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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.

-Gordon B. Hinckley

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You Are Good. But

Gordon B. Hinckley

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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.

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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.

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.

How Thankful We Ought To Be ... How Thankful We Are, For A Prophet To Counsel Us In Words Of Divine Wisdom As We Walk Our Paths In These Complex And Difficult Times. The Solid Assurance We Carry In Our Hearts, The Conviction That God Will Make His Will Known To His Children Through His Recognized Servant Is The Real Basis Of Our Faith And Activity. We Either Have A Prophet Or We Have Nothing: And Having A Prophet, We Have Everything

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.

Christmas Means Giving. The Father Gave His Son, And The Son Gave His Life. Without Giving There Is No True Christmas, And Without Sacrifice There Is No True Worship.

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.

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.

The Greatness Of The World In Which We Live Is The Accumulated Goodness Of Many Small And Seemingly Inconsequential Acts.

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

It Isn't As Bad As You Sometimes Think It Is. It All Works Out. Don't Worry. I Say That To Myself Every Morning. It All Works Out In The End. Put Your Trust In God, And Move Forward With Faith And Confidence In The Future. The Lord Will Not Forsake Us. He Will Not Forsake Us. If We Will Put Our Trust In Him, If We Will Pray To Him, If We Will Live Worthy Of His Blessings, He Will Hear Our Prayers.

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.

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

Believe In Yourselves. Believe In Your Capacity To Do Some Good In This World. God Sent Us Here For A Purpose, And That Was To Improve The World In Which We Live. The Wonderful Thing Is That We Can Do It.

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

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.

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

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.

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.

When Temptation Comes Your Way, Name That Boastful, Deceitful Giant “goliath!” And Do With It As David Did To The Philistine Of Gath.

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

Gratitude Is Of The Very Essence Of Worship. ... When You Walk With Gratitude, You Do Not Walk With Arrogance And Conceit And Egotism, You Walk With A Spirit Of Thanksgiving That Is Becoming To You And Will Bless Your Lives. Sincerely Giving Thanks Not Only Helps Us Recognize Our Blessings, It Also Unlocks The Doors Of Heaven And Helps Us Feel God's Love.

It Should Be Recognized That This Church Is Not A Social Club. This Is The Kingdom Of God On The Earth. It Is The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. Its Purpose Is To Bring Salvation And Exaltation To Both The Living And The Dead.

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

Each Of Us Has To Face The Matter — Either The Church Is True, Or It Is A Fraud. There Is No Middle Ground. It Is The Church And Kingdom Of God, Or It Is Nothing.

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.

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.

Be True To Who You Are And The Family Name You Bare.

Be True To Who You Are

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

There Must Be Labor, Incessant And Constant, If There Is To Be A Harvest.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

If Life Gets Too Hard To Stand, Kneel.

When Life Is Hard

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.

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

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

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.

It Isn't As Bad As You Sometimes Think It Is. It All Works Out. Don't Worry. Put Your Trust In God, And Move Forward With Faith And Confidence In The Future.

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.

I Don't Know That We Teach It. I Don't Know That We Emphasize It... I Understand The Philosophical Background Behind It, But I Don't Know A Lot About It, And I Don't Think Others Know A Lot About It.

Watch What You Choose To Do. For Instance, Someone Might Want You To Smoke. Never Forget That I Told You - Don't Do It. Say No.that Can Of Beer That Somebody Wants You To Try, Don't Do It. Don't You Ever Do It.that Drug That Someone Might Want You To Use, Don't Touch It.stay Away From It. It Can Destroy You.

I Have Yet To Find A Faithful Tithe Payer Who Cannot Testify That In A Very Literal And Wonderful Way The Windows Of Heaven Have Been Opened And Blessings Have Been Poured Out Upon Him Or Her.

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

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.

You Will Have Significant Experiences. I Hope That You Will Write Them Down And Keep Record Of Them, That You Will Read Them From Time To Time And Refresh Your Memory Of Those Meaningful And Significant Things. Some May Be Funny. Some May Be Significant Only To You. Some Of Them May Be Sacred And Quietly Beautiful. Some May Build One Upon Another Until They Represent A Lifetime Of Special Experiences.

