I Have Work Enough To Do - 224

Lyrics

1. I have work enough to do,

Ere the sun goes down,

For myself and kindred too,

Ere the sun goes down:

Ev’ry idle whisper stilling

With a purpose firm and willing,

All my daily tasks fulfilling,

Ere the sun goes down.

There are too many things to do in a day. We have so many tasks to accomplish, both for ourselves and for our families. Are we taking the time everyday to complete those task. Are we giving our days a purpose, or are we just living the day without doing anything meaningful?

2. I must speak the loving word,

Ere the sun goes down.

I must let my voice be heard,

Ere the sun goes down:

Ev’ry cry of pity heeding,

For the injured interceding,

To the light the lost ones leading,

Ere the sun goes down.

What kind of meaningful things can we do in our day? Well here are some examples: 

• Speak the loving word
• Let our voice be heard
• Heed every cry of pity
• Intercede for the injured
• Lead the lost ones to the light

Those are wonderful suggestions of things we can do to have a meaningful day! How can we lose our times watching TV, playing video games, on Nextflix and chill nights, or scrolling through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram? Maybe we can commit this year to first do these meaningful things before the sun goes down, and then if we have more time, we can do all those other fun but less important things.

3. As I journey on my way,

Ere the sun goes down,

God’s commands I must obey,

Ere the sun goes down.

There are sins that need confessing;

There are wrongs that need redressing

If I would obtain the blessing,

Ere the sun goes down.

What would be other important things to do in our day, "ere the sun goes down", not only on each of our mortal days, but on our day of this life? Here are some more suggestions:

• Obey God's commands
• Confess sins
• Redress wrongs

This is the time to learn to obey god, to repent of our sins and to repair what we have done wrong. If we don't do it now, it might be harder in the next life. 

Are we taking each day the time to repent, the time to obey, the time to do good, to time to bless others? Are things simple but meaningful things on our daily check lists, or are we filling it with worthless tasks that won't take us anywhere.

May we understand that we have work enough to do, and prioritize that work each day of our lives, that we may be ready to obtain the blessing "ere the sun goes down".

Scriptures

Alma 34:32-35

For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors. And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed. Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world. For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you; and this is the final state of the wicked.

This is the time to prepare, this is the time to work on that work we have to do. Let's not procrastinate, but do good and repent every day.

D&C 88:123-125

See that ye love one another; cease to be covetous; learn to impart one to another as the gospel requires. Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than in needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated. And above all things, clothe yourselves with the bond of charity, as with a mantle, which is the bond of perfectness and peace.

I love this. Because we have so much work to do, there are many things that we must avoid because they might be taking to much of this precious time. How much time we lose being covetous, being idle, unclean, finding fault in others, sleeping longer than is needful, being weary? Instead we could just love others, impart one to another, arise early with invigorated bodies and minds (which will help us to be more productive). Can we understand the importance of this scripture when we have just study that hymn. There is a lot of work to do, cease to be idle! Cease to lose your time in those behaviors that are taking our time away.

Instead, "clothe yourself with the bond of charity". Do we want to perfect ourselves to be more like our Savior? Do we want peace? Than we must have charity! Charity is a magnificient work to do in this life that will bring us blessings today, and for eternities. May we use our time with charity that our lives may have a meaningful purpose.

About the author

Josephine Pollard (1834-1892)

An american hymn writer, author and poet. She published over a hundred hymns, and wrote numerous popular children's books mostly on religious and historical topics. She worked as an editor for the Sunday School Times and worked for the Methodist Book Concern, where she edited a magazine intended for African Americans. Pollard also wrote for the other children's magazines such as The Little Corporal. Her poetry was published in a number of magazines. Some of her children's poetry was collected in the book Elfin land published in 1882. 

She was born in New York City, one of seven children of architect Calvin Pollard and his wife Electra. She atended the Springler Institute, an exclusive girls' school. She was a lifelong member of the Presbyterian Church, and attended the North Presbyterian Church on Ninth Avenue. She was a founding member of the professional women's club Sorosis. She never married. She died after a long illness.

Improve the Shining Moments - Hymn #226

January 8th, 2018

Lyrics

1. Improve the shining moments;
Don’t let them pass you by.
Work while the sun is radiant;
Work, for the night draws nigh.
We cannot bid the sunbeams
To lengthen out their stay,
Nor can we ask the shadow
To ever stay away.

