Ye Are the Light of the World

In a newly released video message, Elder David A Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invited those who participated in the "Light the World" initiative over the Christmas holiday to keep serving throughout the year.

“I hope we learn through ‘25 ways in 25 days’ that service in not restricted to 25 days in December. It should be just as important in June as it is during the Christmas season."

Abortion is Murder

In this era of shrill political sound-bites, there is one clear unequivocal standard that stands out, for those who profess to be faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Lord commanded, “Thou shalt not … kill, nor do anything like unto it” (D&C 59:6). The Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience. Members must not submit to, perform, arrange for, pay for, consent to, or encourage an abortion...

Church members who submit to, perform, arrange for, pay for, consent to, or encourage an abortion may be subject to Church discipline. (Handbook 2)

I cannot in clear conscience support or promote any political candidate, group, party, or individual who embraces anything but a "pro-life" policy.  This is one of those issues where the weight of moral considerations far transcend any political policy.  Those who choose to tolerate abortion have all kinds of philosophical arguments and rationale that twist this ideal, but can't make this unequivocal statement disappear.  They may wish to ignore this in the interest of catering to popular ideas, but ultimately cannot.  Those who willfully violate this principle do so at their own peril.  Those who choose to ignore this principle in the current Presidential campaign are consenting to condemn entire generations to a bloody and horrifying death.

Abortion is murder.  This principle stands.

Specific and Contemporary: LDS Church Counsel

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has issued letters stating specific policy regarding support for two popular legislative measures from different areas in the US.

LDS Church leaders sent letters to members in Colorado expressing opposition to legalizing assisted suicide, as in Colorado Proposition 106.

Letters were also sent to Church members in California, Arizona, and Nevada encouraging them to oppose legislative measures which would legalize marijuana use.

"The church maintains a firm belief in the sanctity of human life," the First Presidency letter said, "and opposes deliberately taking the life of a person even when the person may be suffering from an incurable condition or disease. Life is a sacred gift and should be cherished even in difficult circumstances."

"While the church opposes physician-assisted suicide, members should not feel obligated to extend mortal life through means that are unreasonable. Decisions in such cases are best made by family members after receiving wise and competent medical advice and seeking divine guidance through fasting and prayer."

A growing number of scientific studies show that marijuana use disrupts brain development, according a review of the literature published by the American Psychological Association. Findings suggest structural and functional brain changes, and one decades-long longitudinal study showed an average loss of six IQ points among persistent users, similar to damage from exposure to lead.

Make Up Your Mind...

And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.  (1 Kings 18:21)

Sometimes we appear to be enslaved by fads and trends in society. Some are good. Some are silly but harmless. Others can be detrimental to our physical or spiritual health.

Our response to critical views can cause us to compromise our values.  In order of ascending concern the critics causing these troubles are (1) nonmembers, (2) former members, and (3) current members.

In the face of such critics,  members would be well advised to relax, lighten up, mellow out, and not get so huffy. While the gospel is sacred and serious, sometimes we take ourselves a little too seriously.  Many of our critics obviously do.  A sense of humor, especially about ourselves, is an attribute worthy of development.

Criticism always hurts most when we deserve it.

We would eliminate the most painful criticism from responsible nonmembers by simply internalizing and living what the Church teaches.

In addition to attacking our sacred beliefs, some former members speak evil of the Brethren. Joseph Smith received his share of this criticism from the dissidents of his day. The Lord’s revelation to him is applicable to us today:

Cursed are all those that shall lift up the heel against mine anointed, saith the Lord, and cry they have sinned when they have not sinned before me, saith the Lord, but have done that which was meet in mine eyes, and which I commanded them.

But those who cry transgression do it because they are the servants of sin, and are the children of disobedience themselves. (D&C 121:16–17)

One activity which often leads a member to be critical is engaging in inappropriate intellectualism. While it would seem the search for and discovery of truth should be the goal of all Latter-day Saints, it appears some get more satisfaction from trying to discover new uncertainties.  Indeed, airing your doubts has become somewhat of a cause celebre with many.

Elder Faust describes this type of intellectual as “a person who continues to chase after a bus even after he has caught it.” We invite everyone to get on the bus before it’s out of sight and you are left forever trying to figure out the infinite with a finite mind.  (Adapted from Glen L. Pace General Conference address, "Follow the Prophet")

October 2016 General Conference: Quentin L. Cook, "Valiant in the Testimony of Jesus"

There are a number of stumbling blocks to our valor that can prevent us from reaching the goal of eternal life.

