Wednesday, May 5, 2010

"Service is Imperative" - Elder Oaks

I wasn't able to go to Women's Conference this year, but Elder Oaks was one of the main speakers who I would have loved to hear from. Thousands of women came to campus to be uplifted and inspired, I hope that each felt a better strength within themselves and within the gospel to take it to their lives and families.

I read his article and learned so much from Elder and Sister Oaks.
  • "When we're centered on Christ and service to our fellow man, we have a standard of right and wrong, and we know what to do about it"
  • "Service is imperative for true follwewrs of Christ."
  • "The result of these [financial, emotional, physical etc] stresses is fear, but since faith is the opposite of fear, the answer to the fear caused by all of these stresses is the hope and assurance that comes from the Gosel of Jesus Christ."
  • "As women, too, we set very high expectations for ourselves. At times we feel mired down by personal inadequacies, both real and imagined, sometimes counting calories more than counting blessings."
  • "Remember, Heavenly Father will never allow us to fail. He desires us to succeed."
  • "Service is the antidote for the amorality and individualism that corrodes our society."
  • "It's amazing how much you can get done if you don't worry about who gets the credit."
  • Motives behind service: "We may fool our fellow man, and we may fool ourselves about the reasons for our service, but we will not fool the Lord. Unlike mortals, who see only what we do with our hands, the Lord seses what is in our hearts. He knows our motives and our reasons for service."
  • "WITHOUT SERVICE TO OTHERS, OUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH WILL BE STUNTED. The growth we seeek comes by getting our spiritual concerns and our service efforts outside ourselves, to focus on others."
  • Righteous decisions on a daily basis will have large consequences.
  • "Our happiness and our very salvation hinges on our ability to choose the better part and trust in our Lord... A lifetime of righteous choices will manifest itself in times of trouble. Jesus Christ will protect you."