(7/17/98)
"Our people have lost far too much money by trusting their assets
to others. In my judgment, we never will have balance in our lives
unless our finances are securely under control."
Elder
M. Russell Ballard
"Keeping Life's Demands in Balance"
General Conference, April 1987
(7/18/98)
"Wealth is a relative thing. Conditions vary dramatically
from place to place in the world today. That which some consider
to be the necessities of life, to others would be abundance, and even
extravagance. In any set of circumstances, the challenges related
to an improvement in material prosperity remain the same. The
message that echoes to us from the pages of history and from the
counsels of the Lord and his prophets is clear--Seek ye first the
kingdom of heaven."
Elder
Dean L. Larsen
"Beware Lest Thou Forget The Lord"
General Conference, April 1991
(7/19/98)
"...the most important thing about money and property is the
attitude with which we view and manage them. If allowed to become an
object of worship or priority, money and property can make us selfish
and prideful, 'puffed up...with the vain things of the world' (Alma
31:27). In contrast, if used for fulfilling our legal obligations and
for paying our tithes and offerings, money can demonstrate integrity and
develop unselfishness. The spiritually enlightened use of property can
help prepare us for the higher law of a celestial glory. 'Wherefore,' as
Jacob taught, 'do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor
your labor for that which cannot satisfy' (2 Nephi 9:51)."
Elder
Dallin H. Oaks
"Pure in Heart," p. 121
(7/20/98)
"Man in his highest estate on this earth is only a steward; naked
he will go out of the world, and all that he can accumulate of temporal
things--houses and lands, orchards and vineyards, flocks and herds, gold
and silver and precious stones, all that he can grasp of such things in
this probation, he must leave behind when he departs hence.... Therefore
it needs but a glance to convince us of the superior importance of
spiritual over temporal things."
Elder
Orson F. Whitney
Collected Discourses
(7/21/98)
"To devote your time and abilities in the cause of truth and a
suffering people may not be the means of exalting you in the eyes of
this generation, or securing you the riches of the world, yet by so
doing you may rely on the approval of Jehovah, 'that blessing which
maketh rich and addeth no sorrow.'"
Joseph
Smith
"History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,"
4:177
(9/25/00)
"Historically, the abundance with which the Lord has blessed his people
has proved to be one of their greatest tests. The cycles of their
acquiring worldly wealth and their subsequent spiritual decline are well
documented in scriptural and historical records." — "Beware Lest
Thou Forget The Lord", Elder Dean L. Larsen, General Conference, April
1991
(9/26/00)
"But money alone does not lift the burdens of our fellowmen, and many of
us live in a time and place where there is little to spare. The world is
in need of time, and if we have but one hour to spare, we are wealthy.
It takes time to listen and to comfort, it takes time to teach and to
encourage, and it takes time to feed and to clothe. We all have the gift
to lift each other's burdens and to make a difference in somebody's
life." — "Choose You This Day", Elder Hans B. Ringger, General
Conference, April 1990
(9/27/00)
"We magnify our calling when we walk with honesty and integrity. We
shrink it when we stoop to devious acts and selfishness, disregarding
the interests and well-being of others as we spend all of our time to
accumulate that which we cannot take with us from this life to the
next." — "Magnify Your Calling", President Gordon B. Hinckley,
General Conference, April 1989
(9/28/00)
"Now this is the Lord's work. It is God's work. It is our Father's
business. His hand is in it. There is nothing in this world that
compares in any way in importance with the gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ. It is the power of God unto salvation, and if we will walk and
live and be and move and breathe and think the gospel and its cause,
always and everlastingly, then we can have peace and joy and happiness
in this life and we can go on to eternal glory in the life to come." — "Be
Valiant In The Fight Of Faith", Elder Bruce R. McConkie, General
Conference, October 1974
(9/29/00)
"One of my greatest experiences was that my parents taught me the
principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Someone has said: 'You may
have riches and wealth untold, Baskets of jewels and caskets of gold,
But richer than I, you will never be, For I had a mother who read to
me.'" — "Great Experiences", Elder Sterling W. Sill, General
Conference, April 1971
9/5/06
"There is nothing inherently evil about money. The Good Samaritan used
the same coinage to serve his fellowman that Judas used to betray the
Master. It is 'the love of money [which] is the root of all
evil.' (1 Tim. 6:10;
italics added.) The critical difference is the degree of spirituality
we exercise in viewing, evaluating, and managing the things of this
world and our experiences in it.
