Of what good is our faith, our repentance, our baptism, and all the sacred ordinances of the gospel by which we have been made ready to receive the blessings of the Lord, if we fail, on our part, to keep the commandments.
Interpretation
Faith and religious practices are meaningless if not accompanied by the commitment to follow divine commandments.
This quote by Heber J. Grant emphasizes the importance of not just participating in religious rituals but also actively living by the moral and ethical guidelines that these rituals represent. It suggests that true spiritual readiness and the blessings that come with it hinge upon our genuine commitment to adhere to the commandments and principles of our faith.
In practice
During a church service discussion about the importance of living one's faith actively.
I believe that we can accomplish any object that we make up our minds to, and no boy or girl ought to sit down and say, because they cannot do as well as somebody else, that they will not do anything. God has given to some people ten talents; to others, he has given one; but they who improve the one talent will live to see the day when they will far outshine those who have ten talents but fail to improve them.
One can never tell what will be the result of faithful service rendered, nor do we know when it will come back to us or to those with whom we are associated. The reward may not come at the time, but in dividends later. I believe we will never lose anything in life by giving service, by making sacrifices, and doing the right thing.
If there is any one thing that will bring peace and contentment into the human heart, and into the family, it is to live within our means. And if there is any one thing that is grinding and discouraging and disheartening, it is to have debts and obligations that one cannot meet.
...the case for individual freedom rests largely on the recognition of the inevitable and universal ignorance of all of us concerning a great many of the factors on which the achievements of our ends and welfare depend.
When the Englishman speaks of national wealth he means the number of millionaires in the country.
Fame is damaging when people become reliant on it for their sense of self, and their identity, when fame is linked to how you see yourself.
Look at it this way: There are many here among us for whom the life force is best represented by the livid twitching of one tortured nerve, or even a full-scale anxiety attack. I do not subscribe to this point of view 100 percent, but I understand it, have lived it. Thus the shriek, the caterwaul, the chainsaw gnarlgnashing, the yowl and the whizz that decapitates may be reheard by the adventurous or emotionally damaged as mellifluous bursts of unarguable affirmation.
I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions.
All religions and cultures suffer from sources that preach hate against the 'other.' Throughout history some have, tragically, practiced what their sources preached, while some have sought to dismiss or even counteract the hateful words of their sources.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.