Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear – Dieter F. Uchtdorf (4/2017)

Below is the text from President Dieter F. Uchtdorf’s talk from April 2017 General Conference called, “Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear.” Additionally (not part of President Uchtdorf’s words) are bullet points that summarize principles, cautions, and actions from the talk. The bulleted comments are not intended to bring out all principles, cautions and actions from the talk and they represent the thoughts and beliefs of our writers and not President Uchtdorf himself. Although we hope you may learn from our comments and our methods, we also hope that in your study you will follow the guidance from Moroni to know and understand truth for yourself, which in our opinion, includes how truth should be applied in your life and circumstances at this time. That understanding comes through the Holy Ghost. May you feel His guidance and have courage to follow where He leads.

Talk          Other Resources          Footnotes          Summary Sheet

Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear by Dieter F. Uchtdorf

My beloved brothers and sisters, dear friends, what a privilege and joy it is to meet as a worldwide Church united in our faith and love for God and His children.

I am especially grateful for the presence of our beloved prophet, Thomas S. Monson. President, we will always take to heart your words of direction, counsel, and wisdom. We love you, President Monson, and we always pray for you.

Years ago, when I was serving as stake president in Frankfurt, Germany, a dear but unhappy sister approached me at the end of one of our stake meetings.

“Isn’t it terrible?” she said. “There must have been four or five people sound asleep during your talk!”

I thought for a moment and answered, “I am pretty sure that church sleep is among the healthiest of all sleeps.”

My wonderful wife, Harriet, overheard this casual exchange and later mentioned that it was one of the nicest answers I had ever given.

The Great Awakening

A few hundred years ago in North America, a movement called the “Great Awakening” spread across the countryside. One of its primary objectives was to awaken the people who appeared to be asleep regarding spiritual matters.

Young Joseph Smith was influenced by the things he heard from preachers who were part of this religious awakening. It is one of the reasons he decided to seek earnestly the will of the Lord in private prayer.

These preachers had a dramatic, emotional preaching style, with sermons that were known for their heavy emphasis on the fiery terrors of hell that await the sinner.1 Their speeches didn’t put people to sleep—but they may have caused a few nightmares. Their purpose and pattern seemed to be to frighten people into church.

Fear as Manipulation

Historically, fear has often been used as a means to get people to take action. Parents have used it with their children, employers with employees, and politicians with voters.

Experts in marketing understand the power of fear and often employ it. This is why some advertisements seem to carry the implicit message that if we fail to buy their breakfast cereal or miss out on the newest video game or cell phone, we run the risk of living a miserable life, dying alone and unhappy.

We smile at this and think we would never fall for such manipulation, but we sometimes do. Worse, we sometimes use similar methods to get others to do what we want.

My message has two purposes today: The first is to urge us to contemplate and consider the extent to which we use fear to motivate others—including ourselves. The second is to suggest a better way.

The Problem with Fear

First, let us address the problem with fear. After all, who among us has never been compelled by fear to eat better, wear a seat belt, exercise more, save money, or even repent of sin?

It is true that fear can have a powerful influence over our actions and behavior. But that influence tends to be temporary and shallow. Fear rarely has the power to change our hearts, and it will never transform us into people who love what is right and who want to obey Heavenly Father.

  • Fear is a powerful motivator.
  • Fear as a motivator is temporary and limited.

People who are fearful may say and do the right things, but they do not feel the right things. They often feel helpless and resentful, even angry. Over time these feelings lead to mistrust, defiance, even rebellion.

  • Fear leads to helplessness, resentment, and anger. Then to mistrust, defiance, even rebellion.
  • Fear motivates people to act a certain way, but it may not change their feelings.

Unfortunately, this misguided approach to life and leadership is not limited to the secular world. It grieves me to hear of Church members who exercise unrighteous dominion—whether in their homes, in their Church callings, at work, or in their daily interactions with others.

Often, people may condemn bullying in others, yet they cannot see it in themselves. They demand compliance with their own arbitrary rules, but when others don’t follow these random rules, they chasten them verbally, emotionally, and sometimes even physically.

The Lord has said that “when we … exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, … the heavens withdraw themselves [and] the Spirit of the Lord is grieved.”2

  • The Holy Ghost withdraws if we excise control over another person “in any degree of unrighteousness”

There may be moments when we are tempted to justify our actions by believing that the end justifies the means. We might even think that to be controlling, manipulative, and harsh will be for the good of others. Not so, for the Lord has made it clear that “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, [and] temperance.”3

  • When using fear to control others the ends DO NOT justify the means. (Fear may get quick results, but not positive end results.)
  • The Lord’s way is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.

A Better Way

The more I come to know my Heavenly Father, the more I see how He inspires and leads His children. He is not angry, vengeful, or retaliatory.4 His very purpose—His work and His glory—is to mentor us, exalt us, and lead us to His fulness.5

  • God inspires and leads.
  • Anger, vengeance, and retaliation are not God’s way.
  • God’s intention is to mentor and lead us to be the best we can be. (His desire is for lasting change and he uses perfect methods. So if we want lasting change in ourselves or others, use His methods.)
  • God wants us to have all that He has.

God described Himself to Moses as “merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.”6

  • God is merciful, gracious, longsuffering, full of goodness and truth.

Our Father in Heaven’s love for us, His children, surpasses by far our ability to comprehend.7

  • God loves us. This is part of His motivation for how He associates with us. (It may be insightful to ponder how God’s love and desire for us to be the best we can is the driving force behind all aspects of the gospel, the organization of the church, and each commandment He has given us.)

Does this mean that God condones or overlooks behaviors that run contrary to His commands? No, definitely not!

  • Love does not mean accepting or overlooking negative behavior.

But He wants to change more than just our behaviors. He wants to change our very natures. He wants to change our hearts.

  • There is more involved in improvement and change than changing behavior alone.

He wants us to reach out and take firm hold of the iron rod, confront our fears, and bravely step forward and upward along the strait and narrow path. He wants this for us because He loves us and because this is the way to happiness.

