The Three Rs of Choice by Thomas S. Monson

A little 4x6 Handout I made from an excerpt of the talk by President Monson - the full talk can be found HERE. 

"I have been thinking recently about choices and their consequences. Scarcely an hour of the day goes by but what we are called upon to make choices of one sort or another. Some are trivial, some more far-reaching. Some will make no difference in the eternal scheme of things, and others will make all the difference.

As I’ve contemplated the various aspects of choice, I’ve put them into three categories: first, the right of choice; second, the responsibility of choice; and third, the results of choice. I call these the three Rs of choice.

Let us not find ourselves as indecisive as is Alice in Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. You will remember that she comes to a crossroads with two paths before her, each stretching onward but in opposite directions. She is confronted by the Cheshire cat, of whom Alice asks, “Which path shall I follow?”

The cat answers, “That depends where you want to go. If you do not know where you want to go, it doesn’t matter which path you take.” 7

Unlike Alice, we all know where we want to go, and it does matter which way we go, for by choosing our path, we choose our destination.

Decisions are constantly before us. To make them wisely, courage is needed—the courage to say no, the courage to say yes. Decisions do determine destiny.

I plead with you to make a determination right here, right now, not to deviate from the path which will lead to our goal: eternal life with our Father in Heaven."

To download just right-click the image and save to your computer. File is for PERSONAL or CHURCH USE only, not for and any commercial purposes.

Good Habits

"Good habits are not acquired simply by making good resolves, though the thought must precede the action. Good habits are developed in the workshop of our daily lives. It is not in the great moments of test and trial that character is built. That is only when it is displayed."

—Delbert L. Stapley Ensign, Nov. 1974-

What Do You See

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.

-- HENRY DAVID THOREAU

It's Up To You

“Only you know your circumstances, your energy level, the needs of your children, and the emotional demands of your other obligations. Be wise during intensive seasons of your life. Cherish your agency, and don’t give it away casually. Don’t compare yourself to others — nearly always this will make you despondent. Don’t accept somebody else’s interpretation of how you should be spending your time. Make the best decision you can and then evaluate it to see how it works.” 

~Chieko N. Okazaki, ‘Lighten Up’~

Wrong is Wrong. Right is Right.

"Wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it. Right is right even if no-one is doing it."

{free printable available here}

UPDATE - I just came across this free printable today of the same quote from 'It Works for Bobbi'. To download, click HERE or the image.

Flip a Coin

There's some truth in this:)

"When you have to make a hard decision, flip a coin. Why? Because when that coin is in the air... You suddenly know what you're hoping for."

{source}

Do Something Today for Your Future Self

Do something today that your future self will thank you for.

Decisions & Values

It's not hard to make decisions once you know what your values are.

- Roy Disney

Your Past

‎"Don’t let your past dictate who you are, but let it be a part of who you will become."

Water Your Grass

"You may think the grass is greener on the other side, but if you take the time to water your own grass, it would be just as green."

Water, water, water:)

Direct the Sail

"We cannot control the wind, but we can direct the sail."

From HERE

Make a New Ending

A great message to remember going forward into the new year:

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, 

anyone can start from now and make 

a brand new ending. 

-Carl Bard

{Thank you Jaqui for the quote!}

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Things That Matter Most

Dieter F. Uchtdorf: 

“My dear brothers and sisters, we would do well to slow down a little, proceed at the optimum speed for our circumstances, focus on the significant, lift up our eyes, and truly see the things that matter most.”

Image from HERE

Simplify

“We women have a lot to learn about simplifying our lives. We have to decide what is important and then move along at a pace that is comfortable for us. We have to develop the maturity to stop trying to prove something. We have to learn to be content with what we are.” 

 ― Marjorie Pay Hinckley

Our Attitude

"Remember, a good attitude produces good results, a fair attitude fair results, a poor attitude poor results. We each shape our own life, and the shape of it is determined largely by our attitude."

--M. Russell Ballard, "Providing for Our Needs", Ensign May 1981, 85

The Beginning is the Most Important Part

"Any task in life is easier if we approach it with the one at a time attitude. ... To cite a whimsical saying; 'If you chase two rabbits, both of them will escape.' No one is adequate to do everything all at once. We have to select what is important, what is possible, and begin where we are, with what we have. And if we begin and if we keep going the weight, the worry, the doubt, the depression will begin to lift .... We can't do everything always, but we can do something now, and doing something will help to lift the weight and lessen the worry, 'The beginning,' said Plato, 'is the most important part.'"

--Richard L. Evans, Thoughts for One Hundred Days, vol. 4, pp. 89-90

The Purpose of Life

“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

Just Distracting Enough

I particularly liked this by Ardeth Kapp when I read it:

"It is wonderful, but not surprising, that after the admonition to "be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God," he tells us how this is to be in these few simple and compelling words, "Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not" (D&C 6:20, 36). Doubt and fear are enemies that can enslave us in prison walls of our own making.

Thoughts don't have to be sinful, only distracting enough to weaken the communication so we don't hear the whisperings of the Spirit. Looking unto him in every thought will eradicate thoughts that fuel the fires of jealousy, envy, pride, and related diseases that distract and destroy.

We are instructed, "Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God" (D&C 121:45). President David O. McKay said, "No principle of life was more constantly emphasized by the Great Teacher than the necessity of right thinking".
(Ardeth Kapp, BYU Womens Conference 1999).

David O McKay also said, "I will tell you who you are, when you tell me what you think about, when you don't have time to think".

Remember our "thoughts don't have to be sinful, only distracting enough to weaken the communication so we don't hear the whisperings of the Spirit."

Hope you have a good day.

How We Spend Our Days

Artwork taken from here.

How We Deal

"It's not so much what happens to us but how we deal with what happens to us."

James E. Faust - Oct. Gen. Conf 2004