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There Is No Greater Blessing That You Can Have Than To Stand As A Proxy In A Great Service To Those Who Have Gone Beyond. And It Will Be Your Privilege And Your Opportunity And Your Responsibility To Live Worthy To Go To The Temple Of The Lord And Be Baptized In Behalf Of Someone Else.

-Gordon B. Hinckley

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There Is No Greater

Gordon B. Hinckley

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There Is No Greater Blessing That You Can Have Than To Stand As A Proxy In A Great Service To Those Who Have Gone Beyond. And It Will Be Your Privilege And Your Opportunity And Your Responsibility To Live Worthy To Go To The Temple Of The Lord And Be Baptized In Behalf Of Someone Else.

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Limitless Is Your Potential. Magnificent Is Your Future.

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

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

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.

There Is Rampant Among Us A Spirit Of Criticism. Men And Women Who Carry Heavy Responsibility Do Not Need Criticism, They Need Encouragement.

What I Am Suggesting Is That Each Of Us Turn From The Negativism That Permeates Our Society And Look For The Remarkable Good Among Those With Whom We Associate, That We Speak Of One Another’s Virtues More Than We Speak Of One Another’s Faults, That Optimism Replace Pessimism, That Our Faith Exceed Our Fears. When I Was A Young Man And Was Prone To Speak Critically, My Father Would Say: “cynics Do Not Contribute, Skeptics Do Not Create, Doubters Do Not Achieve.

Positive Thinking

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.

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.

I Know Of No Better Answer To The Foul Practices That Confront Our Young People Than The Teachings Of A Mother, Given In Love With An Unmistakable Warning.

A Tattoo Is Graffiti On The Temple Of The Body.

Though My Work May Be Menial, Though My Contribution May Be Small, I Can Perform It With Dignity And Offer It With Unselfishness. My Talents May Not Be Great, But I Can Use Them To Bless The Lives Of Others.... The Goodness Of The World In Which We Live Is The Accumulated Goodness Of Many Small And Seemingly Inconsequential Acts.

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.

Faith In Something Greater Than Ourselves Enables Us To Do What We Have Said We'll Do, To Press Forward When We Are Tired Or Hurt Or Afraid, To Keep Going When The Challenge Seems Overwhelming And The Course Is Entirely Uncertain.

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

Asking For Forgiveness

Rise Above... Cultivate The Light You Have Within You, And It Will Shine Through As A Radiant Expression That Will Be Seen By Others.

I Commend To You The Virtues Of Thrift And Industry. In Doing So, I Do Not Wish You To Be A "tightwad," If You Will Pardon That Expression, Or To Be A Freeloader, Or Anything Of The Kind.

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

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.

We Love Them [people Who Have Same-sex Attractions] As Sons And Daughters Of God. They May Have Certain Inclinations Which Are Powerful And Which May Be Difficult To Control. If They Do Not Act Upon These Inclinations, Then They Can Go Forward As Do All Other Members Of The Church.

One Of The Bellwether Marks Of The Growth And Vitality Of The Church Is The Construction Of Temples. We Will Keep On Working To Bring The Temples To The People, Making It More Convenient For Latter Day Saints Everywhere To Receive The Blessings Which Can Only Be Had In These Holy Houses.

Try A Little Harder To Be A Little Better.

In My Ninety-plus Years, I Have Learned A Secret. I Have Learned That When Good Men And Good Women Face Challenges With Optimism, Things Will Always Work Out! Truly, Things Always Work Out! Despite How Difficult Circumstances May Look At The Moment, Those Who Have Faith And Move Forward With A Happy Spirit Will Find That Things Always Work Out.

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.

You Are Good. But It Is Not Enough Just To Be Good. You Must Be Good For Something. You Must Contribute Good To The World. The World Must Be A Better Place For Your Presence. And The Good That Is In You Must Be Spread To Others.

Avoid Alcohol As You Would A Loathsome Disease. Beer Will Do To You What Hard Liquor Will Do. Each Contains Alcohol In Varying Amounts.

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.

Most Of The Things That Make You Angry Are Of Very Small Consequence. And What A Terrible Price You Are Paying For Your Anger.

Education Will Equip You To Do Something Worthwhile In The Great World Of Opportunity That Lies Ahead.

It Is Not Wise, Or Even Possible, To Divorce Private Behavior From Public Leadership.... By Its Very Nature, True Leadership Carries With It The Burden Of Being An Example.

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.

