How to Increase Conversion in Ourselves and our Families

What Is Conversion?

Elder Oaks, "The Challenge to Become", Ensign, Nov. 2000

Jesus taught these same men about conversion, which is far more than testimony. This process requires far more than acquiring knowledge. To testify is to know and to declare. The gospel challenges us to be “converted,” which requires us to do and to become. In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something.

How Does Conversion Happen?

Elder Ballard, “Now Is the Time,” Ensign, Nov. 2000

True conversion comes through the power of the Spirit. When the Spirit touches the heart, hearts are changed. When individuals, both members and investigators, feel the Spirit working with them, or when they see the evidence of the Lord’s love and mercy in their lives, they are edified and strengthened spiritually and their faith in Him increases.

Elder Holland, Making Your Life a Soul-Stirring Journey of Personal Growth, Ensign. 12/18

President Russell M. Nelson tied together learning and this converting change of heart when he taught that as “the Holy Ghost gives conviction to the earnest seeker of truth,” it fosters faith, which “promotes repentance and obedience to God’s commandments.” These essential ingredients of conversion turn us “from the ways of the world to … the ways of the Lord,” which “brings a mighty change of heart.” This isn’t about knowing the names of the twelve tribes of Israel or diagramming the allegory of the olives trees, as useful as such exercises may be. This kind of learning is about changing ourselves, about being different (better) because we know more of what God knows.

The Purpose of the New Curriculum and Sunday Block is Deeper Conversion

Elder Cook, “Deep and Lasting Conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,” 10/18

The goal of these adjustments is to obtain a deep and lasting conversion of adults and the rising generation. We know the spiritual impact and the deep and lasting conversion that can be achieved in the home setting. Years ago, a study established that for young men and women the influence of the Holy Ghost most often accompanies individual scripture study and prayer in the home. Our purpose is to balance the Church and the home experiences in a way that will greatly increase faith and spirituality and deepen conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

World conditions increasingly require deepening individual conversion to and strengthening faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and His Atonement. The Lord has prepared us, line upon line, for the perilous times that we now face.

Elder Holland, Making Your Life a Soul-Stirring Journey of Personal Growth, Ensign. 12/18

I hope we can see more than just modified policies, new programs, and revised manuals. The Lord’s work has always been ultimately about people, not programs. Whatever changes He directs, what He’s really hoping to change is you and me. He wants to change our hearts and enhance our future.

How to Study or Teach for Deeper Conversion

Elder Holland, Making Your Life a Soul-Stirring Journey

You can see that the kind of learning I’m talking about is far too big to be wrapped up in a 50-minute lesson. We wouldn’t expect our physical bodies to survive long on one meal a week—even if it is a very good meal. Similarly, if a one-hour Church class is the main setting for our “feasting upon the word of Christ” (2 Nephi 31:20), then we are in danger of spiritual malnourishment.

Let me reassure you with two thoughts: (1) You are teaching people, not lessons. (2). Remember that the best way to invite the Spirit into our lives—and into our teaching—is to learn and live the gospel ourselves. The Spirit is the ultimate teacher in this Church, and fortunately, there is no limit to that influence.

I help [learners] see connections between their lives and the precious doctrine in the scriptures. Above all, I pray for inspiration in the moment to turn a fact into faith, to turn a question into a quest. The true measure of success will not be how smoothly the lesson went. Success depends on what happens in the life of the learner.

Elder Bednar, “The Scriptures: A Reservoir of Living Water,” 2007

[There are] three basic ways or methods of obtaining living water from the scriptural reservoir:

  (1) reading the scriptures from beginning to end

  (2) studying the scriptures by topic

  (3) searching the scriptures for connections, patterns, and themes.

Whereas reading a book of scripture from beginning to end provides a basic breadth of knowledge, studying by topic increases the depth of our knowledge. In my judgment, diligently searching to discover connections, patterns, and themes is in part what it means to “feast” upon the words of Christ. This approach can open the floodgates of the spiritual reservoir, enlighten our understanding through His Spirit, and produce a depth of gratitude for the holy scriptures and a degree of spiritual commitment that can be received in no other way.

Priorities

President Oaks: Spiritual food is necessary for spiritual survival, especially in a world that is moving away from belief in God and the absolutes of right and wrong. In an age dominated by the Internet, which magnifies messages that menace faith, we must increase our exposure to spiritual truth in order to strengthen our faith and stay rooted in the gospel.