  • Our behavior doesn’t change God’s love for us or His desire for us to be our best self.
  • God shows us the way to happiness.
  • Faithfully following God’s teachings, overcoming fears, and courageously living the gospel is the way to happiness. 

So, how does God motivate His children to follow Him in our day?

He sent His Son!

God sent His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to show us the right way.

God motivates through persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, and love unfeigned.8 God is on our side. He loves us, and when we stumble, He wants us to rise up, try again, and become stronger.

He is our mentor.

He is our great and cherished hope.

He desires to stimulate us with faith.

He trusts us to learn from our missteps and make correct choices.

This is the better way!9

  • Jesus Christ is our example and mentor.
  • We can have hope through Christ.
  • God wants us to learn from our mistakes.

What of the Evils of the World?

One of the ways Satan wants us to manipulate others is by dwelling upon and even exaggerating the evil in the world.

  • Focusing on the negative is a fear motivator.

Certainly our world has always been, and will continue to be, imperfect. Far too many innocent people suffer because of circumstances of nature as well as from man’s inhumanity. The corruption and wickedness in our day are unique and alarming.

But in spite of all this, I wouldn’t trade living in this time with any other time in the history of the world. We are blessed beyond measure to live in a day of unparalleled prosperity, enlightenment, and advantage. Most of all, we are blessed to have the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which gives us a unique perspective on the world’s dangers and shows us how to either avoid these dangers or deal with them.

When I think of these blessings, I want to fall to my knees and offer praises to our Heavenly Father for His never-ending love for all of His children.

  • You can see bad and you can see good depending what you look for.
  • The gospel gives us a unique perspective of the challenges of life and how to handle them. (President Uchtdorf talked about this in another talk about the Plan of Happiness. See our study group posts about that talk.)
  • Give thanks to God for His love.

I don’t believe God wants His children to be fearful or dwell on the evils of the world. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”10

He has given us an abundance of reasons to rejoice. We just need to find and to recognize them. The Lord often reminds us to “be not afraid,” to “be of good cheer,”11 and to “fear not, little flock.”12

  • Fear is not of God.
  • God wants us to focus on the good.

The Lord Will Fight Our Battles

jesus sheep

Brothers and sisters, we are the Lord’s “little flock.” We are the Saints of the latter days. Inherent in our name is the commitment to look forward to the Savior’s return and prepare ourselves and the world to receive Him. Therefore, let us serve God and love our fellowmen. Let us do this with a natural confidence, with humility, never looking down on any other religion or group of people. Brothers and sisters, we are charged with studying the word of God and heeding the voice of the Spirit, that we may “know the signs of the times, and the signs of the coming of the Son of Man.”13

  • We should have hope in the fact the Savior will come to earth again. We should prepare ourselves, and the world, for that day.
  • What is “natural confidence?”

We are, therefore, not ignorant of the challenges of the world, nor are we unaware of the difficulties of our times. But this does not mean that we should burden ourselves or others with constant fear. Rather than dwelling on the immensity of our challenges, would it not be better to focus on the infinite greatness, goodness, and absolute power of our God, trusting Him and preparing with a joyful heart for the return of Jesus the Christ?

  • Knowing or being aware of something is different than fear. (We don’t have to be ignorant to avoid fear. In fact, this isn’t about avoiding fear. It is about facing it and moving forward past it.)
  • Focus on the goodness of God.
  • Actively prepare for the 2nd coming.

As His covenant people, we need not be paralyzed by fear because bad things might happen. Instead, we can move forward with faith, courage, determination, and trust in God as we approach the challenges and opportunities ahead.14

  • Fear paralyzes people.
  • Approach opportunities and challenges with faith, courage and determination. (If we are in patterns of fear we may not know how to approach opportunities with anything but fear. Look to courageous heroes, modern day or ancient. Think through what they might do if they were approaching the situation that you are.)

We do not walk the path of discipleship alone. “The Lord thy God … doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”15

“The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”16

In the face of fear, let us find our courage, muster our faith, and have confidence in the promise that “no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.”17

Do we live in a time of peril and turmoil? Of course we do.

God Himself has said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”18

Can we exercise the faith to believe and to act accordingly? Can we live up to our commitments and sacred covenants? Can we keep the commandments of God even in challenging circumstances? Of course we can!

We can because God has promised, “All things shall work together for your good, if [you] walk uprightly.”19 Therefore, let us set aside our fears and live instead with joy, humility, hope, and a bold confidence that the Lord is with us.

  • We are not alone. God is on our side.
  • Have courage, faith and confidence because God can overcome all.
  • We can be successful.

Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear

My beloved friends, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, if we ever find ourselves living in fear or anxiety, or if we ever find that our own words, attitudes, or actions are causing fear in others, I pray with all the strength of my soul that we may become liberated from this fear by the divinely appointed antidote to fear: the pure love of Christ, for “perfect love casteth out fear.”20

  • We do not need to be afraid. There is another way. (Think of movies or stories where someone has been poisoned and they, along with their friends and allies, frantically search for the antidote. Fear is a poison of sorts and we’ve just been told that there is an antidote. It will probably take some time and effort to get and apply the antidote. But we know it’s there. Find it! As if your life depended on it.)

Christ’s perfect love overcomes temptations to harm, coerce, bully, or oppress.

Christ’s perfect love allows us to walk with humility, dignity, and a bold confidence as followers of our beloved Savior. Christ’s perfect love gives us the confidence to press through our fears and place our complete trust in the power and goodness of our Heavenly Father and of His Son, Jesus Christ.

In our homes, in our places of business, in our Church callings, in our hearts, let us replace fear with Christ’s perfect love. Christ’s love will replace fear with faith!

  • Love overcomes harm, coercion, bullying and oppression. (This is something to really think about. This doesn’t necessarily mean that to get out of an oppressive situation we need to love our oppressor enough so they’ll change. That often isn’t the right answer. But love can still help us in that situation. We can know that God loves us. We can love ourselves and know we’re worth fighting for. And then Christ’s perfect love can help us heal and move forward. Love can also help us overcome our desire to mistreat someone else.)
  • Through Christ’s love we can have humility, dignity, bold confidence, and faith.
  • Christ’s love is how we replace fear with faith.

