In the last recorded revelation Joseph Smith had received, he was instructed, “Do not run faster or labor more than you have strength and means provided to enable you to translate” (DC 10:4). Accordingly, Joseph worked very little on the translation until the Lord sent Oliver Cowdery to act as a scribe (Apr. 1829).
“[After again receiving both the plates and the Urim and Thummim] I did not, however, go immediately to translating, but went to laboring with my hands upon a small farm which I had purchased of my wife's father, in order to provide for my family. In the month of February, 1829, my father came to visit us, at which time I received the following revelation for him.” (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1: 28.)
The ensuing revelation, while given to the Prophet’s father, was of course intended to apply to all who embark in the service of God. Nonetheless, we should take note of the great devotion of Joseph Smith, Sr. He never questioned the validity of his son’s miraculous claims of divine favor.
“As the young [Joseph] followed
the directive of the angel Moroni to tell his father of the message he had
received, he was promised, ‘He will believe every word you say to him.’ Why the
surety of the promise? Joseph Smith Sr. was known by name millennia before his
birth and had been foreordained to a great work in the latter days (see 2 Ne. 3:152 Ne. 3:15). After hearing his son's
remarkable recitation he declared, ‘My son, be not disobedient to this heavenly
vision!’
“Smith, Joseph, Sr.PPWhere many fathers might have lacked the humility to follow their sons, Joseph Smith Sr. never sought prominence over young Joseph. He was supportive of his son's prophetic calling and even suffered persecution for his beliefs. He was privileged to be one of the Eight Witnesses of the Book of Mormon who saw the plates and the engravings on them, ‘all of which has the appearance of ancient work, and of curious workmanship’ (The Testimony of Eight Witnesses).
“…On the day the Church was organized Father Smith was baptized. His prophetic son took him by the hand and exclaimed, ‘Praise to my God! that I lived to see my own father baptized into the true Church of Jesus Christ!’ Of his testimony Father Smith declared, ‘I have never denied the Lord.… The Lord has often visited me in visions and dreams, and has brought me, with my family, through many afflictions, and I this day thank his holy name.’
“…At age sixty-four Father Smith served a mission with his brother John. They traveled nearly twenty-four hundred miles throughout the East, strengthening the Saints, pronouncing patriarchal blessings, and sharing the gospel with relatives. His love for his family in the East and for his immediate family on the western frontier was unabated. His fatherly bond to his son Joseph was often noted.” (Susan Easton Black, Who's Who in the Doctrine and Covenants [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997], 290 - 291.)
This revelation is very short, only seven verses, but it contains sufficient counsel and instruction for a life-time study. No one has yet mastered it. It was not intended (only) as a personal revelation to Joseph Smith, but to be of benefit to all who desire to embark in the service of God. It is a revelation to each member of the Church, especially to all who hold the Priesthood. Perhaps there is no other revelation in all our scriptures that embodies greater instruction pertaining to the manner of qualification of members of the Church for the service of God, and in such condensed form than this revelation. It is as broad, as high and as deep as eternity. No elder of the Church is qualified to teach in the Church, or carry the message of Salvation to the world, until he has absorbed, in part at least, this heaven-sent instruction. (Church History and Modern Revelation, 1: 33.)
Can you think of a time in the earth’s history greater than this dispensation? Could there be a greater cause than to prepare the earth for the second coming of Jesus Christ? As a stone rolls on until it becomes a great mountain, the kingdom rolls on to its divine destiny—a great movement with great momentum and steady acceleration. When the Lord says “a marvelous work is about to come forth,” he is saying that something wonderful is going to happen, and more importantly, he is giving us the opportunity to be a part of it. “The work is so marvelous that the Lord is going to give us the privilege of participating in it with him, but only if we desire to. He does not twist arms or preach duty or try to instill obedience through guilt. He simply tells us that the work itself will be its own reward. In fact, it will be marvelous.” (S. Michael Wilcox, House of Glory: Finding Personal Meaning in the Temple [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 126 - 127.)