President Ballard: Our family-centered perspective should make Latter-day Saints strive to be the best parents in the world. It should cause us to devote whatever time is necessary to strengthen our families. Be wise and do not involve children or yourselves in so many activities out of the home that you are so busy that the Spirit of the Lord cannot be recognized.

Keep foremost in mind the sacred covenants you have made with the Lord as you write down your daily schedules.

Elder Christofferson: You and I can put Christ at the center of our lives. We can begin by stripping everything out of our lives and then putting it back together in priority order with the Savior at the center. We should first put in frequent prayer and scripture study, thoughtful study of apostolic teachings, weekly preparation to partake of the sacrament worthily, Sunday worship, and recording and remembering what the Spirit and experience teach us about discipleship.

Great Faith has a Short Shelf Life

Preparedness: Start Early and Be Steady by Elder Henry B. Eyring

"Great faith has a short shelf life."

Most of us have thought about how to prepare for storms. We have seen and felt the suffering of women, men, and children, and of the aged and the weak, caught in hurricanes, tsunamis, wars, and droughts. One reaction is to ask, “How can I be prepared?” And there is a rush to buy and put away whatever people think they might need for the day they might face such calamities.

But there is another even more important preparation we must make for tests that are certain to come to each of us. That preparation must be started far in advance because it takes time. What we will need then can’t be bought. It can’t be borrowed. It doesn’t store well. And it has to have been used regularly and recently.

So, the great test of life is to see whether we will hearken to and obey God’s commands in the midst of the storms of life. It is not to endure storms, but to choose the right while they rage.

We will need to have developed and nurtured faith in Jesus Christ long before Satan hits us, as he will, with doubts and appeals to our carnal desires and with lying voices saying that good is bad and that there is no sin. Those spiritual storms are already raging. We can expect that they will worsen until the Savior returns.

However much faith to obey God we now have, we will need to strengthen it continually and keep it refreshed constantly. 

Let me suggest to you four settings in which to practice quick and steady obedience. One is the command to feast upon the word of God. A second is to pray always. A third is the commandment to be a full-tithe payer. And the fourth is to escape from sin and its terrible effects. Each takes faith to start and then to persevere. And all can strengthen your capacity to know and obey the Lord’s commands.

There is a better way to prepare, because great faith has a short shelf life. We could decide to persist in studying the words of Christ in the scriptures and the teachings of living prophets.

Understanding the Worldly Philosophies of Satan and Strengthening Testimonies

We need to create a safe place with lots of love for ourselves/children to ask questions

A. What are Satan’s Strategies? – usually truth mixed with falsehoods

1) Moral Relativism = Satan’s says the world is too judgmental or intolerant (true) so you shouldn’t say there is absolute truth (false). Satan’s message – you can have “your truth” and I can have “my truth.”

Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “Free Forever, to Act for Themselves,” October 2014

“Relativism means each person is his or her own highest authority. In much of the world, relativist thinking has become a dominant philosophy. “By relativism I mean the view that ethical or moral truths are relative, that they depend on the attitudes and feelings of those who hold them, and that no one can judge the validity of someone else’s ‘truth,’” he said. “You hear a lot of talk these days about ‘my truth’ and ‘his truth’ or ‘her truth.’”

“I shouldn’t be forced to believe something is true that I don’t like.” But that does not change reality. Resenting the law of gravity won’t keep a person from falling if he steps off a cliff. The same is true for eternal law and justice. Freedom comes not from resisting it but from applying it.

See also Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “Now Is the Time to Defend Truth” Devotional 2018

2) Anger against that which is good

2 Nephi 28: 20 For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men and stir them up to anger against that which is good.

3) There is no devil, carnal security, or all is well in Zion

2 Nephi 28: 21-22 And others will he pacify and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell. Others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none.

4) God loves everyone, so He will save everyone

Alma 42:1, 30 For ye so try to suppose that it is injustice that the sinner should be consigned to a state of misery. Do not endeavor to excuse yourself in the least point because of your sins, by denying the justice of God; but do you let the justice of God, and his mercy, and his long-suffering have full sway in your heart.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “As Many as I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten,” Ensign May 2011

Sadly, much of modern Christianity does not acknowledge that God makes any real demands on those who believe in Him, seeing Him rather as a butler “who meets their needs when summoned” or a therapist whose role is to help people “feel good about themselves.” It is a religious outlook that “makes no pretense at changing lives.”