French

Mettons à profit le temps

Pendant le jour qui luit

Et employons chaque instant

A l’œuvre avant la nuit!

Portuguese

Prolongue os bons momentos

Time flies! Specially good times, those shining moment, good moments. They can come so quickly and if we don't enjoy them, they might be gone before we can even notice them. We must take those times to improve them, to get the most from it, to make them last. 

Because time flies, there is work to do. As Joseph in Egypt with the seven years of plenty and seven years of famine, this is the time to work befor the night comes. Now is the time to work. All our efforts to gain some time won't work, because time will be gone, and if we haven't work, we will suffer the consequences from it.

2. 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.

French

...D’un pas égal emportant

Nos projets d’avenir.

Have you seen the lightning? I quickly comes and goes. I've tried to get shots of lightning and if I am not paying attention, I miss them. That's how fast times flies, and it won't come back just because we want to get a good shot of them. That's why we must be mindful, we must take that time and our opportunities to work, to improve, to do something good, to enjoy life, before all of our projects and plans for the future remain as simple dreams because the time is gone and we never worked to accomplish them.

3. As wintertime doth follow
The pleasant summer days,
So may our joys all vanish
And pass far from our gaze.
Then should we not endeavor
Each day some point to gain,
That we may here be useful
And ev’ry wrong disdain?

French

Ainsi, parfois, nous voyons

Venir l’adversité.

Efforçons-nous de faire

Chaque jour un progrès.

A secourir nos frères

Montrons-nous toujours prêts. 

Portuguese

É, pois, medida sábia

Boas obras praticar,

Lutar a boa luta

E o prêmio conquistar!

Good and abundant times can quickly be gone as summer days. Wintertime always come. What will we do, complain about it? Why not endeavor each day to prepare? Adversity will come, so we must be wise and progress everyday, that we may be ready to perform good works and help others in times of trouble. As we prepare, we shall be ready to fight with success and to receive our reward.

4. Improve each shining moment.
In this you are secure,
For promptness bringeth safety
And blessings rich and pure.
Let prudence guide your actions;
Be honest in your heart;
And God will love and bless you
And help to you impart.

French 

Mettons à profit le temps!

C’est notre activité

Qui, si nous l’employons bien,

Nous fera prospérer.

Aux faux désirs, préférons

Droiture et sainteté.

La voix de Dieu écoutons,

Il saura nous aider!

Portuguese
Prolongue os bons momentos,

Pratique a boa ação,

Retenha a alegria,

Que é o sol do coração!

Humilde em sua prece,

Prudente ao decidir

Terá as muitas graças

Que o céu faz efluir.

So we must improve each of those times of goodness, times of blessings, times of plenty. As we do it, we will be secured, we shall prosper, we shall find joy, we shall find safety, and keep that joy  and peace in us for the troubled times to come. Let's act with prudence, being honest, being wise, discerning our worldly desires from righteousness and holiness, taking decisions with the guidance of God. If we listen God's voice and we prepare for troubled times, improving each shining moment of our lives, we shall see His blessings coming upon us, we shall see His helping hand, and we shall have our hearts full of gratitude for his tender mercies upon us. All, because we improve our shining moments.

Scriptures

Alma 34:32-33
For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors. And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

This hymn is not only about our moments here on earth. What I understand after reading this scriptures is that this hymn can be applied to our afterlife. Our time on earth will come to an end - Would we be ready to meet our creator? Perhaps many of us won't, because we haven't prepared enough, because we have followed the "eat, drink and be merry" philosophy, and we have not do enough good to be prepare to be with the Lord after this life. So today is the time to prepare. We can't wait until we're old, we're sick, we're on our last minutes on earth, to start improving our lives - we must do it now, and enjoy every single moment of our lives as if it was the last. I agree with the YOLO thing... we only live once... that why we must make the best of it... and the best doesn't mean what people who embrace the YOLO ideology think it means, bu it actually means to work in the kingdom of God, to serve others, to repent each day and to try every single day to be more like our Savior and to help others to feel his love. So YOLO for Christ! ;)



Psalm 119:60

I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.

