George Q. Cannon

“ Think of the nature of the name. A Saint of God! Why, he should be next to an angel; the most perfect of the human family. He should be perfect in his sphere, as God is perfect in his sphere. He should be free from fault. ”

“ If he have a fault he should seek daily and hourly to correct it, and not rest satisfied as long as he is aware of the existence of a fault until he conquers it, pleading with the Father in the name of Jesus for strength to overcome his weakness, for power to put it away, carrying with him the spirit of love, the spirit of serenity, the spirit of peace, that when he appears in society, no matter where he may be, all who come in contact with him may feel his influence and feel purified and strengthened by his example and by his words and by his very presence. ”

“ We allow our religion to be too theoretical, and do not practise it to the extent that is required by the teachings of the Gospel. It is very well for us to come to-day and listen to the discourse we have heard, and rejoice in the spirit of it; but if we do not take with us the principles which are taught, and apply them in our lives, our visit to-day to this Tabernacle would be of very little profit. ”

“ You may give men carriages and horses, houses and lands and everything of this character, but unless there is the spirit of happiness within them they would not be happy. The man who lives near to God who has the Spirit of God, be he ever so humble, is a happy man; and without it there is no true happiness.
It should be our constant study to live so that the Holy Spirit will always dwell with us, that when we arise in the morning our minds and our hearts may be as clear as the sky when there is no cloud in it, that we feel at peace with God and man. ”

“ It is for this purpose that the Gospel has been revealed, it is for this purpose that it is taught, it is for this purpose that the Holy Ghost has been promised and poured out, that those who receive it may become better men, may become better women may become more pure, that the evil that seems to be natural to us in consequence of our fallen condition, may be overcome and uprooted, and put away from us. Will those who believe and practise the Gospel be dishonest? ”

“ It is not like our Sunday apparel, to be put on to-day and put off to-morrow; it ought to be carried with us in all the transactions of life, applied to everything we think, we say and do, and always be remembered by us. ”

“ He desires that those who worship him shall worship him in spirit and in truth, and that they shall confess their sins not only to him, but, where they have wronged each other, to one another. It is my duty, if I have wronged my brother, to go to my brother and confess and ask his forgiveness. If I wrong my sister, it is my duty to do the same. If I do wrong to my God, it is my duty to bow down before him in humility and confess in contrition of spirit the wrong I have done and beseech him in the name of Jesus to forgive my sins. ”

“ How many are there of the men in this assembly and of this Church who, when they enter their houses, enter with scowls on their faces, bringing all their cares with them, intruding upon the serenity of their families, making their presence disagreeable to all, instead of going in with gladness and peace and carrying with them the consolation that should attend their presence always? ”

“ Far better is the condition of the humble, the obscure man, the man unknown out of the limited circle of his immediate associates, who is without fame, but who does live his religion, who practises the principles of the Gospel as they are taught by the Lord. Far better is the condition of that man than the other, if he does that and the other man neglects to do it. This Gospel of our's is a practical Gospel. ”

“ A man may perform a mission; he may do innumerable good works; his name may be heralded throughout the Church and to the nations of the earth, and the people may accept it as that of a great and mighty man; but if that man does not conquer himself and live in strict accordance with the principles of the Gospel, his position will only increase his condemnation. ”

“ Instead of finding fault there should be charity, which covers a multitude of sins. Instead of looking at the faults of others, they should be taught to look at their own faults. And they are numerous enough; we have plenty of them to keep us occupied closely all our time, with all the prayer and all the faith we can exercise before God. Our own faults, our own sins, our own shortcomings are sufficient to occupy our entire attention, without thinking about those of our neighbors, or ever speaking about them. ”

“ These are some of the practical parts of our religion, and, as I have said, not to be practised today alone, to-day, the first day of the week, the Sabbath, but to be practised to-morrow, and to be carried out in our lives, in our daily intercourse one with another; to be meek and lowly in heart, seeking the Spirit of Jesus, willing to suffer wrong rather than do wrong ”

“ We will be people whom the Lord will delight to bless; and who will have his Spirit and power resting down upon us. And no matter how much we may be maligned and spoken evil about, we shall have the consolation of knowing from the Lord that we are right, that we have done that which he requires, and that we have his blessing and his approval. ”

“ But the greatest work we can do is to so live that we ourselves shall be saved, that our own acts shall be correct, and our will and desires and passions be brought into subjection to the will of God. ”

“ Such a religion people may put on as they do their Sunday apparel, and wear to the meeting-house; and when the day passes, doff it as they do their apparel, and assume their every-day practices. But the religion of Jesus Christ should be taught and practised by those who believe it, every day of the week and in all the pursuits of life. ”

“ It is not these external circumstances that are the sources of happiness. Of course it is right and proper we should take care of the bodies God has given unto us, just as much as our spirits, that they should be kept clean, that our clothing should be comfortable and our habitation suitable. ”

“ Suppose we bow down before him because it is the custom to do so, in a formal manner, worshipping him with our lips while our hearts are far from him, repeating by rote certain sentences we have learned, and to the use of which we have become accustomed, will such an offering be acceptable in the sight of God? ”

“ God has given unto us wisdom and power to do this, and he has placed the elements around us, and he would condemn us if we did not use them for our comfort and blessing. But they are not the only things needful. You may pile up money until you fill this Tabernacle and its possession would not make a man happy. ”

“ They should be banished from our society and from our households. Our children should be taught better. When they speak evil of any one they should be checked and told if they cannot say something good concerning their fellows, to say nothing. ”

“ Their wives are perhaps fretful from overwork, their nerves affected by the toils of the day, or the heat, causing them to be in an irritable mood, and when the two come together under such circumstances they produce friction, bad feeling and offences follow. ”

“ It has often been remarked respecting our meetings in this Tabernacle, by persons who have not been accustomed to our form of worship and our method of instruction, that we very frequently dwell upon a great many subjects that other people do not deem appropriate to the Sabbath. ”