Something Worth Saving

This talk was given to a congreagation at the Utah Boys Ranch, on July 31, 2005.

The Story of Rosemarie Deppe

As a young girl, Rosemarie spent her summers with my grandma, and she spent much of her time in her garden. She didn’t have a nice, small garden in the corner of her yard like other grandmas. Oh No!! She had what she called a “work-hard-and-eat-well” garden. We would get up early in the morning before it got too and spend hours weeding, watering, and eventually picking the vegetables from the garden. The only thing that kept me going was that once in a while, a fresh breeze would come along to help cool us off.

My grandma didn’t say very much, but she worked a lot. I followed her around the garden, but my mind was usually thinking of something else. I thought to myself: “Gardening is for grandmas!” But my grandma would smile at me, and that smile told me she was pleased as she looked over our work. She made me promise that I would follow the counsel of the prophet (President Spencer W. Kimball) and plant my own garden someday.

Sowing Seeds of Obedience

Eventually Rosemarie grew up, and had a family of her own. She decided that it was time to plant a garden—not because she was too excited about it, but because she had a at least out of a desire to obey the prophet and to keep the promise she had made to her Grandma. She daid: “As soon as I dug up a small area of ground, I realized that I hadn’t paid very close attention to what grandma was doing in the garden when I was younger. What had come so easily for Grandma now seemed impossible for me. Did I pick a good location? How should I arrange the rows? How close should I plant the seeds?”

Continuing her story Rosemarie said: “I tried to dismiss the need to plant a garden. “What’s the big deal, anyway? I can just buy this food from the store and save myself all of this work.” But I had made a promise, and I wanted to keep it. I called Grandma for reminders and tips about gardening. I began to remember again our summer days together in the garden. At first, nothing happened—all that work and nothing. But finally, after several weeks, a few plants struggled through the ground and began to grow.”

Weeding Out Distraction

After planting the garden, Rosemarie got distracted by the challenges in her life, that she forgot her garden. The kids got sick. Life got busy. The dog ate some of the young plants. Other things seemed more important, and she didn’t think much about her garden until grandma came to visit.

Rosemarie said: “I cringed when grandma asked to see the garden. The walk out to the garden seemed long and terrible. When we went outside, I was completely embarrassed by what we both saw. The plants had withered down to nothing, and the weeds were choking out the vegetables. Grandma’s looked around, and didn’t say very much. After looking things over, grandma turned to me, with disappointment in her voice and said: ‘You have neglected your garden.’ “

“I had neglected my garden—and my promise to her. I had not cared about my garden until she was there. I knew I had disappointed her. I thought of a thousand excuses, but none of them mattered. “It’s hopeless, Grandma. I’m hopeless!”

Cultivating Hope

She looked at my garden intently. She looked at me and then looked back at my garden. “No, it’s not hopeless,” she said with a comforting smile. “I think there is something in here worth saving.” Her eyes settled on a scrawny, pathetic-looking green bean bush. I don’t even like green beans very much, but that was the plant she thought would survive.

I would have given up, but Grandma doesn’t give up on anything or anyone. She knelt down beside the little plant and began to clear away the weeds. She instructed me about what I needed to do. This time I listened carefully. Grandma believed that this green bean bush had value. It was important that it lived. I began to care about it too. I did not want to disappoint her again.

It took days to bring that little plant back to life and weeks of nurturing and care to keep it going. I’ll never forget the day I picked three green beans from that bush—I was thrilled!

Learning about Gardening—and God

Many years later, after having many gardens, Rosemarie came to understand what grandma meant when she said: “You will understand more about God if you tend your garden.”

Rosemarie wondered what she meant by that. But then she remembered back to a time in college when her life had come to look like my neglected garden. Her spiritual life was withering. Her gospel roots were not very deep. She said: “In the garden of my life, weeds were growing everywhere because I had neglected scripture study and prayer and had let other things become more important. I went to church, but I didn’t really listen. I made some mistakes, and I knew I needed help.”

The walk to the bishop’s office—like the walk to the garden with my grandma—seemed long and terrible. I was embarrassed by what my life had become. I felt I was hopeless.

My bishop listened. He looked at me intently. Finally, with a comforting smile, he said, in effect, “No, it’s not hopeless. I see something in you that is worth saving.”

