Is There Something Better?

This video is an excerpt from a devotional address given by Stephen H. Russell at BYU-Hawaii on March 18, 2004. Professor Russell quotes LeGrand Richards concerning an experience Elder Richards had while serving as president of the Netherlands LDS Mission in 1913.

LeGrand Richards was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1952 until his death in 1993 at age 96. As can be noted from the quote in this video, Elder Richards was an enthusiastic champion of the gospel of Jesus Christ and quick to share the glorious truths of the Restoration. In the foreword to Elder Richards biography "Beloved Apostle," President Gordon B. Hinckley wrote, "Few men in our generation have done more to advance the work of the Lord than has Elder LeGrand Richards."

An Apostles Easter Thoughts on Christ

To all such, I speak of the loneliest journey ever made and the unending blessings it brought to all in the human family. I speak of the Savior’s solitary task of shouldering alone the burden of our salvation. Rightly He would say: “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me. . . . I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold [me].”¹
As President Uchtdorf so beautifully noted earlier, we know from scripture that Jesus’s messianic arrival in Jerusalem on the Sunday preceding Passover, a day directly analogous to this very morning, was a great public moment. But eagerness to continue walking with Him would quickly begin to wane.
Soon enough He was arraigned before the Israelite leaders of the day—first Annas, the former high priest, then Caiaphas, the current high priest. In their rush to judgment these men and their councils declared their verdict quickly and angrily. “What further need have we of witnesses?” they cried. “He is [worthy] of death.”²
With that He was brought before the gentile rulers in the land. Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee, interrogated Him once, and Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor in Judea, did so twice, the second time declaring to the crowd, “I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man.”³ Then, in an act as unconscionable as it was illogical, Pilate “scourged Jesus, [and] delivered him to be crucified.”⁴ Pilate’s freshly washed hands could not have been more stained or more unclean.
Such ecclesiastical and political rejection became more personal when the citizenry in the street turned against Jesus as well. It is one of the ironies of history that sitting with Jesus in prison was a real blasphemer, a murderer and revolutionary known as Barabbas, a name or title in Aramaic meaning “son of the father.”⁵ Free to release one prisoner in the spirit of the Passover tradition, Pilate asked the people, “Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you?” They said, “Barabbas.”⁶ So one godless “son of the father” was set free while a truly divine Son of His Heavenly Father moved on to crucifixion.
This was also a telling time among those who knew Jesus more personally. The most difficult to understand in this group is Judas Iscariot. We know the divine plan required Jesus to be crucified, but it is wrenching to think that one of His special witnesses who sat at His feet, heard Him pray, watched Him heal, and felt His touch could betray Him and all that He was for 30 pieces of silver. Never in the history of this world has so little money purchased so much infamy. We are not the ones to judge Judas’s fate, but Jesus said of His betrayer, “Good [were it] for that man if he had not been born.”⁷
Of course others among the believers had their difficult moments as well. Following the Last Supper, Jesus left Peter, James, and John to wait while He ventured into the Garden of Gethsemane alone. Falling on His face in prayer, “sorrowful . . . unto death,”⁸ the record says, His sweat came as great drops of blood⁹ as He pled with the Father to let this crushing, brutal cup pass from Him. But, of course, it could not pass. Returning from such anguished prayer He found His three chief disciples asleep, prompting Him to ask, “Could ye not watch with me one hour?”¹⁰ So it happens two more times until on His third return He says compassionately, “Sleep on now, and take your rest,”¹¹ though there would be no rest for Him.
Later, after Jesus’s arrest and appearance at trial, Peter, accused of knowing Jesus and being one of His confidants, denies that accusation not once but three times. We don’t know all that was going on here, nor do we know of protective counsel which the Savior may have given to His Apostles privately,¹² but we do know Jesus was aware that even these precious ones would not stand with Him in the end, and He had warned Peter accordingly.¹³ Then, with the crowing of the cock, “the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord. . . . And [he] went out, and wept bitterly.”¹⁴
Thus, of divine necessity, the supporting circle around Jesus gets smaller and smaller and smaller, giving significance to Matthew’s words: “All the disciples [left] him, and fled.”¹⁵ Peter stayed near enough to be recognized and confronted. John stood at the foot of the cross with Jesus’s mother. Especially and always the blessed women in the Savior’s life stayed as close to Him as they could. But essentially His lonely journey back to His Father continued without comfort or companionship.
