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Sacrament

3 Nephi 18:7, 11 "this shall ye do in remembrance of my body, which I have shown unto you. And it shall be a testimony unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my spirit to be with you. .. And this shall ye always do to those who repent and are baptized in my name; and ye shall do it in remembrance of my blood, which I have shed for you, that ye may witness unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you".

3 Nephi 18:28-30 "And now behold, this is the commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall not suffer any one knowingly to partake of my flesh and blood unworthily, when ye shall minister it; for whoso eateth and drinketh my flesh and blood unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to his soul; therefore if ye know that a man is unworthy to eat and drink of my flesh and blood ye shall forbid him"

• "Ye shall not cast him out from among you but ye shall minister unto him and shall pray fo rhim unto the Father"

3 Nephi 20:8 "He that eateth this bread eateth of my body to his soul; and he that drinketh of this wine drinketh of my blood to his soul; and his soul shall never hunger nor thirst, but shall be filled"

Moroni 4-5 Sacrament prayers. The bread prayer allows for imperfections, if you are willing to always remember him, keep his commandments, and take upon his name, then you will always have His spirit. But, Christ recognized that we are not perfect, so he gave us another covenant. The prayer for the water allows us to get the spirit back if we break the bread covenant. It doesn't say the word "always" when referring to the spirit. If you always remember him, you may have his spirit to be with you. The prayer for the water is sort of like a back up plan that Christ instilled. 

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Satan

"The Book of Mormon exposes the enemies of Christ"- Ezra Taft Benson

"We need not become paralyzed with fear of Satan's power. He can have no power over us unless we permit it. He is really a coward, and if we stand firm, he will retreat" -James E Faust

"The nearer a person approaches the Lord, a great power will be manifested by the adversary to prevent the accomplishment of His purposes" -Joseph Smith

"When we are under the influence of the spirit, we can find a sense of humor and the ability to smile and not take ourselves too seriously, and we can laugh at ourselves… the adversary's weapons are sarcasm, irony, and cynicism, but the Lord's power is a gentle sense of humor… The adversary cannot deal with a sense of humor. He does not have a sense of humor; he does not even know what that is. He is always dead serious, and when you have a sense of humor, you are in control of the adversary's influence" -F. Enzio Busche

Mosiah 11:7 - Deceived by vain and flattering words

Mosiah 27:8- "Man of many words… and he did speak with much flattery"

Alma 12:4-6 subtle plan, to lie and deceive the people, encircle you with chains to everlasting destruction

Alma 30 (Corihor) vs. 53- the devil hath deceived me

Vs. 53- I taught it until I too believed it

Vs. 60- And thus we see the end of him who perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the devil will not support his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to hell"

"There is no such thing as a loyal opposition" -Harold B. Lee

Alma 47:4 "very subtle man to do evil"

Alma 47:6-20- Sin by degrees- Satan wants us to come off our safe mountain top, but many of us will not. Instead, he lures us by having us meet him halfway. We think we are safe and in control, but that moment we step down, we have lost to him. (Amalickiah and Lehonti)

Alma 48:7 "obtaining power by fraud and deceit"

Helaman 2:4-5 "exceedingly expert in many words, and also in his craft… secret work of murder… he did flatter them"

Helaman 6 (Gadianton robbers)

• v.26, 28, 30 "it is he who is the author of all sin"

Helaman 16:22 "and many more things did the people imagine up in their hearts"

• Don't think too much on things- this is Satan!

