To give of oneself is a holy gift

With a blanket of fresh fallen snow, before we know it the Holidays will be upon us. With the hustle & bustle carrying us here & there, may we carry the Spirit of Christ with us…..

As we remember the true meaning of the season to come

Love Susan

“I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away. If I immerse myself in the scriptures the distance narrows and the spirituality returns.”

Spencer W. Kimball

“Peace is more than a spot of ink on a piece of paper or a sound upon our lips. It is the application of the teachings of the prince of peace in our daily lives.” John Longden

“Educate yourself not only for time, but also for eternity.”

Joseph F. Smith

“When all is said and done, when all the legions of the ages have passed in review, when man’s terrible inhumanity to man has been chronicled, when God’s great love for His children has been measured, then above all stands the lone figure of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of the world, the Savior of mankind, the living Son of the living God, the Prince of Peace, the Holy One.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“… A distraction that can destroy joy is comparing our talents and blessings with others. The growth in our own talents is the best measure of personal progress.”

Quentin L. Cook

“On many days, doing what matters most will not be easy. It is not supposed to be. God’s purpose in creation was to let us prove ourselves. The plan was explained to us in the spirit world before we were born. We were valiant enough there to qualify for the opportunity to choose against temptation here to prepare for eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God. We rejoiced to know the test would be

one of faithful obedience even when it would not be easy.”

Henry B. Eyring

“How grateful we should be that a wise Creator fashioned an earth and placed us here, with a veil of forgetfulness of our previous existence so that we might experience a time of testing, an opportunity to prove ourselves in order to qualify for all that God has prepared for us to receive.”

Thomas S. Monson

“True greatness . . . always requires regular, consistent, small,

and sometimes ordinary and mundane steps over a long period of time.”

Howard W. Hunter

  

“The most amazing thing about the Christmas story is its relevance. It is at home in every age and fits into every mood of life. It is not simply a lovely tale once told, but eternally contemporary. It is the voice crying out in every wilderness. It is as meaningful in our time as in that long-ago night when shepherds followed the light of the star to the manger of Bethlehem”

Howard W. Hunter

We can choose this Christmas and every day to create a small part of the Christmas story in our own lives. We can accept the invitation of living prophets to help those who are lost along the pathway, and have wandered, to come back to it. We can offer the gospel, which is the only way home, to all we meet along the way. We can lift up those who are tired and hungry and lonely, as the Savior did and now invites us to do with Him. As we do, they can feel how much the Savior loves them and wants to lead them on the way to the God He loves.

Henry B. Eyring

"Jesus Christ concluded His mortal ministry with the single most compassionate and

significant service in the history of the world: the Atonement."

Russell M. Ballard

“Carrying a grudge is a heavy burden. As you forgive, you will feel the joy of being forgiven. At this Christmastime you can give and receive the gift of forgiveness. The feeling of happiness that will come will be a glimpse of what we can feel at home together in the eternal home for which we yearn.”

Henry B. Eyring

The best Gift around the Christmas Tree is the presence of Family wrapped in Love.

The Magic of Christmas is not in the presents but in His Presence.

“Father forgive us, for we do not what we know”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“What shall we do with Jesus who is called Christ? Learn of him. Search the scriptures for they are they which testify of him. Ponder the miracle of his life and mission. Try a little more diligently to follow his example and observe his teachings. Bring the Christ back into Christmas.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“Let no pleasure tempt thee, no profit allure thee, no ambition corrupt thee, no example sway thee, no persuasion move thee to do anything which thou knowest to be evil; so thou shalt live jollily, for a good conscience is a continual Christmas.”

Benjamin Franklin

“I wonder why it takes the Christmas season to bring out the best in all of us. Parents have the same love for their children 365 days a year. We are all nieces, nephews, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends, and brothers and sisters in the kingdom of God each day of our lives. I would hope that we can try to open our hearts a little more each day and not wait for the Christmas season. A gift given or an expression of kindness may be more unexpected and appreciated in July than in December.”

James E. Faust

This Christmas, mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. Write a letter. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love and then speak it again. Christmas is a celebration, and there is no celebration that compares with the realization of its true meaning-with the sudden stirring of the heart that has extended itself unselfishly in the things that matter most.”

Howard W. Hunter

“At this Christmas season, let us take time to ponder the significance of the birth, the life, and the death of the Savior of the world. Of all the pronouncements in sacred or profane literature, the announcement of the angel to the shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night was highly significant”

James E. Faust

“There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus the Christ. It is the time to love the Lord our God with all our heart and our neighbors as ourselves. It is well to remember that he who gives money gives much, he who gives time gives more, but he who gives of himself gives all.”

Thomas S. Monson

“While there are those for whom Christmas is difficult-particularly those who have lost loved ones and for whom there is now a poignant loneliness-even to these there comes the assurance of future glad reunions made possible only because of the sacrifice of the Son of God, whose birth we commemorate at this season.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“Never did the Savior give in expectation of receiving. He gave freely and lovingly, and His gifts were of inestimable value…We should strive to give as He gave. To give of oneself is a holy gift. We give as a remembrance of all the Savior has given.”

Howard W. Hunter

“God … prepared a sacrifice in the gift of His own Son, who should be sent in due time to prepare a way, or open a door through which man might enter into the Lord’s presence”

Joseph Smith

“May we live so that we will have no regrets for Christmases past. May our present Christmases be filled with the joy that comes from keeping the commandments that our Lord and Savior came to teach. May we continue to look forward with expectation for happier Christmases to come because we have shared our blessings with others. And may it be said of us, as it was ever after of Scrooge, that ‘he knew how to keep Christmas well.’ ”

N. Eldon Tanner

“Of all things of heaven and earth of which we bear testimony, none is so important as our witness that Jesus, the Christmas child, condescended to come to earth from the realms of His Eternal Father, here to work among men as healer and teacher, our Great Exemplar. And further, and most important, He suffered on Calvary’s cross as an atoning sacrifice for all mankind. At this time of Christmas, this season when gifts are given, let us not forget that God gave His Son, and His Son gave His life, that each of us might have the gift of eternal life.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“Let us follow the Son of God in all ways and in all walks of life. Let us make him our exemplar and our guide. We should at every opportunity ask ourselves, ‘What would Jesus do?’ and then be more courageous to act upon the answer. We must follow Christ, in the best sense of that word.

We must be about his work as he was about his Father’s.”

Howard W. Hunter