, but she was grateful that he was there.  In order to achieve this kind of love for our fellow man, we must follow Mormon's invitation, quoted by Moroni, to pray for charity with all the energy of our hearts.
The last type of true love that we should strive to have is love for our spouse.  Elder Holland has taught that "true love blooms when we care more about another person than we care about ourselves."  Elizabeth has definitely demonstrated this to me by taking such good care of me when I've had bad migraines in the past.  She is so gentle and unserstanding and often says that she wishes she could suffer the headache on my behalf.  What a great example she is to me by showing more concern for me than for her own self.
Let me leave you with the following quote from President Joseph Fielding Smith:  "If a man and his wife were earnestly and faithfully observing all the ordinances and principles of the gospel, there could not arise any cause for divorce.  The joy and happiness pertaining to the marriage relationship would grow sweeter, and husband and wife would become more and more attached to each other as the days go by, not only would the husband love the wife and the wife the husband, but children born to them would live in an atmosphere of love and harmony.  The love of each for the others would not be impaired, and moreover the love of all towards our Eternal Father and his Son Jesus Christ would be more firmly rooted in their souls."

The Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

We are beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction. As a worldwide sisterhood, we are united in our devotion to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Exemplar. We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:

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Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ through prayer and scripture study.

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Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

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Dedicate ourselves to strengthening marriages, families, and homes.

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Find nobility in motherhood and joy in womanhood.

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Delight in service and good works.

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Love life and learning.

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Stand for truth and righteousness.

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Sustain the priesthood as the authority of God on earth.

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Rejoice in the blessings of the temple, understand our divine destiny, and strive for exaltation.

How Can I Find Happiness?

Hope Ya Know, We Had a Hard Time

The Pride Cycle

                                                Prosperity
               
                  Obedience and Service         Material Comforts

          Righteousness                                                      Greed

Change                             PRIDE CYCLE                                Pride

          Repentance                                                      Wickedness

                      Humility                            Collapse of Morality

                                            Calamities

                                WHERE ARE YOU?

Sunday School June 8th, 2008

• With baptism we come closer to Christ
• After we are baptized, we need to take the sacrament to remember those covenants that we made
• Mosiah 18-24
• What blessings have you seen in your life as a result of baptism?
• Try to remember your baptismal day and continue to remember it--write down your thoughts and feelings you have when you think about your baptismal day
• Write down all your feelings that you have when you have a spiritual moment so that you can read back and remember those feelings.
• What do you remember about your baptism that made it all special?
• Moroni 8:14 "Behold I say unto you, that he that supposeth that little children need baptism is in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; for he hath neither faith, hope, nor charity; wherefore, should he be cut off while in the thought, he must go down to hell"
• A covenant is like a contract that you have made with your Heavenly Father
• Mosiah 18:8-9 "And it came to pass that he said unto them; Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light; Yeah, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yeah, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life--"
• Focus not on your needs, but on others and the things that they may need help with
• Mosiah 18:11-14 "And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts. And now it came to pass that Alma took Helam, he being one of the first, and went and stood forth in the water, and cried, saying: O Lord, pour out thy Spirit upon thy servant, that he may do this work with holiness of heart. And when he had said these words, the Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he said: Helam, I baptize thee, having authority from the Almighty God, as a testimony that ye have entered into a covenant to serve him until you are dead as to the mortal body; and may the Spirit of the Lord be poured out upon you; and may be grant unto you eternal life, through the redemption of Christ, whom he has prepared from the foundation of the world. And after Alma had said these words, both Alma and Helam were buried in the water; and they arose and came forth out of the water rejoicing, being filled with the Spirit."
• When do we have that desire to change?
• When we have a change of heart we have a desire to reach out further [to others] and try to find ways to help others.

• Alma 5:26 "And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, 'can ye feel so now?'"
• John 12:24-25 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal."
• We are always blessed when we sacrifice something in our lives for God.
• Charity will come to us when we serve others.
• A medicine for self pity is to help others in their lives.
• Magnify your calling, it's as simple as that.
• Serve willingly with love and compassion
• Temple work is one of the greatest ways you can serve
• D&C 58: 27-28 "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
• We must lose ourselves in service
• Be an example.
• 3 Nephi--Christ coming to the America's, "Come unto me, I will heal you"
• 3 Nephi 12:14-16 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the light of this people. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hit. Behold, do men light a candle and put it under a bushel? Nay, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light to all that are in the house; Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
• D&C 20:16 "For the Lord God has spoken it; and we, the elders of the church, have heard and bear witness to the words of the glorious Majesty on high, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen."
• Some of the important things in your life are based on your desires and choices--friends play a big part.
• What are the "walking sticks" in your life? What are the things in your life that hold you up and keep you strong?
• We need to walk with God
• He wants all of us to return to His presence, which is determined by us and how we make our life decisions.