Search Results for: blog rseq ye ought not procrastinate the day of your repentence2

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 →

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 →

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 →

Gospel Doctrine: They Forsook All, and Followed Him

For today’s scripture study, I examined Luke 5:1-17. In these verses, Christ ministers to a crowd, and then calls His disciples to follow Him. Although we examined the reactions of Peter, Andrew, James, and John two weeks ago, I noticed something different in their calling. In Matthew 4, we watch the disciples immediately spring into action. Without hesitation, they decided to serve and follow the Master. Today, as I studied, I see that not only were ‘quick to observe’, they were also complete in their following. “They forsook all,” verse 11 tells us, “and followed him.” If you follow the … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: Unable to See the Possibilities

In this week’s Sunday school lesson, Christ returns to Galilee to preach the gospel to His friends and neighbors (Luke 4:14-32). But instead of receiving the word of the Savior of mankind, they can only ask “Is not this Joseph’s son?” I began to wonder how many times we refuse to see the possibilities another person might have due to what we are so sure we ‘know’. Over and over again, we hear how important first impressions are. Although we are told not to judge a book by its cover – not to be bound by those first impressions – … Continue reading →

Obeying From Love

When it comes down to obedience, there are three main reasons to obey. The first comes from fear – looming punishment frightens us. The second comes from reward – we seek the prize or present. The third comes from love – we want to please the person who has asked for our obedience. Which of these do you think the Lord wants to have motivate us? We can choose to follow the commandments because of the looming fear of hell. Especially if you grew up outside of the church, you may have been exposed to images of evil pits and … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: Testifying of Christ

As I studied Luke 2:15-39 this morning, I was touched by the number of witnesses proclaimed the divinity of the infant Christ. I examined the actions of the shepherds, Simeon, and Anna, all of whom recognized in the babe His true identity. I then pondered how I could and should be like them. The shepherds were the first group I encountered in today’s scripture study. Having been persuaded by the visitation of the Heavenly Host, they decided to go to Bethlehem immediately to see these things for themselves. I love the way the scriptures describe their actions – “they came … Continue reading →