What a joyful noise comes from this congregation! It fills my heart with joy to be here with you, to sing the songs of Zion, and to hear your prayers and share in your spirit. How good you are! Your mothers probably tell you that, but I want to tell you, too. The members of the Church are blessed with the goodness of your generation. The opening hymn was so appropriate for the first of January: “Come, let us anew our journey pursue, Roll round with the year, And never stand still till the Master appear” (“Come, Let Us Anew,” Hymns, 1985, no. 217). As Latter-day Saints, those words have special meaning to us. They echo a theme about this journey of life that has characterized our entire dispensation: “No toil nor labor fear; But with joy wend your way” (“Come, Come, Ye Saints,” Hymns, 1985, no. 30). These stirring words inspired the early pioneer Saints who traveled west to find a sanctuary for religious freedom. This year, throughout the Church, we will observe the sesquicentennial of that great westward trek with a celebration that has been titled “Faith in Every Footstep.” Today the headquarters of the Church is in the desert valleys the pioneers settled. It is also the setting for the 2002 Olympics and home to Brigham Young University. The spirit that characterized the pioneer era is very much a part of our lives today. At the beginning of this new year, most of us have closed our journals on 1996 and opened new ones. Before us are blank pages to be filled in day by day as we each give shape to the year 1997. The first of January is usually marked by the tradition of making resolutions—the always well-intentioned list of what we are going to do differently in the months ahead. A scripture in 1 Thessalonians can be a good guide for us in this process. In verse 3 the apostle Paul praises the Saints of Thessalonica: “Remembering without ceasing [their] work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in [the] Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 1:3). I like Paul’s choice of words in commending those Saints. To me they speak as a powerful reminder of our need to set priorities and to center our work, labor, and patience of hope in Jesus Christ, to believe in him and in his ways enough to abandon selfish inclinations and develop direction in our spiritual journey. This scripture makes some interesting connections. Work is tied to faith, labor is associated with love, and patience is woven in with hope. This juxtaposition points out that what we do is balanced by how we do it. The ordinary tasks of work, labor, and patience are transformed into faith, love, and hope in Jesus Christ when we realize that it is through these seemingly commonplace tasks that we bring glory to our Father. In my message tonight I want to focus on the quality of patience. What kind of patience was […]