Premortal Life

Premortal Life: PL

Jeremiah 1:4-5

In the beginning with God                       D&C 93:29

Noble and Great ones                             Abraham 3:22-23

Adam was told of existence before birth Moses 6:51

All things created spiritually first             Moses 3:5

Received lessons and preparation         D&C 138:55-56

Made choices in Heaven                        Alma 13:3

War in Heaven                                        Revelation 12:7-9

Death returns us to God                         Ecclesiastes 12:7

Resurrection brings us back to Lord      Helaman 14:17

Without an understanding of our premortal life we cannot correctly comprehend our relationship with our Heavenly Father, nor can we completely grasp the purpose of this earth life and our divine destiny. This doctrine of premortal life, was known to ancient Christians. For nearly five hundred years the doctrine was taught, but it was then rejected as a heresy by a clergy that had slipped into the Dark Ages of apostasy. Once they rejected this doctrine … they could never unravel the mystery of life. They became like a man trying to assemble a strand of pearls on a string that was too short. There is no way they can put them all together.

There is no way to make sense out of life without a knowledge of the doctrine of premortal life. … When we understand the doctrine of premortal life, then things fit together and make sense.

Life did not begin with mortal birth.  When we comprehend the doctrine of premortal life, we know that we are the children of God, that we lived with him in spirit form before entering mortality.

We know that this life is a test, that life did not begin with birth, nor will it end with death.

Then life begins to make sense, with meaning and purpose even in all of the chaotic mischief that mankind creates for itself.

                Boyd K. Packer, October 1983 General Conference

Because we came to earth to be tested and to walk by faith, the Lord has not revealed many details about premortal life. What has been revealed, however, is sufficient for us to accomplish our purpose here on earth.

Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “In the premortal world we were taught the Father’s plan of redemption and enjoyed moral agency. Through the use of this agency, men and women developed varying appetites, talents, and capacities over time and no spirits remained the same” (Give Heed unto the Word of the Lord [CES fireside for young adults, May 2, 1999], 2).

During your premortal life you learned to love truth. You made correct eternal choices. You knew that here in mortality, there would be afflictions and adversity, sorrow and suffering, tests and trials to help you grow and progress. You also knew that you could continue making correct choices, repent of incorrect choices, and through the Atonement of Jesus Christ inherit eternal life.

                Randall K. Bennett, October 2011 General Conference

One of the strange things to me is the fact that so many people believe that there is a spirit in man and when he dies that spirit continues to live as an immortal thing, yet that it had no existence until man was born in this mortal life. 

Joseph Fielding Smith in Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R McConkie vol 1:56

Knowledge

Knowledge (Be Smart): BS

D&C 88:118

God knows all                                                         Abraham 3:19

Wisdom leads to understanding                             Proverbs 4:7

Lord beginning of wisdom                                       Proverbs 9:9-10

Continues with us after death                                 D&C 130:18-19

How to learn:

Humbly seek                                              D&C 136:32-33; 2 Ne. 9:42

Ask                                                               Matthew 7:7-8, James 1:5

Gift of the Spirit                                                       D&C 46:18

Line upon Line                                            2 Ne. 28:30; Isaiah 28:10

Study and Faith                                                       D&C 109:7

What to learn:

Office in which you stand                                        D&C 107:99-100

Books, languages, people                                      D&C 90:15

Commandments of God                                          Alma 37:35

History, Countries, Laws                                         D&C 93:5

Principle, doctrine, heaven, earth,                          D&C 88:77-79

   past, present, future, home, abroad

Warnings:

Seek not to counsel God                                        Jacob 4:10

Do not harken to precepts of men                          D&C 45:28-29

Do not say I know of myself                                    2 Ne 9:28-29

Education prepares you for better employment opportunities. It puts you in a better position to serve and to bless those around you. It will set you on a path of lifelong learning. It will strengthen you to fight against ignorance and error. As Joseph Smith taught: “Knowledge does away with darkness, suspense and doubt; for these cannot exist where knowledge is. … In knowledge there is power.” “To be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God.”  Education will prepare you for what is ahead.