God Bless You, My Beloved Sisters, Who Stand As The Queens In Your Home, That You May Be Happy With That Happiness Which Comes Of The Knowledge That You Are Loved And Honored And Treasured.

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

Gratitude Is A Sign Of Maturity...where There Is Appreciation: There Is Also Courtesy And Concern For The Rights And Property Of Others.

Bind To You Friends Of Your Own Kind, Friends Who Will Encourage You, Stand With You, Live As You Desire To Live, Who Will Enjoy The Same Kind Of Entertainment, And Who Will Resist The Evil That You Determine To Resist.

I Believe Without Any Doubt That You Are The Finest Generation This Church Has Ever Had.

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.

Don't Be Gloomy. Even If You Are Not Happy, Put A Smile On Your Face. [life Is About] Joy,... Something To Be Happy And Excited About.

Do Your Best, And Be A Little Better Than You Are.

Self Improvement

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.

The Course Of Our Lives Is Not Determined By Great, Awesome Decisions. Our Direction Is Set By The Little Day-to-day Choices Which Chart The Track On Which We Run.

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.

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

Look For The Sunlight Through The Clouds.

Love Is Meant To Be An Adventure!!

The Remedy For Most Marital Stress Is Not In Divorce. It Is In Repentance And Forgiveness, In Sincere Expressions Of Charity And Service. It Is Not In Separation. It Is In Simple Integrity That Leads A Man And A Woman To Square Up Their Shoulders And Meet Their Obligations. It Is Found In The Golden Rule, A Time-honored Principle That Should First And Foremost Find Expression In Marriage.

The Church Expects That Each Of Us Carry A Share Of The Burden Of Leadership. There Is No Paid Clergy. The Work Is Done Because Of A Love Of The Cause. And As People Serve, They Grow In Capacity. The Time And Effort Is Not A Sacrifice Because There Is Returned More Than Is Given.

I Am Totally In The Hands Of The Lord.

Pray For The Strength To Walk The High Road, Which At Times May Be Lonely But Which Will Lead To Peace And Happiness And Joy Supernal.

Of Course We're Christian. The Very Name Of The Church Declares That.

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

I Believe In The Principle That I Can Make A Difference In This World. It May Be Ever So Small, But It Will Count For The Greater Good.

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

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.

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

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 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?

The Best Antidote I Know For Worry Is Work. The Best Cure For Weariness Is The Challenge Of Helping Someone Who Is Even More Tired. One Of The Great Ironies Of Life Is This: He Or She Who Serves Almost Always Benefits More Than He Or She Who Is Served.

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

To Save A Girl Is To Save Generations!

There Would Be No Christmas If There Was No Easter.

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

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.

This Is My Prayer For All Of Us — 'lord, Increase Our Faith.' Increase Our Faith To Bridge The Chasms Of Uncertainty And Doubt. Grant Us Faith To Look Beyond The Problems Of The Moment To The Miracles Of The Future. Give Us Faith To Do What Is Right And Let The Consequence Follow.

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.

How Sweet Is The Assurance, How Comforting Is The Peace That Come From The Knowledge That If We Marry Right And Live Right, Our Relationship Will Continue, Notwithstanding The Certainty Of Death And The Passage Of Time. Men May Write Love Songs And Sing Them. They May Yearn And Hope And Dream. But All Of This Will Be Only A Romantic Longing Unless There Is An Exercise Of Authority That Transcends The Powers Of Time And Death.

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.

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.

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.

The Most Important Step You Have Made Or Will Make In Your Life Is Marriage. Its Consequences Are Many, So Important And So Everlasting.. No Other Decision Will Have Such Tremendous Consequences For The Future.

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.

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.

... 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

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.