The preferred strategy of the adversary is to lead people away from God and cause them to stumble by emphasizing the philosophies of men over the Savior and His teachings.

Some members of the Church lose their bearings and become influenced by the cause of the moment—many of which are clearly not righteous.

Many people have no remorse or willingness to acknowledge their conduct as being morally wrong. Even some who profess a belief in the Father and the Son wrongfully take the position that a loving Father in Heaven should exact no consequences for conduct that is contrary to His commandments.

Some members elevate causes, many of which are good, to a status superior to basic gospel doctrine. If we elevate anything above our devotion to the Savior, then we are looking beyond the mark. Jesus Christ is the mark!

Hark All Ye Nations: October 2016 General Conference

Bright as the sun, this heavenly ray

Lights ev'ry land today.

Conference time is here again in Salt Lake City!  I am excited and anxious to hear the inspired messages and Prophetic counsel from Church leaders.

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Neil L. Andersen, "Whoso Receiveth Them, Receiveth Me"

Elder Anderson counselled, while a child’s earthly situation may not be ideal, a child’s spiritual DNA is perfect because one’s true identity is as a son or daughter of God.

President Thomas S. Monson has said: “Help God’s children understand what is genuine and important in this life. Help them develop the strength to choose paths that will keep them safely on the way to eternal life.”  Let’s open our arms and our hearts a little wider. These youth need our time and our testimonies.

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Ronald A. Rasband, "Standing with the Leaders of the Church"

As we press forward, choosing to follow the counsel and the warnings of our leaders, we choose to follow the Lord while the world is going in another direction. We choose to hold fast to the iron rod, to be Latter-day Saints, to be on the Lord’s errand, and to be filled “with exceedingly great joy.”

The growing question of today is clear: are you standing with the leaders of the Church in a darkening world so that you might spread the Light of Christ?

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Steven E. Snow, "Be Thou Humble"

Elder Snow gave counsel regarding personal humility.

The Savior taught His followers that they must humble themselves as a little child in order to enter into the kingdom of heaven.  As we raise our own children, we need to help them remain humble as they mature into adulthood. We do not do this by breaking their spirit through unkindness or by being too harsh in our discipline. While nurturing their self-confidence and self-esteem, we need to teach them the qualities of selflessness, kindness, obedience, lack of pride, civility, and unpretentiousness. We need them to learn to take joy in the successes of siblings and friends. President Howard W. Hunter taught that “our genuine concern should be for the success of others.”7 If not, our children can become obsessed with self-promotion and outdoing others, jealousy, and resentment for the triumphs of peers. I’m grateful for a mother who, when seeing I was becoming too full of myself as a boy, would say, “Son, a little bit of humility right now would go a long way.”

But humility is not something reserved to be taught only to children. We must all strive to become more humble. Humility is essential to gain the blessings of the gospel. Humility enables us to have broken hearts when we sin or make mistakes and makes it possible for us to repent. Humility enables us to be better parents, sons and daughters, husbands and wives, neighbors and friends.

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Kevin R. Duncan, "The Healing Ointment of Forgiveness"

Elder Duncan counsels, forgiveness is a glorious, healing principle. We do not need to be a victim twice. We can forgive.

Just as we are all victims to the misdeeds of others at one time or another, we are also sometimes the offender. We all fall short and have need of grace, mercy, and forgiveness. We must remember that forgiveness of our own sins and offenses is conditioned upon our forgiving others. The Savior said:

“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

“But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:14–15).

Forgiveness is the very reason God sent His Son, so let us rejoice in His offering to heal us all. The Savior’s Atonement is not just for those who need to repent; it is also for those who need to forgive. If you are having trouble forgiving another person or even yourself, ask God to help you. Forgiveness is a glorious, healing principle. We do not need to be a victim twice. We can forgive.

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Gary E. Stevenson, "Where are the Keys and Authority of the Priesthood?"

Elder Stevenson illustrated the vital function of keys with a story about lost car keys.  He likened this to the restoration of Priesthood Keys through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Without this restoration, we would be locked out from the vehicle necessary to transport us on our journey home to loving heavenly parents. The performance of every ordinance of salvation comprising our covenant pathway back to the presence of our Father in Heaven requires appropriate governance through priesthood keys.

Ordinances that create a record in the Church require keys and cannot be done without authorization. Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught that “ultimately, all keys of the priesthood are held by the Lord Jesus Christ, whose priesthood it is. He is the one who determines what keys are delegated to mortals and how those keys will be used.”

April 2016 General Conference: Elder Hallstrom, "I am a Child of God"

Elder Hallstrom offered counsel regarding how we can endure personal hardships.

