Love makes us instinctively reach out to God and other people. Lust, on the other hand, is anything but godly and celebrates self-indulgence. Love comes with open hands and open heart; lust comes with only an open appetite. These are just some of the reasons that prostituting the true meaning of love-either with imagination or another person-is so destructive. It destroys that which is second only to our faith in God-namely, faith in those we love. It shakes the pillars of trust upon which present-or future-love is built, and it takes a long time to rebuild that trust when it is lost.
Jeffrey R. HollandIf the bitter cup does not pass, drink it and be strong, trusting in happier days ahead.
Jeffrey R. HollandPerhaps some have created their own difficulties but don't the rest of us do exactly the same things? Are we not all beggars?
Jeffrey R. HollandThe world around us is an increasingly hostile and sinful place. Occasionally that splashes onto us, and perhaps, in the case of a few of you, it may be nearly drowning you. To anyone struggling under the burden of sin, I say again with the Prophet Joseph that God has โa forgiving dispositionโ (Lectures on Faith, 42). You can change. You can be helped. You can be made wholeโwhatever the problem.
Jeffrey R. Holland