O, may we all have that attitude, to obey and keep the commandments without delay. This is actually what president Monson did, never delaying a prompting from the Spirit. He is a perfect example of improving the shining moments, he certainly didn't had to fear of not being ready to meet the Lord  :)

About the author
Robert B. Baird (1855-1916)
He was an LDS hymnwritter. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and was one of 13 children. He, along with some of his siblings, immigrated to the United States in 1863 and settled in Willard, Utah. He apparently was not baptized until 1876. The same year he married Anne Gwenthlyn Davis. Baird recieved his musical education from Evan Stephens, who spent much of his youth in Willard. In 1884 he was made the director of the Willard Ward Choir. He would later work as a public school teacher and for the Oregon Shortline Railroad. He also served for a time as a member of the city council of Willard.

Come, Let Us Anew, Hymns #217

January 2nd 

Lyrics

1. "Come, let us anew our journey pursue, roll round with the year, and never stand still till the Master appear"

The new year is a time to anew our commitment to follow the Lord and live his commandment, a commitment to keep working on the errand of the Lord preparing for his Second Coming. It is a commitment to keep going forward.

"His adorable will let us gladly fulfill, and our talents improve by the patience of hope and the labor of love".

His will is adorable, is great, is what we must look forward to fulfill, and each year we can renew that desire of being sensitive to the Holy Ghost to know how to accomplish the Lord's will and not our mere desires.
It is also a time to improve our talents, to recognize those gifts he gave us and to commit to improve them.

How to fulfill his will and improve our talents?

By patience of hope and labor of love, according to this hymn.

We might not know exactly why the will of God is what it is. We must fulfill it with faith, not knowing how or why, but having that hope, patiently hoping that things will work out because we are doing it in the Lord's way. Because we love God, we will put that love for him into work, laboring with our all to fulfill his will. Loving God and trusting him with hope, patiently, is essential to give us a better vision and desire to fulfill his will.

And improving our talents, who haven't try it. Learning a new instrument, a new language, a new skill... doesn't it take a lot of time to learn, practice and develop the talent? It would be really hard to improve our talents if we do not have patience of hope, if we are so desperate to get it that we end up giving up because we're not as perfect as we wish to be. We must hope to improve those talents with patience, knowing that it is little by little that we will be able to accomplish it. And love... have you ever try to accomplish something just to show others how good you are at versus accomplish something because you love someone and want to give your best to bless that person? I've tried both, and love makes all the difference. When we want to improve our talents in order to bless others, because we love them, whether someone close to us or people that we love because they're our brothers and sisters even if we don't know them personnaly, the results are much better. It is easier for me to improve a talent because I want to bless someone else than to get it only for myself. It is not fun to cook if we are the only ones to eat. It is not fun to play the piano if we are the only ones to listen. It is not fun to learn a new language if it's to speak only with our reflection on a mirro. When see people satisfied with the food we share with them, when we are able to play the piano in a meeting or activity and that people feel that warm joy that beautiful music brings, or when we are able to show our interest to someone from another culture because we know their language, the joy of being able to use our talents is more satisfactory. As an example, I am learning Tongan because I fell in love with the Tongan culture and I would love to visit that island and to get to know the people there. That love motivates me to learn the language more than if it was only to know more language without even using them. It gives me purpose, so it helps me improve my talents.

So if you're trying to find ways to commit to fulfill God's will and to improve our talents, you now were to begin... ;)

2- "Our life is a dream, our time as a stream glide swifly away, and the fugitive moment refuses to stay; for the arrow is flown and the moments are gone.
The millenial year presses on to our view, and eternity's here."

Basically this means that our time is short! Time flies and we're be standing before God... So we must use our time meaningfully that we may not regret all the time gone.

3- "Oh, that each in the day of His coming may say, 

"I have fought my way thru; I have finished the work thou didst give me to do."

Oh that each from his Lord may receive the glad word:

"Well and faithfully done;

Enter into my joy and sit down on my throne."

When all that time is gone, which side will we be? Would we respond with gladness, confidence and joy, knowing that we have done what we have to do and that we are ready to receive our reward, or will we want to hide under the rocks so that we may not face God and respond of all the time of our lives that we have waste.

Will we receive those words from the Lord "Well and faithfully done"? It is how we use our time and talents now that will determine where we will be. Where do we want to be? It is our time to take that decision, as says 2 Nephi 2:27, to choose captivity and death or liberty and eternal life. It's up to us.

Scriptures:
2 Timothy 4:7-8

"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing."

God will reward all those who love him and who fight his fight. Are we fighting for him?

Matthew 25:21

"His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord."

