Refer your friends to join The LDS Daily WOOL (Words Of Our Leaders)
(1/12/05)
"What is the seed of mother love? Is it not sacrifice? Such love is
considered to be the deepest and most tender. Is this because a mother
passes through the valley of the shadow of death to give birth to her
child and is continually sacrificing for that child's welfare?
"Is this why Christ loves the world? Because he toiled to make it?
Because he sacrificed his life for the world and its people? We are
told that 'God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son'
(John 3:16) to
save it from ruin, and the Son was willing to suffer for the salvation
of that for which he had toiled.
"We all love that for which we sacrifice. Giving and serving to the
point of sacrifice creates love. The term religion encompasses concern
for our brethren, as we are told in James
1:27: 'Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is
this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction....'
"When people say, 'Religion is all right for some, but I am not
religious, and it means nothing to me,' is it because they have not
experienced the uplift that comes from sacrificing for and serving
their fellowmen?" - John H. Vandenberg, "My
Brother's
Keeper," Ensign, June 1971, p. 63
(2/22/05)
"Henry Ward Beecher has said: 'God asks no man whether he will accept
life. That is not his choice. He must take it. The only choice is
how.' Parenthetically, I would say we did make the choice to come to
earth. God does not force his children.
"The choice we are now concerned with is how we are going to live our
lives. We have the agency to make that choice as we react to the
conditions in which we find ourselves during our life span. We must
make choices, as we are surrounded by the elements and resources of
the earth as well as by the people with whom we associate. From the
words of the prophets to the words of the atheists, the question is:
How will we emerge? Will we rise or fall? Will we fulfill our life's
purpose, or will it be wasted?" - John H. Vandenberg, "Turn
Heavenward
Our Eyes," Ensign, Dec. 1971, p. 115
4/21/06
"A religious doctrine, to mean something to anyone, must have the
solid foundation of being true. If it is built on myth, superstition,
supposition, imagination, or on the commandments of men, it will not
have substance. We may be concerned today with the decline of morality
and integrity in our modern society, but when the ideas of faith
become principles without works instead of a living fountain, when
religion is only membership in a church for status purposes, what else
can be expected? It is time for all mankind to ask of God, since he is
our Creator, 'What do you require of us?' The answer to that question
has been given. Jesus taught what his Father taught—that 'all men...
must repent, or they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God, for no
unclean thing can dwell there.' (Moses
6:57.) He taught the plan of salvation and encouraged mankind to
'Come, follow me.' (Luke
18:22.) He said, 'My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent
me.' (John 7:16)"
- John H. Vandenberg, "To
Cleanse Our Souls," Ensign (CR), November 1975, p.42
2/9/07
"Has the Lord supplied mankind with beauty? Anyone who doubts it need
only to open his eyes to the sunrise and the sunset and his ears to the
sound of rain and wind, to marvel at the colors of the flowers and the
rainbow, to perceive the variety in the scenery of the desert and the
forest, the fields of grain, the mountains, rivers, and oceans. At this
time of year we are beginning to thrill with the new life of springtime,
and as we lose ourselves in the teeming life about us, we become a part
of it.
"All the earth, with no sterility in it, gladdens the heart. In our
concern as our brothers keeper, we can help one another understand the
gift of beauty which is ours. Let us take the time to see and to feel
and to enjoy all that God has created for us." - John H. Vandenberg, "My
Brothers Keeper," Ensign (CR), June 1971, p.63
11/20/08
"Many of us will be going home
over the Thanksgiving Holiday. Let us take with us the spirit of giving
and engender it into our family circles. During Thanksgiving...
may we truly give thanks to the Lord for His blessings, and
then may we give our time and talents in service to others. King
Benjamin counseled,
"...
When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in
the service of your God. (Mosiah. 2:17.)
"In
this way our Thanksgiving will be first thanks, then giving."
- John H.
Vandenberg, November 23, 1965, "BYU Speeches of the Year," 1965, p.8
5/6/09
"In
accepting life, we must relate to the world as it is—to the struggle
between good and evil. There are, of course, some who would have us
believe that there is no such thing as good or evil, but this
philosophy runs counter to the natural laws of opposites that exist,
such as heat and cold, light and dark, gravitation and vacuum, and
many others. We need to use our eyes that we may see, our ears that we
may hear, and our minds that we may be able to think and make our own
decisions as we sift out the chaff of all we see and hear, so that we
may know the truth of that which we feel in our hearts, as it is
affirmed by the Holy Spirit." - John H.
Vandenberg, "Turn Heavenward Our Eyes", Ensign (CR), December 1971,
p. 114
10/29/09
“Each
of us has been endowed with special attributes, special desires, and
special talents. Sometimes we may wonder what we are good for. It is
in these periods of wonderment that we need to ponder, examine,
re-appraise ourselves to determine where we are going. Such
introspection and redefining of our goals will increase our usefulness
in life and will become a significant aid in helping us retain proper
perspective of our relationship with God. Maybe it would be well to
consider an old Chinese proverb, ‘Every task is easy to a resolute
man,’–not easy in the sense of achieving without effort, but easy
because of interest, desire, industry and determination. So frequently
we permit the daily routine to go unquestioned; hence time is wasted,
opportunity neglected, and we are often distracted by the frivolous.”