I began to understand that the power of the Atonement could restore my withered life. I came to know that Heavenly Father doesn’t give up on anybody, and I determined to try my best to not disappoint Him.

Just like the revitalizing breeze I had felt in my grandmother’s garden, the repentance process restored me. Through the blessings of the Atonement, my withered hopes slowly came back to life. It was a blessing—a blessing just for me.

I now realize that I am responsible for my garden—the garden of my life. It takes daily effort to grow closer to the Lord, just as it takes daily effort to keep a garden. Repentance repairs our mistakes, and the Atonement allows us to keep trying. I have learned that the fruits of the Spirit cannot be purchased from a store; we have to grow them ourselves by following Him.

I have never forgotten how pleased I was to see those three green beans on that scraggly bush long ago. But more important than saving the plant, I came to understand that the Lord sees someone worth saving in me.

What can we learn from Rosemarie’s Story

In Rosemarie’s story, we see that it takes a conscious effort on our part, if we are to keep our spirits in tune with our heavenly father. He has much that he wants to bless us with. We can have the blessing of the Holy Ghost to dwell with us, to help us overcome our weaknesses, and to more clearly see right from wrong.

If we don’t try to weed out the distractions, and things in our lives that can choke out the presence of the Holy Ghost in our lives, our spirits may become like the tiny bean plant in Rosemarie’s garden, struggling to survive and to bear fruit, but severely hampered by neglect, which allowed the weeds to grow all around it, and to steal the sunshine, water, and nutrients in the soil. By clearing away the weeds in our lives, we can open the way toward greater spiritual growth, and strength. We will be better able to grow and enlarge, and reach the potential that is within each one of us as Children of God.

(You Can read Rosemary's own Account Here.)

The Seeds of Death Valley

Have you ever heard of a place called Death Valley?

· Death Valley Normally receives 1-2 inches of rainfall per hear. (Salt Lake City averages between 18-20 inches per year, by contrast.)

· Some years Death Valley can go an entire year without any rainfall at all!

· This winter, there have been 6 inches of rainfall in the last 4 months. What do you think has happened as a result?

· (Show pictures of wildflowers)

· Rainfall like this occurs only about once in every 100 years in Death Valley

· Embedded In the dry and parched desert soil of Death Valley, there are millions of tiny seeds, just waiting to spring forth into life, when the conditions are right. This year the conditions were right, and you can see the results.

Seeds of the Divine

· Just as there are wildflower seeds, embedded in what normally looks like dry, arid soil, there are hidden within each of us, seeds of the divine.

· Each of us is a child of God. We are precious to him.

· We carry within each of us some of his own divine and noble attributes, just like we carry many of the physical attributes of our earthly parents.

· Like the wildflower seeds waiting for rain, the seeds of divinity, inherited from our Heavenly Father, are waiting us to make the conditions right for those seeds to spring forth into life.

How do we Go about Removing the Weeds?

Removing the weeds from our spiritual lives involves making changes in our life. President Spencer W. Kimball counseled young people to take a careful inventory of their habits. “Change,” he said, “comes by substituting good habits for less desirable ones.” Then he added, “You mold your character and future by good thoughts and acts.” (New Era, Sept. 1974, p. 7.)

A favorite saying often quoted by the late President David O. McKay was:

“We sow our thoughts, and we reap our actions; we sow our actions, and we reap our habits; we sow our habits, and we reap our characters; we sow our characters, and we reap our destiny.”

(C. A. Hall, The Home Book of Quotations, New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1935, p. 845.)

When we are born into the world, we have no habits at all. All the habits that we now have, have been learned and acquired at some point in our lives.

Elder Delbert L Stapley, of the Quorum of the Twelve said:

“We are not born into this world with fixed habits. Neither do we inherit a noble character. Instead, as children of God, we are given the privilege and opportunity of choosing which way of life we will follow—which habits we will form.”

Good habits don’t happen overnight. We must first resolve to make a change. But just having made a resolution won’t make it happen. Good habits are formed in our daily lives, by the things we do, one day at a time. As our habits change, from bad ones, to good ones, our character is changed as well. It is not in the moments of great trial that build our character. Rather, these moments display the character that has already been built in our lives, through our day to day actions.

