Emphasizing that the core of the gospel can be found in simple principles and practices, Elder M. Russell Ballard urged members of the Church Saturday morning to consider the power of "small things."

"We observe vast, sweeping world events," said Elder Ballard of the Council of the Twelve. "However, we must remember that the purposes of the Lord in our personal lives generally are fulfilled through the small and simple things and not the momentous and spectacular."Reading from a letter written by a sister missionary in South America, Elder Ballard quoted her impressions of the childlike, humble people in the country where she was working.

" `They have faith, they repent, they are baptized, they receive the Holy Ghost, and they renew their baptismal covenants each week,' " he read. " `They pray and read the scriptures daily. They know God lives and that Christ is our Savior. . . . The things that matter, the true elements of the gospel . . . are the same here as they are in Orem, Utah.' "

Some members, he continued, depend too much on "buildings, budgets, programs, and activities" for conversion, rather than those smaller things that are more central to the gospel.

Elder Ballard recalled his recent experiences in South America, as he and Elder Charles Didier dedicated several countries for missionary work. There, he noted, the gospel is being simply taught, relying mostly on the scriptures.

He related how a missionary couple in Guyana saw how their small gesture of friendliness to a teenage boy resulted in the baptism of seven of his family.

While small things can result in something positive, Elder Ballard cautioned, he also acknowledged that they can be negative and destructive.

"A series of seemingly small but incorrect choices can become those little soul-destroying termites that eat away at the foundations of our testimony until, before we are aware, we may be brought near to spiritual and moral destruction."

Relating how one of his former missionaries had found himself in despair through an accumulation of small events, Elder Ballard noted that "like weak fibers that form a yarn, then a strand, and finally a rope, these small things combined together can become too strong to be broken."

He concluded by noting that small events and choices determine our lives' directions just as small helms determine the direction of great ships, and counseled members of the Church to pray, study the scriptures, and follow the Savior's admonitions.

"Through these and other similar small and simple things, we have the promise that our lives will be filled with peace and joy," he said.