                Robert D. Hales, October 2015; General Conference

We should teach our children the importance of schooling as a help in discovering how to think and to learn. They need to know, and we need to be reminded, that schooling is merely the formal part of education. Education should never stop, but should be a continuing activity throughout life.

                Victor L. Brown; October 1982; General Conference

There lies within you an incalculable potential for good. The small day-to-day decisions will determine the course of your lives.

Therefore, be smart. The Lord has blessed each of you with greater capacity than you realize. . . I have concluded that the work of the world is not done by intellectual geniuses. It is done by men of ordinary capacity who use their abilities in an extraordinary manner. As a member of this church you have the obligation to seek learning and to improve your skills.

                Gordon B. Hinckley, October 1972; General Conference

Because of our sacred regard for each human intellect, we consider the obtaining of an education to be a religious responsibility . . . Our Creator expects His children everywhere to educate themselves.

                Russell M. Nelson, October 1992; General Conference

The acquisition of knowledge is a lifelong, sacred activity, pleasing to our Father in Heaven . . . In our quest for truth, we need to seek the help of our loving Heavenly Father. His Spirit can direct and intensify our efforts to learn and magnify our ability to assimilate truth. . . An education is not limited to formal study. Lifelong learning can increase our ability to appreciate and relish the workings and beauty of the world around us. We should expand ourselves and enjoy the journey.                

                Dallin H. Oaks, April, Ensign April 2009

Born Again

Born Again: BA

Moses 6:59

Nicodemus’ Question                         John 3: 3-5

What happens when we are Born Again:

Become new creatures                       Mosiah 27:25-26

No disposition to do evil                     Mosiah 5:2

Doeth Righteousness                         1 John 2:28-29

Love one another                                1 John 4:7

Change of Heart                                  Alma 5:7

Newness of life                                     Romans 6:4

How to do it

Baptism and Confirmation                 D&C 5:16

Covenants                                            Mosiah 5:7

Put off natural man                              Mosiah 3:19

Ask questions                                       Alma 5:14-15; 26-27

Through atonement of Christ             D&C 76:69

Proper preparing and cleaning are the first basic steps in the process of being born again. . . Total immersion in and saturation with the Savior’s gospel are essential steps in the process of being born again. . . Purifying and sealing by the Holy Spirit of Promise constitute the culminating steps in the process of being born again.

                David A. Bednar; April 2007, General Conference

Spiritual rebirth originates with faith in Jesus Christ, by whose grace we are changed. . .

You may ask, Why doesn’t this mighty change happen more quickly with me? You should remember that the remarkable examples of King Benjamin’s people, Alma, and some others in scripture are just that—remarkable and not typical. For most of us, the changes are more gradual and occur over time. Being born again, unlike our physical birth, is more a process than an event. And engaging in that process is the central purpose of mortality.

At the same time, let us not justify ourselves in a casual effort. Let us not be content to retain some disposition to do evil. Let us worthily partake of the sacrament each week and continue to draw upon the Holy Spirit to root out the last vestiges of impurity within us. I testify that as you continue in the path of spiritual rebirth, the atoning grace of Jesus Christ will take away your sins and the stain of those sins in you, temptations will lose their appeal, and through Christ you will become holy, as He and our Father are holy.

                D. Todd Christofferson; April 2008, General Conf.

When you choose to follow Christ, you choose to be changed.

“No man,” said President David O. McKay, “can sincerely resolve to apply in his daily life the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth without sensing a change in his own nature. The phrase ‘born again’ has a deeper significance than many people attach to it. This changed feeling may be indescribable, but it is real.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1962, p. 7.)

Can human hearts be changed? Why, of course! . . . If it hasn’t happened to you—it should.

