Daniel H. Wells

“ Behold, light has come into the world, and the Saints are the evidence of it, because their minds have been enlightened by the truth which they have received, through the influence of which they have been gathered out from the midst of the nations of the earth, that they might build up the kingdom of God, a kingdom of righteousness where they are not in danger of being overwhelmed with the darkness and corruptions of the world from whence they came. ”

“ We have truly attained to great blessings, still greater are before us, and we can rejoice more abundantly in the faith as we witness the development and progress of the great work in which we are engaged. We see great and important events before us, and duties to perform that are of great importance. Let us take hold with a will and with our whole heart, that we may progress more abundantly than we have hitherto done, which is my prayer and exhortation in the name of Jesus. ”

“ The Lord himself cannot accomplish as much with a people who are slow to comprehend, who do not resist the powers of darkness and who do not overcome the power of the Evil One, but permit Satan to rule predominent [predominant] in their bosoms and throw obstacles in their way, as he could and would with a people who not only being willing and obedient but who exhibit a disposition to govern and control their evil propensities, subdue and eradicate them from their bosoms, and give free scope and power to the intelligence, light, and knowledge with which they are so graciously endowed. ”

“ How can I best serve my Master's cause? With the large majority of those that profess to be Saints, to know how to be the most useful in the midst of the Saints of the Most High God is the ever-prevailing desire; it is a constant thought. ”

“ When there is an abundance of luxuries here, and we show that we can abstain from them and lay them aside to depend upon our own exertions, we thus gain strength and power, instead of waiting till the things are entirely shut out from us. ”

“ Such persons fall far short of doing as well as they know how, or of doing all they can for the building up of the kingdom of God; all such will most likely become darkened in their counsel and lose the knowledge which they possess, for the Lord has not bestowed that light and intelligence for such a purpose. If I understand the subject we are here to use our best ability to aid with our might and power to bring about the purposes of the Almighty in the last days. ”

“ There is such a thing as a commendable rivalry, a desire to excel, and which tends to build up, but this of which I speak is a design to thwart the operations and to keep in men's own bosoms the knowledge which would do others good; yet they appear to delight in keeping looked up in their own bosoms that knowledge which would be of service to the community. ”

“ This perhaps is in the bosoms of all the Saints; they would like to show that they are willing to abide the teachings that come from the President to them, and to lay the foundation for bringing those things from the elements which they require. Let us endeavour to make a little calculation, exercise our intellects, be active and energetic, and combine together the ability which we find in our midst; let us also combine our efforts and means as well as our faith. We are frequently in difficulty to establish some mechanical branch of business. ”

“ Hence, when we see men continue to be actuated by such unworthy influences which we find to be both disagreeable and disgraceful, we should strive to help them in overcoming them. Perhaps we do not all think of it in this light. ”

“ If we do not, let us search out and see where we do give the Evil One power over us, and how he takes the advantage and causes us to do things which hedge up not only our own way, but the way of others. ”

“ This is the spirit that has been in Iron County; it is a kind of rivalry that is engendered in hell. To let the power of the Devil enter in and produce such feelings among Saints that ought to know better, and that ought to do better, is a disgrace to a people calling themselves the people of God. ”

“ I presume there is no person living, who, if it had been possible twelve years ago to have looked forward to this time, and seen the vast increase of this mighty work and its magnitude, but would have considered it the most glorious scenery that could be exhibited to their view. ”

“ We have thus far been frustrated in our attempts to manufacture iron, not so much for want of the mechanical skill, as in consequence of a certain unrighteous ambition which some have had to be the first to bring out good iron. ”

“ A person may have it in his heart to do so, but he may not have if in his ability to do as well as he knows because of the control [l] ing circumstances which surround him at the time. This doubtless, is frequently owing to the ignorance of those associated with him, and if the people cannot do as well as they would at first, let them not be discouraged, but try again, and continue their efforts, perhaps they may bring greater influences to bear and combine more power as they proceed, until, finally they will be successful. ”