Study Recap: Finding Forgiveness by Elder Richard G. Scott

Title: Finding Forgiveness
Author: Elder Richard G. Scott
Source: May 1995 Ensign
Link: http://www.lds.org/ensign/1995/05/finding-forgiveness?lang=eng

Rating: 3/5

Favorite Points

• Each one of us encounters unique challenges meant for growth.
• Every incorrect choice we make, every sin we commit is a violation of eternal law. That violation brings negative results we generally soon recognize. There are also other consequences of our acts of which we may not be conscious. They are nonetheless real. They can have a tremendous effect on the quality of our life here and most certainly will powerfully affect it hereafter.
• Which of us is not in need of the miracle of repentance? Whether your life is lightly blemished or heavily disfigured from mistakes, the principles of recovery are the same. The length and severity of the treatments are conditioned to fit the circumstances.
•  Obedience and faith in the Savior give you power to resist temptation. 
• Study and ponder to determine how serious the Lord defines your transgression to be. That will bring healing sorrow and remorse. It will also bring a sincere desire for change and a willingness to submit to every requirement for forgiveness.
• Abandonment of sin. This is an unyielding, permanent resolve to not repeat the transgression. By keeping this commitment, the bitter aftertaste of that sin need not be experienced again. Remember: “But unto that soul who sinneth shall the former sins return.”  Joseph Smith declared: “Repentance is a thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily repentance is not … pleasing in the sight of God.”
• Please understand that confession is not repentance. It is an essential step, but is not of itself adequate. Partial confession by mentioning lesser mistakes will not help you resolve a more serious, undisclosed transgression. Essential to forgiveness is a willingness to fully disclose to the Lord and, where necessary, His priesthood judge all that you have done.
• Remember, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”
• Full obedience brings the complete power of the gospel into your life with strength to focus on the abandonment of specific sins. It includes things you might not initially consider part of repentance, such as attending meetings, paying tithing, giving service, and forgiving others.
•  The Lord said: “He that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven.”
• Satan would have you believe that serious transgression cannot be entirely overcome. The Savior gave His life so that the effects of all transgression can be put behind us...
• Do not take comfort in the fact that your transgressions are not known by others. That is like an ostrich with his head buried in the sand. He sees only darkness and feels comfortably hidden. In reality he is ridiculously conspicuous. Likewise our every act is seen by our Father in Heaven and His Beloved Son. They know everything about us.
• resident Kimball taught: “To every forgiveness there is a condition. The plaster must be as wide as the sore. The fasting, the prayers, the humility must be equal to or greater than the sin.”
• “It is unthinkable that God absolves serious sins upon a few requests. He is likely to wait until there has been long, sustained repentance.”
• In closing, with all the tenderness and sincerity of heart I invite each one of you to thoughtfully review your life. Have you deviated from the standards that you know will bring happiness? Is there a dark corner that needs to be cleaned out? Are you now doing things that you know are wrong? Do you fill your mind with unclean thoughts? When it is quiet and you can think clearly, does your conscience tell you to repent?
• For your peace now and for everlasting happiness, please repent. Open your heart to the Lord and ask Him to help you. You will earn the blessing of forgiveness, peace, and the knowledge you have been purified and made whole. Find the courage to ask the Lord for strength to repent, now. I solemnly witness that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer. I know that He lives. I testify that He loves you personally and will help you.

Study Recap: “Awake My Soul!”: Dealing Firmly with Depression by Steve Gilliland

Title: “Awake My Soul!”: Dealing Firmly with Depression
Author: Steve Gilliland
Source: August 1978 Ensign
Link: https://www.lds.org/ensign/1978/08/awake-my-soul-dealing-firmly-with-depression?lang=eng

Rating: 4/5

Favorite Points

• Feeling discouraged and inadequate happens to all of us, but when these feelings become a way of life, or even frequent visitors, they’re signs of trouble.
• As I remember my own experiences of being trapped in the web of discouragement, the worst part was the feeling that I was helpless to get free. Working on a “positive mental attitude” seemed like only kidding myself. 
• Fasting and prayer brought specific guidance, and over time my struggles produced what may perhaps be the long-term answer to my prayers—some concepts and skills that have helped me pull myself out of these depressions.
• It’s not the Holy Ghost’s problem but ours. Each of us has many voices within, criticizing and praising, encouraging and discouraging, desiring and warning, reasoning and disregarding. We’ve all wondered at some time which voices were from the Lord and which were from Satan, which came with us from premortal life and which we’ve acquired since birth. Fortunately, some good clues to discerning the source of these voices are given in Moro. 7:16: “Every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent … of Christ.”
• For years your personality may have been growing in one direction. Now you must help it grow in another direction. You cannot easily erase those destructive voices from the past, but you can recognize what they do to you and turn them off. You can rid yourself of these voices by replacing them with positive feedback and experiences that will build self-esteem. The Lord has promised that our weaknesses can become strengths and that “all things shall work together for [our] good” if we search and pray. (Ether 12:27, D&C 90:24.)
• Once we can turn off the negative voices, we can see their source. Discouragement is not the Lord’s method—it’s Satan’s. Satan emphasizes your weaknesses; the Lord, your ability to overcome. Satan urges immediate perfection to make you feel inadequate. The Lord leads you toward perfection. Once we recognize the source, we can cry with Nephi, “Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.” (2 Ne. 4:28.)
• The Lord seeks to strengthen you, to give you the power to overcome problems. He wants you to recognize your weaknesses and then do something about them, Jesus didn’t condemn the adulteress. He said, “Go, and sin no more.” (John 8:1–11.) Alma made it very clear to Corianton that he had committed a terrible sin in being unchaste, but he concluded with: “And now, my son, I desire that ye should let these things [Corianton’s doubts about God’s justice] trouble you no more, and only let your sins trouble you, with that trouble which shall bring you down unto repentance.” (Alma 42:29.)
• It’s one thing to face up to our weaknesses and work on them. It’s another thing to dwell on them. The gospel teaches us to take charge of our minds as well as our bodies. Suppose you’re thinking about a mistake you’ve made. Ask yourself: Is this helping me deal with the problems I’m now having or is it making me feel more inadequate? If it’s dragging you down, push it out of your mind or crowd something else in front of it.
• If I immediately start tormenting myself for my weakness when I find myself dwelling on an unworthy thought, I don’t have enough strength or determination to resist the next temptation. If, instead, I thank the Lord for showing me that the thought is unwholesome and helping shift my mind away, I leave the situation closer to the Lord, grateful for the strength I have, and praying for greater strength in the future.

