Three guidelines
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Speaking Sunday morning, President Thomas S. Monson offered three guidelines in the quest to "effectively gain and maintain the foundation needed to survive spiritually in the world in which we live."
In introducing his three guidelines, President Monson, first counselor in the First Presidency, reminisced about his service as president of the Canadian Mission beginning in 1959. While presiding over the mission headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, he met N. Eldon Tanner, a prominent Canadian who would later serve in the Church's First Presidency. One day, he asked the future-President Tanner why the roads in western Canada remained intact during icy winters, "showing little or no signs of cracking or breaking, while the road surfaces in many areas where winters were less cold and less severe developed cracks and breaks and potholes."
President Tanner replied: "The answer is in the depth of the base of the paving materials. In order for them to remain strong and unbroken, it is necessary to go very deep with the foundation layers. When the foundations are not deep enough, the surfaces cannot withstand the extremes of weather."
President Monson related that over the years he has thought often of that conversation and of President Tanner's explanation, "for I recognize in his words a profound application for our lives. Stated simply, if we do not have a deep foundation of faith and a solid testimony of truth, we may have difficulty withstanding the harsh storms and icy winds of adversity which inevitably come to each of us."
President Monson then expounded on the following three guidelines:
- "First, fortify your foundation through prayer.... As we pray, let us really communicate with our Father in Heaven. It is easy to let our prayers become repetitious, expressing words with little or no thought behind them. When we remember that each of us is literally a spirit son or daughter of God, we will not find it difficult to approach Him in prayer."
- "My second guideline: Let us study the scriptures and 'meditate therein
day and night,' as counseled by the Lord in the book of Joshua"' (Joshua
1:8).
Referring to President Gordon B. Hinckley's challenge in 2005 to read the Book of Mormon, President Monson said: "We were blessed as we completed the task; our testimonies were strengthened, our knowledge increased. I would encourage all of us to continue to read and study the scriptures, that we might understand them and apply in our lives the lessons we find there.
"I paraphrase the poet James Phinney Baxter: 'Who learns and learns but never knows Is like the one who plows and plows but never sows."'
- "My third guideline for building a strong foundation of faith and
testimony involves service."
Reflecting on a sign he saw in the window of a dry cleaners, "It's the Service that Counts," President Monson said, "In actual fact it is the service that counts — the Lord's service."
The service that counts, he added, is "the service to which all of us have been called: the service of the Lord Jesus Christ."
"Along your pathway of life, you will observe that you are not the only traveler. There are others who need your help. There are feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire and souls to save."
President Monson recalled how 13 years ago it was his privilege to provide a blessing to 12-year-old Jami Palmer, who had been diagnosed with cancer. Jami is now healthy and well. But in her darkest hour, when she learned her leg would require multiple surgeries, she tearfully told her friends she would not be able to join a Young Women activity to hike up a rugged trail to Timpanogos Cave, located some 40 miles south of Salt Lake City. They refused to let her stay home, telling her they would carry hre to the cave themselves. And they did.
"None of those precious young women will ever forget that memorable day when a loving Heavenly Father looked down with a smile of approval and was well pleased," President Monson added. "As He enlists us to His cause, He invites us to draw close to Him, and we feel His Spirit in our lives.
"As we establish a firm foundation in our lives, let us each one remember His precious promise: 'Fear not, I am with thee; oh, be not dismayed, For I am thy God and will still give thee aid. I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand, Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand."' (Hymns, no. 85)
President Monson counseled members to pray with sincerity and meaning, offering thanks and asking for what is needed. "If any one of us has been slow to hearken to the counsel to pray always, there is no finer hour to begin than now."
Continuing, President Monson said: "Let us not neglect our family prayers. Such is an effective deterrent to sin, and thence a most beneficent provider of joy and happiness.... By providing an example of prayer to our children, we will also be helping them to begin their own deep foundations of faith and testimonies which they will need throughout their lives."