3 Nephi 3- Letter from Giddianhi to Lachoneus

• Satan uses flatter and fear to try and win us over
• Unearned confidence
• Uses fear to paralyze you

3 Nephi 6:15 "Satan had great power… stirring up the people to all manner of iniquity, and to the puffing them up with pride, tempting them to seek for power, and authority, and riches, and the vain things of the world. And thus Satan did lead away the hearts of the people"

3 Nephi 9:2 "the devil laugheth"

3 Nephi 11:40 "but he buildeth upon a sandy foundation, and the gates of hell stand open to receive such when the floods come and the winds beat upon them"

"The future of this world has long been declared; the final outcome between good and evil is already known. There is absolutely no question as to who wins because the victory has already been posted on the scoreboard. The only really strange thing in all of this is that we are still down here on the field trying to decide which team's jersey we want to wear" -Jeffrey R. Holland

3 Nephi 18:15 "ye must watch and pray always, lest ye be tempted by the devil, and ye be led away captive by him"

Satan's voice:

• Rushes you

• Pushes you
• Frightens you

• Confuses you

• Discourages you

• Worries you

• Obsesses you

• Condemns you

Ether 6:10 "No monster of the sea could break them… they did have light continually"

"There are times when you simply have to righteously hang on and outlast the devil" -Ezra Taft Benson

Ether 8: many signs and actions of Satan, "father of all lies"

Ether 15:19 "The Spirit of the Lord had ceased striving with them, and Satan had full power over the hearts of the people"

Moroni 7:17 "But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil… for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one"

Matthew 4:3-10

• Satan tries to use different tactics to get us to fall… He uses doubt to try and tempt us

Matthew 6:24 "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon"

Matthew 7:15 "Beware of false prophets… every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit… Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them"

"Satan delights to have us put ourselves down" - Neil A. Maxwell

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Second Coming

3 Nephi 25:5-6 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse"

• Only passage of scripture found in all four standard works (important!)
• 'turn' --> seal
• Genealogy/temple work
• Every sealing: Elijah is there

• Kirkland temple- 1836- gave sealing power to Joseph Smith (See D&C 110/Matthew 17)

Matthew 7:24-27 "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken them unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended , and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell: and great was the fall of it"

"Nothing is going to startle us more when we pass through the veil to the other side than to realize how well we know our Father and how familiar his face is to us" -Ezra Taft Benson

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Self-Esteem

Satan hits the hardest on things most important to God's plan. He works on your self-esteem, because it ultimately affects everything

Unjustifiable self-esteem:

• Money, worldly achievements, resume, social status, dating status, appearance
• Little control over it, can change in an instant

Justifiable self-esteem:

• Love god- keep commandments and covenants, give service
• Desire to do God's will (not ours)- trust him enough that he will open more doors for you, allow more growth,  and allow more progress… It is freeing when you let go of the burden of the natural man
• Fear god's judgments more than man's… still be concerned with what other's think of you, but don't let their opinion matter more than God's

You must feel God's love and acceptance, you can't rely on other's praise

“If our lives and our faith are centered on Jesus Christ and his restored gospel, nothing can ever go permanently wrong. On the other hand, if our lives are not centered on the Savior and his teachings, no other success can ever be permanently right" -President Howard W. Hunter

"We cannot build up the kingdom if we are tearing ourselves down ; self-contempt is of Satan; there is none of it in heaven; since self-esteem controls ultimately our ability to love God, to love others, and to love life, nothing is more central than our need to build justifiable self esteem" -Elder Neal A. Maxwell

"A timid and fearing people cannot do their work well, and cannot do God's work at all" -President Howard W. Hunter

"You can't have the spirit of the Lord and be mediocre" -David O. McKay

"Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know are those obsessed with themselves; the happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others" -President Gordon B. Hinckley

"See how far you've come, not how far you have to go" -Kent Brooks

Mosiah 21:16 "And it came to pass that they began to prosper by degrees"

• Perfectionist need to look past this… it is not success vs. failure or black vs. white

"Satan delights to have us put ourselves down" - Neil A. Maxwell

Neil A. Maxwell's Notwithstanding My Weakness

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Service

"The nearer we get to our Heavenly Father, the more we are disposed to look upon perishing souls; we feel that we want to take them upon our shoulders, and cast their sins behind our backs… If you would have God have mercy on you, have mercy on one another" -Joseph Smith

