886. Beautiful thoughts, for hot summer days, and remembering the pioneers !

Inspirational thoughts, to help us remember July 24th, and the pioneers. Martha Ann Riste Wilson, my great grandmother who was a pioneer from England. July 15, 2017 Come, Come, Ye Saints SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Doctrine & Covenants 25:12-13 "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads. Wherefore, lift up thy heart and rejoice, and cleave unto the covenants which thou hast made." QUOTE OF THE DAY Heber J. Grant "Never can I hear this song, never can I read it, but my heart goes out in gratitude to my father and to my mother, and to thousands of those noble men and women who journeyed over the plains. Many of them, time and time again, crossed the plains to help others, enduring the hardships cheerfully, carrying out, in very deed, the teachings of this inspired hymn!  "I can never think of them but I am full of admiration and gratitude, and utter a prayer to the Lord to help me, as one of the descendants of that noble band, to be loyal, to be true, to be faithful as they were! In very deed, they were a band of men and women who, as the years come and go, will command greater and greater admiration and respect from the people of the world" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant, p. 136-137). July 13, 2017 Holy Spirit SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY John 14:26-27 "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." QUOTE OF THE DAY Lorenzo Snow "We should endeavor, as far as possible, to forget all worldly matters which grieve and vex us, and fix our minds upon the Lord, having a sufficiency of His Holy Spirit that we may be enabled to receive such knowledge and suggestions as will help us in our onward path" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Lorenzo Snow, p. 80). July 12, 2017 Ten  Virgins SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Doctrine & Covenants 45:56-57 "And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins. For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived---verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day." QUOTE OF THE DAY Wolford Woodruff "I expect that the Saviour was about right when he said, in reference to the members of the church, that five of them were wise and five were foolish; for when the Lord of heaven comes in power and great glory to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body, if he finds one-half of those professing to be members of his church prepared for salvation, it will be as many as can be expected judging by the course that many are pursuing" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff, p. 256). July 5, 2017 Latter-day Base of Operations SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY 3 Nephi 21:4 "For it is wisdom in the Father that they should be established in this land, and be set up as a free people by the power of the Father, that these things might come forth from them unto a remnant of your seed, that the covenant of the Father may be fulfilled which he hath covenanted with his people, O house of Israel." QUOTE OF THE DAY Ezra Taft Benson "Our Father in Heaven planned the coming forth of the Founding Fathers and their form of government as the necessary great prologue leading to the restoration of the gospel. . . . America, the land of liberty, was to be the Lord's latter-day base of operations for His restored church" ("Our Divine Constitution," Ensign, November 1987). July 2, 2017 Atonement

SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Doctrine & Covenants 19:16-19 "For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent; But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I; Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit---and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink---Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men."

QUOTE OF THE DAY Joseph Fielding Smith "There isn't one of us I take it that hasn't done something wrong and then been sorry and wished we hadn't. Then our consciences strike us and we have been very, very miserable. Have you gone through that experience? I have. . . . But here we have the Son of God carrying the burden of my transgressions and your transgressions. . . . His greatest torment was not the nails in his hands or in his feet, as bad as they were, but the torment of mind in some way that is not clear to me.  "But he carried the burden---our burden. I added something to it; so did you. So did everybody else. He took it upon himself to pay the price that I might escape---that you might escape---the punishment on the conditions that we will receive his gospel and be true and faithful in it" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith, p. 98).

June 25, 2017 Inspiration of the Holy Spirit  SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Doctrine & Covenants 45:56-57 "And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins.  For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived---verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day." QUOTE OF THE DAY John Taylor "We believe that it is necessary for man to be placed in communication with God; that he should have revelation from him, and that unless he is placed under the influences of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he can know nothing about the things of God" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor, p. 157). June 23, 2017 Satan's Influence

SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Alma 13:28-29 "But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be led by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, meek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering."

QUOTE OF THE DAY Joseph Smith ". . . Satan was generally blamed for the evils which we did, but if he was the cause of all our wickedness, men could not be condemned. The devil could not compel mankind to do evil; all was voluntary. Those who resisted the Spirit of God, would be liable to be led into temptation, and then the association of heaven would be withdrawn from those who refused to be made partakers of such great glory. God would not exert any compulsory means, and the devil could not" (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, p. 214).