Study Recap: Improving Your Personal Prayers By Elder Kevin W. Pearson of the Seventy

Title:Improving Your Personal Prayers
Author: Elder Kevin W. Pearson of the Seventy
Source: June 2013 Ensign
Link: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2013/06/improving-your-personal-prayers?lang=eng
Summary: What would listening to your personal prayers reveal about you and your relationship with Heavenly Father?
Rating: 4.5/5

Favorite Points

• I am convinced that personal prayer is one of the most significant challenges facing members of the Church, particularly youth and young adults. And because they struggle with prayer, they struggle spiritually.
• Our personal prayers are a barometer of our spiritual strength and an indicator of our spiritual well-being. I have learned as a father, priesthood leader, and mission president that listening carefully to another’s prayers can reveal much about his or her relationship with God.
• What would listening to your personal prayers reveal about you and your relationship with Heavenly Father?
• To pray is to speak with God, the Eternal Father of our spirits—not at Him but with Him.
• He loves each of us perfectly and is full of mercy and understanding. He knows everything about us. He knows what we need, even when we can see only what we want. He has infinite power and capacity to sustain and guide us. He is always willing to forgive us and to help us in all things.
• Personal prayers should be solemn, sacred expressions of praise and gratitude; heartfelt petitions for specific needs and desires; humble, contrite confessions and requests for cleansing forgiveness.
• Prayer is an essential and enabling spiritual link between God and man. Without prayer, there is no possible return to the Father. Without prayer, sufficient faith to understand and keep the commandments is impossible. Without prayer, the necessary spiritual power to avoid temptation and overcome trials and adversity would be unavailable. Without prayer, repentance, forgiveness and the cleansing power of the Atonement are unattainable. With the power of personal prayer, all things are possible.
• Prayer is spiritual work preceded by mental and spiritual preparation. If we don’t take the time to humble ourselves and carefully consider that we are about to call upon God the Eternal Father in the name of Jesus Christ, we will miss the very essence of the divine pattern established to bless us.
• Remember, however, Satan will be the only one who tells you that you cannot or should not pray. The Holy Ghost always encourages us to pray, even if we are struggling with obedience and personal worthiness.
• Many prayers remain unanswered because they are not in Christ’s name at all; they in no way represent his mind, but spring out of the selfishness of man’s heart” (Bible Dictionary, “Prayer”). Prayers that follow this pattern represent vain hope, not faith.
• Prayer is not a negotiation process. It is an alignment process. We don’t move God to our point of view. Prayer is less about changing our circumstances and more about changing us.  

Study Recap: Obedience, Consecration, and Sacrifice by Bruce R. McConkie

Title: Obedience, Consecration, and Sacrifice
Author: Bruce R. McConkie
Source: April 1975 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1975/04/obedience-consecration-and-sacrifice?lang=eng
Rating: 3/5

Favorite Points

• It is written: “He who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory.” (D&C 88:22.) The law of sacrifice is a celestial law; so also is the law of consecration. Thus to gain that celestial reward which we so devoutly desire, we must be able to live these two laws.
• Sacrifice and consecration are inseparably intertwined. The law of consecration is that we consecrate our time, our talents, and our money and property to the cause of the Church: such are to be available to the extent they are needed to further the Lord’s interests on earth.
• The law of sacrifice is that we are willing to sacrifice all that we have for the truth’s sake—our character and reputation; our honor and applause; our good name among men; our houses, lands, and families: all things, even our very lives if need be.
• Joseph Smith said, “A religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary [to lead] unto life and salvation.” (Lectures on Faith, p. 58.)
• We are not always called upon to live the whole law of consecration and give all of our time, talents, and means to the building up of the Lord’s earthly kingdom. Few of us are called upon to sacrifice much of what we possess, and at the moment there is only an occasional martyr in the cause of revealed religion. But what the scriptural account means is that to gain celestial salvation we must be able to live these laws to the full if we are called upon to do so. Implicit in this is the reality that we must in fact live them to the extent we are called upon so to do.
• As a young man, serving at the direction of my bishop, I called upon a rich man and invited him to contribute a thousand dollars to a building fund. He declined. But he did say he wanted to help, and if we would have a ward dinner and charge $5 per plate, he would take two tickets. About ten days later this man died unexpectedly of a heart attack, and I have wondered ever since about the fate of his eternal soul.
• As you know, the young man went away sorrowful, “for he had great possessions.” (Matt. 19:16–22.) And we are left to wonder what intimacies he might have shared with the Son of God, what fellowship he might have enjoyed with the apostles, what revelations and visions he might have received, if he had been able to live the law of a celestial kingdom. As it is he remains nameless; as it might have been, his name could have been had in honorable remembrance among the saints forever.
• Now I think it is perfectly clear that the Lord expects far more of us than we sometimes render in response.
• It is our privilege to consecrate our time, talents, and means to build up his kingdom.
• Freely we have received and freely we give, for salvation is free.
• It is the Lord’s work and not man’s. He is the one who commands us to preach the gospel in all the world, whatever the cost. It is his voice that decrees the building of temples, whatever the cost. He is the one who tells us to care for the poor among us, whatever the cost, lest their cries come up to his throne as a testimony against those who should have fed the hungry and clothed the naked but who did not.

Study Recap: “My Ways Are Not Your Ways” By Elder Clayton M. Christensen

Title: “My Ways Are Not Your Ways”
Author: Elder Clayton M. Christensen
Source: February 2007 Ensign
Link: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2007/02/my-ways-are-not-your-ways?lang=eng
Rating: 5/5

