Group Leadership

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
A Safe Harbor
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"Many today feel troubled and distressed; many feel that, at any moment, the ships of their lives could capsize or sink. It is to you who are looking for a safe harbor that I wish to speak today, you whose hearts are breaking, you who are worried or afraid, you who bear grief or the burdens of sin, you who feel no one is listening to your cries, you whose hearts are pleading, 'Master, carest thou not that I perish?' To you I offer a few words of comfort and of counsel.

"Be assured that there is a safe harbor. You can find peace amidst the storms that threaten you. Your Heavenly Father--who knows when even a sparrow falls--knows of your heartache and suffering. He loves you and wants the best for you. Never doubt this. While He allows all of us to make choices that may not always be for our own or even others' well-being, and while He does not always intervene in the course of events, He has promised the faithful peace even in their trials and tribulations."

Topics: Heavenly Father, trials, peace

(Joseph B. Wirthlin, "Finding a Safe Harbor," Ensign, May 2000, 59)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
The Best Way to Get Out of Financial Difficulty
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"I want to repeat to the Latter-day Saints my firm belief that God our heavenly Father prospers and blesses and gives wisdom to those men and to those women who are strictly honest with him in the payment of their tithing. I believe that when a man is in financial difficulty, the best way to get out of that difficulty (and I speak from personal experience, because I believe that more than once in my life I have been in the financial mud as deep as almost anybody) is to be absolutely honest with the Lord, and never to allow a dollar to come into our hands without the Lord receiving ten per cent of it."

Topics: Tithing, finances

(Heber J. Grant, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant (2002), 123)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
He Has Opportunities Prepared for You
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"Your life is carefully watched over, as was mine. The Lord knows both what He will need you to do and what you will need to know. He is kind and He is all-knowing. So you can with confidence expect that He has prepared opportunities for you to learn in preparation for the service you will give. You will not recognize those opportunities perfectly, as I did not. But when you put the spiritual things first in your life, you will be blessed to feel directed toward certain learning, and you will be motivated to work harder. You will recognize later that your power to serve was increased, and you will be grateful."

Topics: divine nature, purpose of life, Holy Ghost

(Henry B. Eyring, "Education for Real Life," Ensign, Oct. 2002, 18-19)

President Thomas S. Monson on Service in the Kingdom

"Brethren, it is in doing--not just dreaming—that lives are blessed, others are guided, and souls are saved. 'Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves' (James 1:22), counseled James."

Topic: service

(Thomas S. Monson, "Do Your Duty--That Is Best," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 59)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
We Must Recommit
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"This month, we commemorate the historic trek of the Mormon pioneers who, 130 years ago, left the beautiful city of Nauvoo, Illinois, and their comfortable homes to escape their persecutors and march 2300 kms. across a hostile wilderness in order to worship their God according to the dictates of their own conscience. In July of 1847, they reached the Great Salt Lake Valley and founded the city which is now the headquarters of Christ's church on earth.
"It is not enough merely to observe these various anniversaries, but we must recommit and rededicate ourselves to uphold the convictions and the principles upon which the blessings we enjoy are predicated. We, too, must be prepared to sacrifice, where necessary, to keep our freedoms inviolate. My father used to say: 'The true way to honor the past is to improve upon it.'
"Therefore, we should love God more. We should serve our fellowmen better. We should keep all the commandments. We should be better prepared as parents to teach our children to pray and to walk uprightly before the Lord, and to assume their responsibilities.
"We should be constantly striving for improvement of ourselves and our surroundings."

Gospel topics: adversity, commitment, sacrifice, service, obedience, pioneers

(N. Eldon Tanner, "Pioneers Are Still Needed," Tambuli, July 1977, 1)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
Our Debt of Gratitude
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"How can we pay our debt of gratitude for the heritage of faith demonstrated by pioneers in many lands across the earth who struggled and sacrificed so that the gospel might take root? How is thankfulness expressed for the intrepid handcart pioneers who, by their own brute strength, pulled their meager belongings in handcarts across the scorching plains and through the snows of the high mountain passes to escape persecution and find peaceful worship in these valleys? How can the debt of gratitude possibly be paid by the descendants of the Martin and the Willie and the other handcart companies for the faith of their forebears?
"The descendants of these pioneers can partially settle the account by being true to the cause for which their ancestors suffered so much to be part of."