When that revelation was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, he was twenty-three years of age. The Book of Mormon was not yet published; no man had been ordained to the priesthood. The Church was not organized; yet the statement was made and written without qualification that “ . . . a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.”…Manifestly, some higher power was operating to bring about this marvelous work other than mere human and material means. (Conference Report, April 1954, Morning Session 22 - 23.)
When we look at the marvelous growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and read the prophecies of the Prophet of God who was chosen to open this last dispensation, it seems to me that it leaves no room to doubt that the hand of God has been over this people from the day the Church was organized up to the present time. It is true that we have been tried and tempted; it is true we have been persecuted, and all manner of falsehoods have been circulated against us, and retailed and wholesaled the world over; but let me say to you, be faithful to the God that has watched over this people and to His commandments, and just as sure as we have increased to what we are today, just so sure will the little stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands roll forth and fill the whole earth, as the Prophet of God foretold. The time is not far distant when men and women from among this people will be wanted all over the world. I want to testify to you today that this people, who have been chosen of God, will yet teach the world the way of life, and the only way to get back into the presence of God. The world may not believe it, and they may hold out against it as long as it is possible; but the word has been spoken that this people, governed by the revelations of the Almighty, shall yet be a light unto the world and teach them the way back unto eternal life. (Conference Report, April 1902, Afternoon Session 24 - 25.)
We do not yet comprehend the power and the spiritual strength that will come to the Church when we are totally united in truth and have become sanctified. A power surge would come from this Church that would startle the world and reach into every nation, state, community, village, and home, as it did in the days of Enoch and as it will yet happen during the millennial reign. (The Incomparable Christ: Our Master and Model [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 28.)
To serve God with all your heart, might, mind, and strength is to worship God emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and physically. It is an all-encompassing commitment without reservations, exceptions, or vacations. Do we imagine that God’s commitment to us is half-hearted? When Christ suffered in the Garden of Gesthemane and on Golgatha, didn’t he suffer with all of his heart, might, mind, and strength? Then doesn’t he have a right to expect the same of our individual service?
…the Savior said that if we are “lukewarm,” he “will spue [us] out of [his] mouth” (Rev. 3:16). Moderation in all things is not a virtue, because it would seem to justify moderation in commitment. That is not moderation, but indifference. That kind of moderation runs counter to the divine commands to serve with all of our “heart, might, mind and strength” (D&C 4:2), to “seek … earnestly the riches of eternity” (D&C 68:31), and to be “valiant in the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:79). Moderation is not the answer. (“Our Strengths Can Become Our Downfall,” Ensign, Oct. 1994, 19)
Hard work is a blessing of God. It involves going after it “with all your heart, might, mind and strength.” (D&C 4:2.) That alone is the difference between the average and the excellent. (“The Principle of Work,” Ensign, May 1993, 44)
I have stood with missionaries in many lands and quoted section 4. Each time I have that experience, these words of the second verse touch me with a deep personal sense of resolution:
Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of
God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that
ye may stand blameless before God at the last day.
There will be a day of reckoning. There will be a time of confession and accounting. Each day in mortality we are writing the text of that accounting. (“The Order and Will of God,” Ensign, Jan. 1989, 4)
DC 4:2 see that ye serve him
with all your heart
To serve God with all your heart means to love him with all the affection your soul has power to muster. He becomes the object of your greatest affections and desires. You love him more than self, more than neighbor, and more than family (Matt. 10:37). Such devotion cannot be surpassed by any greater emotion. This sort of love is comprehensive in scope and in time. We don’t just love him when we are feeling particularly spiritual. We must love him even when we are at our worst. It is a love over which no worldly pursuit can ever take precedence.
I suppose in the day of judgment the question won’t be so much what did you do or where did you serve, but rather, did you serve me with all your heart? Did you put me first in your life?
Yes, real worship is of the heart.
