General Conference, ‘Take Up Our Cross,’ October 2019 “…all of us, brothers and sisters, need to open our minds and our hearts in order to more fully understand the relevance of taking upon ourselves our crosses and following Him. We learn through the scriptures that those who wish to take their cross upon themselves love Jesus Christ in such a way that they deny themselves of all ungodliness and of every worldly lust and keep His commandments…
For example, for those who have not yet found an eternal companion and may be feeling lonely and hopeless…I assure you that accepting the Savior’s invitation of taking upon yourselves your crosses and following Him means continuing with faith on the Lord’s path…
The same principles apply to those of you who are experiencing same-gender attraction and feel discouraged and helpless…I want to assure you that there is always hope in God the Father…
He will do for us what we are not capable of doing for ourselves. …
Additionally, for those who feel bitter, angry, offended, or chained to sorrows for something you feel is undeserved, to take up one’s cross and follow the Savior means to strive to lay aside these feelings…
We cannot repent for other people, but we can forgive them— …we must remember that taking our cross upon ourselves includes being humble and trusting in God and in His infinite wisdom…” — Ulisses Soares
Matthew 16:24 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
Mr. Soares’ speech is a good example of ‘talk is cheap’.
Nowhere in the Bible does it say marriage is equivalent to following Jesus, let alone picking up a cross.
In biblical times picking up your cross meant one thing. Death. Two thousand years later it still carries the same meaning, but not in all situations. For the majority of us in Western societies, following Jesus doesn’t entail a death sentence, but it should mean your life will drastically change. GotQuestions.org has a great article on this. Here’s a few questions they listed on their site –
“If you wonder if you are ready to take up your cross, consider these questions:
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing some of your closest friends?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means alienation from your family?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means the loss of your reputation?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your job?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your life?In some places of the world, these consequences are reality. But notice the questions are phrased, “Are you willing?” Following Jesus doesn’t necessarily mean all these things will happen to you, but are you willing to take up your cross? …”
Mr. Soares was quick to emphasize loyalty to leaders is mandatory, and fell way short on truth. Guilting people into submission isn’t what the Lord ever did. He followed what was written in the scriptures, and by example, showed that He was the fulfillment of the Law.
One last thing…if you can’t repent for others, why does the Church get baptized for others?
Bless a Mormon today by sharing the truth you’ve read here today!
With Love in Christ;
Michelle
“Come unto me all ye that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me for I am meek and lowly i heart and e shall find rest unto your spirits. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”(
“Come unto me all ye that labor and heavy laden and ye shall find rest. take my yoke upon yo and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your spirits. (Matthew 11:28-30
WHAT??? Clearly, he doesn’t understand the meaning of “take up the cross”.
I’m single, and I found an eternal companion…His name is Jesus.
The Mormon belief that one has to be married in order to achieve the highest level in the Celestial Kingdom is completely contrary to what the Bible says; ()Read 1 Corinthians 7:27,32). In these verse, the Lord tells us that if we are single, to be content with our single status and to not look for a mate, but rather to give our time to the Lord, to better serve the Lord. Why, because the married person, cares for the things of his/her spouse; the unmarried person cares for the things of the Lord.