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Every Good Citizen Adds To The Strength Of A Nation. With That Assumption I Do Not Hesitate To Say That The Nation Of Chile Is Better For Our Presence, And The Same Thing Is Happening In Every Other Nation Where We Are Operating.

-Gordon B. Hinckley

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Every Good Citizen Adds

Gordon B. Hinckley

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Every Good Citizen Adds To The Strength Of A Nation. With That Assumption I Do Not Hesitate To Say That The Nation Of Chile Is Better For Our Presence, And The Same Thing Is Happening In Every Other Nation Where We Are Operating.

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I Am Saying That Out Of A Spirit Of Appreciation And Gratitude, And A Sense Of Duty, You Ought To Make Whatever Adjustment Is Necessary To Give A Little Of Your Time-as Little As Two Years-consecrating Your Strength, Your Means, Your Talents To The Work Of Sharing With Others The Gospel, Which Is The Source Of So Much Of The Good That You Have. I Promise That If You Will Do So, You Will Come To Know That What Appears Today To Be A Sacrifice Will Prove Instead To Be The Greatest Investment That You Will Ever Make.

I Am Grateful For Emphasis On Reading The Scriptures. I Hope That For You This Will Become Something Far More Enjoyable Than A Duty; That, Rather, It Will Become A Love Affair With The Word Of God. I Promise You That As You Read, Your Minds Will Be Enlightened And Your Spirits Will Be Lifted. At First It May Seem Tedious, But That Will Change Into A Wondrous Experience With Thoughts And Words Of Things Divine. Gordon B. Hinckley

Good Books Are As Friends, Willing To Give To Us If We Are Willing To Make A Little Effort.

I Wish To Be Up And Doing. I Wish To Face Each Day With Resolution And Purpose. I Wish To Use Every Waking Hour To Give Encouragement, To Bless Those Whose Burdens Are Heavy, To Build Faith And Strength Of Testimony.

Sacrifice Is The Very Essence Of Religion; ... Without Sacrifice There Is No True Worship Of God.

Children Don’t Need Beating. They Need Love And Encouragement. They Need Fathers To Whom They Can Look With Respect Rather Than Fear. Above All, They Need Example.

It Is Good To Look To The Past To Gain Appreciation For The Present And Perspective For The Future. It Is Good To Look Upon The Virtues Of Those Who Have Gone Before; To Gain Strength For Whatever Lies Ahead. It Is Good To Reflect Upon The Work Of Those Who Labored So Hard And Gained So Little In This World, But Out Of Whose Dreams And Early Pains, So Well Nurtured, Has Come A Great Gravest Of Which We Are The Beneficiaries. Their Tremendous Example Can Become A Compelling Motivation For All Of Us. ~gordon B. Hinckley

Give Expression To The Noble Desires That Lie In Your Heart.

Christmas Is More Than Trees And Twinkling Lights, More Than Toys And Gifts And Baubles Of A Hundred Varieties. It Is Love. It Is The Love Of The Son Of God For All Mankind. It Is Magnificent And Beautiful.

Our Lives Are The Only Meaningful Expression Of What We Believe And In Whom We Believe. And The Only Real Wealth, For Any Of Us, Lies In Our Faith.

I Wish For Each Of You A Time, Perhaps Only An Hour, Spent In Silent Meditation And Quiet Reflection On The Wonder And The Majesty Of This, The Son Of God. Our Joy At This Season Is Because He Came Into The World.

The Truest Mark Of Your Success In Life Will Be The Quality Of Your Marriage

Success In Life

Let Us All Try To Stand A Little Taller, Rise A Little Higher, Be A Little Better. Make The Extra Effort. You Will Be Happier.

Generally Speaking, The Most Miserable People I Know Are Those Who Are Obsessed With Themselves; The Happiest People I Know Are Those Who Lose Themselves In The Service Of Others...by And Large, I Have Come To See That If We Complain About Life, It Is Because We Are Thinking Only Of Ourselves.

In Missionary Work, As In All Else, Preparation Precedes Power. Encouragement To Prepare While Still Very Young Can Make A Tremendous Difference.

God Has Saved You To Make Your Appearance In The Last Days.

Gambling Undermines The Moral Fiber Of Society.

I Have Seen Miracles In My Time, My Brothers And Sisters. The Greatest Miracle Of All, I Believe, Is The Transformation That Comes Into The Life Of A Man Or A Woman Who Accepts The Restored Gospel Of Jesus Christ And Tries To Live It In His Or Her Life.

Under The Plan Of Heaven, The Husband And The Wife Walk Side By Side As Companions, Neither One Ahead Of The Other, But A Daughter Of God And A Son Of God Walking Side By Side. Let Your Families Be Families Of Love And Peace And Happiness. Gather Your Children Around You And Have Your Family Home Evenings, Teach Your Children The Ways Of The Lord, Read To Them From The Scriptures, And Let Them Come To Know The Great Truths Of The Eternal Gospel As Set Forth In These Words Of The Almighty.

All The Beauty In The Earth Bears The Fingerprint Of The Master Creator” Gordon B. Hinckley

Gordon B Hinckley

The Best Cure For Weariness Is The Challenge Of Helping Someone Who Is Even More Tired.

Helping Someone

The Time Has Come For Us To Stand A Little Taller, To Lift Our Eyes And Stretch Our Minds To A Greater Comprehension And Understanding Of The Grand Millennial Mission Of This, The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-day Saints.

Do You Feel Gloomy? Lift Your Eyes. Stand On Your Feet. Say A Few Words Of Appreciation And Love To The Lord. Be Positive.

It Is Both Relaxing And Invigorating To Occasionally Set Aside The Worries Of Life, Seek The Company Of A Friendly Book...from The Reading Of 'good Books' There Comes A Richness Of Life That Can Be Obtained In No Other Way.

