Temples

One of the quotes tonight is about the temple.

"The temple is a sacred edifice, a holy place, where essential saving ceremonies and ordinances are performed to prepare us for exaltation. It is important that we gain a sure knowledge that our preparation to enter the holy house and that our participation in these ceremonies and covenants are some of the most significant events we will experience in our mortal lives."

--Robert D. Hales, "Blessings of the Temple", Ensign, Oct 2009, 46–49

Something I need to STRIVE harder to do, attend the temple.

Prayer brings a calming peace

How many times have we heard about enduring to the end? I remember Bishop (Dr.) Beckstead asked Mother to give a talk on enduring to the end. He told her he thought she was an excellent example of enduring to the end.

"Enduring to the end is a process filling every minute of our life, every hour, every day, from sunrise to sunrise. It is accomplished through personal discipline following the commandments of God."

--Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Have We Not Reason to Rejoice?", October 2007 General Conference

Yet some people have such a hard time just enduring day to day.

"Gratitude expressed to our Heavenly Father in prayer for what we have brings a calming peace — a peace which allows us to not canker our souls for what we don't have. Gratitude brings a peace that helps us overcome the pain of adversity and failure. Gratitude on a daily basis means we express appreciation for what we have now without qualification for what we had in the past or desire in the future. A recognition of and appreciation for our gifts and talents which have been given also allows us to acknowledge the need for help and assistance from the gifts and talents possessed by others."

--Robert D. Hales, "Gratitude for the Goodness of God", Ensign, May 1992, 63

We need to have an attitude of gratitude & enumerating our blessings every day in prayer & thanking the Lord is one way to bring peace to our souls.

Be patient

Patience is the state of endurance under difficult circumstances (Wikipedia). Sometimes as we wait, we can conjure up all kinds of scenarios, from bad to good.

"The Lord counseled His prophet to be patient, for 'the just shall live by his faith.' Faith in God can produce miracles."

--LaVar Thornock, "Do the Wicked Prosper While the Righteous Suffer?,", Ensign, Oct 1990, 13

Just keep praying & have faith.

"When the challenges of mortality come, and they come for all of us, it may seem hard to have faith and hard to believe. At these times only faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement can bring us peace, hope, and understanding. Only faith that He suffered for our sakes will give us the strength to endure to the end. When we gain this faith, we experience a mighty change of heart, and like Enos, we become stronger and begin to feel a desire for the welfare of our brothers and sisters. We pray for them, that they too will be lifted and strengthened through faith on the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ."

--Robert D Hales, "Finding Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ", November 2004 Ensign pg 70