Favorite Points

• Many of the Savior’s most profound teachings are counterintuitive. “Love your enemies” is an example. The solutions that our minds are prone to develop are often different from those the Lord would have us pursue. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).
•  When we encounter roadblocks in our efforts to build the kingdom, the reason often is that our solutions are grounded in the wisdom of men—which is foolishness to God (see 1 Corinthians 3:19).
• The Savior taught that good shepherds go after individual sheep that don’t return to the fold. Yet we frequently focus on the ninety and nine, leaving those who are lost to continue wandering from the Church. In every sacrament meeting, for example, our clerks count the number of sheep who returned to the fold. They store this number in a safe place for the quarterly report, and then we go home. If we conformed our ways to God’s ways, we’d list the names of the individual members who could have returned to the fold on that Sunday but didn’t come. Then we’d go find them.
•  We should be careful not to offend members who deliberately do not want to attend. But helping each member who only occasionally returns to the fold on Sunday to feel needed and feel our love is a simple practice that every ward and branch can begin. Many less-active members got that way because they didn’t return to the fold one Sunday and nobody seemed to notice.
• Some wards and branches suffer from inadequate leadership. The reason is often that we rely on the same qualified people to fill key callings, denying others experiences in which personal growth can occur. When a branch is just emerging and there are no alternatives, leaders extend callings to people who don’t fit the traditional mold of talented, capable leaders and invite them to assume important responsibility. During such periods, the branch and its members often grow in exciting ways. Many times, however, there comes a point when a group of talented, experienced leaders and teachers has coalesced. When there are capable people available to ensure that Church programs run efficiently, we often stop drafting people from the periphery of capability into the positions of responsibility in which they can grow. Because they seem less qualified than those in the experienced core, we leave them on the periphery. The experienced leaders and teachers play musical chairs, exchanging positions of responsibility. This is not the Lord’s way.
• Building His Church on the backs of the simple and weak (see D&C 1:19) was not a temporary, stop-gap staffing plan to tide the Church over during its early years until enough experienced, committed, qualified leaders had arrived on the scene.
• The Lord deliberately weakened Gideon’s army so that Israel wouldn’t get confused about whose power had led them to victory (see Judges 6; 7). None of Jesus’s original Twelve Apostles had evidenced adequate experience or commitment when He called them. Enoch, Moses, Samuel, David, Jeremiah, Amos, and Joseph Smith were unqualified by the world’s standards when the Lord put them to work. But God transformed them.
•  ...the focus of many parents and youth leaders is to help our youth find their lives. Too often we define strong youth programs as those with a large “critical mass” of youth, well-planned activities, and opportunities for Latter-day Saint friendships. These are good things to have. But while we work so hard to provide enriching experiences for our youth, we sometimes deny them the most important opportunity of all—the chance to lose their lives for the sake of the gospel.
• The Savior’s formula for converting our hearts to His cause is unambiguous. He instructs us to lose our lives in His service.
• A strong youth program is not defined by the numbers of youth. Nor is it defined by the charisma of youth leaders. Rather, it is one that gives every young person the opportunity to lose his or her life for the sake of the Savior.
• The youth whose lives leaders need most urgently to influence are those whose parents do not regularly enroll them in the Savior’s service. A strong youth program isn’t one that coddles these at-risk youth. Rather, it will give them opportunities to sacrifice in the service of God, to feel needed in the Church and feel the Spirit as they serve.
• If the reason for attending church between ages 12 and 18 is fellowship and fun, then Relief Society and elders quorum can be a shock: they aren’t very fun.
• The burden of adult discipleship looms heavy if young people have never shouldered the Savior’s yoke.
• Long ago I had concluded that it was quite simple to administer the mechanics of missionary meetings, but I could not lead that work with passion and credibility unless I could speak in present-tense verbs and first-person pronouns about finding people for the missionaries to teach.
• When Moroni foresaw that many in the last days would believe God had ceased to be a God of miracles (Mormon 9:15–20), perhaps he had in his view not just those of other faiths but some of us as well. When we are doing all we can and our leaders ask us to do even more, miracles are the only option. That is why the Savior asked us to forsake the rational limits of our adult minds and employ the faith of little children instead.
• I once felt passed over when another man was called to a leadership position I had felt I might receive. In the crisis of self-confidence that ensued, I realized that because our minds are finite, we create hierarchies and statistically aggregate people. We perceive stake presidents to be higher than bishops and Primary presidents higher than Primary teachers because they preside over more people. But God has an infinite mind. He needs no statistics above the level of the individual in order to have a perfect understanding of what is happening. This means, I realized, that the way God will measure my life is not by the numbers of people over whom I have presided but by the individual people whose lives I have touched with His love and with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
•  There is a calling far higher than that of stake president, bishop, or Relief Society president. It is to be a doer of good, a disciple of Christ, an intermediary through whom God answers others’ prayers.

Study Recap: “Behold, We Count Them Happy Which Endure” by Elder Robert D. Hales

Title: “Behold, We Count Them Happy Which Endure”
Author: Elder Robert D. Hales
Source: October 1998 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1998/04/behold-we-count-them-happy-which-endure?lang=eng
Summary: We cannot expect to learn endurance in our later years if we have developed the habit of quitting when things get difficult now.
Rating: 3/5


Favorite Points 

• When suffering upon the cross at Calvary, Jesus felt the loneliness of agency when He pled to His Father in Heaven, “Why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). The Savior of the world was left alone by His Father to experience, of His own free will and choice, an act of agency which allowed Him to complete His mission of the Atonement.
• Joseph knew that if he were to stop going forward with this great work, his earthly trials would probably ease. But he could not stop, because he knew who he was, he knew for what purpose he was placed on the earth, and he had the desire to do God’s will.
•  Often we do not know what we can endure until after a trial of our faith. We are also taught by the Lord that we will never be tested beyond that which we can endure (see 1 Cor. 10:13).
• In 1968 a marathon runner by the name of John Stephen Akhwari represented Tanzania in an international competition. “A little over an hour after [the winner] had crossed the finish line, John Stephen Akhwari … approached the stadium, the last man to complete the journey. [Though suffering from fatigue, leg cramps, dehydration, and disorientation,] a voice called from within to go on, and so he went on. Afterwards, it was written, ‘Today we have seen a young African runner who symbolizes the finest in human spirit, a performance that gives meaning to the word courage.’ For some, the only reward is a personal one. [There are no medals, only] the knowledge that they finished what they set out to do” (The Last African Runner, Olympiad Series, written, directed, and produced by Bud Greenspan, Cappy Productions, 1976, videocassette). When asked why he would complete a race he could never win, Akhwari replied, “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; my country sent me to finish the race.”
•  Dwelling in the world is part of our mortal test. The challenge is to live in the world yet not partake of the world’s temptations which will lead us away from our spiritual goals. When one of us gives up and succumbs to the wiles of the adversary, we may lose more than our own soul. Our surrender could cause the loss of souls who respect us in this generation. Our capitulation to temptation could affect children and families for generations to come.
•  Also, we cannot endure to the end alone. It is important that we help by lifting and strengthening one another.
•  We are taught in the scriptures that there must be opposition in all things (see 2 Ne. 2:11). It is not a question of if we are ready for the tests; it is a matter of when. We must prepare to be ready for tests that will present themselves without warning.
•  Eternal vision allows us to overcome opposition in our temporal state and, ultimately, achieve the promised rewards and blessings of eternal life.
• We learn to endure to the end by learning to finish our current responsibilities, and we simply continue doing it all of our lives. We cannot expect to learn endurance in our later years if we have developed the habit of quitting when things get difficult now.
• Everyone has something they must learn to master. Some are just more obvious than others.
• Enduring requires doing better than your best of today by developing additional gifts as granted from the Lord.
• There is more to endurance than just surviving and waiting for the end to overtake us. To endure to the end takes great faith.
• Some may say if we have enough faith, we can sometimes change the circumstances that are causing our trials and tribulations. Is our faith to change circumstances, or is it to endure them? Faithful prayers may be offered to change or moderate events in our life, but we must always remember that when concluding each prayer, there is an understanding: “Thy will be done” (Matt. 26:42). Faith in the Lord includes trust in the Lord. The faith to endure well is faith based upon accepting the Lord’s will and the lessons learned in the events that transpire.
• There is nothing that we are enduring that Jesus does not understand, and He waits for us to go to our Heavenly Father in prayer. I testify that if we will be obedient and if we are diligent, our prayers will be answered, our problems will diminish, our fears will dissipate, light will come upon us, the darkness of despair will be dispersed, and we will be close to the Lord and feel of His love and of the comfort of the Holy Ghost

.

