Quotes from Lynn's Lesson

Lynn Davis gave an excellent lesson on Prophets of God. The beauty of a modern prophet is knowing we are given guidance and counsel for what we are experiencing at this moment in time.

The following are some quotes from prophets of the past and today. May these words from true prophets of the Lord give you peace, comfort, hope and courage to stand up for what is right.

Joseph Smith
"With his great faith, and trust in God, Joseph [Smith] had an insurmountable optimism. he knew the truth, and the truth made him free - free from fear, free from doubt, and free from pessimism. He said, 'If I were sunk in the lowest pit of Nova Scotia, with the Rocky Mountains pile on me, I would hang on, exercise faith, and keep up good courage, and I would come out on top.'" (The Prophet and His Work: Essays from General Authorities, 89).

(thanks Jane Thurston for passing this one on)
Joseph Smith
“We are fast approaching that moment prophesied by Joseph Smith when he said: ‘Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground, and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin, this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean, and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction” (Church Historian’s Office, Salt Lake City, July 19, 1840) (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 623 - 624).


Harold B. Lee
"Men may fail in this country, earthquakes may come, seas may heave beyond their bounds, there may be great drought, disaster, and hardship, but this nation, founded on principles laid down by men whom God raised up, will never fail.
This is the cradle of humanity, where life on this earth began in the Garden of Eden. This is the place of the New Jerusalem...This is the place where the Savior will come to His temple.
We are living in a time of great crisis. The Country is torn with scandal and with criticism, with fault finding and condemnation. There are those who have downgraded the image of this nation as probably never before in the history of the country.
I plead with you to not preach pessimism. Preach that this is the greatest country in all the world..It is the nation that will stand despite whatever trials or crises it may yet have to pass through.
We must be on the optimistic side. This is a great nation; this is a great country; this is the most favored of all the lands. While it is true that there are dangers and difficulties that lie ahead of us, we must not assume that we are going to stand by and watch the country go to ruin. We should not be heard to predict ills and calamities for the nation. On the contrary, we should be providing optimistic support for the nation..
You must remember ..that this church is one of the most powerful agencies for the progress of the world, and we should ...all sound with one voice. We must tell the world how we feel about this land and this nation and should bear our testimonies about the great mission and destiny that it has.
If we do this, we will help turn the tide of this great country and lessen the influence of the pessimists. We must be careful that we do not say or do anything that will further weaken the country. It is the negative, pessimistic comments about the nation that do as much harm as anything to the country today. We who carry these sacred responsibilities must preach the gospel of peace, and peace can only come by overcoming the things of the world. Now, we must be the dynamic force that will help turn the tide of fear and pessimism."(Excerpts from a talk given at Ricks College Devotional Assembly, “Have Faith in America,” October 26, 1973, and printed in two sources: Ye Are the Light of the World: Selected Sermons and Writings of Harold B. Lee, 340, 350-351, and The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, edited by Clyde J. Williams, 365-366.)




Ezra Taft Benson
"The Lord told the Prophet Joseph Smith there would be an attempt to overthrow the country by destroying the Constitution. Joseph Smith predicted that the time would come when the Constitution would hang, as it were, by a thread, and at that time 'this people will step forth and save it from the threatened destruction' (Journal of Discourses, 7:15) It is my conviction that the elders of Israel, widely spread over the nation, will at that crucial time successfully rally the righteous of our country and provide the necessary balance of strength to save the institutions of constitutional government". (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 618-619).

Howard W. Hunter
"I am here tonight to tell you that despair, doom, and discouragement are not an acceptable view of life for a Latter-day Saint. However high on the charts they are on the hit parade of contemporary news, we must not walk on our lower lip every time a few difficult moments happen to confront us." (Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, 199).

Gordon B Hinckley
"We came into this life for experience, and that's all we can take out of it. Thank God we have the right to decide personally and individually what we shall do. The future belongs to those who know what to do with it.. We must look forward to the unknown with optimism and confidence; look to tomorrow with happy expectancy, realizing that with God's help we can do all things. We need to constantly build faith in ourselves and those about us. We need to personally make dark days brighter. Isn't it a joy, a lift, a light, to see someone with heavy challenges and burdens moving forward to victory in the only contest that really matters!" (Faith, 49).

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
"The Lord has probably spoken enough comforting words to supply the whole universe, and yet all we see around us are unhappy Latter-day Saints, worried Latter-day Saints, and gloomy Latter-day Saints into whose troubled hearts not one of these innumerable consoling words seems to be allowed to enter...on the night of Gethsemane, the night of the greatest suffering ever to take place on this world, the Savior said, 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you..let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid'(John 14:27). I submit to you, that may be one of the Savior's commandments that is, even in the hearts of otherwise faithful Latter-Day Saints, almost universally disobeyed" (CES Young Adult Fireside, Brigham Young University, March 2, 1997).

Thomas S. Monson
"My brothers and sisters, today as we look at the world around us, we are faced with problems which are serious and of great concern to us. The world seems to have slipped from the mooring of safety and drifted from the harbor of peace....My counsel for all of us is to look to the lighthouse of the Lord. There is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gale so strong, no mariner so lost but what its beacon of light can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. The lighthouse of the Lord sends forth signals readily recognized and never failing." (April 4, 2010 General Conference)