“Reflections on a Consecrated Life”
D. Todd Christofferson
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
“To consecrate is to set apart or dedicate something as sacred, devoted to holy purposes. True success in this life comes in consecrating our lives—that is, our time and choices—to God’s purposes (see John 17:1, 4; D&C 19:19). In so doing, we permit Him to raise us to our highest destiny.”
What stands out to you as you study this talk? Is there anything you learned here that you had not considered before? What did the talk make you feel or want to do?
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Diapers and Divinity 
I just received my Conference edition of the Ensign . . . and I need to refocus. So here I am. I’ll comment with substance soon!
PS Thanks for this. Really.
I took so many notes on this talk–of sacred impressions I’ve been praying to receive. The idea of consecrating my time and my life in the midst of this season of motherhood when very little is really in my control–not even a shower happens peacefully and without incident on most days–is a powerful one. We always have our agency and the same amount of time everyone else has. The way we employ our agency to fill our time makes all the difference in our life. This talk reminded me to make prayerful and conscious choices instead of being reactive to the chaos that happens in spite of best intentions and recognize any and all small bits of success along the way.
Oh, yes. YES. This is the talk from which I have already clipped out two quotes for the bulletin board in the kitchen as daily reminders that my work is sacred and that real beauty comes through consecration.
charrette, what was the two quotes?
This talk had a profound affect on me…It really resonated with my spirit!
I loved this line, because my husband and I work really hard…and we actually like it…”Labour, wide as the Earth, has its summit in Heaven.” I thought for a while that there was something wrong with us for working all the time when we are together…but come to find out…there’s not! 🙂
and then this: “At the same time, it hardly needs to be said that much of what passes for entertainment today is coarse, degrading, violent, mind-numbing, and time wasting. Ironically, it sometimes takes hard work to find wholesome leisure. When entertainment turns from virtue to vice, it becomes a destroyer of the consecrated life.”
And perhaps that explains why my husband and I feel like we are always working…it takes work to find wholesome recreational activities!!!
“Every day, every hour, every minute of your span of mortal years must sometime be accounted for. And it is in this life that you walk by faith and prove yourself able to choose good over evil, right over wrong, enduring happiness over mere amusement. And your eternal reward will be according to your choosing.”
“These statements express the reality that our life on earth is a stewardship of time and choices granted by our Creator.”
I loved this talk – one of my favorites from Conference! I was really struck by the concept of being accountable for every minute of our lives. I have found myself, since Conference, becoming more aware of my personal stewardship of each moment of my day. What a privilege to consecrate each moment of our lives!
“The man who so walks in the light and wisdom and power of God, will at the last, by the very force of association, make the light and wisdom and power of God his own—weaving those bright rays into a chain divine, linking himself forever to God and God to him. This [is] the sum of Messiah’s mystic words, ‘Thou, Father, in me, and I in thee’—beyond this human greatness cannot achieve.” BH Roberts.
This quote cited in the beginning of the talk sung to me–the image of being woven together with the light and wisdom of God, becoming bright and divine in the process.
Just a couple quotes that really struck me as I was reading…
“Life offers you two precious gifts—one is time, the other freedom of choice, the freedom to buy with your time what you will.” Richard L. Evans
“Every day, every hour, every minute of your span of mortal years must sometime be accounted for. And it is in this life that you walk by faith and prove yourself able to choose good over evil, right over wrong, enduring happiness over mere amusement. And your eternal reward will be according to your choosing”
“True success in this life comes in consecrating our lives—that is, our time and choices—to God’s purposes”
Great reminder of what we are supposed to be doing, which isn’t always what we want to be doing.
I agree that this talk was a great reminder. For me, it’s hard not to get discouraged by talks like this because I feel I have so far to go. But then I am reminded of the widow’s mite, how my efforts don’t go unnoticed.
I also really liked that he reminded us not to work all the time, though it is hard to find good entertainment. I think we feel the only way we can be like Jesus is to always do his work all the time. Jesus also rested and we should as well so we can give of ourselves more fully.
This talk was one of those “I’m talking to you… yah, you” talks. This year, my husband is going through pilot training for the Air Force. I don’t know if you’ve heard about how intense it is, but its pretty much like finals week that lasts for about 54 weeks. They say its the worst year of your life, and they were right. We decided that I’d stop teaching and substitute teach so that we both weren’t stressed out. While not being stressed out over work has been great, I don’t clean the house as perfectly as I ought to. I don’t always have things perfect when he gets home. And I don’t sub as often as I thought I would (can I say that the school district here is a nightmare?). This particular phrase caught me: ““Every day, every hour, every minute of your span of mortal years must sometime be accounted for.” Why? Because I find myself blog surfing, sometimes for an hour when I said “only 15 minutes.” Or looking and fantasizing about where we’re going to be living next. *TIME-WASTING* activities.
