ISAIAH 53: ENLARGING OUR UNDERSTANDING AND WITNESS OF JESUS CHRIST AND HIS MORTAL MINISTRY (DAVID A. CHRISTENSEN): Great are the words of Isaiah. If our salvation depended on our understanding of Isaiah, how would we fare? He's taught Isaiah for 25 years and he still doesn't understand all of it. The atonement of Christ is the least understood of all revealed truths, even though it's the most basic. All shall know Jesus Christ, from the least to the greatest. Why should we wait until we're dead or the resurrection? He taught Isaiah 53 before he went into the temple for three years, and that has made a huge difference. After being in the temple, he's found out that any man who assumes he knows anything is stupid. So he comes decked in his stupidity to testify and to help Isaiah testify of Jesus Christ and the reality of the Savior. We all know basics about Isaiah 53 and we need to amplify that. Who has believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? Who believes the report of Adam, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joseph Smith, Thomas S. Monson? Who has believed the testimony of the prophets. This is the testimony of Isaiah. Turn to Romans 10:11-17. Paul the Apostle says we can't believe unless we hear. Faith comes by hearing of the report. God came down and took upon Himself the form of a man. This was prophesied by all the prophets since the world began. The Lord's redemption is the greatest event ever wrought. He has spent months studying Isaiah 53:1. The report of all the prophets of the reality of Christ and His eternal sacrifice, the literal resurrection, and the consequences of that. What about the 15 living prophets, the first presidency and the 12 apostles? Their report as an apostle would be of the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus chose disciples, apostles to be a special witness of Jesus Christ, particularly of His divinity and His bodily resurrection from the dead. What is the report of the apostles and prophets? It is that Jesus is the Christ, that He died, suffered for our sins, and was resurrected. They are witnesses of the literal resurrection of Christ. The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the apostles that he died, was buried, and rose again the third day. All other things which pertain to our religion are appendages to it. Without this message of Isaiah and all the prophets about Jesus Christ, we have nothing to talk about. Isaiah had this testimony. He bore witness of Him. Strengthen your faith, cast off your doubt, and nothing can prevent you from coming to God. If the Savior in former days laid His hands on His disciples, why not today? He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Who has believed the report of the prophets, including those who walk the earth today? The witness of the Holy Ghost is sure and absolute. This unshakable certainly can rest in our soul even though we have not seen the face of the Lord. But those who have the witness of the Spirit are expected to see, and hear, and touch with the Heavenly Person as did those of old. Jesus rose from the grave and was the first fruits of the resurrection. Among the chosen witnesses are the Lord's apostles. All men shall be saved from the grave. Thomas S. Monson witnesses with all his heart and the fervency of his soul declares that God lives, Jesus is our Redeemer who died on the cross to atone for our sins, and He became the first fruits of the resurrection. Because of Him, we all shall rise from the dead. This is the true church of Jesus Christ. We will, on the day of judgment, stand before the Savior. It will be a joy to hear the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Our Heavenly Father knows us by name. Jesus Christ lives. He loves us. The atonement of Jesus Christ is real. Boyd K. Packer said he didn't understand why he was called as an apostle, but he does have that witness. God lives. We are His children and He loves us. The only lasting joy and happiness we will find is by keeping the commandments. His gift of eternal life requires our repentance. Jesus is the Christ, our atoning Savior and Redeemer. The resurrection is the pillar of our faith. We have many living witnesses who can testify of the literal resurrection. Jesus Christ is not dead. He lives! The resurrected Son of God lives! And He guides the affairs of the church today. He read quotes from all the apostles given in general conferences, testifying of Jesus Christ. They all bear witness. Who has believed our report? He spent the first 50 minutes of class talking about verse 1, then with 5 minutes left he said he would now go on to verse 2. Jesus was without comeliness or beauty. He was an ordinary man who looked like everyone else. He was a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. He was rejected in his hometown. When Jesus saw the grief of Mary and Martha at the death of their brother Lazarus, He wept. When He came into Jerusalem he mourned for Jerusalem. He knew what would happen to them. This Jesus was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He was despised. This is true.