The Kingdom Of Heaven And The Kingdom Of God On The Earth Will Be Combined Together At Christ's Coming - And That Time Is Not Far Distant. How I Wish We Could Get The Vision Of This Work, The Genius Of It, And Realize The Nearness Of That Great Event. I Am Sure It Would Have A Sobering Effect Upon Us If We Realized What Is Before Us.

When I Say Do Your Best, I Mean Your Very Best. You Are Capable Of So Much More.

Enjoy Music. Not The Kind That Rocks And Rolls, But The Music Of The Masters, The Music That Has Lived Through The Centuries, The Music That Has Lifted People. If You Do Not Have A Taste For It, Listen To It Thoughtfully. If You Do Not Like It The First Time, Listen To It Again And Keep Listening.

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

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?

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.

None Of Us Is Perfect. There Was Only One Perfect Man Who Ever Walked The Earth, And He Was The Son Of God. We All Have Weaknesses And I Guess We All Make Mistakes And Will Make Mistakes In The Future, But Look For The Virtues, The Strengths, The Goodness In Those With Whom You Labor, And Draw Those Characteristics Into Your Own Lives And Make Them A Part Of Yourselves, And You Will Be The Richer For It All The Days That You Live.

Work At Our Responsibility As Parents As If Everything In Life Counted On It.

There Is No Substitute For Virtue. Keep Your Thoughts Virtuous. Rise Above The Filth That's All Around You In This World And Stand Tall In Strength And Virtue. You Can Do This And You Will Be Happier For It For As Long As You Live. God Bless You In Cherishing, Developing And Holding On To This Great Gift, The Quality Of Personal Virtue.

Our Entire Case As Members Of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-day Saints Rests On The Validity Of This Glorious First Vision. ... Nothing On Which We Base Our Doctrine, Nothing We Teach, Nothing We Live By Is Of Greater Importance Than This Initial Declaration. I Submit That If Joseph Smith Talked With God The Father And His Beloved Son, Then All Else Of Which He Spoke Is True. This Is The Hinge On Which Turns The Gate That Leads To The Path Of Salvation And Eternal Life.

For As Long As (the Founding Fathers Of This Nation) Lived And Led, They Acknowledged The Hand Of The Almighty In The Affairs Of This Republic. Our Coinage And Our Currency Carry The National Motto. It Simply Says, 'in God We Trust.' I Believe This Is The Foundation Upon Which This Nation Was Established, An Unequivocal Trust In The Power Of The Almighty To Guide And Defend Us.

Missionary Work Has Never Been Easy, And Yet The Joyful Rewards Cannot Be Equaled By Any Other Experience.

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.

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.

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

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 Condemn Polygamy, Yes, As A Practice, Because I Think It Is Not Doctrinal. It Is Not Legal. And This Church Takes The Position That We Will Abide By The Law.

But Even Considering These, I Have Great Confidence In Our Young People As A Whole. I Regard You As The Finest Generation In The History Of The Church. I Compliment You, And I Have In My Heart A Great Feeling Of Love And Respect And Appreciation For You.

Marriage In Its Truest Sense, Is A Partnership Of Equals, With Neither Exercising Dominion Over The Other, But, Rather, With Each Encouraging And Assisting The Other In Whatever Responsibilities And Aspirations He Or She Might Have.

The Best Medicine For Despair Is Service.

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

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.

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 Hope You Will Simply Do What You Can Do In The Best Way You Know. If You Do So, You Will Witness Miracles Come To Pass.

There Is Something Almost Sacred About A Great Library Because It Represents The Preservation Of The Wisdom, The Learning, And The Pondering Of Men And Women Of All The Ages, Accumulated Under One Roof.

The Trick, My Brethren And Sisters Is To Enjoy The Journey, Traveling Hand In Hand, In Sunshine And Storm, As Companions Who Love One Another.

Nobody Is Lost Until Somebody Has Given Up.

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.

Don't Make The Kinds Of Mistakes That Will Bring Regret.

Let Your First Interest Be In Your Home. The Baby You Hold In Your Arms Will Grow Quickly As The Sunrise And The Sunset Of The Rushing Days.

The Religion Of Which You Are A Part Is 7 Days A Week. It Isn't Just Sunday, It Isn't The Block Plan, It Isn't Just 3 Hours In Church, It Isn't Just The Time You Spend In Seminary - It's All The Time, 24 Hours A Day, 7 Days A Week, 365 Days A Year.

Let Us Never Forget To Pray. God Lives. He Is Near. He Is Real.