Richness Of Life

I Challenge Every One Of You Who Can Hear Me To Rise To The Divinity Within You. Do We Really Realize What It Means To Be A Child Of God, To Have Within Us Something Of The Divine Nature?

If Every Man Would Make His Prime Concern The Comfort And Well-being Of His Wife And Every Wife Make Her Chief Concern The Comfort And Well-being Of Her Husband, We Would Have Very Little Divorce In The Land.

You Have The Potential To Become Anything To Which You Set Your Mind. You Have A Mind And A Body And A Spirit. With These Three Working Together, You Can Walk The High Road That Leads To Achievement And Happiness. But This Will Require Effort And Sacrifice And Faith.

One Has Neither Independence Nor Freedom From Bondage When He Is Obligated To Others

Look For The Sunlight Through The Clouds.

You Have Nothing In This World More Precious Than Your Children. When You Grow Old, When Your Hair Turns White And Your Body Grows Weary, When You Are Prone To Sit In A Rocker And Meditate On The Things Of Your Life, Nothing Will Be So Important As The Question Of How Your Children Have Turned Out... Do Not Trade Your Birthright As A Mother For Some Bauble Of Passing Value... The Baby You Hold In Your Arms Will Grow As Quickly As The Sunrise And The Sunset Of The Rushing Days.

The Voice Of Heaven Is A Still Small Voice. The Voice Of Peace In The Home Is A Quiet Voice. There Is Need For Much Discipline In Marriage, Not Of One's Companion, But Of Oneself... When Couples Cultivate The Art Of The Soft Answer, It Blesses Their Home, Their Life Together, And Their Companionship.

Our Foundation Is The Gospel Of The Lord Jesus Christ. The Authority Of The Holy Priesthood Is Here, Restored Under The Hands Of Those Who Received It Directly From Our Lord. The Curtains Have Been Parted, And The God Of Heaven And His Beloved Son Have Spoken To The Boy Prophet Joseph In Opening This Last And Final Dispensation. Our Burden In Going Forward Is Tremendous. But Our Opportunity Is Glorious.

No System Can Long Command The Loyalties Of Men And Women Which Does Not Expect Of Them Certain Measures Of Discipline, And Particularly Self-discipline. The Cost In Comfort May Be Great. The Sacrifice May Be Real. But This Very Demanding Reality Is The Substance Of Which Comes Character And Strength And Nobility. Permissiveness Never Produced Greatness. Integrity, Loyalty, And Strength Are Virtues Whose Sinews Are Developed Through The Struggles That Go On Within As We Practice Self-discipline Under The Demands Of Divinely Spoken Truth.

There Would Be No Christmas If There Had Not Been Easter. The Babe Jesus Of Bethlehem Would Be But Another Baby Without The Redeeming Christ Of Gethsemane And Calvary, And The Triumphant Fact Of The Resurrection.

The True Gospel Of Jesus Christ Never Led To Bigotry. It Never Led To Self-righteousn Ess. It Never Led To Arrogance. The True Gospel Of Jesus Christ Leads To Brotherhood, To Friendship, To Appreciation Of Others, To Respect And Kindness And Love

There Cannot Be Peace Where There Is Not Trust; There Cannot Be Freedom Where There Is Not Loyalty

We Have Never Found, And I Think We Never Shall Find, An Adequate Substitute For The Situation In Which Two Wholesome Young Men Meet With A Family, Reason With Them, Teach Them, Testify To Them, And Pray With Them. We Shall Always Need Missionaries.

As We Give Presents At Christmas, We Need To Recognize That Sharing Our Time And Ourselves Is Such An Important Part Of Giving.

Somehow Forgiveness, With Love And Tolerance, Accomplishes Miracles That Can Happen In No Other Way.

What A Marvelous And Wonderful Thing Is #‎ Prayer . Think Of It. We Can Actually Speak With Our Father In #‎ Heaven .

I Hope We Will Never Again See Such A Depression. But I Am Troubled By The Huge Consumer Installment Debt Which Hangs Over The People Of The Nation, Including Our Own People.

Jesus Christ Is The Son Of God, Who Condescended To Come Into This World Of Misery, Struggle, And Pain To Touch Men's Hearts For Good, To Teach The Way Of Eternal Life, And To Give Himself As A Sacrifice For The Sins Of Mankind. How Different, How Empty Our Lives Would Be Without Him. How Infinite Is Our Opportunity For Exaltation Made Possible Through His Redeeming Love.

Those Who Are Living The Principle Of Honesty Know That The Lord Does Bless Them. Theirs Is The Precious Right To Hold Their Heads In The Sunlight Of Truth, Unashamed Before Any Man. Brothers And Sisters, The Lord Requires His People To Be Honest. May We Desire With All Our Hearts To Be Honest In All Our Relationships And In All The Things That We Do.

There Is Too Much Of Criticism And Faultfinding With Anger And Raised Voices.

The Decisions We Make, Individually And Personally, Become The Fabric Of Our Lives. That Fabric Will Be Beautiful Or Ugly According To The Threads Of Which It Is Woven. I Wish To Say Particularly To The Young Men Who Are Here That You Cannot Indulge In Any Unbecoming Behavior Without Injury To The Beauty Of The Fabric Of Your Lives. Immoral Acts Of Any Kind Will Introduce An Ugly Thread. Dishonesty Of Any Kind Will Create A Blemish. Foul And Profane Language Will Rob The Pattern Of Its Beauty.

Our Whole Strength Rests On The Validity Of [joseph Smith's] Vision. It Either Occurred Or It Did Not Occur. If It Did Not, Then This Work Is A Fraud. If It Did, Then It Is The Most Important And Wonderful Work Under The Heavens.

My Plea...is A Plea To Save The Children. Too Many Of Them Walk With Pain And Fear, In Loneliness And Despair. Children Need Sunlight...they Need Kindness And Refreshment And Affection. Every Home, Regardless Of The Cost Of The House, Can Provide An Environment Of Love Which Will Be An Environment Of Salvation.