Parents can and must correct, even chasten, if their children are not to be cast adrift at the mercy of a merciless adversary and his supporters. President Boyd K. Packer has observed that when a person in a position to correct another fails to do so, he is thinking of himself.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks, “Love and Law.” October 2009

I begin with four examples which illustrate some mortal confusion between love and law...

These persons disbelieve eternal laws which they consider contrary to their concept of the effect of God’s love. Persons who take this position do not understand the nature of God’s love or the purpose of His laws and commandments. The love of God does not supersede His laws and His commandments, and the effect of God’s laws and commandments does not diminish the purpose and effect of His love. The same should be true of parental love and rules.

5) The devaluation of marriage and motherhood

Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “The Moral Force of Women.” Oct. 2013

Certainly there are trends and forces at work that would weaken and even eliminate your influence, to the great detriment of individuals, families, and society at large. Let me mention three as a caution and a warning.

A pernicious philosophy that undermines women’s moral influence is the devaluation of marriage and of motherhood and homemaking as a career.

6) Seven strategies of Satan found in the Book of Mormon and how to counteract them.

See: Heritage of The Book of Mormon: A Shield against Evil, by Clyde Williams, Ensign Jan. 1996

B. Solutions to counter Satan’s strategies

1. Most powerful solution is daily reading the Book of Mormon

Pres. Russell M. Nelson, “The Book of Mormon: What Would Your Life Be Like without It?,” Oct. 2017

I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day.

Ensign, January 1996. President Ezra Taft Benson declared: “The Book of Mormon exposes the enemies of Christ. … It fortifies the humble followers of Christ against the evil designs, strategies, and doctrines of the devil in our day.”

President Thomas S. Monson, “The Power of the Book of Mormon,” April 2017 President Monson: I maintain that a strong testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His gospel will help see us through to safety. If you are not reading the Book of Mormon each day, please do so.

Helaman 3:29 We see that whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God, which is quick and powerful, which shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil and lead the man of Christ in a strait and narrow course across that everlasting gulf of misery which is prepared to engulf the wicked.

2. Increase our efforts to Understand the Doctrines

Pres. Nelson, “A Plea to my Sisters,” October 2015

President Packer declared: “We need women who can teach, women who can speak out. …We need women with the gift of discernment who can view the trends in the world and detect those that, however popular, are shallow or dangerous.”

Elder M. Russell Ballard, “Let Us Think Straight,” BYU Devotional, August 2013

 “We need now for you women of the Church to know the doctrine of Christ and to bear testimony of the Restoration in every way that you can. Never has there been a more complex time in the history of the earth,” he said. “Satan and his minions have been perfecting the weapons in their arsenal for millennia, and they are experienced at destroying faith and trust in God and the Lord Jesus Christ among the human family.”

Sisters, your sphere of influence is a unique sphere—one that cannot be duplicated by men. No one can defend our Savior with any more persuasion or power than you, the daughters of God, can—you who have such inner strength and conviction. The power of a converted woman’s voice is immeasurable, and the Church needs your voices now more than ever.

President Hinckley said: You cannot simply take for granted this cause, which is the cause of Christ. You cannot simply stand on the sidelines and watch the play between the forces of good and evil.

3. Discernment through the Gift of the Holy Ghost

President James E. Faust, The Great Imitator,” October 1987

I think we will witness increasing evidence of Satan’s power as the kingdom of God grows stronger. In the future the opposition will be both more subtle and more open. It will be masked in greater sophistication and cunning, but it will also be more blatant. We will need greater spirituality to perceive all of the forms of evil and greater strength to resist it. There is, however, an ample shield against the power of Lucifer and his hosts. This protection lies in the spirit of discernment through the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Elder David A. Bednar, “Receive the Holy Ghost,” October 2010

Consider the reasons we pray and study the scriptures. Please remember that these holy habits primarily ... are prerequisites to the ongoing companionship of the Holy Ghost. Reflect on the reasons we worship in the house of the Lord and in our Sabbath meetings. We primarily gather together in unity to seek the blessings of and instruction from the Holy Ghost.

President Russell M. Nelson, Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives, April 2018

If we are to have any hope of sifting through the myriad of voices and the philosophies of men that attack truth, we must learn to receive revelation. In coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.

