Carol Keller-called me a few days ago asking if I would take 5 min and talk about a small section, actually one sentence of President Uchtdorf’s conference talk, “You are my Hands


“ Nevertheless, in our zeal, we sometimes confuse sin with sinner, and we condemn too quickly and with too little compassion. “

First of all I would like to do an experiment…. All of those in this room who are struggling with a personal burden of either your own choice or that of another. This can be anything emotional, physical, mental or spiritual…. please stand or raise your hand

…. During the quiet times these past few days, my thoughts have been turned to contemplate what it means to condemn, and that has lessened the burdens of even my own struggles.

Last night I read section 46 of the Doctrine and Covenants and came to gain a greater understanding of what I might say… In section 46 it speaks of gifts, to one is given one gift, to another a different gift. This makes us each unique. In the same respect (Opposition in all things) we are each give our own weaknesses (burden, struggles), which are also unique, making us different. To condemn one for their weaknesses is to by definition… bear with me there are a lot

.

to express an unfavorable or adverse judgment on; indicate strong disapproval of; to give grounds or reason for censuring: to judge or pronounce to be unfit, to force into a specific state or activity: blame, sentence, denounce, punish, to clarify as incurable.







belittle, chide, criticize, damn, depreciate, disapprove, find fault with, find guilty, judge, pass sentence on, point finger at, punish, put away, put down, reprehend










circumvent, , deny, disallow, discourage, eliminate, exclude, exile, forbid, frustrate, hinder, interfere, keep out, limit, obstruct, ostracize, preclude, prevent, refuse, reject, restrain, rule out, segregate, shut out, suspend







I am sure that we have all heard the common phrase of “If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all” What if where to try to not even have the thoughts. One day in an apartment we lived in, there was an elevator. A neighbor who highly smelled of cigarette smoke rode in the elevator with us. When we got into our apartment (thankfully not in this man’s presence), they all started talking about how bad that person was for smoking. It gave me the perfect opportunity to try and teach them that we should love the man, not the cigarette or the choice…. Don’t we, not all sin? So we are all sinner’s… that does not mean we have to approve of the choice or what was done. Do we not all want to be forgiven? Have we not been commanded to Love everyone? Sisters, as we all noticed there is not one of us or anyone that isn’t burden with something.

President Uchtdorf’s states:

“With this in mind, let our hearts and hands be stretched out in compassion toward others, for everyone is walking his or her own difficult path. As disciples of Jesus Christ, our Master, we are called to support and heal rather than condemn. We are commanded “to mourn with those that mourn” and “comfort those that stand in need of comfort.”5





As Compassionate Service Leader, I have come to know of some of your burdens… and I am so grateful that you (even with your own burdens) are willing to follow the Savior by… mourning with those that mourn , standing with those in need of comfort and lifting those who have fallen or drifted away. May we continue in our quest to Eternal Life, in following the Savior’s commandment, “to love one another.”

That instead of condemning we might:

advocate, allow, open, permit absolve, acquit, approve, clear, discharge, exonerate, free, pardon, release, set free