HELP FOR THOSE DEALING WITH DOUBTS AND QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CHURCH--STUDYING THE WORD OF GOD, LEARNING TRUTH A LITTLE AT A TIME, RECALLING PREVIOUS INSPIRATION (DAVID B. MARSH): Dealing with doubts. 1. It is okay to experience doubts...but don't let them linger. 2. Fortify your faith in Jesus Christ. 3. Seek to resolve doubts through sincere prayer. 4. increase your knowledge of the truth. 5. Remember that truth is learned a little at a time. 6. Doubt your doubts before you doubt your beliefs. 7. Consult reliable and authoritative sources. 8. Consider the motives of the source. 9. Detect half-truths and lack of context. 10. Neither science nor religion can answer all questions. Persons with doubts often want to talk about their doubts. Even at its best, the resolution of doubts by discussing doubts cannot take us far. There is a hazard. Our understanding of history can change as more facts come out. You can't base your faith and testimony on logic. Even flawless argument can prove false. We need to turn our conversation to things of the heart, that changes our spiritual lives. The only sure way to soften a heart is to get the effects of the atonement of Jesus Christ into a person's life. Get into faith, feeling the spirit. As more research and more knowledge becomes available, we may find things are not the way we thought they were. Dissolving doubts is a gift of the Spirit, so pray for it. Increase your knowledge of the truth. Some people don't feel confident in their knowledge of the gospel or their ability to articulate their knowledge. Sometimes we depend on others to tell us what is true. Sometimes we can't explain why the church believes the way it does. These can provide fertile soil for doubts to grow. We murmur when we don't understanding the dealings of God with His people. Don't be satisfied with a superficial knowledge of the gospel, which is what you'll get in Sunday School. No teacher, as good as they may be, has time to take you deep into a subject. When a person starts doubting, the first things to go are prayer and scripture study. A non LDS professor who had taught a Mormon History class for many years had a condescending attitude toward them. But then he actually read the Book of Mormon and was surprised to find that it was all about Jesus Christ. It puts Jesus Christ front and center. He concluded that the Mormons are more Christian than many mainstream Christians and that they are obsessed with Christ. The gospel includes all truth. We need to increase our knowledge of all truth. We need to embrace every truth. Get truth from wherever you want. We don't ask people to throw away any good they've got, we only ask them to come and get more good. We are ready to believe all true principles. The church is not anti intellectual. One truth does not contradict another. Truth, when it is fully understood, is not contradictory. The day will come when all truth will be encased in one great whole. We are not asked to blindly follow our leaders. The invitation to trust in the Lord does not relieve us of the responsibility to think and discover truths for ourselves. God is making it possible for us to learn as much as we can learn. Look at what has happened with communications in the past 30 years. The Lord is getting us used to an earth that will reveal all things to us. You do have to be careful. Some people think that anything you find on the Internet must be true. Satan seeks to harden the hearts of the people against the Savior. He wants everyone to turn away from the Lord. So be careful while you're searching. There are people who will try to trick you with information. The first time he read anti Mormon literature he saw that it contained quotes out of context or quotes from unreliable sources. He has discovered that in every case things are misquoted or quoted out of context. Every time he has searched things out that he thought sounded weird, there was an answer. Is it a pattern in the scriptures? Anybody can find one verse that can justify anything, but is there a pattern? Do the living prophets and apostles teach it? If someone is telling you to build an ark for salvation in our day, go see if President Monson is talking about it? Is it in harmony with current practices and policies of the church? Does the spirit testify of its truthfulness? These are four simple questions you can ask yourself, as a test of stuff you read. Don't be afraid to look at things from the other point of view. You start to see things from a different light and it helps you understand the other person. The man who refuses to listen to the arguments against his position either has a weak position or is weak at expressing it. Nothing that cannot stand up to criticism is worth defending. This church has nothing to hide. Everything has a reasonable explanation. Truth is learned a little at a time. There is a lot to learn in this life. You can't learn everything in the first day. Don't be stubborn about new knowledge. Don't let little things get under your skin. Don't immediately react and spit it out, work on it a little. A grain of sand irritates an oyster, but they turn it into a pearl. Don't despise the revelations of God. Doubts can be dispelled over time. Teach things you know to be true. Doubt your doubts before you doubt your beliefs.