"Leave people better than you found them" -Big Daddy

"By becoming the answer to someone's prayer, we often find the answer to our own" -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

"In the end, the number of prayers we say may contribute to our happiness, but the number of prayers we answer may be of even greater importance" -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

"Perhaps when we come face to face with our maker, we will not be asked "How many positions did you hold?" But rather, "How many people did you help?" In reality, you cannot love the Lord until you serve him by serving his people" -Thomas S. Monson

"If you come upon a person who is drowning, would you ask if he needs help, or would it be better to just jump in and save him from the deepening waters. The offer whilst well- meaning and often given 'let me know if I can help- is really no help at all" -Ronald A. Rasband

"Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know are those who are obsessed with themselves; the happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others…  By and large, I have come to see that if we complain about life, it is because we are thinking only about ourselves" -Gordon B. Hinckley

"A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle" -anon

D&C 121:34-36 -Many are called, few are chosen

D&C 121:45-46 - Be full of charity towards all men

"Charity: the highest, noblest, strongest kind of love…the pure love of Christ" -Bible Dictionary

Luke 10: Good Samaritan

"Our lives of service and sacrifice are the most appropriate expressions of our commitment to serve the Master" -Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Alma 53/56- 2000 stripling warriors

"If you desire to make a difference in the world, you must be different from the world" -Elaine S. Dalton

"Do not waste time bothering whether you love your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this we find one of the great secrets of life. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will come to love him… if you do him a good turn, you will find yourself disliking him less… The difference between a true Christian and a wordly man is that the wordly man treats certain people kindly because he likes them: the Christian, trying to treat everyone kindly, finds himself liking more and more people as he goes on- including people he could not have even imagined himself liking in the beginning" -C.S. Lewis

3 Nephi 12:14-16 "I give unto you to be the light of this people. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Do men light a candle and put it under a bushel? Nay, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light to all that are in the house. Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven"

3 Nephi 13:1-3 "When ye shall do your alms do not sound a trumpet before you, as will hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward"

"If the whole world was blind, how many people would you impress?" -Moonaa Mohammad

Matthew 5:14-16 "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven"

"The best antidote I know for worry is work. The best cure for weariness is the challenge of helping someone who is even more tired. One of the great ironies of life is this: He or she who serves almost always benefits more than he or she who is served" -President Gordon B. Hinckley

"Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know are those obsessed with themselves; the happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others" -President Gordon B. Hinckley

Matthew 14:14- John the Baptist has been beheaded, and Christ finds out, but he still takes the time to heal others. He does not grieve alone and become self-centered, he takes the time for others

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Sin

Alma 45:16 "the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance"

"Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future" -Oscar Wilde

(on the challenge of sin)- "But there is an answer to this challenge for you every bit as there is for that investigator to whom you will go. Whoever you are and whatever you have done, you can be forgiven. Every one of you can leave behind any transgression with which you may struggle. It is the miracle of forgiveness; it is the miracle of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. But you cannot do it without an active commitment to the gospel, and you cannot do it without repentance where it is needed. I am asking you to be active and be clean. If required, I am asking you to get active and get clean" -Jeffrey R. Holland

"A person who sins is like a tree that bends easily in the wind. On a windy and rainy day, the tree bends so deeply against the ground that the leaves become soiled with mud, like sin. If we focus only on cleaning the leaves, the weakness in the tree that allowed it to bend and soil its leaves may remain. Similarly, a person who is merely sorry to be soiled by sin will sin again in the next high wind. The susceptibility to repetition continues until the tree has been strengthened” (Dallin H. Oaks)

Alma 47:6-20- Sin by degrees- Satan wants us to come off our safe mountain top, but many of us will not. Instead, he lures us by having us meet him halfway. We think we are safe and in control, but that moment we step down, we have lost to him. (Amalickiah and Lehonti)

Helaman 4:24/26 "And they saw that they had become weak… because of their transgression"

Helaman 5:40-41 "What shall we do, that this dark cloud of darkness may be removed from overshadowing us?" "You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you"

