One of the greatest
comforts here on Earth is Heavenly Father’s love for us individually. In times
of need we can call upon the Lord our God and feel of His inspiring and
overpowering love that He has for us. Likewise, we too should develop such a
love for our Heavenly Father.
John 10:27 says, “Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with
all thy strength, and with all thy mind…”
Elder John H Groberg
gave a powerful talk on God’s Love titled, ThePower of God’s Love.
He says, “Since all love emanates from
God, we are born with the capacity and the desire to love and to be loved. One
of the strongest connections we have with our premortal life is how much our
Father and Jesus loved us and how much we loved them. Even though a veil was
drawn over our memory, whenever we sense true love, it awakens a longing that
cannot be denied.
“God’s love fills the
immensity of space; therefore, there is no shortage of love in the universe,
only in our willingness to do what is needed to feel it.”
To feel God’s love we
need to be receptive. We cannot feel God’s love if we have a closed mind and a
closed heart. Such feelings will not allow His love into our lives. But with an
open heart and an open mind, we can feel the power of His love daily.
Charity
Charity is a key component of Godly love. Moroni 7:47
says, “But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endure forever; and whoso
is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.”
How do we get this
charity, this love? “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with
all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love…” (Moroni 7:48)
Through prayer and faith we can understand and have this Christ like love. Some
of us may feel a lack of love for other people in our lives. Though at times we
may not feel it, it is important to understand that it is there. Moroni
testifies of this in 7:48, “… which he hath bestowed upon all who are true
followers of his Son, Jesus Christ …”
Mormon Message:
Enduring Love is a beautiful Mormon Message that shoes the Pure
Love of Christ in action.
Ponder:
- Can you feel Christ love in your life?
- How do you feel His love?
- Is it through prayer, scripture study, friends, family, service, church etc.?
- How can you show Christ’s love to those around you?
- Watch Elder Holland’s How do I Love Thee Mormon Message.
- How can you love, and show love to Christ?
- John 15:9-10 “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
- If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.”
Showing
Love to Others:
2 Nephi 2:25 “Adam fell that men
might be; and men are, that they might have joy.”
God
wants us to find happiness during this life. We as individuals can bring great
happiness to each other. It is important to recognize the powerful influence
you can have on another person’s life, and to use that influence for good.
 |
| “The good you have done, the kind words you have spoken, the love you have shown to others, can never be fully measured.” –Thomas S. Monson |
“The
trouble with the world and the trouble with you and me is that we don't love
each other enough. And if we do, we don't bother to show it, or we don't bother
to say it. If the world is to know love, it has to be in your heart and in
mine.” –Marjorie Pay Hinckley, Small and Simple Things
“People
are wonderful. Each one has a story, each something to give, each knows
something interesting, something that can make your life richer.” –Marjorie Pay
Hinckley, Small and Simple Things
MargaretD. Nadauld (once the Young Women General President) said:
“Women of God can
never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we
need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women
who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are
refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith.
We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need
more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity.”
Lastly,
to show love to the people in our life, we can follow the words of our living
Prophet:
“Send
that note to the friend you’ve been neglecting; give your child a hug; give
your parents a hug; say “I love you” more; always express your thanks. Never
let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved.
Friends move away, children grow up, loved ones pass on. It’s so easy to take
others for granted, until that day when they’re gone from our lives and we are
left with feelings of ‘what if’ and ‘if only.’ Said author Harriet Beecher
Stowe, ‘The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and
deeds left undone.’” –Thomas S. Monson, Finding Joy in the Journey
Invitation:
Think
of one commandment or principle of the Gospel that you can improve on.
Think
of a habit you will try to improve (or remove), and specifically tell Heavenly
Father that you will strive to do that because you love Him and Christ. Every
time you act on that, focus on remembering that you are doing it because you
love Christ.
Other Resources:
Slide Show by Mark Mabry on Christ's Life
3 Nephi 17 - Christ visiting the Nephites
Wrong Roads, Jeffrey R. Holland, Mormon Message
Good talks about Christ's Love:
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