Elder Dallin H. Oaks on desires, priorities, choices, and actions

President Dallin H. Oaks (born August 12, 1932) served as president of BYU from 1971-1980.  He was then appointed as a justice of the Utah Supreme Court, and resigned when he was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1984. He became President of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles and also 1st Counselor in the First Presidency in January 2018.

"Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions. The desires we act on determine our changing, our achieving, and our becoming...

"Readjusting our desires to give highest priority to the things of eternity is not easy. We are all tempted to desire that worldly quartet of property, prominence, pride, and power. We might desire these, but we should not fix them as our highest priorities....

"All of us face potential traps that will prevent progress toward our eternal destiny. If our righteous desires are sufficiently intense, they will motivate us to cut and carve ourselves free from addictions and other sinful pressures and priorities that prevent our eternal progress.

"We should remember that righteous desires cannot be superficial, impulsive, or temporary. They must be heartfelt, unwavering, and permanent....

"As important as it is to lose every desire for sin, eternal life requires more. To achieve our eternal destiny, we will desire and work for the qualities required to become an eternal being. For example, eternal beings forgive all who have wronged them. They put the welfare of others ahead of themselves. And they love all of God's children. If this seems too difficult—and surely it is not easy for any of us—then we should begin with a desire for such qualities and call upon our loving Heavenly Father for help with our feelings. The Book of Mormon teaches us that we should 'pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that [we] may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ' (Moroni 7:48)."

- Dallin H. Oaks, "Desire," General Conference April 2011
Click here to read the full talk

Elder Oaks describes this sequence of how things happen in our lives:

Desires -> Priorities ->  Choices -> Actions -> Changes, Achievements

When we control our desires, we ultimately control our actions and life's direction. But Elder Oaks acknowledges that it's difficult to change our priorities in the midst of the world's temptations:

I thought his acknowledgement was interesting—we might desire some of those "worldly" things, but we must be careful to keep them prioritized among all of our priorities. Our righteous desires must be intense enough to provide the motivation to righteousness and change in our lives. We have to do more than just lose the desire for sin; we have to build and promote those desires for higher things, for holy things. That will lead to the kind of "becoming" that will show we are "true followers" of the Savior.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
March 30, 2016

President Henry B. Eyring on the choices of life

President Henry B. Eyring (born May 31, 1933) served in the Presiding Bishopric from 1985-1992, as a Seventy from 1992-1995, then was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. He has served in the First Presidency since 2007.

"Our choosing the right consistently whenever the choice is placed before us creates the solid ground under our faith. It can begin in childhood since every soul is born with the free gift of the Spirit of Christ. With that Spirit we can know when we have done what is right before God and when we have done wrong in His sight.

"Those choices, hundreds in most days, prepare the solid ground on which our edifice of faith is built. The metal framework around which the substance of our faith is poured is the gospel of Jesus Christ, with all its covenants, ordinances, and principles.

"One of the keys to an enduring faith is to judge correctly the curing time required.... That curing does not come automatically through the passage of time, but it does take time. Getting older does not do it alone. It is serving God and others persistently with full heart and soul that turns testimony of truth into unbreakable spiritual strength."

- Henry B. Eyring, "Mountains to Climb," Ensign, May 2012, pp. 23-26
Click here to read the full talk

It's easy for us to forget how much the seemingly small and inconsequential choices we make ("hundreds in most days") accumulate to create the foundation of all that we are and do in life. President Eyring reminds us of the importance of "choosing the right consistently" through those opportunities in order to "prepare the solid ground" for the "edifice of faith" that we will build upon it. Without the foundation, the edifice can not stand.

The concept of "curing time" is also a very important one. President Eyring makes an analogy in his talk to the curing of cement, from a soft and moldable substance into the hard, rock-like material that sustains a building. "It does take time" for our faith, based on choices and experiences, to cure into the solid strength that will sustain us. And the curing requires more than the passage of time. It requires passing time in the right way, including "serving God and others persistently."

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
August 13, 2016

Elder Robert D. Hales on Christmas and the Covenants of the Sacrament

Elder Robert D. Hales (August 24, 1932-October 1, 2017) served as a Seventy from 1976 to 1985, when he was called as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. He served for 32 years before passing away in 2017.