In real life, we face actual, not imagined, hardships. There is pain—physical, emotional, and spiritual. There are heartbreaks when circumstances are very different from what we had anticipated. There is injustice when we do not seem to deserve our situation. There are disappointments when someone we trusted failed us. There are health and financial setbacks that can be disorienting. There may be times of question when a matter of doctrine or history is beyond our current understanding.

When difficult things occur in our lives, what is our immediate response? Is it confusion or doubt or spiritual withdrawal? Is it a blow to our faith? Do we blame God or others for our circumstances? Or is our first response to remember who we are—that we are children of a loving God? Is that coupled with an absolute trust that He allows some earthly suffering because He knows it will bless us, like a refiner’s fire, to become like Him and to gain our eternal inheritance?

April 2016 General Conference: Mary R. Durham, "A Child's Guiding Gift"

Sister Durham spoke of 3 Nephi 26, wherein the Savior taught of the spiritual capacity of children:

He did loose their tongues, and they did speak unto their fathers great and marvelous things, even greater than he had revealed unto the people. …

 … They both saw and heard these children; yea, even babes did open their mouths and utter marvelous things.

How do we as parents increase the spiritual capacity of our little ones? How do we teach them to kick off worldly influences and trust the Spirit when we are not with them and they are alone in the deep waters of their lives?

• Bring to our children’s attention when they are hearing and feeling the Spirit.
• Prepare our homes and our children to feel the still, small voice.
• Help our children understand how the Spirit speaks to them.

Joseph Smith taught, “If He comes to a little child, He will adapt himself to the language and capacity of a little child.”

April 2016 General Conference: President Eyring, "Where Two or Three Are Gathered"

During President Eyring's opening address, he touched on a subject that intrigued me.  

I know from experience what the faith of good people can do to bring words from the Spirit at the close of a sermon. More than once, someone has said to me after my testimony, “How did you know what I so needed to hear?” I have learned not to be surprised when I cannot remember saying the words. I spoke the words of testimony, but the Lord was there, giving them to me in the moment. The promise that the Lord will give us words in the very moment applies especially to testimony (see D&C 24:6). Listen carefully to the testimonies borne in this conference—you will feel closer to the Lord.

As I recall, he emphasized the words "...in the very moment..." 

The Doctrine and Covenants passage he quotes from:

And it shall be given thee in the very moment what thou shalt speak and write, and they shall hear it, or I will send unto them a cursing instead of a blessing.

I am reviewing the Conference messages with the intent of renewing my sense of what I heard.  I am anxious to experience blessing, not cursing, to result.

April 2016 General Conferrence

Text transcriptions, as well as audio and video recording of addresses given at the April 2016 General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, held recently in Salt Lake City, are now available online here.

The presentation format of Conference pages is changed slightly from previous years.  But similar content appears to be available.

Acts of the Apostles: The Martyrdom of Stephen

Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,

And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul.

And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

They Have Their Reward

Verily, verily, I say that I would that ye should follow popular societal trends; but take heed that ye do not your protests and resignation parties before men to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father who is in heaven.

Therefore, when ye shall do your resignation celebrations do not sound a trumpet before you, as will hypocrites do in the beer halls and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.

Choose You This Day

Choice about serving the Lord  is a simple binary decision.

Wherefore, he that fighteth against Zion, both Jew and Gentile, both bond and free, both male and female, shall perish; for they are they who are the whore of all the earth; for they who are not for me are against me, saith our God.  (2 Nephi 10:16)

And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. 

And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods;  (Joshua 24:15-16)

And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. (1 Kings 18:21)

If we are interested in the gospel in the least degree, we should live it wholeheartedly. There is no point in deceiving ourselves and becoming victims of our own indiscretion. It is a fact so simple that even a child may understand—that if we are to be saved in the kingdom of heaven, we must live its laws honestly, completely, and wholeheartedly. To be halfhearted about it is repugnant to the Lord. He has said to the lukewarm that he will spew them from his mouth! (Honesty, a Principle of Salvation)

The Days of Our Probation

Heavenly Father will see us safely through, if we keep the commandments

But behold, your days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head.  (Helaman 13:32-38)

And except those days should be shortened, there should none of their flesh be saved; but for the elect’s sake, according to the covenant, those days shall be shortened.  (Matthew 24:20)

God’s commandments are not given to frustrate us or to become obstacles to our happiness. Just the opposite is true. He who created us and who loves us perfectly knows just how we need to live our lives in order to obtain the greatest happiness possible. He has provided us with guidelines which, if we follow them, will see us safely through this often treacherous mortal journey.  (Keep the Commandments)

Raising a Standard of Our Own

The classic Book of Mormon icon, Captain Moroni raises the Title of Liberty to rally his followers.