It Is The Home Which Produces The Nursery Stock Of New Generations. I Hope That You Mothers Will Realize That When All Is Said And Done, You Have No More Compelling Responsibility, Nor Any Laden With Greater Rewards, Than The Nurture You Give Your Children In An Environment Of Security, Peace, Companionship, Love And Motivation To Grow And Do Well.

You Will Find Peace And Happiness If You Will Live The Gospel.

Peace And Happiness

Do Not Nag Yourself With A Sense Of Failure

Gratitude Creates The Most Wonderful Feeling. It Can Resolve Disputes. It Can Strengthen Friendships. And It Makes Us Better Men And Women.

The Happiest People I Know Are Those Who Lose Themselves In The Service Of Others

Miserable People

While There May Be Thorns And Disappointments, While There May Be Heartache, Even Heartbreak, There Can Be Peace And Comfort And Strength From The Lord For Those Who Follow Him.

There Is Nothing That Dulls A Personality So Much As A Negative Outlook.

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

You Don't Need Coffee. Nobody Needs Coffee. You Can Get Along Without It.

Something Happens Inside Of Us When We Are Courteous And Deferential Toward Others. It Is All Part Of A Refining Process, Which If Persisted In, Will Change Our Very Natures.

I Almost Stand In Awe When I Think Of Joseph Smith. The Angel Appeared To Him In 1823 - He Said To This Simple Little Boy, 'your Name Should Be Known For Good And Evil Throughout The Entire World.'

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

I Think That The Churches Do A Better Job In Many Respects Than The Government Does In Various Kinds Of Things. Extending Aid, The Helpfulness, And So On, Yes.

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.

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.

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.

We're All Sons And Daughters Of God, And Therefore In A Very Literal Sense, Brothers And Sisters. And We Ought To Treat Each Other That Way.

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."

Love Is The Very Essence Of Life.

If You Will Make Your First Concern The Comfort, The Well-being, And The Happiness Of Your Companion, Sublimating Any Personal Concern To That Loftier Goal, You Will Be Happy, And Your Marriage Will Go On Through Eternity

It Is Not So Much The Major Events As The Small Day-to-day Decisions That Map The Course Of Our Living. . . Our Lives Are, In Reality, The Sum Total Of Our Seemingly Unimportant Decisions And Of Our Capacity To Live By Those Decisions.

There Are Some Men Who, In A Spirit Of Arrogance, Think They Are Superior To Women. They Do Not Seem To Realize That They Would Not Exist But For The Mother Who Gave Them Birth. When They Assert Their Superiority They Demean Her.

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.

Are These Perilous Times? They Are. But We Can Have Peace In Our Hearts And In Our Homes.

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.

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

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.

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.

Dishonesty Of Any Kind Will Create A Blemish.

It Is So Important To See That We Are All Converted, That We Have In Our Hearts A Conviction Concerning This Great Work. It Is Not A Matter Of The Head Only. It Is A Matter Of The Heart. It Is Being Touched By The Holy Spirit Until We Know That This Work Is True, That Joseph Smith Was Verily A Prophet Of God, That God Lives And That Jesus Christ Lives And That They Appeared To The Boy Joseph Smith, That The Book Of Mormon Is True, That The Priesthood Is Here With All Of Its Gifts And Blessings.

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

Integrity Is At The Heart Of Commerce In The World In Which We Live. Honesty And Integrity Comprise The Very Underpinnings Of Society.....indeed, The Strength And Safety Of Any Organization-including The Family-lie In The Integrity Of Its Members. Without Personal Integrity, There Can Be No Confidence. Without Confidence, There Can Be No Prospect Of Permanent Success.

Gratitude Is The Beginning Of Civility, Of Decency And Goodness, Of A Recognition That We Cannot Afford To Be Arrogant. We Should Walk With The Knowledge That We Will Need Help Every Step Of The Way.

...when We Lift Our Voices Tiny Molehills Of Difference Become Great Mountains Of Conflict.

Listen To The Whisperings Of The Spirit, The Gift Of Revelation To Which You Are Entitled.

I Have Now Been An Officer In This Church For A Very Long Time. I Am An Old Man Who Cannot Deny The Calendar. I Have Lived Long Enough And Served In Enough Different Capacities To Have Removed From My Mind, If Such Were Necessary, Any Doubt Of The Divinity Of This, The Work Of God. We Respect Those Of Other Churches. We Desire Their Friendship And Hope To Render Meaningful Service With Them. We Know They All Do Good, But We Unabashedly State—and This Frequently Brings Criticism Upon Us—that This Is The True And Living Church Of Our Father In Heaven And His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ.

