Thaddeus,
I asked how we receive the grace of Christ in order to become perfected, and you responded by saying that, in essence, we strive to become perfect and then we get His grace.   (“If we embark on a quest to be obedient to the Lord, then He will make us holy.”)
If that is true, when do we get the grace?  We know we need to become holy (perfect) in order to live with God, so when are we holy?  How do we know?  How many times do we need to push down the button on the toaster in order to become “toasted?”

Cindy, look more closely at President Benson’s words: “When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in that moment God will endow us with power.”
We aren’t given grace once we’ve perfected ourselves (i.e. when we complete our quest), it’s in that moment that we embark on the quest.

We show the Lord our faith in His words by actually listening to His words and putting them into practice (John 7:17).

When my dentist tells me to floss, I instinctively react negatively. I don’t want someone telling me what to do and I don’t want to have to change my routine (obedience is an irritant).
When he helps me understand that flossing results in healthy teeth and gums and less pain, I get excited to do it. I start my day looking forward to the morning’s daily floss (obedience becomes my quest, James 2:21).

In the first case (irritant), I am not putting faith in my dentist, even if I do reluctantly floss once in a while.
In the second case (quest), I am putting faith in my dentist and it is evident by my excitement and my flossing.

Likewise, when Jesus commands us, for example, to love our enemies:
If we view it as an irritant, we are not putting our faith in Christ. We distrust His commandment; we don’t think it will do us any good.
If we put our faith in Him, we will be excited to try out this instruction because we believe it will make us happier and we will do it quickly. When we make loving our enemies our quest, in that moment God endows us with the power and grace necessary to love them.

First, what do you mean by “glorify God?” My understanding of that phrase is influenced by a revelation Joseph Smith received as a preface to Genesis 1. It is found in our Pearl of Great Price, and is basically an exchange Moses had with God in which Moses asks the question “Why creation?” God responds with this phrase: “For behold, this is my work and my glory — to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” (Moses 1:39, my emphasis). Moses then views the creation of earth and the scene in the Garden of Eden, etc., as accounted in Genesis.

I find it very interesting that God’s work (i.e. His occupation) and his glory (what He loves to do; His passion) is to bring to pass immortal men who willingly receive eternal life (eternal life, we view as Godly life; eternal in quality not just in duration). So what must we do as His beloved children to “glorify Him?” We contribute ourselves to His glory. We learn our duties, follow His directions, and enter covenants to receive eternal life. It’s a step-by-step process that we come to earth to learn, and it means gradual growth.

In short, our growth is what pleases Him most. When we figure something out and repent and change, this gives him glory.

Drew, does this help you understand where we’re coming from? How does your understanding of “glorify God” compare with what I described?

I do want to gain an understanding of your beliefs and in no way intend to be offensive, I hope I don’t come across that way.

I’m always trying to find a good analogy to explain how we view the cooperation of grace and works. I like this one a lot, thanks.

The common thread is that the toast can be made by your hand alone

I hope my article didn’t give you this impression. That is exactly the opposite of the point I was trying to make.

In the end, however, I think that we all realize that the power of the Atonement is so much more infinitely beyond anything we could ever achieve. In Brother Robinson’s “Parable of the Bicycle”, the price on the bicycle would not be the $100 or so that a normal bicycle costs, but more like $10^(10^(10^(10^(10^10)))) (plus a little more). Trying to work out forgiveness for our own sins is so completely beyond our grasp that even the most pious person ever would be forever shut out of the presence of the Divine (See 2 Nephi 9). Like the hymn goes, “Not the labors of my hands, could fill all Thy laws demands. Could my zeal no respite know, could my tears forever flow, all for sin could not atone. Thou must save, and Thou alone.” (“Rock of Ages”, Hymns #111)