Study Recap: Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually by Elder Robert D. Hales

Title: Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually
Author: Elder Robert D. Hales
Source: April 2009 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2009/04/becoming-provident-providers-temporally-and-spiritually?lang=eng
Summary: When we live providently, we can provide for ourselves and our families and also follow the Savior’s example to serve and bless others.
Rating: 4/5


Favorite Points

• Today I speak to all whose freedom to choose has been diminished by the effects of ill-advised choices of the past. I speak specifically of choices that have led to excessive debt and addictions to food, drugs, pornography, and other patterns of thought and action that diminish one’s sense of self-worth.
•  All of these excesses affect us individually and undermine our family relationships.
•  Of course some debt incurred for education, a modest home, or a basic automobile may be necessary to provide for a family. Unfortunately however, additional debt is incurred when we cannot control our wants and addictive impulses.
• ...for both debt and addiction, the hopeful solution is the same—we must turn to the Lord and follow His commandments. We must want more than anything else to change our lives so that we can break the cycle of debt and our uncontrolled wants.
• Our challenges, including those we create by our own decisions, are part of our test in mortality. Let me assure you that your situation is not beyond the reach of our Savior. Through Him, every struggle can be for our experience and our good (see D&C 122:7). Each temptation we overcome is to strengthen us, not destroy us. The Lord will never allow us to suffer beyond what we can endure (see 1 Corinthians 10:13).
• We must remember that the adversary knows us extremely well. He knows where, when, and how to tempt us. If we are obedient to the promptings of the Holy Ghost, we can learn to recognize the adversary’s enticements. Before we yield to temptation, we must learn to say with unflinching resolve, “Get thee behind me, Satan” (Matthew 16:23).
• Our success is never measured by how strongly we are tempted but by how faithfully we respond.
• Our world is fraught with feelings of entitlement. Some of us feel embarrassed, ashamed, less worthwhile if our family does not have everything the neighbors have.  
• As a result, we go into debt to buy things we can’t afford—and things we do not really need. Whenever we do this, we become poor temporally and spiritually. We give away some of our precious, priceless agency and put ourselves in self-imposed servitude.
• Money we could have used to care for ourselves and others must now be used to pay our debts. What remains is often only enough to meet our most basic physical needs. Living at the subsistence level, we become depressed, our self-worth is affected, and our relationships with family, friends, neighbors, and the Lord are weakened. We do not have the time, energy, or interest to seek spiritual things.
•  These two lessons are the essence of provident living. When faced with the choice to buy, consume, or engage in worldly things and activities, we all need to learn to say to one another, “We can’t afford it, even though we want it!” or “We can afford it, but we don’t need it—and we really don’t even want it!”
• I testify that the appetite to possess worldly things can only be overcome by turning to the Lord. The hunger of addiction can only be replaced by our love for Him. He stands ready to help each one of us. “Fear not,” He said, “for you are mine, and I have overcome the world” (D&C 50:41).

Study Recap: The Importance of Receiving a Personal Testimony by Elder Robert D. Hales

Title: The Importance of Receiving a Personal Testimony
Author: Elder Robert D. Hales
Source: October 1994 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1994/10/the-importance-of-receiving-a-personal-testimony?lang=eng

Rating: 4/5


Favorite Points

• Our testimony comes by the gift and power of the Holy Ghost. The testimony received and carried within us enables us to hold a steady course in times of prosperity and to overcome doubt and fear in times of adversity.
• Each of us needs to know what a testimony is, how we can get it, and what our responsibilities are once we have received a testimony. 
• Individual testimonies are the foundation and strength of the Church. Our testimony provides a guiding light that leads to a commitment which directs our conduct and our way of life. Our testimony is true north on a spiritual compass. It is a moving force that cannot be seen but can truly be felt. It is a burning within that tells us what is right. It is when “your heart tells you things your mind doesn’t know” (Harold B. Lee).
•  
  Our testimony is a gift from God. It should be shared, but we do not have the authority to bestow a testimony upon someone else, because a personal testimony is granted by the Holy Ghost. It can aid others in gaining knowledge for themselves—a knowledge abiding in the heart that leaves no room for doubt.
• We must each gain such a testimony if we are to withstand the trials and adversities of mortality and go on to the glorious eternal future we all desire.
• Joseph Smith sealed his testimony with his own blood. The Prophet’s martyrdom was a voluntary acceptance of death to seal the testimony of the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants (see D&C 135:1) and to bear holy witness of Jesus Christ and his gospel in this dispensation. 
• We do not give our testimony and life in the manner that Joseph Smith, the martyred Prophet, gave his life. Rather, we give testimony by devoted service in our lives each day to lift and strengthen others.
•  People often ask me, “How do you know?“ “How can you know that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ?” While there seems to be no exact formula by which each of us receives a testimony, there does seem to be a discernable pattern. Though prayer is important in gaining a testimony, we cannot merely ask in prayer for a testimony and expect it to be given immediately to us.
• Generally, testimony emerges over time and through life’s experiences. We can compare testimony to the process of watching a photograph develop. Powerful impressions of the Spirit come like flashes of light on receptive photographic film. Like the chemicals needed to develop the picture, certain spiritual conditions and experiences are needed in our lives for our personal testimony to develop into a certain truth and knowledge. And like a photograph, a testimony, if not carefully preserved, will fade with time.
• Testimonies often come when there is willingness to serve where we are called. They come when a decision is made to strive to be obedient. Testimonies come during efforts to help, lift, and strengthen others. They come from prayer and from studying the scriptures and applying them in our lives. Whatever our circumstances, there seem to be moments in each of our lives when we can be given the knowledge that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ.
• There is no greater search in life that we can embark upon than the quest to gain a testimony of the truth.
• Be willing to endure the test of time. Do not think that it is easy to maintain a testimony. Others will test you. Sometimes they will point the finger of mockery and scorn. Sometimes they may persecute you openly. Be prepared. Know in advance that the best of God’s children have had the courage of true conviction and were willing to suffer ridicule, deprivation, and even death for the sake of true testimony. Is each of us willing to do likewise?  
• Doubts about matters of religion that arise from a lack of knowledge can be constructively resolved. The solutions are instruction, study, and prayer, which result in increased testimony, which drives out further doubts.

