May 13, 2025
Here is the best thing I heard (What?), saw (Eye.), and read (Read.) this week, as well as the best idea (💡) I developed.
What?
Church News Podcast Episode 239: International Art Competition 2025: ‘Lift Up the Hands Which Hang Down’:
- [Laura Paulsen Howe, curator at the Church History Museum]: “I love to attend Gospel Doctrine lessons. One reason I love attending church instead of studying on my own is someone who’s in that class might share a perspective that is different than how I felt as I studied the Doctrine and Covenants.
So, we hope what you’re going to attend and see [at the International Art Competition] when you’re here are different perspectives, people who might be living in a nation that’s different from where you grew up, who might have different ways of interpreting the world, sharing their own perspective. So really, I hope it broadens and helps expand the way that you think of those scriptures that declare, ‘Lift up the hands which hang down.’ …
[Paige Crosland Anderson, artist]: “There’s a scripture in Ecclesiastes that’s become a personal mantra for me. And it’s: ‘Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might’ (Ecclesiastes 9:10). And I love this idea that we’re presented with lots of little things to do every day. … It’s like, ‘How can I make these things meaningful and make them consecrated acts of discipleship?'”
Eye.
true.millenials | “Apostle Forgives Anti-Mormon” | Instagram:
- [Dusty] “[Elder Uchtdorf] looked at me, straight in my eyes, and he said: ‘Your sins are forgiven.’
“Wow! That I could do all of that, and the Lord still says, ‘I still love you. You get another chance.'”
Read.
Elder David A. Bednar, “What Are Spiritual Gifts, and How Do They Work?“, April 2025 For the Strength of Youth:
- “The Lord determines if and when we receive all spiritual gifts and Christlike attributes. Nevertheless, we should do all in our power to desire and become eligible for such gifts. We do not earn or develop these gifts and attributes in our own strength.
“We always should remember that the work of inviting all to come unto Christ is a spiritual work. Our quest is spiritual transformation—not simply behavioral improvement. All of the worthwhile benefits of personal discipline and goal setting, in and of themselves, are insufficient to help us to receive the gifts of God and the attributes of the Lord Jesus Christ.
“We receive spiritual gifts when God can trust us to be what we need to be, to do what we need to do, and to be guided by the Spirit to the right place at the right time so that if a gift or gifts are given, they operate through us to bless other people.
“Surely, we as individuals are benefited by the bestowal of spiritual gifts and Christlike attributes. However, our primary desires should be focused upon serving God and His children and not on our own growth and development.
“Appropriately seeking for and being blessed to receive spiritual gifts and Christlike attributes requires that we ‘get out of the way’ and look beyond our self-centered desires, concerns, and personal preferences.
“We are commanded to look to the Savior in every thought—and to doubt and fear not. Consequently, the focus of our work should be upon Him and not upon us. We should appreciate His precious gifts more than we depend upon our individual capacity. We humbly should acknowledge His tender mercies and blessings more than we rely upon our individual talents. We should strive steadfastly to avoid the blindness that comes by ‘looking beyond the mark,’ even the Lord Jesus Christ. We should always remember, ‘Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.'”
💡
Sunday School teachers, especially for the youth, could still prepare lessons for their class participants and make these lessons available even on the weeks where Sunday School isn’t held (that way material wouldn’t be missed or skipped).
Additional Content
Next Newsletter (May 20, 2025 – Newsletter Subtitle)