Gordon B. Hinckley

It isn’t as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don’t worry. I say that to myself every morning. It will all work out. If you do your best, it will all work out. Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us. … If we will put our trust in Him, if we will pray to Him, if we will live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers." - Gordon B. Hinckley.

J. Ashley

“Love and pain sometimes accompany each other into one’s life. And when the pain of the love is killing you, there is really nothing you can do but wait and see what happens, which sensation will overcome the other, or if you will die before you could find out. I learned this lesson all but too quickly. But with life and love comes hurt and sadness. If pain forever was what I would live through just to save the person who was doing it to me. Then I welcomed the torment with open arms.” ― J. Ashley

C.S Lewis

“I think that if God forgives us we must forgive ourselves. Otherwise, it is almost like setting up ourselves as a higher tribunal than Him.” ― C.S. Lewis

Elizabeth Goudge

I don't know this book. I haven't read it, but the statement is true. “Most of us tend to belittle all suffering except our own," said Mary. "I think it's fear. We don't want to come too near in case we're sucked in and have to share it.” ― Elizabeth Goudge, The Scent of Water

Robert D. Hales

"In 1968 a marathon runner by the name of John Stephen Akhwari represented Tanzania in an international competition. 'A little over an hour after [the winner] had crossed the finish line, John Stephen Akhwari . . . approached the stadium, the last man to complete the journey. [Though suffering from fatigue, leg cramps, dehydration, and disorientation,] a voice called from within to go on, and so he went on. Afterwards, it was written, "Today we have seen a young African runner who symbolizes the finest in human spirit, a performance that gives meaning to the word courage." For some, the only reward is a personal one. [There are no medals, only] the knowledge that they finished what they set out to do' (The Last African Runner, Olympiad Series, written, directed, and produced by Bud Greenspan, Cappy Productions, 1976, videocassette). When asked why he would complete a race he could never win, Akhwari replied, 'My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; my country sent me to finish the race.' "He knew who he was—an athlete representing the country of Tanzania. He knew his purpose—to finish the race. He knew that he had to endure to the finish, so that he could honorably return home to Tanzania. Our mission in life is much the same. We were not sent by Father in Heaven just to be born. We were sent to endure and return to Him with honor." Robert D. Hales, "Behold, We Count Them Happy Which Endure," Ensign, May 1998, 76

Author Unknown (At least to me)

"I have always, essentially, been waiting. Waiting to become something else, waiting to be that person I always thought I was on the verge of becoming, waiting for that life I thought I would have. In my head, I was always one step away. In high school, I was biding my time until I could become the college version of myself, the one my mind could see so clearly. In college, the post-college “adult” person was always looming in front of me, smarter, stronger, more organized. Then the married person, then the person I’d become when we have kids. For twenty years, literally, I have waited to become the thin version of myself, because that’s when life will really begin. And through all that waiting, here I am. My life is passing, day by day, and I am waiting for it to start. I am waiting for that time, that person, that event when my life will finally begin. I love movies about “The Big Moment” – the game or the performance or the wedding day or the record deal, the stories that split time with that key event, and everything is reframed, before it and after it, because it has changed everything. I have always wanted this movie-worthy event, something that will change everything and grab me out of this waiting game into the whirlwind in front of me. I cry and cry at these movies, because I am still waiting for my own big moment. I had visions of life as an adventure, a thing to be celebrated and experienced, but all I was doing was going to work and coming home, and that wasn’t what it looked like in the movies. John Lennon once said, “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” For me, life is what was happening while I was busy waiting for my big moment. I was ready for it and believed that the rest of my life would fade into the background, and that my big moment would carry me through life like a lifeboat. The Big Moment, unfortunately, is an urban myth. Some people have them, in a sense, when they win the Heisman or become the next American Idol. But even that football player or that singer is living a life made up of more than that one moment. Life is a collection of a million, billion moments, tiny little moments and choices, like a handful of luminous, glowing pearl. It takes so much time, and so much work, and those beads and moments are so small, and so much less fabulous and dramatic than the movies. But this is what I’m finding, in glimpses and flashes: this is it. This is it, in the best possible way. That thing I’m waiting for, that adventure, that move-score-worthy experience unfolding gracefully. This is it. Normal, daily life ticking by on our streets and sidewalks, in our houses and apartments, in our beds and at our dinner tables, in our dreams and prayers and fights and secrets – this pedestrian life is the most precious thing any of use will ever experience." (This is from www.weheartit.com)

Author Unknown

Not everyone is going to love you the way you want them to love you. Not everyone is going to care about you the same way you care about them. There will be someone in your life that will turn around & walk away. This is beyond your control. As sad as it is, this is reality. If they choose to walk away from you, let them. Nothing you can say or do is going to change their mind. All you can do is move on. Don't dwell on the whoulda, shoulda, coulda's. Yes it will be tough, and yes it hurts, but remember it was their choice not yours. If someone wants you in their life, they will find time for you. You can't control what is beyond your control.