Study Recap: “Swallowed Up in the Will of the Father” by Elder Neal A. Maxwell

Title: “Swallowed Up in the Will of the Father”
Author: Elder Neal A. Maxwell
Source: October 1995 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1995/10/swallowed-up-in-the-will-of-the-father?lang=eng

Rating: 5/5


Favorite Points 

• Whenever Church members speak of consecration, it should be done reverently while acknowledging that each of us “come[s] short of the glory of God,” some of us far short (Rom. 3:23). Even the conscientious have not arrived, but they sense the shortfall and are genuinely striving.
• A second group of members are “honorable” but not “valiant.” They are not really aware of the gap nor of the importance of closing it (see D&C 76:75, 79). These “honorable” individuals are certainly not miserable nor wicked, nor are they unrighteous and unhappy. It is not what they have done but what they have left undone that is amiss. For example, if valiant, they could touch others deeply instead of merely being remembered pleasantly.
• In a third group are those who are grossly entangled with the “ungodliness” of the world, reminding us all, as Peter wrote, that if “[we are] overcome” by something worldly, “[we are] brought in bondage” (2 Pet. 2:19).
• To the extent that we are not willing to be led by the Lord, we will be driven by our appetites, or we will be greatly preoccupied with the lesser things of the day. 
• Busy, he ends up in a posture of some accommodation with the world. Thus he forgoes building up the kingdom first and instead builds up himself. A small course correction now would make a large, even destinational, difference for him later on.
• Once the telestial sins are left behind and henceforth avoided, the focus falls ever more on the sins of omission. These omissions signify a lack of qualifying fully for the celestial kingdom.
• Only greater consecration can correct these omissions, which have consequences just as real as do the sins of commission. Many of us thus have sufficient faith to avoid the major sins of commission, but not enough faith to sacrifice our distracting obsessions or to focus on our omissions.
• Most omissions occur because we fail to get outside ourselves. We are so busy checking on our own temperatures, we do not notice the burning fevers of others even when we can offer them some of the needed remedies, such as encouragement, kindness, and commendation.
• Actually, everything depends—initially and finally—on our desires. These shape our thought patterns. Our desires thus precede our deeds and lie at the very cores of our souls, tilting us toward or away from God (see D&C 4:3).
• One’s individual will thus remains uniquely his. God will not override it nor overwhelm it. Hence we’d better want the consequences of what we want!
• Another cosmic fact: only by aligning our wills with God’s is full happiness to be found. Anything less results in a lesser portion (see Alma 12:10–11).
• The Lord will work with us even if, at first, we “can no more than desire” but are willing to “give place for a portion of [His] words” (Alma 32:27). A small foothold is all He needs! But we must desire and provide it.
• So many of us are kept from eventual consecration because we mistakenly think that, somehow, by letting our will be swallowed up in the will of God, we lose our individuality (see Mosiah 15:7). What we are really worried about, of course, is not giving up self, but selfish things—like our roles, our time, our preeminence, and our possessions. 
• He is only asking us to lose the old self in order to find the new self. It is not a question of one’s losing identity but of finding his true identity! Ironically, so many people already lose themselves anyway in their consuming hobbies and preoccupations but with far, far lesser things.
• As one’s will is increasingly submissive to the will of God, he can receive inspiration and revelation so much needed to help meet the trials of life.
• The complete consecration which effected the Atonement ensured Jesus’ perfect empathy; He felt our very pains and afflictions before we did and knows how to succor us (see Alma 7:11–12; 2 Ne. 9:21). Since the Most Innocent suffered the most, our own cries of “Why?” cannot match His.
• Progression toward submission confers another blessing: an enhanced capacity for joy.
• Consecration, likewise, is not shoulder-shrugging acceptance, but, instead, shoulder-squaring to better bear the yoke.
• If we have grown soft, hard times may be necessary. If we are too contented, a dose of divine discontent may come. A relevant insight may be contained in reproof. A new calling beckons us away from comfortable routines wherein the needed competencies have already been developed. One may be stripped of accustomed luxury so that the malignant mole of materialism may be removed. One may be scorched by humiliation so pride can be melted away. Whatever we lack will get attention, one way or another.
• God’s blessings, including those associated with consecration, come by unforced obedience to the laws upon which they are predicated (see D&C 130:20–21).

Study Recap: Lessons from the Atonement That Help Us to Endure to the End by Presiding Bishop Robert D. Hales

Title: Lessons from the Atonement That Help Us to Endure to the End
Author: Presiding Bishop Robert D. Hales
Source: October 1985 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1985/10/lessons-from-the-atonement-that-help-us-to-endure-to-the-end?lang=eng
Rating: 2.5/5

Favorite Points

• My brothers and sisters, I believe in Christ, and I stand to be accountable for that testimony.
• In the gospel of Jesus Christ, there comes a point in time when we must stand accountable for who we are and what we are going to be.
• How many of us are sleeping when those around us are hurting and are in need? How many of us give our testimonies of the Lord, but then do not listen, as in 1 Jn. 4:20, “For he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”
• Do we not understand that we, too, will have moments in our lives when we will be brought to our knees, when we will need help to endure to the end? Even Joseph Smith showed impatience after being in jail for a few months and wondered why he could not get on with his mission. At that time the Lord said to Joseph, “All these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” (D&C 122:7.) The ways in which we handle our trials are part of the maturing of the physical and spiritual man.
•  There are times when it is best to follow the Lord’s example and not attempt to answer every accusation made against us.
• Many lessons can be learned from the account of the Atonement. It is comforting to know that, though suffering, Jesus Christ was able to look down from the cross and be concerned for His mother, that she should be properly cared for, as He asked for the help of a disciple. This is one of the great messages we have heard this conference—that we turn some of our attention from our own trials and tribulations to concern and caring for others.
• Each one of us will someday, either in this life or in the life to come, have to give our testimony that He is truly the Son of God, the Savior of all mankind, Jesus Christ.
• Some years ago, as a pilot, I was taken by an instructor up in an airplane. By turning the airplane at less than two degrees at a time, the instructor succeeded in turning the airplane completely upside down. My inner ear could not detect the transition because he kept positive gravity upon us at all times. Therefore, I did not know that, when he gave the airplane to me, it was upside down. Everything on the airplane, every instrument, was exactly right except for the landing gear, which was upside down; and every reaction I made had an opposite reaction from what I thought it would have. This is called vertigo, and it taught me a great lesson.
  I would like to talk for a moment about spiritual vertigo. Although we know of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, of His obedience, of His willingness to serve and to be an example to us, and of His message to “come, follow me,” there are times when we get off course, less than a degree at a time, and do not know that we turn totally upside down.
   

