Saturday, March 16, 2013

Lesson Prep VT and RS

Posted by 2DI4 at 10:42 PM

VT

Activation

3 Nephi 18:32

 32 Nevertheless, ye shall not cast him out of your synagogues, or your places of worship, for unto such shall ye continue to minister; for ye know not but what they will return and repent, and come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I shall heal them; and ye shall be the means of bringing salvation unto them.
A companionship visited a young mother who they figured out was suffering from alcoholism. She greeted them at the door in a bathrobe. As they continued to visit this woman they saw small improvements. Eventually she and her family began to attend church regularly. They returned to full activity and were sealed in the temple. 

Many times service is given that may not be recognized but our father in heaven sees and appreciates all the work we do. 

On my mission I visited people who all it took was an invitation from us for them to return to church. I never appreciated home and visiting teaching more.

RS
Becoming Perfect Before the Lord: "A Little Better Day by Day"

With diligence, patience, and ONLY WITH divine aid, we can obey the Lord's command to be perfect.
-We are commanded to be perfect as was Abraham and the 12 Apostles
That is a COMMANDMENT, not a request.
How can we expect to reap exaltation if we do not pay the price.
The Purifying Power of Gethsemene-Bruce R. McConkie 1985
"Many of us have a superficial knowledge and rely upon the Lord and his goodness to see us through the trials and perils of life.
But if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived."
This can seem overwhelming but the Lord will help us reach this state.
We also are required to arrive at a state of perfection before the Lord; and the Lord in this case, the same as in every other, has not made a requirement that cannot be complied with, but on the other hand, He has placed for the use of the Latter-day Saints the means by which they can conform to His holy order. 

 How does the Lord help us become perfect?

 We may think that we cannot live up to the perfect law, that the work of perfecting ourselves is too difficult. This may be true in part, but the fact still remains that it is a command of the Almighty to us and we cannot ignore it. When we experience trying moments, then is the time for us to avail ourselves of that great privilege of calling upon the Lord for strength and understanding, intelligence and grace by which we can overcome the weakness of the flesh against which we have to make a continual warfare.
Rather than become discouraged when we fail, we can repent and ask God for the strength to do better.
Are we seeking to purify ourselves?
Now let all present put this question to themselves: Are our expectations well founded? In other words, are we seeking to purify ourselves? How can a Latter-day Saint feel justified in himself unless he is seeking to purify himself even as God is pure, unless he is seeking to keep his conscience void of offence before God and man every day of his life? We doubtless, many of us, walk from day to day and from week to week, and from month to month, before God, feeling under no condemnation, comporting ourselves properly and seeking earnestly and in all meekness for the Spirit of God to dictate our daily course; and yet there may be a certain time or times in our life, when we are greatly tried and perhaps overcome; even if this be so, that is no reason why we should not try again, and that too with redoubled energy and determination to accomplish our object.
If we could read in detail the life of Abraham or the lives of other great and holy men we would doubtless find that their efforts to be righteous were not always crowned with success. Hence we should not be discouraged if we should be overcome in a weak moment; but, on the contrary, straightway repent of the error or the wrong we may have committed, and as far as possible repair it, and then seek to God for renewed strength to go on and do better.
We must not allow ourselves to be discouraged whenever we discover our weakness. We can scarcely find an instance in all the glorious examples set us by the prophets, ancient or modern, wherein they permitted the Evil One to discourage them; but on the other hand they constantly sought to overcome, to win the prize and thus prepare themselves for a fulness of glory.

 With divine help, we can live above the follies and vanities of the world
When we once get it into our minds that we really have the power within ourselves through the gospel we have received, to conquer our passions, our appetites and in all things submit our will to the will of our Heavenly Father, and, instead of being the means of generating unpleasant feeling in our family circle, and those with whom we are associated, but assisting greatly to create a little heaven upon earth, then the battle may be said to be half won. One of the chief difficulties that many suffer from is, that we are too apt to forget the great object of life, the motive of our Heavenly Father in sending us here to put on mortality, as well as the holy calling with which we have been called; and hence, instead of rising above the little transitory things of time, we too often allow ourselves to come down to the level of the world without availing ourselves of the divine help which God has instituted, which alone can enable us to overcome them. We are no better than the rest of the world if we do not cultivate the feeling to be perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect.
We cannot become perfect at once, but we can be a little better day by day.
Do not expect to become perfect at once. If you do, you will be disappointed. Be better today than you were yesterday, and be better tomorrow than you are today. The temptations that perhaps partially overcome us today, let them not overcome us so far tomorrow. Thus continue to be a little better day by day; and do not let your life wear away without accomplishing good to others as well as to ourselves.
Each last day or each last week should be the best that we have ever experienced, that is, we should advance ourselves a little every day, in knowledge and wisdom, and in the ability to accomplish good. As we grow older we should live nearer the Lord each following day.
After reading sections of Bruce R. McConkie's talk, I had to look up and read President Holland's talk The Will of the Father in All Things. That is probably my favorite talk to read when I'm having a hard time doing what I know I should. I love this. It was a speech he gave when he was the president at BYU. 
I also have a copy of a missionary talk he gave at the MTC in SLC. I'm going to try to find it online.






 


 

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