SCRIPTURAL MIRACLES: PLAN OF SALVATION SYMBOL SEEN THROUGH NEW TESTAMENT MIRACLES (TYLER J. GRIFFIN):Even Jesus found the need to meet the human needs that he had. John got beheaded--grieving, healing, feeding, praying, walking, saving. The purpose of Heavenly Father's plan is to become something, not just get somewhere. Getting home is not the end goal, it is becoming something. Something happened with the apostles out in the boat--there was a big storm. They were rowing for all they were worth, but the wind as directly opposing them. Sometimes we feel like our best efforts to be good are thwarted Their very finest wasn't very good. They were toiling upon the water. It was a stormy sea. It was during the fourth watch. They were tired. Then Jesus came walking to them in the water. They were sure they were seeing a ghost. People don't generally walk on the water. Jesus tells them not to be afraid. We're afraid of the unknown. Peter makes the strangest request. Instead of telling Jesus to come to the boat with them, he asks Jesus to come to Him in the water. He thinks Peter was inspire to say that. Peter needs this experience. It is a shaping opportunity. Often times the shortest distance between us and the Lord is over a stormy sea. As Peter made this request and gets out into the water, the other disciples must have been wondering what he was thinking. Peter would drown unless the Lord saved him. You generally go the direction you're looking. If he's going toward Jesus he's looking at his target. But when e saw the wind boisterous, he was looking at the waves and wind. You generally go the direction you're facing. So when he looked at the water, it should not shock us that he stars going down. This is us on the water, not just Peter. We can liken this to ourselves. When we'r going through difficult things and take our eye off the Savior, we start to go down. We need to look to the Savior to keep from getting overwhelmed by what is going on around us. Oh thou of little faith. Jesus was not rebuking him, he was shaping him. Peter did not swim back to the boat, he walked back to the boat with Jesus. When Jesus comes with you, your destination is taken care of. Figure out how to come to Christ. His grace will save you in ways you have no control over. Blind man healed on the Sabbath. You have a man who is sitting at the gate of the temple. He is blind and begging. Jesus crouches down in front of the blind man. Then the blind man hears Him spit. What would he be thinking? He spits on the ground and makes clay, which he pushes into the man's eyes. What would the man be thinking now? This would be highly offensive, but there is no resistance from the blind man. He sits quietly while some stranger is rubbing spittle clay into his eyes. There is power in the Savior's hands. The blind man can feel of the power and he willingly submits. Jesus tells him to go wash in the pool of Siloam He will pass multiple pools of water on his way, but it told to go to a pool farther away. He finally gets there and washes, and he sees. He is so excited! He goes right back to where he'd been at the temple begging. People wonder if it is him. When he tells them it is, they take him to the Sanhedrin where they question him. All he knows that a man named Jesus healed him. The blind man starts to see spiritually.Sometimes we have opposition in a variety of ways. We need to learn and grow from it. Imagine the blind man and his joy at seeing, but he got kicked out of the synagogue Jesus sought him out and found him. He asked him if he believed. The blind man told Him that he believed and he worshiped Him. Blind Bartimaeus in Jericho. You can number on one hand the people who Jesus healed. This man was named. As Jesus went out of Jericho, He had a lot of things on His to do list. But He takes time for individuals. Bartimaeus sat by the highway begging. Jerusalem is the high and holy city. You'r going up if you're going to Jerusalem. You're always going down to Jericho. So this is a symbolic setup of heaven and ell. Going from Jerusalem to Jericho symbolizes someone coming from heaven and descending down. Now Jesus is leaving Jericho and meets Bartimaeus by the highway begging. His effort is small compared to the task ahead of him. This isn't just a story about a blind man. This tells about our progression through life. The blind man calls out, asking Jesus to have mercy on him. Jesus could have ignored the man and kept walking. He could have told him that he'd be healed in the resurrection so it would be okay. Or Jesus could have mentally healed him from a distance and kept going. But there is something about powerful words in the scriptures. Jesus stood still. Jesus, with so much to do and so much weighing on His soul, He took time to stand still for one man. Jesus never seems to heal two people in the same way. He doesn't spit on the ground and put clay in this man's eyes. Jesus asked that Bartimaeus be brought to Him. That's what the gospel is all about--coming to Christ Jesus asks the man what he needs and he says he wants to see. Jesus tells him to go his way, his faith had made him whole. He followed Jesus. He no longer goes his way, he goes Jesus' way. Jesus was going to Jerusalem, or to heaven symbolically. We need to make our path the Lords path. Triumphal entry. This is often overlooked at one of Christ's miracles. It showed divine power. People recognized Him. Jesus instructed His disciples to find a colt that had never been ridden on and bring it to Him. They put Jess on the young donkey and the further they go, the more people assemble. They are waving palm branches in front of Him. They are shouting in loud voices, Oh God save us now! The the little donkey who has never been ridden is