                Ezra Taft Benson; October 1985, General Conference

A heart transplant can prolong life for years for people who would otherwise die from heart failure. But it is not “the ultimate operation,” as Time magazine called it in 1967.  The ultimate operation is not a physical but a spiritual “mighty change” of heart.

Through the Atonement of Christ and by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel, we undergo this ultimate operation, this spiritual change of heart. As a result of our transgressions, our spiritual hearts have become diseased and hardened, making us subject to spiritual death and separation from our Heavenly Father. The Lord explained the operation that we all need: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”

Just as with heart transplant patients, however, this mighty change of our spiritual hearts is just the beginning. Repentance, baptism, and confirmation are necessary but not sufficient. Indeed, equal, if not greater, care must be taken with a spiritually changed heart than with a physically transplanted heart if we are to endure to the end. Only by doing so can we be held guiltless at the time of judgment.

Enduring to the end can be challenging because the tendency of the natural man is to reject the spiritually changed heart and allow it to harden. No wonder the Lord cautioned to “even let those who are sanctified take heed.”

                Dale G. Renlund, October 2009, General Conference

Brother Carmen Bria, a neighbor of ours converted from another church, was assisting prisoners as a social worker. A certain young prisoner became interested in the gospel. His father, a minister from another church, visited the boy and was very upset that his son was studying Mormon doctrine, even more than he was by the fact that his son was in prison.

Brother Bria approached the father and asked why he was so distressed. The father replied, “You are not saved.”

“Why do you say that?” asked Brother Bria.

“Well,” said the father, “you have not taken Christ as your personal Savior. You have not been born again in Christ.”

Brother Bria responded, “Sir, let me explain it to you. We may not say it just the way you do, but we most certainly do believe in a literal salvation through Jesus Christ. We have accepted him as our personal Savior, have taken upon us his name, and we have been born again in Christ.”

Members of the Church should know that they are born again—“redeemed of God,” as the Prophet Alma said, “[to] be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life” (Mosiah 18:9).

If, then, we understand that we are born again, having taken upon us the name of Christ, the big question is: Do we act like it?               Wm. Grant Bangerter; April 1987, General Conf.

I witness that we cannot be fully converted until we “walk in newness of life” and are at heart a new person, “purged from [our] old sins.” This can only come about by being born again of the water and of the Spirit through baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. In this way we receive divine forgiveness, by which we can know in our hearts that our sins are remitted.

James E. Faust, April 2001, General Conference

Scripture Study

Scripture Study:  SS

John 5:39

What is Scripture?

Bible, Book of Mormon                           A of F 1:8

From God through Holy Ghost                2 Peter 1:20-21

Word of God; His voice                           D&C 18:34-36

Why Scriptures Written:

Benefit of posterity:                                 Abraham 1:31; 2 Ne 4:15

Believe in Christ                                      John 20:31

Remember Lord’s doings in all lands     1 Nephi 19:18, 22-23

Lead people to do right                           Alma 31:5

To help us remember                             Mosiah 1:5

Give wisdom, doctrine, correction          2 Timothy 3:15-17 JST

Search to verify truth                              Acts 17:11

Tell all things to do                                  2 Nephi 32:

Mediate = Observe = Success                Joshua 1:8

Give Instruction                                       D&C 33:16

Contain fullness of gospel                       D&C 42:12

Not be deceived                                      JS-Matt 1:37

Sever from devil, Lead to Christ             Helaman 3:29

Continue to receive                                 A of F 1:9

Light to our path                                      Psalms 119:105

Promise:                Introduction of BoM (last 2 para) & Moroni 10:3-5

"One of the most sacred purposes for which the scriptures were written was to make it possible for all to know Christ. The scriptures teach and testify of Jesus Christ. They teach us much that we need to know and to do to return to the presence of the Savior.