His love will enable us to recognize, trust, and have faith in our Heavenly Father’s goodness, His divine plan, His gospel, and His commandments.21 Loving God and our fellowmen will turn our obedience to God’s commandments into a blessing rather than a burden. Christ’s love will help us become a little kinder, more forgiving, more caring, and more dedicated to His work.

  • Christ’s love helps us understand God, His plan for us and other key points of the gospel.
  • Love changes our perspective.

As we fill our hearts with the love of Christ, we will awaken with a renewed spiritual freshness and we will walk joyfully, confidently, awake, and alive in the light and glory of our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ.

I testify, with the Apostle John, “There is no fear in [Christ’s] love.”22 Brothers and sisters, dear friends, God knows you perfectly. He loves you perfectly. He knows what your future holds. He wants you to “be not afraid, only believe”23 and “abide in his [perfect] love.”24 This is my prayer and blessing in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Other Resources (not from President Uchtdorf’s talk):

  • Why It Will All Work Out – blog post from lds.org listing ways to overcome fear
  • Our study group posts about God’s Plan based on a talk from President Uchtdorf helps us see how our knowledge of The Plan gives us a unique perspective about life.
  • Our study group posts about God’s Love based on talks from Elder Christofferson and President Monson.
  • Are You a Secret Agent? – do you know your mission and your special skills? Don’t let fear keep us hiding these things from the world and from ourselves.
  • Amazing Things Song – a song about the power of faith. It’s fitting for our discussion about overcoming fear because we’ve been told that faith is the opposite of fear. I love all the amazing examples of faith in the song. If such great things could happen to all those people because they had some faith, then I know that great things will come my way as I build my faith.

  • Video of a Duck Family Jumping Off a Bridge – I’m sure that many of us can relate to those little ducklings who are standing at the edge of the bridge, vulnerable, nervous, and perhaps even fearful. From their perspective there are quite a few problems with the situation and a big choice to make. But the mama duck was there telling them to push forward, to trust her, that it would be ok. That is the direction, comfort and guidance that is available through Jesus Christ and his teachings. One by one each of those little ducks took a leap of faith. And the more we come to know and trust Christ we can too.

Quotes-MarianneW-BeGreat-plain

Footnotes (from President Uchtdorf’s talk):

  1. George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards are two prominent examples of this kind of preacher.

  2. Doctrine and Covenants 121:37.

  3. Galatians 5:22–23.

  4. On one occasion, the Savior wanted to enter a village of the Samaritans, but the people rejected Jesus and would not receive Him into their village. Two of His disciples were deeply offended by this and asked, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” Jesus answered with this caution: “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them” (see Luke 9:51–56, New King James Version [1982]).

  5. See Moses 1:39; see also Ephesians 3:19.

  6. Exodus 34:6.

  7. See Ephesians 3:19.

  8. See Doctrine and Covenants 121:41. Surely if God expects us, His mortal children, to behave this way toward each other, He—a perfect being possessed of every virtue—would be the model for such behavior.

  9. The premortal Council in Heaven is an excellent case study that demonstrates the character of God. There our Heavenly Father presented His plan for our eternal progression. Key elements of that plan included agency, obedience, and salvation through the Atonement of Christ. Lucifer, however, proposed a different approach. He guaranteed that all would obey—none would be lost. The only way to accomplish this would be through tyranny and force. But our loving Heavenly Father would not permit such a plan. He valued the agency of His children. He knew that we must make mistakes along the way if we are to truly learn. And that is why He provided a Savior, whose eternal sacrifice could cleanse us of sin and permit our entry back into the kingdom of God.

    When our Father in Heaven saw that many of His beloved children were seduced by Lucifer, did He force them to follow His plan? Did He intimidate or threaten those who were making such a terrible choice? No. Our all-powerful God could surely have stopped this rebellion. He could have forced His will upon the dissenters and made them comply. But instead, He allowed His children to choose for themselves.

  10. 2 Timothy 1:7.

  11. See, for example, Joshua 1:9; Isaiah 41:13; Luke 12:32; John 16:33; 1 Peter 3:14; Doctrine and Covenants 6:36; 50:41; 61:36; 78:18.

  12. Luke 12:32.

  13. Doctrine and Covenants 68:11.

  14. Moses’s counsel to the people of his day still applies: “Do not be afraid. … See the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today” (Exodus 14:13, New King James Version).

  15. Deuteronomy 31:6.

  16. Exodus 14:14, New King James Version.

  17. Isaiah 54:17.

  18. John 16:33.

  19. Doctrine and Covenants 90:24; see also 2 Corinthians 2:14; Doctrine and Covenants 105:14.

  20. 1 John 4:18.

  21. Let us remember that the Savior came not “into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17). In fact, “he doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him” (2 Nephi 26:24).

  22. 1 John 4:18; see also 1 John 4:16.

  23. Mark 5:36.

  24. John 15:10.

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 Photo Source: Jesus Sheep


The Plan

Post 3- taking things for granted     Post 4- our identity     Post 5- relationship with God     Post 6- purpose of challenges on earth     Post 7- life after death     Post 8- ponder in your own sacred grove     Post 9- reflect and ponder     Post 10- gratitude     Post 11- seek the spirit daily     Post 12- focus on the good

[The Plan post #1]

We’re going to talk about perspective. Specifically about how knowing God’s plan can help us change our perspective. Our discussion will be based on a talk from General Conference called, “O How Great the Plan of Our God!” by President Uchtdorf.

[The Plan post #2]

Link to video on Mormon Channel.

Think about how the perspective of these two boys changed from the beginning, to the middle, to the end of their experience?

