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Friday, July 13, 2012

Personal Revelation

1. “The more closely you follow divine guidance, the greater will be your happiness here and for eternity.” 

2. “Experiences of prompting and prayer are not uncommon in the Church. They are part of 
    the revelation our Heavenly Father has provided for us.”
    (Boyd K.Packer, Prayer and PromptingsOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)

3. “Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will 
    exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving 
    unto you this word of wisdom by revelation.” [D&C 89:4] 
    (L. Aldin Porter,  The Revelations of Heaven, October 1994http://www.lds.org/)


4. "Prayer is so essential a part of revelation that without it the veil may remain closed to you. Learn to 
    pray. Pray often. Pray in your mind, in your heart. Pray on your knees."
    (Boyd K Packer,  Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
    http://www.lds.org/)

5. "Following baptism, in the ordinance of confirmation, you received the giftof the Holy Ghost.
    While the Holy Ghost may inspire all mankind, the gift carries the right to have it as a “constant  
    companion.”  It is “by the power of the Holy Ghost [that you] may know the truth of all things.” 7
    We are told that “angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost.”  We are even told that when we 
    speak by the power of the Holy Ghost, we “speak with the tongue [or in the same language] of 
    angels.”  
   (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
    http://www.lds.org/)

6. "You must begin where you are. Pray, even if you are like the prophet Alma when he was young and 
    wayward, or if you are like Amulek, of the closed mind, who “knew concerning these things, yet … 
   would not know.” 
    (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994)

7. "Prayer is your personal key to heaven. The lock is on your side of the veil."
    (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
     http://www.lds.org/)

8. “You have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no       
     thought save it was to ask me. “But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; 
     then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within 
     you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.”  This burning in the bosom is not purely a physical 
     sensation. It is more like a warm light shining within your being."
    (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
     http://www.lds.org/)
9. "The Holy Ghost speaks with a voice that you feel more than you hear. It is described as a “still 
     small voice.”  And while we speak of “listening” to the whisperings of the Spirit, most often one 
     describes a spiritual prompting by saying, “I had a feeling …”
     
     The Prophet Joseph Smith explained: “A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the 
     spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you 
     sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon; … 
     those things that were presented unto your minds by the Spirit of God, will come to pass; and thus by 
     learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until 
     you become perfect in Christ Jesus.” 
     Revelation comes as words we feel more than hear. Nephi told his wayward brothers, who were 
     visited by an angel, “Ye were past feeling,that ye could not feel his words.”  
     (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
     http://www.lds.org/)

10. "The flow of revelation depends on your faith. You exercise faith by causing, or by making, your 
      mind accept or believe as truth that which you cannot, by reason alone, prove for certainty."
     (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
     http://www.lds.org/)

11. "Prelude music, reverently played, is nourishment for the spirit. It invites inspiration."
      (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
      http://www.lds.org/)

12. "The Lord reveals His will through dreams and visions, visitations, through angels, through His 

      own voice, and through the voice of His servants. “Whether by mine own voice,” He said, “or by 
      the voice of my servants, it is the same.” 
     (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
     http://www.lds.org/)

13. "You may receive revelation individually, as a parent for your family, or for those for whom you 
      are responsible as a leader or teacher, having been properly called and set apart.
      If one becomes critical and harbors negative feelings, the Spirit will withdraw. Only when
      they repent will the Spirit return. My experience is that the channels of inspiration always follow 
      that order.  You are safe following your leaders."
      (Boyd K Packer, Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise, October 1994
      http://www.lds.org/)

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Atonement


1. “If you have been abused, Satan will strive to convince you that there is no  
    solution. Yet he knows perfectly well that there is. Satan recognizes that healing comes thorugh 
    unwavering love of Heavenly Father for each of His children.  He also understand that the power of 
    healing is inherent in the Atonement of Jesus Christ.” 
   (Richard G Scott, To Heal the Shattering Consequences of Abuse, April 2008http://www.lds.org/)

2. “Remember that a full cure comes through the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, our 
   master and Redeemer. Have faith that with effort His perfect, eternal, infinite Atonement can heal 
   your suffering from the consequences of abuse.”
   (Richard G Scott, To Heal the Shattering  Consequences of AbuseApril 2008http://www.lds.org/)

3. “Prophecies foretelling the life and mission of Jesus Christ promise us the deliverance 
    that  He will provide.  His Atonement and Resurrection provide all of us an escape from physical 
    death and, if we repent, an escape from spiritual death, bringing with it the blessings of eternal life.    
    The cost of the Atonement was borne by the Lord without compulsion, for agency is a sovereign  
    principle. According to the plan, agency must be honored.  
    (L.Tom Perry, The Power of Deliverance, April 2012http://www.lds.org/)

