The LDS Daily WOOL Home Page
(3/11/98)
"There is no man,
there is no people, without a God. That God may be a visible idol,
carved of wood, or stone, to which sacrifice is offered in the forest,
in the temple, or in the market-place; or it may be an invisible idol,
fashioned in a man's own image and worshiped ardently at his own
personal shrine. Somewhere in the universe there is that in which each
individual has firm faith, and on which he places steady reliance. The
fool who says in his heart, 'There is no God' really means there is no
God but himself. His supreme egotism, his colossal vanity, have placed
him at the center of the universe which is thereafter to be measured
and dealt with in terms of his personal satisfactions. So it has come
to pass that after nearly two thousand years much of the world
resembles the Athens of St. Paul's time, in that it is wholly given to
idolatry; but in the modern case there are as many idols as idol
worshipers, and every such idol worshiper finds his idol in the
looking-glass. The time has come once again to repeat and to expound in
thunderous tones the noble sermon of St. Paul on Mars Hill, and to
declare to these modern idolaters 'Whom, therefore, ye ignorantly
worship, Him declare I unto you.'"—
Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, April 1922, p.11
(3/12/98)
I hesitated posting
this quote because of the source, but it is a good one and worthy of
our pondering, perhaps more so because of its source.
"Beloved
youth, you cannot hold hands with Satan and God at the same time. You
have to let go of one or the other. When you worship hard rock music or
any other worldly idol more than spiritual things, you are holding
hands with Satan and are walking in darkness. You will become
insensitive to the things that are spiritual; you will lose interest
and motivation to attend church or to go on a mission. Doubts and fears
will cloud your minds. You will begin to walk in your own way, after
the image of your own god, "whose image is in the likeness of the
world, and whose substance is that of an idol." The image of some
sports stars, movie stars, rock stars, money, and sports cars is in the
likeness of the world, and their substance is that of an idol. Do not
worship them."—
George P. Lee, Staying Unspotted From The World, General Conference, April 1978
(3/13/98)
"True religion is
found only where men worship the true and living God. False religion
always result from the worship of false gods. Eternal life itself,
which is the greatest of all the gifts of God, is available to those
and those only who know God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent (see
D&C 6:13; John 17:3)."— Bruce R. McConkie, The Lord God Of The Restoration, General Conference, October 1980
(3/14/98)
"Carnal man has tended
to transfer his trust in God to material things. . . . Whatever thing a
man sets his heart and his trust in most is his god; and if his god
doesn't also happen to be the true and living God of Israel, that man
is laboring in idolatry."— Dallin H. Oaks, Pure in Heart, p.83
(3/15/98)
"Let God be first in
our thoughts when we awake in the morning, and let our actions through
each day reflect honor on ourselves, credit on the cause of God, and
secure to us the confidence and good-will of all good and holy beings.
While we should be diligent and industrious, filling every moment of
our time to some advantage and profit to ourselves and others, we
should not suffer a covetous and grasping spirit to take possession of
us. It is lamentable to see the ignorance manifested by many of this
people in that respect, for no man who possesses the wealth of wisdom
would worship the wealth of mammon."—Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Vol.10, p.3 - 4
7/16/09
“The idols that man
makes and which he sets up and worships are the workmanship of his hands or
mind. The God of our spirits, verily the Father of our spirits, is no God of
man's creation. He created us, and calls upon us to worship him and to obey his
commandments. Israel was a peculiar people of old, and has remained a peculiar
people both in the gathered and in the scattered condition, and that was one of
the signs by which they were distinguished from their heathen, pagan, idolatrous
contemporaries, and by which they are distinguished from their heathen, pagan,
idolatrous contemporaries today. For, mark you, idolatry never was more rife,
and paganism was never more widespread than in this very year of our Lord, 1923.
Men may not now put their golden idols or their images of silver, or brass, or
iron, or wood, or stone, always up upon pedestals, and physically kneel down
before them and worship them. Gold need not always be cast in the form of a calf
after the pattern of Apis to be verily the god of man.” -
James E. Talmage, “Conference Report,” April 1923, Closing
Session, p. 141
7/10/11
"False gods can only lead to dead ends. If our journey through
life is to be successful, we need to follow divine direction. The Lord
said, 'Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.' And the
Psalmist wrote, 'Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my
path.'" - Russell M. Nelson, "Living by Scriptural Guidance," Ensign (CR), November 2000, p.16