Messages of inspiration from President Monson
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Reach out and rescue
"Tonight I pray that all of us who hold the priesthood may sense our responsibilities, that we, like Gideon of old, may stand every man in his appointed place and, as one, follow our Leader — even the Lord Jesus Christ. ... May we reach out and rescue those who have fallen by the wayside, that not one precious soul will be lost." — "Stand in Your Appointed Place," April 2003 general conference, priesthood session
Looking to the past
"In the search for our best selves, several questions will guide our thinking: Am I what I want to be? Am I closer to the Savior today than I was yesterday? Will I be closer yet tomorrow? Do I have the courage to change for the better?
"It is time to choose an oft-forgotten path, the path we might call "The Family Way," so that our children and grandchildren might indeed grow to their full potential. There is a national — even an international— tide running. It carries the unspoken message, "Return to your roots, to your families, to lessons learned, to lives lived, to examples shown, even family values." Often it is just a matter of coming home — coming home to attics not recently examined, to diaries seldom read, to photo albums almost forgotten. ...
"The years have come and the years have gone, but the need for a testimony of the gospel continues paramount. As we move toward the future, we must not neglect the lessons of the past." — "Becoming Our Best Selves," October 1999 general conference
Great expectations
"Today, as I contemplate who you are and what you are, who you may become and what you may become, I say to you, as the lawyer said to Pip, [in Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens] you have great expectations — not as the result of an unknown benefactor, but as the result of a known benefactor — even our Heavenly Father — and great things are expected of you.
"Many of you here tonight are close to completing your formal education; others of you have additional periods of academic preparation ahead. Each is in what could be called the race of life, which goes to him who endures to the end.
"The race of life is so important, the prize so valued, that great emphasis must necessarily be placed on adequate and thorough preparation." — "Great Expectations," CES Broadcast Jan. 11, 2009
A firm foundation
"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.
"Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. In order for us to be tested, we must face challenges and difficulties. These can break us, and the surface of our souls may crack and crumble — that is, if our foundations of faith, our testimonies of truth are not deeply embedded within us." — "How Firm A Foundation," October 2006 general conference
Ahead of change
"We cannot be careless in our reach. Lives of others depend on us. The power to lead is indeed the power to mislead; and the power to mislead is the power to destroy. . . .
"And while we reach outward, we have the responsibility to press onward. Whatever part you choose to play on the world stage, keep in mind that life is like a candid camera; it does not wait for you to pose. . . . We don't have to keep up with the change — we have to keep ahead of it." — "Guideposts For Life's Journey," BYU-Idaho commencement ceremony, Aug. 22, 2003
