Ezra Taft Benson
Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the foundation upon which sincere and meaningful repentance must be built. If we truly seek to put away sin, we must first look to Him who is the Author of our salvation.Collection: Easter
With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings.Collection: Wisdom
Many men and women in the world demonstrate great willpower and self-discipline in overcoming bad habits and the weaknesses of the flesh.Collection: Women
An almost forgotten means of economic self-reliance is the home production of food. We are too accustomed to going to stores and purchasing what we need.Collection: Food
Mothers play an important role as the heart of the home, but this in no way lessens the equally important role fathers should play, as head of the home, in nurturing, training, and loving their children.Collection: Fathers
The Book of Mormon is the 'keystone' of our religion, and the Doctrine and Covenants is the 'capstone,' with continuing latter day revelation. The Lord has placed His stamp of approval on both the keystone and the capstone.Collection: Religion
The moral code of Heaven for both men and women is complete chastity before marriage and full fidelity after marriage.Collection: Marriage
Inspiring music may fill the soul with heavenly thoughts, move one to righteous action, or speak peace to the soul.Collection: Peace
When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in that moment God will endow us with power.Collection: God
The great test of life is obedience to God.Collection: Great
When our children obey the Lord and go to the temple to receive their blessings and enter into the marriage covenant, they enter into the same order of the priesthood that God instituted in the very beginning with father Adam.Collection: Marriage
Bad experience is a school that only fools keep going to.Collection: Experience
Build traditions of family vacations and trips and outings. These memories will never be forgotten by your children.Collection: Family
Efficient spending and saving will give the family more security, more opportunities, more education, and a higher standard of living.Collection: Family
Pride is ugly. It says, 'If you succeed, I am a failure.'Collection: Failure
The false prophets of Communism predict a utopian society.Collection: Society
We are eternal beings. We lived as intelligent spirits before this mortal life. We are now living part of eternity. Our mortal birth was not the beginning; death, which faces all of us, is not the end.Collection: Death
Wickedness never did, never does, never will bring us happiness.Collection: Happiness
If a man does not control his temper, it is a sad admission that he is not in control of his thoughts.Collection: Sad
Our parents deserve our honor and respect for giving us life itself. Beyond this they almost always made countless sacrifices as they cared for and nurtured us through our infancy and childhood, provided us with the necessities of life, and nursed us through physical illnesses and the emotional stresses of growing up.Collection: Respect
The one man other than my father who made the most lasting impression was an uncle, Serge B. Benson. He taught me in three different classes - but above all, he taught me lessons in moral, physical, and intellectual courage that I have tried to apply in later life.Collection: Courage
A woman whose life is involved in the righteous rearing of her children has a better chance of keeping up her spirits than the woman whose total concern is centered in her own personal problems.Collection: Chance
Youth is the spirit of adventure and awakening. It is a time of physical emerging when the body attains the vigor and good health that may ignore the caution of temperance. Youth is a period of timelessness when the horizons of age seem too distant to be noticed.Collection: Health
Every man eventually is backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand.Collection: Faith
The Declaration of Independence was to set forth the moral justification of a rebellion against a long-recognized political tradition - the divine right of kings.Collection: Independence
Plan to build up your food supply just as you would a savings account. Save a little for storage each paycheck. Can or bottle fruit and vegetables from your gardens and orchards. Learn how to preserve food through drying and possibly freezing. Make your storage a part of your budget.Collection: Food
We must be careful, as we seek to become more and more godlike, that we do not become discouraged and lose hope.Collection: Hope
Many a man in his hour of trial has turned to the Book of Mormon and been enlightened, enlivened, and comforted. The psalms in the Old Testament have a special food for the soul of one in distress.Collection: Food
In general, the more food we eat in its natural state - without additives - and the less it is refined, the healthier it will be for us. Food can affect the mind, and deficiencies of certain elements in the body can promote mental depression.Collection: Food
Yes, one can repent of moral transgression. The miracle of forgiveness is real, and true repentance is accepted of the Lord.Collection: Forgiveness
The undermining of the home and family is on the increase with the devil anxiously working to displace the father as the head of the home and create rebellion among the children.Collection: Home
Husbands, recognize your wife's intelligence and her ability to counsel with you as a real partner regarding family plans, family activities, and family budgeting. Don't be stingy with your time or with your means. Give her the opportunity to grow intellectually, emotionally, and socially as well as spiritually.Collection: Intelligence
Pride adversely affects all our relationships - our relationship with God and His servants, between husband and wife, parent and child, employer and employee, teacher and student, and all mankind.Collection: Teacher
Disobedience is essentially a prideful power struggle against someone in authority over us. It can be a parent, a priesthood leader, a teacher, or ultimately God. A proud person hates the fact that someone is above him. He thinks this lowers his position.Collection: Teacher
If you really want to receive joy and happiness, then serve others with all your heart. Lift their burden, and your own burden will be lighter.Collection: Happiness
One of the joys of working with boys is that you get your pay as you go along. You can observe the results of your leadership daily... Such satisfaction cannot be purchased at any price; it must be earned.Collection: Leadership
I have a vision of artists putting into film, drama, literature, music, and paintings great themes and great characters from the Book of Mormon.Collection: Music
The price of peace is righteousness.Collection: Peace
If we love God, do His will, and fear His judgment more than men's, we will have self-esteem.Collection: Fear
One who is kind is sympathetic and gentle with others. He is considerate of others' feelings and courteous in his behavior. He has a helpful nature. Kindness pardons others' weaknesses and faults. Kindness is extended to all - to the aged and the young, to animals, to those low of station as well as the high.Collection: Nature
Food production is just one part of the repeated emphasis that you store a provision of food which will last for at least a year wherever it is legally permissible to do so.Collection: Food
Years of happiness can be lost in the foolish gratification of a momentary desire for pleasure.Collection: Happiness
God will have a humble people. Either we can choose to be humble, or we can be compelled to be humble.Collection: God
Your most important friendships should be with your own brothers and sisters and with your father and mother. Love your family. Be loyal to them. Have a genuine concern for your brothers and sisters.Collection: Family
Some of the greatest battles will be fought within the silent chambers of your own soul.
The fellowship of true friends who can hear you out, share your joys, help carry your burdens, and correctly counsel you is priceless.
Periodic fasting can help clear up the mind and strengthen the body and the spirit.
Godly sorrow is a gift of the Spirit. It is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering.
The Book of Mormon exposes the enemies of Christ. It confounds false doctrines and lays down contention.
The proud do not change to improve, but defend their position by rationalizing. Repentance means change, and it takes a humble person to change.