Aristotle

The chief forms of beauty are order and symmetry and definiteness.

As quoted in The Little Book of Snowflakes, by Kenneth Libbrecht 2004 Voyageur Press

Ezra Taft Benson

I say to all of you the Lord has charged men with the responsibility to provide for their families in such a way that the wife is allowed to fulfill her role as mother in the home.

Second, you have a sacred responsibility to provide spiritual leadership in your family.

Mothers play an important role as the heart of the home, but this in no way lessons the equally important role fathers should play, as head of the home, in nurturing, training and loving their children.

As the patriarch in your home, you have a serious responsibility to assume leadership in working with your children.  You must help create a home where the Spirit of the Lord can abide.  Your place is to give direction to all family life.  You should take an active part in establishing family rules and discipline.

Ezra Taft Benson, General Conference, October 1987

Spencer W. Kimball

To be a righteous woman is a glorious thing in any age.  To be a righteous woman during the winding-up scenes on this earth, before the second coming of our Savior, is an especially noble calling.  The righteous woman's strength and influence today can be tenfold what it might be in more tranquil times.  She has been placed here to help, to enrich, to protect and to guard the home - which is society's basic and most noble institution.  Other institutions in society may falter and even fail, but the righteous woman can help to save the home, which may be the last and only sanctuary some mortals know in the midst of storm and strife.

Spencer W. Kimball, as quoted in Daughters in my Kingdom, ch.9

Jeffrey R. Holland

Whoever you are and whatever you have done, you can be forgiven. Every one of you young men can leave behind any transgression with which you may struggle. It is the miracle of forgiveness; it is the miracle of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. But you cannot do it without an active commitment to the gospel, and you cannot do it without repentance where it is needed.

Jeffrey R. Holland, General Conference, October 2011, Priesthood Session

Jeffrey R. Holland

Number one, Satan, or Lucifer, or the father of lies—call him what you will—is real, the very personification of evil. His motives are in every case malicious, and he convulses at the appearance of redeeming light, at the very thought of truth. Number two, he is eternally opposed to the love of God, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the work of peace and salvation. He will fight against these whenever and wherever he can. He knows he will be defeated and cast out in the end, but he is determined to take down with him as many others as he possibly can.

Jeffrey R. Holland, We Are All Enlisted, Ensign Oct. 2011

Sterling W. Sill

“God’s forgiveness is often nullified because the sinner does not forgive himself. What good does it do for God to blot our evil from his mind, if we continue to let it dominate our thinking by rerunning it in our own?”

Sterling W. Sill, What Doth It Profit, p. 179

Spencer W. Kimball

Sometimes a guilt consciousness overpowers a person with such a heaviness that when a repentant one looks back and sees the ugliness, the loathsomeness of the transgression, he is almost overwhelmed and wonders, ‘Can the Lord ever forgive me? Can I ever forgive myself?’ But when one reaches the depths of despondency and feels the hopelessness of his position, and when he cries out to God for mercy not in helplessness but in faith, there comes a still, small, but penetrating voice whispering to his soul, ‘Thy sins are forgiven thee’.

The Miracle of Forgiveness [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1969], p. 344

Jeffrey R. Holland

An anonymous commenter asked me to find a quote by Joseph Fielding Smith. I searched and searched, but could not find it. This quote by Jeffrey R. Holland makes the same statement that anonymous was looking for in the JSF quote, so I hope it will satisfy. If I find the JFR quote I will also post it.

"To consider that everything of saving significance in the Church stands or falls on the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and, by implication, the Prophet Joseph Smith’s account of how it came forth is as sobering as it is true. It is a ‘sudden death’ proposition. Either the Book of Mormon is what the Prophet Joseph said it is, or this Church and its founder are false, a deception from the first instance onward.