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

To You Wives Who Are Constantly Complaining And See Only The Dark Side Of Life, And Feel That You Are Unloved And Unwanted, Look Into Your Own Hearts And Minds. If There Is Something Wrong, Turn About. Put A Smile On Your Faces. Make Yourselves More Attractive. Brighten Your Outlook.

It Is Imperative That Good People, Men And Women Of Principle, Be Involved In The Political Process; Otherwise We Abdicate Power To Those Whose Designs Are Almost Entirely Selfish.

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.

Do Not Let Fear Overcome Your Efforts.

Forget Yourself And Get To Work.

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.

It Is Selfishness Which Is The Cause Of Most Of Our Misery.

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.

What I Fear From These Reports Is That The Prevalent Use Of Foul Language Has Become An Acceptable Pattern In The Schools, Probably Due In Large Part To The Influence Of Tv And The General Permissiveness In Our Society.

The Way Of The Gospel Is A Simple Way. Some Of The Requirements May Appear To You As Elementary And Unnecessary. Do Not Spurn Them. Humble Yourselves And Walk In Obedience. I Promise That The Results That Follow Will Be Marvelous To Behold And Satisfying To Experience.

Let Everything That You Do Bring Credit And Honor To The Church, Of Which You Are A Member, And The Lord Will Bless You And Magnify You. Let There Be No Animosity Among You But Only Love, Regardless Of Race, Regardless Of Circumstances. Let Us Love One Another As The Lord Would Have Us Do

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

There Is No Greater Blessing That You Can Have Than To Stand As A Proxy In A Great Service To Those Who Have Gone Beyond. And It Will Be Your Privilege And Your Opportunity And Your Responsibility To Live Worthy To Go To The Temple Of The Lord And Be Baptized In Behalf Of Someone Else.

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

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

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.

God Will Bless Us If We Walk In Humility.

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.

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.

Love Is Like The North Star. In A Changing World, It's Always Constant.

Strength To Do Battle Begins With Enlisting The Strength Of God.

God Has Not Given Us The Spirit Of Fear. That Comes From The Adversary.

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.

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.

Mediocrity Will Never Do. You Are Capable Of Something Better.

There Have Been Times When A Particularly Heavy Dose Of Such Cynicism Has Caused Me To Reflect That Surely This Is The Age And Place Of The Gifted Pickle Sucker!

Simple Honesty Is So Remarkable A Quality. It Is Of The Very Essence Of Integrity.

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.

None Of You Need Worry Because You Read Something That Was Incompletely Reported. You Need Not Worry That I Do Not Understand Some Matters Of Doctrine... I Think I Understand Them Thoroughly.

Tremendous Happiness And Peace Of Mind Are The Results Of Loving Service To Others. Nobody Can Live Fully And Happily Who Lives Only Unto Himself Or Herself.

Service To Others

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.

We Feel The Need To Emphasize With Greater Clarity The Obligation For Members Of The Church To Become More Independent And Self Reliant.

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

Without Preservation And Cultivation Of The Spiritual, Your Material Success Will Be As Ashes In Your Mouths.

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?

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

We’ve Got To Have A Little Humor In Our Lives. You Had Better Take Seriously That Which Should Be Taken Seriously But, At The Same Time, We Can Bring In A Touch Of Humor Now And Again. If The Time Ever Comes When We Can’t Smile At Ourselves, It Will Be A Sad Time.

Work Will Cure Your Grief. Serve Others.

It Is Naive To Believe That A Steady Diet Of Blatant Immorality, Played Out Nightly In Our Living Rooms, Has No Effect On People. I Am Always Curious When Individuals Insist That What They Watch On Television Or In Movie Theaters Doesn't Affect Them. ... Are We Really To Believe That Hours, Leading To Years, Of Television Viewing Will Not Affect Attitudes About Everything From Family Life To Appropriate Sexual Relations?

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.

If You Are Too Busy In Your Church Activities To Take Care Of Your Family, Then Perhaps We Had Better Find Something Else For You To Do.

I Hope You Are Reading To Your Children, Out Loud. That's Much Better Than Watching Television, Much Better. They Won't Get Very Much Out Of Television Except Some Bad Thoughts.

The Gospel Is A Thing Of Joy. It Provides Us With A Reason For Gladness. Of Course There Are Times Of Sorrow. Of Course There Are Hours Of Concern And Anxiety. We All Worry. But The Lord Has Told Us To Lift Our Hearts And Rejoice. I See So Many People...who Seem Never To See The Sunshine, But Who Constantly Walk With Storms Under Cloudy Skies. 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.