                L. Lionel Kendrick, April 1993 General Conference

Scriptures are like packets of light that illuminate our minds and give place to guidance and inspiration from on high.  They can become the key to open the channel to communion with our Father in Heaven and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

  Richard G. Scott, October 2011 General Conference

The years have taught me that if we will energetically pursue this worthy personal goal [of scripture study] in a determined and conscientious manner, we shall indeed find answers to our problems and peace in our hearts. We shall experience the Holy Ghost broadening our understanding, find new insights, witness an unfolding pattern of all scripture; and the doctrines of the Lord shall come to have more meaning to us than we ever thought possible. As a consequence, we shall have greater wisdom with which to guide ourselves and our families.”                                           

Spencer W. Kimball, Sept 1975, Ensign

Reading and studying the scriptures continues to build our faith, helps us resist temptation, and allows us to grow closer to Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.

                Vicki F. Matsumori, April 2007 General Conference

To memorize a scripture is to forge a new friendship.  It is like discovering a new individual who can help in time of need, give inspiration and comfort and be a source of motivation for needed change.  

Richard G. Scott, October 2011, General Conference

Gratitude

Gratitude: THANKS

D&C 59:7

Command:

Everything give thanks                                            1 Thes. 5:18

In all things                                                              Mosiah 26: 39

Ungratefulness offends God                                   D&C 59:21

Reasons to Thank the Lord:

Thanks when merry                                                D&C 136:28

Thanks to God for all creations                               Psalms 147:7-8

Thanks that He created us                                     Psalms 100:3-4

Thanks for all His works of righteousness              Alma 26:8

Thanks for Atonement                                            Alma 24:10

Thanks for day to day life                                        Mosiah 2:19-21

Promise that all will work for good                          D&C 98: 1-3

Examples

Jesus Thanks God for Miracle of Lazarus              John 11:41

10 Lepers                                                                Luke 17:12-19

Brother of Jaren Sings praises on boat                  Ether 6:9

Anit-Neph-Lehi’s thanks for missionaries                Alma 24:7-8

Paul giving thanks for members                             1 Thes 2:13

Daniel’s Thanks for Dream Interpretation               Daniel 2:23

Temple is a place of Thanksgiving                          D&C 97:13

Blessed beyond compare                                       D&C 78:19

Prayer + Thanks = Lifted up at last day                  Alma 37:37

We have so much for which to give thanks. First and foremost, we are thankful for our Savior Jesus Christ. Under the plan of the Father, He created the world. Through His prophets, He revealed the plan of salvation with its accompanying commandments and ordinances. He came into mortality to teach and show us the way. He suffered and paid the price for our sins if we would repent. He gave up His life, and He conquered death and rose from the grave that we all will live again.                      

When we give thanks in all things, we see hardships and adversities in the context of the purpose of life. We are sent here to be tested. There must be opposition in all things. We are meant to learn and grow through that opposition, through meeting our challenges, and through teaching others to do the same. 

Dallin H. Oaks; 2003 General Conference

The Lord wants you to have a spirit of gratitude in all you do and say. Live with a spirit of thanksgiving and you will have greater happiness and satisfaction in life. Even in your most difficult times, you can find much to be grateful for. Doing so will strengthen and bless you.

                                For the Strength of Youth Booklet

Our Father in Heaven commands us to be thankful in all things, and He requires that we give thanks for the blessings we receive. We know that all of His commandments are intended to make us happy. So to be happy, we must have a grateful heart . . . We must ask in prayer that God, by the power of the Holy Ghost, will help us see our blessings clearly. He can help us be grateful for blessings we take for granted. Giving thanks in prayer can allow us to see the magnitude of these blessings and all of our other blessings and so receive the gift of a more grateful heart. 

       Henry B. Eyring “The Choice to Be Grateful,” Ensign, Dec. 2011

Holy Ghost

Holy Ghost:  HG

John 14:26

Purposes of the Holy Ghost:

Truth of All things                                     Moroni 10:5

Testifies of Christ                                     1 Cor. 12:3 & 3 Ne 28:11

Sanctifies after Baptism                           3 Ne 27:20

Holy Spirit of Promise                              D&C 132:7

Through the instrumentality of the Holy Ghost, His Spirit comforts those who mourn, teaches and testifies to those who thirst for the truth, purifies the brokenhearted who would be clean, and warns of dangers which lie ahead.   