There Is No Strength That Is Greater Than The Strength Of Virtue. There Is No Other Nobility Equal To The Nobility Of Virtue. There Is No Quality So Becoming, No Attire So Attractive.

The Discipline That Is Needed In Our Lives Is The Discipline That Comes From Within.

Father Forgive Us, For We Do Not What We Know.

There Is Room For Improvement In Every Life. Regardless Of Our Occupations, Regardless Of Our Circumstances, We Can Improve Ourselves And While So Doing Have An Effect On The Lives Of Those About Us.

There Has Come To You As Your Birthright Something Beautiful And Sacred And Divine. Never Forget That. Your Eternal Father Is The Great Master Of The Universe. He Rules Over All, But He Also Will Listen To Your Prayers As His Daughter And Hear You As You Speak With Him. He Will Answer Your Prayers. He Will Not Leave You Alone.

True Love Is Not So Much A Matter Of Romance As It Is A Matter Of Anxious Concern For The Well-being Of One's Companion.

Everything That Occurs In The Temple Is Uplifting And Ennobling. It Speaks Of Life Here And Life Beyond The Grave. It Speaks Of The Importance Of The Individual As A Child Of God. It Speaks Of The Importance Of The Family And The Eternity Of The Marriage Relationship.

Contrary To What You May Think, An Immoral Act Of Any Kind Will Only Lower Your Self-esteem. Be True To Yourselves, And Your Respect For Yourself Will Increase. Know That Yours Is A Divine Birthright. Cultivate A Good Opinion Of Yourselves. Others May Make Cutting Remarks Concerning You. This Is Only A Sign Of Their Ignorance And Not Of Your Qualities. Walk With That Dignity Which Is Becoming A Young Woman Who Is A Daughter Of God.

I See A Wonderful Future In A Very Uncertain World. If We Will Cling To Our Values, If We Will Build On Our Inheritance, If We Will Walk In Obedience Before The Lord, If We Will Simply Live The Gospel We Will Be Blessed In A Magnificent And Wonderful Way. We Will Be Looked Upon As A Peculiar People Who Have Found The Key To A Peculiar Happiness.

... The Whole Design Of The Gospel Is To Lead Us Onward And Upward To Greater Achievement, Even, Eventually, To Godhood. This Great Possibility Was Enunciated By The Prophet Joseph Smith In The King Follet Sermon. It Is This Grand And Incomparable Concept: As God Now Is, Man May Become!

Onward And Upward

Let Us Take A Little Time To Meditate, To Think Of What We Can Do To Improve Our Lives And To Become Better Examples Of What A Latter-day Saint Should Be.

There Is No Substitute Under The Heavens For Productive Labor. It Is The Process By Which Dreams Become Realities. It Is The Process By Which Idle Visions Become Dynamic Achievements. Most Of Us Are Inherently Lazy. We Would Rather Play Than Work. We Would Rather Loaf Than Work...but It Is Work That Spells The Difference In The Life Of A Man Or Woman. It Is Stretching Our Minds And Utilizing The Skills Of Our Hands That Lift Us From Mediocrity.

The Way Of The Lord Is The Way Of Happiness. ‘wickedness Never Was Happiness’ [alma 41:10]. Transgression Never Was Happiness. Sin Never Was Happiness. Disobedience Never Was Happiness. The Way Of Happiness Is Following The Way Of The Lord. I Believe This With All My Heart.

Limitless Is Your Potential. Magnificent Is Your Future.

Of All Times, It Is Christmas When We Must Surely Realize That There Can Be No True Worship Of Him Who Is The Christ Without Giving Of Ourselves. At This Season Let Us, Each One, Reach Out A Little More Generously In The Spirit Of The Christ. It Is Not Enough To Give Toys And Baubles. It Is Not Enough To Give Alms To Those In Need.... It Is Also Important That We Give Of Ourselves With Our Alms.

Believe In The Power Of Prayer - It Is Real, It Is Wonderful, It Is Tremendous.

One Of The Great Tragedies We Witness Almost Daily Is The Tragedy Of Men Of High Aim And Low Achievement. Their Motives Are Noble. Their Proclaimed Ambition Is Praiseworthy. Their Capacity To Achieve Is Great. But Their Discipline Is Weak. They Succumb To Indolence. Appetite Robs Them Of Will.

We Pledge Our Loyalty; We Affirm Our Determination To Be Of Good Courage; We Declare, Sometimes Even Publicly, That Come What May We Will Do The Right Thing, That We Will Stand For The Right Cause, That We Will Be True To Ourselves And To Others. Then The Pressures Begin To Build. Sometimes These Are Social Pressures. Sometimes They Are Personal Appetites. Sometimes They Are False Ambitions. There Is A Weakening Of The Will. There Is A Softening Of Discipline. There Is Capitulation. And Then There Is Remorse, Self-accusation, And Bitter Tears Of Regret.

I Hope That Each One Of Us Will Be A Better Husband Or Wife, Kinder To One Another, More Thoughtful, More Restrained In Criticism, And More Generous With Compliments.

Aim High, But Do Not Aim So High That You Totally Miss The Target. What Really Matters Is That He Will Love You, That He Will Respect You, That He Will Honor You, That He Will Be Absolutely True To You, That He Will Give You The Freedom Of Expression And Let You Fly In The Development Of Your Own Talents. He Is Not Going To Be Perfect, But If He Is Kind And Thoughtful, If He Knows How To Work And Earn A Living, If He Is Honest And Full Of Faith, The Chances Are You Will Not Go Wrong, That You Will Be Immensely Happy.

Mutual Respect, The Soft Answer, Financial Honesty With The Lord, Prayer. "i Do Not Hesitate To Promise That If You Will Go To Your Homes And Cultivate And Nurture It Among These Four Cornerstones, Your Lives Will Be Happy."