If men and nations did reach up to God with all their hearts, war would cease. If love of God were in the heart, a man would have no desire to destroy his brother.
There would be no dishonesty if the love of God were in the heart. If God came first in his life, a man would love his neighbor as himself, and instead of taking from him, he would feel to give to him.
In the home, if the love of God were in the heart of the father and the mother, the husband and the wife, and God came first in their lives, there would be an end to selfishness; there would be no discord. Instead, there would be a feeling of how can I help you or what can I do for you instead of demanding my rights and my desires... (“Look to God,” Ensign, Nov. 1982, 27)
We learn from this command that it is not enough to serve God with all of our might and strength. He who looks into our hearts and knows our minds demands more than this. In order to stand blameless before God at the last day, we must also serve him with all our heart and mind.
Service with all of our heart and mind is a high challenge for all of us. Such service must be free of selfish ambition. It must be motivated only by the pure love of Christ. (“Why Do We Serve?” Ensign, Nov. 1984, 15)
DC 4:2 see that ye serve him
with all your…might
How is might different than strength? A parallel passage in Luke 10:27 uses the word soul is used instead of might. This helps us understand that might, in this sense, refers to spiritual strength rather than physical strength. It represents that exercise of soul power which true disciples call upon when exercising faith. It represents the longings of the spirit for communion with the divine.
“Joseph Smith taught that working by faith is working by the power of mental exertion rather than physical force. I am persuaded that the mental exertion of which he spoke is not merely a cognitive exercise but rather a strenuous effort, a spiritual search to know the will of God and then the determination to accept and abide by that will.” (Robert L. Millet, Selected Writings of Robert L. Millet: Gospel Scholars Series [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 2000], 465.)
DC 4:2 see that ye serve him
with all your…mind
There are some disciples who excel in their love and service yet tire at the thought of intellectual worship. They don’t bother with deeper doctrines. Scripture study is a chore rather than a feast. They are Christians but not theologians, disciples but not scholars.
However, the glory of God is intelligence, and light and truth can only be comprehended by the spiritual mind. Lest we discount its importance, remember that life eternal—the supreme goal—is defined in terms of whether we know God (John 17:3). To become like him requires regular intellectual calisthenics, in which muscle mass is increased line upon line. The intellectual part of our worship cannot be taken out of the equation anymore than a man can survive without a brain.
We sisters are good at using our hearts and our hands in the Lord’s work. But we must also use our minds. More than one hundred years ago, Relief Society President Emmeline B. Wells said, “I believe in women, especially thinking women” (“Why, Ah! Why” Woman’s Exponent, vol. 3, Oct. 1, 1874, p. 67). So do I.
How do we seek with our minds? With our intellect we can ponder, we can analyze our circumstances, we can sort and sift information, weigh our options; we can store ideas, we can draw conclusions from our experiences, find answers to our problems; we can treasure thoughts and receive revelation. Isn’t that what the Lord meant when he said, “You must study it out in your mind” and then ask me if these things are not true? (D&C 9:8.)
This statement of the Prophet Joseph Smith inspires me: “Thy mind … if thou wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost heavens” (History of the Church, 3:295). We must stretch our minds if we are to reach that lofty goal so familiar to us all: “The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth” (D&C 93:36).
As we earnestly seek light and truth, we develop clarity in our lives that reflects spiritual understanding and commitment. This clarity results as we learn from our daily experiences, our thoughtful study, and as we receive personal inspiration from the Holy Spirit. (“Seek, and Ye Shall Find,” Ensign, Nov. 1994, 90)
For a disciple of Jesus Christ,
academic scholarship is a form of worship. It is actually another dimension of
consecration…For the disciple-scholar, the first and second great commandments
frame and prioritize life. How else could one worship God with all of one's
heart, might, mind, and strength? (Luke 10:27Luke
10:27.) (Henry B. Eyring, ed., On Becoming a Disciple Scholar [Salt Lake
City: Bookcraft, 1995], 7.)