“Not everything in life is so black and white, but the authenticity of the Book of Mormon and its keystone role in our religion seem to be exactly that. Either Joseph Smith was the prophet he said he was, a prophet who, after seeing the Father and the Son, later beheld the angel Moroni, repeatedly heard counsel from Moroni’s lips, and eventually received at his hands a set of ancient gold plates that he then translated by the gift and power of God, or else he did not. And if he did not, he would not be entitled to the reputation of New England folk hero, or well-meaning young man or writer of remarkable fiction. No, nor would he be entitled to be considered a great teacher, a quintessential American religious leader, or the creator of great devotional literature. If he had lied about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, he would certainly be none of these.

“I am suggesting that one has to take something of a do-or-die stand regarding the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the divine origins of the Book of Mormon. Reason and righteousness require it. Joseph Smith must be accepted either as a prophet of God or else as a charlatan of the first order, but no one should tolerate any ludicrous, even laughable middle ground about the wonderful contours of a young boy’s imagination or his remarkable facility for turning a literary phrase. That is an unacceptable position to take—morally, literarily, historically, or theologically”

Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant [1997], 345–46

M. Russell Ballard

“Because of its sheer size, media today presents vast and sharply contrasting options. Opposite from its harmful and permissive side, media offers much that is positive and productive. Television offers history channels, discovery channels, education channels. One can still find movies and TV comedies and dramas that entertain and uplift and accurately depict the consequences of right and wrong. The Internet can be a fabulous tool of information and communication, and there is an unlimited supply of good music in the world. Thus our biggest challenge is to choose wisely what we listen to and what we watch.
”As the prophet Lehi said, because of Christ and His Atonement, we are 'free forever, knowing good from evil,' able to act for ourselves rather than be acted upon, 'free to choose liberty and eternal life . . . or to choose captivity and death' (2 Nephi 2:26-27).
“The choices we make in media can be symbolic of the choices we make in life. Choosing the trendy, the titillating, the tawdry in the TV programs or movies we watch can cause us to end up, if we're not careful, choosing the same things in the lives we live.”

“Let Our Voices Be Heard,” Ensign, Nov. 2003, 16-17 by M. Russell Ballard

M Russell Ballard

I’m aware that some members think they know better than members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles do about this subject. And some will argue their case based on artistic merit, or on the fact that “everyone is seeing it,” or will insist they are not one of those people who will be influenced one way or the other by on-screen sex or violence. To them I have only one question: Are you going to follow the true and living prophets or not? It really isn’t any more complicated than that. The standard of the Church with regard to morality is clearly outlined in the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet (1990), which even adults do not outgrow, even though they are no longer in Young Men and Young Women. Those who choose to read anything that contains material that is contrary to the moral standards of the Church are placing themselves and their own wisdom above the counsel of God’s prophets—a course of action that would indeed be very unwise. As soon as people begin to think that they know better than God or His oracles, or that counsel given doesn’t apply to themselves, they are stepping onto a slippery slope that has claimed far too many victims already. It takes faith—real faith, unequivocal and unreserved—to accept and attempt to live prophetic counsel even when it’s not completely understood. Such profound and basic faith has the power to guide us safely through every challenge we may face in life. 

“When Shall These Things Be?” Ensign, Dec 1996 by M. Russell Ballard

Joseph B. Wirthlin

The testimony of the Holy Ghost is the strongest testimony that a man can receive.

Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 4:92 as quoted in the Seminary and Institute Handbook The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles, Ch. 9 "Whosever Shall Do the Will of the Father"

Joseph B. Wirthlin

He [the Holy Ghost] is a revelator and teacher who conveys information to our spirits with far more certainty than is possible by our natural senses. He can guide us in every choice and decision and never will deceive or mislead us. He is a comforter who brings peace to our souls in times of need.

Joseph B. Wirthlin, “Deep Roots,” Ensign, Nov 1994, 75

Joseph Smith

You might as well baptize a bag of sand as a man, if not done in view of the remission of sins and getting of the Holy Ghost. Baptism by water is but half a baptism, and is good for nothing without the other half—that is, the baptism of the Holy Ghost. The Savior says, ‘Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.’ [John 3:5.]”

Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:499

Henry B. Eyring

Reception of the Holy Ghost is the cleansing agent as the atonement purifies you... That is a fact you can act on with confidence.  You can invite the Holy Ghost's companionship into your life.  And you can know when he is there, and when he withdraws.  And when he is your companion, you can have confidence that the Atonement is working in your life.

Henry B. Eyring, Come Unto Christ, BYU Fireside, 29 October 1989

Joseph Fielding Smith

When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into the soul and are more difficult to erase.

Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:151

Bruce R. McConkie

Sins are remitted not in the waters of baptism, as we say in speaking figuratively, but when we receive the Holy Ghost.  It is the Holy Spirit of God that erases carnality and brings us into a state of righteousness.  We become clean when we actually receive the fellowship and companionship of the Holy Ghost.  ... The actual cleansing of the soul comes when the Holy Ghost is received.  The Holy Ghost is a sanctifier whose divine commission is to burn dross and evil out of a human soul as though by fire.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie, New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p. 290, 239.

Robert D. Hales

The Holy Ghost is the third member of the Godhead, a personage of spirit.  He is the Comforter, the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit of Promise. He testifies of Jesus Christ, His work, and the work of His servants upon the earth. He acts as a cleansing agent to purify and sanctify us from sin.  He comforts us and brings peace to our soul. The right to His constant companionship is among the greatest gifts we can receive in mortality, for by the light of His promptings and His cleansing power, we can be led back into the presence of God.

Robert D. Hales, Out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light, April 2002 General Conference

Harold B. Lee

[Harold B. Lee offered to take his daughter's two sons to sit with him at a church dance festival.  He said of this experience,] "I didn’t know what I was getting into. … As that spectacle began, I didn’t know there was so much difference between a seven-year-old and a five-year-old. The seven-year-old was entranced by that spectacle down on the football field. But that five-year-old, his attention span was pretty short. He’d squirm and then he’d want to go and get a hot dog and he’d want to go get a drink and he’d want to go to the toilet, and he was just on the move all the time. And here I was sitting in the front with the General Authorities, and they were smiling as they saw this little show going on and as I tried to pull my grandson here and there, trying to make him behave. Finally, that little five-year-old turned on me and with his little doubled-up fist he smacked me to the side of the face and he said, “Grandfather, don’t shove me!” And you know, that hurt. In that twilight, I thought I could see my brethren chuckling a bit as they saw this going on, and my first impulse was to take him and give him a good spanking; that’s what he deserved. But, I’d seen his little mother do something. I’d seen her when he was having a temper tantrum and she had a saying, “You have to love your children when they’re the least lovable.” And so I thought I’d try that out. I had failed in the other process.
So I took him in my arms and I said to him, “My boy, Grandfather loves you. I so much want you to grow up to be a fine big boy. I just want you to know that I love you, my boy.” His little angry body began to [relax], and he threw his arms around my neck and he kissed my cheek, and he loved me. I had conquered him by love. And incidentally, he had conquered me by love.

Address to Sunday School general conference, 5 Oct. 1973, Historical Department Archives, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7–8.), as reprinted in the Teachings of Harold B. Lee manual (2000), Ch.14, p. 296

David O. McKay

Let us realize that the privilege to work is a gift, that the power to work is a blessing, that the love of work is success.

Teachings of David O. McKay

Old Saying

Doing nothing is the hardest work of all, because one can never stop to rest.

Old Saying

Gospel Principles

To some people work is a drudgery.  To others it is an exciting part of life.  One way to enjoy life's fullest benefits is to learn to love work.  Not all of us can choose the kind of work we do.  Some of us labor for long hours... it is difficult to enjoy such work.  Yet the happiest people have learned to enjoy their work, whatever it is.  We can help one another in our work.  The heaviest load becomes lighter when someone shares it.
Our attitude toward work is very important.  ... A traveler passed a stone quarry and saw three men working. He asked each man what he was doing.  Each man's answer revealed a different attitude towards the same job.  "I am cutting stone," the first man answered.
The second replied, "I am earning three gold pieces a day."
The third man smiled and said, "I am helping to build a house of God."