"Each week as we participate in the ordinance of the sacrament, we renew the promise of the Savior's birth in our own lives. We take His name upon us, and we renew our covenant of obedience and our promise that we will always remember Him.

"The gospel, as recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants, is this:

"'That he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness;

"'That through him all might be saved' (D&C 76:41-42).

"May we take time this Christmas season to renew our covenants to follow the Savior and to do His will, just as He did the will of our Heavenly Father. As we do so, the words of King Benjamin's people, recorded 125 years before the Savior's birth, will be fulfilled for us today: 'O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men' (Mosiah 4:2)."

- Robert D. Hales, "The Promise of Christmas," Ensign, Dec 2013, pp. 16-19
Click here to read the full article

I've never thought of the weekly partaking of the sacrament as a renewal of "the promise of the Savior's birth" in my life; that's an interesting perspective. It certainly helps make the holiday symbolism real and full of power in ongoing challenges and opportunities.

Elder Hales suggests that we find a time during the Christmas season to "renew our covenants to follow the Savior and to do His will." What more valid and meaningful gift could we give to Him, than to repent and recommit to be more faithful disciples? Perhaps now, the day after Christmas, most of the commotion and busy-ness of the holiday is relaxed, and we can turn our thoughts to this sacred purpose.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
December 20, 2015

President Thomas S. Monson on rededication during the Christmas season

President Thomas S. Monson (1927–2018) was sustained to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1963. He served as a counselor in the First Presidency with Presidents Benson, Hunter, and Hinckley and then became Church president in 2008. He led the Church for almost a decade until his passing in January 2018.

"There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus the Christ. It is the time to love the Lord, our God, with all our heart—and our neighbors as ourselves. It is well to remember that he who gives money gives much; he who gives time gives more; but he who gives of himself gives all.

"Let us make Christmas real. It isn't just tinsel and ribbon, unless we have made it so in our lives. Christmas is the spirit of giving without a thought of getting. It is happiness because we see joy in people. It is forgetting self and finding time for others. It is discarding the meaningless and stressing the true values. It is peace because we have found peace in the Savior's teachings. It is the time we realize most deeply that the more love is expended, the more there is of it for others....

"As the Christmas season envelops us with all its glory, may we, as did the Wise Men, seek a bright, particular star to guide us to our Christmas opportunity in service to our fellowman. May we all make the journey to Bethlehem in spirit, taking with us a tender, caring heart as our gift to the Savior. And may one and all have a joy-filled Christmas."

- Thomas S. Monson, "Christmas is Love," First Presidency Christmas Devotional, December 2012
Click here to read the full article

Among the many wonderful reminders of the Christmas season is this invitation to "rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus the Christ." What better activity could we engage in on this special day, than to solemnly consider where we might do better as disciples of Jesus Christ, and then commit to do it?

President Monson believes this would "make Christmas real" — much more so than the outward decorations or celebrations. It happens when we forget ourselves, when we discard the things that are "meanlingless" and replace them with "true values." So this is the grand invitation:

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
December 25, 2015

President Ezra Taft Benson on the blessings of the Christmas season

President Ezra Taft Benson (1899-1994) was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1943, and served as the 13th President of the Church from 1985 until his death in 1994 at age 94.

"Perhaps one of the greatest things about this wonderful Christmas season we celebrate is that it increases our sensitivity to things spiritual, to things of God. It causes us to contemplate our relationship with our Father and the degree of devotion we have for God.

"It prompts us to be more tolerant and giving, more conscious of others, more generous and genuine, more filled with hope and charity and love—all Christlike attributes. No wonder the spirit of Christmas is such that it touches the hearts of people the world over. Because for at least a time, increased attention and devotion is turned toward our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

"This Christmas, as we reflect upon the wonderful memories of the past, let us commit to give a most meaningful gift to the Lord. Let us give Him our lives, our sacrifices. Those who do so will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. Whoever will lose his life in the service of God will find eternal life.

"Without Christ there would be no Christmas, and without Christ there can be no fulness of joy. It is my testimony that the Babe of Bethlehem, Jesus the Christ, is the one perfect guide, the one perfect example. Only by emulating Him and adhering to His eternal truth can we realize peace on earth and good will toward all. There is no other way. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Light."