"If allowed to become an object of worship or priority, money can make
us selfish and prideful, 'puffed up in the vain things of the world.'
(Alma 5:37.) In
contrast, if used for fulfilling our legal obligations and for paying
our tithes and offerings, money can demonstrate integrity and develop
unselfishness. The spiritually enlightened use of property can help
prepare us for the higher law of a celestial glory." - Dallin H.
Oaks, "Spirituality,"
Ensign (CR), November 1985, p.61
9/22/06
"I believe that earthly crowns
such as power, the love of money, the preoccupation with material
things, the honors of men are a crown of thorns because they are based
upon obtaining and receiving rather than giving. So selfishness can
make what we think is a noble crown into a crown of thorns beyond our
power to endure. When I first started my professional career, one of
the senior members in our office asked another senior member for some
help on a legal matter. The other man who was asked to help was gifted
and able but also selfish. He replied, 'What's in it for me.' The
'what's in it for me?' philosophy is basically what's wrong with the
world. It is surely one of the sharpest points in a crown of thorns."
- James E. Faust, "A
Crown of Thorns, a Crown of Glory," Ensign (CR), May 1991,
p.68
7/4/08
"The
only real danger that I foresee in the path of the Latter-day Saints
is in the results which naturally follow the possession of wealth—pride
and vanity, self-indulgence and forgetfulness of God, and a disregard
of the sacred obligations and duties that we owe to Him and to one
another; and this because of the abundance of earthly blessings which
He in His goodness has bestowed upon us. It is said that in adversity
we are inclined to feel after the Lord, but that in prosperity we
remember Him not. It appears to me that in this lies the greatest
danger that threatens us to-day."
- Joseph F. Smith, "Journal of Discourses," 26 vols., 24:174-176
2/20/09
"I do not believe that the
Savior objects to Latter-day Saints becoming wealthy, if they use that
wealth as they should. God wants his children to have the good things of
the world, if we use that wealth to pay our tithing, and fast offerings,
to send out missionaries, to build church houses, and to help build up
the kingdom of God here upon this earth in every way; but he warned
against the evil effects that wealth might have on members of his
Church. Those who use their wealth for the building of the kingdom of
God are following the Savior's admonition to
"'...seek
ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these
things shall be added unto you.'"
- Milton R.
Hunter, "Conference
Report," October 1953,
Second Day—Morning Meeting,
p.48
11/23/09
“The
gospel of Jesus Christ is the biggest thing in the world today. A
testimony of that gospel is the most precious possession that a human
soul can have. To stand up and bear that testimony is the greatest
privilege that comes to any Latter-day Saint. Unto you, my brethren
and sisters, unto every member of this Church and especially to those
who have been specifically designated to be missionaries is the great
responsibility of declaring to the world that God has spoken from the
heavens in these the last days. There is nothing under heaven to
compare with it. What is wealth, what is position, what is influence,
if in gaining these things you jeopardize your place with God? I say,
unto you, my brethren and sisters, is this responsibility given.” -
Winslow Farr Smith, “Conference Report,” April 1920, Afternoon
Session, p. 165
12/10/11
How people handle their earthly riches is among the great tests they
have in life. - James E. Faust, "Unwanted
Messages," Ensign (CR) October 1986
2/2/12
A person is poor when his character is
honeycombed with greed and warped by dishonesty. When we yield to
misconduct under pressure, we are poor. A person who has to beg for
bread is not poor if he has not bent to expediency. An individual is
headed for personal bankruptcy when he sells his character and
reputation for cash, honor, or convenience. We are poor in character
when we think getting by is a substitute for doing our best. Virtue,
action, and truth properly blended in life make a person rich. - Marvin
J. Ashton, "It's
No Fun Being Poor," Ensign, September 1982
9/4/12
Shakespeare, speaking through
Duke Senior, said,
Sweet are the uses of adversity;
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head.
The lasting effects of economic challenges are often determined by our
attitude toward life. One writer said, “Out of the same substances one
stomach will extract nourishment, and another poison; and so the same
disappointments in life will chasten and refine one man’s spirit and
embitter another’s.” (William Matthews, Webster’s Encyclopedia of
Dictionaries, New American Edition, Ottenheimer Publishers, Inc., p.
864.) - James E. Faust, "The
Blessings We Receive As We Meet the Challenges of Economic Stress,"
Ensign (CR) November 1982