Covenants
It’s A Privilege
I had a bit of an epiphany yesterday as I prayed while waiting for the sacrament to reach me. I thanked the Lord for the privilege it was to be there to take the sacrament and to be forgiven of my sins. The Holy Ghost then weighed in and pointed out all the other privileges that I enjoy.
Read MoreWhat Is Their Status?
My brother Tim’s 79-year-old wife, Jan, died 3 January. Her memorial service is today, 6 February 2024.
Marjorie’s 79-year-old brother, Don, died 30 January. His graveside service in Spring City, Utah is also today. Marjorie and I have elected to go to his memorial service that will be held 19 May, rather than to brave winter roads to be in Utah today.
I Have Enough
As I sat waiting for the endowment session to begin, I thanked the Lord for providing three temples within a range that makes it possible for us to attend weekly. The closest is a two-and-a-quarter hours’ drive away. The farthest of the three is a two-and-a-half hours’ drive.
Read MoreSpiritual Lay-ups
If you’re a good basketball player, and are tall enough, and can jump high enough, you can do a lay-up. You accomplish a lay-up when you leap three feet into the air and simply dunk the basketball into the 10-foot-high net. The crowd cheers, and you run down the floor with the feeling that you’ve done something great.
Read MorePre-earth Service
In the terrestrial room of the temple yesterday a thought went through my head that I’ve never had before. Since I wasn’t even thinking of such things at the time, and because of where I was and what I was doing, I have to think that it was a revelation to me. I haven’t heard or read anything that the Brethren have said on this matter, so if it is so, the “revelation” was just for my benefit, and is not something that I should be preaching.
Read MoreThe Necessities of Life
Recently as I was praying I found myself thanking the Lord for the necessities of life. As popularly understood, the necessities of life are food, clothing, and shelter. Some people in the world lack one or more of those things. I feel badly for them, and was expressing gratitude that I have those basic things.
Read MoreMine Forever
Each morning sunrise is a treat and a blessing. Each is special. Each is different. God chooses different arrangements of the clouds and different colors. One morning may be red, another yellow or orange, and the next blue. The 34 peaks that are my eastern horizon are constant and always there, except when they’re hidden by stormy days, or days when the valley is encased in fog. Each morning is spectacular. Each is worthy of my participation.
Read MorePriesthood Foreordination
I was reading in my son’s history book about young men in the Greek city-state of Sparta. At birth baby boys were examined. Those that were judged unfit were placed on the mountain and left to die. Boys were taken from their families at age 7 and placed in the care of military trainers whose job was to make them tough and mean. They slept on a mat of rushes and lived lives devoid of comforts.
Read MoreWhat Must I Jettison?
I should think it a very valuable exercise if, like our pioneer ancestors, we had to choose from among our many possessions those things that we most treasure, load those few items into a 4-foot by 8-foot wagon box, and leave the rest behind.
Read MoreMaking and Keeping Sacred Covenants
Covenants are never mentioned in other churches. The covenants have been forgotten. They’re not understood, they’re ignored, and are unimportant in their eyes.
Read MoreKeep Your Covenants
This is the talk that I gave at Samuel’s baptism. It isn’t an exact transcription of what was actually said, but it is the official message of what I want Samuel (and the rest of my posterity) to have, to remember, and to keep.—Saturday 11 December 2010
Read MorePriorities
Many years ago there was an article in the newspaper about a dog race in England. The greyhounds had spent their lives chasing a mechanical rabbit around the track. The newsworthy thing about this race was that on this particular day a real rabbit had run across the track in front of the dogs—and the dogs gave it not the slightest notice! I thought to myself, “What foolish dogs, chasing a false rabbit that they can never catch.” My next thought was, “How fortunate that we’re humans and have our priorities straight. We have more sense than to chase uncatchable mechanical rabbits.”
Read MoreHelp From the Other Side
I often wonder about my deceased parents and parents-in-law. What are they doing? Where are they?
Read MoreTemples and Ordinances
I don’t believe that any of us can appreciate or begin to comprehend the full significance of the monumental blessing that it is to have temples.
Read MorePresident Nelson
We were privileged on 16 September 2018 to attend a special gathering of Latter-day Saints in the Safeco Stadium in Seattle where President Henry B. Eyring
Read MoreMore Thoughts on Covenants
This thought came to me during prayer last night: The greatest and most important thing we can do with our lives is to make and keep covenants.
Read MoreCovenants
Covenants: Covenants are:
Keep me safe A safety belt
My Purpose on Earth
I frequently contemplate and puzzle over the question of why I am so blessed. Surely there has never been anyone with so many advantages as I.
Read MoreMy Blessed Life
I have been blessed with a long life filled with joy, love, service, and family. I have been blessed with the opportunity to make every covenant…
Read MoreNecessities of Life
Talk given at Gideon Farber’s baptism. 30 January 2016. I awoke this morning thinking about the necessities of life.
Read MoreEndangered Species
Lately as I’ve perused the World Book Encyclopedia, several articles have intrigued me.
Read MoreThe Full Keyboard
My path recently has crossed those of several Seventh-day Adventists. Comparing the doctrines of the SDA and LDS Churches has been interesting.
Read MoreSuspended
Yesterday I had to deliver letters to two 18-year-old students informing them that the Church had been unable to pay the school fees for their third terms due to their lack of attendance at church and at institute.
Read MoreRepentance and Covenants
Life has two purposes. There are two things that every soul must accomplish. One is repentance. The other is covenants. Both are supreme gifts made possible by the Lord’s Atonement.
Read MoreCovenants
What is important?
This is an easy question to answer. There are only two things of supreme importance in the universe. Everything else is merely interesting, and is collateral to the other two. One is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the other is family. The two are inseparably connected by covenants.
The purpose of the whole gospel plan is to make families eternal. Everything that we do in the Church, in every calling, has one basic, ultimate objective: That is to point individuals toward the temple and its crowning ordinances—sealings.
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