Spiritual Thought

February 2010

Love is the motivating principle by which the Lord leads us along the way towards becoming like Him, our perfect example. Our way of life, hour by hour, must be filled with the love of God and love for others. There is no surprise in that, since the Lord proclaimed those as the first and great commandments. It is love of God that will lead us to keep His commandments. And love of others is at the heart of our capacity to obey Him.

Just as Jesus used a child in His mortal ministry as an example for the people of the pure love they must and could have to be like Him, He has offered us the family as an example of an ideal setting in which we can learn how to love as He loves. That is because the greatest joys and the greatest sorrows we experience are in family relationships. The joys come from putting the welfare of others above our own. That is what love is. And the sorrow comes primarily from selfishness, which is the absence of love. The ideal God holds for us is to form families in the way most likely to lead to happiness and away from sorrow.

I hope you will go out today looking for opportunities to do as He did and to love as He loves. I can promise you the peace that you felt as a child will come to you often and it will linger with you. The promise is true that He made to his disciples: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you."

None of us is perfect yet. But we can have frequent assurance that we are following along the way. He leads us, and He beckons for us to follow Him.

~Elder Henry B. Eyring

~November 2009, Ensign

Spiritual Thought

December 2009

President David O. McKay declared: "True happiness comes only by making others happy-the practical application of the Savior's doctrine of losing one's life to gain it. In short, the Christmas spirit is the Christ spirit, that makes our hearts glow in brotherly love and friendship and prompts us to kind deeds of service.

"It is the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obedience to which will bring 'peace on earth,' because it means-good will toward all men."

Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. Enemies are forgiven, friends are remembered, and God obeyed. The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world's busy life and become more interested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the "spirit of Christmas," we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the "Spirit of Christ."

Times change; years speed by; but Christmas continues sacred. In this marvelous dispensation of the fullness of times, our opportunities to give of ourselves are indeed limitless, but they are also perishable. There are hearts to gladden. There are kind words to say. There are gifts to be given. There are deeds to be done. There are souls to be saved.

My prayer is that at this Christmas season and all the Christmastimes to come, we may follow in His footsteps. Then each Christmas will be the best Christmas ever.

~President Thomas S. Monson

~December 2008, Liahona

Spiritual Thought

November 2009


"Gratitude may be increased by constantly reflecting on our blessings and giving thanks for them in our daily prayers.

President David O. Mckay has said: "The young man who closes the door behind him, who draws the curtains, and there in silence pleads with God for help, should first pour out his soul in gratitude for health, for friends, for loved ones, for the gospel, for the manifestations of God's existence. He should first count his many blessings and name them one by one" (in Conference Report Apr. 1961, 7-8).

A constant expression of gratitude should be included in all our prayers. Often prayers are given for specific blessings which we, in our incomplete understanding, believe we need. While the Lord does answer prayers according to His will, He certainly must be pleased when we offer humble prayers of gratitude.

...the next time we pray, instead of presenting the Lord petition after petition for some action in our behalf, give Him thoughtful thanks for all with which He has blessed us."

~Elder Steven E. Snow

~January 2002 Liahona

Spiritual Thought

October 2009

With Nephi we seek to say, "We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ (2 Nephi 25:26)." Our strongest, most heartfelt expressions of faith in our Savior center on his divine sonship and on his atoning sacrafice. Although the divine reality of Jesus Christ is still debated by some churches, there is no doubt among faithful Latter-day Saints that we as a people believe in Christ. But we do individually really believe that Jesus' Atonement- his suffering in Gethsemane, his death upon the cross, and his Resurrection- actually makes it possible for us, however dark or discouraged we may feel today, to overcome not only our sins but also our sorrows and weaknesses and to be exalted with him and God the Father? Or do we only hear the words, even memorize or otherwise attempt to internalize them, but when faced with our own guilt or discouragement, say, "Oh, that's all true, but it isn't true for me?"

