Below are the quotes that were used in the video.
Francis Webster – Martin Handcart Company “I ask you to stop this criticism. You are discussing a matter you know nothing about. Cold historic facts mean nothing here, for they give no proper interpretation of the questions involved. Mistake to send the Handcart Company out so late in the season? Yes! But I was in that company and my wife was in it, and Sister Nellie Unthank whom you have cited here was there, too. We suffered beyond anything you can imagine and many died of exposure and starvation, but did you ever hear a survivor of that company utter a word of criticism? Every one of us came through with the absolute knowledge that God lives for we became acquainted with Him in our extremities!
“I have pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from illness and lack of food that I could hardly put one foot ahead of the other. I have looked ahead and seen a patch of sand or a hill slope and I have said, I can go only that far and there I must give up for I cannot pull the load through it. I have gone to that sand and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me! I have looked back many times to see who was pushing my cart, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the Angels of God were there.
“Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart? No! Neither then nor any minute of my life since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay and I am thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcart Company.” (https://byustudies.byu.edu/file/5104/download?token=q7IGKLc9).
Examples of An Attitude of Conversion:
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.” (Letter (19 April 1951); published in Letters of C. S. Lewis (1966), p. 230)
President Boyd K. Packer: “Letters come from those who have made tragic mistakes. They ask, “Can I ever be forgiven?”
“The answer is yes!
“The gospel teaches us that relief from torment and guilt can be earned through repentance. Save for those few who defect to perdition after having known a fulness, there is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no offense exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness.” (“The Brilliant Morning of Forgiveness,” General Conference October 1995).
Elder Jeffery R. Holland: “However late you think you are, however many chances you think you have missed, however many mistakes you feel you have made or talents you think you don’t have, or however far from home and family and God you feel you have traveled, I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines. . . .There is nothing that you have done that cannot be undone. There is no problem which you cannot overcome. There is no dream that in the unfolding of time and eternity cannot yet be realized.” (The Laborers in the Vineyard, General Conference, April 2012).
Elder Dale G. Renlund: “Remember, joyfully and reverently, that the Savior loves to restore what you cannot restore; He loves to heal wounds you cannot heal; He loves to fix what has been irreparably broken; He compensates for any unfairness inflicted on you; and He loves to permanently mend even shattered hearts.” (“Consider the Goodness and Greatness of God, General Conference, April 2020).
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “It takes exactly as long to repent as it takes you to say ‘I’ll change’—and mean it. Of course there will be problems to work out and restitutions to make. You may well spend—indeed you had better spend—the rest of your life proving your repentance by its permanence.” (“For Times of Trouble,” New Era, Oct. 1980, 11–12).
Elder David A. Bednar taught that our weapons of rebellion could be “selfishness, pride, and disobedience” (“Converted unto the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2012, 108).
Elder Dale G. Renlund taught that our weapons could be “personal desires that are contrary to being anchored to the Savior and to following the covenant path” (“Unwavering Commitment to Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2019, 22).
Elder Patrick Kearon: “We find healing and relief only when we bring ourselves to the feet of the Great Physician, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We must lay down our weapons of rebellion (and we each know what they are). We must lay down our sin, vanity, and pride. We must give up our desires to follow the world and to be respected and lauded by the world. We must cease fighting against God and instead give our whole hearts to Him, holding nothing back. Then He can heal us. Then He can cleanse us from the venomous sting of sin.” (Patrick Kearon, “Come unto Me with Full Purpose of Heart, and I Shall Heal You,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 51–52)
Elder Richard G. Scott: “[Our] past choices [can expose us] to a carnal appetite that could again become a point of vulnerability that Satan would attempt to exploit.