If we are fiathful, we will be able to rest with our Lord for ever. Is this what we are working for?
This hymn is all about learning to use our time well and to work for the Lord, that we may receive his blessings at the end. We must choose to serve him well if we want to be with him.


Author

Charles Wesley

Words were written by Charles Wesley. It was first published in the penny tract Hymns for New Years Day, 1750

Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788) was an English leader of the Methodist movement, most widely known for writing more than 6,000 hymns.

Wesley was born in Epworth, Lincolnshire, the son of Anglican cleric and poet Samuel Wesley and his wife Susanna. He was a younger brother of Methodist founder John Wesley and Anglican cleric Samuel Wesley the Younger, and he became the father of musician Samuel Wesley and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley.

Wesley was educated at Oxford where his brothers had also studied, and he formed the "Holy Club" among his fellow students in 1729. John Wesley later joined this group, as did George Whitefield. Charles followed his father and brother into the church in 1735, and he travelled with John to Georgia in America, returning a year later. In 1749, he married Sarah Gwynne, daughter of a Welsh gentleman who had been converted to Methodism by Howell Harris. She accompanied the brothers on their evangelisticjourneys throughout Britain until Charles ceased to travel in 1765.

Despite their closeness, Charles and John did not always agree on questions relating to their beliefs. In particular, Charles was strongly opposed to the idea of a breach with the Church of England into which they had been ordained.^[1]

Otro año ha pasado (Another year has passed) - Himnos 142 (Spanish post about hymn - English for Scriptures and author)

January 1st, 2018

This hymn is only in the Spanish hymnbook, but I just found that it was on old hymnbook, the "Deseret Sunday School songs: for the use of Sunday Schools and suitable for Primary Associations, religion classes, social gatherings and the home", published in 1909." I had already studied this hymn in Spanish, so my thoughts about it are on that language, but here are the lyrics of the English version, and the scriptures linked to it on the Spanish hymnbook as some information I found about the author are found in English below.

Himno 142 - Otro año ha pasado

1- "Otro año más queda ya atrás; evaluemos lo que pasó. 

¿Puedo mejorar, puedo progresar este año que ya comenzó?"

Este himno nos invita a tomar el tiempo de evaluar lo que ha pasado en el año que ha pasado. El nuevo año es una buena oportunidad para evaluar nuestra vidas, nuestro progreso. No solo es un tiempo para festejar, comer y bailar, pero es una ocasión que tenemos de meditar en lo que hemos estado haciendo y como podemós mejorar. A la pregunta: ¿puedo mejorar, puedo progresar? la respuesta es siempre ¡SÍ! ¿Comó? El como es lo que podemos llegar a saber al evaluar lo nuestro progreso y fijarnos metas.

2 - "Con amor venid; al Señor servid en Escuela Dominical.

Es allí que Dios oye nuetra voz, y nos da Su gracias celestial." 

Esto es interesante. ¿Habían pensado ya en ir a la Escuela Dominical con amor? Debo confesarles que yo no. No iba con odio tampoco, pero creo que sería muy interesante llegar a la Escuela Dominical y a nuetras reuniones los domingos con el deseo de amar a los demás, tanto a los maestros como a los demás alumnos. ¿Se imaginan el ambiente en esas clases si todos llegaramos con amor a nuestras clases? Todos esos comentarios que ofenden, intencionalmente o no, y todas las personas que se dejan ofender, no existirián. Serían reuniones llenas del Espíritu donde todos aprenden con la intención de bendecir a los demás. ¿Que tiene que ver eso con el año nuevo? Tal vez nos da una guía sobre que evaluar en nuestras vidas, pensar en el estado en que asistimos y participamos en nuestras reuniones y en fijarnos metas para que en el nuevo año nuestras experiencias en la escuela dominical sean más significativas y edificantes.

3 - "Con valor seguid, por la senda id, que nos llevará al Señor."

Con valor seguid yendo en la senda que nos lleva al Señor. Al empezar el año se supone que, como miembros de la iglesia, estamos sobre esa senda, estrecha y angosta, pero estamos sobre ella. Cada año trae con si nuevos desafíos, pero debemos guardar valor para seguir adelante en esa senda, en ese camino, viviendo la doctrina de Cristo.

"Venos, Dios, aquí, guíanos a Tí; haznos conocer Tu gran amor."