…gaining knowledge and becoming more Christlike ‘are two aspects of a single process.’ (C. Terry Warner, in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 4:1490.) This process is part of being “valiant” in our testimony of Jesus. Thus, while we are saved no faster than we gain a certain type of knowledge, it is also the case that we will gain knowledge no faster than we are saved! (See Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 217.) So in our different understanding of knowledge and truth, behaving and knowing are inseparably linked.
Thus defined, the gospel is inexhaustible because there is not only so much to know but also so much to become. The vital truths are not merely accumulated in the mind but are expressed in life as well. (“The Inexhaustible Gospel,” Ensign, Apr. 1993, 68)
“When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to the law upon which it is predicated” (DC 130:21) Accordingly, we are told that whole-hearted, diligent service is rewarded with a clear conscience at the judgment day. Jacob elaborated on this principle as follows:
we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day. (Jacob 1:19)
A similar concept, found in verse 4, states that those engaged in the work, particularly in relation to missionary work, bring salvation to their souls. Apparently, the Lord forgives our sins more readily when we are engaged in proclaiming the gospel. Someone once said, “The best time to die is on your mission.” This statement encompasses the principle that missionary work has a sanctifying effect on the missionary, for “whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name's sake, shall find it again, even life eternal” (DC 98:13).
DC 4:3 if ye have desires
“If ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work.” (D&C 4:3D&C 4:3.) He did not say, if you go to college you are called, or if you have a high IQ or a head full of good ideas you are called, He said, if you desire to do it you are called. An ancient American prophet said, “God grants to every man according to his desires.” (See Enos 1:12Enos 1:12.) Desire is the pilot of the soul. It is the greatest power in the personality. (February 9, 1965, BYU Speeches of the Year, 1965, p. 9.)
Brothers and sisters, all of you out in the wards and stakes and in the districts and branches, I invite you to become a vast army with enthusiasm for this work and a great overarching desire to assist the missionaries in the tremendous responsibility they have to carry the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. “The field is white [and] ready to harvest” (D&C 4:4). The Lord has repeatedly declared this. Shall we not take Him at His word?
Before the Church was organized, there was missionary work. It has continued ever since, notwithstanding the difficulties of many of the seasons through which our people have passed. Let us, every one, resolve within ourselves to arise to a new opportunity, a new sense of responsibility, a new shouldering of obligation to assist our Father in Heaven in His glorious work of bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of His sons and daughters throughout the earth. (“Find the Lambs, Feed the Sheep,” Ensign, May 1999, 110)
1986 was a crowning year…At the end of the year, 31,803 missionaries were serving and 216,210 converts had been baptized…That is a phenomenal and wonderful thing.
But all of us acknowledge that we have barely scratched the surface. We have a mandate laid upon us from which we cannot shrink. It is the charge from the Lord himself to teach the gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. The field is white, but the laborers are relatively few.
You will recall that Alma gave up the judgment seat so that he might have time and strength for a greater work: “And this he did that he himself might go forth among his people … that he might preach the word of God unto them, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty, and that he might pull down, by the word of God, all the pride and craftiness and all the contentions which were among his people, seeing no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them.” (Alma 4:19.)
For this same reason, the world today needs the power of pure testimony. It needs the gospel of Jesus Christ, and if the world is to hear that gospel, there must be messengers to teach it. (“There Must Be Messengers,” Ensign, Oct. 1987, 2)
The field is still white and all ready to harvest. Church members remain a small percentage of the world’s population. “For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations … who are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it.” …The Church needs more missionaries, many more, including couples, to fulfill its charge to proclaim the gospel “unto all nations, kindreds, tongues and people.” (“Deep Roots,” Ensign, Nov. 1994, 77)
Some people believe that all of the opportunities are in the past. It has even been said by some church people that we are in the gleaning period, but that is just not so. We are living in the full bloom of the greatest harvest ever known in the world, and that applies to all fields. Branch Rickey, the great baseball manager, was once asked what was his greatest experience in baseball. He said, “I don't know, I haven't had it yet.” None of you has yet even come close to your greatest experiences. (November 9, 1965, BYU Speeches of the Year, 1965, p. 10.)