Now I speak very carefully, even reverently, of what may have been the most difficult moment in all of this solitary journey to Atonement. I speak of those final moments for which Jesus must have been prepared intellectually and physically but which He may not have fully anticipated emotionally and spiritually—that concluding descent into the paralyzing despair of divine withdrawal when He cries in ultimate loneliness, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”¹⁶
The loss of mortal support He had anticipated, but apparently He had not comprehended this. Had He not said to His disciples, “Behold, the hour . . . is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me” and “The Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him”?¹⁷
With all the conviction of my soul I testify that He did please His Father perfectly and that a perfect Father did not forsake His Son in that hour. Indeed, it is my personal belief that in all of Christ’s mortal ministry the Father may never have been closer to His Son than in these agonizing final moments of suffering. Nevertheless, that the supreme sacrifice of His Son might be as complete as it was voluntary and solitary, the Father briefly withdrew from Jesus the comfort of His Spirit, the support of His personal presence. It was required; indeed it was central to the significance of the Atonement, that this perfect Son who had never spoken ill nor done wrong nor touched an unclean thing had to know how the rest of humankind—us, all of us—would feel when we did commit such sins. For His Atonement to be infinite and eternal, He had to feel what it was like to die not only physically but spiritually, to sense what it was like to have the divine Spirit withdraw, leaving one feeling totally, abjectly, hopelessly alone.
But Jesus held on. He pressed on. The goodness in Him allowed faith to triumph even in a state of complete anguish. The trust He lived by told Him in spite of His feelings that divine compassion is never absent, that God is always faithful, that He never flees nor fails us. When the uttermost farthing had then been paid, when Christ’s determination to be faithful was as obvious as it was utterly invincible, finally and mercifully, it was “finished.”¹⁸ Against all odds and with none to help or uphold Him, Jesus of Nazareth, the living Son of the living God, restored physical life where death had held sway and brought joyful, spiritual redemption out of sin, hellish darkness and despair. With faith in the God He knew was there, He could say in triumph, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”¹⁹
Brothers and sisters, one of the great consolations of this Easter season is that because Jesus walked such a long, lonely path utterly alone, we do not have to do so. His solitary journey brought great company for our little version of that path—the merciful care of our Father in Heaven, the unfailing companionship of this Beloved Son, the consummate gift of the Holy Ghost, angels in heaven, family members on both sides of the veil, prophets and apostles, teachers, leaders, friends. All of these and more have been given as companions for our mortal journey because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the Restoration of His gospel. Trumpeted from the summit of Calvary is the truth that we will never be left alone nor unaided, even if sometimes we may feel that we are. Truly the Redeemer of us all said, “I will not leave you comfortless. [My Father and] I will come to you [and abide with you].”²⁰
My other plea at Easter time is that these scenes of Christ’s lonely sacrifice, laced with moments of denial and abandonment and, at least once, outright betrayal, must never be reenacted by us. He has walked alone once. Now, may I ask that never again will He have to confront sin without our aid and assistance, that never again will He find only unresponsive onlookers when He sees you and me along His Via Dolorosa in our present day. As we approach this holy week—Passover Thursday with its Paschal Lamb, atoning Friday with its cross, Resurrection Sunday with its empty tomb—may we declare ourselves to be more fully disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, not in word only and not only in the flush of comfortable times but in deed and in courage and in faith, including when the path is lonely and when our cross is difficult to bear. This Easter week and always, may we stand by Jesus Christ “at all times and in all things, and in all places that [we] may be in, even until death,”²¹ for surely that is how He stood by us when it was unto death and when He had to stand entirely and utterly alone. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.


Jeffrey R. Holland - None Were With Him - April 2009 General Conference

April 2010 Saturday AM Soundbytes

Below is a sampling of what was said in this mornings session along with photos courtesy of bycommonconsent.com:

" we call upon the members of the Church to reach out to the new converts or to those making their way back into the Church, surround them with love and to help them feel at home."

President Thomas S. Monson

"We've done a very well in distributing the authority of the priesthood... but distributing the authority of the priesthood has reached ahead of distributing the power of the priesthood.  The priesthood does not have the strength it should have and it will not have it until it is firmly fixed within the family as it should be."

President Boyd K. Packer

"The ability to receive and act upon revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life

President Julie B. Beck

"For prayers to be efficacious they must be in harmony with the plans of heaven.  It is as important to be guided by the Holy Spirit in prayer as it is to receive answers by the same Spirit.

Bishop Keith B. McMullin

"The saints leaving Nauvoo learned that hope does not depend on circumstance.  The true source of hope is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in his infinite atonement."

Elder Wilford W. Anderson
"Make sure they (your daughters) know that keeping covenants is the safest road to eternal happiness"

Elder M. Russell Ballard

"Parents, brothers and sisters, grandparent, aunts and uncles are made more powerful guides and rescuers by the bonds of love that are the very nature of a family"

President Henry B. Eyring

The Will of the Father in All Things - Marion G. & Ida Romney

One scripture that I received great teaching from as a missionary is found in Helaman 10:4-5.  In this scripture the Lord is speaking to Nephi, son of Helaman who served as chief judge of the people for nine years after the death of his righteous father.  During his time as judge leading up to the birth of Christ, Nephi witnessed some of the greatest downfall and wickedness amongst the Nephites.  Because of his love for the Lord and the people he relinquished his position of authority and power to devote the remainder of his life calling his brethren to repentance.  It is very apparent that the Lord loved Nephi as well as evidence of the great blessings given to him (the sealing power) in chapter 10.  Take note in the verses what characteristics Nephi possessed to earn this great trust from the Lord.


The following story about Marion and Ida Romney illustrates a willingness to be obedient and submissive but also reminds us that we must be careful not to miss the hand of the Lord when it is offered and when it is his desire to assist.


"In 1967 Sister Romney suffered a serious stroke. The doctors told then--Elder Romney that the damage from the hemorrhage was severe. They offered to keep her alive by artificial means but did not recommend it. The family braced themselves for the worst. Brother Romney confided to those closest to him that in spite of his anguished, personal yearning for Ida's restored health and continued companionship, above all he wanted "the Lord's will to be done and to take what he needed to take without whimpering."

As the days wore on, Sister Romney became less responsive. She had, of course, been administered to, but Elder Romney was "reluctant to counsel the Lord about the matter." Because of his earlier unsuccessful experience of praying that he and Ida might have children, he knew that he could never ask in prayer for something which was not in harmony with the will of the Lord.

He fasted that he might know how to show the Lord that he had faith and that he would accept God's will in their lives. He wanted to make sure that he had done all he could do. She continued to fail.

One evening in a particularly depressed state, with Ida unable to speak or recognize him, Brother Romney went home and turned as he always had to the scriptures in an effort to commune with the Lord. He picked up the Book of Mormon and continued where he had left off the night before.

He had been reading in the book of Helaman about the prophet Nephi, who had been falsely condemned and unfairly charged with sedition. Following a miraculous deliverance from his accusers, Nephi returned home pondering the things which he had experienced. As he did so he heard a voice.

Although Marion Romney had read that story many times before, it now struck him this night as a personal revelation. The words of the scripture so touched his heart that for the first time in weeks he felt he had tangible peace. It seemed as if the Lord was speaking directly to him. The scripture read:


Blessed art thou, . . . for those things which thou hast done. . . . And thou . . . hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments.
And now, because thou hast done this . . . I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will. [Helaman 10:4­-5]

There was the answer. He had sought only to know and obey the will of the Lord, and the Lord had spoken. He fell to his knees and poured out his heart, and as he concluded his prayer with the phrase, "Thy will be done," he either felt or actually heard a voice which said, "It is not contrary to my will that Ida be healed."

Brother Romney rose to his feet. It was past two o'clock in the morning, but he knew what he must do.

Quickly he put on his tie and coat, then went out into the night to visit Ida in the hospital.

