God doesn’t care nearly as much about where you have been as He does about where you are and, with His help, where you are willing to go.
Potential
LDS Quotes on Potential
Now it is time for you to define your own goals and meet your own expectations. From now on, you decide! Instead of concentrating on what you are to do, now is the time to zero in on who you are to be…
| Disciples of Jesus Christ—Defenders of Marriage
“He who lives only unto himself withers and dies, while he who forgets himself in the service of others grows and blossoms in this life and in eternity.”
“I recognize that, on occasion, some of our most fervent prayers may seem to go unanswered. We wonder, ‘Why?’ I know that feeling! I know the fears and tears of such moments. But I also know that our prayers are never ignored. Our faith is never unappreciated. I know that an all-wise Heavenly Father’s perspective is much broader than is ours. While we know of our mortal problems and pain, He knows of our immortal progress and potential. If we pray to know His will and submit ourselves to it with patience and courage, heavenly healing can take place in His own way and time.”
| Jesus Christ—the Master Healer, Ensign, Nov. 2005, 86
“God cares a lot more about who we are and about who we are becoming, than about who we once were.”
| "Latter-day Saints Keep on Trying"
“The Holy Ghost can bring you power to perform beyond your natural abilities. He can provide you with the help of unseen powers in all that you do – the power to speak with convincing authority, to receive promptings that enable you to say things you had not planned, and to receive impressions, which if heeded, bring blessings to you and others. Mortals may have great abilities and potential, but however great these mortal powers may be, they are only a shadow of the powers that can be claimed through a linkage with the Holy Spirit.”
| “Courting the Spirit,” New Era, August 1990, p. 35
“May I invite you to rise to the great potential within you. But don’t reach beyond your capacity. Don’t set goals beyond your capacity to achieve. Don’t feel guilty or dwell on thoughts of failure. Don’t compare yourself with others. Do the best you can, and the Lord will provide the rest. Have faith and confidence in Him, and you will see miracles happen in your life and the lives of your loved ones.”
| September 2009 Liahona
Perhaps you don’t consider yourself all that useful; perhaps you don’t consider yourself a blessing in somebody’s life. Often, when we look at ourselves, we see only our limitations and deficiencies. We might think we have to be “more” of something for God to use us–more intelligent, more wealthy, more charismatic, more talented, more spiritual. Blessings will come not so much because of your abilities but because of your choices. And the God of the universe will work within and through you, magnifying your humble efforts for His purposes.
| A Yearning for Home
“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”
“The purpose of the gospel is to make bad men good and good men better.”