Elder Delbert L. Stapley Said:

“The character required to attain eternal life must be formed in this life with good habits. Goodness in a person is not simply the absence of wrongdoing. It is a love of and practice of all things that are true, honest, lovely, and of good report.”

Let us set high goals for ourselves and work to achieve those goals by making God the center of our lives. He is the fountainhead of all truth, justice, and peace. Let us remember that God’s laws are eternal. They do not change. There is no moral or spiritual code that changes with what is popular in the world, or what might be politically correct. Some may presume that they can change the laws of God to fit their own selfish needs or desires. But God is the same Yesterday, Today, and Forever. Truth is Truth, and it will endure and abide forever. Evil or bad habits can never lead us to joyful living. For as the prophet Alma said: “Wickedness never was happiness”. God’s standards and truths for his people will always point toward the true way of life for all of his children.

The Lord has said: “There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated— “And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.” (D&C 130:20–21.)

Our efforts to love and serve God will be openly rewarded by him. He always extends to us the hand of love and mercy. He loved us so much that he suffered and died for us. He knows that like the tiny bean bush overcome with weeds, that within each one of us, there is something worth saving. We need only have faith and trust in Him. Have faith that He is there. Have faith that he loves us, no matter how many weeds we may have in our gardens. We need to have faith that he has the power, and the willingness to help us overcome our weaknesses. We need to have faith that he will bless us, as we follow him, and keep his commandments.

Maintaining good personal habits which are pleasing to our Heavenly Father will strengthen our character, increase our influence for good, improve our example toward others, bless our loved ones and friends, enrich our lives, and enable us to accomplish those things that yield true personal satisfaction and build peace and happiness in our hearts. We will have joy eternally, possessing a treasure to be much desired and sought after, for the Lord gives this assurance: “Inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.” (D&C 58:28.)

It all starts with a single step—we decide that we can do it.

May we forsake all evil and take that first step to shape our lives for eternity through good habits and righteous standards of good character.

Focus and Priorities

We of this generation have been preserved to come forth in this period of time in the worlds history, during the approach of the final days before the Second Coming of the Lord.

Because we have been blessed to live upon the earth at this time, there are certain blessings and advantages which we enjoy. Some of those blessings include:

• Living while the Gospel is upon the earth in its fullness.


• The Priesthood Authority has Been Restored


• Having modern Prophets and Apostles who minister among us today


• The wealth of knowledge that comes to us from the scriptures, especially the increased light and knowledge we gain from our Latter-day scriptures.

We share these gifts with everyone who has taken part in this last dispensation from Joseph Smiths day, until now.

There are many blessings that we enjoy today, that our brethren earlier in this dispensation did not have. We have many modern conveniences and inventions which not only save us time and labor, but which bring vast amounts of information at our fingertips.

A Wealth of Information

Today we live in a world which is literally flooded with information. With the advent of computers, mass storage devices, and the Internet there is more information available the ever before! So much of what we do in our work, at home, and even in the church is based on information, and information technology.

President Brigham Young once said:

Every discovery in science and art, that is really true and useful to mankind, has been given by direct revelation from God. ...We should take advantage of all these great discoveries ... and give to our children the benefit of every branch of useful knowledge, to prepare them to step forward and efficiently do their part in the great work (Deseret News, 22 Oct. 1862, 129).

Information technology has been a great blessing to us. Many of us make our living based upon the collection, processing and analysis of information. For the church, information technology helps to maintain the records of church members, and church units. As the church continues to grow, so will the information processing needs of the church grow as well. In addition, through the Church Web site, we now have access to the scriptures, and all of the general conference addresses and church magazines for the past 30 years! What a wealth of information this is to assist in our gospel study and to help us with talk and lesson preparation as well.

Perhaps one of the greatest impacts of information technology on the mission of the church is in regard to family history research. Think of the records of ancestors, first copied by hand, then microfilmed, then placed on compact disks, and now on the Internet. Instead of having to go to a centralized library to view and research records, now anyone with a computer can access much of the genealogical information possessed by the church. Plans are underway to continue capturing genealogical and temple ordinance information in electronic form, so as to make it as widely available as possible. Software programs that help us collect, organize, and share family history information are also a great boon.

With all these advances in information technology, also comes a responsibility, to use them wisely, and for good and righteous purposes, that will have an eternal impact.

