The Music & the Spoken Word broadcast airs live via TV, radio, and internet stream on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. mountain time. For information on other airtimes, visit “Airing Schedules” at musicandthespokenword.org.

Music

Conductor: Mack Wilberg
with Bells at Temple Square, LeAnna Willmore conductor
Organist: Andrew Unsworth
Announcer: Lloyd Newell

“Glory to God on High”
Music: Felice de Giardini
Lyrics: James Allen
Arrangement: Mack Wilberg
With Bells at Temple Square

“I Think the World is Glorious”¹
Music: Alexander Schreiner
Lyrics: Anna Johnson
Arrangement: Mack Wilberg

“Early One Morning” (organ solo)
Music: English folk song
Arrangement: Andrew Unsworth

“A Child’s Prayer”²
Music and Lyrics: Janice Kapp Perry

“Hymn to Joy”
Music: from Symphony no. 9 by Beethoven
Arrangement: Edward Hodges
Handbell Arrangement: Michael R. Keller
Featuring Bells at Temple Square

“Tree of Life”³
Music: Mack Wilberg
Lyrics: David Warner
With Bells at Temple Square

“High on the Mountain Top”^4,5
Music: Ebenezer Beesley
Lyrics: Joel H. Johnson
Arrangement: Mack Wilberg
With Bells at Temple Square

1. From the album Teach Me to Walk in The Light.
2. From the album Peace Like a River.
3. From the album Tree of Life.
4. From the album Called to Serve.
5. From the album Then Sings My Soul.

The Spoken Word

The Capacity to Grow and Change

When we look at other living things, we expect that they will grow and change over time. No one assumes that a seedling will stay small and fragile—we know that it is destined to grow into a strong and mighty tree. When we see a calf or a cub, we also see its potential to become a full-grown animal.

And yet, too often, we don’t see the same potential for growth in ourselves. We tend to think that the person we have been in the past, or even the person we are right now, is the person we will always be. A Harvard psychologist refers to this as the “end of history illusion”—the assumption that the “real” you is the present you, no matter how far you’ve come and how far you could still go. “Human beings,” he explains, “are works in progress that mistakenly think they’re finished.”¹

Because we are children of an eternal God, we have eternal capacity to improve. But it doesn’t just happen. Just as the seedling doesn’t grow without plenty of nourishment, we are more likely to progress if we are intentional about progressing. In fact, one important difference between us and the seedling is that we have a degree of choice about the direction of our growth. If, in the past, we’ve been too quick to anger, too self-centered, we can change that. If we wish we could become a little kinder, a little more loving, we can do it!

One starting point is to believe that we can—to be open to positive change, to welcome it, even seek for it. Instead of labeling ourselves by our past mistakes and weaknesses, we envision our better selves and then work to make it a reality.

One woman, for example, always used to get lost easily. She would tell people, “I’m bad at directions.” But then she decided that she wanted to change that. So she worked at reading and following maps, memorizing street names, and noticing landmarks. In time, she became more proficient and even confident at finding her way. 

Our loving Heavenly Father sees us for who we have the potential to become. And He wants us to see what He sees. Rather than defining ourselves by who we have always been, we can begin to become who God wants us to be.

1. Daniel Gilbert, in Benjamin Hardy, “Take Ownership of Your Future Self,” Harvard Business Review, Aug. 28, 2020, hbr.org.