I Don't Hesitate To Say If Every Family In The World Practiced [family Home Evening], You'd See A Very Great Difference In The Solidarity Of The Families Of The World.

Love Is The Only Force That Can Erase The Differences Between People Or Bridge The Chasms Of Bitterness.

It Is Important To Know When You Feel Down That Many Others Do Also And That Their Circumstances Are Generally Much Worse Than Yours. And It’s Important To Know That When One Of Us Is Down It Becomes The Obligation Of His Friends To Give Him A Lift. I Hope That Each Of Us Will Cultivate A Sensitivity Toward The Feelings Of Others And When Encouragement Is Needed Make An Effort To Extend It. Be A Friend And You Will Have A Friend. God Be Thanked For Wonderful Friends.

Wonderful Friends

I Love The Youth Of The Church. I Have Said Again And Again That I Think We Have Never Had A Better Generation Than This. How Grateful I Am For Your Integrity, For Your Ambition To Train Your Minds And Your Hands To Do Good Work, For Your Love Of The Word Of The Lord, And For Your Desire To Walk In Paths Of Virtue And Truth And Goodness.

We Are Here To Assist Our Father In His Work And His Glory, 'to Bring To Pass The Immortality And Eternal Life Of Man' (moses 1:39). Your Obligation Is As Serious In Your Sphere Of Responsibility As Is My Obligation In My Sphere.

I Am Satisfied That Happiness In Marriage Is Not So Much A Matter Of Romance As It Is An Anxious Concern For The Comfort And Well-being Of One's Companion. Any Man Who Will Make His Wife's Comfort His First Concern Will Stay In Love With Her Throughout Their Lives And Through The Eternity Yet To Come

A Truly Educated Man Never Ceases To Learn.

We Live In A Society That Feeds On Criticism. It Is So Easy To Find Fault, And To Resist Doing So Requires Much Discipline.

He Who Lives Only Unto Himself Withers And Dies, While He Who Forgets Himself In The Service Of Others Grows And Blossoms.

How Wonderful It Is That We Believe In Modern Revelation. I Cannot Get Over The Feeling That If Revelation Were Needed Anciently, When Life Was Simple, That Revelation Is Also Needed Today, When Life Is Complex. There Never Was A Time In The History Of The Earth When Men Needed Revelation More Than They Need It Now.

Coming Closer To Home, There Is So Much Of Jealousy, Pride, Arrogance, And Carping Criticism; Fathers Who Rise In Anger Over Small, Inconsequential Things And Make Wives Weep And Children Fear.

Keep Your Families Close Together, And Love And Honor Your Children.

It Is Possible To Be Honest Every Day. It Is Possible To Live So That Others Can Trust Us-can Trust Our Words, Our Motives, And Our Actions. Our Examples Are Vital To Those Who Sit At Our Feet As Well As Those Who Watch From A Distance. Our Own Constant Self-improvement Will Become As A Polar Star To Those Within Our Individual Spheres Of Influence. They Will Remember Longer What They Saw In Us Than What They Heard From Us. Our Attitude, Our Point Of View, Can Make A Tremendous Difference.

Be Grateful, Be Smart, Be Clean, Be True, Be Humble, Be Prayerful.

Please Don't Nag Yourself With Thoughts Of Failure. Do Not Set Goals Far Beyond Your Capacity To Achieve. Simply Do What You Can Do, In The Best Way You Know, And The Lord Will Accept Of Your Effort.

If You Go To Bed At 10:00 And Get Up By 6:00 A.m., Things Will Work Out For You.

Choose Your Friends Carefully. It Is They Who Will Lead You In One Direction Or The Other. Everybody Wants Friends. Everybody Needs Friends. No One Wishes To Be Without Them. But Never Lose Sight Of The Fact That It Is Your Friends Who Will Lead You Along The Paths That You Will Follow.

It Is My Faith And Conviction That The Constitution Came Not Alone Of The Brain And Purpose Of Man, But Of The Inspiration Of God.

Everyone Who Owns A Home Recognizes The Need For Fire Insurance. We Hope And Pray That There Will Never Be A Fire. Nevertheless, We Pay For Insurance To Cover Such A Catastrophe, Should It Occur. We Ought To Do The Same With Reference To Family Welfare.

Stay Out Of The Gutter In Your Conversation. Foul Talk Defiles The Man Who Speaks It... Don't Swear. Don't Profane. Avoid So-called Dirty Jokes. Stay Away From Conversation That Is Sprinkled With Foul And Filthy Words. You Will Be Happier If You Do So, And Your Example Will Give Strength To Others.

The Greatest Job That Any Mother Will Ever Do Will Be In Nurturing, Teaching, Lifting, Encouraging And Rearing Her Children In Righteousness And Truth. None Other Can Adequately Take Her Place.

When We Speak Quietly One To Another Things Somehow Get Settled.

Without Labor There Is Neither Wealth, Nor Comfort, Nor Progress.

Without Reservation I Promise You That If Each Of You Will Observe This Simple Program, Regardless Of How Many Times You Previously May Have Read The Book Of Mormon, There Will Come Into Your Lives And Into Your Homes An Added Measure Of The Spirit Of The Lord, A Strengthened Resolution To Walk In Obedience To His Commandments, And A Stronger Testimony Of The Living Reality Of The Son Of God.

You Can Be Smart And Happy Or Stupid And Miserable. . . It's Your Choice

Television Is Perhaps The Greatest Medium Ever Discovered To Teach And Educate And Even To Entertain. But The Filth, The Rot, The Violence, And The Profanity That Spew From Television Screens Into Our Homes Is Deplorable. It Is A Sad Commentary On Our Society. The Fact That A Television Set Is On Six Or Seven Hours Every Day In Most Of The Homes Of America Says Something Of Tremendous Importance.

As You Walk The Road Of Life, Be Careful Of Your Friends. They Can Make You Or Break You.

