Church guide

Elder David A. Bednar Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Certainly, many interrelated attributes and experiences led to the spiritual maturity reflected in the lives of these four noble servants [Amulek, Pahoran, President Nelson, and President Eyring]. But the Savior and His prophets have highlighted an essential quality that all of us need to more fully understand and strive to incorporate into our lives. Meekness Please notice the characteristic the Lord used to describe Himself in the following scripture: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Instructively, the Savior chose to emphasize meekness from among all the attributes and virtues He potentially could have selected. https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2018/04/meek-and-lowly-of-heart?lang=eng

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles We get a glimpse into our Heavenly Father’s character as we recognize the immense compassion He has for sinners and appreciate the distinction He makes between sin and those who sin. This glimpse helps us have a more “correct [understanding of] his character, perfections, and attributes”1 and is foundational to exercising faith in Him and in His Son, Jesus Christ. The Savior’s compassion in the face of our imperfections draws us toward Him and motivates us in our repeated struggles to repent and emulate Him. As we become more like Him, we learn to treat others as He does, regardless of any outward characteristic or behavior. . . . [In “Les Miserables”] Hugo compares the man’s “wickedness” with skin disease in sheep and compares the bishop with a shepherd who does not withdraw when faced with a sheep that is sick. The bishop is sympathetic and later in the novel demonstrates a similar compassion for another man, the main protagonist in the novel, a degraded ex-convict, Jean Valjean. The bishop’s mercy and empathy motivate Jean Valjean to change the course of his life. . . . As the Good Shepherd,7 Jesus Christ views disease in His sheep as a condition that needs treatment, care, and compassion. This shepherd, our Good Shepherd, finds joy in seeing His diseased sheep progress toward healing. . . . [I]n our lifelong quest to follow Jesus Christ, His example of kindness to those who sin is particularly instructive. We, who are sinners, must, like the Savior, reach out to others with compassion and love. Our role is also to help and bless, lift and edify, and replace fear and despair with hope and joy. . . . The guiding principle for Latter-day Saints, . . . . We must not be guilty of persecuting anyone inside or outside the Church. Those who have been persecuted for any reason know what unfairness and bigotry feel like. As a teenager living in Europe in the 1960s, I felt that I was repeatedly picked on and bullied because I was an American and because I was a member of the Church. Some of my schoolmates treated me as though I were personally responsible for unpopular U.S. foreign policies. I was also treated as though my religion were an affront to the nations in which I lived because it differed from state-sponsored religion. Later, in various countries across the world, I have had small glimpses into the ugliness of prejudice and discrimination suffered by those who are targeted because of their race or ethnicity. Persecution comes in many forms: ridicule, harassment, bullying, exclusion and isolation, or hatred toward another. We must guard against bigotry that raises its ugly voice toward those who hold different opinions. Bigotry manifests itself, in part, in unwillingness to grant equal freedom of expression. Everyone, including people of religion, has the right to express his or her opinions in the public square. But no one has a license to be hateful toward others as those opinions are expressed. . . . As His disciples, let us fully mirror His love and love one another so openly and completely that no one feels abandoned, alone, or hopeless. . . . https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2017/04/our-good-shepherd?lang=eng

