Carlos E. Asay
Presidency of the Seventy (April 5, 1980 – August 15, 1986 ; October 1, 1989 – August 15, 1996)
First Quorum of the Seventy (April 4, 1976 – October 5, 1996)
General Conference Addresses
- April 1996 General Conference
- Stay on the True Course
- “I do, therefore, choose to speak with you concerning the imperative need to stay on the true course leading to eternal life. Such steadiness of direction requires three continuing actions: (1) the reaffirmation of the desired goal, (2) an assessment of current position, and (3) the initiation of needed course corrections.”
- “Failure on our part to fix position and take a firm stand in terms of rules, covenants, and expectations will result in a gradual float into dangerous waters and a conditioning to the rising heat of wickedness around us, and eventually all of us, especially our children, will get burned.”
- “We need not and must not flounder on the sea of popular opinions or drift with the waves of immorality. God is among us, and He has provided us with precious sextants to assess our spiritual latitude.”
- “An assessment of one’s current position, in relationship to the ultimate goal of eternal life, can and must be obtained by looking toward the light which comes from God through personal revelation, the scriptures, and the words of living prophets.”
- Stay on the True Course
- April 1994 General Conference
- “If a Man Die, Shall He Live Again?”
- “Whereas, those who believe in a life after death are much more inclined to lead purposeful lives. Belief in a resurrection and related truths encourages one to obey the commandments, repent of sins, serve others, and do the other things that bring joy and happiness both here and hereafter. It seems, therefore, most appropriate that we address this real issue, Shall I live again? on the eve of Easter—a day when Christians the world over will commemorate the resurrection of the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”
- “One wonders how anyone could doubt the actuality of the Resurrection after reading the several accounts of his appearances to the women, the disciples, and the Apostles. What greater evidence would one want than the documentation of fact provided in holy writ?”
- “If a Man Die, Shall He Live Again?”
- April 1992 General Conference
- Be Men!
- “It seems that everyone at some time or another is invited by peers to smoke, drink, steal, or engage in other immoral acts, all under the pretense of manhood. And when someone refuses to participate, he is often ridiculed and called names like pansy, mamma’s boy, idiot, chicken, sissy, and religious fanatic. Such names are used by peers who equate manliness with the ability to drink liquor, blow tobacco smoke out of all the facial cavities, sow one’s wild oats like some animal on the street, and break moral laws without a twinge of conscience.”
- “There is a lie—a vicious lie—circulating among the Latter-day Saints and taking its toll among the young. And it is that a “balanced man” is one who deliberately guards against becoming too righteous. This lie would have you believe that it is possible to live successfully and happily as a “double-minded man” with one foot in Babylon and one foot in Zion.”
- “Can a man be too righteous? Too Christlike? Impossible! Can the so-called “balanced man” walk successfully the beam between good and evil? No. Each step is shaky, and eventually he will teeter and fall and break himself against the commandments of God.”
- “Fleshliness never was manliness, and it never will be. A real man is one who yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit and seeks to acquire Christlike virtues. A real man is one who allows the Spirit to direct the course and to call the cadence in his life.”
- Be Men!
- April 1990 General Conference
- “One Small Step for a Man; One Giant Leap for Mankind”
- “There were no cameras trained upon him when he stepped into that grove of trees in upper New York state. There were no cheering throngs or support personnel to provide him encouragement. Nor were there newspaper reporters on hand to describe his actions. He knelt alone under the gaze of his Heavenly Father and offered up the sincere desires of his heart with perfect confidence that his voice would be heard. He was unaware of the muted applause of unseen multitudes who had waited so patiently for the dawning of a new day and the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
- “His investment in working the miracle was not money, machines, manpower, or even the trappings of science; his was an investment of living faith and an indomitable will.”
- “All the towers ever built and all the spaceships ever launched pale in comparison with Joseph Smith’s first vision. Though men fly higher and higher into the heavens, they will not find God or see his face unless they humble themselves, pray, and heed the truths revealed through the Prophet of the Restoration.”
- “One Small Step for a Man; One Giant Leap for Mankind”
- October 1985 General Conference
- The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood
- “The two parties to the priesthood covenant are man and God. Man covenants to do certain things or meet certain conditions; God cites promises that he will give in return.”
- “I underscore the words taking responsibility, teaching the word of God, and laboring with might in this inspired quotation. These are critical actions related to the exercise of priesthood power.”
- “No commandment or requirement of the gospel is nonessential. Each has its place, and all are to be respected. Not one is to be trifled with or placed aside as inconvenient.”
- “We do not become saints automatically by entering the waters of baptism. We become saints, in the true sense of the word, as we live saintly lives and cultivate Christlike attributes. Similarly, we do not become the elect of God instantaneously by receiving the priesthood. Such honor will come only so fast as we remember and perform according to the priesthood covenant.”
