This is a compilation of thoughts and quotes that I have found or written recently, as well as many that I've collected throughout the years. Most thoughts are posted randomly, as I feel inspired. A listing of quotes can be found alphabetically (check the 2008 and 2009 archives listing), or by source.

Feel free to suggest additions!


“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” – Proverbs 23:7

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Quotes by Thomas S. Monson

Revered by many to be an earthly mouthpiece for God, Thomas S. Monson has long offered the world many sage words of advice. Serving today as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, many of Thomas S. Monson's quotes are specific to his faith in Jesus Christ, while others are general words to living a good life.

Here are some of his quotes that can benefit any reader
:

Amidst the confusion of the times, the conflicts of conscience, and the turmoil of daily living, an abiding faith becomes an anchor to our lives.

Choose your friends with caution; plan your future with purpose, and frame your life with faith.

Choose your love, Love your choice.

Courage, not compromise, brings the smile of God's approval.

Each heartfelt prayer, each church meeting attended, each worthy friend, each righteous decision, each act of service performed all precede that goal of eternal life.

Faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other. Cast out doubt. Cultivate faith.

I acknowledge that I do not understand the processes of creation, but I accept the fact of it.

I forbid you, agnostic, doubting thoughts, to destroy the house of my faith.

I hope that you will learn to take responsibility for your decisions. Don't take counsel of your fears.

I urge you to hold fast to your standards. I plead with you not to waver.

In reality, we are all travelers - even explorers of mortality.

On occasion we need to make a second effort - and a third effort, and a fourth effort, and as many degrees of effort as may be required to accomplish what we strive to achieve.

Perhaps the surest test of an individual's integrity is his refusal to do or say anything that would damage his self-respect.

Should doubt knock at your doorway, just say to those skeptical, disturbing, rebellious thoughts, I propose to stay with my faith, with the faith of my people.

The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and trial with humility.

The reward of eternal life requires effort.

Though we may not necessarily forfeit our lives in service to our God, we can certainly demonstrate our love for Him by how well we serve Him.

We must not let our passions destroy our dreams.

We tend to become like those whom we admire.

Work will win when wishy washy wishing won't.

The past is behind, learn from it. The future is ahead, prepare for it. The present is here, live it.

Remember who you are and what God expects you to become.

Don't save something for a special occasion. Every day of your life is a special occasion.

May I share with you a formula that in my judgment will help you and help me to journey well through mortality... First, fill your mind with truth; second, fill your life with service; and third, fill your heart with love.

Never let a problem to be solved, become more important than a person to be loved.

Reading is one of the true pleasures of life. In our age of mass culture, when so much that we encounter is abridged, adapted, adulterated, shredded, and boiled down, it is mind-easing and mind-inspiring to sit down privately with a congenial book.

One day each of us will run out of tomorrows. Let us not put off what is important.

He who gives money gives some, he who gives time gives more, and he who gives of himself gives all.

Our opportunities to give of ourselves are indeed limitless, but they are also perishable. There are hearts to gladden. There are kind words to say. There are gifts to be given. There are deeds to be done. There are souls to be saved.

Why is Dickens’ "Christmas Carol" so popular? Why is it ever new? I personally feel it is inspired of God. It brings out the best within human nature. It gives hope. It motivates change. We can turn from the paths which would lead us down and, with a song in our hearts, follow a star and walk toward the light. We can quicken our step, bolster our courage, and bask in the sunlight of truth. We can hear more clearly the laughter of little children. We can dry the tear of the weeping. We can comfort the dying by sharing the promise of eternal life. If we lift one weary hand which hangs down, if we bring peace to one struggling soul, if we give as did the Master, we can—by showing the way—become a guiding star for some lost mariner.

When faith replaces doubt, when selfless service eliminates selfish striving, the power of God brings to pass His purposes.

Youth need less critics and more models.

Don't forget: one of the saddest things in life is wasted talent.

There will be occasions in each of our lives when we will be called upon to explain or to defend our beliefs. When the time for performance arrives, the time for preparation is past.

Find joy in the journey.

Learn from the past, prepare for the future, live in the present.

To you who are parents, I say, show love to your children. You know you love them, but make certain they know it as well. They are so precious. Let them know. Call upon our Heavenly Father for help as you care for their needs each day and as you deal with the challenges which inevitably come with parenthood. You need more than your own wisdom in rearing them.

The good you have done, the kind words you have spoken, the love you have shown to others, can never be fully measured.

There is no tomorrow to remember if we don’t do something today, and to live most fully today, we must do that which is of greatest importance. Let us not procrastinate those things which matter most.

Everyone can be discontented if he ignores his blessings and looks only at his burdens.

Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith.

Our task is to become our best selves. One of God's greatest gifts to us is the joy of trying again, for no failure ever need be final.

Like the vital rudder of a ship, we have been provided a way to determine the direction we travel. The lighthouse of the Lord beckons to all as we sail the seas of life. Our home port is the celestial kingdom of God. Our purpose is to steer an undeviating course in that direction. A man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder—never likely to reach home port. To us comes the signal: Chart your course, set your sail, position your rudder, and proceed.

Rather than dwelling on the past, we should make the most of today, of the here and now, doing all we can to provide pleasant memories for the future…If you are still in the process of raising children be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled, will disappear all too soon, and that you will, to your surprise, miss them, profoundly.

The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and trial with humility.

Along your pathway of life you will observe that you are not the only traveler. There are others who need your help. There are feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire, and souls to save.

Glance backward, look heavenward, reach outward, press onward.

Do not pray for tasks equal to your abilities, but pray for abilities equal to your tasks. Then the performance of your tasks will be no miracle, but you will be the miracle.

Ideals are like the stars - you can't touch them with your hands, but by following them you reach your destination.

The most constant thing is change.

Whatever our calling, regardless of our fears or anxieties, let us pray and then go and do.

When we treat people merely as they are, they will remain as they are. When we treat them as if they were what they should be, they will become what they should be.

Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal.

You have a heritage - honor it. You have posses a testimony - share it. You will face temptation - withstand it. You know the truth - live it.

Your mind is a cupboard and you stock the shelves.

Remember that ofttimes the wisdom of God appears as foolishness to men, but the greatest single lesson we can learn in mortality is that when God speaks and a man obeys, that man will always be right.

May each of us remember this truth; 'one cannot forget mother and remember God. One cannot remember mother and forget God.' Why? Because these two sacred persons, God and mother, partners in creation, in love, in sacrifice, in service, are as one.
Any excuse, no matter how valid, only weakens the character.

Sometimes we let our thoughts of tomorrow take up too much of today. Daydreaming of the past and longing for the future may provide comfort but will not take the place of living in the present. This is the day of our opportunity, and we must grasp it.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Watch your step.

Our most significant opportunities will be found in times of greatest difficulty.

We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us.

Faith precedes the miracle. It has ever been so and shall ever be.

Life is full of difficulties, some minor and others of a more serious nature. There seems to be an unending supply of challenges for one and all. Our problem is that we often expect instantaneous solutions to such challenges, forgetting that frequently the heavenly virtue of patience is required.


See also:
Quotes by Gordon B. Hinckley
Quotes by Dieter F. Uchtdorf

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