Gospel topics: adversity, commitment, faith, gratitude, pioneers

(James E. Faust, "Gratitude As a Saving Principle," Ensign, May 1990, 87)

Elder Paul V. Johnson on Obedience and Blessings

"Every time we are obedient to the words of the prophets and apostles we reap great blessings. We receive more blessings than we can understand at the time, and we continue to receive blessings long after our initial decision to be obedient."

Topics: obedience, blessings

(Paul V. Johnson, "The Blessings of General Conference," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 52)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
The Priesthood Is the Great Equalizer
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"Priesthood blessings are the great equalizer. Those blessings are the same for men and women, for boys and girls; they are the same for married and single, rich and poor, for the intellectual and the illiterate, for the well-known and the obscure.
"I am grateful that through the infinite fairness and love of God, all men and women were given equal partnership, gifts, blessings, and potential through priesthood ordinances and spiritual gifts. Because of the priesthood, which is woven in and around and through our lives, every power, every covenant we need to do our life's work and walk back to our heavenly home has been poured out upon our heads."

Topics: priesthood blessings, priesthood ordinances, spiritual gifts

(Julie B. Beck, "An Outpouring of Blessings," Ensign, May 2006, 13)

More Than Simply "Going"

"The issue is not going to church; rather, the issue is worshipping and renewing covenants as we attend church. The issue is not going to or through the temple; rather, the issue is having in our hearts the spirit, the covenants, and the ordinances of the Lord's house. The issue is not going on a mission; rather, the issue is becoming a missionary and serving throughout our entire life with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength."

Topics: worship, temple, mission

(David A. Bednar, "Becoming a Missionary," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 45)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
We Are the Framers of Our Destiny
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"Are we not the framers of our own destiny? Are we not the arbitrators of our fate? . . . It is our privilege to determine our own exaltation or degradation; it is our privilege to determine our own happiness or misery in the world to come."

Topics: exaltation, commandments, agency

( John Taylor, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor (2001), 141)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
It Is a Duty and a Privilege to Know the Church Is True
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"It is both the duty and privilege of the Latter-day Saints to know that their religion is true.
"Let every one get a knowledge for himself that this work is true. We do not want you to say that it is true until you know that it is; and if you know it, that knowledge is as good to you as though the Lord came down and told you.
"It is a special privilege and blessing of the holy Gospel to every true believer, to know the truth for himself."

Topics: testimony

(Brigham Young, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young (1997), 317)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
Meeting with a Prayer in Our Hearts
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"When we go to a meeting, we should go with a prayer in our hearts that the Lord will inspire those who speak, by His spirit, and after they have spoken to us by the inspiration of His Spirit, we should go away with a determination, with a desire, with a prayer, that we shall in very deed learn the lesson that we have heard, that we shall put it into practice in our lives."

Topics: Sabbath, prayer

(Heber J. Grant, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant (2002), 10)

A Father's Promise

"A father should never consciously disappoint his wife or children. In 1989 there was a terrible earthquake in Armenia that killed over 30,000 people in four minutes. A distraught father went in frantic search of his son. He reached his son's school only to find that it had been reduced to a pile of rubble. But he was driven by his promise to his son, 'No matter what, I'll always be there for you!' He visualized the corner where his son's classroom would be, rushed there, and started to dig through the debris, brick by brick.
"Others came on the scene--the fire chief, then the police--warning him of fires and explosions, and urging him to leave the search to the emergency crews. But he tenaciously carried on digging. Night came and went, and then, in the 38th hour of digging, he thought he heard his son's voice.
'Armand!' he called out. Then he heard, 'Dad!?! It's me, Dad! I told the other kids not to worry. I told 'em that if you were alive, you'd save me and when you saved me, they'd be saved. . .
'There are 14 of us left out of 33. . . . When the building collapsed, it made a wedge, like a triangle, and it saved us.'
'Come on out, boy!'
'No, Dad! Let the other kids out first, 'cause I know you'll get me! No matter what, I know you'll be there for me!' (Mark V. Hansen, "Are You Going to Help Me?" in Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen 1993, 273-74)."