calm as he walks through all this. The little donkey could not have done that without guidance form the Lord. When you let Jesus be the pilot or the Master, He takes you where you need to go. Everything that should be causing you to be breaking down,you can focus on Jesus and go where He ants you to go. This is a beautiful, beautiful miracle. When you're feeling overwhelmed like the little donkey, remember to allow Jesus to steer you. Cleansing the Temple. Is that a miracle? If you don't think that's a miracle, the next time BYU plays, go to the stadium and clear out the stadium alone. There were as many people in the temple as would be at BYU. Jesus goes in with divine power and gets rid of people who are defiling the temple trying to make money. If we let Jesus into our life, He has the ability to cleanse our life. Gethsemane. Look through the lens of the atonement t all of the miracles. They are all object lessons for THE miracle, the atonement. Don't be afraid to talk about the cross. Jesus talks about the cross when He talks about the atonement. He doesn't shy away from talking about the crucifixion. We put steeples, not crosses on our churches because we focus on the living Christ, pointing upward, instead of the dying Christ on the cross. But by His stripes we are healed. Healing Malchus' ear. Judas and a band of men come. Judas kisses Jesus and the band of men go to take Jesus. Peter draws a sword and cuts off the ear of Malchus. Jesus tells Peter to put it away, and then goes over and heals Malchus' ear. He doesn't scold Malchus. Peter and the lame man.This was a man who 40 years of his life had never walked. He would have had extreme muscle atrophy. But Jesus lifted him up and commanded him to walk. Strength came to his feet and ankles. If the man is 40 years old and has been brought to the temple every day to beg, he has likely seen Jesus Jesus many, many, many times. He has likely seen Jesus heal other people. He has probably wondered why Jesus didn't heal him. Jesus would have known this. Jesus might have felt for this man and knew that He would heal him, but He waited for the right time. 5,000 people now believed because of Peter's healing of this man. This was all because of the miracle of this one lame ma who couldn't walk for 40 years. He had to wait a little season, so a great miracle could happen of bringing thousands of people to Christ.
BELIEVING THE LORD WHEN HE SAYS "FEAR NOT" (MAURINE JENSEN PROCTOR): She told about visiting in the middle east where there were men with machine guns all around them. She thought they were going to shoot them. Her husband was trying to take pictures ad a truck was coming toward them. They ran to the car and got out of there. She's always scared in these types of situations and her husband isn't. She worries about her children being spiritually and physically safe in this world. She is prone to nerves. The apostles were on the Sea of Galilee when a great storm arose. It seems like too small a lake t have a huge storm, but it does. Christ was asleep in the front of the boat. They asked him if He didn't care if they perished. He arose and rebuked the wind and the waves. He asked them why they were so fearful and why didn't didn't have faith. Of course you'd be frightened. She gets afraid on a plane with a little turbulence Sometimes we call fear stress, anxiety, or being up tight. Satan wants to make us feel frightened and be worried. He does everything in his power to suggest terrible scenarios in or mind. We wonder if people like us. We fear we won't do well when we try to do things. Do we have anything to offer? Will the Lord really help us? Will I get sick? Will a loved one get sick? These worries are upon us all the time. We are not immune life's trials. Sometimes we think that feeling worried is being responsible. We fool ourselves into thinking that worrying is a good thing. Worry is a fiery dart of Satan and it does not come from God. The Savior left peace to us. We need to place our trust in Him who created the seas and set their bounds. When we're on the Lord's errand, we can feel calm and safe. This is a solid strength of being unafraid. President Hinckley was not worried because he knew that the work was in the Lord's hands so he didn't need to worry about it. Be not afraid. It's a commandment that we be not afraid. There are many things we can put on our checklist of things to do but not being frightened when scary things are around us isn't something you can put on your checklist and just do it. We can know that the Lord doesn't give any commandment save He prepares the way for us to do what He has commanded us. If we want to have the Spirit in our life and do what He asks, He will prepare the way for us not to be afraid. Why is do not fear a commandment? When we're fearful we can't feel the spirit. When we're fearful we need the spirit the most. Fear takes over our heart. Be still and know that He is God. What is wrong with taking counsel from our fears? Fear is self absorbing. When you're afraid, who is on your mind? You are. It's a high energy emotion. When fear is upon us, we're expecting some kind of blow. We worry. Have you ever found your power increased by worrying? That doesn't happen. Sometimes when we're afraid, we take it out on others. Fear makes us believe that we should control every detail of our lives and we need to control things. But we can't. So when we try we get frustrated. The Lord did not give us the spirit of fear. When we remember that, we can know it is not from the Lord. Being fearful is a fundamental misunderstanding of who God is and the relationship we have with Him. Living with fear suggests that we're not trusting the Lord and remembering that He is guiding our lives