“In reality, the best way to help those we love--the best way to love them--is to continue to put the Savior first.   If we cast ourselves adrift from the Lord out of sympathy for loved ones who are suffering or distressed, then we lose the means why which we might have helped them."  Elder Christofferson

How to Improve our Scripture Study

1.     Do We Feel Like We Fail at Scripture Reading?

LDS.org - Understanding the Difference Between Guilt and Shame, Davis

“For most of my life, I’ve misunderstood guilt. I knew on some level I needed to feel guilt in order to bring me to repentance. I thought true repentance meant I had to feel really bad about myself for a long time. That’s how it works, right?    Wrong. I was mistaking guilt for shame. 

Guilt = I did something bad, something not in line with my values.

Shame = I am bad.

For example, let’s say you haven’t read your scriptures all week. If you think, “Ugh! I’m the worst! I’m never righteous enough,” that is shame. If you think, “Hmm, this business of not reading my scriptures all week—that is not in line with my values. I made a mistake. I better fix it,” that is guilt.”

2.     Why Study our Scriptures More Deeply?

Elder Kim B. Clark, “Encircled About with Fire”

Whatever level of spirituality we now enjoy in our lives; whatever degree of faith in Jesus Christ we now have; whatever strength of commitment and consecration, whatever degree of obedience or hope or charity is ours..., it will not be sufficient for the work that lies ahead.... •We need to educate the rising generation more deeply and more powerfully than we have ever done before or than anyone has ever done before.... •The rising generation needs that deep learning.

Deep learning is inherently a spiritual experience. The rising generation will learn deeply only insofar as the redeeming and strengthening powers of Christ work in their lives, purifying, sanctifying, and qualifying them to receive His grace and the gifts He has prepared for them. They must diligently work and seek learning, but they must also be cleansed through the atoning blood of Christ so that they can receive more light and be taught by the Holy Ghost.

The rising generation needs that deep learning because the world they will face will be both great and terrible—there will be increased light and power from heaven, and there will be even more terrible wickedness and turmoil and confusion. They will need to be grounded in the plain and simple truths of the gospel, the gospel will need to be deep in their hearts, and they will need what President Russell M. Nelson has called resilient faith in Christ: “Why do we need such resilient faith? Because difficult days are ahead. Rarely in the future will it be easy or popular to be a faithful Latter-day Saint.

President Russell M. Nelson, “A Plea to My Sisters”

Attacks against the Church, its doctrine, and our way of life are going to increase. Because of this, we need women who have a bedrock understanding of the doctrine of Christ and who will use that understanding to teach and help raise a sin-resistant generation.

Elder Neil L. Andersen, “A Compensatory Spiritual Power for the Righteous”

When I was a young man growing up in southeastern Idaho, I remember frequently hearing a quote from Elder Heber C. Kimball given in 1867: 

“To meet the difficulties that are coming, it will be necessary for you to have a knowledge of the truth of this work for yourselves. The difficulties will be of such a character that the man or woman who does not possess his personal knowledge or witness will fall. … The time will come when no man nor woman will be able to [stand] on borrowed light.”¹²

More than ever in the 64 years of my life, this prophetic statement by Heber C. Kimball is coming to pass. Deep, continuing conversion is becoming much more important for those desiring to keep their covenants. It is becoming more and more precarious to stand on borrowed light.

As evil increases in the world, there is a compensatory spiritual power for the righteous. As the world slides from its spiritual moorings, the Lord prepares the way for those who seek Him, offering them greater assurance, greater confirmation, and greater confidence in the spiritual direction they are traveling. The gift of the Holy Ghost becomes a brighter light in the emerging twilight.

My brothers and sisters, as evil increases in the world, there is a compensatory power, an additional spiritual endowment, a revelatory gift for the righteous.

I like to think of it this way: If two people are walking together along a very gentle terrain, one lantern is often sufficient. But when the time comes, as it does with each child, that he or she steps away from us to take his or her own journey, our light is no longer sufficient to light his or her way. And while one may be linked tightly to a companion—if you are fortunate enough to have a companion of faith—if we unexpectedly face jagged rocks and uneven cliffs, each needs his or her own lantern to light the path.

3.     How Can We Improve our Study? Here are a couple of ideas that have worked for me. Bring some ideas that have worked for you.

1.      Pray to know how to study better: Pres. Nelson, The Price of Priesthood Power

Are you willing to pray to know how to pray for more power? The Lord will teach you. Are you willing to search the scriptures and feast on the words of Christ—to study earnestly in order to have more power? If we will humbly present ourselves before the Lord and ask Him to teach us, He will show us how to increase our access to His power.