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.

In All This World There Is No Substitute For Personal Integrity. It Includes Honor. It Includes Performance. It Includes Keeping One's Word. It Includes Doing What Is Right Regardless Of The Circumstances

We Live In A World Where Knowledge Is Developing At An Ever-accelerating Rate. Drink Deeply From This Ever-springing Well Of Wisdom And Human Experience.

Human Experience

Be Believing, Be Happy, Don't Get Discouraged. Things Will Work Out.

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.

In Terms Of You Happiness, In Terms Of The Matters That Make You Proud Or Sad, Nothing-i Repeat, Nothing-will Have So Profound An Effect On You As The Way Your Children Turn Out. You Will Either Rejoice And Boast Of Their Accomplishments Or You Will Weep, Head In Hands, Bereft And Forlorn, If They Become A Disappointment Or An Embarrassment To You.

Some Of You May Feel That You Are Not As Attractive And Beautiful And Glamorous As You Would Like To Be. Rise Above Any Such Feelings, Cultivate The Light You Have Within You, And It Will Shine Through As A Radiant Expression That Will Be Seen By Others. You Need Never Feel Inferior. You Need Never Feel That You Were Born Without Talents Or Without Opportunities To Give Them Expression. Cultivate Whatever Talents You Have, And They Will Grow Anв Refine And Become An Expression Of Your True Self Appreciated By Others.

If Life Gets Too Hard To Stand, Kneel.

When Life Is Hard

Believe In Jesus Christ, Our Savior And Our Redeemer, The Son Of God, Who Came To Earth And Walked The Dusty Roads Of Palestine - The Son Of God - To Teach Us The Way Of Truth And Light And Salvation, And Who, In One Great And Glorious Act Offered An Atonement For Each Of Us. He Opened The Way Of Salvation And Exaltation For Each Of Us, Under Which We May Go Forward In The Church And Kingdom Of God. Be Not Faithless, But Believe In The Great And Wonderful And Marvelous Blessings Of The Atonement.

We Can Begin Ever So Modestly. 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. . .i Fear That So Many Feel That A Long-term Food Supply Is So Far Beyond Their Reach That They Make No Effort At All. . .begin In A Small Way, ... And Gradually Build Toward A Reasonable Objective.

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.

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

We Are Involved In An Intense Battle. It Is A Battle Between Right And Wrong, Between Truth And Error, Between The Design Of The Almighty On The One Hand And That Of Lucifer On The Other. For That Reason, We Desperately Need Moral Men And Women Who Stand On Principle, To Be Involved In The Political Process. Otherwise, We Abdicate Power To Those Whose Designs Are Almost Entirely Selfish.

Marriage Should Not Be Viewed As A Therapeutic Step To Solve Problems Such As Homosexual Inclinations Or Practices.

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.

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

I Meet Young People Everywhere Who Are Wonderful And Faithful; Youth Who Want To Do The Right Thing And Who Indicate The Reality Of What I Have Been Saying For A Long Time, That We've Never Had A Better Generation Of Young People In The Church Than We Have Today. They Are Faithful. They Are Active. They're Knowledgeable. They Are A Great Generation, Notwithstanding The Environment In Which Many Of Them Are Growing Up.

There Is A Sad Tendency In Our World Today For Persons To Cut One Another Down. Did You Ever Realize That It Does Not Take Very Much In The Way Of Brainpower To Make Remarks That May Wound Another? Try The Opposite Of That. Try Handing Out Compliments.

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

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.

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

My Plea Is That As We Continue Our Search For Truth, Particularly We Of The Church, That We Look For Strength And Goodness Rather Than Weakness And Failings In Those Who Did So Great A Work In Their Time. We Recognize That Our Forefathers Were Human. They Doubtless Made Mistakes. Some Of Them Acknowledged Making Mistakes. But The Mistakes Were Minor When Compared With The Marvelous Work Which They Accomplished.

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

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.

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

In Matters Of Honesty, There Are No Shortcuts; No Little White Lies, Or Big Black Lies, Only The Simple, Honest Truth Spoken In Total Candor... Being True Is Different Than Being Honest.

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

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.

