Paisley: Hey everybody, welcome back. PAISLEY imperfect. Here
Today we are going to talk about elder Gregorio Casillas, talk
from this past general conference just a couple of
weeks ago. It's called God loves all His children. The title is
pretty self explanatory, and we could probably just use that as
a reminder and say, Hey, everybody, Remember God loves
all His children. But you know me, I like to talk, so we're
gonna keep going. It doesn't matter what your family
situation looks like. It doesn't matter whether you are on the
covenant path or not, and it doesn't matter where you are on
the covenant path, he still loves you for who you are, and
because he loves you, He wants you to succeed. We've talked
about that a little bit before. Elder Casilla said one of the
greatest reasons your heavenly Father sent you here at this
time is so that you can realize your full potential. To me, that
says that we are here during this time in mortality, because
at any other time we would not have reached our full potential.
We could have been super awesome Romans or Native Americans or
Vikings or Japanese samurai. We could have been awesome in any
other dispensation, but we were saved for this one because a
loving Heavenly Father knew that this is the dispensation where
we could reach our full potential. That's what that
means to me. I want to go back for just a second to being one
of the 99 like we talked about a couple of days ago, I talked
about how, as one of the 99 it's our responsibility to help keep
the other 98 together and stay in the flock. And elder Casillas
gave us some good insight to help us remember this. He said,
we have the privilege to watch over people who need a helping
hand and embrace a feeling of comfort, or for us simply to be
with them in silence. If we can help lighten their burdens, even
if only for a moment, then we will be able to see the great
manifestations of the Savior's power in their lives. We will be
able to see the love of our Savior in their lives as we
serve them. It is a privilege to serve others. He said, we can
make a positive difference in the world. We can provide a
sense of joy that is reflected in our countenance, a joy that
we share with words of love and acts of kindness. Let us be good
neighbors, good employers, good workers. Let us strive to be
good Christians at all times. I attended a women's conference a
few years ago, and the theme for that conference that year was,
what if your only motive was love? We do a lot of different
things throughout our lives, and we have a lot of different
motivators. Our motivation varies from time to time,
depending on what what it is that we're trying to accomplish,
what it is that we're doing. But what if our only motive was
love? What if we could with the people that we come in contact
with every day? What if we could see them as children of God, the
person that cuts you off on the freeway, or the person who is
speeding through the parking lot that you're trying to shuttle
your kids through. Maybe they are the one that Jesus is
looking for. Maybe they are actually one of the other 98 and
they're just having a bad day. Maybe they just need a good,
positive interaction from someone whose motivation is love
in the heat of an angry moment. That is really hard to do. But
is it impossible for some of us? It might be that's fine. I'm not
here to judge. I'm probably impossible for me sometimes
also, what if, when it came to our relationships with others,
we could stop comparing ourselves to them, comparing
what they have or what they're showing on Instagram to who we
are and what we have or what we don't have, comparing ourselves
to others does not foster a positive response. Even if we
have more, I think I've talked about this before, even if we
are comparing ourselves to others, and we're like, well, at
least I'm not that, or at least I don't have to do that, or at
least that's a comparison to someone else. And is it?
Prideful, or what becomes our motivation if we're comparing
ourselves with others? For me, at least, it starts to foster
feelings of worthlessness. I can't do what she can do. So why
even try? Or I can't offer what they can offer. Why bother?
Elder Casilla said we should avoid comparing ourselves to one
another. Your spiritual abilities are unique, personal
and innate, and your heavenly Father wants to help you develop
them. There will always be someone you can help feel the
love of your heavenly Father. Your potential is divine. While
it's certainly important to prepare yourself to succeed in
this very competitive world, one of your crucial missions
throughout your life is to become a disciple of Jesus
Christ and to follow the impressions of the Spirit as you
do this, God will bless your life. He will bless your current
or future family, and He will bless the lives of his children
who you encounter. So if our only motive is love and it's
love for others, as children of God, we stop comparing ourselves
to others, then he says that heavenly Father will bless our
lives. So while it is certainly important to prepare ourselves
to succeed in this very competitive world, what if the
preparation is the blessing? What if the blessing is the
preparation? So let's take a second to tie a couple of these
things together. So elder Casillas told us that we have
our own spiritual abilities that are unique, personal and innate.
He also told us that we can make a positive difference in the
world. Could it be then that we are to use our spiritual gifts
and abilities in ways that only we can to make a positive
difference in the world. Yes, I would venture to say that that
is our purpose. That is our purpose. So now we have our
motivation, our purpose is to give. Our is to use our gifts,
talents and abilities to make a positive difference within our
own sphere of influence, to change the world. So we have our
purpose and we have our motivation. Few things, at least
to me, Few things are more motivating than knowing, than
knowing what my purpose is, and that God has given me the
spiritual abilities, talents and gifts that I need to achieve
that purpose. The motivation part is the part that I struggle
with, personally on myself. Now, if those are the things that are
motivating that God has given us gifts, talents, abilities to be
able to fulfill our purpose, which is to help keep the 98
together and go after the one when we need to, if that's our
motivation and our purpose, where do you think the enemy
will attack First? He will attack our motivation and our
purpose. Because if he can destroy our motivation, or if he
can destroy our purpose, he thinks he leaves us hopeless.
Elder, Cassia said, one of the crafts of the adversary today is
to make us think and believe that there is no way for us to
change or that we no longer have hope, this destructive thinking
causes many of us to stop trying, and it is at this moment
when our love, our words of encouragement and support, our
time and our help can give someone hope enough to try once
more. So it's when we feel like we are at the very, very bottom,
when he is attacking and attacking and attacking, that's
the moment when we have the opportunity to help someone else
and give them the hope that they need to try one more time. Then
he said, please remember that the Lord Jesus Christ is your
Savior and understands you personally. He knows what it is
to have to fulfill a calling and leave things behind to help the
children of God. He has the power to bless you in everything
if you believe in Him and do not doubt so let's take all of this
and put it together again. We are the 99 sheep, and we are
here to help each other stay in the flock. God has given us
spiritual abilities, talents and gifts that we are you, that we
are to use to provide this help to each other, and while you may
not be the only person that God has given that specific
spiritual gift to
you. The only one that can use it in the way that you can use
it, nobody else is you. Nobody else has all of your same
experiences. Nobody else can use that spiritual gift or talent or
ability in the exact same way that you can that makes you
necessary, that makes you needed. That makes you unique
and important to me and to everyone else, anybody that you
have not met yet, and lots of people that you have. Those
things make you important, needed and necessary. Let love
be your motivation. Remember your purpose to help the rest of
us stay where we need to stay right here within the 99 and
don't be afraid. Don't be afraid to use your spiritual gifts and
abilities. It might feel a little weird at first.
Sometimes, when I think I want to develop a spiritual gift, and
I look into it a little bit, feels like it's going to be a
little awkward to start. But do you want it? Do you want to
help? I think we all do. I think we all want to to feel those
feelings of love from our Savior. And while those, while
that love is always there, we don't always feel it. We can
feel it as we serve others, as we do things for others, as we
use those spiritual gifts, talents and abilities that we
have been given to help the other 98 anyway, thank you so
much for being here with me again today. Keep learning, keep
growing, keep trying. You are doing great and be of good
cheer. Thanks, everybody until next time you.