DC 4:5 faith, hope, charity
Have you noticed in the scriptures that hope seldom stands alone? Hope is often linked with faith. Hope and faith are commonly connected to charity. Why? Because hope is essential to faith; faith is essential to hope; faith and hope are essential to charity. They support one another like legs on a three-legged stool. All three relate to our Redeemer. (“A More Excellent Hope,” Ensign, Feb. 1997, 61)
These three good friends—faith, hope, and charity—become stronger because of their association with each other. Perhaps what is most important about them is that they exist together. The charitable woman is also the hopeful, faithful woman. Hence, when a woman loses hope, she will also lose faith and charity. (“A Perfect Brightness of Hope,” Ensign, Mar. 1992, 12)
DC 4:5 faith, hope, charity,
and love
…labor with love. There is no substitute for love. Often this love is kindled in youth by a mother, expanded by a father, and kept vibrant through service to God. Remember the Lord’s counsel: “And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.” Well might each of us ask himself: Today, have I increased in faith, in hope, in charity, in love? When our lives comply with God’s standard and we labor with love to bring souls unto Him, those within our sphere of influence will never speak the lament, “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” (Jer. 8:20) (“That All May Hear,” Ensign, May 1995, 49)
DC 4:5 with an eye single to
the glory of God
Jesus was limiting the scope when he cautioned us to keep our eye single (see D&C 4:5). A single vision should also have a narrow focus. Jesus proclaimed this same philosophy when he said: “No man can serve two masters” (Matt. 6:24).
James pointed out that “a double minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8). There are also some triple-minded and quadruple-minded individuals—people who have not tuned out enough of their distractions. The secret of success is to limit the scope, narrow the vision, and concentrate the effort with a finer focus on a single objective. (“The Strait Gate,” Ensign, July 1980, 6)
Imagine, if you will, a pair of powerful binoculars. Two separate optical systems are joined together with a gear to focus two independent images into one three-dimensional view. To apply this analogy, let the scene on the left side of your binoculars represent your perception of your task. Let the picture on the right side represent the Lord’s perspective of your task—the portion of His plan He has entrusted to you. Now, connect your system to His. By mental adjustment, fuse your focus. Something wonderful happens. Your vision and His are now the same. You have developed an “eye single to the glory of God” (D&C 4:5; see also Morm. 8:15). With that perspective, look upward—above and beyond mundane things about you. The Lord said, “Look unto me in every thought” (D&C 6:36). That special vision will also help clarify your wishes when they may be a bit fuzzy and out of focus with God’s hopes for your divine destiny. Indeed, the precise challenge you regard now as “impossible” may be the very refinement you need, in His eye. (“With God Nothing Shall Be Impossible,” Ensign, May 1988, 34–35)
Latter-day Saints whose eyes are single to God’s glory see life from a vastly different perspective than those whose attention is directed elsewhere. Such members, for instance, care little about receiving credit or recognition for their good deeds. They are more interested in feeding the Lord’s sheep than in counting them. In fact, they frequently find their greatest happiness in serving anonymously, thereby leaving the beneficiaries of their kindness with no one to thank or praise except the Lord. In this regard, we can perhaps learn a lesson from our Christian brothers and sisters in the Amish communities of Pennsylvania. It is reported that their writers frequently compose and publish poetry and religious literature anonymously, so as to deflect attention from themselves and ensure that only God receives the glory…
Considerations of church position and title are also of little consequence to Latter-day Saints whose eyes are directed toward God’s glory. Their concern is focused on the opportunities for service that church callings present, rather than on gaining personal notoriety. Such members, who serve competently and quietly, regardless of whether they are the “highest” or the “least” in the kingdom, are probably those that the Apostle Paul had in mind when he wrote, “And those members of the body [meaning the Church], which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour.” (1 Cor. 12:23.)…
When our eyes are fixed on God’s glory, we feel the majesty of His creations and the grand scope of His work on this earth. We feel humble to be participants in His latter-day kingdom. If we pause and quietly reflect on our role in all of this, we will come to know that placing our egos and our vain ambitions on the sacrificial altar is one of the most important offerings we can ever make. Well might we acknowledge, as did Moses after beholding in vision God’s glory: “Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” (Moses 1:10.) (“An Eye Single to the Glory of God,” Ensign, Nov. 1989, 27)
See commentary for 2 Peter 1:5-7.