Esta la veo como una súplica de que Dios nos vea ahí, deseosos de permanecer en la senda a pesar de las dificultades. Este año para mí fue desafiante y no pude lograr mucho de lo que me había propuesto, aunque si hice mucho que no había esperado hacer. A pesas de todos los obstaculos presentes durante el año, algo que nunca pude dejar fue mi deseo de permanecer en esa senda - mis oraciones no fueron tan significativas como hubiera querido, mi estudio no fue todos los días tan profundo y algunos días simplemente fue leer unos versículos. Mi asistencia al templo no fue tan constante, pero igual fuí cuando pude a pesar que a veces se me complicaba. A pesar de todas esas dificultades, pude ver la entrañables misericordias del Señor constantemente en mi vida. El conocer ese gran amor de Dios diariamente me ayudo a permanecer en esa senda. Y es la súplica que debemos hacer a Dios al comenzar el nuevo año: que nos permita conocer, ver, estar receptivos, a su gran amor, a sus entrañables misericordias, a sus muchas bendiciones que debemos contar, para que de ese modo podamos ver mejor su mano y ser mejor guiados a Él.

4- "Padre Celestial, líbranos del mal; danos Tu sostén y solaz, y felicidad, gracia y bondad mientras pase otro año más."

Esto nos dá una guía de cosas que podemos pedir a Dios para seguir siendo librados del mal: sostén, solaz, felicidad, gracia, bondad. Dios siempre nos dará su sostén y solaz. El puede llenar nuestra vida de felicidad si lo seguimos. Su gracia siempre es suficiente para salvarnos y librarnos. Su bondad se derrarmá constantemente sobre nosotros. Debemos ser receptivos todos los dones que el Señor nos dá para librarnos, a pesar de las dificultades, del mal que nos rodea.

Coro: ""Empuñemos ya nuestra bandera" es el lema que nos guiará.
Nuestro lema al empezar un nuevo año debe ser el de empuñar la bandera, el de estar listos y prestos a luchar para defender y vivir el bien siempre. Esa debe ser nuestra guía.
"¡Adelante! Canta ya los niños. Como siempre, Dios nos cuidará."

Ese lema, el de seguir adelante, el de luchar por el bien, no es solo un lema para nosotros los adultos: debe serlo para nuestros niños también. Es nuestro deber de enseñarles desque pequeños a que sigan adelante, a que cada año ellos tambien evalúen su progreso y sepan que pueden seguir mejorando. No debemos temer, ya que Dios los cuida siempre, si nosotros hacemos nuestra parte para enseñarles a vivir el Evangelio.
Esta frase es muy significativa para mí este año en particularmente porque es muy probable que mis sobrinos se vayan a un centro de readaptación en Febrero/Marzo. Quisiera poder tenerlos en casa y poder seguir criandolos en el evangelio, pero realmente es dificil por sus comportamientos. Sin embargo, esta frase me da fortaleza porque se que pase lo que pase, si nos esforzamos por dar lo mejor a mis sobrinos en las próximas semanas ellos podrán sentir el cuidado de Dios donde quiera que estén.

D&C 88:123-125
"See that you love one another; cease to be covetous; learn to impar one to another as the gospel requires.
Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault on e with another; cease to sleep longer than in needful; retire to thy bed early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated.
And above all things, clothe yourselves with the bond of charity, as with a mantle, which is the bond of perfectness and peace."

This teaches exactly what the hymn invites us to do. To improve ourselves by letting aside those unrighteous habits, and to learn to love and do good to others.

D&C 43:8
"And now, behold, I give unto you a commandment, that when ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act and direct my church, how to act upon the points of my law and commandments, which I have given."

D&C 88:78
"Teach ye diligenly and my grace shall atten you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand".

Well, these verses also teaches us of what they hymn told us to do: to attend our church meetings with love for those we are meeting with, in order to strengthen and edify each other. Perhaps our progression would not be the same if we didn't had our congregations to meet, with people who we might find difficult to love but from which we can learn and grow. Perhaps our year can be better if we put all these people with whom we meet as part of our progression, and we open our hearts to learn from them.

The author:
Mary B. C. Slade

Mary Bridges Canedy Slade was the wife of a clergyman of Fall River, Mass. She was born in 1826 and died in 1882. She was a teacher, and at one time assistant editor of the "New England Journal of Education," which position she resigned to stard "Wide Awake", a well-known publication, which she continued until her death. She was a warm hearted Christian woman. Most was a warm-hearted Christian woman. Most of her hymns were written for Prof. R.M. McIntosh.