D&C 98:39-40 Story of Forgiveness by the Casper Ten Boom Family WWII

“In Holland during World War II, the Casper ten Boom family used their home as a hiding place for those hunted by the Nazis. This was their way of living out their Christian faith. Four members of the family lost their lives for providing this refuge. Corrie ten Boom and her sister Betsie spent horrific months in the infamous Ravensbrück concentration camp. Betsie died there—Corrie survived.

“In Ravensbrück, Corrie and Betsie learned that God helps us to forgive. Following the war, Corrie was determined to share this message. On one occasion, she had just spoken to a group of people in Germany suffering from the ravages of war. Her message was ‘God forgives.’ It was then that Corrie ten Boom’s faithfulness brought forth its blessing.
“A man approached her. She recognized him as one of the cruelest guards in the camp. ‘You mentioned Ravensbrück in your talk,’ he said. ‘I was a guard there. … But since that time, … I have become a Christian.’ He explained that he had sought God’s forgiveness for the cruel things he had done. He extended his hand and asked, ‘Will you forgive me?’
“Corrie ten Boom then said:
“‘It could not have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.
“‘… The message that God forgives has a … condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. …
“… ‘Help me!’ I prayed silently. ‘I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.’
“‘… Woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. As I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.
“‘I forgive you, brother!’ I cried. ‘With all my heart.’
“For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then.’ [Corrie ten Boom, Tramp for the Lord (1974), 54–55.]” (Keith B. McMullin, “Our Path of Duty,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 13).

D&C 95:1-3 Responding to chastisement

After Joseph Smith received the revelation recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 95, Church leaders held a conference to discuss the construction of the temple. “Some were in favor of building a frame house, but others were of a mind to put up a log house. Joseph reminded them that they were not building a house for a man, but for God; ‘and shall we, brethren,’ said he, ‘build a house for our God, of logs? No, I have a better plan than that. I have a plan of the house of the Lord, given by himself.’” After Joseph explained the full pattern of the temple, all the brethren were excited. They traveled to the building site, removed a fence, and leveled a field of wheat that had previously been planted by the Smith family. After the grain was cleared, Hyrum Smith “commenced digging a trench for the wall.” (Lucy Mack Smith, History of Joseph Smith by His Mother, ed. Preston Nibley [1958], 230, 231.)

-How did The Brethren respond to being chastised by the Lord?

D&C 93:40 Purpose of everything we do in the church is to be happy in the home.

President Boyd K Packer “Parenthood is a sacred privilege, and depending upon faithfulness, it can be an eternal blessing. The ultimate end of all activity in the church is that a man and his wife and their children can be happy at home.” (“The Witness” April 2014)

D&C 89:1-4 Addictions harm your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health.

Addictions harm your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. They damage relationships with family and friends and diminish your feelings of self-worth. They limit your ability to make choices for yourself. If you are struggling with any type of addiction, seek help from your parents and your bishop now. Your emotional health is also important and may affect your spiritual and physical well-being. Disappointment and occasional sadness are part of this mortal life. However, if you have prolonged feelings of sadness, hopelessness, anxiety, or depression, talk with your parents and your bishop and seek help. In all aspects of your life, seek healthy solutions to problems. Do all you can to safeguard your physical and emotional health so that you can fulfill your divine potential as a son or daughter of God.

Physical and Emotional Health

For the Strength of Youth.

D&C 88:15 Our spirit is affected by the way we take care of our bodies.

Ezra Taft Benson:

“There is no question that the health of the body affects the spirit, or the Lord would never have revealed the Word of Wisdom. God has never given any temporal commandments—that which affects our bodies also affects our spirits. …

“… Sin debilitates. It affects not only the [spirit], but the body. The scriptures are replete with examples of the physical power that can attend the righteous. On the other hand, unrepented sin can diffuse energy and lead to both mental and physical sickness” (“In His Steps,”Ensign, Sep. 1988, 5).

D&C 82:10 The Lord will always fulfill His promises to us.