You Have As Great An Opportunity For Satisfaction In The Performance Of Your Duty As I Do In Mine. The Progress Of This Work Will Be Determined By Our Joint Efforts. Whatever Your Calling, It Is As Fraught With The Same Kind Of Opportunity To Accomplish Good As Is Mine. What Is Really Important Is That This Is The Work Of The Master. Our Work Is To Go About Doing Good As Did He.

Quiet Talk Is The Language Of Love. It Is The Language Of Peace. It Is The Language Of God.

Language Of Love

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.

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.

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.

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.

We Are All Prone To Brood On The Evil Done Us. That Brooding Becomes As A Gnawing And Destructive Canker. Is There A Virtue More In Need Of Application In Our Time Than The Virtue Of Forgiving And Forgetting? There Are Those Who Would Look Upon This As A Sign Of Weakness. Is It? I Submit That It Takes Neither Strength Nor Intelligence To Brood In Anger Over Wrongs Suffered, To Go Through Life With A Spirit Of Vindictiveness, To Dissipate One’s Abilities In Planning Retribution. There Is No Peace In The Nursing Of A Grudge. There Is No Happiness In Living For The Day When You Can ‘get Even.

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.

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.

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.

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

Mortality Is But A Stepping-stone To A More Glorious Existence In The Future.

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

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.

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.

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

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

The Best Food Storage Is Not In Welfare Grain Elevators But In Sealed Cans And Bottles In The Homes Of Our People. What A Gratifying Thing It Is To See Cans Of Wheat And Rice And Beans Under The Beds Or In The Pantries Of Women Who Have Taken Welfare Responsibility Into Their Own Hands. Such Food May Not Be Tasty, But It Will Be Nourishing If It Has To Be Used.

Be Strong-be Strong In The Discipline Of Self. How Many Otherwise Good Men Squander Their Strength And Dissipate Their Will And Literally Destroy Their Lives Because They Have Not The Power Of Self-discipline.

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.

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

Peace And Happiness

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.

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.

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.

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.

The Major Work Of The World Is Not Done By Geniuses. It Is Done By Ordinary People, With Balance In Their Lives, Who Have Learned To Work In An Extraordinary Manner.

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.

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.

You Are Great Young People. I Have Said Again And Again, We Have The Finest Generation Of Young People Ever In The History Of This Church. I Believe It. You Know The Gospel Better. You Come To Seminary And You Learn About The Things Of The Lord Here. You Know More About The Gospel Than Those Of My Generation At Your Age Did Without Any Question. I Am Satisfied Of That. Furthermore, You Are Intrinsically Better. You Are Wonderful Young People!

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

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.

Work Will Cure Your Grief. Serve Others.

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

By And Large, I Have Come To See That If We Complain About Life, It Is Because We Are Thinking Only Of Ourselves.

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.

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.

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.

If We Could Follow The Slogan That Says,"turn Off The Tv And Open A Good Book" We Would Do Something Of Substance For A Future Generation.

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

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

It Is Good To Look To The Past To Gain Appreciation For The Present And Perspective For The Future.

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.

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.

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.

Don't Waste Your Time Searching And Wishing. Grow And Be Ready...and You'll See God Will Give You A Love Story Far Better Than You Could Ever Dreamed Of.

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

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.

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

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.

Choose A Companion Of Your Own Faith. You Are Much More Likely To Be Happy. Choose A Companion You Can Always Honor, You Can Always Respect, One Who Will Complement You In Your Own Life, One To Whom You Can Give Your Entire Heart, Your Entire Love, Your Entire Allegiance, Your Entire Loyalty.

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.

As We Have Been Continuously Counseled For More Than 60 Years, Let Us Have Some Food Set Aside That Would Sustain Us For A Time In Case Of Need. But Let Us Not Panic Nor Go To Extremes. Let Us Be Prudent In Every Respect. And, Above All, My Brothers And Sisters, Let Us Move Forward With Faith In The Living God And His Beloved Son.

I Remind You That No Man Who Makes Disparaging Remarks Concerning Those Of Another Race Can Consider Himself A True Disciple Of Christ," Said President Hinckley. "how Can Any Man Holding The Melchizedek Priesthood Arrogantly Assume That He Is Eligible For The Priesthood Whereas Another Who Lives A Righteous Life But Whose Skin Is Of A Different Color, Is Ineligible?