In the October 2015 General Conference, President Monson delivered two messages.  Unless we read in context, at least superficially some of his counsel seems contradictory.  At the Priesthood Session, President Monson counselled in his address "Keep the Commandments"...

The Apostle Paul lists six attributes of a believer, attributes that will allow our lights to shine. Let us look at each one...

I mention the first two attributes together—being an example in word and in conversation. The words we use can lift and inspire, or they can harm and demean.

But then a stern warning...

We read in 1 Corinthians: “There are … so many kinds of voices in the world.”  We are surrounded by persuasive voices, beguiling voices, belittling voices, sophisticated voices, and confusing voices. I might add that these are LOUD voices.

I admonish you to turn the volume down and to be influenced instead by that still, small voice which will guide you to safety.

Disregard for the commandments has opened the way for what I consider to be the plagues of our day. They include the plague of permissiveness, the plague of pornography, the plague of drugs, the plague of immorality, and the plague of abortion, to name just a few. The scriptures tell us that the adversary is “the founder of all these things.”  We know that he is “the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men.”

The emphasis in his comments was that instead of heeding the noise of many different loud voices, we must heed the still small voice, promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Then in his opening address on Sunday, his counsel...

Let us speak to others with love and respect, ever keeping our language clean and avoiding words or comments that would wound or offend. May we follow the example of the Savior, who spoke with tolerance and kindness throughout His ministry.

The apparent contradiction comes with the worldly definition for "comments that would wound or offend".  Many of the sources of the LOUD voices take occasion to be "offended" by almost every word we might say.  They claim to be "wounded" by any mention of the doctrines of Christ.

President Monson cites Jesus Christ as the example of the example of tolerance and kindness, but even Jesus spoke harsh criticisms of those who merited strong criticism.

He did not shrink from harsh condemnation of those who deserved it.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. 

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 

Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?  (Matthew 23:14-17)

President Monson certainly understands the intent and message of these scriptures, so his counsel is fully intended to be interpreted from that context.

We need to continue to promote standards of our own, not compromise our values to speak kindly to soften our words in behalf of those who merit more severe criticism.  It is not a kindness to withhold appropriate sternness from those who try to advocate compromising the commandments of God.  It is not loving to fail to warn those who sin and embrace evil, bringing sorrow and ruin along with them, into the lives of everyone who is touched by their influence.

President Monson's example sets the standard for this.  He does not tone down his rhetoric out of concern that it might possibly offend the LOUD voices.  The guilty will always use the "he offends me" complaint.  They would likely feign offense and bleeding hearts even if he said nothing at all.

Instead, while condemning the sources of evil and ill will with no equivocation, he refrains from employing extra derogatory or hyperbolic characterizations.  Right is right, wrong is wrong, good is good, and evil is evil - it requires no further elaboration or nuance.

An example of making our own voices understood against the competing background was expressed in the April 2015 General Conference by Elder L. Tom Perry...

We want our voice to be heard against all of the counterfeit and alternative lifestyles that try to replace the family organization that God Himself established.

On the following Wednesday, the Salt Lake Tribune published a reaction from a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, advocating to promote homosexual behavior, expressing "deep disappointment" in Perry's comments, which it believes "disparage LGBT families and children as 'counterfeit.' "

HRC asserts families which promote homosexual lifestyles "are not counterfeit — they are real and beautiful.  We encourage Mr. Perry and his fellow apostles to embrace the diversity that already exists within their own church, and reject the language and practice of intolerance."

This is exactly what President Monson refers to as "the plague of permissiveness" and "the plague of immorality."

Then there was a more recent incident of an group of atheists demanding that teaching of LDS Institute Classes at the University of Utah must be stopped, claiming that it is a violation of the Constitutional Establishment Clause.  More belittling and confusing voices.

In the words of the Old Testament Prophet Isaiah,

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.  (Isaiah 5:20)

The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off:

 That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought.  (Isaiah 29:19-21)

When dissidents and detractors insist that Prophets who speak for God must restrain themselves from speaking offensive words which contradict their own LOUD voices, they are living by the popular standard Isaiah described so long ago.

Our Prophet of today, President Monson, in his two General Conference addresses, sets the example for us all.  Keep the commandments, and be an example and a light.  Not that any softening of God's commandments or any less condemnation of sin is warranted.