Study Recap: The Purpose of Church Welfare Services by Marion G. Romney

Title: The Purpose of Church Welfare Services
Author: Marion G. Romney
Source: April 1977 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1977/04/the-purpose-of-church-welfare-services?lang=eng

Rating: 2.5/5


Favorite Points

• I hope we all understand how our consecrations to the Lord—whether in time, work, or money—unite to relieve suffering while sanctifying both the giver and the receiver.
• In this revelation, which the Prophet designated the “law of the Church,” the Lord revealed the essentials of the united order, which was His program for eliminating the inequalities among men. It is based upon the underlying concept that the earth and all things therein belong to the Lord, and that men hold earthly possessions as stewards accountable to Him.
• In His way, there are two cardinal principles: (1) consecration, and (2) stewardship.
• This procedure preserved in every man the right of private ownership and management of his property. Indeed, the fundamental principle of the system was the private ownership of property. Each man owned his portion, or inheritance, or stewardship, with an absolute title, which, at his option, he could alienate, keep and operate, or otherwise treat as his own. The Church did not own all of the property, and life under the united order was not, and never will be, a communal life, as the Prophet Joseph himself said.
• “For,” declared the Lord, “if ye are not equal in earthly things ye cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly things; “For if you will,” he continued, “that I give unto you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you.
• The united order is implemented by the voluntary freewill actions of men, evidenced by a consecration of all their property to the Church of God. No force of any kind is ever involved.
• “The Church never was, and under existing commandments never will be, a communal society, under the directions thus far given by the Lord. The United Order was not communal nor communistic. It was completely and intensely individualistic, with a consecration of unneeded surpluses for the support of the Church and the poor.” (J. Reuben Clark, Jr., “The United Order and Law of Consecration As Set Out in the Revelations of the Lord,” from a pamphlet of articles reprinted from the Church Section of the Deseret News, 1942, pp. 26–27.)
• The united order exalts the poor and humbles the rich. In the process both are sanctified. The poor, released from the bondage and humiliating limitations of poverty, are enabled as free men to rise to their full potential, both temporally and spiritually. The rich, by consecration and by imparting of their surplus for the benefit of the poor, not by constraint, but willingly as an act of free will, evidence that charity for their fellowmen characterized by Mormon as “the pure love of Christ.” (Moro. 7:47.) In this way they qualify to “become the sons of God.” (Moro. 7:48.)
• “Many people spend most of their time working in the service of a self-image that includes sufficient money, stocks, bonds, investment portfolios, property, credit cards, furnishings, automobiles, and the like to guarantee carnal security throughout, it is hoped, a long and happy life. Forgotten is the fact that our assignment is to use these many resources in our families and quorums to build up the kingdom of God—to further the missionary effort and the genealogical and temple work; to raise our children up as fruitful servants unto the Lord; to bless others in every way, that they may also be fruitful. Instead, we expend these blessings on our own desires, and as Moroni said, ‘Ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not.’ (Morm. 8:39.)
  
  “As the Lord himself said in our day, ‘They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.’ (D&C 1:16; italics added.)” (Ensign, June 1976, pp. 4–5.)

Study Recap: Healing Soul and Body by Robert D. Hales

Title: Healing Soul and Body
Author: Elder Robert D. Hales
Source: October 1998 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1998/10/healing-soul-and-body?lang=eng
Summary: If we seek the truth, develop faith in Him, and … sincerely repent, we will receive a spiritual change of heart which only comes from our Savior. Our hearts will become new again.
Rating: 3/5


Favorite Points

• I pondered deeply the purpose of pain and studied in my mind what I could learn from my experience and began to comprehend pain a little better. I learned that the physical pain and the healing of the body after major surgery are remarkably similar to the spiritual pain and the healing of the soul in the process of repentance. “Therefore, care not for the body, neither the life of the body; but care for the soul, and for the life of the soul” (D&C 101:37).
• I have come to understand how useless it is to dwell on the whys, what ifs, and if onlys for which there likely will be given no answers in mortality.
• To receive the Lord’s comfort, we must exercise faith. The questions Why me? Why our family? Why now? are usually unanswerable questions. These questions detract from our spirituality and can destroy our faith.
• Pondering takes our thoughts from the trivial things of this world and brings us closer to the gentle, guiding hand of our Maker as we heed the “still small voice” of the Holy Ghost (see 1 Kgs. 19:12; 1 Ne. 17:45; D&C 85:6).
• Our Savior knows the heart of each of us. He knows the pains of our hearts.
• It is interesting to note that, other than in the book of Job and a few other places, there are very few scriptural references to physical or mortal pain. The pain most frequently spoken of in the scriptures is the pain and anguish of the Lord and His prophets for the disobedient souls.
• Elder Orson F. Whitney wrote: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God, … and it is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire” (quoted in Improvement Era, Mar. 1966, 211).
• The greater and more intense suffering of the Lord was not physical—not the trial nor the mocking, not the beating or being spat upon; it was not even being betrayed by a beloved associate or rejected by those whom He loved, nor was it the physical act of crucifixion. Although all of these things happened and each action was very painful, the Savior’s greatest pain during the Atonement was endured to help the transgressor to be healed:

  “For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;

  “But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I;

  “Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit” (D&C 19:16–18).

Study Recap: The Lord Offers Everyone a Way Back from Sin by Robert D. Hales

Title: The Lord Offers Everyone a Way Back from Sin
Author: Robert D. Hales of the Seventy
Source: October 1976 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1976/10/the-lord-offers-everyone-a-way-back-from-sin?lang=eng

Rating: 4/5


Favorite Points

• The message I am sharing with you today is that the gospel protects us and that the gospel principle of repentance has the ability to restore us if we have committed a sin.
• "Satan is insidious. He leads a person away from the righteous way of living and little by little tempts them into greater and greater wrongs."
• “After my confession the bishop commended me on taking the first step toward returning to my Heavenly Father and outlined additional steps to prepare me for the day when I would realize that I had truly been forgiven. He emphasized that he, himself, could not forgive me. That was the Lord’s decision. He helped me to understand that I could be forgiven, that my Heavenly Father loves me, that I could gain an awareness of my future goals and not constantly condemn myself all of my life, thus halting my eternal progression."
• "Do not be misled by the superficial moral codes of our day. They are Satan’s most persuasive tools. They have no eternal significance."
• Finally, the greatest of all blessings: the forgiveness of the Lord. We no longer look back with depression and hurt, but forward to the future with hope and joy and love for God, self, and all mankind.
• The depth of our repentance must be as deep as the sin we have committed. There is no easy way. It hurts, but it also cleanses.
  
  
  NOTE: All quoted portions above are from a letter that was read and are not direct words by Robert D. Hales.
  

Study Recap: The Unique Message of Jesus Christ by Elder Robert D. Hales

Title: The Unique Message of Jesus Christ
Author: Elder Robert D. Hales
Source: April 1994 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1994/04/the-unique-message-of-jesus-christ?lang=eng

Rating: 1/5*


Favorite Points

• For the rest of my sojourn here in mortality, I will have the opportunity to bear testimony as a special witness of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

 *This appears to be the General Conference when Elder Hales was called to be an apostle given that the majority of the talk centered on that.

Study Recap: “Settle This in Your Hearts” by Elder Neal A. Maxwell

Title: “Settle This in Your Hearts”
Author: Elder Neal A. Maxwell
Source: October 1992 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1992/10/settle-this-in-your-hearts?lang=eng

Rating: 5/5

Favorite Points

• Instead, these comments are for the essentially “honorable” members who are skimming over the surface instead of deepening their discipleship and who are casually engaged rather than “anxiously engaged.” (D&C 76:75; D&C 58:27.)
• Though nominal in their participation, their reservations and hesitations inevitably show through. They may even pass through our holy temples, but, alas, they do not let the holy temples pass through them.
• Some regard themselves as merely “resting” in between Church callings. But we are never in between as to this soaring call from Jesus: “What manner of men [and women] ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.” (3 Ne. 27:27; see Matt. 5:48; 3 Ne. 12:48.)
• All are free to choose, of course, and we would not have it otherwise. Unfortunately, however, when some choose slackness, they are choosing not only for themselves, but for the next generation and the next. Small equivocations in parents can produce large deviations in their children!
• While casual members are not unrighteous, they often avoid appearing to be too righteous by seeming less committed than they really are—an ironic form of hypocrisy.
• Some of these otherwise honorable members mistakenly regard the Church as an institution, but not as a kingdom. They know the doctrines of the kingdom, but more as a matter of recitation than of real comprehension.
•  One common characteristic of the honorable but slack is their disdain for the seemingly unexciting duties of discipleship, such as daily prayer, regular reading of the scriptures, attendance at sacrament meeting, paying a full tithe, and participating in the holy temples.
• When the determination is first made to begin to be more spiritually settled, there is an initial vulnerability: it is hard to break with the past. But once we begin, we see how friends who would hold us back spiritually are not true friends at all. Any chiding from them reflects either resentment or unconscious worry that somehow they are being deserted. 
• In any attempt to explain to them, our tongue is able to speak only “the smallest part.” (Alma 26:16.) We continue to care for them, but we care for our duty to God more.
• Brigham Young counseled candidly: “Some do not understand duties which do not coincide with their natural feelings and affections. … There are duties which are above affection.” (Journal of Discourses, 7:65.)
• Some would never sell Jesus for thirty pieces, but they would not give Him their all either!
• One might share talents publicly yet privately retain a particular pride.
•  Still others find it easier to bend their knees than their minds. Exciting exploration is preferred to plodding implementation; speculation seems more fun than consecration, and so is trying to soften the hard doctrines instead of submitting to them.
• Each of us is an innkeeper who decides if there is room for Jesus!
• When, at last, we are truly pointed homeward, then the world’s pointing fingers of scorn can better be endured. As we come to know to Whom we belong, the other forms of belonging cease to mean very much.
• For now, consecration may not require giving up worldly possessions so much as being less possessed by them.
• A little criticism of the Brethren, which seems harmless enough, may not only damage other members but can even lead to one’s setting himself up as a substitute “light unto the world.” (2 Ne. 26:29.)
•  

Study Recap: Spirituality by Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Title: Spirituality
Author: Elder Dallin H. Oaks
Source: October 1985 General Conference
Link: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1985/10/spirituality?lang=eng

Rating: 5/5


Favorite Points

• As faithful members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have a distinctive way of looking at life. We view our experiences in terms of eternity.
•  To be spiritually minded is to view and evaluate our experiences in terms of the enlarged perspective of eternity.
• Each of us has a personal lens through which we view the world. Our lens gives its special tint to all we see. It can suppress some features and emphasize others. It can also reveal things otherwise invisible. Through the lens of spirituality, we can know “the things of God” by “the Spirit of God.” (1 Cor. 2:11.)
• As the Apostle Paul taught, such things are “foolishness” to the “natural man.” He cannot see them “because they are spiritually discerned.” (See 1 Cor. 2:14.)
• How we interpret our experiences is also a function of our degree of spirituality. Some interpret mortality solely in terms of worldly accomplishments and possessions. In contrast, we who have a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ should interpret our experiences in terms of our knowledge of the purpose of life, the mission of our Savior, and the eternal destiny of the children of God.
• Spirituality is not a function of occupation or calling. A scientist may be more spiritual than a theologian; a teacher may be more spiritual than an officer. Spirituality is determined by personal outlook and priorities. It is evident in our words and actions.
• ...we should not be so occupied with what is routine and temporal that we fail to cherish those opportunities that are unique and spiritual.
• Many Esaus have given up something of eternal value in order to satisfy a momentary hunger for the things of the world.
• The Roman soldiers of Pilate provided an unforgettable illustration of the different perspectives of the carnal mind and the spiritual mind. During a tragic afternoon on Calvary, a handful of soldiers waited at the foot of a cross. The most important event in all eternity was taking place on the cross above their heads. Oblivious to that fact, they occupied themselves casting lots to divide the earthly property of the dying Son of God.
• Jim, you don’t understand,” President Dunn replied. “You see, I’m raising boys, not cows.”
• What we see around us depends on what we seek in life.
• The enemies of the young prophet, Joseph Smith, hounded him to get possession of the golden plates from which he was to translate the Book of Mormon. They sought the golden plates to get money, not a message. The temporal value of the plates had a price; their spiritual value was priceless.
• Materialism, which gives priority to material needs and objects, is obviously the opposite of spirituality.  
• There is nothing inherently evil about money. The Good Samaritan used the same coinage to serve his fellowman that Judas used to betray the Master. It is “the love of money [which] is the root of all evil.” (1 Tim. 6:10; italics added.)
• As faithful Latter-day Saints, we can bear the death of loved ones because we have faith in the resurrection and the eternal nature of family ties. We can repent and rise above our mistakes and inadequacies because we know that our Savior “suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent.” (D&C 19:16.)
• Seen with the perspective of eternity, a temporal setback can be an opportunity to develop soul power of eternal significance. Strength is forged in adversity. Faith is developed in a setting where we cannot see what lies ahead.
• Spirituality is not acquired suddenly. It is the consequence of a succession of right choices. It is the harvest of a righteous life.
• Through the lens of spirituality, we see all the commandments of God as invitations to blessings.
• To the faithful, spirituality is a lens through which we view life and a gauge by which we evaluate it. The Apostle Paul expressed this thought in two of his letters:
  
  
  “We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Cor. 4:18.)
  
  
  “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
  “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Rom. 8:5–6.)