                          Spencer J. Condie, October 1993, General Conf.

How the Holy Ghost speaks to us:

Heart and Mind                                        D&C 8:2

Brings Joy, peace                                    Romans 15:13

Leads to do Good                                    D&C 11:12

Enlighten Mind, Fill soul with Joy              D&C 11:13

Speaks quietly                                         1 Kings 19:11-12

Line upon Line                                         Isaiah 28:10

Fruit of the Spirit                                      Galatians 5:22-23

Knowledge                                              D&C 121:26            

How to receive the Holy Ghost:

Keep commandments and love God         John 14:21

Ask                                                          D&C 88:63 & Matt7:7

Fast and Pray                                          Alma 5:46

Hearken to Spirit- leads to covenants       D&C 84:46-48

Charity and Virtue                                    D&C 121: 45-46                      

We become so accustomed to learning through our physical senses—by sight and sound and smell, by taste and touch—that some of us seem to learn in no other way.         But there are spiritual things that are not registered that way at all. Some things we simply feel, not as we feel something we touch, but as we feel something we feel.    There are things, spiritual things that are registered in our minds and recorded in our memories as pure knowledge. A knowledge of “things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass.” (D&C 88:79; see also D&C 93:24, and Jacob 4:13.) As surely as we know about material things, we can come to know of spiritual things.                             

                                Boyd K. Packer; April 1977 General Conference

As you appropriately seek for and apply unto the spirit of revelation, I promise you will “walk in the light of the Lord. Sometimes the spirit of revelation will operate immediately and intensely, other times subtly and gradually, and often so delicately you may not even consciously recognize it. But regardless of the pattern whereby this blessing is received, the light it provides will illuminate and enlarge your soul, enlighten your understanding, and direct and protect you and your family.                     

David A. Bednar, April 2011 General Conference

These four words—“Receive the Holy Ghost”—are not a passive pronouncement; rather, they constitute a priesthood injunction—an authoritative admonition to act and not simply to be acted upon. The Holy Ghost does not become operative in our lives merely because hands are placed upon our heads and those four important words are spoken. As we receive this ordinance, each of us accepts a sacred and ongoing responsibility to desire, to seek, to work, and to so live that we indeed “receive the Holy Ghost” and its attendant spiritual gifts.                                                               David A. Bednar, Oct 2010 General Conference

The most valuable inspiration will be for you to know what God would have you do. If it is to pay tithing or to visit a grieving friend, you should do it. Whatever it is, do it. When you demonstrate your willingness to obey, the Spirit will send you more impressions of what God would have you do for Him. 

As you obey, the impressions from the Spirit will come more frequently, becoming closer and closer to constant companionship. Your power to choose the right will increase.

Henry B. Eyring, Oct 2015 General Conference

Choice and Accountability

Choice and Accountability: CA

2 Nephi 2:27

Choose Today:                                       Moses 6:33, Joshua 24:15

Every Man chose for himself:                  D&C 37:4

Created to Act                                         2 Nephi 2:14

Need opposition for true agency             Moses 6:56; 2 Nephi 2:16      

Reason to rejoice                                    2 Nephi 10:23

Allows us to prove ourselves                  Abraham 3:25

Cannot serve two masters                      Matthew 6:24

Principle of Agency is Eternal:

Satan Sought to Destroy                         Moses 4:3

Lost 3^rd Part of hosts of heaven              D&C 29:36

In Garden of Eden                                  Moses 7:32

When we came into this world, we brought with us from our heavenly home this God-given gift and privilege which we call our agency. It gives us the right and power to make decisions and to choose. Agency is an eternal law. President Brigham Young, speaking of our agency, taught: “This is a law which has always existed from all eternity, and will continue to exist throughout all the eternities to come. Every intelligent being must have the power of choice.”