2

.      Use Colors to Mark Your Scriptures

Example:

·         The Strengthening aspect of Christ’s Atonement

o   Strength, power, grace

·         The Redeeming Aspect of Christ’s Atonement, repentance

·         The Savior

·         Holy Ghost, revelation

·         Strategies of Satan, sin, and evil

·         Family

3.      Three Approaches to Scripture Study – Elder Bednar, Reservoir of Living Water

I want to review with you three basic ways or methods of obtaining living water from the scriptural reservoir:

(1) reading the scriptures from beginning to end,

(2) studying the scriptures by topic, and

(3) searching the scriptures for connections, patterns, and themes.

4.      Always begin with some time in the Book of Mormon:

PRESIDENT MONSON:

This morning I speak about the power of the Book of Mormon and the critical need we have as members of this Church to study, ponder, and apply its teachings in our lives. If you are not reading the Book of Mormon each day, please do so. If you will read it prayerfully and with a sincere desire to know the truth, the Holy Ghost will manifest its truth to you.

My dear associates in the work of the Lord, I implore each of us to prayerfully study and ponder the Book of Mormon each day. As we do so:

1.      We will be in a position to hear the voice of the Spirit,

2.      to resist temptation, to overcome doubt and fear, and

3.      to receive heaven’s help in our lives.

I so testify with all my heart.

PRESIDENT NELSON

3 Promises by President Nelson: My dear brothers and sisters,

1)    I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. 

2)    I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life.

3)    I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day, even the gripping plague of pornography and other mind-numbing addictions.

PRESIDENT HINCKLEY:  I promise you [if you] read the Book of Mormon, there will come into your lives:

1.      An added measure of the Spirit

2.      A strengthened resolution to obey

3.      A stronger testimony of Jesus

   

    PRESIDENT BENSON: 

    President Ezra Taft Benson, Cleansing the Inner Vessel, April 1986

“ I counsel you... to make reading in the Book of Mormon a few minutes each day a lifelong practice. 

There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book.  The power:

1.      To resist temptation

2.      To avoid deception

3.      Stay on strait path

When you begin to hunger and thirst after the Book of Mormon, you will find life in greater and greater abundance. 

PRESIDENT KIMBALL:

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball

I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away.  If I immerse myself in the scriptures the distance narrows and the spirituality returns.

Seeing the Hand of the Lord in My Life Each Day

I loved this quote when I first heard it, and I have tried off and on to make it a daily practice. What I have finally found that works for me is to ask during my evening prayers if I have seen the hand of the Lord that day. Then I dictate the details in a note to myself and then I write it up the next morning in my journal. 

I change his paragraph into a bullet list format because everyone of the the promises in the bullet list has happened to me. The biggest one for me is I am "ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers." I am so grateful for President Eyring's suggestion.

Pres. Henry B. Eyring, “O Remember, Remember,” Oct. 2007

I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day. Before I would write, I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?”

As I kept at it, something began to happen:

• ·       As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day.
• ·      As that happened, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done.
• ·      More than gratitude began to grow in my heart. Testimony grew.
• ·      I became ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers.
• ·      I felt more gratitude for the softening and refining that come because of the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ.
• ·      And I grew more confident that the Holy Ghost can bring all things to our remembrance—even things we did not notice or pay attention to when they happened.

A Broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit

3 Nephi 9:19-20 – “And ye shall offer up onto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, and ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.”

D. Todd Christofferson, “When Thou Art Converted,” Ensign, May 2004, 11

Let me mention one other thing. In ancient times when people wanted to worship the

Lord and seek His blessings, they often brought a gift. For example, when they went to the temple, they brought a sacrifice to place on the altar. After His Atonement and Resurrection, the Savior said He would no longer accept burnt offerings of animals. The gift or sacrifice He will accept now is “a broken heart and a contrite spirit.” As you seek the blessing of conversion, you can offer the Lord the gift of your broken, or repentant, heart and your contrite, or obedient, spirit. In reality, it is the gift of yourself—what you are and what you are becoming.

Is there something in you or in your life that is impure or unworthy? When you get rid of it, that is a gift to the Savior. Is there a good habit or quality that is lacking in your life? When you adopt it and make it part of your character, you are giving a gift to the Lord. Sometimes this is hard to do, but would your gifts of repentance and obedience be worthy gifts if they cost you nothing? Don’t be afraid of the effort required. And remember, you don’t have to do it alone. Jesus Christ will help you make of yourself a worthy gift. His grace will make you clean, even holy. Eventually, you will become like Him, “perfect in Christ.”

