Attitude About Going to Church

 

The Need for a Church

By President Dallin H. Oaks

First Counselor in the First Presidency

Some say that attending church meetings is not helping them. Some say, “I didn’t learn anything today” or “No one was friendly to me” or “I was offended.” Personal disappointments should never keep us from the doctrine of Christ, who taught us to serve, not to be served.⁷ With this in mind, another member described the focus of his Church attendance:

“Years ago, I changed my attitude about going to church. No longer do I go to church for my sake, but to think of others. I make a point of saying hello to people who sit alone, to welcome visitors, … to volunteer for an assignment. …

“In short, I go to church each week with the intent of being active, not passive, and making a positive difference in people’s lives.”⁸

President Spencer W. Kimball taught that “we do not go to Sabbath meetings to be entertained or even solely to be instructed. We go to worship the Lord. It is an individual responsibility. … If the service is a failure to you, you have failed. No one can worship for you; you must do your own waiting upon the Lord.”⁹

Church attendance can open our hearts and sanctify our souls.

What is the Primary Object of Your Attention?

 

More Than a Hero

By Bishop W. Christopher Waddell

First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric

For us on our journey back to the presence of God, to our promised land, it’s not the politician, the musician, the athlete, or the vlogger that is the issue but, rather, choosing to allow them to become the primary objects of our attention and focus in place of our Savior and Redeemer.

We choose Him, Jesus Christ, when we choose to honor His day whether we’re at home or traveling on vacation. We choose Him when we choose His words through the scriptures and the teachings of living prophets. We choose Him when we choose to hold a temple recommend and live worthy of its use. We choose Him when we are peacemakers and refuse to be contentious, “especially when we have differences of opinion.”

Progress, But Not There Yet

As we build the kingdom of God, I can’t think of anything more important than having a well-prepared sacrament meeting where speakers speak of Christ, testify of Christ, and share testimonies from the apostles and prophets in the scriptures and other sources.

As a Church we’ve been focused on the Sabbath day. We’ve made progress, but we are not there yet. We’ll continue our efforts until every member and missionary is so spiritually motivated during their Sabbath day worship that each says to his or her neighbors, investigators, and relatives, “Come and see. Come and worship with us.” This is where we want to be.

If we could all do this as a Church, those who accept our invitation to “come and see” will feel the power of the message of the restored Church of Jesus Christ. As they worship with us in our sacrament meetings, their hearts will be touched and the light of the gospel will be lit in their hearts and minds.

• JUNE 2018
• OUR SABBATH SANCTUARY

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Our Sabbath Sanctuary

By President M. Russell Ballard

Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

From “The Chapel: Our Sabbath Sanctuary” at prophets.lds.org.

Precious Gifts from God

By President M. Russell Ballard

Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

If we have faith as small as a mustard seed, the Lord can help us remove the mountains of discouragement and doubt in the tasks ahead of us as we serve with God’s children, including family members, Church members, and those who are not yet members of the Church....

If we do not find time to unplug, we may miss opportunities to hear the voice of Him who said, “Be still, and know that I am God.”8 Now, there is nothing wrong with taking advantage of the advances in the technologies inspired by the Lord, but we must be wise in their use. Remember the gift of the Sabbath day.

The blessing of receiving the sacrament in sacrament meeting must never become routine or just something we do. It is only 70 minutes in a whole week when we can pause and find more peace, joy, and happiness in our lives....

Church members—both men and women—should not hesitate, if they desire, to run for public office at any level of government wherever they live. Our voices are essential today and important in our schools, our cities, and our countries. Where democracy exists, it is our duty as members to vote for honorable men and women who are willing to serve.

The Sabbath day and the Holy Temple

One of the great challenges each of us faces every day is to not allow the concerns of this world to so dominate our time and energy that we neglect the eternal things that matter most.1 We can be too easily diverted from remembering and focusing upon essential spiritual priorities because of our many responsibilities and busy schedules. Sometimes we try to run so fast that we may forget where we are going and why we are running.

The Sabbath day and the holy temple are two specific sources of divine help instituted by God to assist us in rising above the level and corruption of the world. 

On His holy day, our thoughts, actions, and demeanor are signs we give to God and an indicator of our love for Him.

Leaving our homes to spend time in Sunday meetings and to enter the sacred space of a temple is vital but insufficient. Only as we bring the spirit and strength derived from those holy activities back with us into our homes can we sustain our focus upon the great purposes of mortal life and overcome the corruption that is in the world. 

David A. Bednar, Exceeding Great and Precious Promises, Nov 2017 Ensign, 90.