[The Plan post #3] – Taking Things for Granted

I don’t know about you, but I can really relate to this statement from President Uchtdorf. “The more adept I get at technology, the more I take it for granted…. if there is a delay of even a few seconds, we get frustrated and impatient.” The computer is running slow, the internet not working, or messages disappearing before they are sent are some of the most frustrating things. When things with our computers, phones, or tablets don’t work exactly right some of us get really impatient with the device or with ourselves. In those moments it helps me be a little more patient when I realize what I’m expecting to do. I’m expecting to access enormous amounts of information instantaneously without getting off my couch or I am attempting to communicate with someone without leaving my house. It wasn’t that many years ago that this would have seemed miraculous and impossible, but now it is so commonplace that we get impatient and frustrated when our devices don’t work like we know they can.

Think of other inventions that are common to us….toilets, lights, cars, pens, facebook, microwaves…what would life be like without those?

It may not be that big of a deal to overlook the miracle of technology and other inventions whenever we use them, but that same mindset often spills over into other parts of our life and we begin to take for granted things that are familiar or common to us. We know this is and will become more and more of a problem because President Uchtdorf was inspired to discuss this with us in conference. And as a prophet he warns and cautions against trends and habits that can pull us away from the happiness, strength, and peace of the gospel. So when he asks this question, it is one we would do well to contemplate and ponder. He asks,

“Do We Take Spiritual Truths for Granted?”

(The answer is probably yes to some degree. So perhaps we should ask ourselves, “HOW do we take spiritual truths for granted?”)

He continues, “In the Church of Jesus Christ, we have been given so much. We are surrounded by such an astonishing wealth of light and truth that I wonder if we truly appreciate what we have….We tread a path covered with diamonds, but we can scarcely distinguish them from ordinary pebbles.”

uncut diamonds

If you were walking down a path and found the rocks in the picture, would you stop to pick them up? I might, because they are pretty and I like rocks. But if I did, I don’t think I would realize what I had. Those rocks are un-cut diamonds and in that form are certainly not as recognizable as what we think of as a diamond and quite possibly would be overlooked unless we knew what to look for.

Over the next few days we’ll talk about what we have in the gospel, the perspective that can give us and how we can keep that perspective in order to see and recognize the gems in our path.

 

[The Plan post #4] – Our Identity

President Uchtdorf says, “I am grateful that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ has answers to the most complex questions in life. These answers are taught in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are true, plain, straightforward, and easy to understand. They are inspired, and we teach them to our three-year-olds in the Sunbeam class.” Those answers come as we learn about and understand the great plan of our Heavenly Father. That plan is pretty familiar to many of us. We lived with God before this life. We came to earth to get a body and to learn and grow so we could become like God. When we die our body and our spirit will be separated for a time before we are resurrected. Then, if we have kept His commandments, we will live with God again and have all the blessings He has.

Sometimes because we are so familiar with the plan we take it for granted and we don’t feel the power and perspective that comes from the knowledge of our eternal purpose, direction, and possibility.

Let’s start at the beginning. We lived with God before we were born. “We are the literal spirit children of divine, immortal, and omnipotent Heavenly Parents!” That is who we are!

Watch this video about Our True Identity. Afterwards take a moment to just be still and let that powerful truth echo in your soul. I AM A CHILD OF GOD! “This knowledge changes everything…” How has it changed things for you?

Our True Identity Video

[The Plan post #5]

What we learn from knowing God’s Plan…

1) Pre-Earth Life: Identity, Relationship with God

We know we lived with God before we came to earth. We were with our Heavenly Father and Mother there. Sometimes in our lives we struggle to know God. But when we remember that we lived with God before this life, we can remember that we already know God! We had a relationship with Him. “We walked with Him in our premortal life. We heard Him speak, witnessed His majesty, learned His ways.” We felt His love there. We knew how much He believes in us and desires for us.

One day He gathered us (all of our brothers and sisters) together in a big family meeting. I’m sure He told us how pleased He was with us. I’m sure He told us how much more He dreamed we could be. Then He told us about an experience He had planned for us that would help us learn the next things we needed to learn. He told us about earth life and bodies. He told us how having bodies would make choices different and harder. He told us how He would still be there to help us just like He always had, but it would be a little harder for us to see it. I’m sure He told us how more than anything He loves us and wanted us to succeed so we could come back to Him. We knew it was true! We were excited for this new experience. Sure, some of our brothers and sisters were worried about the idea of choices with our new bodies so they chose not to come. But we chose to come! We knew that our brother Jesus Christ would come to earth to give us an example and make a way to overcome the barriers of death and sin that would keep us apart from our Heavenly home. We were so grateful! Grateful for the plan and grateful for all the helps that Father would give us and grateful for what Jesus was willing to do.

All of that is what President Uchtdorf was referring to when he said, “You and I participated in a Grand Council where our beloved Father presented His plan for us—that we would come to earth, receive mortal bodies, learn to choose between good and evil, and progress in ways that would not otherwise be possible.”

So now we are on earth and we can’t remember all of those things, but we can feel it is true. One of those helps that our Heavenly Parents gave to us is the Holy Ghost that witnesses to us of things that are true. As I’m writing this I feel that witness. I know it is true. We already know God. He is there for us whenever, WHENEVER we turn to Him. I know that you can also feel that this is true! Ask Him.

When we know about the purpose of our life we can have an eternal perspective. We can remember that the purpose of our life is to rely on God and learn how to make good choices that will lead us back to where we have always wanted to be. God knew it would be hard for us to keep that goal in focus. That is why He has given us so many helps, including repentance. We know He is a loving, caring, wonderful God. We know His greatest purpose is to help us gain the experiences we need in this life in order to be like He is. Thinking about this makes me a little more eager to kneel each night and pray for His strength, comfort, and guidance. It makes me a little more willing to seek out and endure growing experiences and tackle challenges. Knowing this helps me remember that the difficulties I face (and those I see people I love face) are part of this earthly experience. They are temporary. They can be overcome. And if we turn to God which fighting through them, we will succeed. We will be able to return to our Heavenly Parents and receive all the blessings and happiness that we have been promised!

How does this perspective help you in your challenges?

(This version of the song “O My Father” is sung to a different tune and was created to memory of someone, we see her picture at the end. But think of the words and look at the pictures as you listen. This song says much of what was discussed in this post.)

