Mormon Musings

The Apostle Paul defined  faith  as “the substance of things hoped for [and] the evidence of things not seen” ( Hebrews 11:1 ). Alma declared that faith is not a perfect knowledge; rather, if we have faith, we “hope for things which are not seen [but] are true” ( Alma 32:21 ). Additionally, we learn in the  Lectures on Faith  that faith is “the first principle in revealed religion, and the foundation of all righteousness” and that it is also “the principle of action in all intelligent beings.”   1 These teachings highlight three basic elements of faith: (1) faith as the  assurance  of things hoped for that are true, (2) faith as the  evidence  of things not seen, and (3) faith as the principle of  action in all intelligent beings. I describe these three components of faith in the Savior as simultaneously facing the future, looking to the past, and initiating action in the present. Faith as the assurance of things hoped for looks to the future. This assurance is founded upon a cor

The Prophet Joseph Smith, in speaking of revelation, said: A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon.  [ TPJS, 151]... To receive spiritual truths, one must be obedient as well as diligent (see D&C 130:19). Spiritual light is received when one follows the doctrine of Christ--that is, the first principles and ordinances of the restored gospel. I challenge you to increase your faith by living gospel principles more precisely, by repenting when you fall short, by taking an active role in your ward, by rendering service to others, and by making prayer and scripture study a part of your everyday life. In this manner you will find true joy. In closing I turn to the words of the Prophet Joseph Smith, who wrote about the connection between heaven and our intellect

“Intelligence is eternal and exists upon a self-existent principle. It is a spirit from age to age and there is no creation about it. All the minds and spirits that God ever sent into the world are susceptible of enlargement...." ~ Joseph Smith

No one knows anything about Christ’s work simply by being born a member of the Church, and often he knows little about it after years of unmotivated exposure in meetings or classes. He must learn. And learning involves self-investment and effort. The Gospel should be studied ‘as carefully as any science.’ The ‘literature of the Church’ must be ‘acquired and read.’ Our learning should be increased in our spare time ‘day by day.’ Then as we put the gospel truth to work in daily life, we will never find it wanting. We will be literate in the most important field of knowledge in the universe, knowledge for lack of which men and nations perish, in the light of which men and nations may be saved. —Elder Marion D. Hanks, First Council of the Seventy, “Theological Illiterates”,  Improvement Era  (September 1969): 42

http://jdquotes.wordpress.com/2012/07/24/preparing-to-teach-the-principles-of-eternal-truth-orson-pratt/

If it takes us years to gain that experience which we could learn in a day, it is our own fault. The Lord declared to his disciples that he had many things to say to them, but they could not bear them at that time, for they could not bear all things; therefore he had to give them instructions by piecemeal, because they could not bear the fullness of the light. It is so now. It is but little that the Saints can bear, and I want you to bear it in your minds, for ever? ...the Holy Spirit softens the hearts of the people: there is with it an accompanying blessing; there is something that warms the conscience and makes the spirit tender. The heart should be susceptible and pliable to the touch of the Spirit. Do not forsake that—do not drive that out of your heart, but make yourself more and more acquainted with the Spirit and power of God. A man may pass through all the ordinances of the house of God, but he must have the impress of the Holy Ghost upon his mind, or he cannot receive that fu

“Mormonism is truth, or in other words the doctrine of the Latter-Day Saints is truth…The first and fundamental principle of our holy religion is that we believe that we might have the right to embrace all, and every item of truth, without limitation or without being circumscribed or prohibited by the creeds or superstitious notions of men, or by the dominations of one another, when truth has been clearly demonstrated to our minds, and we have the highest degree of evidence of the same.” Josesph Smith, Letter from Joseph Smith to Isaac Gallad, March 22, 1839, Liberty Jail, Liberty Missouri, published in the Times and Seasons, February 1840, pp. 53-54 “‘Mormonism’...embraces every principle pertaining to life and salvation, for time and eternity. No matter who has it. If the infidel has got truth it belongs to ‘Mormonism.' The truth and sound doctrine possessed by the sectarian world, and they have a great deal, all belong to this Church… All that is good, lovely, and praiseworthy