He arrived shortly before three o'clock. His wife's condition was unchanged. She did not stir as he placed his hands upon her pale forehead. With undeviating faith, he invoked the power of the priesthood in her behalf. He pronounced a simple blessing and then uttered the incredible promise that she would recover her health and mental powers and yet perform a great mission upon the earth.

Even though he did not doubt, Elder Romney was astonished to see Ida's eyes open as he concluded the blessing. Somewhat stunned by all that had happened, he sat down on the edge of the bed only to hear his wife's frail voice for the first time in months. She said, "For goodness' sake, Marion, what are you doing here?" He didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. He said, "Ida, how are you?" With that flash of humor so characteristic of both of them, she replied, "Compared to what, Marion? Compared to what?"

Ida Romney began her recovery from that very moment, soon left her hospital bed, and lived to see her husband sustained as a member of the First Presidency of the Church, "a great mission upon the earth" indeed.

F. Burton Howard, Marion G. Romney: His Life and Faith [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988], pp. 137­42).

Filling the Measure of our Creation

"I've often wondered of the struggles that may have plagued the mind of Moses when the Lord asked him to leave his royal privileges and position in order to serve him in abject poverty and meagerness. Contrast his mission with the Lord's design for Joseph to stay in Egypt, to use his power and prestige for righteous purposes. Apparently Jeremiah was never given the blessings of marriage or children although Jacob had the comfort and companionship of four righteous women and many children. Joshua seems to have been an incredibly confident, charismatic, take-charge kind of leader, but Moses was often reluctant and tentative and sometimes had to ask the Lord twice for directions. Each had a crucial--but very different--role to play.

Furthermore, age seems to make little difference in the diversity of this tapestry. David was a Mere child when he deftly dispatched Goliath, but Abraham was more than one hundred years old when he gave us the supreme Mortal example of faith and obedience. Esther had the wealth and attention of kings, giving her the opportunity to help save a nation, whereas Ruth was a poor, unaccepted Moabite--but one whose royal blood, ironically, carried the lineage of the Son of God himself. The Lord uses us because of our unique personalities and differences rather than in spite of them. He needs all of us, with all our blemishes and weaknesses and limitations.

So what can I be? What can I be? We can be what heavenly parents designed us and intend us and help us to be. How does one fill the measure of his or her creation? We do so by thrusting in a sickle and reaping with all our strength--and by rejoicing in our uniqueness and our difference. To be all that you can be, your only assignment is (1) to cherish your course and savor your own distinctiveness, (2) to shut out conflicting voices and listen to the voice within, which is God telling you who you are and what you will be, and (3) to free yourself from the love of profession, position, or the approval of men by remembering that what God really wants us to be is someone's sister, someone's brother, and someone's friend."

Patricia Holland - "Filling the Measure of Your Creation" - BYU Devotional - January 17, 1989

He Lives: Modern Day Testimonies of Jesus Christ

A Holy Week - What We Can Learn From Other Religions

I have recently subscribed to The Mormon Times which Deseret News now sends out along with The Church News.  A feature from this weeks edition highlighted how different religions celebrate the week of Easter as well as other traditions and ceremonies throughout the year.  As we strive to be missionaries throughout the world I think it not only important to understand and embrace the good from these cultures but to also avoid the embarrassment of ignorance.  For example, this past Ash Wednesday in February a BBC reporter covering a news conference of Joe Bidens kept reffering to a bruise on his forehead that he must have recieved while attending the Olympics (dont believe me? watch here). 

In one of the articles it quotes Marvin Goldstein, who was born a Jew, but baptized into the church in 1985 at the age of 35. "There is a total disconnect," said Goldstein, an accomplished pianist. "Mormons profess to believe all of these (principles of the holidays) yet know nothing about the holidays that even Christ would have celebrated."

Below are links to each of the features dedicated to learning more about about a sampling of these traditions:

Palm Sunday

Good Friday

Passover

Shavuot

Pentecost

Ramadan

Rosh Hashanah

All Hallows' Eve

Yom Kippur

Advent

Hanukkah

Lent

How to Protect your Personal Integrity

"Your personal integrity will be protected by prior commitments. Job secured his commitment to integrity before facing a challenge. He wrote, "All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils; My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. . . . till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me" (Job 27:3­5). Job knew he would face his Maker one day in judgment. He recorded this hope: "Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity" (Job 31:6). Shakespeare gives reason for a strong prior commitment to integrity in lines he penned for his character Tarquinius in the poem The Rape of Lucrece. As Tarquinius contemplates the conquest of a woman in lust, he argues against himself:

What win I if I gain the thing I seek?