In our efforts to search out information, we can find vast quantities of various kinds. Teachers can download bales of information on any subject. But a bale of handouts can detract from our attempt to teach gospel principles with clarity and testimony. Piles of supplementary information can blur the focus of what we were trying to teach in the first place, and divert students away from prayerfully considering what has been taught, and to apply it in their own lives.

Even good information can have varying levels of importance. Elder Dallin H Oaks stated:

Consider the comparative value today of the advice Brigham Young gave to an audience 140 years ago with what President Hinckley and other servants of the Lord are saying to each of us right now, in this conference. Or compare the value to each of us of some other facts or advice from the distant past with what our stake president said at our last stake conference or what our bishop counseled us last Sunday.
Overarching all of this is the importance of what the Spirit whispered to us last night or this morning about our own specific needs. Each of us should be careful that the current flood of information does not occupy our time so completely that we cannot focus on and hear and heed the still, small voice that is available to guide each of us with our own challenges today. (Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Focus and Priorities, Ensign, May 2001, 82.)

Ultimately, the highest priority knowledge is not found through the use of technology. Rather, the highest priority knowledge is what we receive in the temple. That knowledge is obtained from the explicit as well as the symbolic teachings of the endowment, and from the whisperings of the Spirit that come as we are desirous to seek and receive the revelation available to us in that holy place.

Beware of the Dangers

While all of this information can be a great blessing to us, Satan also desires to use these same tools, for his own purposes as well. There is opposition in information technology, as in all things. We need to avoid that which may be harmful. There are those who would seek to destroyfaith, hope, and light and truth. There are those who would seek to degrade us through pornographic images as well. That which was once hidden away under store counters, is now readily accessible, almost without effort, and without having to leave the privacy of ones home or room. The Internet has also facilitates those who would prey upon our children for evil purposes. We need to be aware of these dangers, and take whatever steps necessary to prevent these evils from coming into our homes. These steps can be in the use of filtering and blocking technologies, and perhaps even more important, in the placement of where computers are located. If a computer monitor is located in a place where other family members can easily see the contents of the computer screen, it will greatly lessen the temptation to view those things which are objectionable.

This is not to say technology is bad, or that it should not be used. Only that these technologies should be used with wisdom and care, avoiding that which is evil.

Using Our Time Wisely

We have been discussing some of the modern conveniences we enjoy today, that were unavailable to our brethren earlier in this dispensation. Another great privilege that we enjoy is that we have more time than they did. That may be hard to believe, in our busy world, but lets think about it for a minute.

We have literally been given more time to complete our labors upon the earth. With the advancements in science and medicine (and modern revelation) our life expectancies are more than double what they were in 1830, when the church was organized.

Not only do we have more years in which to live, we also have more discretionary time in each day as well. We have many modern conveniences which allow us to spend our time on pursuits other than the hard manual labor that was required of most people to provide for their families. The nature of their work was physically demanding, such that exhaustion often would set in when they completed their work for the day.

Most of us work in far more controlled settings. Many of us work in climate controlled offices, doing work which is not nearly so physically taxing. For those who work in more physically challenging jobs, there are many workplace rules now in place that restrict the number of hours to be worked, as well as rules to help ensure health and safety in the workplace.

With our increased life-spans, and our increased discretionary time, over that which our forebears enjoyed, comes a greater accountability for how we use the time that we have. Where much is given, much is expected.

We werent given these privileges and blessings so we could just idle away the hours self-indulgently. The Lord has commanded: Thou shalt not idle away thy time (D&C 60:13), and Cease to be idle D&C 88:124.

The Hymn, Improve the Shining Moments speaks the fleeting nature of time:

Time flies on wings of lightning, we cannot call it back. It comes, then passes forward along its onward track. And if we are not mindful, the chance will fade away, for life is quick in passing. Tis as a single day (Improve the Shining Moments, LDS Hymns, no. 226).

Why does it not seemthat we have all of this free time on our hands. The fact is, we have chosen to fill that time with various activities. Have we chosen wisely in how we prioritize our time?

How are we doing on the things in our lives that are really important? The things that will last beyond our mortal lives.
When we make major decisions in our lives, are we seeking for personal revelation, and the guidance of the Spirit? Some of these major decisions in life would include: education, occupation, place of residence, marriage, and childbearing. Some decisions that may seem desirable for mortality have unacceptable risks for eternity. These decisions should be made carefully, and with personal revelation, with all due consideration to what impact of these decisionswill have on our lives, and upon the lives of our family, and posterity to come. Both in the here and now, and throughout the eternities.

When we consider how we use our time and resources, we should also give consideration to what the eternal implications might be from our actions, and the way we spend our time. We may need to re-set our priorities, if we are spending too much of our time for that which will not be of benefit to us eternally.
Lets examine some areas in which we should be devoting our time towards:

Family Relationships. Are we building the kind of relationships we should with our children and our spouse, or do we spend too much of our time transfixed before the television, or surfing the Internet. Is everyone off in their own little world, on their personal computer, personal TV, or Personal Music Player, being isolated from one another, while living under the same roof? None of these things are necessarily evil (although theycan be), but do they seize hold upon us, and divert our attention to that which is trivial and temporal, instead of that which is divine and eternal.

Spiritual Nourishment.Are our diversions keeping us from doing those things which will nourish our spirits, such as: reading the scriptures, attending the temple, and having meaningful prayer.Are we taking time to examine our lives, and giving thoughtful prayer and pondering as to what the Lord would have us do to continue our progression toward him? Do we have a few quiet moments in which the Spirit can speak to our hearts and minds?

Family History. How is our family history work coming along. Do we say to ourselves that we just dont have time for family history at this stage of our lives. What if we carved out just hour or two a week away from our TV viewing, to spend on family history. If we did, real progress could be made over time.

Missionary Work.What about our missionary efforts. Do we know our neighbors by name. Have we reached out the hand of fellowship toward them, even if they are not yet ready to embrace the gospel? We have been commanded to let our light shine before men, that they may glorify, and come unto our Father In Heaven, and his Son. How can our neighbor look to that light, if they dont know who we are?

Home and Visiting Teaching.We have home and visiting teaching families as well. Are we taking the time to visit them each month? If we are visiting them, do we ever think about them between visits? Are they a part of our prayers. Do they know of our love and concern for them, over and above making the obligatory monthly visit?

Magnifying our Callings.What of our church callings? How well are we magnifying and fulfilling those callings? Do we spend the time requisite to properly prepare for our talks and our lessons. Did you think to pray, as you made your preparations? Did you ponder the lesson materials? Did you allow yourself some quiet, undistracted moments to allow the Still, Small, Voice to communicate with you what the Lord would have you teach?

To What Are We Devoted

The truth is, we can tell what our priorities are by how we use our time. That to which we devote our time, is that to which we are devoted.Look at how you spend your time. If you were to analyze how your time used, you would learn rather quickly to what, or to whom you are devoted. Then we can discern if we have set proper priorities for ourselves, or if we might need to us more self-discipline in the way our time is spent. We can determine if our priorities are good ones, based upon their eternal impact.
Based on howwe use our time, you might ask yourself if you are devoted to the Lord, or to some other god. King Benjamin Said:

For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and in tents of his heart?(Mosiah 5:13)

Time, at least in this life, is a scarce resource. Someone has said, Three things never come backthe spent arrow, the spoken word, and the lost opportunity. We cannot recycle or save or borrow time allotted to us each day. With time, we have only one opportunity for choice, and then it is gone forever. Each day is rife with a myriad of decisions and choices. With each choice, we either stay on course, or we are diverted from our eternal goals. Our progress is always moving, it never stands still. Either we are truly pressing forward, with a steadfastness in Christ, or we are not. And if we are not, then we are going the wrong direction, and a course correction isin order.

Dont get me wrong. Im not saying there is not time for diversion, recreation and entertainment. These things all have their place. However, they should not be the dominant pursuits of our lives.

In the end our priorities should rest upon two areas:

1) First we must seek to understand our relationship to God the Eternal Father, and to his Son, Jesus Christ. We need to secure that relationship by entering into their saving ordinances, and by keeping our personal covenants.

2) Second, we seek tounderstand our relationship to our family members, and to secure those relationships by the ordinances of the temple, and by keeping the covenants we make I that holy place.

These relationships, secured by the ordinances of the gospel, provide eternal blessings that are available to us in no other way. No combination of science, success, property, pride, wealth, prominence or power can provide these eternal blessings.

Let us focus on that which is most important. That which will bring us true hope and joy in this world, and a fullness of joy in the next.