“Satan will try to use our memory of any previous guilt to lure us back into his influence. We must be ever vigilant to avoid his enticements.” (Richard G. Scott, “Personal Strength through the Atonement of Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 83)
Elder Neil L. Andersen: “Forsaking a sin means we will never repeat it—never return to it—not in action or in word or even in our mind. Forsaking means that the sin is totally in our past. To forsake a sin will mean more than just feeling the remorse and sadness it has brought to us and others we have hurt; it will mean being certain that we don’t put ourselves into the same position that brought the sin before. It will mean associating with trusted friends and family who will help us in moving forward. For some, it may mean changing friends, perhaps changing our employment or what we do with our time. It will mean being very open and honest with trusted companions as we go forward. We never want to return to the sins of our past. (Neil L. Andersen, The Divine Gift of Forgiveness [2019], 207–8)
Elder Dale G. Renlund: “Completely bury your weapons of rebellion with no handles sticking out. Because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, making covenants with a real intent to reliably honor them will bless your life forever. You will become more like the Savior as you always remember Him, follow Him, and adore Him. I testify that He is the firm foundation. He is dependable, and His promises are sure.” (Dale G. Renlund, “Unwavering Commitment to Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2019, 25)
The Anti-Nephi-Lehis:
Attitudes to look for in Ammon’s Homecoming Address (Alma 26)
What helps us to be content with what God has “allotted” us?
Ideas for teaching:
“I have pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from illness and lack of food that I could hardly put one foot ahead of the other. I have looked ahead and seen a patch of sand or a hill slope and I have said, I can go only that far and there I must give up for I cannot pull the load through it. I have gone to that sand and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me! I have looked back many times to see who was pushing my cart, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the Angels of God were there.
“Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart? No! Neither then nor any minute of my life since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay and I am thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcart Company.” (https://byustudies.byu.edu/file/5104/download?token=q7IGKLc9).
Examples of An Attitude of Conversion:
- Willing to give up everything (Alma 22:15).
- Willing to give up all sins to know God (Alma 22:18).
- Converted to the Lord (Alma 23:6).
- Distinguished for their enthusiastic diligence (Alma 23:16; 27:27).
- Express gratitude in the face of trials (Alma 24:7-10).
- Willingness to do “all that we can do” (Alma 24:11, 15).
- Willingness to “bury” our sins “deep” (Alma 24:15-16).
- Don’t carry your sins with you (Alma 24:15-16).
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.” (Letter (19 April 1951); published in Letters of C. S. Lewis (1966), p. 230)
President Boyd K. Packer: “Letters come from those who have made tragic mistakes. They ask, “Can I ever be forgiven?”
“The answer is yes!
“The gospel teaches us that relief from torment and guilt can be earned through repentance. Save for those few who defect to perdition after having known a fulness, there is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no offense exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness.” (“The Brilliant Morning of Forgiveness,” General Conference October 1995).
Elder Jeffery R. Holland: “However late you think you are, however many chances you think you have missed, however many mistakes you feel you have made or talents you think you don’t have, or however far from home and family and God you feel you have traveled, I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines. . . .There is nothing that you have done that cannot be undone. There is no problem which you cannot overcome. There is no dream that in the unfolding of time and eternity cannot yet be realized.” (The Laborers in the Vineyard, General Conference, April 2012).
Elder Dale G. Renlund: “Remember, joyfully and reverently, that the Savior loves to restore what you cannot restore; He loves to heal wounds you cannot heal; He loves to fix what has been irreparably broken; He compensates for any unfairness inflicted on you; and He loves to permanently mend even shattered hearts.” (“Consider the Goodness and Greatness of God, General Conference, April 2020).
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “It takes exactly as long to repent as it takes you to say ‘I’ll change’—and mean it. Of course there will be problems to work out and restitutions to make. You may well spend—indeed you had better spend—the rest of your life proving your repentance by its permanence.” (“For Times of Trouble,” New Era, Oct. 1980, 11–12).
Elder David A. Bednar taught that our weapons of rebellion could be “selfishness, pride, and disobedience” (“Converted unto the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2012, 108).
