Mormon Musings

For unto us a  child  is  born , unto us a  son  is given: and the  government   shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful,   Counsellor , The  mighty   God , The  everlasting  Father, The Prince of  i Peace . Isaiah 9:6

When  Jesus comes  again  in  rem inding  red attire, there will b e  a spectacular solar display a nd  stars will fall from their  places  in  the heavens. What wil l  then be evoked will not be an   exclamation over the solar di splay. Rather,  from human lips  praise will flow for Jesus' lov ing-kindness,  for His perfect  goodness. Then, the scriptures a ssure us  and tell us how long w e  will go on praising Jesus fo r  that Atonement: "forever  and  ever." (Mosiah 2:24; D&C 128: 23.)  The one thing He will men tion  when He comes again in maj esty  and power will have nothin g  to do with how He suffered in   the scourging, nothing to do  with the vinegar and gall or an y  of those things. Instead, His   voice will be heard to say, " I  have trodden the winepress al one,  and none was with me" ( Isa.  63:3).  Incredible alonene ss  lay at the heart of the Grea t  Atonement, and Jesus endured  it, because He let His will be swallowed up in the will of 

"If any has stumbled in his journey, there is a way back. The process is called repentance. Our Savior died to provide you and me that blessed gift. Though the path is difficult, the promise is real: 'Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow' (Isaiah 1:18)." Thomas S. Monson ,  "Preparation Brings Blessings," Ensign, May 2010, 66

9  ¶O  a Zion , that bringest  b good   c tidings , get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift  it  up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of  d Judah , Behold your God!   10  Behold, the Lord  God  will come with strong  hand,  and his a arm  shall rule for him: behold, his  b reward   is  with him, and his work before him.   11  He shall feed his  a flock  like a  b shepherd : he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry  them  in his bosom,  and  shall gently lead those that are with young.   12  ¶Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?   13  Who hath  a directed  the  b Spirit  of the  Lord , or  being  his c counsellor  hath taught him?   14  With whom took he  a counsel , and  who  instructed him, and taught him in the path o

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose...What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?...Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:28,31,35, 37-39 "... I will not forget thee, O house of Israel.  Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; they walls are continually before me." Isaiah 49: 15-16; 1 Nephi 21:15-16 "... I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not

No matter how serious the trial, how deep the distress, how great the affliction, God will never desert us. He never has, and He never will. He cannot do it. It is not His character. He is an unchanging Being; the same yesterday, the same today, and He will be the same throughout the eternal ages to come. We have found that God. We have made Him our friend by obeying His Gospel; and He will stand by us. We may pass through the fiery furnace, we may pass through deep waters; but we shall not be consumed nor overwhelmed. We shall emerge from all these trials and difficulties the better and purer for them, if we only trust in our God and keep His commandments. George Q. Cannon Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.   Isaiah 41:10 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:

"In the short speech of not more than five minutes, which I delivered in the old Bowery, when that judge publicly insulted this people, there were men and women in the congregation who suffered more in the anticipation of what might be the result of it in the future, than the generality this people suffered in being actually mobbed.  They could see, in imagination, all hell let loose upon us, themselves strung up, their ears cut off, their bowels torn out and this whole people cut to pieces.   After they had time to think, they found themselves still alive and unhurt, to their great astonishment.  They suffered as much as though they had been sent to the bottomless pit...I know this people have suffered more by the contemplation of trouble, than they have when actually passing through it...People suffer more in the anticipation of death than in death itself. " Brigham Young, February 20, 1853 (Journal of Discourses Volume 1) " I, even I, am he that comforteth you: