Friday, January 1, 2021

Preface- My Search for Power

I totally underestimated the complexity and hardships of life.

It didn’t seem that hard on the day that I wore the most beautiful, ruffled, white dress and was married in the Logan Temple to a happy, impressive guy. Nor did I see it coming with the one-by-one addition of six little boys with their adorable blonde heads and delightful imaginations.

True to God’s promises that this life would be a test, there have been very tangled, perplexing, and challenging chapters in my story. My “picture perfect” has included times of tricky business. Times represented well by this journal entry, “How thin does one have to become to have the press taken off? I am a mess.” In my mind, I can see a specific afternoon where I was standing alone in an empty hallway, shaking my head and wondering, “How is it possible for me to make these big, smart decisions in what looks like an impossible, helpless situation? I cannot even see one step in front of me.” On that day, and on others, I have come face to face with my insufficiency. 

Like Joseph Smith, I have been heavily aware that I lack wisdom. (1) I’ve been cognizant of the fact that for all my effort, I cannot do on my own what is required. I have known that I needed more capability, more power from Someone who was infinitely smarter, who had a broader perspective, more resources, and who was boundlessly more powerful than myself. I, every day, need access to God the Father’s power.            

It’s often true that when you come face to face with your vulnerabilities and when you are taken to your extremity, you feel an urgency to seek. During those times I have felt a great need to understand my relationship and access to God’s power for the challenges and growth opportunities of my life. I have been absolutely, positively sure that I could not wait for an eternal reward before being able to tap into power beyond my own. After all, I have a big, hard job to do for Heavenly Father here and now, and I have longed to understand how He can help me. 

Feeling this need, I knew I had to get to work on finding these answers. For a long time, I had been trying to slot everything that I knew about God's power into the Melchizedek Priesthood. I recognized the blessings that flowed from ordinances, and I had felt guidance and strength when serving in church callings. But when it came to spiritual power that would enable me to be effective in the tricky personal responsibilities of my own daily life, I couldn’t find myself in what I understood of that doctrine. I could not credit my own, personal, spiritual sourcing and needs to any study that I did about me and my relationship to the Melchizedek Priesthood. 

I worked to find answers to these questions:

·         What does “power” mean in a spiritual sense?

·         What is God the Father’s power, and is it accessible to me?

·         What roles do Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost play in making God’s power available?

·         What is Melchizedek Priesthood power and authority, and how is it sourced?

·         Where do men and women get their power and authority? Is it the same, or is it different by gender?           

With a plunge into gospel learning and over time, I felt like I was at a feast at the grandest table. Gratefully I learned so much about what God’s power is, where it is sourced, how it is shared with humankind, and how power manifests itself in the children of God. And since then, I have wanted to stand on a mountain and shout that there is universal access to God’s astounding, boundless strength and faculty through the precious gift of the Holy Ghost.           

And that is the way that this book begins-- with a look into the distinct and separate roles of The Godhead. It is about taking men and women back to the true wellspring of brilliance and omnipotence which is the God of this Universe, our Heavenly Father. It is about our astounding access through the Holy Ghost to be more than we are: to be magnified. 

This correct emphasis allowed Melchizedek Priesthood to take its rightful place as a portion of God the Father’s power that is specialized for Jesus’ delegated work of saving mankind through ordinances.           

Chapters One, Two, Three and Four of this book are where I found myself. Truly. Even though the words may seem familiar and oft-spoken, the ideas were new, fresh and empowering to me. Let this book challenge what you think you know about God’s power, too. As you read it, let the scripture and the teachings of prophets roll right over you differently until you are immersed in this doctrinal loveliness.           

Chapters Five through Thirteen are about application. They teach where power-filled individuals can serve and what we can do as with access to God’s power in our varied roles and responsibilities.           

This book is a cheering zone for men and women, mothers and fathers, marriages and families, and Relief Society and Melchizedek Priesthood quorums. It champions ALL of the children of our Heavenly Father because every single soul can be magnified by God’s power beyond their natural abilities. This augmentation is available so that we can get busy doing the saving work of our Heavenly Father in our personal lives and ministries, through the family, in the church, and for the world.            

The study and wrestle of this book has been life-changing for me. Now I understand where I’m sourced and what’s possible with God. I feel empowered. I know more about my relationship to the Godhead and understand more about my access to Them. And that brings this girl JOY! 

--Valerie

Introduction- God's Power is Selfless

These days, it seems like “power” is on everybody’s mind. Some want more of it than they have. Some see power’s inequity and want it to be equalized. For some, it is a competition and they just want more than someone else. Some spend their whole life rising to it and then use all of their remaining energies holding onto it. Some dress for it, or assert it with dominion and physical strength. While others use it as a way to manipulate.

Power can be the driving force in the workplace, on the city square, and in politics. It requires behaving in certain, prescribed ways in order to influence others, and it focuses on popularity with the right people. It can be the source of pride, greed, deference, or indifference. Worldly power is often measured by having successfully climbed over other people. It is often achieved by harshness, comparisons, disrespect or even disdain. Seeing power through a worldly lens often means that power has dividing lines by gender or race or age or education level.

One thing that I have noticed about society’s great quest for power is that is it mostly selfish. Power is generally about self-promotion-- about rising. Power is being in charge, having control, and dominance. Superiority, visibility, and prestige. Power is about getting what you want. It is a game of continually measuring how the things and the people in your life benefit and lift you.

This secular description of power is not God’s idea of power. It is the same word, but the similarities stop right there. God’s purposes are all-together, absolutely different. His power originates in His pure, perfect character and it emanates outward in order to bless and benefit others. His power is characterized by complete unselfishness. It is humble, inspired servant leadership.

In the 2020 BYU Woman’s Conference, Sister Reyna Aburto of the Relief Society General Presidency stated, “…when we talk about priesthood power, we must be careful to never compare it to the model that the world assumes about how a person gets, maintains, or loses power…God's priesthood power is distributed very differently (than worldly power). It is given, bestowed, conferred and shared based on conditions of worthiness. It operates on the principles of righteousness. The use of God's power elevates and transforms our characters to become more like the giver who is God.” (1)

I agree with Sister Aburto. When we speak of the power of God in any of its manifestations, we are standing on sacred ground. Far from the control, domination, and superiority that is characterized by worldly success and influence, God’s power works through righteousness, humility, and meekness. It hinges on great love and is completely free of comparing and competing. It is not self-serving or self-promoting, but instead, God extends men and women use when he or she is worthy and outward-focused, staring straight into the eyes of people who need help and nurturing. God’s power magnifies men and women to capacity beyond their own so that they can be tools in His work of salvation.

Read on to see God’s power illuminated.

Chapter One- God the Father’s Character and Power

The most important spiritual learning that one can obtain during this life is to better and better, more and more, know and understand God the Father, His character and power. This knowledge deepens prayer, strengthens faith and trust, and brings us closer to Him. As we understand more about who our Heavenly Father is and of His divine attributes, we also start to understand more about ourselves, our potential, and our capacity with His assistance.

God is perfection in His person, character, and attributes. (1) A careful study of scripture and words of prophets reveal to us who He is. The Father is the preeminent member of the Godhead. God the Father is the Supreme Governor of the universe. (2) He is “above all, and through all, and in…all.” (3)       

God is a glorified, immortal, perfected person with a body of flesh and bones. (4) He is omniscient. He knows everything-- past, present, and future. (5) He is filled with intelligence.            

God is omnipotent-- He has all power and might. (6) He can accomplish anything. He is the framer of heaven and earth and everything that is in them. (7) Heavenly Father created the universe and is the upholder and preserver of all things. He keeps worlds in their orbits and gives laws to all His creations. His creations are so numerous that they could never be counted. (8) The elements obey Him. (9) 

God the Father is infinite, unending, boundless, and endless from everlasting to everlasting. (10) He is unchangeable from all eternity to all eternity. (11) He is the source of light: light that fills the immensity of space. (12)           

Joseph Smith said that “God is the great source and fountain from whence proceeds all good; that He is perfect intelligence, and that His wisdom is alone sufficient to govern and regulate the mighty creations and worlds which shine and blaze with such magnificence and splendor over our heads…” (13)           

God is the Heavenly Father of mankind. We are His spiritual offspring (14), sons and daughters of God. We know that even though God created all things and is the ruler of the universe, mankind has a special relationship to Him that differentiates us from all other created things because we are literally God’s offspring, made in His image. (15) It is almost overwhelming to think about the idea that we are the literal offspring of the most glorious personage of whom it is possible to conceive. (16) We lived in His presence and were part of His family in the premortal life. (17)            