Other resources:

[The Plan post #6]

What we learn from knowing God’s Plan…

1) Pre-Earth Life: Relationship with God, Identity

2) Earth Life:

Remember, we’re trying to draw power from the knowledge we have and really ponder the significance and implication of what we have been taught, instead of taking it for granted because it is so common and familiar to us. As you read these paragraphs from President Uchtdorf’s talk about our earth life, what do you see that gives you that power?

“When we passed through the veil and entered this mortal life, we knew that we would no longer remember the life before. There would be opposition and adversity and temptation. But we also knew that gaining a physical body was of paramount importance for us. Oh, how we hoped that we would quickly learn to make the correct choices, withstand the temptations of Satan, and eventually return to our beloved Parents in Heaven.”

“We knew we would sin and make mistakes—perhaps even serious ones. But we also knew that our Savior, Jesus Christ, had pledged to come to earth, live a sinless life, and voluntarily lay down His life in an eternal sacrifice. We knew that if we gave our heart to Him, trusted Him, and strived with all the energy of our soul to walk in the path of discipleship, we could be washed clean and once again enter the presence of our beloved Father in Heaven.”

“So, with faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, you and I accepted, by our free will, Heavenly Father’s plan. That is why we are here on this beautiful planet earth—because God offered us the opportunity, and we chose to accept it.”

I see that we knew we would face challenges and we still chose to come here. We knew they would help us grow, in fact we knew we wouldn’t be able to grow without them.

I see that our bodies, imperfect as they are, are the beautiful and essential gift that we were given when we came to earth. We would not be able to have this experience without them. A body is the gift that satan and his followers were not given because they chose not to come to earth. Now they are jealous. So many temptations focus on our body….not liking ourselves because we don’t like how our body looks or works, not taking care of our body in one way or another, or giving in to any number of natural man cravings or tendencies. Those are all things that makes satan happy.

I see that God knew we would make mistakes. He prepared for that in this great plan by having a Savior for us. So as we go through life and come to hard spots, we’re not suppose to handle them on our own  (like the brother in the video in post #2) we can rely on Christ to give us the help we need to make it up and over that challenge. We can feel relief and gratitude to be another step closer to our goal of returning home.

I see that we chose to follow God’s plan before. If we did it before, we have the ability to do it again.

What else do you see in his comments that gives you comfort, strength, or purpose to continue on your journey?

This song helps me remember that our challenges have a purpose. We don’t have trials and hard days just because we are bad. They are a vital part of our journey to be even more of the glorious, wonderful being God knows we are.

[The Plan post #7]

What we learn from knowing God’s Plan…

1) Pre-Earth Life: Relationship with God, Identity

2) Earth Life: Chose to Come, Trials are Part of the Experience, Bodies are a Gift, God Knew We’d Make Mistakes, We Chose God’s Plan Before

3) Life After Death:

 

We’ve talked about great perspective from our earth life and our life before.

“Our mortal life, however, is only temporary and will end with the death of our physical body. But the essence of who you and I are will not be destroyed. Our spirits will continue living and await the Resurrection—a free gift to all by our loving Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. At the Resurrection, our spirits and bodies will be reunited, free from pain and physical imperfections.”

We will live again! We will be reunited with loved ones!  And not only that, our bodies will be made perfect. What great news for anyone who has ever suffered physical pain, deformity or disability. Some of us may think that may mean that our bodies will look really different than they do now, but that may not be the case. God doesn’t view our appearance as imperfect in the same way many of us do.

“After the Resurrection, there will be a Day of Judgment. While all will eventually be saved and inherit a kingdom of glory, those who trust in God and seek to follow His laws and ordinances will inherit lives in the eternities that are unimaginable in glory and overwhelming in majesty. That Day of Judgment will be a day of mercy and love—a day when broken hearts are healed, when tears of grief are replaced with tears of gratitude, when all will be made right.”

Some of us read that statement and immediately disagree, thinking it won’t be a great day for them. We are not the judge! God is. Sometimes we are our own worst critic and that self-judgment ends up holding us back. Leave the judging to our kind, loving, merciful, consistent God. And remember that the final judgement is not a top secret end tally of all our acts on earth. We can talk to God right now, or anytime we want to, and ask Him how we are doing. He will tell us. He will encourage us to move in the right direction. He will help us get there. And He looks at our desires and the direction we’re headed, not how much we’ve done.

As we work with Him to improve and progress we won’t be surprised when we stand before the Savior and the Father one day. We can know they both love us greatly. And if we’ve developed a relationship with Christ in this life and learned to let Him help us, think how wonderful it will be to stand with Him before the Father and to feel once again that our brother and friend, Jesus Christ, has our back as He speaks to the Father in our behalf.

“Yes, there will be deep sorrow because of sin. Yes, there will be regrets and even anguish because of our mistakes, our foolishness, and our stubbornness that caused us to miss opportunities for a much greater future. But I have confidence that we will not only be satisfied with the judgment of God; we will also be astonished and overwhelmed by His infinite grace, mercy, generosity, and love for us, His children.”

__

Quotes are from Dieter F. Uchtdorf.

[The Plan post #8]

Joseph Smith was seeking answers and inspiration from God. He knew what he needed could only come from God. We’ve been talking about God’s great plan and how to make sure we can feel it’s power everyday and not take it for granted. That power can only come from God. Can we follow Joseph’s example and take some time to find a quiet spot to talk to God about it, to ask our questions, and to have Him remind us of what we know? It may be hard to find the time or even a quiet place, but taking time to ponder, to reflect and to let God’s voice (through the Spirit) echo in our soul does bring power and strength into our life. It’s one of the most important things we can do. If we don’t take time to seek out and listen to the voice of God all we will hear is the noise and chaos of voices that are contrary to God’s. Reflecting doesn’t have to take a long time. And if you can’t find a place where it’s quiet or you’re alone, perhaps you could invite the people around you to reflect with you.

I urge you to take a few minutes (now or plan a time for later today). Listen to this song. Then ponder on the amazing truths that God has revealed to you. You could read through the posts from the last few days if you want to. I know that the Spirit will come to you to testify of the importance and truth of God’s wonderful plan.