and He is not with us. Just because God is God, they cannot do other than care for us and bless and help us if we'll come to them with lowliness of heart. They have to. It's their nature. God is watchful, He's not careless. We want to understand what God's nature is. We don't have to be perfect in order for God to be there for us. He promises to be there for us. When there was a storm and the apostles were afraid, Jesus was in the boat with them. You don't have to be afraid, He is in the boat with you. You are not alone. God knows everything. He is all loving. You are safe in His hands. He cares for you personally. God knows the beginning from the end. He can protect you always. He knows all things for you. Why do we think we need to tackle things alone? He is with us. We are not left to our own strength. Not just for the big things, but for the little things. The Lord is in our boat with us. Sometimes people think they don't want to bother the Lord with their problems. They think he's too busy. In reality the Lord tells us that He's in our boat. He wants us to call upon Him. We cannot feel safe if our security is based on our own resources. We have limitations. It is hard for us to truly understand that the Lord is our partner. We can't see Him so we forget He's our partner. Sometimes we have moments when we know, but then we forget again. Sometimes the reason we're fearful is because of something we've said to ourselves. We don't always have to prove ourselves--to God, to others, that we're always on the line. We don't have to always believe that we're about to lose something. Most of the things we worry about never happen. We have to give up our calling as general manager of the universe. We have to give up our expectations of what must happen or we will not be happy. There are certain experiences we need to have. Sometimes we have to go through difficulties to realize how good God can be. No matter what happens, God is in the boat with us. We need to give up our thought that we need to be the superstar of the universe. For the faithful, all things will be made right. Soon enough. The Lord will be a refuge in times of trouble. The Lord is trying to bless us and help us, but we need to trust what He is taking us through. Fear dims our faith and our strength. When we're prisoners to our fears, He can't work with us. This is why He tells us to fear not. He is our God so we don't need to be dismayed. Things may come that are hard, but remember that He is in the boat with us. The Lord is here to part the Red Sea for us. The Lord wants us to know that He is God. The Lord wants to demonstrate to us that if we'll turn our eyes toward Him, He will be our partner and we have no reason to fear.
FOR GOD HATH NOT GIVEN US THE SPIRIT OF FEAR--OVERCOMING THE NEED FOR WORLDLY APPROVAL (STEPHAN D. TAEGER): His wife is scared of spiders. But he thinks people, everyday people, are scarier than spiders. The house is a mess, the kids are all over, and there is a knock on the door. So everybody scrambles to clean up in a hurry. Think how much money is spent on hair products. How much time and effort and money goes into just making sure we look okay? If we're stopped at a stop light and singing along with the radio and then notice someone stopped next to us is watching, we immediately stop. What people think of us seems to matter a lot to us. Abinidi teaches that Jesus will be born and Kind Noah would not accept it. Satan means accuser. Noah tells Abinidi that they have good reason to kill him. The church did a study to find the No. 1 thing that would keep young people active in the church. They found the greatest indicator was the belief that one day they would stand accountable before God. Noah feared that the judgments of God would come upon him. What would you tell King Noah during that window of time? You could emphasize his accountability and tell him he would be judged the same way he was judging Abinidi. You could ask him if he would do this if no one else was there. The priests with King Noah stirred him up to anger and he was influenced by what they thought of him. A group of friends are watching TV and something inappropriate comes on the screen. They all want someone else to change the channel but they don't want to come across as self righteous. Why do we feel this need to be approved of so much? What can we do about it? We can have a positive self image. The more you have to tell yourself something the more you don't believe it. The more you tell yourself you're awesome, the more you doubt it. Some people tell themselves they are horrible, but that is not good. We don't feel the need for something if we already have it. If we didn't have any air in this room, we'd suddenly want it more than anything. But 10 minutes ago nobody was grateful for the air in the room. If we can help someone feel their worth, they wouldn't feel the need to prove it. Something is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. If houses surrounding a house in a neighborhood go down in price, that house will go down as well. Any temptation to try to prove your worth to another person is based on a lie. Your worth was established 2,000 years ago when Jesus died for you. Remember what the atoning sacrifice means for us. The person who understands this isn't afraid to invite their neighbor to church. They're free. They're not afraid to refuse to watch the inappropriate video. They don't care what other people think. They are set free. If a young woman is asked to be a bridesmaid where all the bridesmaids are asked to dress immodestly, she is not afraid to stand up for what she believes and dress differently. Nothing can separate us from the love of God. If God is for us, who can be against us?
