Wednesday, February 8, 2012

The World needs more...

Integrity!  What does that mean??  A word that we don't seem to hear as often as we once did.  What is the difference from honesty and integrity?  Integrity is more than just telling the truth and being honest.  It is, by definition, adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character.  And why would should we seek to be individuals of integrity?  I want this to be brief yet powerful so I will just share a few simple quotes on integrity;
"In great matters man show themselves as they wish to be seen, in small matters, as they are." -Bradford Gamalie       
"A single lie destroys a whole reputation of integrity."
"Confidence in others honesty is no light testimony of ones' own integrity." -Michael de Mantaique 
Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful." -Samuel Jahnson
"So near is falsehood to truth that a wise man would do well not to trust himself on the narrow edge." -Ciero
"It takes less time to do something right then to explain why you did ti wrong." -Henry Longfellow
"If you have integrity, nothing else matters.  If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters."
"Integrity is much easier to maintain than to recover."
"There is no pillow softer than a clean conscience." 
"Don't try to be different.  Just be good.  To be good is different enough." -Aurthur Freed
"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he know he would never be found out." - Thomas MaCrealey
"The right to do something does not mean it is right." -William Sefire
"Laws control the lesser man.  Right conduct controls the greater." -Chinese Prov.
"You can easily judge the character of a man by the way he treats those who can do nothing for him." -James Miles

  I hope that each of us will do a little more to be a little better in this area.  Let us adhere to those eternal laws  given us by our Heavenly Father.  Regardless of the consequence, always maintain your integrity.  Once gone it is so hard to rebuild.  Stay  far away from any situation that might tempt you to compromise your integrity

Ponder for yourself; How can I increase my own personal integrity?  Is there something in my life I need to change to have more integrity?

Find a reason to smile each and every day.!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

New Year's 2012- What's Your Goal??

It's that time of year when we reflect on what we have accomplished over the last 12 months.  We see our success and failure and lessons learned.  In retrospect we find things that we would like to change.

Often we categorize our lives in to several different areas.  Social, Mental, Spiritual, Financial, Physical, Family etc.  How you break it up is your choice, but I've found that if we will set up categories and reflect on each, we will find specific things we want to change or improve.   This is where goals come into play.  Goal are not to discourage us or make us feel that we have failed, but rather a way to measure our personal progress.  Goals are to make ourselves stretch and grow so that we may achieve our full potential.  We need to set goals that are both realistic and will help us amplify our personal abilities.


This is the time of year to set goals and make necessary plans to make them a reality.  President Thomas S. Monson has said, "Goals are only dreams until actions happen."  As we set worthy goals in life we need to trust the Lord and have enough faith to move forward and "make" them happen.  It is the same with any principle in the gospel. (John7:17) May this coming year be full of joy and success in all you do.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The Key To All Other Attributes

I have often sought out Christlike attributes.  Christlike attributes are attributes we seek to develop that were shown by our Savior Jesus Christ.  Charity, Hope, Faith, Diligence, and Patience are a few among others.  In my experience as a missionary and in my continued efforts to seek to develop these attributes, I've learned a few things that I would like to share with you.

My first companion in the mission field was Elder Maka Tuihalamaka, not only large in stature but a spiritual giant.  The fist thing I ever heard him say was; "Humility goes a long way."  That lead to my conclusion that humility is key to all other Christlike attributes.


Further study into the humility taught me that gratitude is the key to obtaining humility.  Therefore, gratitude falls as a foundation for all other desirable attributes.  I've found that when I'm conscious about what I am grateful for-and I express my gratitude-then it is easier to walk with the spirit of humility.

In this time of Thanksgiving, let us express our gratitude to those around us and thereby lay the foundation to attaining other attributes we seek for.  I promise the spirit of the Lord will strive with us as we do all we can to follow Jesus Christ.


Ponder this question- Who may I express gratitude towards and how should I do it?

Saturday, November 12, 2011

This past General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, President Thomas S. Monson gave the solemn charge; "Dare to Stand Alone."  I will quote an article he shared.

"I share with you just a portion of this very telling article:
“The interviewers asked open-ended questions about right and wrong, moral dilemmas and the meaning of life. In the rambling answers, … you see the young people groping to say anything sensible on these matters. But they just don’t have the categories or vocabulary to do so.
“When asked to describe a moral dilemma they had faced, two-thirds of the young people either couldn’t answer the question or described problems that are not moral at all, like whether they could afford to rent a certain apartment or whether they had enough quarters to feed the meter at a parking spot.”
The article continues:
“The default position, which most of them came back to again and again, is that moral choices are just a matter of individual taste. ‘It’s personal,’ the respondents typically said. ‘It’s up to the individual. Who am I to say?’
“Rejecting blind deference to authority, many of the young people have gone off to the other extreme [saying]: ‘I would do what I thought made me happy or how I felt. I have no other way of knowing what to do but how I internally feel.’”
Those who conducted the interviews emphasized that the majority of the young people with whom they spoke had “not been given the resources—by schools, institutions [or] families—to cultivate their moral intuitions."

I echo the voice of our living prophet who said, "The laws of God have not changed. They will not change.  Our code of conduct is definitive not negotiable."

I invite all to learn of those laws by a study of the scriptures including the Bible and Book of Mormon and also by heeding the living prophets warning voice.  Living the standards God has established is key to peace in this life, and eternal life in the life to come.  I know the fullness of the everlasting gospel has in fact been restored to the earth through a living prophet.  I testify that "This gospel is salvation, and without it there is nothing worth having."

For the full talk Dare to Stand Alone, President Monson

Friday, October 28, 2011

The Book of Mormon: Broadway or Scripture?

