As a large group of missionaries in the Missionary Training Center, we watched The Lamb of God together. As I saw the Savior nailed to the cross, the Spirit washed over me and testified to me that what I was seeing really happened. Insight with impact from a strong video portrayal of Christ’s life can inspire and remain as we recall it with gratitude. Experiences with The Testaments Many have received similar manifestations. A woman shared with me her experience... Read more
A full day’s work or an hour’s final contribution? Should the wage be the same? A balance-sheet mindset might say that payment must be counted by time or product. But the Savior of the World, who paid the highest price ever paid for the most important ransom, disagreed. In the parable of Laborers in the Vineyard, He taught that people are more important than the burdens, heat, or produce, and all should be treated with compassion. The Burdens of... Read more
It was a small irritation. The windshield wiper on the driver’s side needed attention. I never seemed to find time to fix it, and with small adjustments I could get along. A heavy rainstorm and a tense deadline taught me that getting along may quickly turn to racing onward impaired, with uncertainties and dangers, and reflection has taught me that moving onward impaired spiritually can be even more dangerous. Onward Impaired in Vision When the windshield wiper flew off our... Read more
Agency, the privilege to make our own choices and determine our own paths, is the gift that God will not take away from us, regardless of what we may do with it. He doesn’t force us to choose anything—not even His love and His way. He invites and guides us to climb higher and higher towards what He wants us to experience and knows we may become. But we must choose to climb—often overcoming fears, struggling past obstacles, and strengthening... Read more
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. (Matthew 5:13) Like so many of the Savior’s teachings, this seemingly simple statement, based on an everyday aspect of His people’s lives, is not about salt, but about people. Salt for the earth represents a commandment, a characterization, and a covenant. Salt for... Read more
Everywhere I look, I see chaos in places and in faces. Tornados, blizzards, earthquakes, flooding. Road rage on street corners, shootings in grocery stores, gunfire in schools—angry teenagers or disturbed six-year-olds. Prejudice and anger in education as well as politics. Words and images telling us what we should buy, and social media telling us what we should be. Can we live with it—or in spite of it? Personal coping is as individual as personal chaos, but we must remember that... Read more
A “gravity friendly” grand piano, which stood in a chapel, needed to be moved to the cultural hall. Arranging and rearranging themselves, the brethren just couldn’t get it balanced. As Elder Dieter F. Uchdorf reported, As they stood around the piano, uncertain of what to do next [a practical brother] spoke up. He said, “Brethren, stand close together and lift where you stand” . . . [E]ach lifted where he stood, and the piano rose from the ground and moved... Read more
“What do you think about the wild beasts that were with Christ during his temptations?” My colleague asked. “What are you talking about, there’s no mention of wild beasts!” I replied. I was thinking of the Matthew and Luke accounts, but my friend was thinking of Mark 1:13. And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him. Often we think that we know everything about... Read more
If you assure a deaf person that you willingly make accommodations for individuals with disabilities, you may find yourself talking to an angry deaf person. Deaf individuals refuse the category “disabled.” The sign language of the place they reside is their native language; the spoken language of the area is a secondary language they read and write. Language, a gift from God, whether of words, signs, or visual images, is used to make things happen—both human and divine. Languages of... Read more
My brother, who had been staying with us, accepted our invitation to attend our church meeting. He was surprised to hear an announcement that a sister in the congregation needed help moving and a request for volunteers to help. After church, the snow began, and he was a little grumpy that I wanted to help carry things in the snow. To his astonishment, everyone who was helping was smiling as they happily packed and carried. We laugh now as... Read more
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