- Ezra Taft Benson, Ezra Taft Benson Remembers the Joy of Christmas [Deseret 2009], pp. 1-13
Click here to read the full article

The Christmas season lasts more than a day; the spirit of Christmas should linger for a long time after the holiday is passed. If we've been watching this season, we've felt how the spirit "increases our sensitivity to things spiritual" and are better individuals than we were. The very act of having "increased attention and devotion... turned toward our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ" truly does make a difference.  Therefore, what should we do as Christmas moves into the past?

I truly believe, as President Benson testifies, that "without Christ there can be no fulness of joy." May we seek to include him more in our lives as we "give him our lives" and as we strive to emulate Him and adhere to his Gospel truths.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
December 26, 2015

President David O. McKay on prolonging the Christmas spirit

President David O. McKay (1873-1970) was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1906.  He served as a counselor in the First Presidency to Heber J. Grant and George Albert Smith beginning in 1945, then then as the president of the Church from 1951 to his death in 1970 at age 96.

"What is the source of the joy of this almost universal holiday? It is found in the fact that everyone has in his or her heart the desire to make somebody else happy. There is a losing of self for the good of another. Selfishness is replaced by a feeling to do good; sordidness is banished by gratuity; enmity by friendliness and doubt and suspicion by confidence and trust. On that day we glimpse the truth that peace can come to earth only through 'good will to men.' It is the spirit of giving that makes us truly happy....

"If the world can be so happy in Winter, when, in northern climes at least, 'From snow-topp'd hills the whirlwinds keenly blow, howl thru the woods, and pierce the vales below,' how simple it should be to have the joys of Christmas mingle with the murmuring life of Springtime, or with the full bloom and sunshine of Summer, or with brilliantly bedecked Autumn. Why not be happy throughout the whole year, and every year?

"To do this let us supplant the spirit of getting from others by the spirit of giving; the spirit of selfishness by the spirit of helpfulness....

"Too often:

We ring the bells and we raise the strain, 
We hang up garlands everywhere 
And bid the tapers twinkle fair, 
And feast and frolic—and then we go 
Back to the same old lives again. (Susan Coolidge)

"What a different world this will be when men and women everywhere will strive to give up mean, petty, selfish, sordid, uncharitable feelings and attitudes and replace them by kindness, friendliness, forbearance and sympathy and mutual helpfulness. When that day comes the angels will again sing—

"'Glory to God in the highest; and on earth peace, good will toward men.'"

- David O. McKay, "Extending Christmas Throughout the Year," The Instructor, December 1934, p. 528
Click here to read the full article

President McKay begins by identifying the "source of joy" in the Christmas season: it comes from our efforts to make others happy. As we become focused on sharing joy with others, we find it increases in our own lives—"it is the spirit of giving that makes us truly happy."

President McKay then asks the important question, "Why not be happy throughout the whole year, and every year?" How can we extend the spirit we feel beyond the Christmas season? It seems obvious: we must continue the spirit of unselfishness and service: "kindness, friendliness, forbearance and sympathy and mutual helpfulness." That is truly the path to joy in our lives and peace on earth.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
December 22, 2016

Elder D. Todd Christofferson on the Christmas spirit of sacrifice and service

Elder Gary E. Stevenson (b. 1955) was called as a Seventy in 2008, then as Presiding Bishop in 2012. He was called as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in October 2015.

"This Christmas, as the spirit of the season permeates our hearts, let us do something that expresses our feelings in an outward way, showing that we understand that the babe born in Bethlehem is the real Redeemer....

"Without Christ, there would be no Christmas. Without Christ, there can be no fulness of joy. Without His birth and His Atonement, we would have no Intercessor, no Advocate with the Father, and no Mediator who makes it possible for us to return to the presence of our loving Heavenly Father and live together as eternal families.

"I celebrate with you the beautiful and miraculous reality of the birth and mission of the Son of God, and I bear my testimony that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer—the promised Messiah."

- Gary E. Stevenson, "The Reality of Christmas," Ensign, December 2014
Click here to read or listen to the full talk

Elder Stevenson encouraged that we actually do something in the Christmas season to show outwardly the feelings of our inward hearts. The Light the World initiative offered by the Church during the Christmas season provides a number of ways to do that, through service, sharing, kindness, and worship.

We must never forget the reason for the Christmas season, as well as the reason for our very existence on earth and the promises that come to us through the Savior:

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2021)
December 15, 2016