Study Recap: The Law of Chastity by President Ezra Taft Benson

Title: The Law of Chastity
Author: Ezra Taft Benson
Source: October 1988 Liahona (from a devotional address delivered at BYU)
Link: https://www.lds.org/liahona/1988/10/the-law-of-chastity?lang=eng
Summary: When we keep ourselves morally clean, we will experience the blessings of increased love and peace, and a deep and significant sense of joy and happiness.
Rating: 4.5/5

Favorite Points

• From the beginning of time, the Lord has set a clear and unmistakable standard of sexual purity. It always has been, it is now, and it always will be the same. That standard is the law of chastity. It is the same for all—for men and women, for old and young, for rich and poor.
• The law of chastity is a principle of eternal significance. We must not be influenced by the many voices of the world. We must listen to the voice of the Lord and then determine that we will start to keep his commandments.
• As the world seeks solutions for this disease, which began primarily through widespread homosexuality, they look everywhere but to the law of the Lord. There are many health agencies, both public and private, trying to combat AIDS. They seek increased funding for research. They sponsor programs of education and information. They write bills aimed at protecting the innocent from infection. They set up treatment programs for those who have already become infected. These are important and necessary programs, and we commend those efforts. But why is it we rarely hear anyone calling for a return to chastity, for a commitment to virtue and fidelity?
• I recognize that most people fall into sexual sin in a misguided attempt to fulfill basic human needs. We all have a need to feel loved and worthwhile. We all seek to have joy and happiness in our lives. Knowing this, Satan often lures people into immorality by encouraging their basic needs. He promises pleasure, happiness, and fulfillment.
• There is an old saying that states: It is better to prepare and prevent than it is to repair and repent. How true that is of the law of chastity. The first line of defense in keeping ourselves morally clean is to prepare ourselves to resist temptation and prevent ourselves from falling into sin.
•  No one steps into immorality in an instant. The first seeds of immorality are always sown in the mind. When we allow our thoughts to dwell on crude or immoral things, the first step on the road to immorality has been taken.
• Many of the tragedies of immorality begin when a man and woman are alone in the office, or at church, or driving in a car. At first there may be no intent or even thought of sin. But the circumstances provide a fertile seedbed for temptation. One thing leads to another, and very quickly tragedy may result. It is so much easier to avoid such circumstances from the start so that temptation gets no chance for development.
• One of Satan’s most effective strategies with those whom he has lured into sin is to whisper in their ears that they are not worthy to pray. He will tell you that Heavenly Father is so displeased with you that He will never hear your prayers. This is a lie, and he says it to deceive us.  
• No one is more anxious to help you flee from sin than your Heavenly Father
• It is not enough simply to try to resist evil or empty our lives of sin. We must also fill our lives with righteousness. We must engage in activities that bring spiritual power.

Study Recap: My Guilt Was Swept Away by George D. Durrant

Title: My Guilt Was Swept Away
Author: George D. Durrant
Source: January 2009 Ensign
Link: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2009/01/my-guilt-was-swept-away?lang=eng
Summary: I left the family history class upset. I felt I had done enough, yet a stirring within my soul told me there was something more I could do.
Rating: 1.5/5

Favorite Points

•  I knew I could not rationalize away my guilt. I was not at peace.

Study Recap: "Remember Lot's Wife" by Jeffrey R. Holland

Title: "Remember Lot's Wife"
Author: Jeffrey R. Holland
Source: devotional address given at BYU on 13 January 2009
Link: http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1819&tid=7
Rating: 4.5/5
Favorite Points

• Apparently what was wrong with Lot’s wife was that she wasn’t just looking back; in her heart she wanted to go back.
• As Elder Maxwell once said, such people know they should have their primary residence in Zion, but they still hope to keep a summer cottage in Babylon.
• So it isn’t just that she looked back; she looked back longingly. In short, her attachment to the past outweighed her confidence in the future.
• The past is to be learned from but not lived in. We look back to claim the embers from glowing experiences but not the ashes. And when we have learned what we need to learn and have brought with us the best that we have experienced, then we look ahead, we remember that faith is always pointed toward the future.
• So a more theological way to talk about Lot’s wife is to say that she did not have faith. She doubted the Lord’s ability to give her something better than she already had. Apparently she thought—fatally, as it turned out—that nothing that lay ahead could possibly be as good as those moments she was leaving behind.
• I can’t tell you the number of couples I have counseled who, when they are deeply hurt or even just deeply stressed, reach farther and farther into the past to find yet a bigger brick to throw through the window “pain” of their marriage. When something is over and done with, when it has been repented of as fully as it can be repented of, when life has moved on as it should and a lot of other wonderfully good things have happened since then, it is not right to go back and open up some ancient wound that the Son of God Himself died trying to heal.

Study Recap: Overcoming Addiction through the Atonement by Benjamin R. Erwin

Title: Overcoming Addiction through the Atonement
Author: Benjamin R. Erwin, LDS Family Services
Source: September 2012 Ensign
Link: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2012/09/overcoming-addiction-through-the-atonement?lang=eng
Summary: To those who despair of healing and peace, there is hope in Christ.
Rating: 3/5

Favorite Points

• Most of us are aware of the sad consequences of addictive behavior, so instead of focusing on the dangers of pornography and the pain associated with addiction, I would like to share a message of hope.
• Consider the details Alma shared as he recounted this story. He focused his comments on the Savior and the healing power of His Atonement. He did not even mention the fiery serpents!
• What Alma chose to tell—and what he chose to leave out—teaches one key to overcoming pornography addiction (or any challenge we may have in this life): to “cast about [our] eyes and begin to believe in the Son of God” (verse 22).
• ...when we spend so much time describing the attacking “serpent” that we fail to see the source of healing, we’re not much different than the Israelites. The children of Israel did not have to focus on the serpents or the pain of their venomous bites or their fear of death in order to be healed. They simply had to look to the source of healing: their Savior, Jesus Christ.
• Those who struggle with sin sometimes lie and rationalize in an attempt to minimize the consequences of their behavior. But somewhere inside themselves, they are aware of what they have done and know they are accountable for it.
• Usually I find that those who struggle with addictions are warriors with tenacity, courage, and a strong desire to be clean. They win far more battles than they lose as they march toward recovery.
• This may be hard for some to comprehend—if people are so strong, why is overcoming addiction so difficult? Addiction is often misunderstood, and some believe that if a person would simply choose to recover or work harder at stopping, he or she would be able to. But the nature of addiction—and all sin, for that matter—is such that we cannot heal ourselves from it. The children of Israel could not heal themselves from the bites of the fiery serpents, and we cannot simply wish or even work addiction away. We must find our hope of healing in Christ.
• Addiction brings heavy burdens of secrets and pain. It usually doesn’t take people long to want to stop. They tell themselves “never again,” yet time after time, they fall. Such succumbing can bring with it a “hardness of heart,” a refusal to believe that anything can help them.
• Repentance may involve an emotional and physical process. … Both repentance and recovery may take time. … Even though a person may have some initial success, further emotional healing may be necessary to completely repent and recover.