A dream, a breath, a froth of fleeting joy.

Who buys a minute's mirth to wail a week?

Or sells eternity to get a toy?

For one sweet grape who will the vine destroy?

[The Rape of Lucrece (1594), lines 211­15]

Commitments to integrity are learned from parents. The Lord said to Solomon, "Walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and. . . keep my statutes and my judgments" (1 Kings 9:4)."

Russell M. Nelson - Integrity of the Heart - BYU Speeches

Whoever said that sin was not fun?

“Whoever said that sin was not fun? Whoever claimed that Lucifer was not handsome, persuasive, easy, friendly? Sin is attractive and desirable. Transgression wears elegant gowns and sparkling apparel. It is highly perfumed; it has attractive features, a soft voice. It is found in educated circles and sophisticated groups. It provides sweet and comfortable luxuries. Sin is easy and has a big company of companions. It promises temporary freedoms. It can momentarily satisfy hunger, thirst, desire, urges, passions, and wants without immediately paying the price. But, it begins tiny and grows to monumental proportions – drop by drop, inch by inch.”

--Spencer W. Kimball (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball)

The Strait and Narrow Path

"...the strait and narrow path, though clearly marked, is a path, not a freeway nor an escalator. Indeed, there are times when the only way the strait and narrow path can be followed is on one's knees!"

--Neal A. Maxwell, "A Brother Offended," Ensign, May 1982, 37

A second quote on the power of teaching the doctrine

"Well-taught doctrines and principles have a more powerful influence on behavior than rules."

--Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign, Nov. 1999, 79

True Doctrine Understood

True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior. Preoccupation with unworthy behavior can lead to unworthy behavior. That is why we stress so forcefully the study of the doctrines of the gospel.

Boyd K. Packer, Conference Report, October 1986

Digital Detachment and Personal Revelation

There is a wonderful article in this months Ensign by Elder Scott D. Whiting that I felt spoke right to me who sometimes gets carried away with technology as the source of all things that need to be known and done. Regardless of whether or not you own an iPhone, Blackberry or plug into the internet on a daily basis there are a few warnings to consider as laid out by Elder Whiting:

"We carry wireless telephones that can store hundreds of numbers, are able to take both moving and still pictures, and can access never-ending streams of information from an unseen source. We can play thousands of songs from a device no larger than a credit card. We can surf the Internet at any time of the day or night and quickly move across the intellectual and physical globe in images and information.

Out of such technological advancement come both good and bad. Modern technology, when purely and judiciously used, can help us hasten the work of the Lord and spread the gospel.1 But an overreliance on technology can also create boredom with lower-tech activities, an attitude that may extend to how we worship God, our Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ. We cannot simply point and click on or download a personal, revelatory relationship with our Heavenly Father.2 This kind of relationship is built on quiet principles of faith, repentance, and obedience.

For this reason it is vitally important to recognize the risks of digital attachment. Being constantly “plugged in” can drown out the quiet whisperings and subtle impressions of the Holy Spirit, breaking our personal connection with God and making it difficult, if not impossible, to receive personal revelation."

"While modern technological advancements can enhance the work of the Lord and bless us and our families, we must be careful not to fall victim to their destructive side. We must not only avoid the base and degrading content some sources contain, but we must also recognize when electronic distractions keep us from quieter, more significant uses of our time. We must guard against becoming so attached to digital devices that we become detached from God.

Sometimes the most productive “point and click” application is that of pointing our finger at the power button and clicking our digital devices off."

Digital Distraction & Personal Revelation - Ensign March 2010 link

Anger, Negativity and the Spirit

"Whenever you get red in the face, whenever you raise your voice, whenever you get 'hot under the collar' or angry, rebellious, or negative in spirit, then know that the Spirit of God is leaving you and the spirit of Satan is beginning to take over."

