Our Eternal Identity
Who are we? It is comforting to know that we were "us" long before we came down to earth. We had our own personalities and skills. We had our strengthens and weakness. It is also wonderful to know we will continue to exist after this life just as we are. As daughters and sons of God, we are her to learn and grow. God wants us to progress to become more than we were and are currently. It is very exciting to think of the glorious things to come at the time that we are resurrected and made an immortal being never to worry about death and sickness again. We are here to develop our characters through love and experiences that shape us. By knowing that there is more to this life and we will always exist, we can gain courage to overcome life's trail and hardship. We can realize how important it is to become the type of person you are proud to be. We can love with all our hearts because we know we are loved unconditionally by God. We can keep trying again and again because we understand that is what God wants and He has faith in us. We can succeed if we just don't give up. Our Heavenly Father knows we have more potential than we can imagine.
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In his talk, “Finding Happiness” (1997) Elder Scott teaches that Satan wants us to “lose hope” and he seeks to bring us down with awful depressing thoughts. We need to have faith that everything will work for our positive progress even when nothing shows evidence of a positive outcome. We must fight back by surrounding ourselves with loving supportive people who lift us up. We must pray to have God’s power and happiness in our lives. Elder Scott says, “Fortunately you do not have to live in a world where there is nothing to support you in your convictions. By the choices you make, you can surround yourself with individuals and influences that will constantly aid you in your determination to live the commandments of God.”
Elder Christofferson “The Moral Force of Women” (2013) says that women are the “guardians of life.” Women do the most amazing work of growing bodies for the precious spirits of God’s children. He says, “In all events, a mother can exert an influence unequaled by any other person in any other relationship.” The work of being a mother needs to be appreciated. Mothers need to know how loved and valuable they are in their children’s lives. A loving mother’s influence can be felt through the generations.
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Elder Christofferson “Brethren We Have Work to Do” (2006) teaches, “But we must be men that women can trust, that children can trust, and that God can trust.” He calls for men to push away the worldly attitude that nothing is their responsibility and become real men who care for others and work to improve themselves. |