4. "The Atonement was absolutely essential for men to cleanse themselves from sin and overcome the 
    second death, which is the spiritual death, which is separation from our Father in Heaven. For the 
    scriptures tell us, seven times they tell us, that no unclean thing may enter the presence of God." 
    (Boyd K Packer, Who Is Jesus Christ? http://jesuschrist.lds.org/SonOfGod/eng/his-life-and-
    teachings/articles/who-is-jesus-christ

5. "You should learn while you are young that while the Atonement of Christ applies to humanity in 
    general, the influence of it is individual, very personal, and very useful. Even to you beginners, an 
    understanding of the Atonement is of immediate and very practical value in everyday life" 
    (Boyd K. Packer, WashedClean, April 1997 General Conference)

6. "You need not know everything before the power of the Atonement will work for you. Have faith in 
    Christ; it begins to work the day you ask!" 
    (Boyd K. Packer, Washed Clean, April 1997http://www.lds.org/).

7. "As you conscientiously study the Atonement and exercise your faith that Jesus Christ has the power 
    to heal, you can receive the same blessed relief. During your journey of recovery, accept His 
    invitation to let Him share your burden until you have sufficient time and strength to be healed....  
    Satan will strive to alienate you from your Father in Heaven with the thought that if He loved you He 
    would have prevented the tragedy. Do not be kept from the very source of true healing by the *
    craftiness of the prince of evil and his wicked lies. Recognize that if you have feelings that you are 
    not loved by your Father in Heaven, you are being manipulated by Satan. Even when it may seem 
    very difficult to pray, kneel and ask Father in Heaven to give you the capacity to trust Him and to feel 
    His love for you. Ask to come to know that His Son can heal you through His merciful Atonement" 
   (Richard G. Scott, To Heal the ShatteringConsequences of AbuseApril 2008http://www.lds.org/).


8. "This and many other scriptures testify to us there is hope for the addicted, and this hope comes 
    through the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ and by humbling oneself before God, pleading to be 
    freed of the bondage of addiction and offering our whole soul to Him in fervent prayer.... And for 
    those of you who have fallen prey to any kind of addiction, there is hope because God loves all of 
    His children and because the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ makes all things possible. I have 
    seen the marvelous blessing of recovery that can set one free from the chains of addiction. The Lord 
    is our Shepherd, and we shall not want as we trust in the power of the Atonement. I know the Lord 
    can and will free the addicted from their bondage, for as the Apostle Paul proclaimed, 'I can do all 
    things through Christ which strengtheneth me' (Philippians 4:13). I pray, my brothers and sisters, that 
    this may be so with those who may be struggling with this challenge at this time in their lives..." 
    (M. Russell Ballard, O That Cunning Plan of the Evil One, October 2010 http://www.lds.org/ ).


9. "That secure healing comes through the power of the Atonement of His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to 
    rectify that which is unjust. Faith in Jesus Christ and in His power to heal provides the abused with 
    the means to overcome the terrible consequences of another's unrighteous acts. When combined with 
    complete repentance, the Atonement also affords the perpetrator a way to avoid the severe 
    punishment the Lord has decreed for such acts" 
    (Richard G. Scott, To Heal the Shattering Consequences of AbuseApril 2008,
     http://www.lds.org/).


10. "Brothers and sisters, I believe that if we could truly understand the Atonement of the Lord Jesus 
      Christ, we would realize how precious is one son or daughter of God. I believe our Heavenly 
      Father's everlasting purpose for His children is generally achieved by the small and simple things 
      we do for one another. At the heart of the English word atonement is the word one. If all mankind 
      understood this, there would never be anyone with whom we would not be concerned, regardless 
      of age, race, gender, religion, or social or economic standing. We would strive to emulate the 
      Savior and would never be unkind, indifferent, disrespectful, or insensitive to others. If we truly 
      understood the Atonement and the eternal value of each soul, we would seek out the wayward boy 
      and girl and every other wayward child of God. We would help them to know of the love Christ has 
      for them. We would do all that we can to help prepare them to receive the saving ordinances of the 
      gospel" 
      (M. Russell Ballard, The Atonement and the Value of One SoulApril 2004
       http://www.lds.org/).