Gospel Principles, ch. 27 Work and Personal Responsibility

Harold B. Lee

The most important of the Lord's work you will ever do will be within the walls of your own homes.

Teachings of Harold B. Lee

Harold B. Lee

Happiness comes from unselfish service.  And happy homes are only those where there is a daily striving to make sacrifices for each other's happiness.

Teachings of President Harold B. Lee

Theodore M. Burton

Can there be discord, hate, envy, and dissension in God's presence? No!  Such things make a hell and not a heaven.  That is why we must learn to get rid of dissension, envy, hate, and discord in this life on earth. It is here we must learn how to turn our hearts to serve one another with love.  Here we must learn how to live with one another in peace and harmony so that we can be prepared to live in the presence of that God we claim to worship.

Theodore M. Burton, Ensign Nov 1974, 54

Franklin D. Richards

Certainly in our homes we can all be peacemakers by exhibiting love and goodwill, thus offsetting the evil of contention, envy, and jealousy.  Where misunderstandings exist between children and parents, we can encourage adjustments on the part of both.  We can pray together for the spirit of peace. ... We can be a peacemaker by avoiding criticism. ... We can be a peacemaker by practicing and teaching forgiveness.  Jesus was asked how many times one should be forgiven, and he replied that we should forgive without limit.

Franklin D. Richards, Ensign Nov 1974, 105

Franklin D. Richards

Our Lord and Savior is called the Prince of Peace, and his message is a message of peace to the individual and to the world.  It is the peace that makes us really appreciate mortal life and enables us to bear heartbreaking tribulations.

Franklin D. Richards, Ensign Nov 1974, 105

David O. McKay

If you want peace, yours is the responsibility to obtain it.  The Restored Gospel teaches that our homes should become warm nests where children may be protected and grow into noble men and women; where ... old age [may find] repose; where prayer will find an altar.

David O. McKay Church News Mar 1961, 15

Gordon B. Hinckley

You may think it is the macho thing to flare up in anger and swear and profane the name of the Lord.  It is not that macho thing.  It is an indication of weakness.  Anger is not an expression of strength.  It is an indication of one's inability to control his thoughts, words, his emotions.  Of course it is easy to get angry.  When the weakness of anger takes over, the strength of reason leaves.  Cultivate within yourselves the mighty power of self-discipline.

Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign Now 1991, 49

Franklin D. Richards

The blessed part about being a peacemaker is that those who are peacemakers and who live the gospel principles receive a testimony borne of the Holy Ghost.  They enjoy the peace that surpasseth all understanding, relief from inner tensions, joy and happiness, contentment, growth and development.

Theodore M. Burton

Whenever you get red in the face, whenever you raise your voice, whenever you get "hot under the collar," or angry, rebellious, or negative in spirit, then know that the Spirit of God is leaving you and the spirit of Satan is beginning to take over.

Theodore M. Burton, Ensign, Nov 1974, 77

Thomas S. Monson

The priesthood is not really so much a gift as it is a commission to serve, a privilege to lift, and an opportunity to bless the lives of others.

Thomas S. Monson, Ensign May 2006, 57

Wilford Woodruff

What a responsibility it is to hold this heavenly, this eternal, this everlasting Priesthood!  And we shall have to give an account of it.  Apostles, Seventies, High Priests, Elders, and all men who bear any portion of this Priesthood that has been given unto us will be held responsible for it.

Wilford Woodruff, Deseret Weekly, March 2, 1889, 294

Albert L. Zobell

We were fighting the battle of the Bulge near the town of Ammonius, Belgium.  By that time the Germans were on the defensive.  We had just succeeded in cutting off or surrounding a section of the German line.  They were surrendering in large numbers.  As we were disarming the soldiers, one of them said to me in broken English, "Would you know if there are any Mormon soldiers in your unit?"

