On September 9th, President Nelson turns 101. The Church has invited everyone to join in the celebration by sharing their favorite quotes, teachings, and talks from him on social media from September 1-9.
I thought we’d share a few of his quotes as well.
The first two quotes come from his General Conference talk in October 2023.
“Today, to assist you to qualify for the rich blessings Heavenly Father has for you, I invite you to adopt the practice of ‘thinking celestial’! Thinking celestial means being spiritually minded. We learn from the Book of Mormon prophet Jacob that “to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.” (General Conference Oct 2023)
“There is no end to the adversary’s deceptions. Please be prepared. Never take counsel from those who do not believe. Seek guidance from voices you can trust — from prophets, seers, and revelators, and from the whisperings of the Holy Ghost..”(General Conference Oct 2023)
In other words, “thinking celestial” means you can’t trust anything that doesn’t come from a member of the Church, and you should always be thinking about what you need to do to be worthy of the Celestial Kingdom. As a Mormon, I was cautioned by Church leaders to stay away from anything that didn’t positively reflect the Church. Those things were ‘anti-Mormon’.
If the Church can’t stand up to a little scrutiny and true investigation, is it something worth their time and devotion? What is it they want to hide? What would it hurt to have a Church member look for advice from someone who is an unbeliever when it comes to Mormonism?
This is one of his quotes about the Book of Mormon –
It’s worth mentioning that the title of this talk is “The Book of Mormon: What Would Your Life Be Like without It?” That, to me, says it all.
“My dear brothers and sisters, I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life. I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day, even the gripping plague of pornography and other mind-numbing addictions.” (General Conference October 2017)
Whenever I read quotes like this, I wonder why the Mormons even bother carrying around the Bible? According to their 8th Article of Faith, they don’t believe it’s been translated correctly. Furthermore, why do they promote the Book of Mormon? What core Mormon doctrines are found in this book? What spiritual counsel does it give that hasn’t been plagiarized from the Bible?
In a previous General Conference, Nelson spoke about his testimony of the Book of Mormon. In his talk, he said –
“The Book of Mormon is the most important religious text to be revealed from God to man “since the writings of the New Testament were compiled nearly two millennia ago.” Joseph Smith declared the Book of Mormon to be “the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion.” It is the only book that the Lord Himself has testified to be true.“ (General Conference Oct 1999)
Where did Jesus testify of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, you might be asking yourself? It was in The Doctrine and Covenants 17:6, another book Mormons believe is scripture.
Mormons are encouraged to have a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but what about the Bible? If you do a quick search for daily study of the Book of Mormon on their website, it will bring up many resources. However, if you do the same search for the Bible, it wouldn’t be considered worthy of study by itself. You’ll see it with the Book of Mormon, or with the word “scriptures,” which is the word Mormons use to refer to all of their standard works.
I would love for Mormons to have the same respect for the Bible as they do for the Book of Mormon. What would your life be like without the Book of Mormon, Mr. Nelson? Hopefully, you would be reading your Bible more.
In Christ,
Melissa Grimes
Resources –
The Book of Mormon: What Would Your Life Be Like without It?
Testimony of the Book of Mormon
Doctrine and Covenants 17:6 “And he has translated the book, even that part which I have commanded him, and as your Lord and your God liveth it is true.”
How deceived they are. Prayers for all Mormons. Mr. Nelson is just a common sinner. The Bible is the most important book in the world.
M.j
Amen, amen, amen Mj!
How we pray that all Mormons would see and understand this.
As a side note…my son-in-law’s grandmother celebrated her 103rd birthday last week.
Wow. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO HER. GOD BLESS HER. My mom is 92 but she has dementia. But not too bad yet. Have a blessed day. Keep up the good work. Prayers for all Mormons.
M.J
Thanks and I’ll be sure to let everyone know!
I almost said Nelson was a common criminal🤣😂. Don’t know if he is but he is a common sinner. Have a blessed day. God is great.
In the Lord’s eyes he is!
[…] Celebrating President Nelson’s 101st Birthday – Melissa Grimes […]
Just checking in to make sure y’all are “thinking celestial”, 🤓
oh, we’re thinking celestial but not in the way Nelson does.