11. Thankfully, Jesus Christ courageously fulfilled this sacrifice in ancient Jerusalem. There in the 
      quiet isolation of the Garden of Gethsemane, He knelt among the gnarled olive trees, and in some 
      incredible way that none of us can fully comprehend, the Savior took upon Himself the sins of the 
      world. Even though His life was pure and free of sin, He paid the ultimate penalty for sin—yours, 
      mine, and everyone who has ever lived. His mental, emotional, and spiritual anguish were so great 
      they caused Him to bleed from every pore (see Luke 22:44D&C 19:18). And yet Jesus suffered 
      willingly so that we might all have the opportunity to be washed clean—through having faith in 
      Him, repenting of our sins, being baptized by proper priesthood authority, receiving the purifying 
      gift of the Holy Ghost by confirmation, and accepting all other essential ordinances. Without the 
      Atonement of the Lord, none of these blessings would be available to us, and we could not become 
      worthy and prepared to return to dwell in the presence of God. 
     (M. Russell Ballard, The Atonement and the Value of One SoulApril 2004http://www.lds.org/).


Temple


1. Spiritual progress is attained through the steps of faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of 
    the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end, including the endowment and sealing ordinances of the 
    holy temple.” 
    (Elder Russell M. Nelson, Thanks Be to God, April 2012http://www.lds.org/)

2. “No sacrifice is too great to have the blessings of an eternal marriage. By making 
    and keeping sacred temple convenants, we evidence our love for God, for our companion, and 
    our real regard for our posterity- even those yet unborn. Our family is the focus of our greatest 
    work and joy in this life; so it will be throughout eternity, when we can inherit thrones,  .   .
    kingdoms, principalities, powers, dominions, exaltation and glory.” 
   (Russel M Nelson, Set in Order Thy House, Ensign, November 2001.)

3. What a privilege it is to be able to go to the temple, where we may experience 
    the sanctifying influence of the Spirit of the Lord. Great service is given when we perform   
   vicarious ordinances for those who have gone beyond the veil. In many cases we do not know 
   those for whom we perform the work. We expect no thanks, nor do we have the assurance that 
   they will accept that which we offer. However, we serve, and in that process we attain that which 
   comes of no other effort: we literally become saviors on Mount Zion. As our Savior gave His life 
   as a vicarious sacrifice for us, so we, in some small measure, do the same when we perform 
   proxy work in the temple for those who have no means of moving forward unless something is 
   done for them by those of us here on the earth. 
   (Thomas S. Monson, Until We Meet Again, April 2009http://www.lds.org/)

4. There is nothing that … will come into your family as important as the sealing blessings. There is 
    nothing more important than honoring the marriage and family covenants you … will make in 
    the temples of God. 
    (Henry B Eyring, Families Under Covenant, April 2012http://www.lds.org/)

5. Every temple is a house of God, filling the same functions and with identical blessings and 
    ordinances. 
    (Thomas S Monson, The Holy Temple- A Beacon to the WorldApril 2011, http://www.lds.org/)

6. To you parents of young children, may I share with you some sage advice from President 
    Spencer W. Kimball. Said he: “It would be a fine thing if … parents would have in every 
    bedroom in their house a picture of the temple so [their children] from the time [they are] [s] 
    could look at the picture every day [until] it becomes a part of [their lives]. When [they reach] 
    the age that [they need] to make [the] very important decision [concerning going to the temple], 
    it will have already been made.” Our children sing in Primary:  I love to see the temple. I’ll go 
    inside someday. I’ll cov’nant with my Father; I’ll promise to obey.  I plead with you to teach 
    your children of the temple’s importance. 
    (Thomas S Monson, The Holy Temple- A Beacon to the WorldApril 2011http://www.lds.org/)


7. If you have not yet been to the temple or if you have been but currently do not qualify for a 
    recommend, there is no more important goal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to 
    the temple.
   (Thomas S Monson, The Holy Temple- A Beacon to the WorldApril 2011http://www.lds.org/)
8. The all-important and crowning blessings of membership in the Church are those blessings which 
    we receive in the temples of God. 
   (Thomas S Monson, The Holy Temple- A Beacon to the WorldApril 2011http://www.lds.org/)

9. As you and I go to the holy houses of God, as we remember the covenants we make within, we 
   will be more able to bear every trial and to overcome each temptation. In this sacred sanctuary 
   we will find peace; we will be renewed and fortified. 
   (Thomas S Monson, The Holy Temple- A Beacon to the WorldApril 2011http://www.lds.org/)