It would be very appropriate to write down some of the thoughts and feelings that come during these moments. Those feelings, recorded in your own words, can be a great source of strength to you later on.

Please make the effort. Find your own sacred grove. Let God speak to you. I know He will.

[The Plan post #9]

We’ve been talking about the Plan of God which contains so many beautiful, powerful and eternal truths of the gospel. We especially want to know how to make sure we feel the power of those truths in our daily life so we can keep an eternal perspective. President Uchtdorf shares a few key points in these paragraphs from his talk. (Especially pay attention to the second paragraph.)

“…Think of how you felt when for the first time you believed and understood that you are truly a child of God; that Jesus Christ willingly suffered for your sins so that you may be clean again; that priesthood power is real and can bind you to your loved ones for time and for all eternity; that there is a living prophet on the earth today. Isn’t that wonderful and amazing?

“Considering all of this, how could it ever be possible that we of all people would not be excited about attending our Church worship services? Or get tired of reading the holy scriptures? I suppose this could be possible only if our hearts were past feeling to experience gratitude and awe for the sacred and sublime gifts God has granted us. Life-changing truths are before our eyes and at our fingertips, but sometimes we sleepwalk on the path of discipleship. Too often we let ourselves be distracted by the imperfections of our fellow members instead of following the example of our Master.”

Even though he wonders how it’s possible, many of us do have those times when we aren’t excited to go to church and we don’t take time to read our scriptures. I believe he is telling us the cause (or the solution) for those things. So, what else do you see in his message? How can we make sure we keep an eternal perspective? How can we make sure to feel the power of the gospel truths that we know instead of taking them for granted? (Go back and re-read that paragraph.)

One way he said that we become “past feeling” or take for granted the power of the plan is when we don’t feel “awe” for what we know. That is what we talked about yesterday…taking times to ponder and reflect so we can know and feel the majesty and power of the truth we are so familiar with. (It’s not too late to read and do the challenge from yesterday’s post if you haven’t, or do it again if you have).

What other things do you see in that paragraph that can help us?

[The Plan post #10]

Gratitude is another way we can keep the right perspective and not take gospel truths for granted. It seems that gratitude keeps coming up in our discussions. That says to me that it must be a powerful tool.

The gratitude we’re talking about, the kind that changes our perspective and lifts us up, isn’t a simple, automatic thank you we may say without thinking about it. It is the kind of gratitude where we take a deep breath, think about how our life would be without a certain thing, and then with feeling that reaches our soul we say words that somehow feel inadequate…”thank you!”

That heartfelt gratitude can be for simple things like pens, for more complex things like toilets and electronics, and it can certainly be for eternal and life changing things like friends and the Atonement. But whatever we’re feeling thankful for, gratitude is a habit we can create in ourselves. It seems to go along with taking time to reflect and ponder that we just discussed. So how do you get in, or strengthen, a grateful habit?

Here are some ideas that might help:

  • Choose to express more gratitude in your prayers. Pick a number like 1, or 5, or more. Every time you pray say that number of things you’re grateful for before you move onto the rest of your prayer. Don’t always say the same things. And if at first you can’t think of that number keep thinking!
  • Set a goal to express gratitude to a certain number of people or a certain number of times in a day. Make a sign to remind you.
  • Play the Grateful Game with someone. Say something you’re grateful for and then they say something they are grateful for. And then it’s your turn again. It may sound silly when we call it a game, but this simple activity can help pull you out of a negative perspective and because you are with someone else you may see blessings you didn’t already see. You could also try to list something that you’re grateful for that begins with each letter of the alphabet.
  • Write something in a gratitude journal every day! We’ve mentioned President Eyring and his gratitude journal several times before, but that is because it is a powerful tool for increasing gratitude and awareness of our blessings. 
  • Ask someone else to share something they are grateful for. You could tell them that you’re trying to be more grateful and then share something you’re grateful for with them.
  • Pray to see your blessings more clearly or to be more grateful.

For more thoughts you can look back on the posts about Gratitude in this study group. 

[The Plan post #11]

How to feel the power of gospel truths daily:

  1. Reflect & Ponder
  2. Gratitude

I have been in many young women classes where I have asked the girls when they felt the spirit. Often the answer was something like, “This past summer at girl’s camp.” Although I wouldn’t say it out loud, my mind would say, “What? That was months ago!” I’m pretty sure these girls were referring to when they had a memorable and powerful spiritual experience. But I really hoped that it wasn’t their most recent one. We can have spiritual experiences much more often than that!

How about you? When was the last time you felt the Spirit? When was the last time you had a powerful Spiritual experience?

Perhaps you have to think back a while.

Perhaps it’s been really recent.

Perhaps you’re like me and have a bad memory so you can’t remember.

Whatever the case, it’s important to know that God didn’t intend for us to have one monumental spiritual experience to carry us through our whole life. If that was the case then I don’t think He would have given us the Holy Ghost as our constant companion or made it so we have time during the sacrament each week to ponder and feel the Spirit. Sure, we can have experiences that we remember for a long time, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t continually seek to feel and be guided by the Spirit. Even Joseph Smith who had a very powerful spiritual experience with the First Vision continually sought and was blessed with more answers, guidance and heavenly help. And he wrote it down. (That’s something that can help all of us, especially those of us who have a hard time remembering spiritual moments.)

As we’re trying to keep an eternal perspective and feel the power of gospel truths daily, in addition to reflecting on what we know about the gospel and expressing gratitude, we can also continually seek learning and spiritual experiences. We can pray for them. We can make sure we’re doing things that God has asked us to do (pray, read scriptures, go to church) so we are where we should be, in the mindset we should be in and ready to receive His answers. For Joseph Smith, spiritual moments seemed to come when He had a question and asked God about it. That is something we can do as well.

