Alma
www.kevinhinckley.com
Moms
After putting her children to bed, a mother changed into
old slacks and a worn out blouse and proceeded to
wash her hair. As she heard the children getting more
and more rambunctious, her tolerance grew thin.
At last she put a towel around her head and stormed into
their room, putting them back to bed with severe
warnings.
While leaving the room, she overheard her three-yearold say with a shaky voice, "Who was 'that'?"
Holocaust Survivor
If there is one word that describes all the woes and
threats that exits today, it’s indifference. You see
tragedy on television for three minutes and then
comes something else and something else.
Indifference, to me, is the epitome of evil. The opposite
of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of
art if not ugliness, it’s indifference.
The opposite of faith is not heresy, its indifference. And
the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.
Elie Weisal, BYU Commencement, Aug. 89
Key #1
There will be burdens- despite our worthiness!
Three
Grand Keys?
Key #2
Lord
them
lightas (lighter…)
ComeThe
unto me,
all will
And make
now it came
to pass
ye are desirous to
yeKey
that labour
that the burdens
come into the fold
#3
and are heavy
which were laid
of God, and to be
…Often
through
of others
laden,
and I will
uponthe
Almawillingness
and his
called
his people,
give you rest. …
for I am meek
and lowly in
heart: and ye
shall find rest
unto your souls.
For my yoke is
easy, and my
burden is light.“
Matt 11
brethren were made
light; yea, the Lord
did strengthen them
that they could bear
up their burdens
with ease,
Mosiah 24
and are willing to
bear one another's
burdens, that they
may be light;
Mosiah 18
Elder Sterling Sill
I was recently discussing some religious opportunities with a
friend of mine. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "But I am
just not religious"—the shrug meaning, "There's nothing that
I can do about it." I said, "Bill, I am sure that what you say is
true, that you are not religious. But have you ever thought
about the circumstances that brought this situation about?
How could you ever expect to be religious? You don't go to
church, you don't read the scriptures, you don't pray to God.
Actually, what right do you have to be religious?"
I told him about the man who once said to a little boy, "Who gave
you that black eye?" The little boy replied, "No one gave me
that black eye, I had to fight for it." That Ye Might Have Life, 111-116.
What Alma taught
And now, it came to pass that Alma, who had fled from the servants of king Noah, repented of his
sins and iniquities, and went about privately among the people, and began to teach the words
of Abinadi—
And as many as would hear his word he did teach…
And it came to pass after many days there were a goodly number gathered together at the place of
Mormon, to hear the words of Alma…
And it came to pass that he said unto them… and now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of
God, and to be called his people, and:
(WE Promise)
are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;
Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea,
and comfort those that stand in need of comfort,
and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things…
Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in
the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him,
that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that:
(HE Promises)
he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?
And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed:
This is the desire of our hearts.
We receive his spirit more abundantly- to do what?
Ancient Roman to his friend
“This seems a cheerful world, Donatus, when I view it from this
fair garden under the shadow of these vines. But if I climbed
some great mountain and looked over the wide lands, you
know very well what I would see—brigands on the high road,
pirates on the seas, in the amphitheaters men murdered to
please applauding crowds; under all roofs misery and
selfishness.
It is really a bad world, yet in the midst of it I have found a quiet
and holy people. They have discovered a joy which is a
thousand times better than any pleasure of this sinful life.
They are despised and persecuted, but they care not. They
have overcome the world. These people, Donatus, are the
Christians and I am one of them.”
Quoted by Marion D. Hanks in Freedom and Responsibility, p. 11.
Elder Holland
It is an immensely satisfying thing to be needed in the body of
Christ. Whether I function as an eye or arm is irrelevant; the
fact is I am needed in this most majestic organism, and the
body is imperfect without me.
A popular singer made a small fortune reminding us that “people
who need people are the luckiest people in the world.” In The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—the restored
ecclesiastical body of Christ—people do need people and
everyone is welcomed.
This includes (in Paul’s assertion) not only the attractive,
talented, “comely” members, but those of us who seem to
have fewer gifts and face greater challenges, those who
receive less honor and attention. In the Church of Jesus Christ
“more abundant honor” is given to these. Every member
matters, and the less favored member most of all.
LDS Writer…
“Being a go-to-church Mormon…means living so close to fellow ward members that not much
happens that the entire congregation doesn’t know about in five minutes tops.”
“This kind of cheek-to-jowl living can be intrusive. … It also happens to be one of our greatest
strengths.”
“At work on Tuesday, I caught the noon news broadcast on television. A van had been obliterated
in a traffic crash. A young mother and two small children were being rushed to emergency
rooms by helicopter and ambulance. … Hours later I learned that the van belonged to the
young couple living across the street from me…Eric and Jeana Quigley.
“Here’s where all that nosiness … pays off. Although the accident occurred several miles from
home, the dust literally had not settled before someone from the ward stopped and was
pulling through the wreckage. The rest of the ward knew about it before the cops and
paramedics showed up.
“Ward members went to all three hospitals, contacted Eric at work, and organized into labor
squads. People who didn’t get in on the immediate-need level were frantic for some way to
help.
“In 48 hours, the Quigley yard was mowed, home cleaned, laundry done, refrigerator stocked,
relatives fed and a trust fund set up at a local bank. We would have given their dog a bath if
they had one.”
“There is a positive side to the congregational microscope my ward lives under. … What happens
to a few happens to all”
(Robert Kirby, “Well-Being of Others Is Our Business,” Salt Lake Tribune, July 30,
2005, p. C1).