Topics: fatherhood, honor, faithfulness

(James E. Faust, "Them That Honour Me I Will Honour," Ensign, May 2001, 46)

The Noble Attributes of Fatherhood

"Brethren, noble fatherhood gives us a glimpse of the divine attributes of our Father in Heaven. A father should be many things. He should magnify his priesthood and be an example of righteousness. In companionship with his wife, he should be the source of stability and strength for the whole family. He should be the protector and the provider and the champion of the members of his family. Much of his love for his children should flow from his example of love, concern, and fidelity for their mother. By his uncompromising example he should instill character into his children."

Topic: fatherhood

(James E. Faust, "Them That Honour Me I Will Honour," Ensign, May 2001, 46)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
A Mighty Change of Heart
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"When we truly understand how great a blessing the gospel of Jesus Christ is in our lives, when we accept and embrace these eternal truths and allow them to sink deep into our hearts and souls, we experience a 'mighty change' (Alma 5:14) in our hearts. We are filled with love and gratitude. As the prophet Alma wrote, we feel 'to sing the song of redeeming love' (Alma 5:26) to all who will hear it."

Topics: gospel of Jesus Christ, testimony

(M. Russell Ballard, "Creating a Gospel-Sharing Home," Ensign, May 2006, 84)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
That We May Always Have His Spirit to Be with Us
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"The standard is clear. If something we think, see, hear, or do distances us from the Holy Ghost, then we should stop thinking, seeing, hearing, or doing that thing. If that which is intended to entertain, for example, alienates us from the Holy Spirit, then certainly that type of entertainment is not for us. Because the Spirit cannot abide that which is vulgar, crude, or immodest, then clearly such things are not for us. Because we estrange the Spirit of the Lord when we engage in activities we know we should shun, then such things definitely are not for us."

Topics, Holy Ghost, temptation

(David A. Bednar, "That We May Always Have His Spirit to Be with Us," Ensign, May 2006, 30)

Having a Heart Full of Thanks

"The prophet Alma urged, 'Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day' (Alma 37:37)."

(President Thomas S. Monson, "The Profound Power of Gratitude," Ensign, Sept. 2005, 4)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
"Let Us Pray Always"
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"In the quiet hours, in the heat of battle, and through the hazards of the day; in times of temptation, of sorrow, of peace and of blessing, let us pray always, both alone, and with our families gathered around us, with gratitude for the blessings of life, for understanding of its problems, and for strength to endure to the end."

Topics: prayer, family prayer, gratitude, endurance, blessings

(Heber J. Grant, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant (2002), 174)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
"Things That Are Laid Up for the Faithful"
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"When we live our religion, when we walk according to the light of the Spirit of God, when we purge ourselves (of) impurity and corruption, and the sweet whispering of the Spirit of the Lord pours intelligence into our bosoms, broods over us, causing peace and joy to be with us, we have then, more or less, a faint glimpse of those things that are laid up for the faithful, and it is then we feel as though we and all that we have are in the hands of the Lord and that we are ready to offer ourselves (as) a sacrifice for the accomplishment of his purposes upon the earth.

Topics: Holy Ghost, gospel of Jesus Christ

(John Taylor, in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor (2001), 151)

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
The Influence of the Light of Christ
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"(The influence of the Light of Christ) can be weakened through transgression and addiction and restored through proper repentance. The Light of Christ is not a person. It is a power and influence that comes from God and when followed can lead a person to qualify for the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Ghost."

Topics: Light of Christ, Holy Ghost, repentance

(Richard G. Scott, "Peace of Conscience and Peace of Mind," Ensign, Nov. 2004, 15 )

Gems from the Teachings of Church Leaders
Fulfilling the Promise Made to Abraham
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"My beloved brethren, you and I, today and always, are to bless all peoples in all the nations of the earth. You and I, today and always, are to bear witness of Jesus Christ and declare the message of the Restoration.
You and I, today and always, are to invite all to receive the ordinances of salvation. Proclaiming the gospel is not a part-time priesthood obligation. It is not simply an activity in which we engage for a limited time or an assignment we must complete as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Rather, missionary work is a manifestation of our spiritual identity and heritage. We were foreordained in the pre-mortal existence and born into mortality to fulfill the covenant and promise God made to Abraham. We are here upon the earth at this time to magnify the priesthood and to preach the gospel. That is who we are, and that is why we are here--today and always."

Topics: Gospel of Jesus Christ, Restoration, Missionary Work

(David A. Bednar, "Becoming a Missionary," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 47)