                Wolfgang H. Paul, April 2006, General Conference

Perfect Example of use of Agency; Jesus Christ:

Christ chose to follow Father’s will:         Matthew 26:39

Throughout His life our Savior showed us how to use our agency. As a boy in Jerusalem, He deliberately chose to “be about [His] Father’s business.” (Luke 2:49) In His ministry, He obediently chose “to do the will of [His] Father.”(3 Nephi 27:13) In Gethsemane, He chose to suffer all things, saying, “Not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.”(Luke 22:42-43)  On the cross, He chose to love His enemies, praying, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”(Luke 23:34) And then, so that He could finally demonstrate that He was choosing for Himself, He was left alone. “[Father,] why hast thou forsaken me?” He asked. (Mark 15:34) At last, He exercised His agency to act, enduring to the end, until He could say, “It is finished.”(John 19:30)

                Robert D. Hales; October 2010, General Conference

Accountability essential part of Agency:

Accountability at Judgement Day           D&C 101:78

Bring upon us own condemnation          Alma 3:19; Helaman 14:30

Anxiously engaged in good                    D&C 58:27-29

By His perfect live, [Christ] taught us that when we choose to do the will of our Heavenly Father, our agency is preserved, our opportunities increase, and we progress . . . it is helpful to remember that the opposite is also true: when we don’t keep the commandments or follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost, our opportunities are reduced; our abilities to act and progress are diminished. Robert D. Hales; October 2010, General Conf.

What are we doing with our agency? Are we drawing close to God, or away from him? Are we satisfied and happy in what we are doing with this God-given endowment? Can we improve in the use of it?

Think carefully about the promises and benefits available to us by using our free agency in obeying and keeping God’s laws, as against failure to do so.  May God bless us all that we will have the desire and courage to exercise our free agency in righteousness and in truth.                   Delbert L. Stapley; April 1975 General Conf. 

Live as Becometh a Saint

Live as Becometh a Saint: LBS

Articles of Faith 1:13

A saint is one who follows Christ in holiness and devotion with a view fixed on eternal life.  This is the commitment of a Latter-day Saint.

Wm. Grant Bangerter, April 1987 General Conf.

Lists to Live by:

     Christ: Beatitudes                                               3 Ne 12: 3-12

     Alma; Awaken to a sense of duty to God:         Alma 7:23-24

     King Benjamin; Become as a little child:            Mosiah 3:19

     Paul:  Stand Fast in the Lord                             Philippians 4: 4-8

     Paul: Exhortation to Saints                                1 Thes. 5:14-23

     Paul: Live as Saints should live                         Romans 12:9-18

     Peter:  Pertaining to Life and Godliness            2 Peter 1: 2-8

     Brigham Young: Live by gospel standards        D&C 136:23-29

     Joseph Smith:  Character traits of Christ          D&C 4:5-6

 “Are you a Saint?” may I suggest three questions that will allow for a self-assessment. 1^st, is the way we live consistent with what we believe, and would our friends and associates recognize, that we have separated ourselves from worldly evils?  2^nd, are worldly pleasures, profits, and similar pursuits distracting us from following, worshiping, and serving the Savior in our daily lives?  3^rd, in order to serve God and be holy, are we making sacrifices consistent with our covenants?           

                                 Quentin L. Cook; Oct 2003, General Conf.