- The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood
- October 1983 General Conference
- Parent-Child Interviews
- “Living performances are void of roteness and stiffness and self-centered tendencies. They are made by Saints who speak and act according to the feelings of their hearts and the Spirit of the Lord which is in them.”
- “It is a marvelous thing when a father is able to make his commandments square perfectly with God’s expectations.”
- Parent-Child Interviews
- October 1981 General Conference
- Opposition to the Work of God
- “The evil one has attempted on many occasions in all dispensations to put out of existence, if you will, many of God’s children. Sometimes he, himself, has assumed the deluder’s role. Other times he has worked through those who have stepped to his side of the line.”
- “When we read about the anti-Christs of former days, we marvel at how perverted their thinking became and we marvel at how successful they were in deceiving men and women. We also wonder why some of the people were so gullible—so easily misled. And with all this marveling and wondering, we tend to niche the anti-Christs in some corner of ancient history and go about our unguarded ways. This is dangerous. It could result in loss of faith; and, in a spiritual sense, it could put us out of existence.”
- Opposition to the Work of God
- April 1980 General Conference
- Salt of the Earth:Savor of Men and Saviors of Men
- “When the Lord used the expression “savor of men,” he was speaking of those who represent him. He was referring to those who have repented, who have been washed clean in the waters of baptism, and who have covenanted to take upon them his name and his cause. Moreover, he was speaking of those who would share by covenant his priesthood power. He was speaking of you and me.”
- “A world-renowned chemist told me that salt will not lose its savor with age. Savor is lost through mixture and contamination. Similarly, priesthood power does not dissipate with age; it, too, is lost through mixture and contamination.”
- “We must fight daily to retain our savor, our purity. We must press forward, clinging to our standards of holiness, remembering all the while that we are called to be the savor of men.”
- “Priesthood is God’s power. It is to be used in saving souls. It is not shared with young men or older men simply to sit on or to hold in name only. It is shared with the expectation that the receiver will exercise it in behalf of himself and others. The priesthood is to be honored, and callings within the priesthood are to be magnified.”
- Salt of the Earth:Savor of Men and Saviors of Men
- October 1978 General Conference
- Look to God and Live
- “Every day men, women, and youth around us are permitting strong drink and other forms of sin to drag them down and to bend their look. How terribly wrong and serious it is when men allow themselves to become burdened with sin and error and are rendered unable to look up and live!”
- “I fear that many of us rush about from day to day taking for granted the holy scriptures. We scramble to honor appointments with physicians, lawyers, and businessmen. Yet we think nothing of postponing interviews with Deity—postponing scripture study. Little wonder we develop anemic souls and lose our direction in living. How much better it would be if we planned and held sacred fifteen or twenty minutes a day for reading the scriptures. Such interviews with Deity would help us recognize his voice and enable us to receive guidance in all of our affairs.”
- Look to God and Live
- October 1976 General Conference
- The Spirit of Missionary Work
- “Almost instinctively, it seems, that light of truth sparks a desire to share. When our minds are expanded by new knowledge, we want others to know; when our spirits are elevated by heavenly influence, we want others to feel; and when our lives are filled with goodness, we want others, particularly those whom we love, to enjoy similar experiences.”
- The Spirit of Missionary Work
- April 1976 General Conference
- A Missionary Opportunity
- “After I had collected my thoughts, I told the man that there were four basic reasons why the Lord’s program succeeds. I said, first of all, we succeed because we are led by a living prophet, a man who is the mouthpiece for God on the earth, a man who receives inspiration—revelation—on behalf of the Church.”
- “Second, we succeed because we work under the power and authority of the holy priesthood. We don’t assume that authority, we don’t take it upon ourselves, but it is given to us by the laying on of hands, and we are duly delegated to go out and preach the gospel. We have the priesthood.”
- “Third, I said, we succeed because we are teaching the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ as restored in this day. We don’t play, as Elder Packer has taught, on one key; we play the entire keyboard. We know why we’re here, we know what we’re supposed to prepare for, and we know where we’ve been.”
- “And fourth, we succeed because we do what we do on the strength and power of personal testimony. Our young people go out and teach, not because of some promise of remuneration, but because they have a testimony; they forego college or delay it and put other personal plans aside so that they can go out and share their testimonies with the world. I said, when your church can conduct a program with a prophet directing under the power of the priesthood, teaching the fulness of the gospel, and on the strength of personal testimonies, you can do exactly what we are doing. I said, there is no need for you to go to that trouble, though. We already have it going; why don’t you join us? He didn’t accept my invitation.”
- A Missionary Opportunity
Other Talks
Articles in Church Publications
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