“They had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting;
therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation,
and when they taught, they taught with power and authority of God."
Showing posts with label Priesthood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Priesthood. Show all posts
Friday, April 17, 2015
Friday, April 10, 2015
On Being Genuine
"The Savior would want to know how you and I
grow closer to Him and to our Heavenly Father."
"Here in the Church of Jesus Christ
you can mature spiritually and
draw closer to the Savior
by applying gospel principles day by day."
"The Church is not an automobile showroom—a place to put ourselves on display so that others can admire our spirituality, capacity, or prosperity.
It is more like a service center, where vehicles in need of repair
come for maintenance and rehabilitation."
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Saturday, March 21, 2015
I Know These Things of Myself
passes through various stages
of growth and development."
Quotes from President Thomas S. Monson:
1. “In order for us to be strong and to withstand all the forces pulling us in the wrong direction … , we must have our own testimony. Whether you are 12 or 112—or anywhere in between—you can know for yourself that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true.”
2. “I maintain that a strong testimony of our Savior and of His gospel will … protect you from the sin and evil around you. … If you do not already have a testimony of these things, do that which is necessary to obtain one. It is essential for you to have your own testimony, for the testimonies of others will carry you only so far.”
3. “When we know the Book of Mormon is true, then it follows that Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet and that he saw God the Eternal Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. It also follows that the gospel was restored in these latter days through Joseph Smith—including the restoration of both the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods.”
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
A Firm Foundation
While in medic school, after
a long day of studying, I would often take a break from my school work by designing
my family’s future house on graph paper.
After several years of Army duty, and after many revisions to my graph
paper drawings, spring came, the ground was finally prepared and the day came
to build the foundation. Measurements
were made as I carefully constructed the footers out of boards that would later
be used as headers over doors and windows to support our home. I coated the insides of the boards with the
used motor oil from our family car so the cement would not harm the wood. Reinforcement bars were carefully spaced
inside the footers to provide increased strength. My friend Marty Bruns assisted me in the
pouring of the cement.
The cement cured, the
boards were carefully removed for future use, and the time arrived to lay the
concrete blocks. The summer was hot and
humid. My wife mixed the mortar in a wheelbarrow and I laid
the blocks. Block by block and course by
course we built the foundation in perfect alignment for our house to rest
upon. By the end of the summer, my wife
was nicknamed “Popeye arms.”
As autumn approached,
the school year started and our oldest son would board the school bus at the
construction site. I would work on the
house until he came back from school. Many individuals assisted in the completion of the house, such as my home teacher
Geoff Jones. On two consecutive Saturdays,
members of the priesthood came -- we raised the sides of the house, and we
placed the roof trusses thereon. Roger Poland
helped me place the last few rows of shingles on the roof as the first snow of winter fell.
Our family moved into the basement
while my father, a licensed professional engineer, and I wired and finished the upstairs.
For years to come, there always seemed to be another project to be
completed. My good friend Fred Allodi
always cheered me on and helped me with whatever needed to be done. It would have been impossible to endure to the end without
such a good friend. Family and friends are key for our progress.
I was reminded of the
preceding events as I read the following by President Henry B. Eyring. “As
a young man I worked with a contractor building footings and foundations for
new houses. In the summer heat it was hard work to prepare the ground for the
form into which we poured the cement for the footing. There were no machines.
We used a pick and a shovel. Building lasting foundations for buildings was
hard work in those days.
It also required
patience. After we poured the footing, we waited for it to cure. Much as we
wanted to keep the jobs moving, we also waited after the pour of the foundation
before we took away the forms.
And even more
impressive to a novice builder was what seemed to be a tedious and
time-consuming process to put metal bars carefully inside the forms to give the
finished foundation strength.
In a similar way,
the ground must be carefully prepared for our foundation of faith to withstand
the storms that will come into every life. That solid basis for a foundation of
faith is personal integrity.
Our choosing the
right consistently whenever the choice is placed before us creates the solid
ground under our faith. It can begin in childhood since every soul is born with
the free gift of the Spirit of Christ. With that Spirit we can know when
we have done what is right before God and when we have done wrong in His sight.
Those choices,
hundreds in most days, prepare the solid ground on which our edifice of faith
is built. The metal framework around which the substance of our faith is poured
is the gospel of Jesus Christ, with all its covenants,
ordinances, and principles.
One of the keys
to an enduring faith is to judge correctly the curing time required. …
That curing does
not come automatically through the passage of time, but it does take time.
Getting older does not do it alone. It is serving God and others persistently
with full heart and soul that turns testimony of truth into unbreakable
spiritual strength.”
I know that there are many true and good patterns in
life, and that we need to build our life on a firm and true foundation with
Jesus Christ as our chief cornerstone. I am grateful for Christ's example and the example of his followers. There is help and guidance if we will but seek, ask, and act. I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
I Thank Thee God for the Priesthood on the Earth
 |
Christ Ordaining the Twelve Apostles, by Harry Anderson © IRI |
Our Heavenly Father delegates His priesthood power to men which enables them to act in God’s name for the salvation of mankind. It is both a blessing and duty to serve God and our fellow man. “The rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.” (See http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/121?lang=eng ). I am grateful for the Priesthood on the earth and the opportunity to act in God’s name!
For a recent talk by our prophet regarding the Priesthood, go to http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/dare-to-stand-alone?lang=eng
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