"Talking about What it means to be Mormon", Elder Russell M Ballard Interviewed by NBC News

Tue, 19 Jun 2007 22:56:39 GMT

Here is an interesting interview given by NBC News with Elder Russell M. Ballard of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He answers some basic questions about the church and its position in the world and politics. Apparently (as stated in the interview) this interest has been generated by Mitt Romney's campaign.

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What it means to be Mormon

June 18: One of the leaders of the Church of Latter Day Saints, Elder Russell Ballard, sits down with NBC's Ron Allen to talk about what it means to be a Mormon and talks about misconceptions of what Mormonism stands for.

Gratitude and the Gifts from God

Wed, 27 Dec 2006 03:38:41 GMT

This is a talk I was asked to give in church for Christmas Eve. I haven't changed much from my notes but here it is.

I love all of the gift giving that goes on during Christmas. It has always been my favorite part. I always get so excited to choose a meaningful gift out for someone and see the surprise and joy in their eyes and they receive it. Our Father in heaven has given us so many great gifts. During the Christmas season we celebrate the greatest gift of all, the gift of his only begotten son.

In the Ensign this month, the first presidency message by President Monson, titled, Treasured Gifts, discusses four gifts that we receive from God. The gifts he discusses are:

1. The Gift of Birth

2. The Gift of Peace

3. The Gift of Love

4. The Gift of Life Eternal

I’d like to add three more gifts that I have been thinking about lately:

1. Temporal Gifts

2. The Gift of Trials

3. The Gift of God's Son

Temporal Gifts

I would first like to discuss all of the temporal gifts that we have received. We are such a blessed people! We live in an age where technology, civilization, and the work of those before us have enabled us to be the most prosperous of any people this earth has ever known. The poorest among us live with comforts and opportunities afforded only to the highest classes only a few decades ago.

As a child, I often spend much of the Christmas season thinking about what presents I would get, what new toy I wanted. I had plenty of toys and activities to occupy my time, yet, it often seemed like that one, sought after toy became more of a need than a want.

When I was serving in Argentina, I found that people really liked to look at pictures of me and my family back home. I used to carry a small album full of pictures of my family to share with people when I first met them.

One day, I was at the Bishop’s house in one of my areas. The Bishop’s seven or eight year old son was looking through my album. He stopped on one picture in particular and looked with amazement. The picture was of my little brother, who was about his age at the time, sitting next to his Christmas presents. My family has always had the tradition on Christmas morning that after all the presents are opened, everyone gathers all of their gifts together into piles and my mom takes pictures of each person with their gifts. The little boy turned to me and asked, “Why did he take a picture of all of his toys? Is it because he has so many?” Little did he realize that these were just the toys he had received for that particular Christmas! I don’t remember the answer that I gave, but I do remember how ashamed I felt.

Often, when the bustle of shopping and all that entails the Christmas season is upon us, it is easy to mix wants and needs. I came from a family that was considered poor and I never thought of our Christmas’s as extravagant, but an experience like that helped me to recognize how far beyond our basic needs most of us live and how many wants we continually receive.

We are so exceedingly blessed with temporal blessings. Even the poorest among us would be middle class in other parts of the world. May we be grateful for all that we have received and find opportunities to share those blessings with others.

The Gift of Trials

I think that it’s hard to think of trials as being gifts from God. They’re so hard! Yet trials are what help us to grow and make us stronger. They are the “stuff of life”. Without them we could never grow into the individuals that our loving Heavenly Father would have us become.

Recently, our family has been going through a minor trial and already great lessons are being learned. Joseph, our two year old son, has been diagnosed with some problems with his vision. While the problems are minor in scope, I was amazed at how much pain and empathy I felt as I watched him fail the most basic of vision tests with his doctor. I didn’t want to see him suffer or have to deal with trials such as these. The doctors told us he would need to wear a patch on his good eye for the majority of the day in order to strengthen his bad eye. But this also meant that since his bad eye had such a loss of vision, he would be almost blind while wearing his patch at first.