Neal A. Maxwell

Last one, I promise! (For today--at least!) “It is extremely important for you to believe in yourselves not only for what you are now but for what you have the power to become. Trust in the Lord as He leads you along. He has things for you to do that you won't know about now but that will unfold later. If you stay close to Him, You will have some great adventures. You will live in a time where instead of sometimes being fulfilled, many of them will actually be fulfilled. The Lord will unfold your future bit by bit.” ― Neal A. Maxwell

Neal A. Maxwell

I must be having a Neal A. Maxwell moment! I miss him! “True discipleship is for volunteers only. Only volunteers will trust the Guide sufficiently to follow Him in the dangerous ascent which only He can lead.” ― Neal A. Maxwell, Not My Will, but Thine

Neal A Maxwell

This is something I need to remember! “Patience is tied very closely to faith in our Heavenly Father. Actually, when we are unduly impatient, we are suggesting that we know what is best—better than does God. Or, at least, we are asserting that our timetable is better than His. We can grow in faith only if we are willing to wait patiently for God's purposes and patterns to unfold in our lives, on His timetable.” ― Neal A. Maxwell

Thomas S. Monson

We are surrounded by those in need of our attention, our encouragement, our support, our comfort, our kindness. ... We are the Lord's hands here upon the earth, with the mandate to serve and to lift His children. He is dependent upon each of us.--President Thomas S. Monson

Bob Marley

Who knew Bob Marley could give such sound advice! I got this quote from www.pinterest.com. If you would like an invite, leave me your email in the comment section.

Chris Stewart

"'Elizabeth, do you remember Jerusalem? The pools of Bethesda, the porch and the water where the lame and halt used to wait for the angel to stir the water for them? There was a beggar there. His body was broken and feeble. He was so weak and lame, he was unable to walk, unable even to stand. Do you remember him, Elizabeth? Do you know who I mean?" "Yes, I remember. He was one of the crippled. And my Brother healed him." "Do you remember how long he waited?" "I don't remember specifically, but it was a long time." "Thirty-eight years, Elizabeth. Almost his entire life. Thirty-eight years he suffered alone, waiting patiently. Yet whenever the angel came, he never could reach the water in time, for he was too weak and feeble to be the first to the pool. Can you imagine his disappointment? Can you imagine how he felt? Thirty-eight years he suffered, waiting for a miracle. He felt so sick and abandoned, so completely alone, for there was no man to carry him and no one who cared. "And sometime in your mortal life, you will feel like this man. You will feel sick and abandoned, unable to deal with the challenges of the world. You will want to be healed, but there will be no one there. And when you feel that way, Elizabeth, I want you to remember this man. Remember that Christ healed him when no one would carry him to the pool. When he felt most alone, after patiently waiting so long, the Savior came out of nowhere and made him whole. There will be times you feel you have been abandoned, but that is never so. Your Brother will heal you. Our Father will always look after you. And from time to time I may be able to help you as well. "But Teancum, how can all this be true? With the entire universe to manage, how can we matter so much to the Father? With all the suffering in the world, all the long prayers and urgent cries, will he still have time for me when I pray?" ... "He controls the heavens," he answered. "He controls the seas and the universe and the armies of men. He controls the course of each nation and the course of each man and womam. The sun will rise as he tells it to, and he can make kings of men. And if he can do all this, Elizabeth--and you know that he can--then can he not hear your prayers and give you help when you ask? The galaxies, they are nothing, when compared to his love for you. He can make you holy, and he can answer your prayers. And remember this Elizabeth, for this is important too. It is a plan of happiness he has created, not a plan of misery. He sends us to be happy! And he will provide a way. ... "You must have faith when the answers don't come immediately.'"