President Ezra Taft Benson, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Oct. 1989

Godly sorrow is a gift of the Spirit. It is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering. Our sins caused Him to bleed at every pore.

This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having “a broken heart and a contrite spirit.” (See 3 Ne. 9:20; Moro. 6:2; D&C 20:37; 59:8; Ps. 34:18; Ps. 51:17; Isa. 57:15.) Such a spirit is the absolute prerequisite for true repentance.

Conversion: Desires & Capacity

Richard G. Scott, “Do What Is Right,” CES Fireside 3 March 1996.

You are at a time of life when there are many critically important decisions to be made, and you are understandably unsure of your capacity to make them. Over time, that capacity will increase and grow stronger until it becomes easier and easier to automatically do the right things.

Every time you make the right choice in the face of potential criticism, you build strength that makes it easier the next time. The reverse is also true. Satan counts on that.
Your decisions are like switch points on a railroad system. They determine where you will end up in life. When you consistently make the right choices, you are the happiest.

You will learn that it is easiest over the long run to stand for what is right and do the difficult thing to begin with. Once you take that position, following through is not too hard. An individual who cuts corners and justifies some departure from true standards, for whatever reason, finds that seeds are planted that produce problems later. Those problems are far more difficult to overcome than taking a correct stand initially.

Richard G. Scott, Full Conversion Brings Happiness, Ensign, May 2002

1) Each of us has observed how some individuals go through life consistently doing the right things. When difficult choices are to be made, they seem to invariably make the right ones, even though there were enticing alternatives available to them. We know that they are subject to temptation, but they seem oblivious to it.

2) Likewise, we have observed how others are not so valiant in the decisions they make.  In a powerfully spiritual environment, they resolve to do better, to change their course of life, to set aside debilitating habits. They are very sincere in their determination to change, yet they are soon back doing the same things they resolved to abandon.

3) What is it that makes the difference in the lives of these two groups? How can you consistently make the right choices? The scriptures give us insight.  True conversion is the fruit of faith, repentance, and consistent obedience. Faith comes by hearing the word of God and responding to it. You will receive from the Holy Ghost a confirming witness of things you accept on faith by willingly doing them.  You will be led to repent of errors resulting from wrong things done or right things not done.  As a consequence, your capacity to consistently obey will be strengthened.

4) This cycle of faith, repentance, and consistent obediencewill lead you to greater conversion with its attendant blessings. True conversion will strengthen your capacity to do what you
know you should do, when you should do it, regardless of the circumstances.

Robert D. Hales, “The Gift and Blessings of Agency,” Ensign, May 2006,  4–8

Agency is the catalyst that leads us to express our inward spiritual desires in outward Christlike behavior.  I testify that agency is strengthened by our faith and obedience. 

Neal A. Maxwell, “Becoming a Disciple,” Ensign, Jun 1996,  12

Sometimes, as we commence taking up the cross, we ignore or neglect the first part of Jesus’ instruction. He said, “Deny [yourselves], and take up [your] cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). 
This self-denial is especially challenging in a world filled with so many sensual and secular stimuli.
Denying oneself has never been popular as a lifestyle, and it is clearly not today.

What is it that we are to deny ourselves? Any appetites or actions which produce not only the seven deadly sins but all the others. Happily, self-denial, when we practice it, brings great relief.  Self denial also includes not letting our hearts become too set on any trivial or worldly thing. Then we can learn the great lessons about the relationship of righteousness to the powers and the joys of heaven.

The fundamental fact is that if we do not deny ourselves, we are diverted. Even if not wholly consumed with the things of the world, we are still diverted sufficiently to make serious discipleship impossible. As a consequence, all the gifts and talents God has given us are not put meekly on the altar to serve others and to please God. Instead, we withhold to please ourselves. Diversion, therefore, is not necessarily gross transgression, but it is a genuine deprivation, especially if we consider what we might have become and what more we might have done to bless and to help others.

By denying the desires of the natural man to the degree that they exist in each of us, we avoid this diversion, making it easier for us to take up the cross of discipleship.

So it is that discipleship is to choose joy over pleasure. It is to opt for the things of eternity over the trendy and appealing things of the moment. Eventually, we become readied for the final moment of consecration, when, gladly and completely, we let our wills be swallowed up in the will of the Father. Jesus did this in Gethsemane, where he said, “Not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). What was God’s will? That Jesus complete the Atonement. Even so, Jesus prayed, “Take away this cup from me” (Mark 14:36); and still later he cried out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). Yet Jesus yielded.

