Unusual Rewards

 "Unusual times can bring unusual rewards...

I pray that you will choose to lay hold upon the word of God as it is declared during this general conference."

President Nelson, October 2020 General Conference

Let Patience have her Perfect Work

 

Let Patience Have Her Perfect Work, and Count It All Joy!

By Elder Jeremy R. Jaggi

Of the Seventy

We found comfort in the words of Elder Neil L. Andersen in general conference the week before Chad died: “In the crucible of earthly trials, patiently move forward, and the Savior’s healing power will bring you light, understanding, peace, and hope” (“Wounded,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2018, 85).

Chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel teaches key attributes of Christ that we can emulate: “Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious. It is the ability to do God’s will and accept His timing. When you are patient, you hold up under pressure and are able to face adversity calmly and hopefully” (Preach My Gospel: A Guide to Missionary Service, rev. ed. [2019], 126).

Just as the trying of our faith works patience within us, when we exercise patience, our faith increases. As our faith increases, so does our joy....

Sometimes we get impatient when we think we are “doing everything right” and we still do not receive the blessings we desire. Enoch walked with God for 365 years before he and his people were translated. Three hundred and sixty-five years of striving to do everything right, and then it happened! (See Doctrine and Covenants 107:49.)

God Will Do Something Unimaginable

 God Will Do Something Unimaginable

By Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My message today is that even though this pandemic is not what we wanted or expected, God has prepared His children and His Church for this time.

    We will endure this, yes. But we will do more than simply grit our teeth, hold on, and wait for things to return to the old normal. We will move forward, and we will be better as a result.

    In a way, we are seeds. And for seeds to reach their potential, they must be buried before they can sprout. It is my witness that though at times we may feel buried by the trials of life or surrounded by emotional darkness, the love of God and the blessings of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ will bring something unimaginable to spring forth....

First, the righteous are not given a free pass that allows them to avoid the valleys of shadow. We all must walk through difficult times, for it is in these times of adversity that we learn principles that fortify our characters and cause us to draw closer to God.

    

    Second, our Heavenly Father knows that we suffer, and because we are His children, He will not abandon us.

    Think of the compassionate one, the Savior, who spent so much of His life ministering to the sick, the lonely, the doubting, the despairing. Do you think He is any less concerned about you today?

    My dear friends, my beloved brothers and sisters, God will watch over and shepherd you during these times of uncertainty and fear. He knows you. He hears your pleas. He is faithful and dependable. He will fulfill His promises.

    God has something unimaginable in mind for you personally and the Church collectively—a marvelous work and a wonder....

Because this is the Church of the living Christ, and because He directs His prophets, we are moving forward and upward to places we’ve never been, to heights we can hardly imagine!

    Now, this does not mean we won’t experience turbulence in our flight through mortality. It doesn’t mean there won’t be unexpected instrument failures, mechanical malfunctions, or serious weather challenges. In fact, things might get worse before they get better....

What is needed during times of crisis is calm and clear-headed trust.

How do we do this?

We face the facts and return to the fundamentals, to the basic gospel principles, to what matters most. You strengthen your private religious behavior—like prayer and scripture study and keeping God’s commandments. You make the decisions based on best proven practices.

Focus on the things you can do and not on the things you cannot do.

You muster your faith. And you listen for the guiding word of the Lord and His prophet to lead you to safety....

Brothers and sisters, with Christ at the helm, things will not only be all right; they will be unimaginable....

As an Apostle of the Lord, I invite and bless you to “cheerfully do all things that lie in [your] power; and then may [you] stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.”¹¹ And I promise that the Lord will cause unimaginable things to come from your righteous labors. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Family Media Plan

 “I recently spoke with a youth leader whose opinion was that ‘putting a cell phone with an internet connection into the pocket of a young person is like placing a hot coal in their pocket—they will get burned,’” said Sister Jones. She suggested that every phone have safeguards, even those that belong to teens and adults.⁴

Experts recommend creating a family media plan and setting standards and boundaries together. This could include:

• Establishing set times for use of technology.

• Limiting online contacts to family and close friends.

• Establishing technology-free zones, like bedrooms.

• Establishing a designated media room in a high-traffic area.

• Creating a charging station where digital devices are left at night.

• Blocking inappropriate applications and websites through filters and safe-mode settings.

• Following family members on social media.

• Deciding the types and ratings of video games to be allowed.

• Discussing how to respond to cyberbullying or inappropriate images or texts.

• Setting consequences for the breaking of family standards.⁵

Regarding rules, Elder Bednar said: “Be careful to not regiment excessively the use of technology or proliferate endless rules and restrictions. Desired attitudes and righteous behavior cannot flourish in the soil of constantly constraining control and coercion. Your love, patience, teaching, and ministering will provide vital spiritual support as [children] press forward on the strait and narrow path.”...

• “Use a computer, mobile device, or phone for specific purposes. Decide beforehand what you intend to do and how much time you will spend. Experience shows that people are more likely to encounter inappropriate content on the internet when they are casually surfing the web without a specific purpose in mind.

• “Limit the use of technology when you are feeling bored, lonely, angry, anxious, stressed, or tired or when you feel any other emotion that makes you vulnerable or susceptible.

• “Select a background screen image that reminds you of your commitment to follow Jesus Christ.”⁹

Join the Battle

A few years ago, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles made this observation (especially poignant in light of COVID-19): “If this moral plague [of pornography] could catch our imagination the way a medical epidemic does, we would be calling out every available member of the health care industry, every doctor and nurse and technician and orderly; we would have the attention of every father and mother, every grandparent and aunt and uncle asking what they could do; we would see educators and businessmen, lawyers and scientists, PTA organizations and welfare agencies lining up to send out flyers, to flood the airwaves, to give immunization shots. … Yes, this ought to be seen like a public health crisis; like an infectious, fatal epidemic.”

Making Our Homes Media Safe

By Michael R. Morris

Church Magazines

Eyes to See

By Michelle D. Craig

First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency

 As I pray for the Lord to open my eyes to see things I might not normally see, I often ask myself two questions and pay attention to the impressions that come: “What am I doing that I should stop doing?” and “What am I not doing that I should start doing?”...

Ask to see others as He does—as His true sons and daughters with infinite and divine potential. Then act by loving, serving, and affirming their worth and potential as prompted. As this becomes the pattern of our lives, we will find ourselves becoming “true followers of … Jesus Christ.”⁸ Others will be able to trust our hearts with theirs. And in this pattern we will also discover our own true identity and purpose....

I witness that Jesus Christ loves us and can give us eyes to see—even when it’s hard, even when we’re tired, even when we’re lonely, and even when the outcomes are not as we hoped. Through His grace, He will bless us and increase our capacity. Through the power of the Holy Ghost, Christ will enable us to see ourselves and see others as He does. With His help, we can discern what is most needful. We can begin to see the hand of the Lord working in and through the ordinary details of our lives—we will see deeply.

Susan

 

Emulate the Savior's Life

 The Savior's power to teach and lift others came from the way He lived and the kind of person He was. The more diligently you strive to live like Jesus Christ, the more you will be able to teach like Him. 

Teaching in the Savior's Way, 13.