This video is the theme video for the youth for 2017 (based on James 1:5-6 which lead Joseph to the sacred grove to pray). It reminds us that when we ask God He will answer. When we ask God for spiritual experiences He will answer! Then it’s up to us to act on that answer. When we do, we will feel closer to God. We will learn and feel spiritual witnesses of great eternal truths. We will be guided to do things that will lead us to more spiritual experiences. We will be able to have those moments often and powerfully!

[The Plan post #12]

How to feel the power of gospel truths daily:

1- Reflect & Ponder

2- Gratitude

3- Seek learning and spiritual experiences daily

4-

We have talked about quite a few “life-changing truths” we have in the gospel. And so far we have talked about 3 things we can do to not take them for granted. Let’s talk about one more.

President Uchtdorf says, “Life-changing truths are before our eyes and at our fingertips, but sometimes we sleepwalk on the path of discipleship. Too often we let ourselves be distracted by the imperfections of our fellow members instead of following the example of our Master.”

He seems to be saying that sometimes we focus on the wrong things. Instead of focusing on the powerful truths of the gospel and letting that motivate us and guide our experiences, we focus on actions of the people at church. Unfortunately since we aren’t perfect, those actions are also less than perfect.

Have you heard the saying, whatever you look for you will find? It’s true.

If you look to see the mistakes people make, you’ll see them.

If you look to see how hard people are trying, you can see that.

If you look to see how how someone made your life harder, you’ll see that.

If you look to see how much God loves someone (even yourself), He will show you that.

If you look for the bad, that is what you will see.

But if you look for the good, that is what you will see.

The actual situation or events aren’t different. It’s our perspective of things that change because of what we’re looking for. Look at the picture.

frog-and-horse

What animals do you see? There are two.

Just like in that picture, in the circumstances in our life we can train ourselves to take a second look to see what else we can see. Our past experiences have trained us to look at things in certain ways. We can choose to keep looking at things that way or we can choose to look at things differently.

We go to church to learn the gospel of Jesus Christ. We go to church to renew our covenants with God during the sacrament. Those two things, believe it or not, are not totally dependent on anyone else…not even the speakers or teachers. Mostly our experience is up to us and our preparation. If we come to church prepared to learn we will be taught by the Holy Ghost no matter what happens with other people.

What about if the speaker is boring? What about if my kids are noisy and take all my focus? What if other people’s kids are noisy? What about….etc, etc, etc. With all of these questions the focus is on the people and not the gospel. We can prepare to go to church. We can try our best to be reverent and listen attentively. Both of those things may be different for each person. But when we do those things, like God has asked us to do, we will receive the blessings promised us and we’ll be taught by the Spirit. The teaching may happen at church, it may happen later. But the blessings will come.

We also go to church to build unity with a ward family to provide strength and support for each of us against the chaos of the world. This one does have to do with other people. But in this case, just like before, when we focus on the gospel instead of the imperfections of people we will be much better off. We’ll see people as children of God. We’ll see that we all struggle (with the same or different things). We’ll see that we all need God. We’ll see that we all say things we wish we didn’t. We’ll see that we’re all learning to do things better than we did before. We’ll see that God is the judge and no one else. We’ll see that we can help each other. We’ll see that most of the time people are trying to do their best.

Let us focus on the remarkable truths of the gospel. Let us try to be like the Savior, understanding and non-judgmental of others. Let us try to find ways to build each other. Let us ponder on the truths of the gospel and let us share those uplifting thoughts and feelings with others. When we make that effort I think we will be in awe at the glory of the gospel and the magnificence of each of the unique children of God.

Photo Sources: Uncut Diamonds  Frog/Horse


Making a Better Choice

Does your child ever wonder how the Holy Ghost can help them? Do you want your child to make choices that will help them be happy? Do you need examples of how prayer can help your family?

If so, reading and discussing this story from the Friend magazine could be a way to help.

Ways you could use this article:

  • Read the story together and talk about it.
  • Have your child read the story and the tell you what it’s about.
  • Teach, or assign your child to teach, a Family Home Evening lesson about the story.

Title: Goodbye to Scary Stories

Author: Laurie Fuller

Source Title: Friend Magazine

Publication Date: June 2016

Age Range: 3-12

Description: A girl uses her Agency to read scary books. The Holy Ghost helps her know she will be happier if she stops reading them so she listens to the spirit and decides to stop reading those types of books.

Possible Lessons/Morals:
You have the power to choose your own happiness by making small choices for good.
We are given agency to choose the outcome of our lives.
Seemingly small daily choices impact our lives in the big picture. (Alma 37:6)

Discussion Questions (To talk about what happened, summarize what skills were used and discuss how those skills could be used in other situations.):
What does this girl need to decide?
What is the problem this girl is facing?
What does she do to help her make her choice?
What does she do to solve this problem?
What things in your life can you change to help you be happier?
How can you use your agency to have control in your life?

After discussing this story you may want to try this activity.

 

 

 



Following Our Liahona

Ponder or discuss Alma’s reminder to follow the words of Christ (Alma 37:38-46). Combine that discussion with any of these compass activities for Family Home Evening or use the scriptures for family study one day and follow it up with a family activity later in the week.

Scriptures

In Alma 37:38-46, Alma talks to his son Helman about their forefathers’ experience with the Liahona and how that is an analogy for us in our lives.

A few questions to ask while reading and discussing these scriptures:

  • What is the Liahona? What did it do? How did it work?
  • Nephi’s family had this compass that miraculously guided them. That seems like such an amazing and vital tool. How could those using the Liahona forget to do what they needed to do to make it work?
  • What happened when they didn’t follow the compass?
  • The word “easy” is used in vs 44 and vs 46. How is the way easy? What else could easy mean? (clearly marked, explained and defined; simple and repetitive; small actions that lead to big results)
  • What things are like our Liahona, to guide us back to Heavenly Father? (Holy Ghost, scriptures, commandments, Prophets, etc)
  • Where did the Liahona lead Nephi’s family?
  • Where will the words of Christ lead us?
  • Those with the Liahona didn’t always follow it. In what ways do we follow that same pattern? What choices can we make to change that?