It is inspiring to read the Lord’s own description of the traits which make up His own character. He lists them this way:
Faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory
of God. …
…virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence. (D&C 4:5–6.)
These are the traits of character of the Lord Jesus Christ. How earnestly do we try to build them into our own souls?
He commands us to become perfect, even as His Father in Heaven is perfect. (See Matt. 5:48.)
Can perfection arise out of careless living? Can we achieve perfection by imperfect means? It is plain to see why the Lord is strict and why we must serve Him with all our heart, might, mind, and strength. (See D&C 4:2.)
It is no easy matter to live the gospel as we should. But unless we do, we cannot receive the blessings. It is no easy matter to become perfect in anything. Perfection requires devotion, long-suffering, persistence, willingness to sacrifice, and constant concentration. Imperfection can produce only further imperfection. (“Believers and Doers,” Ensign, Nov. 1982, 18)
The magnificence of man is matchless. But, glorious as this physical tabernacle is, the body is designed to support something even more glorious—the eternal spirit, which dwells in each of our mortal frames. The great accomplishments of this life are rarely physical. Those attributes by which we shall be judged one day are spiritual. With the blessing of our bodies to assist us, we may develop spiritual qualities of honesty, integrity, compassion, and love. Only with the development of the spirit may we acquire “faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, [and] diligence.” (D&C 4:6.) (“The Magnificence of Man,” Ensign, Jan. 1988, 69)
David O. McKay
These qualifications were not the possession of wealth, not social distinction, not political preferment, not military achievement, not nobility of birth; but a desire to serve God with all your “heart, mind, and strength”—spiritual qualities that contribute to nobility of soul. I repeat: no popularity, no wealth, no theological training in Church government—yet a marvelous work was about to come forth among the children of men. (Conference Report, April 1954, Morning Session 22 - 23.)
DC 4:7 Ask, and ye shall
receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you
Richard G. Scott
Life in today’s world can be at times so complicated and the challenges so overwhelming as to be beyond our individual capacity to resolve them. We all need help from the Lord. Yet there are many individuals who don’t know how to receive that help. They feel their urgent pleas for help have often gone unattended. How can that be when He Himself has said, “Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you”? (D&C 4:7.)
Such difficulty results either from not following His spiritual law for providing help or from not recognizing help when it comes. Well did James observe, “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss.” (James 4:3.)
True, the Lord has said, “Ask, and ye shall receive.” (D&C 4:7.) But He also declared, “Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.” (D&C 9:7.)
It is evident that He intends that we do our part. But what, specifically, are we to do? No one would expect to receive a result from physical law without obeying it. Spiritual law is the same. As much as we want help, we must expect to follow the spiritual law that controls that help. Spiritual law is not mysterious. It is something that we can understand. The scriptures define it in significant detail. I will cite key scriptures that teach how to ask for help, then summarize the spiritual law they clarify.
The Savior declared, “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.” (D&C 82:10; italics added.)
John taught, “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.” (1 Jn. 3:22; italics added.)
Nephi counseled, “Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?—If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.” (1 Ne. 15:11; italics added.)
The Lord has the power to bless us at any time. Yet we see that to count on His help, we must consistently obey His commandments. (“Obtaining Help from the Lord,” Ensign, Nov. 1991, 84)