“It is in the nature of a fallen world—where the devil rages and where everyone is imperfect—that there will be disappointments and offenses, suffering and sorrow, failure and loss, persecution and injustice. It is only by looking to God that individuals, families, and even nations can flourish. President Russell M. Nelson taught, “Because the Savior, through His infinite Atonement, redeemed each of us from weakness, mistakes, and sin, and because He experienced every pain, worry, and burden you have ever had [see Alma 7:11–13], then as you truly repent and seek His help, you can rise above this present precarious world.”
“Everywhere people are moving. The United Nations reports 281 million international migrants. This is 128 million more individuals than in 1990 and more than three times 1970 estimates. Everywhere, record numbers of converts are finding The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Every Sabbath, members and friends from 195 birth countries and territories gather in 31,916 Church congregations. We speak 125 languages. …Today those invited to the supper of the Lord come from every place and culture. Old and young, rich and poor, local and global, we make our Church congregations look like our communities. As chief Apostle, Peter saw heaven open a vision of “a great sheet knit at the four corners, … In the parable of the good Samaritan, Jesus invites us to come to each other…
Apply the following quote from Elder Barcellos to anti-racism: “The Savior taught that “out of the heart proceed evil thoughts” and that “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” The quality of our thoughts and words is a good indicator of the purity of our hearts. Am I fostering too many negative thoughts about others’ actions or motives, or even about myself? Am I too quick to judge and condemn others? Do I seek to find excuses or justification for my mistakes? And what about my words? Do they lift and inspire those around me? Or do they often create conflict and resentment? …as you perform this spiritual assessment of your heart and notice some negative symptoms starting to creep in, please don’t panic! …He has even…
“My grandfather’s primary counsel to me was to avoid any sense of entitlement or privilege because of these faithful ancestors. He told me my focus should be on the Savior and the Savior’s Atonement. He said we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father. Regardless of who our earthly ancestors are, each of us will report to the Savior on how well we kept His commandments. …Oneness is what Christ prayed for prior to His betrayal and Crucifixion. Oneness with Christ and our Heavenly Father can be obtained through the Savior’s Atonement. The Lord’s saving mercy is not dependent on lineage, education, economic status, or race. It is based on being one with Christ and His commandments. …It is significant that all the qualifications for baptism are spiritual. No economic…
“Jesus then said, “And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”This is the second tower of the bridge. Here Jesus bridges our heavenly upward gaze, to love the Lord, with our earthly outward gaze, to love our fellow men and women. One is interdependent on the other. Love of the Lord is not complete if we neglect our neighbors. This outward love includes all of God’s children without regard to gender, social class, race, sexuality, income, age, or ethnicity. We seek out those who are hurt and broken, the marginalized, for “all are alike unto God.” We “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.” …The increasing contention in the world suggests, however, that we at times fail…
“Our focus is on the Savior, and we are careful to avoid actions that may be perceived as serving our own interests, benefiting our family, or favoring someone at the expense of another.”
“One of the focuses of the Utah area plan, and indeed of our individual lives, is to become true disciples of Jesus Christ. “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples if ye have love one to another.” We are grateful for the many who are deepening their discipleship, and whose efforts help those around us feel welcomed and loved. Unfortunately, love is not always spoken here. We remain deeply concerned about too many lingering instances of racist attitudes and behaviors taking place in our schools and communities and sometimes even in our own neighborhoods and places of worship, such as seminaries, churches and temples. In Christ-like communities of faith, love, unity and covenant belonging this cannot be. Racism is a violation of the first two great commandments…
“Do you recall the experience the prophet Samuel had when the Lord sent him to Jesse’s house to anoint the new king of Israel? Samuel saw Eliab, Jesse’s firstborn. Eliab, it seems, was tall and had the appearance of a leader. Samuel saw that and jumped to a conclusion. It turned out to be the wrong conclusion, and the Lord taught Samuel: “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; … for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” Do you recall the experience the disciple Ananias had when the Lord sent him to bless Saul? Saul’s reputation had preceded him, and Ananias had heard about Saul and his cruel, relentless persecution of the Saints. Ananias heard and jumped to…
“In the fifth chapter of Alma, an introspective question is posed: “Could ye say, if ye were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that ye have been sufficiently humble?”That question implies that humility is a mandatory requirement for us to be ready to return to the presence of God. We all like to think we are sufficiently humble, but some experiences in life make us realize that the natural, prideful man or woman often is very much alive within us. …when we choose not to be humble, we end up being humiliated. In Proverbs we find, “A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” In order to develop humility, we must understand what it really means in the context of the gospel. …There…
“Jesus announced at the outset that He had come “to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind.” (Luke 4:18) Open the Gospels at random; on almost every page we see Him caring for people who suffer—socially, spiritually, and physically. He touches people considered polluted and unclean (Matt. 8:3, 9:25) and feeds the hungry. (Matt 14:13-21) What is your favorite story of Jesus? I suspect it shows the Son of God reaching out to embrace or offer hope to someone on the margins—the leper (Matt.8:1-3), the hated Samaritan (John 4:7-10, the accused and scandalous sinner (Matt. 21:31, Luke 7:27-50, Luke 15:1-10, John 8:2-12), or the national enemy (Matt. 8:5-13). That kind of grace is amazing. Try writing down every time He praises or heals or eats with…
