Elder Ulisses Soares: "Despite our continuous efforts to seek out the Lord, inappropriate thoughts may penetrate our mind. When such thoughts are permitted and even invited to stay, they can shape the desires of our heart and lead us to what we will become in this life and eventually to what we will inherit for eternity." Seek Christ in Every Thought, October 2020
THINGS aS tHEY REALLY ARE...
D&C 93:24-25 And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come; And whatsoever is more or less than this is the spirit of that wicked one who was a liar from the beginning.
Jacob 4:13 ... for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls. ...
Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: ...
THE ADVERSARY CAN USE OUR THOUGHTS AGAINST US
Elder David A. Bednar: The Father’s plan is designed to provide direction for His children, to help them become happy, and to bring them safely home to Him with resurrected, exalted bodies. Lucifer labors to make the sons and daughters of God confused and unhappy and to hinder their eternal progression. The overarching intent of the father of lies is that all of us become “miserable like unto himself” (2 Nephi 2:27), and he works to distort the elements of the Father’s plan he hates the most. ...
One of the ultimate ironies of eternity is that the adversary, who is miserable precisely because he has no physical body, invites and entices us to share in his misery through the improper use of our bodies. The very tool he does not have and cannot use is thus the primary target of his attempts to lure us to physical and spiritual destruction. Things As They Really Are, Ensign June 2010
Sister Michelle D. Craig of the General Young Women Presidency: "...sometimes create within us what Elder Neal A. Maxwell called “divine discontent.”Divine discontent comes when we compare “what we are [to] what we have the power to become.” Each of us, if we are honest, feels a gap between where and who we are, and where and who we want to become. We yearn for greater personal capacity. We have these feelings because we are daughters and sons of God, born with the Light of Christ yet living in a fallen world. These feelings are God given and create an urgency to act.
We should welcome feelings of divine discontent that call us to a higher way, while recognizing and avoiding Satan’s counterfeit—paralyzing discouragement. This is a precious space into which Satan is all too eager to jump. We can choose to walk the higher path that leads us to seek for God and His peace and grace, or we can listen to Satan, who bombards us with messages that we will never be enough: rich enough, smart enough, beautiful enough, anything enough. Our discontent can become divine—or destructive." Divine Discontent, October 2018
Satan doesn't have as much power as we think he does...
A PROPHETIC PROMISE OF THOUGHTS & CHOICES
President Russell M. Nelson: "The pandemic has demonstrated how quickly life can change, at times from circumstances beyond our control. However, there are many things we can control. We set our own priorities and determine how we use our energy, time, and means. We decide how we will treat each other. We choose those to whom we will turn for truth and guidance.
The voices and pressures of the world are engaging and numerous. But too many voices are deceptive, seductive, and can pull us off the covenant path. To avoid the inevitable heartbreak that follows, I plead with you today to counter the lure of the world by making time for the Lord in your life—each and every day.
If most of the information you get comes from social or other media, your ability to hear the whisperings of the Spirit will be diminished. If you are not also seeking the Lord through daily prayer and gospel study, you leave yourself vulnerable to philosophies that may be intriguing but are not true. Even Saints who are otherwise faithful can be derailed by the steady beat of Babylon’s band.
My brothers and sisters, I plead with you to make time for the Lord! Make your own spiritual foundation firm and able to stand the test of time by doing those things that allow the Holy Ghost to be with you always.
Never underestimate the profound truth that “the Spirit speaketh … of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be.” “It will show unto you all things what ye should do.”
Nothing invites the Spirit more than fixing your focus on Jesus Christ. Talk of Christ, rejoice in Christ, feast upon the words of Christ, and press forward with steadfastness in Christ. Make your Sabbath a delight as you worship Him, partake of the sacrament, and keep His day holy.
As emphasized this morning, please make time for the Lord in His holy house. Nothing will strengthen your spiritual foundation like temple service and temple worship. Make Time for the Lord, October 2021
Cognitive DistortionS (Thinking Errors)
Practice
My best friend is driving me crazy. She and her new boyfriend, Todd, are always together. She never spend times with me anymore. She says I'm always invited to hang out with them, but I don't want to be a third wheel! I'm happy for her, but if she'd just carve out time for some "girl time," I'd be much happier.
The pandemic was crazy. It ruined everything. My mission was cut short. I came home early. I try my best to be obedient and then God lets a pandemic happen! My first semester in college was all online. I worked so hard to pay tuition just to spend the whole semester on a laptop. I ended up getting depressed and am now medicated. It's just not fair. I even stopped going to Church since God obviously doesn't care about me.
My mom did not get me up to go to class. My alarm didn't go off. She should have gotten me up. And then I didn't have any clean shirts to wear. My little sister's laundry was in the washing machine all weekend. And then traffic was crazy on the way to class this morning. Everyone was driving so slowly. If the professor would move the time to his class back about two hours, it would be a lot easier for me to get there.
I can't believe she asked me out. I am such a dweeb. Doesn't she know there are a ton of other guys in the ward that are way more handsome and accomplished? She even brought me a plate full of cookies to ask me. I thought they were for my roommate until he told me that my name was on the invitation. She is way out of my league!
Comments