I Too Believe That God Will Always Make A Way Where There Is No Way. I Believe That If We Will Walk In Obedience To The Commandments Of God, If We Will Follow The Counsel Of The Priesthood, He Will Open A Way Even Where There Appears To Be No Way.

Let Our Voices Be Heard. I Hope They Will Not Be Shrill Voices, But, I Hope We Shall Speak With Such Conviction That Those To Whom We Speak Shall Know Of The Strength Of Our Feeling And The Sincerity Of Our Efforts.

Let Thy Spirit Move Upon Him To Bring To Pass Those Measures Which Will Lift The Burdens Of Government From The Backs Of The People And Keep This Nation, Under God, A Citadel Of Freedom Standing As An Example To All The World.

Gratitude Is The Beginning Of Wisdom. Stated Differently, True Wisdom Cannot Be Obtained Unless It Is Built On A Foundation Of True Humility And Gratitude.

If We Live By The Principles Of The Gospel, We Must Be Good People, For We Will Be Generous And Kind, Thoughtful And Tolerant, Helpful And Outreaching To Those In Distress. We Can Either Subdue The Divine Nature And Hide It So That It Finds No Expression In Our Lives, Or We Can Bring It To The Front And Let It Shine Through All That We Do.

No Matter How Old We Become, We Can Acquire Knowledge And Use It. We Can Gather Wisdom And Profit From It. We Can Grow And Progress And Improve-and, In The Process, Strengthen The Livs Of Those Within Our Circle Of Influence.

Notwithstanding The Trouble, Notwithstanding The Argument, Notwithstanding The Increasingly Heavy Hand Of Government, Notwithstanding The Spirit Of Arrogance We So Often Display, Notwithstanding The Growing Tide Of Pornography And Permissiveness, Notwithstanding Occasional Corruption In Public Office And Betrayal Of Sacred Trust-i Marvel At The Miracle Of America.

How Thankful I Am, How Thankful We All Must Be, For The Women In Our Lives. God Bless Them. May His Great Love Distill Upon Them And Crown Them With Luster And Beauty, Grace And Faith.

Do The Best You Can. And Remember That The Greatest Asset You Have In This World Is Those Children Who You've Brought Into The World, And For Whose Nurture And Care You're Responsible.

God Is Weaving His Tapestry According To His Own Grand Design. All Flesh Is In His Hands. We Have No Need To Fear. We Have No Need To Worry. Our Imperative Need Is To Be Found Doing Our Duty.

There Is Another Serious Thing To Which Many Young Men Become Addicted. This Is Anger. With The Least Provocation They Explode Into Tantrums Of Uncontrolled Rage. It Is Pitiful To See Someone So Weak. But Even Worse, They Are Prone To Lose All Sense Of Reason And Do Things Which Bring Later Regret.

Remember That Whatever You Do Or Wherever You Are, You Are Never Alone.

Wherever You Are

Criticism And Pessimism Destroy Families, Undermine Institutions Of All Kinds, Defeat Nearly Everyone, And Spread A Shroud Of Gloom Over Entire Nations.

To Our Brothers And Sisters In Harm’s Way, We Say That We Pray For You. We Pray That The Lord Will Watch Over You And Preserve You From Injury And That You May Return Home And Pick Up Your Lives Again. We Know That You Are Not In That Land Of Blowing Sand And Brutal Heat Because You Enjoy The Games Of War. The Strength Of Your Commitment Is Measured By Your Willingness To Give Your Very Lives For That In Which You Believe.

Every Man Who Truly Loves A Woman, And Every Woman Who Truly Loves A Man, Hopes And Dreams That Their Companionship Will Last Forever. But Marriage Is A Covenant Sealed By Authority. If That Authority Is Of The State Alone, It Will Endure Only While The State Has Jurisdiction, And That Jurisdiction Ends With Death. But Add To The Authority Of The State The Power Of The Endowment Given By Him Who Overcame Death, And That Companionship Will Endure Beyond Life If The Parties To The Marriage Live Worthy Of The Promise.

Why All Of These Broken Homes? What Happens To Marriages That Begin With Sincere Love And A Desire To Be Loyal And Faithful And True One To Another? There Is No Simple Answer. I Acknowledge That. But It Appears To Me That There Are Some Obvious Reasons That Account For A Very High Percentage Of These Problems. I Say This Out Of Experience In Dealing With Such Tragedies. I Find Selfishness To Be The Root Cause Of Most Of It.

Loyal And Faithful

Under The Sacred And Compelling Trust We Have As Members Of The Church Of Jesus Christ, Ours Is A Work Of Redemption, Of Lifting And Saving Those Who Need Help. Ours Is A Task Of Raising The Sights Of Those Of Our People Who Fail To Realize The Great Potential That Lies Within Them.

Being Humble Means Recognizing That We Are Not On Earth To See How Important We Can Become, But To See How Much Difference We Can Make In The Lives Of Others

The Willingness To Forgive Is A Sign Of Spiritual And Emotional Maturity. It Is One Of The Great Virtues To Which We All Should Aspire. Imagine A World Filled With Individuals Willing Both To Apologize And To Accept An Apology. Is There Any Problem That Could Not Be Solved Among People Who Possessed The Humility And Largeness Of Spirit And Soul To Do Either -- Or Both -- When Needed?

Within Your Sphere Of Responsibility You Have As Serious An Obligation As Do I Within My Sphere Of Responsibility. Each Of Us Should Be Determined To Build The Kingdom Of God On The Earth And To Further The Work Of Righteousness.

We Are Creatures Of Our Thinking. We Can Talk Ourselves Into Defeat Or We Can Talk Ourselves Into Victory.

People Who Carry In Their Hearts A Strong Conviction Concerning The Living Reality Of The Almighty And Their Accountability To Him For What They Do With Their Lives Are Far Less Likely To Become Enmeshed In Problems That Inevitably Weaken Society.