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.

I Believe That I Am A Child Of God, Endowed With A Divine Birthright. I Believe That There Is Something Of Divinity Within Me And Within Each Of You. I Believe That We Have A Godly Inheritance And That It Is Our Responsibility, Our Obligation, And Our Opportunity To Cultivate And Nurture The Very Best Of These Qualities Within Us.

. . . As People Serve, They Grow In Capacity. The Time And Effort Is Not A Sacrifice Because There Is Returned More Than Is Given.

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.

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

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

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.

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

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.

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

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?

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.

This Church Does Not Belong To Its President. Its Head Is The Lord Jesus Christ, Whose Name Each Of Us Has Taken Upon Ourselves. We Are All In This Great Endeavor Together. We Are Here To Assist Our Father In His Work And His Glory. Your Obligation Is As Serious In Your Sphere Of Responsibility As Is My Obligation In My Sphere. No Calling In This Church Is Small Or Of Little Consequence.

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

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.

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 A Portent Of Stormy Weather Ahead To Which We Had Better Give Heed...no One Knows When Emergencies Will Strike...set Your Houses In Order. If You Have Paid Your Debts, If You Have A Reserve, Even Though It Be Small, Then Should Storms Howl About Your Head, You Will Have Shelter For Your Wife And Children And Peace In Your Hearts. That's All I Have To Say About It, But I Wish To Say It With All The Emphasis Of Which I Am Capable.

God Has Brought Us Together As Families To Bring To Pass His Eternal Purposes. We Are Part Of This Plan In This Marriage Relationship. Let Us Love And Respect And Honor One Another. We Can Do It, And We Will Be The Better For It.

Forget Yourself And Get To Work.

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

Respect For Self Is The Beginning Of Cultivating Virtue In Men And Women.

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.

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

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.

Love Is The Only Force That Can Erase The Differences Between People, That Can Heal Relationships Shattered By Bitterness....i F The World Is To Be Improved, The Process Of Love Must Make A Change In The Hearts Of Men. It Can Do So When We Look Beyond Self To Give Our Love To God And Others, And Do So With All Our Heart, With All Our Soul, And With All Our Mind.

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.

Christmas Means 'giving,' And The Gift Without The Giver Is Bare. Give Of Yourselves; Give Of Your Substance; Give Of Your Heart And Mind. "christmas Means 'compassion And Love' And, Most Of All 'forgiveness' How Poor Indeed Would Be Our Lives Without The Influence Of His Teachings And His Matchless Example. "he Whose Birth We Commemorate This Season Is More Than The Symbol Of A Holiday. He Is The Son Of God, The Redeemer Of Mankind, The King Of Kings, The Prince Of Peace.

If Every Husband And Every Wife Would Constantly Do Whatever Might Be Possible To Ensure The Comfort And Happiness Of His Or Her Companion, There Would Be Very Little, If Any, Divorce. Argument Would Never Be Heard. Accusations Would Never Be Leveled. Angry Explosions Would Not Occur. Rather, Love And Concern Would Replace Abuse And Meanness.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

There Are Four Pillars To A Happy Marriage: Respect One Another As Individuals; (give) Soft Answers; (practice)financial Honesty; (conduct) Family Prayer.

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.

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

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.

A Truly Educated Man Never Ceases To Learn.

There Is Something Wonderful About A Book. We Can Pick It Up. We Can Heft It. We Can Read It. We Can Set It Down. We Can Think Of What We Have Read. It Does Something For Us. We Can Share Great Minds, Great Actions, And Great Undertakings In The Pages Of A Book.

As You Work With Your Associates To Help Them With Their Faith, You Will Save Them And Also Yourselves.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

The Best Medicine For Despair Is Service.

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

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

Asking For Forgiveness

It Was A Very Limited Practice; Carefully Safeguarded. In 1890, That Practice Was Discontinued.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Try A Little Harder To Be A Little Better.

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