--Theodore Burton

(Conference Report, Oct. 1974 p.77) or Ensign Nov. 1974 pg.

Final Testimony of President Hinckley to the people of England

One more that I found. President Hinckley's final testimony given to the people of the British Isles on May 25, 2005

President Gordon B. Hinckley's Final Testimony

Today marks two years since the death of our beloved prophet Gordon B. Hinckley. Here is the final testimony he gave at the October 2007 General Conference.

Sunday Notes: Work

In our Sunday School class today something in Moses 4:23 was pointed out that I had not seen before. In the verse God is explaining to Adam the new consequences of his fallen state and says:

"cursed shall be the ground for thy sake"

When I see the words "for thy sake" I realize that this was for Adam and for my benefit. The fact that he and all of us have to toil and labor and work is a good thing. In this past conference President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said the following:

Work is an antidote for anxiety, an ointment for sorrow, and a doorway to possibility. Whatever our circumstances in life, my dear brethren, let us do the best we can and cultivate a reputation for excellence in all that we do. Let us set our minds and bodies to the glorious opportunity for work that each new day presents.

When our wagon gets stuck in the mud, God is much more likely to assist the man who gets out to push than the man who merely raises his voice in prayer—no matter how eloquent the oration. President Thomas S. Monson put it this way: “It is not enough to want to make the effort and to say we’ll make the effort. … It’s in the doing, not just the thinking, that we accomplish our goals. If we constantly put our goals off, we will never see them fulfilled.”

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Two Principles for Any Economy,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 55–58

Daniel W. Jones and the Enabling Power of the Atonement

One additional story told in David A. Bednar's talk entitled 'In the Strength of the Lord' is that of one of the rescuers of the Willie and Martin handcart companies who were stranded in the snow of Wyoming. Brother Jones who was a convert of only 5 years as of this experience understood the true enabling power of the atonement:

"Examples of the enabling power are not found only in the scriptures. Daniel W. Jones was born in 1830 in Missouri, and he joined the Church in California in 1851. In 1856 he participated in the rescue of handcart companies that were stranded in Wyoming by severe storms. After the rescue party found the suffering Saints, provided what immediate comfort they could, and made arrangements for the sick and the feeble to be transported to Salt Lake City, Daniel and several other young men volunteered to remain with and safeguard the company's possessions. The food and supplies left with Daniel and his colleagues were, to say the least, meager and were rapidly expended. I will now quote from Daniel Jones' personal journal and his description of the events that followed:

"Game soon became so scarce that we could kill nothing. We ate all the poor meat; one would get hungry eating it. Finally that was all gone, nothing now but hides were left. We made a trial of them. A lot was cooked and eaten without any seasoning and it made the whole company sick. Many were so turned against the stuff that it made them sick to think of it. . . .

"Things looked dark, for nothing remained but the poor raw hides taken from starved cattle. We asked the Lord to direct us what to do. The brethren did not murmur, but felt to trust in God. We had cooked the hide, after soaking and scraping the hair off until it was soft and then ate it, glue and all. This made it rather inclined to stay with us longer than we desired. Finally I was impressed how to fix the stuff and gave the company advice, telling them how to cook it; for them to scorch and scrape the hair off; this had a tendency to kill and purify the bad taste that scalding gave it. After scraping, boil one hour in plenty of water, throwing the water away which had extracted all the glue, then wash and scrape the hide thoroughly, washing in cold water, then boil to a jelly and let it get cold, and then eat with a little sugar sprinkled on it. This was considerable trouble, but we had little else to do and it was better than starving" (Daniel W. Jones, Forty Years Among the Indians [Salt Lake City: Juvenile Instructor Office, 1890], 81).

All that I have read thus far is a preparation for the next line from Daniel W. Jones' journal. It illustrates how those pioneer Saints may have known something about the enabling power of the Atonement that we, in our prosperity and ease, are not as quick to understand:

"We asked the Lord to bless our stomachs and adapt them to this food" (Jones, Forty Years, 81; emphasis added).