Before he began his treatment, I administered a priesthood blessing. I felt strongly to bless him with patience and happiness during his therapy. Since that time, he has been so sweet and patient. He has filled our home with a new level of love. It has been hard to watch him struggle, as he has fallen down the stairs or bumped into corners, and I have felt a hint of what our Father in heaven must feel as he sees his children wander in the mists of darkness.

This week we had to administer special eye drops to Joseph in preparation for an eye exam. They would sting and burn and then cause his eyes to dilate and become extremely blurry for a matter of hours. Joseph was understandably deathly afraid of them. The other night when it was time to administer the eye drops, I did my best to explain to my two year old boy why we had to do it. While I’m sure that he didn’t fully understand, he came and lay down in my lap. He said, “Daddy, I’m laying down now, I’m ready.”

In this I am reminded of the savior, in the garden of Gethsemane. In Luke 22:42 it states, “Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” While under the pains of trials, may we follow the Savior’s example and submit to our Father in Heaven as a little child, trusting, as the Lord councils in Doctrine and Covenants 121:7-8:

“My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.”

The Gift of God’s Son

The final gift I would like to discuss is the gift of God’s Son. In John 3:16-17 it states:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

The Savior’s birth and mission is why we celebrate Christmas. While it seems that Santa Claus, holiday sales, traffic, getting greeting cards sent, parties, and all the other distractions of the season would have us think otherwise, it is the case. While we don’t believe that Christ was born in December, we have the wonderful opportunity to celebrate his life in a time honored fashion. I find it very beautiful and symbolic that we celebrate the birth of the Savior during the time of the winter solstice. During the past six months, the days have grown shorter; our world has become darker. The solstice is the turning point, the light will now return.

Due to the fall of man, all mankind was lost. We could not save ourselves for our own sins. With the advent of the Savior, hope and light returned again to the world. How fitting that we celebrate his birth at this time of renewed hope and light.

At a certain point between my teenage and adult years, I became faced with the consequences of my actions. I recognized that no matter how hard I tried to fix the mistakes I had made, I made more mistakes in the process, in a downward spiral. I came to recognize that I could not be saved of my own accord. I couldn’t win; I wasn’t perfect and could never become so. Like Alma in Alma 36:12-13:

“But I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins. Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell; yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and that I had not kept his holy commandments.”

At that point, like Alma, I recognized the need for a savior. I prayed like I had never prayed before. In time I felt the cleansing power of the atonement in my life. I was still imperfect, I still made mistakes (I still do, all the time), but I came to know upon who I needed to depend. I am so grateful for the savior and the atonement. I am so grateful that even though I can’t make up for all the dumb things I continually do, that I can be forgiven and move on.

I felt like Alma after his repentance when he said continuing in verse 19-20: “…I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more. And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!”

What a wonderful time of year it is. It is a time to celebrate the most wonderful miracle to ever occur; the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is a time to celebrate the miracle of forgiveness. Have you ever thought about how great a miracle it is for a person to have a change of heart? For a person to come unto Christ, make permanent change in their life, literally change their very nature, is as great a miracle as any healing. The Savior taught this in Matthew 9:2-7:

“And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.

And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.

And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?

For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk?

But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.

And he arose, and departed to his house.”

Conclusion

I would like to conclude by bearing a testimony of gratitude. I am overwhelmed by the many temporal and spiritual blessings that I continually receive. I am so grateful for my family who are so loving and such a support to me. My life truly revolves around them. I am grateful for the trials of life. While they are no fun, they allow me to grow. I am even grateful for the weaknesses that the Lord has given me, for they force me to rely on Him. I am so grateful for the Savior. I would be lost without the atonement. While I will never truly understand how it was made possible, I have felt of its redeeming and cleansing power in my life and testify of its validity.

Thayn Moore's Space: Religion

"Talking about What it means to be Mormon", Elder Russell M Ballard Interviewed by NBC News

Gratitude and the Gifts from God

Temporal Gifts

The Gift of Trials

The Gift of God’s Son

Conclusion