You Can Be Excellent In Every Way. You Can Be First Class. There Is No Need For You To Be A Scrub. Respect Yourself. Do Not Feel Sorry For Yourself. Do Not Dwell On Unkind Things Others May Say About You. Polish And Refine Whatever Talents The Lord Has Given You. Go Forward In Life With A Twinkle In Your Eye And A Smile On Your Face, But With Great And Strong Purpose In Your Heart. Love Life And Look For Its Opportunities.

You Never Know How Much Good You Do.

In Very Large Measure Each Of Us Holds The Key To The Blessings Of The Almighty Upon Us. If We Wish The Blessing, We Must Pay The Price.

Let There Be Cultivated An Awareness In Every Member's Heart Of His Own Potential For Bringing Others To A Knowledge Of The Truth. Let Him Work At It. Let Him Pray With Great Earnestness About It

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.

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.

Do You Want To Be Happy? Forget Yourself And Get Lost In This Great Cause.

The Problem Is, I Think, That So Many Of Us Pray As If We Are Ordering Groceries. We Pick Up The Telephone And Say, 'is This The Right Place To Place My Order?' And We Proceed Right To Dictating Our Order. When We Have Then Ended That List, We Hang Up.

We Should Also Build The Attitude That There Is Nothing Of A Vacation, Nothing Of A Holiday In This Great Missionary Service. It Is Hard, And At Times Discouraging, Work. Last Year Our Missionaries Averaged Sixty-seven Hours A Week In Actual Proselyting Effort. Let Those Who Contemplate Missions Realize That They Will Work As They Have Never Worked Before, And That They May Expect Such Joy As They Have Not Previously Known.

Love Is The Very Essence Of Family Life. Why Is It That The Children We Love Become So Frequently The Targets Of Our Harsh Words? Why Is It That These Children Who Love Their Fathers And Mothers Sometimes Speak As If With Daggers That Cut To The Quick? "there Is Beauty All Around," Only When There's Love At Home.

Church - Come Here To Learn, Go Forth To Serve.

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 Best Thing You Can Do Is Just Keep Busy, Keep Working Hard, So You're Not Dwelling On It All The Time. Work Is The Best Antidote For Sorrow.

A Marvelous Thing It Would Be To Stand With Confidence, Unafraid, Unashamed, And Unembarrassed In The Presence Of God.

Presence Of God

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.

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.

Thank And Glorify His Beloved Son, Who, With Indescribable Suffering, Gave His Life On Calvary's Cross To Pay The Debt Of Mortal Sin. He It Was Who, Through His Atoning Sacrifice, Broke The Bonds Of Death And With Godly Power Rose Triumphant From The Tomb. He Is Our Redeemer, The Redeemer Of All Mankind. He Is The Savior Of The World. He Is The Son Of God, The Author Of Our Salvation.

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

This Cause Will Roll On In Majesty And Power To Fill The Earth. Doors Now Closed To The Preaching Of The Gospel Will Be Opened. The Almighty, If Necessary, May Have To Shake The Nations To Humble Them And Cause Them To Listen To The Servants Of The Living God. Whatever Is Needed Will Come To Pass.

Don't Worry. I Say That To Myself Every Morning. It All Works Out In The End.

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 Hope Concerning The Future Is Great, And Our Faith Is Strong. We Know We’ve Scarcely Scratched The Surface Of That Which Will Come To Pass In The Years That Lie Ahead.

Prayer Is The Great Gift Which Our Eternal Father Has Given Us By Which We May Approach Him And Speak With Him In The Name Of The Lord Jesus Christ. Be Prayerful. You Cannot Make It Alone. You Cannot Reach Your Potential Alone. You Need The Help Of The Lord.

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

There Is No Obstacle Too Great, No Challenge Too Difficult, If We Have Faith.

Jesus Said, 'except A Man Be Born Of Water And Of The Spirit, He Cannot Enter Into The Kingdom Of God.' There Are No Exceptions. Baptism Is A Necessary Ordinance.

We Live In Terribly Complex Times. We Are Confronted By Very Serious Problems. Some Of Us Are Faced With Sickness, With Economic Difficulties, With Worry And Concern Over Many Matters. Our Refuge, Our Peace, Our Well-being Lie In Walking In The Way Of The Lord.

Conversations I Have Had With School Principals And Students Lead Me To The Same Conclusion-that...there Is An Evil And Growing Habit Of Profanity And The Use Of Foul And Filthy Language.

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.

I Do Not Know What The Future Holds. I Do Not Wish To Sound Negative, But I Wish To Remind You Of The Warnings Of Scripture And The Teachings Of The Prophets Which We Have Had Constantly Before Us.

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