The Great Pivot

Is it possible to develop discipleship when one has no initial, inner desires for discipleship? Can we plant inner desires in someone against his or her will? External exhortation of such individuals won’t usually produce much change. For most of us, however, even when the inner desire is there, it requires periodic sharpening by outward circumstances to quicken any existing inner desires and to get us to act upon them. 

Richard G. Scott, “Do What Is Right,” CES Fireside 3 March 1996.

You are at a time of life when there are many critically important decisions to be made, and you are understandably unsure of your capacity to make them. You live in a world where it is increasingly more difficult to assure that your worthy dreams and aspirations will come true by avoiding the allurements and temptations that Satan would put in your path to destroy you. You may have doubts about your own self-worth. You want to be accepted. You have questions about your future and about how to gain true and enduring friendships. You want to find an eternal companion who has the same deep desire to live worthily and to accomplish much of good in this life.

You are growing in spiritual discipline—that is, your ability to discern the promptings of the Spirit and your capacity to follow them. Over time, that capacity will increase and grow stronger until it becomes easier and easier to automatically do the right things. You have built a shield against temptation. But now, while that spiritual discipline is developing, you must be very careful to avoid choices that would take you from the path of happiness.

I have learned from personal experience how being helped to make the right decision at a critical time can bless your entire life. I have also seen by working closely with individuals who made wrong decisions how devastating that can be on the rest of their lives. My intent is to give you suggestions on how to be sure you make the right choices. I will share four personal experiences that taught me important lessons, with a sincere desire to help you gain confidence in making the right choices consistently in your life.Then I will try to identify how Satan works so that you will be more prepared to avoid the pitfalls he will place in your path.
In college I was given the privilege of joining a very elect honorary engineering society. As I attended the initiatory activities, everyone was drinking. I asked for a soft drink and was handed a glass. As I raised it to my lips, I could smell alcohol. I looked around the room. All the eyes were on me. These were professionals who had just given me a great honor. Should I pretend to drink so as not to offend? No. I set the glass down and then noticed that three other inductees also set their glasses aside. Do what is right, and others will follow your example. Every time you make the right choice in the face of potential criticism, you build strength that makes it easier the next time. The reverse is also true. Satan counts on that.

I grew up in a home where my father was not a member of the Church and my mother was less active. That all changed later, and they spent much of their life as temple workers. With that background I didn’t know much about the Church, even though I thought I did. When I was about to graduate from the university, the Lord brought an angel into my life. Her name was Jeanene Watkins. She was a beautiful girl. It took me a long time to date her because so many others recognized her wonderful qualities. As we began to date, I discovered that she was all I had ever dreamed of finding. I fell completely in love with her. I could tell she had deep feelings for me also. 

One night when we were talking about the future, she carefully wove into the conversation an important comment. She said, “When I marry, it will be to a returned missionary in the temple.” I don’t remember anything else she said. I hadn’t thought much about a mission and didn’t understand much about temple marriage. I went home and couldn’t think of anything else. I was awake all night. I couldn’t do anything at the university the next day. Soon I was at the bishop’s office, having prayed about the importance of a mission. Jeanene and I both went on missions and when we returned were sealed in the temple. Much later I came to realize that she would have left me had I not made the right choices. Jeanene’s courage in standing up for her dream of a temple marriage to a returned missionary, regardless of her love for me, has made all of the difference in our lives together. I will never be able to thank her adequately for not compromising her righteous dreams.

Your decisions are like switch points on a railroad system. They determine where you will end up in life. When you consistently make the right choices, you are the happiest, receive the greatest personal growth, and have the most productive life. When you make the wrong choices, you may find yourself at an entirely different destination than you want. While there is the process of repentance to come back, it is often painful and sometimes leaves permanent physical scars that cannot be cured as well as your spirit can.

At one time I worked on the immediate staff of a very hardworking, demanding, misunderstood man who became the father of the nuclear navy that provided great protection for the United States at a critical time in world conditions. His name is Hyman Rickover. I have great respect for him. 

After 11 years in that service, I received a call from the First Presidency to preside over a mission. I knew I would have to tell Admiral Rickover immediately. As I explained the call and that it would mean I would have to quit my job, he became rather excited. He said some unrepeatable things, broke the paper tray on his desk, and in the comments that followed, clearly established two points: “Scott, what you are doing in this defense program is so vital that it will take a year to replace you, so you can’t go. Second, if you do go, you are a traitor to your country.”

