And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the apostles and prophets have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen. Ether 12:41

Recently I gave a talk in church. The topic that I was assigned was Coming to Know the Savior. One of the things that I wanted to convey in my talk was that if we want to know the Savior, we have to actively seek him. The Savior has said, "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Doctrine and Covenants 88:63

The fact of the matter is that we know the Savior. We lived with him before coming to this earth. He wants us to remember him and come unto to him. He has said, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20

How tenderly the Savior calls us and urges us to come unto him!

Essential, Necessary, Nice

And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order. Mosiah 4:27

Recently we heard Julie Beck, the president of the general Relief Society speak at a fireside. She did a question and answer session in which someone asked her about setting priorities. She said that she likes to categorize the tasks for her day as being essential, necessary or nice. The essential things are the things that help her gain salvation, the necessary things sustain life and the nice things are, well, nice. This is not a new idea, but somehow the labels essential, necessary and nice brought clarity to me. Most of the things that I enjoy doing are nice, and I'm fairly good at getting the necessary things done. I'm beginning to ponder more what is essential and to answer the question, what essential things should I do today.

A Very Short Parable

Once there was a woman making a quilt. After hours of work she realized that it is the tangled thread, knots and misplaced stitches that make quilting take such a long time.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is heaven. Matthew 7:21 and 3 Nephi 14:21

My two-year-old grandson has learned the mighty word no. With his sweet little "No Daddy," he would choose not to have his diaper changed or get dressed in the morning or put away his toys. Sometimes he's very sure of his two-year-old view of the world. "This is a called a donkey." "No Mommy, it's an animal."

Today I decided that I am a spiritual two-year-old. I don't exactly say no to Heavenly Father, but I don't always listen very well, either. I'm sure I miss opportunities to do good because I trust my own timetable instead of quickly heeding the promptings of the spirit. And I know I sometimes cling to my own ideas thus robbing myself of the chance to grow and learn.

I will not forget thee

Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the fruit of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

Behold, I have graven thee on the palms of my hands... Isaiah 49:15-16 and 1 Nephi 21:15:16

I heard this scripture this morning and thought of the Savior's wounded hands.

Weeds and watering

Although we didn't know it when we bought our house, part of our yard was underneath the street. When our town decided to change our intersection, we got that part of our yard back. We were thrilled to find out that our yard was bigger than we thought, but the new part of the yard was, to say the least, not fertile ground. Because there were other projects being done in our community at the same time, we were able to get some free dirt to cover what had been a roadbed and to try to make it into a place where plants could grow. Along with the free dirt, we got a lot of free weeds! We built a wall on our property line, and inside the wall we've labored endlessly to keep the weeds down and gingers are now thriving there. Outside the wall, we dug out some of the weeds and over time a hardy grass that doesn't need care besides mowing has filled in. A few months ago we planted some decorative plants around the stop sign on our corner to discourage the neighbors from burning the stop sign on New Year's and the 4th of July by hanging firecracker strings on it. The plants haven't done all that well even though we've watered them fairly regularly, but what has thrived is those weeds. We hadn't seen much of them while they were having to rely on rainwater, but given regular watering, they've sprouted up again strong and hardy.

Life seems like that sometimes. You work pretty hard to get rid of a little character trait that you don't like, and you think you've done a decent job of it. But then circumstances change and you find that little trait flourishing again. That's why King Benjamin counseled that we must put off the natural man. We can't just cut off the weed or even pull out most of it. We have to get rid of all its roots and seeds as well. The constant care that it takes to keep my life free from weeds can be tiring and discouraging, but I don't have to do it alone. If I will let the Savior be the gardener of my soul, he'll help me weed out the bad, and he'll strengthen the good in me. He'll make me what he needs me to be if I will yield to his guiding hand.

For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yeilds to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father. Mosiah 3:19

This do in remembrance of me

On a recent Sunday I learned how softly the spirit speaks. It was during the sacrament. As I lifted the sacrament cup to my lips and swallowed that tiny sip of water, a feeling of sacredness settled on my heart. I sensed in a way that I never have before how profound this simple act of remembering the Savior and his suffering is. I often feel the promptings of the spirit as I contemplate during the sacrament. I learn what I need to do in the coming week to improve and grow. This time it was more subtle, barely an impression, an invitation to ponder and seek more meaning in an act that I've repeated nearly every week of my life, a call to remember him.


And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 1 Corinthians 11:24-15