Planning Delightful Sunday Activities

Are you searching for Sunday activity ideas to help strengthen your family and make the Sabbath a delight? Family home evening is an ideal time to generate ideas and plan such activities. To help get you started, consider reviewing the online article “20 Do’s for Making the Sabbath a Delight” (lds.org/go/sabbathE217). The article includes a printable “bucket list” of Sunday activities that your family can perform and check off as the activities are completed. The ideas include looking through family photo albums, writing thank-you notes to the people who speak in church, creating a gospel quote book, and taking a Sunday walk.

Children Will Be Prepared

“If we faithfully have family prayer, scripture study, family home evening, priesthood blessings, and Sabbath day observance,” said Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “our children will … be prepared for an eternal home in heaven, regardless of what befalls them in a difficult world.”

Quentin L. Cook, “The Lord Is My Light,” Ensign, May 2015, 64.

Deeply Rooted in Christ

• AUGUST 2016
• ROOTED IN CHRIST

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Rooted in Christ

By Elder L. Whitney Clayton

Senior President of the Seventy

From the Church Educational System addresses “Like a Watered Garden” and “A Regal Identity,” delivered in New York, USA, on September 13, 2015.

What we should remember when we behold Him is that because of Him, and all He did and all He was and is, we too can triumph. We also can overcome. We can live abundantly in the midst of trials. If we choose to “behold” Him and accept and apply His saving gospel, He will save us. He will rescue us from the effects of our own fallen natures and foibles, and He will save us from sin, from spiritual mediocrity, and from ultimate, eternal failure. He will purge, refine, beautify, and eventually even perfect us. He will give us joy and peace. He is the key to abundant life....

 When we prepare ourselves before our meetings, the Sabbath becomes a richer experience for us. As we contemplate our need for forgiveness and the blessing of always having His Spirit to be with us, we begin to see the chapel as a sanctuary and the sacrament as a time of sanctification.

For that reason, there are some things we should always take with us when we go to church. Foremost among these are a broken heart and a contrite spirit. We should go eager to seek and feel the blessings of the Savior’s Atonement. Similarly, we should always leave some things at home. Thoughts of sports, work, entertainment, and shopping ought to be left locked in a closet inside our homes to be opened on any day other than the Sabbath day. Genuine worship promotes real conversion. It helps us send the roots of our faith down deep, where we find a spiritual reservoir, which “shall be in [us] a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14)....

If we don’t experience personal storms and drought, our roots never have the chance to become strong. Ironically, smooth sailing is its own test—and a difficult one. The absence of problems can soften us if we aren’t careful. We may “not watch [ourselves], and [our] thoughts, and [our] words, and [our] deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith” (Mosiah 4:30) without a trial that bends our knees and works on our hearts....

When we become inattentive to the small, daily, repetitive but essential actions of belief, we weaken our roots. Over time we slowly draw away from God.

Thus, the way we speak to each other, the books and articles we read, the television shows and movies we watch, the things we don’t read and would never watch, and the jokes we choose not to listen to or repeat all reflect where we are on the strait and narrow path—in the center or on the edges. We can’t claim to be nourishing our roots if the things we do and don’t do aren’t calculated to make us better Saints. Safety is found only in the center of the strait and narrow path....

Our souls should be so deeply rooted in Christ that we will be able to endure any challenge, triumph over any affliction, withstand any attack on our faith, and become like oak trees—firm, immovable, and steadfast. That kind of rootedness transcends time and outlasts every enemy, even the most subtle, invisible, and insidious ones.

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A Sacred Sabbath

“How do we hallow the Sabbath day? In my much younger years, I studied the work of others who had compiled lists of things to do and things not to do on the Sabbath. It wasn’t until later that I learned from the scriptures that my conduct and my attitude on the Sabbath constituted a sign between me and my Heavenly Father. With that understanding, I no longer needed lists of dos and don’ts. When I had to make a decision whether or not an activity was appropriate for the Sabbath, I simply asked myself, ‘What sign do I want to give to God?’ That question made my choices about the Sabbath day crystal clear. …

“Faith in God engenders a love for the Sabbath; faith in the Sabbath engenders a love for God. A sacred Sabbath truly is a delight.”

Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “The Sabbath Is a Delight,” Ensign, May 2015, 130, 132.

Protection from Obsession with Worldly Things

President James E. Faust (1920–2007), Second Counselor in the First Presidency, taught that as we avoid worldly distractions on the Sabbath day, we are blessed with protection from obsession with worldly things: “In this day of increasing access to and preoccupation with materialism, there is a sure protection for ourselves and our children against the plagues of our day. The key to that sure protection surprisingly can be found in Sabbath observance.”