 



Strength Through the Holy Ghost

“[There is a] divine source of strength. It is a source often underestimated, yet it can be used daily to lighten our load and guide our precious children. That source is the guiding gift of the Holy Ghost.” – Mary R. Durham from April 2016 General Conference

Ways to Talk About “A Child’s Guiding Gift”

by Mary R. Durham from April 2016 General Conference:

(Quotes listed here are from that talk unless otherwise noted.)

  • Read, tell, or watch the story at the beginning of this talk about the man who starts to sink while swimming across a lake. His wet shoes were weighing him down.
  • Play or show a video of President Monson speaking (like this one), then start adding distractions (a loud song or a show playing, kids role playing an argument, etc) until they are loud enough that you can’t hear President Monson anymore. Discuss ways to make sure you don’t let the noise of the world overcome the voice of the Spirit

“We live in ‘a noisy and busy world. … If we are not careful, the things of this world can [drown] out the things of the Spirit.'” (Mary R. Durham quoting Joseph B. Wirthlin)

  • Have someone hold their arms straight out. Stack books on their arms. For dramatic effect you may want to place the books on their arms one at a time. (Choose the size and amount of books depending on the person who will be doing this activity. An older child can probably hold more.) Don’t add too many they can’t hold it, but add enough that they’ll get tired quickly and need to stop. You can always add another book or two if they don’t get tired quickly enough.
    • As they are getting tired, ask the person and the group what would help them be able to hold the books longer…
      • One idea would be to take some books away (go ahead and take some away, but not all of them).
      • Another idea might be to support their arms somehow (go ahead and let them support their arms, not by bending them, but by resting them on something like someone’s shoulder or the back of a chair or by having other people support the person’s arms with their own hands).
      • Listen to other ideas that people suggest. Try them out if they would work with the message you are presenting.
    • Discuss how that support is helpful.
    • Use quotes or other ideas listed here to connect this experience to life:
      • The books are weighing him/her down. Discuss what things weigh us down every day.
      • Sometimes the Holy Ghost helps us know how to set those weights down. But we still have to hold other weights, bear other challenges, so He helps and supports us as we hold them.

“Feeling and recognizing the Spirit will bring spiritual capacity into our children’s lives, and the voice they come to know will become clearer and clearer to them. It will be as Elder Richard G. Scott said: ‘As you gain experience and success in being guided by the Spirit, your confidence in the impressions you feel can become more certain than your dependence on what you see or hear.’”

  • We can increase our capacity to receive help from the Holy Ghost.
    • If you use the book experience above, you could point out that just as an older child would be able to hold more books because he/she has grown stronger, with time and effort we can also increase our capacity for receiving the Holy Ghost and knowing how to use that skill. It is something we can learn and develop and improve.
    • With young kids, discuss things that they have learned how to do (dress themselves, tie shoes, read etc). Being able to hear and recognize the Holy Ghost is something they can learn too. And the more they practice the easier it will become.
  • We can make the effort to learn to recognize His voice.
    • Samuel learns to hear the voice of the Lord. (1 Samuel 3:4-10 or the summary from this talk)
    • “Sometimes…[children] don’t realize that a recurring thought, a feeling of comfort after they cry, or remembering something at just the right time are all ways that the Holy Ghost communicates [with them].”
    • Use any of the stories, scriptures and songs below as examples of how the Holy Ghost can speak to us.
    • A book like “The Holy Ghost Is Like a Blanket” by Annalisa Hall could be used to talk to kids about what the Holy Ghost might feel like to them.

To Consider

Parents, remember that we are trying to teach our children these skills so they will understand them and know how to use them on their own.

“How do we as parents increase the spiritual capacity of our little ones? How do we teach them to kick off worldly influences and trust the Spirit when we are not with them and they are alone in the deep waters of their lives?”

Here are 3 things to help us do that: “First, we can bring to our children’s attention when they are hearing and feeling the Spirit….Second, we can prepare our homes and our children to feel the still, small voice….Third, we can help our children understand how the Spirit speaks to them. “

Resources

  • Scriptures
    • Mosiah 24:12-15 – The Lord lifts the burdens of a righteous people in bondage.
    • 3 Nephi 27:20 – The Holy Ghost sanctifies and cleanses us.
    • Moroni 10:4-7 – By the power of the Holy Ghost you may know the truth of all things.
    • John 14:26 – The comforter will teach all things and bring all things to your remembrance.
    • D&C 9:8-9 – Study out a decision in your mind and go to the Lord for confirmation. If it is right, you will have a warm feeling and know it is right.
  • Songs
  • Articles & Stories
    • Yichen prayed when she was scared. The Holy Ghost removed the fear from her mind. “I Felt the Holy Ghost” by Yichen, Age 6, Taiwan in the Friend, June 2014.
    • A young girl and her friend find a wallet on the sidewalk. Instead of returning it they spend some of the money. The Holy Ghost helps the girl do the right thing by sending feelings of guilt and sorrow. “Lost and Found” by Shyrl L. Sevey in the Friend, July 1995.
    • As a young boy, Elder Cardon feels the Holy Ghost with overwhelming emotion. “The Holy Ghost is Real” by Elder Craig A. Cardon in the Friend, December 2007.
    • Melissa gets baptised and realizes that the Holy Ghost can help her do better in school. “My Companion” by S. Melissa Ochsenhirt in the Friend, May 2006.
    • A young woman feels the prompting of the Holy Ghost in a recurring thought/idea. “What if I don’t Feel a Burning in the Bosom?” by Rachel Nielsen in the New Era, June 2014.
    • Elder Clark’s Mission President felt the Holy Ghost to send him to another area at the end of his mission. He just felt the decision was right. Elder Clark was needed to help a mother find her daughter. “Becoming What You Want to Be” by Elder Don R. Clarke in the New Era, January 2011.
    • Renee heard the Holy Ghost speak, “Stop!” She listened and was kept safe from a falling snow pile. “Stop!” by Barbara J. Jones in the Friend, February 1998.
  • The footnotes of the talk reference several other articles. Check those out for more information and inspiration.

As always, TAKE & TWEAK these ideas to fit your needs.