THE GIFTS OF AGE: MAKING THE MOST OF WHAT YOU KNOW NOW BUT DIDN'T KNOW THEN (RICHARD M. EYRE): How many of you would go back to being 25 if you could? Few raised their hands. We can moan and groan about getting older, but it's better to rejoice. Walk out of here being glad you're old! We're really not that old. 80 is the new 60. He has tennis friends who are in their 80's and they still play tennis with him. There were over 30 tennis players who were over 90, several were over 95. They were wiry little guys. He congratulated the winner who said that hitting the ball was nothing, it was picking it up that was hard. It's a new world. Are we in the autumn of our lives? That sounds a little fallish. He prefers Indian summer. But autumn isn't bad. It doesn't work quite so well when you know the winter is coming on. October is a beautiful time. November is Thanksgiving. He discovered that the real joy of water skiing isn't trying to do hard cuts, it's enjoying the beauty of what's around you. All his life he's been trying to find a sport that her wife likes. She hates sports. She hates to lose and doesn't want to try anything she won't win. She's been trying to find some musical instrument he can play. This summer she found her sport--electric bicycle. She used to hate the hills but now she just turns a switch and away she goes. It looks like she's still pedaling. How do we make the most of what we know now? If you're in or approaching your 60's you're into the final fourth of your life. Do you accept this mellow part of your life, or do you fight the calendar with everything you've got? Do you get a face lift and insist on acting like you're in your 40's and can fool everybody, even yourself. Do you still try to make memories? Do you want to slow down the smell the roses or do you enjoy doing things more efficiently Do you feel lighter or more burdened? It's not so bad to be going downhill, as long as it's not too steep and we don't go down really fast. Americans have never honored age. In Asia, the people you want to hang out with are the old people. They're the ones that everybody listens to. Asia is half the world. In America that isn't so. But with the baby boomers aging, that is changing. How old do you hope to be when you die? There are some advantages to planning for a very long life. Do your best to make it happen. Once you start thinking like that, you start taking better care of yourself. Financially it makes you think harder. Some people don't want to live a long time because they're afraid of being a burden to others. But you don't know that. You might be healthy in your 90's or your health might fail when you're 60. Most of us have much more peace than when we were younger. The wonderful word "yet" lets us feel like we're in control. My portfolio really isn't adequate for retirement--yet. I don't go to church much--yet. Use yet as a "but." I'm less than confident in front of an audience yet I'm totally comfortable one on one. I really should make more of an effort to stay in touch with old friends, yet I'm pretty good at responding to emails and social media contacts. Don't mope around. There are 5 Double R's of Autumn. Relaxation and rejuvenation. Reflection and recollection. Relationships and reconciliation. Repentance and restitution. Re-invention and re-creation. Stop and look at the Tetons. How long did you stop and look at them with a van full of kids? Sit during the sacrament and quietly reflect. If you hear bawling babies, they're not yours and you don't have to worry about them. Many times relationships are better than in the past. As we get a little more mature, we lose some of our pride. It can become easier to apologize Try to make up for things we've done wrong. All these things are joyful, not tasks. Find something you've always wanted to do but didn't have time for. Don't forget the temple. Older people involved in temple work have a purpose and can still be useful in their older years. Some old people feel like they might as well go to Sun City and play golf because nobody pays attention to you. If you want to drop out, you can. But if you want to be a proactive part of your family, you can. Your grown children don't want you telling them what to do, but you can counsel with them and offer to be a consultant to them and back them up. Offer to take a child they're having problems with on a vacation with you. When George Romney's grandchildren turned 12, he'd take them on a motor home trip--no parents allowed. Work out a time when you can be with your grandchildren when their parents aren't around. Grandparents can be cheerleaders and build them up. If you want to help your children financially, do it wisely. Don't be overburdened trying to be fair. Treat children according to their needs. You're entitled to inspiration. He's seen people who scrimped and saved all their lives so their children could have an inheritance, and then the kids sat around the lawyer's table fighting over it. One man told his children that they weren't going to inherit anything. He was going to put all his money into a foundation and allow them to decide which charities to donate it to. Once a year he takes each of his grandchildren on a special date--just the two of them. He takes notes on what they like and different things about each one individually. They're excited to tell him stuff that he writes down. What do you really care about? What have you always wanted to do? What could you make a difference at? One man started helping children read in an elementary school. He was concerned about kids growing up and not reading anything but their tablets. He is so into helping children read you couldn't tear him away from it. Another man financially helps children with their piano lessons anonymously. Then he goes to their concerts and nobody knows who he is. We are blessed people living on the earth at this time, and aging at just the right now.
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