Stay Out Of The Gutter In Your Conversation. Foul Talk Defiles The Man Who Speaks It.

We Wear On Our Faces The Results Of What We Believe And How We Behave, And Such Behavior Is Most Evident In The Eyes And On The Faces Of Those Who Have Lived Many Years.

Sloppy Language And Sloppy Ways Go Together. Those Who Are Truly Educated Have Learned More Than The Sciences, The Humanities, Law, Engineering, And The Arts. They Carry With Them A Certain Polish That Marks Them As Loving The Better Qualities Of Life, A Culture That Adds Luster To The Mundane World Of Which They Are Apart, A Patina That Puts A Quiet Glow On What Otherwise Might Be Base Metal.

Whatever You Do, Do Well. Be Good At It. Stand A Little Taller. Be A Little Stronger. Be A Little Better.

The Cause Of Most Of Man's Unhappiness Is Sacrificing What He Wants Most For What He Wants Now.

We Must Work Harder To Build Mutual Respect, An Attitude Of Tolerance, With Forbearance One For Another.

To Me The Gospel Is Not A Great Mass Of Theological Jargon. It Is A Simple And Beautiful And Logical Thing, With One Quiet Truth Following Another In Orderly Sequence. I Do Not Fret Over The Mysteries. I Do Not Worry Whether The Heavenly Gates Swing Or Slide. I Am Only Concerned That They Open.

The Temple Is Concerned With Things Of Immortality. It Is A Bridge Between This Life And The Next. All Of The Ordinances That Take Place In The House Of The Lord Are Expressions Of Our Belief In The Immortality Of The Human Soul.

I Would Like To Suggest To You That You 'grab Life By The Horns' And Do Not Let Life Grab You By The Horns. You Take Control Of Your Lives. Do Not Let Life Control You. Take Charge. Rise To The Divinity That Is Within You.

Control Of Your Life

But No One Can Blink At The Fact That In This Land, And In Other Lands Across The World, There Is An Epidemic Affecting The Lives Of Millions Of Youth. It Is A Sickness That Comes Of A Loss Of Values, Of An Abandonment Of Moral Absolutes. The Virus Which Has Infected Them Comes Of Leaderless Families, Leaderless Schools, Leaderless Communities. It Comes Of An Attitude That Says, "we Will Not Teach Moral Values. We Will Leave The Determination Of Such To The Individual."

What A Wonderful Time It Is For Each Of Us To Do His Or Her Small Part In Moving The Work Of The Lord On To Its Magnificent Destiny.

We Must Build More Temples, And We Must Build Them More Quickly. This Is The Season To Build Temples. They Are Needed, And We Have The Means To Do So. The Lord Will Hold Us Accountable If We Do Not Work With Greater Accomplishment Than We Are Now Doing.

The Best Place To Have Some Food Set Aside Is Within Our Homes, Together With A Little Money In Savings. The Best Welfare Program Is Our Own Welfare Program. Five Or Six Cans Of Wheat In The Home Are Better Than A Bushel In The Welfare Granary. ... We Can Begin With A One Week's Food Supply And Gradually Build It To A Month, And Then To Three Months. I Am Speaking Now Of Food To Cover Basic Needs.

Welfare Programs

Women Who Make A House A Home Make A Far Greater Contribution To Society Than Those Who Command Large Armies Or Stand At The Head Of Impressive Corporations.

Study A Foreign Language If You Have Opportunity To Do So. You May Never Be Called To A Land Where That Language Is Spoken, But The Study Will Have Given You A Better Understanding Of Your Own Tongue Or Of Another Tongue You May Be Asked To Acquire.

Cultivate Within Yourselves The Mighty Power Of Self-discipline.

Self Discipline

Our Eternal Father Lives. He Stands As The Great God Of The Universe, Ruling In Majesty And Power. And Yet He Is My Father, To Whom I May Go In Prayer With The Assurance That He Will Hear, Listen, And Answer.

Life Is Precious. Life Is Sacred. And It Ought So To Be Observed.

How Precious Life Is

Life Is Precious

I Am Suggesting That We Spend A Little Less Time In Idleness, In The Fruitless Pursuit Of Watching Inane And Empty Television Programs. Time So Utilized Can Be Put To Better Advantage, And The Consequences Will Be Wonderful.

If We Are To Continue To Have The Freedoms That Came Of The Inspiration Of The Almighty To Our Founding Fathers, We Must Return To The God Who Is Their True Author.

Live Today As If You Were Going To Live Forever, For You Surely Shall.

I Spent One Night In The Hospital In My Life. I Was Past 75 When That Occurred.

Nobody Is Lost Until Somebody Has Given Up.

Christmas Means 'giving,' And The Gift Without The Giver Is Bare. Give Of Yourselves; Give Of Your Substance; Give Of Your Heart And Mind.

You Need More Than Your Own Wisdom In Rearing [your Children]. You Need The Help Of The Lord. Pray For That Help And Follow The Inspiration Which You Receive.

No Other Practice Will Make One More Attractive In Conversation Than To Be Well-read In A Variety Of Subjects.

There Is No More Compelling Motivation To Worthwhile Endeavor Than The Knowledge That We Are Children Of God, That God Expects Us To Do Something With Our Lives, And That He Will Give Us Help When Help Is Sought.

I Don't Know How To Get Anything Done Except Getting On My Knees And Pleading For Help And Then Getting On My Feet And Going To Work.

When There Throbs In The Heart Of An Individual Latter-day Saint A Great And Vital Testimony Of The Truth Of This Work, He Will Be Found Doing Is Duty In The Church.

Conflict Grows Out Of Ignorance And Suspicion. As We Learn To Know And Appreciate Those Of Various Cultures, We Come To Appreciate Them.

Knowledge Without Labor Is Profitless. Knowledge With Labor Is Genius.

