Until We Meet Again...

President Thomas S. Monson

We love and miss you!

As many of you have heard by now, President Monson passed away a few days ago. He left us an incredible legacy of love, kindness, service, and going to the rescue. He challenged us to read the Book of Mormon every day. He reminded us to choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong. He asked us to be more kind and charitable - more like the Savior. He taught us the importance of listening to the Spirit. In his lifetime of service to the Lord - including the last 54 years as a General Authority! - he made a difference in the lives of others around the world, both on a general level and on a personal level. He was truly beloved.

One of my very favorite stories about President Monson was told by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in the Oct. 2014 General Conference:

"In that regard, I pay a personal tribute to President Thomas Spencer Monson. I have been blessed by an association with this man for 47 years now, and the image of him I will cherish until I die is of him flying home from then–economically devastated East Germany in his house slippers because he had given away not only his second suit and his extra shirts but the very shoes from off his feet. 'How beautiful upon the mountains [and shuffling through an airline terminal] are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace.'²⁰ More than any man I know, President Monson has 'done all he could' for the widow and the fatherless, the poor and the oppressed."

Though we will miss President Monson and his gentle way and wonderful example, he is now reunited with his wife, Frances, whom he has been missing for the past four and a half years. (He paid a lovely tribute to her in this October 2013 conference talk.) 

A few Several of my favorite quotes from President Monson:

"Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith."

"So much in life depends on our attitude. The way we choose to see things and respond to others makes all the difference. To do the best we can and then to choose to be happy about our circumstances, whatever they may be, can bring peace and contentment. We can't direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails."

"The purpose of mortality is to learn and to grow to be more like our Father, and it is often during the difficult times that we learn the most, as painful as the lessons may be."

"The past is behind, learn from it. The future is ahead, prepare for it. The present is here, live it."

"Good timber does not grow with ease. The stronger the wind, the stronger the trees."

"If you want to give a light to others, you have to glow yourself."

"May we show increased kindness to one another, and may we always be found doing the work of the Lord."

"Whether it is the best of times or the worst of times, He is with us. He has promised that this will never change."

"A man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder."

"What is most important almost always involves the people around us."

"Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved."

"One of God's greatest gifts to us is the joy of trying again, for no failure ever need be final."

"Our Heavenly Father is aware of our needs and will help us as we call upon Him for assistance. I believe that no concern of ours is too small or insignificant. The Lord is in the details of our lives."

"Stick to a task till it sticks to you. Beginners are many; finishers few."

"May we ever choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong." 

"There is no need for you to sail uncharted seas or to travel unmarked roads in search of truth. A loving Heavenly Father has plotted our course and provided an unfailing guide - even obedience."

"Decisions determine destiny."

"Hope is putting faith to work when doubting would be easier."

"Dare to be a Mormon, dare to stand alone. Dare to have a purpose firm, dare to make it known."

"Of this be sure: you do not find the happy life. You make it."

"Fill your mind with truth. Fill your heart with love. Fill your life with service."

"Prayer is the passport to peace."

"Faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other."

Please share in the comments your favorite story, quote, or memory of President Monson. :)