10. “Temple. One other word is equal in importance to a Latter-day Saint. Home. Put the words 
      holy temple and home together, and you have described the house of the Lord!”
      (Boyd K. Packer, The Temple, the Priesthood,” Ensign, May 1993) 


11. "The temple provides purpose for our lives. It brings peace to our souls—not the peace 
     provided by men but the peace promised by the Son of God when He said, “Peace I leave with 
     you, my peace I give unto you.” 
     (Thomas S. Monson, Blessings of the Temple, Liahona, October 2010)

Repentance

1. "It is not easy, but life was never meant to be either easy or fair. Repentance and 
    lasting hope that forgiveness brings will always be worth the effort." 
    (Boyd K Packer, And A Little Child Shall Lead Them, April 2012, http://www.lds.org/)


2. It is never too late so long as the Master of the vineyard says there is time
    Please listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit telling you right now, this very moment, that you 
    should accept the atoning gift of the Lord Jesus Christ and enjoy the fellowship of His labor. Don’t 
    delay. (Jeffrey R. Holland, The Laborers in the Vineyard, April 2012http://www.lds.org/)


3. I readily confess that I would find no peace, neither happiness nor safety, in a world without 
    repentance. I do not know what I should do if there were no way for me to erase my mistakes. The 
    agony would be more than I could bear. It may be otherwise with you, but not with me. 
    (Boyd K. Packer, Atonement, Agency, Accountability, April 1988http://www.lds.org/)

4. If any has stumbled in her journey, I promise you that there is a way back. The process is called 
    repentance. Our Savior died to provide you and me that blessed gift. Though the path is difficult, the 
    promise is real. Said the Lord: “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as 
    snow.” “And I will remember [them] no more.” 
    (Thomas S. Monson, Dare to Stand Alone, October 2011http://www.lds.org/)


5. We have all made incorrect choices. If we have not already corrected such choices, I assure you that 
    there is a way to do so. The process is called repentance. I plead with you to correct your mistakes. 
    Our Savior died to provide you and me that blessed gift. Although the path is not easy, the promise is 
    real: “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”10 “And I, the Lord, remember 
    them no more.”11 Don’t put your eternal life at risk. If you have sinned, the sooner you begin to make 
    your way back, the sooner you will find the sweet peace and joy that come with the miracle of 
    forgiveness. (Thomas S. Monson, The Three Rs of Choice, October 2010 http://www.lds.org/)


6. Repentance is a blessing to all of us. We each need to feel the Savior’s arms of mercy through the 
    forgiveness of our sins. 
    (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal You, October 2009, http://www.lds.org/)


7. It is the beckoning of a loving Father and His Only Begotten Son to be more than we are, to reach up 
    to a higher way of life, to change, and to feel the happiness of keeping the commandments. Being 
    disciples of Christ, we rejoice in the blessing of repenting and the joy of being forgiven. They 
    become part of us, shaping the way we think and feel.
    (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)


8. Repentance is turning away from some things, such as dishonesty, pride, anger, and impure thoughts, 
    and turning toward other things, such as kindness, unselfishness, patience, and spirituality. It is “re-
    turning” toward God.
    (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)

9. Repentance becomes part of our daily lives. Our weekly taking of thesacrament is so important—to 
    come meekly, humbly before the Lord, acknowledging our dependence upon Him, asking Him to 
    forgive and to renew us, and promising to always remember Him.
    (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)


10. Sometimes in our repentance, in our daily efforts to become more Christlike, we find ourselves 
      repeatedly struggling with the same difficulties. As if we were climbing a tree-covered mountain, at 
      times we don’t see our progress until we get closer to the top and look back from the high ridges. 
      Don’t be discouraged. If you are striving and working to repent, you are in the process of repenting.
     (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)

11. As we honestly confess our sins, restore what we can to the offended, and forsake our sins by 
      keeping the commandments, we are in the process of receiving forgiveness. With time, we will feel 
      the anguish of our sorrow subside, taking “away the guilt from our hearts” 28 and bringing “peace of 
      conscience.” 29
     (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)

12. The scriptures warn us, “Do not procrastinate the day of your repentance.”31 But, in this life, it is 
      never too late to repent.
    (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)


13. Repentance not only changes us, but it also blesses our families and those we love. With our 
      righteous repentance, in the timetable of the Lord, the lengthened-out arms of the Savior will not 
      only encircle us but will also extend into the lives of our children and posterity. Repentance always 
      means that there is greater happiness ahead.
     (Neil L. Andersen, Repent...That I May Heal YouOctober 2009, http://www.lds.org/)