Salt Leaven and Light

(in no particular order)

Life is hard AND life is beautiful.

It is possible to feel sorrow and joy simultaneously.

Jesus can be trusted.

God still loves us if we get mad at Him on occasion.

Not “everyone is doing it”. It IS possible to resist sin.

Repentance is real, but natural consequences are unavoidable and often irreversible.

True learning is exhilarating.

A quality education does not require a lot of money.

Self-education opportunities are limitless.

Genuine friendship is rare and priceless.

It feels good to seek out the good and the beautiful.

Moral law provides a foundation of unalterable truth, peace, and security.

Nature is healing.

The Gospel is simple.

Patience is a virtue.

Self-reliance is empowering.

Making happy memories matters.

Freedom is worth fighting for.

We each are at different levels of progression, and that’s okay.

It is important to have something to look forward to.

One’s physical and emotional health is largely within one’s control.

When the student is ready, the teacher appears.

Life is like a rollercoaster, with seemingly endless ups and downs.

Too often, the bar has been lowered for ourselves and others in our homes, in our society, and in the church, resulting in fewer blessings, a reduction of joy, and less connection with God.

High standards pay high dividends.

Abuse in all its forms (physical, emotional, verbal, sexual, financial) is more prevalent in the homes of people we know than one would like to believe.

Though, statistically, the numbers are much higher for men, both men and women abuse others and are caught up in addiction.

It is possible to have a happy home life.

Repentance has many steps to it, and all steps are requisite for it to be true repentance.

No one and nothing, outside of God, can fill the emptiness one feels inside: not one’s parents, not one’s spouse, not one’s children, not one’s friends; not money, sex, work, food, social media or any other addictive behavior or compulsion.

To put the world in order, we must first put the family in order.

Anger is a secondary emotion, resulting from feelings of pain and/or fear.

It is easier to be angry than to work through one’s feelings of pain and/or fear, but the results that come from working through difficult emotions make the effort worth it.

Gossip destroys relationships.

My behavior is my responsibility. No one else ought to be blamed for my choices, just as I should not be held accountable for the choices of others.

Change is not possible if a person is not repentant.

It feels good to connect with others in meaningful ways, even if we’ll never see them again.

Love cannot exist without trust.

Attending church is painful at times, but church attendance always brings blessings.

Everyone is entitled to a bad day.

One can only change one’s self.

Crucial conversations are essential.

The world is in need of more righteous mentors.

It feels good to take responsibility for one’s actions.

Divorce unfairly tears apart extended families and years-long friendships.

If church feels lonely, I am partly to blame.

Children can lead successful and happy lives despite having experienced divorce.

One can feel grateful for the suffering that brought them closer to Christ.

One can feel compassion for the person with whom they choose to set boundaries.

Children are not as resilient as we are often led to believe.

Everyone benefits from having a good cry.

Complaining is easy; improving one’s situation requires courage.

Covenants, when kept, bring blessings, and when broken, bring sorrow.

One can be surrounded by filth and still resist it. (Tim Ballard is a good example of this.) It all depends on the state of one’s heart.

Emotions must be felt and worked through to prevent further harm. This is true for men and women, boys and girls.

Divorce should always be an option. Some things are worse than divorce.

Others have had it worse AND your personal pain is valid.

One can be kind AND have boundaries.

Fears seem to dissipate with the rising of the sun.

Good music is the language of the Gods.

It feels good to be different in happy ways.

It is possible to receive continuous personal revelation.

Happiness comes from within.

Truth shared with love has more power to save a soul than does letting a person off easy for fear of causing feelings of shame.

Love cannot exist without truth.

One is blessed according to one’s personal worthiness when entering the temple.

While everyone is out trying to save the men and the youth, who is caring for the women and children who have been left behind? In large part, Jesus and His empowering Atonement (said with much gratitude)

It is easier to point out the flaws of others than to look in the mirror and ask, “Lord, is it I?”

Righteous judgement is necessary, but, ultimately, the judgement of another person should be left to God.

Each day is a new beginning.

Jesus is the answer.

There is always hope.