Story: Jana Remy, 13-year-old with bone cancer in her knee, amputation and chemo are recommended by her doctors.  She receives her patriarchal blessing and is promised "You will have the faith to be healed". Jana and her parents are overjoyed and interpret this to mean that the malignancy in her leg would be healed and she would be able to keep her leg.  Two weeks later, on the day of the operation, the physicians agree to evaluate her knee once more, if the cancer was gone, they would not amputate the leg.  After the operation, Jana awakens and to her horror discovers that her leg had been removed. For several weeks following the amputation she and her family battles depression, anger, and denial.  She refuses to participate in physical therapy and tells her oncologist that she wants to stop chemotherapy.  One day, her father coaxes her to take a wheelchair ride out of the hospital for the first time.  Once outside they discover that they can't even get her wheelchair over to some roses bushes, so she could smell them.  In frustration she breaks down in tears.

"As I sat there feeling miserable, the desire grew within me to reach out for the roses, to smell the individual flowers. I expressed this to my dad, and he tried to move the wheelchair close enough for me to do so. But the chair was too awkward over the grass and dirt around the bushes. I started to cry again in frustration that I couldn’t accomplish one simple task. Dad knelt down at the side of my wheelchair and stroked my hair. When I stopped sobbing, he took my hands in his and looked straight into my eyes.

“You can do it, you know,” he said. “It won’t be easy. Everything—even smelling roses—will be harder from now on. But I know, and you know, that you can do it.” We were both silent for a long time as I looked into his eyes. In that moment I realized that I had no choice about the loss of my leg. It was gone, and I needed to accept it. I also understood that I would need all of my strength and determination to do the things I would want to do. I will do it, I thought to myself.

I spent many hours learning to manipulate my artificial leg. It was awkward and painful, and I often fell down. At the same time, I still had chemotherapy treatments every two weeks. Because of the treatments I was bald, weak, and severely underweight. At one point about six months after my surgery, I was so discouraged that I told my oncologist (the doctor who was treating my cancer) that I wouldn’t continue my treatments. She explained to me that if I didn’t finish the prescribed course of treatment, the cancer had a high chance of returning, and she urged me to continue. I was emotionally and physically exhausted, but in the back of my mind I remembered my father’s words and I felt renewed strength to continue with my treatments.

Six months later, the chemotherapy treatments were over. I still felt discouraged about losing a leg, and I was overwhelmed with fear about facing the future as a one-legged person. My mind turned again to the promise given in my patriarchal blessing. I wasn’t healed, I thought to myself. Why wasn’t I healed? I wondered if it was a lack of faith on my part. Maybe I hadn’t prayed hard enough or believed that Heavenly Father could heal me as was promised in my blessing.

As these thoughts ran through my mind, I started to cry. I curled myself up into a fetal position and sobbed for a long time. As I did so, I remembered all I had accomplished in the year since my surgery. I had adjusted to my disability and learned to walk again. I had completed my full course of chemotherapy treatments and was gaining weight and strength again. My hair was even beginning to grow back. Then it came to my mind, with a small and simple whisper, that I had been healed. I was healed of the overwhelming pain and anguish that came when I realized my leg was gone. I was given the physical and emotional strength to tackle the challenges of life following the surgery. Most importantly, I was in remission from the cancer.

With that realization, I bowed my head in prayer. I thanked my Heavenly Father for the fulfillment of the blessing of healing. I thanked Him for my father’s wise counsel and for the support of my family and friends who had helped me through the most difficult months of my life. Most of all, I thanked Him that I was still alive—for I realized that with or without my right leg, my life was worth living."  https://www.lds.org/new-era/2001/01/a-promise-kept?lang=eng

D&C 71:1 Responding to critics of the church with scriptures and with the Holy Ghost, not with contention.

Elder Robert D. Hales

“As we respond to others, each circumstance will be different. Fortunately, the Lord knows the hearts of our accusers and how we can most effectively respond to them. As true disciples seek guidance from the Spirit, they receive inspiration tailored to each encounter. And in every encounter, true disciples respond in ways that invite the Spirit of the Lord” ….

... “As true disciples, our primary concern must be others’ welfare, not personal vindication. Questions and criticisms give us an opportunity to reach out to others and demonstrate that they matter to our Heavenly Father and to us. Our aim should be to help them understand the truth, not defend our egos or score points in a theological debate. Our heartfelt testimonies are the most powerful answer we can give our accusers. And such testimonies can only be borne in love and meekness” (“Christian Courage: The Price of Discipleship,” Ensign Nov. 2008, 73-74).