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles We get a glimpse into our Heavenly Father’s character as we recognize the immense compassion He has for sinners and appreciate the distinction He makes between sin and those who sin. This glimpse helps us have a more “correct [understanding of] his character, perfections, and attributes”1 and is foundational to exercising faith in Him and in His Son, Jesus Christ. The Savior’s compassion in the face of our imperfections draws us toward Him and motivates us in our repeated struggles to repent and emulate Him. As we become more like Him, we learn to treat others as He does, regardless of any outward characteristic or behavior. . . . [In “Les Miserables”] Hugo compares the man’s “wickedness” with skin disease in sheep and compares the bishop with a shepherd who does not withdraw when faced with a sheep that is sick. The bishop is sympathetic and later in the novel demonstrates a similar compassion for another man, the main protagonist in the novel, a degraded ex-convict, Jean Valjean. The bishop’s mercy and empathy motivate Jean Valjean to change the course of his life. . . . As the Good Shepherd,7 Jesus Christ views disease in His sheep as a condition that needs treatment, care, and compassion. This shepherd, our Good Shepherd, finds joy in seeing His diseased sheep progress toward healing. . . . [I]n our lifelong quest to follow Jesus Christ, His example of kindness to those who sin is particularly instructive. We, who are sinners, must, like the Savior, reach out to others with compassion and love. Our role is also to help and bless, lift and edify, and replace fear and despair with hope and joy. . . . The guiding principle for Latter-day Saints, . . . . We must not be guilty of persecuting anyone inside or outside the Church. Those who have been persecuted for any reason know what unfairness and bigotry feel like. As a teenager living in Europe in the 1960s, I felt that I was repeatedly picked on and bullied because I was an American and because I was a member of the Church. Some of my schoolmates treated me as though I were personally responsible for unpopular U.S. foreign policies. I was also treated as though my religion were an affront to the nations in which I lived because it differed from state-sponsored religion. Later, in various countries across the world, I have had small glimpses into the ugliness of prejudice and discrimination suffered by those who are targeted because of their race or ethnicity. Persecution comes in many forms: ridicule, harassment, bullying, exclusion and isolation, or hatred toward another. We must guard against bigotry that raises its ugly voice toward those who hold different opinions. Bigotry manifests itself, in part, in unwillingness to grant equal freedom of expression. Everyone, including people of religion, has the right to express his or her opinions in the public square. But no one has a license to be hateful toward others as those opinions are expressed. . . . As His disciples, let us fully mirror His love and love one another so openly and completely that no one feels abandoned, alone, or hopeless. . . . https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2017/04/our-good-shepherd?lang=eng

Brian K. Ashton, Second Counselor in the Sunday School General Presidency The doctrine of Christ . . . is the means—the only means—by which we can obtain all of the blessings made available to us through Jesus’s Atonement. It is the doctrine of Christ that allows us to access the spiritual power that will lift us from our current spiritual state to a state where we can become perfected like the Savior. Of this process of rebirth, Elder D. Todd Christofferson has taught: “Being born again, unlike our physical birth, is more a process than an event. And engaging in that process is the central purpose of mortality.” https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2016/10/the-doctrine-of-christ?lang=eng

Elder M. Russell Ballard Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles For some, Christ’s invitation to believe and remain continues to be hard—or difficult to accept. Some disciples struggle to understand a specific Church policy or teaching. Others find concerns in our history or in the imperfections of some members and leaders, past and present. Still others find it difficult to live a religion that requires so much. Finally, some have become “weary in well-doing.” For these and other reasons, some Church members vacillate in their faith, wondering if perhaps they should follow those who “went back, and walked no more” with Jesus. . . . Never fail to give equal time to the Lord through honest attempts to understand what the Lord has revealed. As my dear friend and former colleague Elder Neal A. Maxwell once said, “We should not assume … that just because something is unexplainable by us it is unexplainable.” . . . . My heartfelt plea is that we will encourage, accept, understand, and love those who are struggling with their faith. We must never neglect any of our brothers and sisters. We are all at different places on the path, and we need to minister to one another accordingly. Just as we should open our arms in a spirit of welcoming new converts, so too should we embrace and support those who have questions and are faltering in their faith. . . . . https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2016/10/to-whom-shall-we-go?lang=eng

Sister Jean B. Bingham When you focus on the one . . . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAz5sw2C85c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73jY8xH_vhc#t=102

Watch the 2013 Christmas Devotional. https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/watch/christmas-devotional/2013/12?cid=HPFR120613187&lang=eng

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfj0pkSNlAU&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlKetn7ZiNU&feature=g-all-u&context=G214e2ccFAAAAAAAAAAA