Face in the Same Direction

 Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "By This All Will Know That You Are My Disciples"

"The unity we seek is not to have everyone stand in the same place it is to have everyone face in the same direction--- toward Jesus Christ. We are one not because of where we've been but where we are striving to go, not because of who we are but who we seek to become. 

That is what Christ's true Church is all about."

Sleeping in a Garage Doesn't Make You a Car

 

“Ye Are My Friends”

By Elder David L. Buckner

Of the Seventy

My father often reminded me that simply sitting in a pew on Sunday doesn’t make you a good Christian any more than sleeping in a garage makes you a car.

We must live our life so that the world does not see us but sees Him through us. This does not take place only on Sundays. It takes place at the grocery store, the gas pump, the school meeting, the neighborhood gathering—all places where baptized and unbaptized members of our family work and live.

Sanctified, Grace by Grace, to have the Attributes of Christ

 

Brothers and Sisters in the Lord

By Elder Gerrit W. Gong

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

We can be sanctified as, grace by grace, we learn and make our own the attributes of Jesus Christ—to love more fully, forgive more easily, judge less readily, serve and sacrifice more willingly, exemplify compassion more deeply and more often.

Spend Time With Jesus Christ

 

And They Sought to See Jesus Who He Was

By Elder James W. McConkie III

Of the Seventy

As our family entered the mission field, something Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin taught went with us. In a talk titled “The Great Commandment,” Elder Wirthlin asked, “Do you love the Lord?” His counsel to those of us who would answer yes was simple and profound: “Spend time with Him. Meditate on His words. Take His yoke upon you. Seek to understand and obey.”² Elder Wirthlin then promised transformative blessings to those willing to give time and place to Jesus Christ...

For me, for Laurel, and for our missionaries, spending time with Jesus in the scriptures changed everything. We gained a deeper appreciation for who He was and what was important to Him. Together we considered how He taught, what He taught, the ways He showed love, what He did to bless and serve, His miracles, how He responded to betrayal, what He did with difficult human emotions, His titles and names, how He listened, how He resolved conflict, the world He lived in, His parables, how He encouraged unity and kindness, His capacity to forgive and to heal, His sermons, His prayers, His atoning sacrifice, His Resurrection, His gospel...

With that telling of Mark 2 in mind, several important truths become clear about Jesus as the Christ. First, when we try to help someone we love come unto Christ, we can do so with confidence that He has the capacity to lift the burden of sin and to forgive. Second, when we bring physical, emotional, or other illnesses to Christ, we can do so knowing He has the power to heal and comfort. Third, when we make effort like the four to bring others to Christ, we can do so with certainty that He sees our true intentions and will appropriately honor them...

Brothers and sisters, let me close with two additional observations. Whether as missionaries, ministers, Relief Society presidents, bishops, teachers, parents, siblings, or friends, we are all engaged as Latter-day Saint disciples in the work of bringing others to Christ. Thus, the qualities exhibited by the four friends are worth considering and emulating.²⁷ They are bold, adaptive, resilient, creative, versatile, hopeful, determined, faithful, optimistic, humble, and enduring.

Christlike Attributes

 

Becoming like Him

By Elder Scott D. Whiting

Of the Seventy

Truly, there is no other way to heal the wounds of broken relationships or of a fractured society than for each of us to more fully emulate the Prince of Peace....

We must know something of His character,⁸ and we must look for His attributes in scripture, worship services, and other holy places. As we begin to know more of Him, we will see His attributes reflected in others. This will encourage us on our own quest, for if others can attain in some measure His attributes, so can we....

Now, those of us who are brave might consider asking a trusted family member, spouse, friend, or spiritual leader what attribute of Jesus Christ we are in need of—and we may need to brace ourselves for the response! Sometimes we see ourselves with distorted fun-house mirrors that show us either much more round or much more lean than we really are.

Trusted friends and family can help us see ourselves more accurately, but even they, as loving and helpful as they would like to be, can see things imperfectly. As a result, it is vital that we also ask our loving Heavenly Father what we are in need of and where we should focus our efforts. He has a perfect view of us and will lovingly show us our weakness.¹¹ Perhaps you will learn that you need greater patience, humility, charity, love, hope, diligence, or obedience, to name a few....

Once you have made an honest assessment and resolved to start the hike up the mountain, you will need to repent....

Becoming as Jesus Christ is will require changing our hearts and minds, indeed, our very character, and doing so is possible only through the saving grace of Jesus Christ...

Now that you have resolved to change and repent and have sought guidance through praying, pondering honestly, and possibly counseling with others, you will need to select an attribute that will keenly become your focus. You will need to commit to exerting meaningful effort. These attributes won’t come cheaply and suddenly, but through His grace they will come incrementally while endeavoring.

Christlike attributes are gifts from a loving Heavenly Father to bless us and those around us. Accordingly, our efforts to obtain these attributes will require heartfelt pleas for His divine assistance. If we seek these gifts to better serve others, He will bless us in our efforts. Selfishly pursuing a gift from God will end in disappointment and frustration....

It is important for me as I strive to become like Him to record my experiences and what I am learning. As I study with one of His attributes deep in my mind, the scriptures become new as I see examples of this attribute in His teachings, His ministry, and His disciples. My eye also becomes more focused on recognizing the attribute in others. I have observed wonderful individuals both within and without the Church who have attributes that emulate Him. They are powerful examples of how those attributes can be manifest in mere mortals through His loving grace.

In order to see real progress, you will need to put in sustained effort....

In these times, when “all things [appear to] be in commotion; and … fear [is seemingly] upon all people,”¹⁷ the only antidote, the only remedy, is to strive to be like the Savior,¹⁸ the Redeemer¹⁹ of all mankind, the Light of the World,²⁰ and to seek after Him who declared, “I am the way.”

#wordoftheyear

#patience ---> kids, pandemic

#nofaultfind ----> governor, Bradley, Aang

Live More Like the Savior

 “Each time you choose to try to live more like the Savior, you will have your testimony strengthened. You will come in time to know for yourself that He is the Light of the World. . . .  You will reflect to others the Light of Christ in your life.”

Henry B. Eyring, “A Living Testimony,” Ensign, May 2011, 128.