I said, “I can train my replacement in the two remaining months, and there won’t be any risk to the country.”

There was more conversation, and he finally said, “I never will talk to you again. I don’t want to see you again. You are finished, not only here, but don’t ever plan to work in the nuclear field again.”

I responded, “Admiral, you can bar me from the office, but unless you prevent me, I am going to turn this assignment over to another individual.”

He asked, “What’s the name of the man who wants you?”

I told him, “President David O. McKay.”

He added, “If that’s the way Mormons act, I don’t want any of them working for me.”

I knew he would try to call President McKay (1873–1970), who was ill, and that conversation would benefit no one. I also knew that in the Idaho Falls area there were many members of the Church whose families depended upon their working in our program. I didn’t want to cause them harm. I also knew that I had been called by the Lord. I didn’t know what to do. Then, the words of the song we sang tonight began to run through my mind: “Do what is right; let the consequence follow” (Hymns, number 237). 

While I had never contacted a General Authority in my life, I had been interviewed by Elder Harold B. Lee (1899–1973) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, so I had a feeling to call him. I explained that the admiral would try to call President McKay and would make some negative comments, but everything was all right and I would be able to accept my call. While doing that, my heart kept saying, “Is this going to turn out all right or will somebody be innocently hurt who depends on our program for livelihood?” The song would come back: “Do what is right; let the consequence follow.” True to his word, the admiral ceased to speak to me. When critical decisions had to be made, he would send a messenger or I would communicate through a third party. We accomplished the changeover.

On my last day in the office I asked for an appointment with him, and his secretary gasped. I went with a copy of the Book of Mormon in my hand. He looked at me and said, “Sit down, Scott. What do you have? I have tried every way I can to force you to change. What is it you have?”

There followed a very interesting, quiet conversation. There was more listening this time. He said he would read the Book of Mormon. Then something I never thought would occur happened. He added, “When you come back from the mission, I want you to call me. There will be a job for you.”


You will learn that it is easiest over the long run to stand for what is right and do the difficult thing to begin with. Once you take that position, following through is not too hard. An individual who cuts corners and justifies some departure from true standards, for whatever reason, finds that seeds are planted that produce problems later. Those problems are far more difficult to overcome than taking a correct stand initially.

Conversion: Book of Mormon Scriptures which Teach about Conversion

2 Ne 4:31-32 Wilt thou make me that I man shake at the appearance of sin? ...that I may be strict in the plain road!

2 Ne 31:20 Where ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men, Wherefore, if ye shall press forward feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

Omni 1 :26 I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him. [Elder Bednar quotes this then says: But earnestly coming unto Him and giving our whole souls as an offering requires much more than merely knowing. Conversion requires all of our heart, all of our might, and all of our mind and strength (see D&C 4:2).]

Mosiah 3:19 For the natural man is an enemy to God and has been from the fall of Adam and will be forever and ever unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

Mosiah 5:2,4 We know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a might change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually. And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken that has brought us to this great knowledge.

Mosiah 5:15 I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven.

Mosiah 18:8-10 As ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and are willing to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light; Yea, and are willing to morn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places... what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord as a witness before him...that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?

Alma 5:14 Have ye spiritually been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this might change in your hearts?

Alma 7:15 Lay aside every sin, which easily doth beset you, which doth bind you down to destruction.

Helaman 15:7 –8 [Elder Bednar: Samuel the Lamanite identified five basic elements in becoming converted unto the Lord: (1) believing in the teachings and prophecies of the holy prophets as they are recorded in the scriptures, (2) exercising faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, (3) repenting, (4) experiencing a mighty change of heart, and (5) becoming “firm and steadfast in the faith.” This is the pattern that leads to conversion.]

3 Nephi 9:20 And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.

Be Converted that I May Heal You (The connection between conversion and being healed)

3 Nephi 9:13 O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?

Isaiah 6:10 lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.

Matthew 13:15 Lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

D&C 112:13 And after their temptations, and much tribulation, behold, I, the Lord, will feel after them, and if they harden not their hearts, and stiffen not their necks against me, they shall be converted, and I will heal them.

(For more on the pattern found in these four scriptures, see Elder Russell M. Nelson's talk, "Jesus Christ—the Master Healer.”)