Elder Dale G. Renlund taught that our weapons could be “personal desires that are contrary to being anchored to the Savior and to following the covenant path” (“Unwavering Commitment to Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2019, 22).
Elder Patrick Kearon: “We find healing and relief only when we bring ourselves to the feet of the Great Physician, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We must lay down our weapons of rebellion (and we each know what they are). We must lay down our sin, vanity, and pride. We must give up our desires to follow the world and to be respected and lauded by the world. We must cease fighting against God and instead give our whole hearts to Him, holding nothing back. Then He can heal us. Then He can cleanse us from the venomous sting of sin.” (Patrick Kearon, “Come unto Me with Full Purpose of Heart, and I Shall Heal You,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 51–52)
Elder Richard G. Scott: “[Our] past choices [can expose us] to a carnal appetite that could again become a point of vulnerability that Satan would attempt to exploit.
“Satan will try to use our memory of any previous guilt to lure us back into his influence. We must be ever vigilant to avoid his enticements.” (Richard G. Scott, “Personal Strength through the Atonement of Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 83)
Elder Neil L. Andersen: “Forsaking a sin means we will never repeat it—never return to it—not in action or in word or even in our mind. Forsaking means that the sin is totally in our past. To forsake a sin will mean more than just feeling the remorse and sadness it has brought to us and others we have hurt; it will mean being certain that we don’t put ourselves into the same position that brought the sin before. It will mean associating with trusted friends and family who will help us in moving forward. For some, it may mean changing friends, perhaps changing our employment or what we do with our time. It will mean being very open and honest with trusted companions as we go forward. We never want to return to the sins of our past. (Neil L. Andersen, The Divine Gift of Forgiveness [2019], 207–8)
Elder Dale G. Renlund: “Completely bury your weapons of rebellion with no handles sticking out. Because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, making covenants with a real intent to reliably honor them will bless your life forever. You will become more like the Savior as you always remember Him, follow Him, and adore Him. I testify that He is the firm foundation. He is dependable, and His promises are sure.” (Dale G. Renlund, “Unwavering Commitment to Jesus Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2019, 25)
The Anti-Nephi-Lehis:
- Alma 23:16 – Want to be distinguished.
- Alma 27:27 – Distinguished for their zeal.
- Alma 24:5-7 – Great need to defend themselves.
- Alma 24:10 – “thank my God … that we might repent.
- Alma 26:31-32 – “…because of their love towards their brethren.”
Attitudes to look for in Ammon’s Homecoming Address (Alma 26)
- Great reason to rejoice (v. 1).
- We have been instruments in the hands of God (v. 3).
- Thrust in your sickle with your might (v. 5).
- Our “dearly beloved brethren, who have so dearly beloved us” (v. 9, 31-32).
- “my joy is full … my heart is brim with joy” (v. 11).
- In God’s strength you can do all things (v 12).
- Cannot say the smallest part which I feel (v. 16).
- You will come to know the mysteries of God (v. 22).
- Times of trial and depressed hearts (v. 27).
- Suffer from ‘privations’ (v. 28).
- Teach everywhere (v. 29).
- Suffer afflictions for the hope of saving one soul (v. 30).
- “We see that God is mindful of every people” (v. 37).
- “I will give thanks unto my God forever” (v. 37).
What helps us to be content with what God has “allotted” us?
- See the Lord’s Council (Alma 29:8).
- Be an instrument in the Lord’s hands (Alma 29:9).
- Remember what the Lord has done for you. (Alma 29:10-12).
Ideas for teaching:
- Discuss the “attitude of a convert.”
- Zeal-less vs. Zealous vs. over-zealous.
- Write a sin that you want to give up on a piece of paper. Plan on how you will do it. Bury the piece of paper deep in the yard.
- You have the promise of complete forgiveness.
- Give thanks to God today. Be an instrument in the Lord’s hands.
- Remember what the Lord has done for you!