I replied, "Yes, I am a Mormon."

He asked,  "Do you hold the priesthood?"

"Yes, I do," I answered, "I was married in the temple."

"Would you be so kind as to come with me to that shell hole over there and administer to my buddy? He is pretty well shaken up, and pretty badly wounded."

Of course I consented to go.  We found that his buddy was in a bad condition and was suffering much pain.  Then the two of us, who a few short hours before had been on opposite sides in a bitter struggle, knelt down and administered to the wounded lad.  And as we did so, I felt the Spirit of the Lord very strongly.  I know that the feeling was shared by them, too.  As we finished, the litter bearers were there.  We lifted the broken body to the stretcher.  Then our ways parted: the wounded boy was taken to the hospital, the German soldier was sent back with the other prisoners, and I went on with my other duties.

Albert L. Zobell Jr, A Storyteller's Scrapbook, 1948, 112- 113

Steven F. Gilliland

President Harold B. Lee’s statement that our priorities should be (1) personal, spiritual, and physical health; (2) family responsibilities; (3) Church responsibilities; (4) career and community responsibilities. (Bishop’s Training Course and Self-Help Guide, pp. I-25, 26.) If I am to serve my family and others in a meaningful way, I need to be spiritually and physically fit.

At the other extreme are people so concerned about being unselfish that they exhaust themselves trying to please everyone. They continually put their needs and wants on the shelf in the interest of family, church callings, neighbors, and friends. It eventually takes a severe depression or other manifestation of stress before they see that it’s okay to request, even require, that others be sensitive to their needs some of the time. There comes a time when even the strongest must draw strength from others. Some of us find it much easier to extend rather than accept service. Yet, if we always put ourselves last, we rob others of the challenge and joy of giving.

Steve F. Gilliland, "Me and Thee: Finding Balance in Marriage", Ensign, Aug. 1987, 22

Joseph B. Wirthlin

I think of how dark that Friday was when Christ was lifted up on the cross.  On that terrible Friday the earth shook and grew dark. Frightful storms lashed at the earth.  Those evil men who sought His life rejoiced. Now that Jesus was no more, surely those who followed Him would disperse. On that day they stood triumphant.

On that day the veil of the temple was rent in twain.  

Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of Jesus, were both overcome with grief and despair. The superb man they had loved and honored hung lifeless upon the cross.  On that Friday the Apostles were devastated. Jesus, their Savior—the man who had walked on water and raised the dead—was Himself at the mercy of wicked men. They watched helplessly as He was overcome by His enemies.  On that Friday the Savior of mankind was humiliated and bruised, abused and reviled.  It was a Friday filled with devastating, consuming sorrow that gnawed at the souls of those who loved and honored the Son of God.

I think that of all the days since the beginning of this world’s history, that Friday was the darkest.

But the doom of that day did not endure.  The despair did not linger because on Sunday, the resurrected Lord burst the bonds of death. He ascended from the grave and appeared gloriously triumphant as the Savior of all mankind.  And in an instant the eyes that had been filled with ever-flowing tears dried. The lips that had whispered prayers of distress and grief now filled the air with wondrous praise, for Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God, stood before them as the firstfruits of the Resurrection, the proof that death is merely the beginning of a new and wondrous existence.  Each of us will have our own Fridays—those days when the universe itself seems shattered and the shards of our world lie littered about us in pieces. We all will experience those broken times when it seems we can never be put together again. We will all have our Fridays.

But I testify to you in the name of the One who conquered death—Sunday will come. In the darkness of our sorrow, Sunday will come.  No matter our desperation, no matter our grief, Sunday will come. In this life or the next, Sunday will come.

Because of our beloved Redeemer, we can lift up our voices, even in the midst of our darkest Fridays, and proclaim, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” ⁹

President Hinckley ... promised that in the quiet of the night a still, unheard voice whispers peace to our soul: “All is well.”

Joseph B. Wirthlin, October 2006 General Conference