A saint is a believer in Christ and knows of His perfect love. The giving saint shares in a true spirit of that love, and the receiving saint accepts in a true spirit of gratitude. A saint serves others, knowing that the more one serves, the greater the opportunity for the Spirit to sanctify and purify.  A saint is tolerant, and is attentive to the pleadings of other human beings, not only to spoken messages but to unspoken messages as well… A saint “refrain[s] from idleness and seeks learning by study, and also by faith… A saint is honest and kind… A saint is an honorable citizen… A saint resolves any differences with others honorably and peacefully and is constant in courtesy… A saint shuns that which is unclean or degrading and avoids excess even of that which is good.  Perhaps above all, a saint is reverent. Reverence for the Lord, for the earth He created, for leaders, for the dignity of others, for the law, for the sanctity of life…

A reverent saint loves the Lord and gives highest priority to keeping His commandments. Daily prayer, periodic fasting, payment of tithes and offerings are privileges important to a faithful saint.

                                    Russell M. Nelson, April 1990, General Conf.

Every one of us is more beloved to the Lord than we can possibly understand or imagine. Let us therefore be kinder to one another and kinder toward ourselves. Let us remember that as we wait upon the Lord, we are becoming “saint[s] through [His] atonement.

Robert D. Hales, Oct 2011, General Conference

I believe with all my heart that the Latter-day Saints, generally speaking, are good people. If we live by the principles of the gospel, we must be good people, for we will be generous and kind, thoughtful and tolerant, helpful and outreaching to those in distress. We can either subdue the divine nature and hide it so that it finds no expression in our lives, or we can bring it to the front and let it shine through all that we do.                         There is room for improvement in every life. Regardless of our occupations, regardless of our circumstances, we can improve ourselves and while so doing have an effect on the lives of those about us.

I challenge every one of you who can hear me to rise to the divinity within you. Do we really realize what it means to be a child of God, to have within us something of the divine nature?

                                Gordon B. Hinkley, Oct 2002 General Conf.

Relief Society Declaration:

We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:

Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ through prayer and

   scripture study.

Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

Dedicate ourselves to strengthening marriages, families, and homes.

Find nobility in motherhood and joy in womanhood.

Delight in service and good works.

Love life and learning.

Stand for truth and righteousness.

Sustain the priesthood as the authority of God on earth.

Rejoice in the blessings of the temple, understand our divine

    destiny, and strive for exaltation.

Young Women Theme:

We are daughters of our Heavenly Father who loves us and we love Him.  We will stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things and in all places as we strive to live the YW values which are: Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice and Accountability, Good Works, Integrity, and Virtue.  We believe as we come to accept and act upon these values we will be prepared to strengthen home and family, make and keep sacred covenants, receive the ordinances of the temple, and enjoy the blessings of exaltation.

For the Strength of Youth Standards:  Agency and Accountability, Dating, Dress and Appearance, Education, Entertainment and Media, Family, Friends, Gratitude, Honesty and Integrity, Language, Music and Dancing, Physical and Emotional Health, Repentance, Sabbath Day Observance, Service, Sexual Purity, Tithes and Offerings, Work and Self Reliance

These standards are a guide to help you make correct choices. Review the standards often and ask yourself, “Am I living the way the Lord wants me to live?” and “How have I been blessed by living these standards?”

My Gospel Standards from Faith in God:

I will follow Heavenly Father’s plan for me.

I will remember my baptismal covenant and listen to the Holy Ghost.

I will choose the right. I know I can repent when I make a mistake.

I will be honest with Heavenly Father, others, and myself.

I will use the names of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ reverently. I will not swear or use crude words.

I will do those things on the Sabbath that will help me feel close to    

     Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I will honor my parents and do my part to strengthen my family.

I will keep my mind and body sacred and pure, and I will not partake

     of things that are harmful to me.

I will dress modestly to show respect for Heavenly Father and myself.

I will only read and watch things that are pleasing to Heavenly

     Father.

I will only listen to music that is pleasing to Heavenly Father.

I will seek good friends and treat others kindly.

I will live now to be worthy to go to the temple and do my part to have

     an eternal family.

“I will give you the B’s

1.        Be grateful               2.    Be smart          3.    Be clean

4.     Be true                    5.    Be humble        6.    Be prayerful”

                                Gordon B. Hinckley; Ensign, Apr. 2001