Let us rejoice that Jesus Christ's Atonement really makes it possible for us to truly repent, wipe clean our slate, start over, and virtually begin a new life. Let us rejoice in the knowledge that regardless of any inadequacies we have- or we feel we have, or have been told we have, whether real or perceived- the Lord Jesus Christ can make up any difference that may remain after we have done all that we can to overcome our weaknesses (see Ether 12:27).

If we really believe what Jesus Christ says about what he can do for us, we can develop sufficient hope in our lives to overcome discouragement and to fill our lives with meaning and fulfillment.

-Jack H. Goaslind

1997 April Ensign

Spiritual Thought

September 2009

I often marvel as I read the life of the Savior how many times the Lord used the tilling of the soil as an example in his teachings.

His growth cycle has always been a marvel to me-the process of fertilizing, tilling, planting, weeding, and irrigating to produce a harvest. I am continually amazed with the power in a single seed as it multiplies itself many, many times. I've tried to perpetuate this understanding in the lives of my children. Each has had his turn in tilling, planting, weeding, and watering. Exposing yourself to the Lord's system cannot help but give you an appreciation for his bounteous blessings to us. There have been very few years in my life that I have not been responisble for a garden. Even now as a city condominium dweller, I still plant and harvest a garden each year.

The great blessing is that we are only beginning. The yield has no limits on its increase. Our labors will continue to bring forth more abundant harvest each year as we follow the Lord's law of the harvest. He has bound himself to provide us with abundance so long as we will live his law in righteousness and labor for that blessing.

Let me encourage you to draw close to the soil. Have your own experience in planting a garden. Then make application in your own life of this great principle of the law of the harvest.

~Elder L. Tom Perry

~October 1980, New Era

Tortilla Making

On Wednesday, July 15th the Meadows Ward Relief Society was lucky enough to have a mini class on how to make flour tortillas.

Sister Delia Allen was our expert. She has been making tortillas long enough that she knows the ins and outs and makes her tortillas without an actual recipe. We were told things like, "oh a handful of this..." and "a little bit of that..." or "warm water, not hot, not cold..." there were no actual measurements!

We promised to get the recipe details on here for those that were unable to make it to our little class, but alas....no ACTUAL recipe! If you really want to know the details, you will need to get in contact with Sister Delia Allen, or maybe a few of the women that took better notes like Sister Stacy Frazier, or Sister Gayla Wahl!

Thanks Sister Allen so much for sharing one of your talents with the rest of us.

The company was good on this day, but the food was even better!

Spiritual Thought

July 2009

As with many other attitudes, patriotism is easy to feign. Its usual expressions, such as saluting the flag or acknowledging the civil rights of others, can be little more than gestures. Yet, at their best, the outward manifestations of patriotic feeling can be deeply satisfying and binding symbols.

The heart of patriotism, however, lies in attitudes that are rooted in family relationships, for the family unit, in microcosm, undergoes most of the stresses which test the larger societies that make up a nation. The qualities that distinguish patriotism are all of the “homely” variety: respect, integrity, loyalty, self-sacrifice, consideration, fairness, appreciation, and devotion. No exhortation to respect his country’s flag can mean much to the youngster whose casual, permissive upbringing has left him with little respect for anything. And the child who equates freedom with indulgence may never understand the consideration for others that is fundamental to a workable democracy.

Finally, since our profoundest identification is theological, our feeling for country and Constitution must be based upon an understanding of the special role which the United States was to play as the place in which the gospel could be restored. In a land “choice above all other lands,” which the Lord has “preserved for a righteous people” (Ether 2:7), we must not forget that we teach patriotism in its ultimate sense when we imbue our children with theological truths. Every dinner table conversation that reinforces our commitment to a gospel principle makes all who participate in it better citizens. We learn to love our country as we learn to love righteousness. A child who has a testimony of Jesus Christ already has a good basis for becoming a patriot.

Robert K. Thomas and Shirley Wilkes Thomas
June 1976 Ensign