My dear brothers and sisters, I know what I would have prayed for in those circumstances. I would have prayed for something else to eat. "Heavenly Father, please send me a quail or a buffalo." It never would have occurred to me to pray that my stomach would be strengthened and adapted to what we already had. What did Daniel W. Jones know? He knew about the enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He did not pray that his circumstances would be changed. He prayed that he would be strengthened to deal with his circumstances. Just as Nephi, Amulek, and Alma and his people were strengthened, Daniel W. Jones had the spiritual insight to know what to ask for in that prayer.

"We hadn't the faith to ask him to bless the raw-hide, for it was 'hard stock.' On eating now all seemed to relish the feast. We were three days without eating before this second attempt was made. We enjoyed this sumptuous fare for about six weeks" (Jones, Forty Years, 81–82).

The enabling power of the Atonement of Christ strengthens us to do things we could never do on our own. Sometimes I wonder if in our latter-day world of ease--in our world of microwave ovens and cell phones and air-conditioned cars and comfortable homes--I wonder if we ever learn to acknowledge our daily dependence upon the enabling power of the Atonement."

Sunday Notes: The Enabling and Redemptive Powers of the Atonement

In sacrament meeting today our Stake Patriarch spoke and gave his wonderful testimony of the hours surrounding the physical acts of the atonement that Christ endured. He spoke without notes, yet quoted prophets and scripture as though they were part of him. My thoughts as I listened were that this is not the kind of talk you write and prepare. Although anyone could probably memorize those words you can feel when a man of that stature gives them that it has come through years of study, years of fasting, years of prayer and revelation.

Clearly 2 Corinthians 3: 2-3 applies to my good friend, our Stake Patriarch:

2 Ye are our ^aepistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:

3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, ^awritten not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in ^btables of stone, but in ^cfleshy tables of the ^dheart.

In his remarks he referenced a talke given in October 2001 by the then President of BYU-Idaho David A. Bednar called 'In the Strength of the Lord.' In the opening lines of this talk President Bednar states, "I have considered what might be the most important message I could share with you. My objective this morning is to describe and discuss both the redeeming and enabling powers of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. And I hope to place particular emphasis upon the enabling power of the Atonement."

I myself have always placed so much emphasis on the redeeming power and although I understood the principles of the enabling power I had not heard them so well described as does President Bednar do in this talk.

"I suspect that you and I are much more familiar with the nature of the redeeming power of the Atonement than we are with the enabling power of the Atonement. It is one thing to know that Jesus Christ came to earth to die for us. That is fundamental and foundational to the doctrine of Christ. But we also need to appreciate that the Lord desires, through His Atonement and by the power of the Holy Ghost, to live in us--not only to direct us but also to empower us. I think most of us know that when we do things wrong, when we need help to overcome the effects of sin in our lives, the Savior has paid the price and made it possible for us to be made clean through His redeeming power. Most of us clearly understand that the Atonement is for sinners. I am not so sure, however, that we know and understand that the Atonement is also for saints--for good men and women who are obedient and worthy and conscientious and who are striving to become better and serve more faithfully. I frankly do not think many of us "get it" concerning this enabling and strengthening aspect of the Atonement, and I wonder if we mistakenly believe we must make the journey from good to better and become a saint all by ourselves through sheer grit, willpower, and discipline, and with our obviously limited capacities.

Brothers and sisters, the gospel of the Savior is not simply about avoiding bad in our lives; it also is essentially about doing and becoming good. And the Atonement provides help for us to overcome and avoid bad and to do and become good. There is help from the Savior for the entire journey of life--from bad to good to better and to change our very nature."

President Bednar then goes on to explain the relationship between the correct definition of grace and enabling power:

"In the Bible Dictionary in our scriptures we learn that the word grace frequently is used in the scriptures to connote enabling power. On page 697, under the word grace, we read:

""A word that occurs frequently in the New Testament, especially in the writings of Paul. The main idea of the word is divine means of help or strength, given through the bounteous mercy and love of Jesus Christ (emphasis added).

"It is through the grace of the Lord Jesus, made possible by his atoning sacrifice, that mankind will be raised in immortality, every person receiving his body from the grave in a condition of everlasting life.""

Please note these next sentences:

""It is likewise through the grace of the Lord that individuals, through faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance of their sins, receive strength and assistance to do good works that they otherwise would not be able to maintain if left to their own means. This grace is an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts"" (emphasis added).