This one also hit me, and I thought about how much I don’t work/earn money as much as I used to: “God has designed this mortal existence to require nearly constant exertion.” Although I know motherhood is constant exertion, either physically or emotionally at any given time.
I have tried to spend a lot of my time serving those around me, but I thought maybe, just maybe I ought to devote more time to that, since I don’t work full time. But I also think there’s a fine line between serving others just the right amount, and making sure you serve those in your family (first & foremost). Sometimes I think people confuse serving others as a greater priority in serving the ones closest to you (i.e. your family).
This is just another example of how God works by inspiration. I’m trying to spend less time at the computer and more time doing useful and important things for my family and those around me.
It has been a big wake-up call for me, too. I’ve been feeling a little uneasy lately, and I fear it’s because I’m spending way too much time on stuff that’s not as satisfying. I can feel some changes coming on.
My favorite quote was,
” Honest toil gives rest at sweetness, wholesome recreation is the friend and steadying companion of work. Music, literature, art dance, drama, athletics–all can provide entertainment to enrich one’s life and further consecrate it. At the same time it hardly needs to be said that much of what passes for entertainment today is coarse, degrading, violent, mind numbing, and time wasting. Ironically, it sometimes takes hard work to find wholesome leisure.”
I’m thrilled to have words from conference to help me articulate my dislike of many forms of entertainment that family members want to participate in. The 13th article of faith doesn’t always cut it.
Once again, we are to take action. Not to be acted upon but to purposely seek and do.
I honestly don’t remember this talk from conference so it was good to read through, even though it took me two days to do. It was a nice talk to hear. A few of my favorite quotes were…
“Our life on earth is a stewardship…” The word stewardship really stood out to me and impressed upon me a great amount of responsibility and trust we have been given in being sent here.
“In so doing(consecrating our lives), we permit Him to raise us up to our highest destiny.” The question I need to ask myself is, “Am I letting Him raise me to my highest destiny.” That is something to think about.
“By work we sustain and enrich life. It enables us to survive the disappointments and tragedies of the mortal experience.” I know I have made it through many hard times in my life by staying busy in worthwhile activities.
Last one, “Hypocrisy is terribly destructive, not only to the hypocrite but also to those who observe or know of his or her actions, especially children.” Hopefully this will help me think about how my actions and words go hand in hand, especially since I am at home with my children so much.
I think it is always amazing how each of us hears different things as we listen to these talks.
First of all his comment when he quoted Elder Richard L. Evans regarding how each of us has been given the freedom of time and choice: “the freedom to buy with your time what you will” and how “(my) eternal reward will be according to my choosing.” I guess I have been worried so much about what I do with my time and this was reminder of how important it is to use my time wisely.
I also loved when he talked about repentance and said: Stubbornness, rebellion, and rationalization must be abandoned, and in their place submission, a desire for correction, and acceptance of all that the Lord may require.” I know I truly need to be more submissive.
I really need to ponder more the quote by Elder B. H. Roberts:“The man who so walks in the light and wisdom and power of God, will at the last, by the very force of association, make the light and wisdom and power of God his own—weaving those bright rays into a chain divine, linking himself forever to God and God to him. This [is] the sum of Messiah’s mystic words, ‘Thou, Father, in me, and I in thee’—beyond this human greatness cannot achieve.”
Thanks again, Stephanie. I use these talks each week in my Sunday School lesson. I appreciate this great opportunity each week to really ponder and think about them and to read what everyone else thought as they heard and listened to the talks.
This is one talk that I have a whole page of notes, but the one quote that stuck out to me both in conference and this past week
“True success in this life comes in consecrating our lives . . . to God’s purposes.”
As I have pondered this over the past week, I have developed a great understanding of how true it is. The Lord wants us to succeed. He wants us to be happy. When we follow the commandments and do those things that he has asked of us we find happiness because we are consecreating our efforts to become more like him.
Somedays I find are much harder to do the essentials and follow the “simple” commandments, but it’s the “simple” commandments that really assist us in concecrating ourselves to the Lord. Because if we aren’t “choosing” to use our “time” wisely then how can we concecrate our lives to his will and become more like him?
I didn’t realize how far behind on GCBC I am. I’ve got to kick it into gear!
Wow. This talk was meant for me. I have been feeling over-burdened and unappreciated as of late. This talk was just what I needed – the reminder that my work is good, my work is appreciated even if it is sometimes menial, and that I need to keep up the work.
It also has made me think about time, and the way I use it.
I absolutely love Makamae’s comment. So true!