Never Assume That You Can Make It Alone. You Need The Help Of The Lord. Never Hesitate To Get On Your Knees In Some Private Place And Speak With Him.

The Lord Would Want You To Be Successful. He Would. You Are His Sons And His Daughters. He Has The Same Kind Of Love And Ambition For You That Your Earthly Parents Have. They Want You To Do Well And You Can Do It.

Who Can Calculate The Wounds Inflicted, Their Depth And Pain, By Harsh And Mean Words Spoken In Anger? How Pitiful A Sight Is A Man Who Is Strong In Many Ways But Who Loses All Control Of Himself When Some Little Thing, Usually Of No Significant Consequence, Disturbs His Equanimity.

Behold Your Little Ones. Pray With Them. Pray For Them And Bless Them. The World Into Which They Are Moving Is A Complex And Difficult World. They Will Run Into Heavy Seas Of Adversity. They Will Need All The Strength And All The Faith You Can Give Them While They Are Yet Near You. While They Are Young, Pray With Them That They May Come To Know That Source Of Strength Which Shall Then Always Be Taught Of The Lord' And Great Shall Be The Peace Of Thy Children.

That Which Comes Easily Departs Easily. That Which Comes Of Struggle Remains.

One Of The Great Compliments Paid The Savior Was That He Taught As One Having Authority. The Missionary Who Knows Scripture And Can Quote It Speaks With The Voice Of Authority...may I Suggest That In Our Family Night Gatherings We Make It A Project To Memorize One Scripture A Week Pertinent To This Work. At The Conclusion Of A Year Our Children Will Have On Their Lips A Fund Of Scripture Which Will Remain With Them Throughout Their Lives.

For Me, The Reading Of The Scriptures Is Not The Pursuit Of Scholarship. Rather, It Is A Love Affair With The Word Of The Lord And That Of His Prophets.

I Urge Our People Everywhere, With All Of The Persuasiveness Of Which I Am Capable, To Live Worthy To Hold A Temple Recommend, To Secure One And Regard It As A Precious Asset, And To Make A Greater Effort To Go To The House Of The Lord And Partake Of The Spirit And The Blessings To Be Had Therein.

Do Not Nag Yourself With A Sense Of Failure

The Things Of God Are Understood By The Spirit Of God. That Spirit Is Real. To Those Who Have Experienced Its Workings, The Knowledge So Gained Is As Real As That Received Through The Operation Of The Five Senses. I Testify Of This. . . . I Urge You To Continue Throughout Your Lives To Cultivate A Heart In Tune With The Spirit. If You Do So, Your Lives Will Be Enriched. You Will Feel A Kinship With God Our Eternal Father. You Will Taste The Sweetness Of Joy That Can Be Had In No Other Way.

Our Burden In Going Forward Is Tremendous. But Our Opportunity Is Glorious.

A Nation Will Rise No Higher Than The Strength Of Its Homes. If You Want To Reform A Nation You Begin With Families.

All Writers Should Be Put In A Box And Thrown In The Sea.

Walk By Faith. God Will Open The Way. When There Is No Way, He Will Open The Way.

For The Christ Of Whom I Speak Has Been Revealed In This, The Dispensation Of The Fulness [sic] Of Times. He, Together With His Father, Appeared To The Boy Joseph Smith In The Year 1820, And When Joseph Left The Grove That Day, He Knew More Of The Nature Of God Than All The Learned Ministers Of The Gospel Of The Ages.

We All Know That Education Unlocks The Door Of Opportunity For The Young.

You Will Come To Know That What Appears Today To Be A Sacrifice Will Prove Instead To Be The Greatest Investment That You Will Ever Make.

Baptism Into This Church Is A Serious Thing. It Represents A Covenant Made With Our Heavenly Father. It Is Much More Than A Right Of Passage. It Is A Gateway To A New Manner Of Living, And A New Road On Which To Walk That Leads To Immortality And Eternal Life. It Was Never Intended As A Dead End. It Was Intended To Open A Glorious And Wonderful Way Of Life To All Who Would Walk In Obedience To The Commandments Of God.

He Who Is Our Eternal Father Has Blessed You With Miraculous Powers Of Mind And Body. He Never Intended That You Should Be Less Than The Crowning Glory Of His Creations.

I Am So Profoundly Grateful For The Gospel Of Jesus Christ, For A Testimony Of The Atonement Of The Savior. I Believe In It With All My Heart, And I Live For It, And I Bear Witness Of It This Day. Of All Of The Events Of Human History, None Other Approaches The Atonement Of The Savior In Its Meaning And In Its Results. God Be Thanked For The Gift Of His Precious Son, To Whom We All Owe Thanks For His Sacrifice In Our Behalf.

Our Kindness May Be The Most Persuasive Argument For That Which We Believe.

Cultivate An Attitude Of Happiness. Cultivate A Spirit Of Optimism. Walk With Faith, Rejoicing In The Beauties Of Nature, In The Goodness Of Those You Love, In The Testimony Which You Carry In Your Heart Concerning Things Divine.

How Much More Beautiful Would Be The World And The Society In Which We Live If...every Mother Regarded Her Children As The Jewels Of Her Life, As Gifts From The God Of Heaven, Who Is Their Eternal Father, And Brought Them Up In True Affection In The Wisdom And Admonition Of The Lord.

Let Us Not Live A Life … That Would Bring Regret. … It Is Not Going To Matter Very Much How Much Money You Made, What Kind Of A House You Lived In, What Kind Of A Car You Drove, The Size Of Your Bank Account—any Of Those Things. What Is Going To Matter Is That Dear Woman Who Has Walked With You Side By Side As Your Companion Through All Of The Years Of Life And Those Children And Grandchildren And Great-grandchildren And Their Faithfulness And Their Looking To You … With Respect And Love And Deference And Kindness.

