Great Men Pray

Great and wise men and women of all the ages have sought and received help through prayer and have found an unfailing source of strength.

Washington at Valley Forge — Lincoln before Gettysburg — Eisenhower on D Day — Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove — Jesus at Gethsemane and at Golgotha — all these have prayed:

“Grant us liberty”; “Preserve the nation”; “Give us wisdom”; “Deliver us from evil”; “Thy will be done.”

And these, too, are proper petitions to an understanding Father in Heaven:

The trust of a child at a mother’s knee.

The prayer of a father for the return of a wayward son.

The student’s honest seeking for answers to an examination.

A young man’s reverent request for strength to do this best in ball game or business venture.

A young woman’s plea for guidance in choosing a husband.

The earnest soul’s sincere desire.

That He answers these petitions (though in His own time and way) is a truth to which millions can daily testify.

What about you? Do you ever need help from a Higher Source? Then follow the example of the great and good and wise men of all the ages. Ask and receive. “In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.”

Pray.

BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF

Nothing Worth Having Is Free

The food we eat, the clothes we wear, the homes we live in, the cars we drive–even the leisure time to enjoy them in — and all the inner satisfactions of life — all these must be bought with effort and sacrifice.

Let’s look at some examples. Take friendship. You may win friends easily but it will cost you something to keep them: time spent on daily kindly deeds, the thoughtful letter or card of remembrance; the timely word of encouragement; the constant consideration.

The price of education is study. Business success can be bought only through hard work; savings for the future through present self-denial.

So with the development of talents; the ability to play the piano, to paint a picture, to bake a cake, to excel in any art or skill comes only with effort.

Personal health and physical and mental strength must be earned by the exercise we take, the kind and amount of food and drink we put into our bodies — or abstain from.

The trust of friends is built on the keeping of promises. Financial credit belongs to those who pay their bills.

Even Church membership with its present and future blessings is not yours for the mere asking. To belonging you must add obedience; to receiving you must add sharing. These are the works you must add to faith if you would earn the good things of earth and the blessings of heaven. They are the price we must pay for happiness here or hereafter.

So strive, share, serve, save. In other words, pay up, because it pays.

BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF