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Elder
Gordon T. Watts, a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy of The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, shared eight “anchors of
stability” at the devotional at Brigham Young University-Idaho Nov.
19.
Elder
Watts spoke of the wonderful advances in technology and
noted the growth of the Church. Despite these events and advances, some
“dwell on fear factor, the adversarial dark side, worrying about the
world coming to an end, wars and rumors of wars, and gloomy misfortunes.
“Believing
that if circumstances were with them instead of against them, they could
have been successful and happy. This is an unfortunate waste of spiritual
energy and will consume our valuable time if we choose to take this course.
True, evil is everywhere giving cause for concern, but this is doctrine
understood by those who know the Plan of Salvation and the purpose of
life,” Elder Watts said.
After
reading Abraham 3:25-26 and Alma 42:4, he said, “Our journey of
‘proving’ is filled with character building challenges,
expanded opportunities, personal triumphs, and professional successes,
intermingled with events that bring the refining sorrows, failures and
disappointments. Yet, enduring will provide the polishing necessary to
maximize our potential for the eternal realm. This is all part of the
proving process!”
He
related an experience he had swimming in the ocean in Hawaii. He swam hard, not realizing how far out he was
drifting and totally unaware of the tide and undertow. When he turned back
to shore, the undercurrents took him out faster than he could swim. After
“several futile attempts,” he became exhausted and panicked.
Fervent prayer and exertion proved successful, and he reached the shore.
“How often do we tread into uncharted waters, assuming that
our own strength will be more than sufficient to carry us through, only to
find desperate pleadings to return to safe shores, hopefully, before
it’s too late. I would have welcomed even
the flimsiest of life preservers, but it may not have been enough to save
me. It’s the anchors that bring us safety.”
He
then introduced and elaborated on eight anchors of stability:
1.
The anchor of knowing you are a son or daughter of God
2.
While second, the foremost anchor of the Savior
3.
The anchor of apostles and prophets
4.
The anchor of the Priesthood
5.
The anchor of spiritual knowledge
6.
The anchor of prayer
7.
The anchor of integrity
8.
The anchor of service
He then posed two questions
to ponder: “Is the anchor of the gospel constant in my life?”
and “No matter what the storms of life may bring, will I always have
a stable anchor to rely on and see me through?”
Elder
Watts was sustained a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on April 4, 1998, during the
168th Annual General Conference. He is serving in the North America
Southeast Area Presidency headquartered in Atlanta,
Ga.
Next
week’s devotional speaker will be David Christensen, a member of the
Religion Department faculty at BYU-Idaho.
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