-sin: burden

Helaman 6:35 "The spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites, because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts"

Helaman 7:23-24 "..it shall be better for the Lamanites than for you except ye shall repent. They are more righteous than you, for they have not sinned against that great knowledge which ye have received"

• We get so caught up and sure of ourselves, being 'saints', but sometimes we are actually worse off, but have too much pride to realize it

"To be tied to earlier mistakes—our own or other people’s—is the worst kind of wallowing in the past from which we are called to cease and desist" -Jeffrey R. Holland

Helaman 13:38 "ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head"

"You are his child all the time- not just when you are good. You are his child even when you are bad" -President Hinckley

Mormon 1:13-14 "But wickedness did prevail upon the face of the whole land, insomuch that the Lord did take away his beloved disciples, and the work of miracles and of healing did cease because of the iniquity of the people. And there were no gifts from the Lord, and the Holy Ghost did not come upon any, because of their wickedness and unbelief"

Mormon 2:26 "nevertheless the strength of the Lord was not in us; yea, we were left to ourselves, that the Spirit of the Lord did not abide in us; therefore we had become weak like unto our brethren"

• Do not confuse personal strength and compensation for the presence of the Lord

• Don't focus on when the spirit is there. Recognize when it is not there, and how you feel (Hank Smith)
• Mormon 3:3 "They did not realize that it was the Lord that had spared them"

Mormon 5:17-19 "They were once a delightsome people, and they had Christ for their shepherd; yea, they were led even by God the Father. But now, behold, they are led about by Satan, even as chaff is driven before the wind, or as a vessel is tossed about upon the waves, without sail or anchor, or without anything wherewith to steer her; and even as she is, so are they. And behold, the Lord hath reserved their blessings.."

"There are times when you simply have to righteously hang on and outlast the devil" -Ezra Taft Benson

Ether 15:19 "The Spirit of the Lord had ceased striving with them, and Satan had full power over the hearts of the people"

Moroni 6:8 "But as oft as they repented and sought forgiveness, with real intent, they were forgiven"

Moroni 7:8 "If a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God"

Matthew 7:24-27 "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken them unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended , and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell: and great was the fall of it"

"See how far you've come, not how far you have to go" -Kent Brooks

Matthew 21:12-16 Second cleansing of the temple. It is important not to fall back into old patterns of sin. Repent and truly change

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The Spirit

Jacob 4:13 (the Spirit speaketh truth and lieth not)

Words of Mormon 1:7 (spirit whispereth to me)

Moroni 10:5 (And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things)

D&C 9:8-9- Study it out in your mind then ask God- you will either have a warm feeling or a stupor of thought

Alma 5:46- "…they are made known to me by the Holy Spirit of God… this is the spirit of revelation"

Helaman 4:24 "the Spirit of the Lord did no more preserve them; yea, it had withdrawn from them because the Spirit of the Lord doth not dwell in unholy temples"

Helaman 5:30/44-47 "a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul"… "filled with joy which is unspeakable and full of glory… the Holy Spirit did come down and enter into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire, and they could speak forth marvelous words… a voice, a pleasant voice, as if it were a whisper"

Helaman 6:35 "The spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites, because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts"

Helaman 13:8 "except they repent… I will withdraw my Spirit from them"

Mormon 2:26 "nevertheless the strength of the Lord was not in us; yea, we were left to ourselves, that the Spirit of the Lord did not abide in us; therefore we had become weak like unto our brethren"

• Do not confuse personal strength and compensation for the presence of the Lord

• Don't focus on when the spirit is there. Recognize when it is not there, and how you feel (Hank Smith)
• Mormon 3:3 "They did not realize that it was the Lord that had spared them"

The Spirit/God's voice:

• Stills you
• Leads you
• Reassures you
• Enlightens you

• Encourages you

• Comforts you

• Calms you

• Convicts you

Ether 4:11-12 "For because of my Spirit he shall know that these things are true; for it persuadeth men to do good. And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good"

