Search Results for: blog rseq ye ought not procrastinate the day of your repentence

Thoughts on Swearing

I have always been somewhat of a goody-two-shoes. I was the Beehive class president in Young Women’s, I’ve always been the one to say, “No, I don’t feel right about doing that,” and I avoid the appearance of evil, except for those times when I’m frightfully misunderstood. But I’ve learned something – even the most persistent stickler for doing what’s right can develop a swearing problem. It’s not that we wake up one morning and say, “I do believe I shall start swearing.” It happens when we hear too much of it around us. If we watch too much TV … Continue reading →

Dozed and Confused

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I don’t know what’s going on, but I have to say something. Is it just me, or are more and more folks falling asleep at church? I mean, okay, I’ve heard the jokes for years across all denominations, but until recently, I don’t think I’ve seen so many folks dozing as I have in the past month or two. Let me tell you the story of the first talk I ever gave in church. I hadn’t been a member for more than nine months, maybe less than that. I had recently moved, so I didn’t know a lot of people. … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: Deathbed Repentance

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Perhaps one of the most misunderstood quotes in scripture comes in Luke 23:43. As Jesus hangs on the cross, a thief also hangs to his side, acknowledging that his punishment is just while the Savior has done no wrong. Jesus then answers, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” So many have taken to heart the possibility that a deathbed repentance will lead to eternal glory, but this is not so. According to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the aforementioned phrase meant that the Savior and the thief would be in the world of spirits that very day. At … Continue reading →

RS/EQ: Self-Justification and Repentance

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Integrity and honesty go hand in hand. Only when we are honest with our fellow men and with ourselves can we maintain integrity. Furthermore, when we become accustomed to deceiving or defrauding those we interact with, we can easily find ourselves drawn into attempting to deceive ourselves or our Heavenly Father. When we seek to justify our misbehavior, we make repentance impossible. According to President Kimball, almost all dishonesty stems from self-justification. When we strive to rationalize or make excuses for sin, it can be easy to break the commandments of God. “It’s just a little piece of candy in … Continue reading →

RS/EQ: What is Integrity?

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This week’s Relief Society/Elder’s Quorum lesson is on integrity. But what, exactly, is integrity? To me, it’s one of those hard-to-define words; something you know innately but cannot exactly express (and for a writer, that’s saying a lot!). I like the way President Kimball expresses it: “the willingness and ability to live by our beliefs and commitments.” There are two parts verb and two parts noun to this definition. First, the nouns. We must have our beliefs and our commitments laid out before us. In order to have integrity, we must actually believe in something. Whether it is a belief … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: Climb the Tree!

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As we read Luke 19:1-10, we watch Jesus enter Jerusalem for the last time. But we are not the only ones watching. A sinner named Zacchaeus also wanted to turn in eye to the Savior, and as a reward for his diligence, he was able to take Christ into his home as well as his heart. After three years of ministering, Jesus is greeted by a large crowd when he enters the city. The throng was so deep that Zacchaeus, a man of little stature, was unable to see the Savior. Instead of complacently accepting that the Lord was hard … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: “I Am A (Spiritual) Child of God”

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When I studied this week’s lesson, something jumped out at me that I just had to share, despite my intention of taking it easy after the recent birth of my baby. Studying John 8, I became intrigued by the Savior’s dialogue on being a child of God rather than a child of Satan. Since I had previously struggled with the idea of being a child of Christ, as put forth by King Benjamin in Mosiah 5:7, as well as the reverse of being a child of Satan (see Alma 5:39-41), today’s scripture study seemed to be an ideal time to … Continue reading →

Relief Society Presidents: An Introduction

In celebration of the upcoming Relief Society birthday, I’d like to take the first three days of the next few weeks to introduce readers to some of the wonderful Relief Society presidents this organization has had at its head. From Nauvoo to Salt Lake, from suffragette to grandmother, the presidents of the Relief Society have been women of faith and testimony, women of action, women to hold in high respect. As I’ve worked on compiling these biographies, I’ve been amazed. I thought I had a decent grasp on church history, but as I’ve studied the lives of these women, I … Continue reading →

RS/EQ: The Work of Repentance

If you haven’t guessed by now, my Relief Society blogs (as well as my Gospel Doctrine ones) mirror my daily scripture study. Studying President Kimball’s lesson on the miracle of forgiveness, I found the sections covered tonight strongly related to a problem I had struggled with only a few minutes before. While I am guilty of no major, confession-requiring, temple-preventing sins, I have several nasty little habits that I know I need to change. I suppose we all do. I also carry a strong sense of responsibility as to what I teach my children. This particular habit, which I have … Continue reading →

Obeying From Trust

Earlier this week, we talked about obeying the Savior from love. A comment in response to that blog made me think about another reason we obey the Savior – because we trust Him. Oddly enough (or perhaps not), the subject raised its head again as I was studying this week’s Relief Society/Elder’s Quorum lesson. As I discussed, the Savior wants us to obey Him out of love. However, even if we love someone, it can be difficult to trust them. Take for instance your marriage. If you have trouble trusting your spouse on some issue – financial, spiritual, or even … Continue reading →