That is, grace represents that divine assistance or heavenly help each of us will desperately need to qualify for the celestial kingdom. Thus the enabling power of the Atonement strengthens us to do and be good and serve beyond our own individual desire and natural capacity."

In Elder Bednars own personal scriptures he notes that he has made it a habit to write enabling power whenever he encounters the word grace.

"Consider, for example, this verse with which we are all familiar: "For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do" (2 Nephi 25:23).

Let's review this verse one more time: "For we know that it is by grace [the enabling and strengthening power of the Atonement of Christ] that we are saved, after all we can do."

He concludes by expounding on a scripture in Alma 7 that I used to use all the time as a missionary to explain Christ's atonement:

"In Alma 7 we learn how and why the Savior is able to provide the enabling power, beginning with verse 11: "And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people" (emphasis added).

Thus the Savior has suffered not just for our iniquities but also for the inequality, the unfairness, the pain, the anguish, and the emotional distress that so frequently beset us. Additional detail is described in verse 12:

"And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities" (emphasis added).

There is no physical pain, no anguish of soul, no suffering of spirit, no infirmity or weakness that you or I ever experience during our mortal journey that the Savior did not experience first. You and I in a moment of weakness may cry out, "No one understands. No one knows." No human being, perhaps, knows. But the Son of God perfectly knows and understands, for He felt and bore our burdens before we ever did. And because He paid the ultimate price and bore that burden, He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy in so many phases of our life. He can reach out, touch, and succor--literally run to us--and strengthen us to be more than we could ever be and help us to do that which we could never do through relying only upon our own power."

Sunday Notes - The Importance of Keeping Notes and Records

Today I thought I would begin a new section of this blog entitled 'Sunday Notes.' In an effort to pay greater attention to what is being said in talks and lessons I have begun to bring a notepad and pen with me to write down some of the more interesting thoughts presented. At the end of the October 1975 General Conference President Spencer W. Kimball made the following remarks:

We hope that the leaders and the members of the Church who have attended and listened to the conference have been inspired and uplifted. We hope you have made copious notes of the thoughts that have come to your mind as the Brethren have addressed you. Many suggestions have been given that will help you as leaders in the perfection of your work. Many helpful thoughts have been given for the perfection of our own lives, and that, of course, is the basic reason for our coming.

While sitting here, I have made up my mind that when I go home from this conference this night there are many, many areas in my life that I can perfect. I have made a mental list of them, and I expect to go to work as soon as we get through with conference.

President Spencer W. Kimball [CR, October 1975, p. 164; also, Ensign, November 1975, p. 111]

Similarly the Prophet Joseph Smith taught the following to the twelve in his day:

If you assemble from time to time, and proceed to discuss important questions, and pass decisions upon the same, and fail to note them down, by and by you will be driven to straits from which you will not be able to extricate yourselves, because you may be in a situation not to bring your faith to bear with sufficient perfection or power to obtain the desired information; or, perhaps, for neglecting to write these things when God had revealed them, not esteeming them of sufficient worth, the Spirit may withdraw and God may be angry; and there is, or was, a vast knowledge, of infinite importance, which is now lost.

[From minutes of instruction to the Council of the Twelve, February 27, 1835; HC 2:198­99]

Finally, in our modern times Richard G. Scott has given this counsel:

Knowledge carefully recorded is knowledge available in time of need. Spiritually sensitive information should be kept in a sacred place that communicates to the Lord how it is treasured. That practice enhances the likelihood of receiving further light. Powerful spiritual direction in our lives can be overcome or be forced into the background unless we provide a way to remember it.

Elder Richard G. Scott - Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge - BYU Devotional 17 Aug 1993

Write down in a secure place the important things you learn from the Spirit. You will find that as you record a precious impression, often others will come that you would not have otherwise received. Also, the spiritual knowledge you gain will be available throughout your life. Always, day or night, wherever you are, whatever you are doing, seek to recognize and respond to the direction of the Spirit. Have available a piece of paper or a card to record such guidance.

Elder Richard G. Scott - To Learn and Teach More Effectively - Campus Education Week 2007