- John H. Vandenberg, January 7, 1964, “BYU
Speeches of the Year,” 1964, p. 2
3/14/10
“John
Locke, the English philosopher, expresses it this way, ‘Repentance is
a hearty sorrow for our past misdeeds, and a sincere resolution and
endeavor, to the utmost of our power, to conform all our actions to
the law of God. It does not consist in one single act of sorrow, but
in doing works meet for repentance in a sincere obedience to the law
of Christ for the remainder of our lives.’
“The ability to receive the blessings of repentance lies within our individual power. It is a never-ending endeavor. There is no restriction to those who may achieve: All may partake of this gift from God.” - John H. Vandenberg, “Conference Report,” October 1962, Afternoon Meeting, p. 64-65
5/27/12
Who is there who
has reached that point in life where he can afford to allow himself to
stop growing or to stop improving? Although I never had the privilege
of meeting her, I am told that my wife’s mother often repeated the
adage to her children: “If you consider yourself a nobody and do
nothing to improve yourself to become a somebody, you truly will end
up being a nobody.” She, no doubt, understood the power and capacity
of every soul for self-improvement. - John H. Vandenberg, "Becoming
a Somebody," Ensign (CR) November 1972
5/29/12
He wants us to become acquainted with his gospel, to test it, to prove
it, to participate in it, and to use it as a base on which to make our
decisions. This is that men might base their choices on truth. When
reason is joined with truth, there is convincing logic that sets up
the path in our hearts that leads upward and onward to a nobler life.
- John H. Vandenberg, "The
Agency of Man," Ensign (CR) April 1973
8/18/12
There seems to be astonishment among mankind generally that God would
speak again in this latter day. “The heavens are closed,” they
declare. It was a dark day when the religious leaders declared that
revelation had ceased and when they presumed that mankind could
negotiate his way by his own wisdom, leaning on the arm of flesh. But
“‘The world by wisdom know not God,’ so the world by speculation are
destitute of revelation. …” (DHC, vol. 5, p. 400.) It was a glorious
day when the doctrine of revelation was again restored to mankind in
this latter day. - John H. Vandenberg, "Touchstone
of Truth," Ensign (CR) May 1974
9/27/14
Faith in God is a prerequisite to the influence of the Holy Spirit. To
have a belief in God is the foundation of a full and happy life.
Without this belief, life can be wasted. Evidence of God’s existence
spreads throughout the universe.
Abraham Lincoln said: “I can see how it might be possible for a man to
look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how
he could look up into the heavens and say there is no God.” I believe
I know what Lincoln meant when he made that statement. - John H.
Vandenberg, “Turn
Heavenward Our Eyes,” Ensign (CR) November 1971
5/15/15
So does Christ light the way for all of us, that we may not stumble in
darkness on the path to eternal life. And so it is our responsibility
to light the way for others. - John
H. Vandenberg, Conference Report, October 1970, First Day-Morning
Meeting, p. 10
9/10/16
Every individual is granted a span of mortality, as Carlyle
expressed so simply: "One life, a little gleam of time between two
eternities, no second chance for us for evermore." There is granted to
most individuals the intelligence and power to reason for themselves.
The tragedy is that so many succumb to the ridiculous mediocre reasoning
of others, which often serves only to waste time and distort truth. We
need to live every moment conscious that our actions will be compatible
with the all-important goal of eternal life and that every moment, hour,
and day is important. - John H.
Vandenberg, “Conference Report,” April 1966, General Priesthood
Meeting, p.92
1/11/17
Peace
was placed in two categories by the Master. You will recall his words
to his disciples during the days before his crucifixion. He had
admonished them to keep his commandments and had promised to send them
another Comforter, the Spirit of truth, which is the Holy Ghost, who
would teach them all things and bring all things to their remembrance
that he had said unto them. Then he said, “Peace I leave with you, my
peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let
not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (See John
14:15–27.) – John H.
Vandenberg, “Whence
Cometh
Our Peace?” Ensign (CR) May 1972
2/19/17
President Joseph Fielding Smith summed up well what had happened as
he said: “It should be remembered that the entire Christian world in
1820 had lost the true doctrine concerning God. The simple truth
which was understood so clearly by the apostles and saints of old
had been lost in the mysteries of an apostate world. All the ancient
prophets, and the apostles of Jesus Christ had a clear understanding
that the Father and the Son were separate personages, as our
scriptures so clearly teach. Through apostasy this knowledge was
lost, and in the year 325 A.D., a strange doctrine was introduced
and soon spread throughout the Christian world. This doctrine
confounded the persons of the Godhead, and distorted the true
doctrine of God.” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel
Questions, vol. 3, p. 117.) – John
H. Vandenberg, “Touchstone
of Truth,” Ensign (CR) May 1974
