Some Great Messages From Yesterday

Yesterday was good. There were many lessons that spoke to me, giving me the kind of encouragement I need to face my specific challenges, but as I read and listened to Decisions of Eternity, the talk from which one of our lessons was taken, I realized how generic the message was and how broadly it related to all of humanity, though it felt like it was speaking directly to me.

One thing I love about this talk is that as soon as Elder Nelson opened his mouth to speak, he said something that's not only worth quoting - It's worth printing up an taping to the bathroom mirror so you can see it every day. "My dear brothers and sisters, each day is a day of decision." Then, at the end of his talk, he repeats and expands on that quote. "My dear brothers and sisters, each day is a day of decision, and our decisions determine our destiny." Though I felt that this message was aimed at me, I now can't help thinking that there isn't a single person on earth who wouldn't benefit from hearing that message and taking it to heart.

There are other great quotes from this talk, too. Some of them speak directly to things I've blogged about recently, such as the following paragraph.

We can change our behavior. Our very desires can change. How? There is only one way. True change—permanent change—can come only through the healing, cleansing, and enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

So, we can change, but only through the power of the Atonement.

He also spoke on the subject of self-mastery, which I feel like I've touched on from time to time, but he said it better.

A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery—the strength to place reason over appetite. Self-mastery builds a strong conscience. And your conscience determines your moral responses in difficult, tempting, and trying situations. Fasting helps your spirit to develop dominance over your physical appetites. Fasting also increases your access to heaven’s help, as it intensifies your prayers. Why the need for self-mastery? God implanted strong appetites within us for nourishment and love, vital for the human family to be perpetuated. When we master our appetites within the bounds of God’s laws, we can enjoy longer life, greater love, and consummate joy.

I can think of at least two of my blog posts and a talk I once gave that could have benefitted from quoting this paragraph. At this point, I feel a little tempted to quote the whole talk, though perhaps I'll limit myself to sharing a link to the text of the talk, and embedding the video below.




This is a good talk, and yesterday was a really good Sunday. I feel like I benefitted a lot from yesterday. One good quote that was shared yesterday that wasn't also shared in this talk was this one:

There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.
- Ella Wheeler Wilcox

But while I was looking for that quote, I found a better one and many others.

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.
- Thomas Edison

Many, many good messages - Most of them along the same lines. Every day, we have decisions to make. Many forces attempt to persuade us one way or another, but we are the ones who make the decisions. Will we do what we know we should do, or what we're tempted to do? Choosing the right takes great will-power, or in other words self-mastery, which can be difficult to develop (Though Elder Nelson gives us a pro tips in the form of Fasting). Once attained, that self-mastery can help us resist all temptations so we can consistently make good decisions (which we must make every day), and eventually inherit Eternal Life.

I think we can all benefit from messages like that. At least I certainly can.