The Spoken Word – Sunday, January 08, 1984
In December, we celebrated the birth of Christ. We praised Him. We sang His name.
We talked of His teachings and His example.
We followed that with our New Year’s goals. Now, we might ask if the practice of our resolutions includes the spirit we celebrated at Christmas. If the fulfillment of our goals and resolutions will be guided by His teachings and His instructions to us?
He showed us the way to make our lives happier. He encouraged us with His invitation to “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me…for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”1
The teachings of the Savior are “easy”. But many of us have difficulty following them—not because his standards are burdensome, or imprecise, or insufficiently defined…but because, as Neal Maxwell observed: “Christ’s message clearly gets in the way of the easy flow of…life, as some mortals would like to live it.”2
It is true, of course, that patterning our lives after the Savior does require self-discipline…but it’s not beyond our capacity. And it is true that some sacrifice may be required, but it is no more than the sacrifices we make daily for rewards far less meaningful than those promised by the Lord.
If we follow His guidelines of honesty, integrity, and service, we will find a basic sense of direction. We will find motivation, growth and meaning. We will find peace in our hearts and minds.
Those who remember the Savior and his Gospel enrich their lives and are reassured by the confirming truth of God’s goodness.
There is no greater, more promising, more satisfying goal for a New Year than to respond to the Savior’s invitation to “Come, Follow Me.”
1 New Testament, Matthew 11:29-30
2 Neal A Maxwell, “Even As I Am”, from the book “Even As I Am”, Deseret Book Company 1982, p 17
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January 08, 1984
Broadcast Number 2,838