James E. Faust, “The Lord’s Day,” Ensign, Nov. 1991, 35.

Doing Nothing on the Sabbath

"The Sabbath calls for constructive thoughts and acts, and if one merely lounges about doing nothing on the Sabbath, he is breaking it. To observe it, one will be on his knees in prayer, preparing lessons, studying the gospel. meditating, visiting the ill and distressed, sleeping, reading wholesome material, and attending all the meetings of that day to which he is expected."

The Miracle of Forgiveness [1969], 96-97).

Remembering Christ on the Sabbath

"Sunday is a day to slow down, pause, and remember. We attend our Church meetings; reflect on our blessings, strengths, and shortcomings; seek forgiveness; partake of the sacrament; and ponder the Savior's suffering on our behalf. We try not to be distracted by anything that would prevent us from worshipping Him . . . Any activity we participate in during the Sabbath should be in keeping with the Spirit of remembering Christ. If anything we are doing an any part of the Sabbath takes us away from remembering the Savior and ministering on the Sabbath as He would minister, then perhaps we should reconsider what we are doing. . . .

"Spend some time today creating a thoughtful plan of things that you will do to really make the Sabbath day a sacred and holy day in your life. Then act on your plan."

Larry M. Gibson, "I Do Always Remember Him," New Era, Jan. 2014, 36.

The Sabbath is a Holy Day

 “The Sabbath is . . . a day for consistent attendance at meetings for the worship of the Lord, drinking at the fountain of knowledge and instruction, enjoying the family, and finding uplift in music and song.

“The Sabbath is a holy day in which to do worthy and holy things . . . To observe it, one will be on his knees in prayer, preparing lessons, studying the gospel, meditating, visiting the ill and distressed, writing letters to missionaries taking a nap, reading wholesome material, and attending all the meetings.”

Spencer W. Kimball 

When the Lord Balances His Books

“There were two farmers once who had adjoining fields. The one never worked in his field on Sunday, and his neighbor used to chide him about it. He said, ‘Your crops aren’t doing as well as mine are. Why don’t you work on Sunday?’

“The other farmer said, ‘Well, I want to do what the Lord said. I want to gain the blessings of the Lord.’

“Then one October day they stood at a fence line. The [neighbor] said, ‘Just look at it, Look at my field. It is beautiful, the grain is tall, the heads are full of wheat, and your field shows little signs of neglect. You haven’t tended yours as well as I’ve tended mine. Look at my harvest compared to yours. What do you say now about the blessings you thought you were earning?’

“The [Sabbath-keeping] farmer thought for a few minutes and said, ‘The Lord doesn’t balance his books in October.’ “

President Boyd K. Packer, Mine Errand from the Lord (2008) 193.

Resting From Our Labors

“Sometimes we think of resting from our labors as merely letting the hay baler stand idle in the field or putting a Closed sign on the business door. Yet in today’s world, labor includes the everyday work of our lives. This mean business activities we may accomplish from home, athletic competitions, and other pursuits that take us away from Sabbath day worship and the opportunity to minister to others.”

Elder L. Tom Perry, “The Sabbath and the Sacrament,” Ensign, May 2011, 6-9.

The Pattern of the Sabbath

“As we consider the pattern of the Sabbath and the sacrament in our own lives, there appear to be three things the Lord requires of us: first, to keep ourselves unspotted from the world; second, to go to the house of prayer and offer up our sacraments; and third, to rest from our labors.

“It is a glorious thing to be a Christian and to live as a true disciple of Christ. Of us He said, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” To keep ourselves unspotted from the world, He expects us to avoid such worldly distractions of businesses and recreational facilities on the Sabbath day.

“I believe He also desire us to dress appropriately. Our youth may think the old saying “Sunday best” is outdated. Still, we know that when Sunday dress deteriorates to everyday attire, attitudes and actions follow.”

Elder L. Tom Perry, “The Sabbath and the Sacrament,” Ensign, May 2011, 6-9.

Sacrament

“Partaking of the sacrament is the center of our Sabbath day observance.”

Elder L. Tom Perry, “The Sabbath and the Sacrament,” Ensign, May 2011, 6-9.

Worship

“The Pattern of the Sabbath day observance must always include worship.”

Elder L. Tom Perry, “The Sabbath and the Sacrament,” Ensign, May 2011, 6-9.

Observance of the Sabbath Day

“In the fourth chapter of Paul’s writings to Timothy, we read: “These things command and teach. . . . Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” I can think of no better way for us to begin or continue to be an example of the believers than in our observance of the Sabbath day.”

Elder L. Tom Perry, “The Sabbath and the Sacrament,” Ensign, May 2011, 6-9.