When I Was A Missionary In London Fifty Years Ago, My Companion And I Would Shake Hands In The Morning And Say To One Another, 'life Is Good'. Life In The Service Of The Lord Is Good. It Is Beautiful. It Is Rewarding.

Spare Yourselves From The Indulgence Of Self-pity. It Is Always Self-defeating. Subdue The Negative And Emphasize The Positive.

I Would That The Healing Power Of Christ Might Spread Over The Earth And Be Diffused Through Our Society And Into Our Homes, That It Might Cure Men's Hearts Of The Evil And Adverse Elements Of Greed And Hate And Conflict. I Believe It Could Happen. I Believe It Must Happen. If The Lamb Is To Lie Down With The Lion, Then Peace Must Overcome Conflict, Healing Must Mend Injury.

Beer And Other Forms Of Alcohol Will Do You No Good. Their Use Will Be Expensive, Will Dull Your Conscience, And Could Lead To The Disease Called Alcoholism, Which Is Humiliating, Dangerous, And Even Deadly.

You Must Ask For God's Help. After Each Failure, Ask Forgiveness, Pick Yourself Up, And Try Again.

Asking For Forgiveness

In All Of Living, Have Much Fun And Laughter. Life Is To Be Enjoyed, Not Just Endured.

Let There Be Music In The Home. If You Have Teenagers Who Have Their Own Recordings, You Will Be Prone To Describe The Sound As Something Other Than Music. Let Them Occasionally Hear Something Better. Expose Them To It. It Will Speak For Itself. More Of Appreciation Will Come Than You May Think. It May Not Be Spoken, But It Will Be Felt, And Its Influence Will Become Increasingly Manifest As The Years Pass.

This Will Be The Most Important Decision Of Your Life, The Individual Whom You Marry.

Those Who Move Forward "with A" Happy Spirit Will Find That Things Alwas Work Out.

It’s True, Isn’t It? Then What Else Really Matters?

In Our Old Age My Beloved Companion Said To Me Quietly One Evening, "you Have Always Given Me Wings To Fly, And I Have Loved You For It.

There Is No Association Richer Than The Companionship Of Husband And Wife.

Go Forward In Life With A Twinkle In Your Eye And A Smile On Your Face, But With Great Purpose In Heart.

Likewise The Piercing Of The Body For Multiple Rings In The Ears, In The Nose, Even In The Tongue. Can They Possibly Think That Is Beautiful? It Is A Passing Fancy, But Its Effects Can Be Permanent. Some Have Gone To Such Extremes That The Ring Had To Be Removed By Surgery. The First Presidency And The Quorum Of The Twelve Have Declared That We Discourage Tattoos And Also “the Piercing Of The Body For Other Than Medical Purposes.” We Do Not, However, Take Any Position “on The Minimal Piercing Of The Ears By Women For One Pair Of Earrings”-one Pair Only.

It Is Difficult To Press Forward If We Do Not Know How To Obey.

Love Can Make The Difference-love Generously Given In Childhood And Reaching Through The Awkward Years Of Youth . . . And Encouragement That Is Quick To Compliment And Slow To Criticize.

I Forewarn You, This Will Be A Rather Long Talk. I Am An Old Man. I Do Not Know How Much Longer I Will Live, And So I Want To Say What I Have To Say, While I Have The Strength To Say It. ...having Been Warned, Some Of You Will Wish To Get Comfortable. Pleasant Dreams.

Fear Not; Only Believe. This Is A Time To Make Resolutions That Will Be Binding Upon You. This Is A Season To Set Standards That Will Hold You To The Right Course And Make You Happy Now And In The Years That Follow.

Every Righteous Man Or Woman Is Entitled To Revelation Concerning His Own Affairs.

My Plea Is That We Stop Seeking Out The Storms And Enjoy More Fully The Sunlight...i Am Asking That We Look A Little Deeper For The Good, That We Still Our Voices Of Insult And Sarcasm, That We More Generously Compliment And Endorse Virtue And Effort.

Carry On. Things Will Work Out. If You Keep Trying And Praying And Working, Things Will Work Out. They Always Do. If You Want To Die At An Early Age, Dwell On The Negative. Accentuate The Positive, And You’ll Be Around For A While.

I Think [forgiveness] May Be The Greatest Virtue On Earth, And Certainly The Most Needed. There Is So Much Of Meanness And Abuse, Of Intolerance And Hatred. There Is So Great A Need For Repentance And Forgiveness. It Is The Great Principle Emphasized In All Of Scripture, Both Ancient And Modern. Somehow Forgiveness, With Love And Tolerance, Accomplishes Miracles That Can Happen In No Other Way.

Repentance And Forgiveness

There Is No Substitute Under The Heavens For Productive Labor. It Is The Process By Which Dreams Become Realities. It Is The Process By Which Idle Visions Become Dynamic Achievements.

Don’t Be Gloomy. Do Not Dwell On Unkind Things. Stop Seeking Out The Storms And Enjoy More Fully The Sunlight. Even If You Are Not Happy, Put A Smile On Your Face. ‘accentuate The Positive.’ Look A Little Deeper For The Good. Go Forward In Life With A Twinkle In Your Eye And A Smile On Your Face, With Great And Strong Purpose In Your Heart. Love Life.

All Of Us Have Problems. We Face Them Every Day. How Grateful I Am That We Have Difficult Things To Wrestle With. They Keep Us Young, They Keep Us Alive, They Keep Us Going, They Keep Us Humble. Be Grateful For Your Problems, And Know That Somehow There Will Come A Solution. Just Do The Best You Can, But Be Sure It Is The Very Best.

At This Time Of Christmas, This Season When Gifts Are Given, Let Us Not Forget That God Gave His Son, And His Son Gave His Life, That Each Of Us Might Have The Gift Of Eternal Life.

Try A Little Harder To Be A Little Better.

If Life Gets Too Hard To Stand, Kneel.

When Life Is Hard

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