Ether 15:19 "The Spirit of the Lord had ceased striving with them, and Satan had full power over the hearts of the people"

Moroni 6:9 "For as the power of the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so was it done"

Moroni 7:16 "the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil, wherefore I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God"

Moroni 8:26 "And the remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of the meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer, until the end shall come, when all the saints shall dwell with God"

Moroni 10:5 "And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things"

Moroni 10:8-18 "Deny not the gifts of God, for they are many; and they come from the same God. And there are different ways that these gifts are administered; but it is the same God who worketh all in all; and they are given by the manifestations of the Spirit of God unto men, to profit them. To one is given by the Spirit of God, that he may teach the word of wisdom. And to another, that he may teach the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; and to another, exceedingly great faith; and to another, the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; and again, to another, that he may work mighty miracles; and again, to another, that he may prophesy concerning all things; and again, to another, the beholding of angels and ministering spirits; and again, to another, all kinds of tongues; and again, to another, the interpretation of languages and of divers kinds of tongues. And all these gifts come by the Spirit of Christ; and they come unto every man severally, according to all he will… Remember that every good gift cometh of Christ"

The spirit can appear to us in dreams- Matthew 2:12- the wise men are warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so they listen and go elsewhere

"Open your hearts, even your very souls, to the sound of that special voice which testifies of truth" -President Monson

"You can't have the spirit of the Lord and be mediocre" -David O. McKay

"Spiritual light rarely comes to those who merely sit in the darkness waiting for someone to flip the switch" -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

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Stress

D&C 121:7-8 "peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment"

"Don't get discouraged. Things will work out" -Gordon B. Hinckley

"I'm not afraid of storms, for I am learning to sail my ship". -Louisa May Alcott

"Don't give up. Don't you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead. You keep your chin up. It will all be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come". -Jeffrey R. Holland

"You will come to know that what appears today to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make" Gordon B. Hinckley

"Just when all seems to be gong right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more… He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get from where you are to where he wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain. If all matters were immediately resolved at your first petition, you could not grow. Your Father in Heaven and His beloved son love you perfectly. They would not require you to experience a moment more of difficulty than is absolutely needed for your personal benefit or for that of those you love" -Elder Scott

"We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us" -Joseph Campbell

"We must constantly remind ourselves that He is God and we are not" -Jeffrey R. Holland

"All this trying leads up to the vital moment at which you turn to God and say, "You must do this. I can't"'. -CS Lewis

"Worrying is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere"- anon

"If for a while the harder you try, the harder it gets, take heart. So it has been with the best people who ever lived" -Jeffrey R. Holland

"Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God"-Corrie Ten Boom

3 Nephi 13:34 "Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for they morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof"

"When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on" -Thomas Jefferson

"Don't give up when the pressure mounts. Face your doubts. Master your fears" -Jeffery R. Holland

"Come what may and love it" -Joseph B. Wirthlin

"Why worry? If you've done the very best you can, worrying won't make it any better" -Walt Disney

Ether 6:5-7 "God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters towards the promised land"

• Wind (trials)- the Lord takes you where he wants you- he moves you forward. You may feel buried at times, but the Lord will always bring you back up

John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. . . . Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid"

Ether 12:6 "Faith is things which are hoped for, and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith"

"No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow" -Proverb

"You can do anything, but not everything" -David Allen

Matthew 9:18-26- On his way to raise a girl from the dead, and a woman touches his clothes in order to be healed. He took the time to recognize her, and doesn't just brush her away. He takes the time to talk to her and heal her, even though those around him were in a hurry and rushing him along

• Take time for the little things- for they make big things!

"The best antidote I know for worry is work. The best cure for weariness is the challenge of helping someone who is even more tired. One of the great ironies of life is this: He or she who serves almost always benefits more than he or she who is served" -President Gordon B. Hinckley