Chris Stewart

“You can tempt me, desert me, or cause me great pain; you can create a dark world that my cause me to fear; you can rule your world with blood and terror, that's true. But you can't win. And I know that. Weak as I am, with my imperfections and sins, even with all of my failing, I am stronger than you. I will soon have a body. And I have my agency now. I will increase in my faith and knowledge and power. I am not perfect, but I will be, and there's not a thing you can do! I will become like the Father if I follow the Son. You are powerless to stop me. You can threaten and tempt and whisper lies in my ear, but you can't stop me, Satan; I see that so clearly now! I can stop myslef, yes, but only if I follow you. And I reject you temptations. I reject your whispered lies. I reject you, Lucifer, and your entire plan. You have no power to control me. I am in control of myself. And try as you might, you won't control me on earth. We will defeat you in heaven, and we will deafeat you on earth. Here, or the earth, it doesn't matter; I am always stronger than you.”

Chris Stewart

“In the time you will live, there will be heroes around. Simple men, honest men who work two jobs, go to school, raise a family, and serve our God. An older couple who have the courage to seek out the truth while enduring the scorn and ridicule of their children and friends. A young man, a special spirit, who will take on a body that is deformed- and yet you will never see him unhappy or without a smile on his face. A young mother who will care for a daughter while she suffers a painful death, and yet never doubt or loose faith that her Father loves them both. In your world famous people will be hard to find. But you will be surrounded by heroes, you will meet them everyday. They will be the simple people who struggle but never give up, those who strive to be happy despite the cares of the physical world, those who dream of the day when they will find the truth, those who search for understanding as to why they were born, why there is pain, or what it all means, and yet continue to endure, knowing in their soul, somewhere deep inside, that there has to be an answer. These are the heroes that our Father needs down on earth. And you will be a hero. We already know that.”

Lynn G. Robbins

“The choice of an eternal companion is up to each individual. Father in Heaven respects your agency, especially with this most important of all decisions. He won’t make the decision for you. He gives guidelines and principles, but the choice is yours. Ask Him to bless you with the wisdom to recognize the attributes of godliness in your potential spouse. Is this a good man who will honor his priesthood? Is this a woman who will nurture our children in loving kindness? “Be worthy of the inspiration you seek. Follow the counsel the Lord gave to Oliver Cowdery found in D&C 9:7–8: “ ‘Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give [the answer] unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me. “ ‘But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.’ “The decision of who you marry is the most important of your life. It is a decision that will be made with both your heart and your head. In other words, it will feel right (heart) and make sense (mind). ‘This is the spirit of revelation’ (see D&C 8:2–3). “May the Lord bless you. May you know and feel of His love and concern for each one of you. His desire for your success and happiness in life is my prayer and my testimony.” ~~Lynn G. Robbins "Finding Your Sweetheart," New Era, Sept. 2003, 48.

President James E. Faust

"I learned at a young age that inspiration can come to any of us. When I was in junior high school I was taking a difficult class where most of what was being taught went over my head. One day the teacher asked me a question. I didn't understand the question, let alone the answer. Out of nowhere a response came into my mind, which I repeated to the teacher. It was the right answer, but I knew it had not come from me. "So how can we recognize inspiration when it comes? Enos stated, 'While I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind' (Enos 1:10). The voice of the spirit of revelation is not necessarily audible, but it gives us divine confirmation through our thoughts and feelings. As we are told in the Doctrine and Covenants, 'I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart' (D&C 8:2). We must cultivate our sensitivity to that divine voice." ~~President James E. Faust

Julie B. Beck

"We can do the work of the Lord in His way when we seek, receive, and act on personal revelation. Without personal revelation, we cannot succeed. If we heed personal revelation, we cannot fail. The prophet Nephi instructs us that the Holy Ghost will show us 'all things what [we] should do' (2 Nephi 32:5). It was prophesied that in the latter days the Lord would pour out His Spirit upon His handmaids (see Joel 2:29). This will happen as we allow ourselves to be still enough and quiet enough to listen to the voice of the Spirit. Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught us that receiving revelation for our calling and in our personal lives 'requires serious mental effort on our part. . . . Revelation is not a matter of pushing buttons, but of pushing ourselves, often aided by fasting, scripture study, and personal pondering.

" 'Most of all, revelation requires us to have a sufficient degree of personal righteousness, so that on occasion revelation may come to the righteous, unsolicited' ('Revelation,' First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 11, 2003, 5)."

Julie B. Beck

"The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life. Qualifying for the Lord's Spirit begins with a desire for that Spirit and implies a certain degree of worthiness. Keeping the commandments, repenting, and renewing covenants made at baptism lead to the blessing of always having the Lord's Spirit with us." ~~Julie B. Beck "And Upon the Handmaids in Those Days Will I Pour Out My Spirit," Ensign, May 2010, 11

Martin Luther King, Jr.

If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.