Because the Book of Mormon is a musical on Broadway, there are many people who have began to ask questions about the true origin of the Book of Mormon.  No doubt a very popular satire play, it nonetheless is derogatory to the church and the truth.  My purpose for this blog is to help people catch a glimpse of what the Book of Mormon really is.


The Book of Mormon is a volume of holy scripture.  This record is of the ancient inhabitants of the Americas.  It proves the Bible to be true.  It is another testament of Jesus Christ, confirming the truth that every Christian heart yearns to know for certain.  I will share just a couple examples of the teachings found in the Book of Mormon.

Believe in aGod; believe that he is, and that he bcreated all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all cwisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not dcomprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend. (Mosiah 4:9)

26 And we atalk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we bprophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our cchildren may know to what source they may look for a dremission of their sins. (2 Nephi 25:26)

I affirm that to Book of Mormon is the word of God along with the Bible.  I invite all to read it and learn for themselves of its truth.  Please visit Mormon.org to learn more truth about the Book of Mormon and the Jesus Christ.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Is There A God?? or What Does Salt Taste Like??

Due to recent conversation I've had with some individuals who are struggling to accept the truth of the existence of an Eternal Father in Heaven, I've reflected on how I can describe 'how' I know there to be such a being.  As I was discussing this with my companion Elder Jensen Nelson, he reminded me of a talk given by an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ over 25 years ago. I will post a portion of it. Elder Boyd K. Packer says it better than I can.

What Does Salt Taste Like?

I will tell you of an experience I had before I was a General Authority which affected me profoundly. I sat on a plane next to a professed atheist who pressed his disbelief in God so urgently that I bore my testimony to him. “You are wrong,” I said, “there is a God. I know He lives!”
He protested, “You don’t know. Nobody knows that! You can’t know it!” When I would not yield, the atheist, who was an attorney, asked perhaps the ultimate question on the subject of testimony. “All right,” he said in a sneering, condescending way, “you say you know. Tell me how you know.”
When I attempted to answer, even though I held advanced academic degrees, I was helpless to communicate.
Sometimes in your youth, you young missionaries are embarrassed when the cynic, the skeptic, treat you with contempt because you do not have ready answers for everything. Before such ridicule, some turn away in shame. (Remember the iron rod, the spacious building, and the mocking? See 1 Ne. 8:28.)
When I used the words Spirit and witness, the atheist responded, “I don’t know what you are talking about.” The words prayer, discernment, and faith, were equally meaningless to him. “You see,” he said, “you don’t really know. If you did, you would be able to tell me how you know.
I felt, perhaps, that I had borne my testimony to him unwisely and was at a loss as to what to do. Then came the experience! Something came into my mind. And I mention here a statement of the Prophet Joseph Smith: “A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas … and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until you become perfect in Christ Jesus.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1977, p. 151.)
Such an idea came into my mind and I said to the atheist, “Let me ask if you know what salt tastes like.”
“Of course I do,” was his reply.
“When did you taste salt last?”
“I just had dinner on the plane.”
“You just think you know what salt tastes like,” I said.
He insisted, “I know what salt tastes like as well as I know anything.”
“If I gave you a cup of salt and a cup of sugar and let you taste them both, could you tell the salt from the sugar?”
“Now you are getting juvenile,” was his reply. “Of course I could tell the difference. I know what salt tastes like. It is an everyday experience—I know it as well as I know anything.”
“Then,” I said, “assuming that I have never tasted salt, explain to me just what it tastes like.”
After some thought, he ventured, “Well-I-uh, it is not sweet and it is not sour.”
“You’ve told me what it isn’t, not what it is.”
After several attempts, of course, he could not do it. He could not convey, in words alone, so ordinary an experience as tasting salt. I bore testimony to him once again and said, “I know there is a God. You ridiculed that testimony and said that if I did know, I would be able to tell you exactly how I know. My friend, spiritually speaking, I have tasted salt. I am no more able to convey to you in words how this knowledge has come than you are to tell me what salt tastes like. But I say to you again, there is a God! He does live! And just because you don’t know, don’t try to tell me that I don’t know, for I do!”
As we parted, I heard him mutter, “I don’t need your religion for a crutch! I don’t need it.”
From that experience forward, I have never been embarrassed or ashamed that I could not explain in words alone everything I know spiritually. The Apostle Paul said it this way:
“We speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”

The Candle of the Lord

  • Boyd K. Packer
  • January 1983 Ensign

I add my testimony to the millions of others that there is in fact a God in Heaven who is aware of and loves each of us.  I testify that anyone can know of this truth by the power of the Holy Ghost if they will humble themselves and ask in faith.  This is done by praying to Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ.  I know that Jesus Christ is the living Son of the living God.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Hear it Now: Are Mormons Christian?

In light of the religious beliefs of some current presidential candidates, there has been some discussion concerning The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  Some individuals of others faiths speak in ignorance about the church and continue to spread misinformation.  The purpose of this blog is to offer the correct doctrine of the church while not endorsing any political party or candidate.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is just that, the church of Jesus Christ.  We believe with all our hearts that Jesus 'IS' the Christ and that salvation can come only in and through His name.  There is no other name under heaven whereby man may be saved.  Our unique message to the world is simple but remarkable.  The same church organization and authority that existed in the primitive church when Christ was in His mortal ministry, has been restored to the earth in its fullness through a prophet.

This message is hard for some to grasp but simple non the less.  I affirm that we are true believers in Jesus the Christ.  He that was born of a virgin mother and who suffered and died on the cross.  He is our master and our King.  As a full-time representative of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we invite all to come unto Him.  He is the way the truth and the life.  I invite all to learn more about the actual doctrine and beliefs of the church by visiting mormon.org.