From the July edition of the Ensign, the First Presidency's Message, by Elder Uchdorf:
"Commitment to our covenants with the Lord is a fruit of our conversion. Commitment to our Savior and His Church builds our character and strengthens our spirit so that when we meet Christ, He will embrace us and say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).
"There is a difference between intention and action. Those who only intend to commit may find excuses at every turn. Those who truly commit face their challenges squarely and say to themselves, “Yes, that would be a very good reason to delay, but I made covenants, and so I will do what I have committed to do.” They search the scriptures and earnestly seek the guidance of their Father in Heaven. They accept and magnify their Church callings. They attend their meetings. They do their home or visiting teaching.
"A German proverb says, “Promises are like the full moon. If they are not kept at once, they diminish day by day.” As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have committed to walk in the path of discipleship. We have committed to follow the example of our Savior. Imagine how the world will be blessed and transformed for good when all members of the Lord’s Church live up to their true potential—converted in the depth of their souls and committed to building the kingdom of God.
"In some way, each of us stands at a decision point overlooking the water. It is my prayer that we will have faith, move forward, face our fears and doubts with courage, and say to ourselves, “I’m committed!”
"Commitment to our covenants with the Lord is a fruit of our conversion. Commitment to our Savior and His Church builds our character and strengthens our spirit so that when we meet Christ, He will embrace us and say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).
"There is a difference between intention and action. Those who only intend to commit may find excuses at every turn. Those who truly commit face their challenges squarely and say to themselves, “Yes, that would be a very good reason to delay, but I made covenants, and so I will do what I have committed to do.” They search the scriptures and earnestly seek the guidance of their Father in Heaven. They accept and magnify their Church callings. They attend their meetings. They do their home or visiting teaching.
"A German proverb says, “Promises are like the full moon. If they are not kept at once, they diminish day by day.” As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have committed to walk in the path of discipleship. We have committed to follow the example of our Savior. Imagine how the world will be blessed and transformed for good when all members of the Lord’s Church live up to their true potential—converted in the depth of their souls and committed to building the kingdom of God.
"In some way, each of us stands at a decision point overlooking the water. It is my prayer that we will have faith, move forward, face our fears and doubts with courage, and say to ourselves, “I’m committed!”
I know this principle to be true: that only when we truly put our 100% into it and work at it (whatever it may be, spiritual or temporal) every day, we succeed and we show commitment to our Heavenly Father. I have so many things yet to get better at that sometimes I feel overwhelmed... I have tons of good intensions like making it to the temple at least once a month, making my prayers and scripture study more meaningful, and getting my visiting teaching done, etc. In reading this inspired message, I realize once again that I need to pray for strength to commit and consistently turn my worthy intentions into actions. And when I feel overwhelmed the Lord gently reminds me of the things that I do very day (i.e. personal and family scripture reading, family memory making, testimony bearing, personal and family prayer, testimony bearing, etc.) Although we do always need to strive for doing and being better, I know it's important to recognize and acknowledge our daily victories and feel good about ourselves. On that note, I close with my newly adopted motto: "Life is great!" I truly think it is.
And a favorite scripture that's been on my mind lately from Ether 12:4
"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with asurety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."
So TRUE! And yes, life IS great. We are so blessed and need to look for the positive more often.
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