God is perfect in His love. (18) He is emotional and has great feeling and concern for us. (19) Joseph Smith once said, “The Great Parent of the universe looks upon the whole of the human family with fatherly care and paternal regard, for His love is unfathomable.” (20) 

I was thirteen years old when I attended a summer camp at the top of a majestic canyon in Utah. The landscape was covered with great big, rounded, granite boulders, the Quaking Aspen bustled in the breeze, and the fragrant pines reached for heaven. I was in love with being on the top of this most breathtaking mountain.                       

As campers and staff, we sang songs at every turn of the day and night about God, His power and love. These songs brought the Holy Ghost in abundance and my teen-age heart felt spiritual soul-swelling because I felt so close to something so lovely and so good. Heavenly Father was on my mind.           

I remember one night after dark, scaling a very large boulder and then lying on my back so that I could look into the star-filled heavens. Away from city lights, it was awe-inspiring to see the expanse of the dark canopy, the constellations, and the stars that dotted the sky and seemed to go on forever. I was filled with wonder over the scope of all that had been created and was managed by the God of the Universe.           

My first sense was a little surprising. I felt so very small. Almost as quickly and as unexpectantly, came a warm, welcome reassurance that even amongst all of this sweeping immensity, Heavenly Father was aware of me, right at that moment, lying on that rock. And more, that He loved me and that I was His. In that beautiful place, I was given a little glance into the greatness and power of God, but I also learned a little of His great love. 

Because of our Heavenly Father’s perfect character, He has love that is deeper and richer than we can even understand. Elder Milton R. Hunter taught that our Eternal Father has intense, comprehensive, and full love for us. Because of His greater intelligence and understanding than we have, His feelings of love go far beyond our capabilities to love. He said, “The attribute of love is so highly developed that the scriptures state: ‘God is love.’ (21) In fact, Deity’s transcendent love is above and beyond our deepest feelings and keenest conception.” (22) 

Because of that strong love, God the Father deals with His children with perfection. He executes justice with pure integrity (23) and is rich and generous in mercies. (24) It is His pure, perfect love that shows us the precise ideal of kindness, compassion, forgiveness, patience, and long-suffering. (25) He keeps his promises (26), does not change His mind (27), and cannot lie. (28)           

Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught, “God our Father is a glorified, a perfected, an exalted being, who has all might, all power, and all dominion, who knows all things and is infinite in all His attributes.” (29) There is nothing too hard for Him (30), and with Him, all things are possible. (31) God, our Heavenly Father, is everything!  He is magnificent!  He is infinitely more than we can comprehend! (32) 

God the Father’s Power is in His Character and Attributes 

God's power comes from His perfect character. It lies in His omniscient, omnipotent, all-loving, perfect, brilliant, eternal self. These characteristics give Him the ability to do anything, know everything, and all eternity is in his view. He has awesome, mammoth capacity.

His power and authority is called “priesthood”. (33) Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught that, “Our Eternal Father enjoys this high status of glory and perfection and power because His faith is perfect and His priesthood is unlimited…‘Priesthood’ is the very name of the power of God.”(34) Elder Dale G. Renlund and Sister Ruth Renlund called Heavenly Father’s power “God's Total Priesthood Power and Authority” (35) because The Father is the ultimate source of all power, authority, and blessings. (36) The priesthood is defined as God the Father’s eternal power and authority. (37) 

The quest of our lifetime must be to come closer and closer to God the Father and to know and understand His consummate attributes, His virtue and His character. This, so that we can trust Him. Run to Him. Depend on Him. So that during a life of limited view and struggle, we can ground our faith on His love, His availability, His attentiveness, and His absolute power to do anything with perfection. As we understand about God the Father, we learn more about ourselves and our potential.

Chapter Two- God Gives His Children Access to His Power

God the Father has the power, desire, and authority to save, bless, redeem, and exalt mankind. It is His purpose, His work, and His glory. (1) We are what He does. We are what He cares about. To have us back in our heavenly home, developed and tested, immortally-embodied, and cleansed by His Son, is His objective.            

Elder Quentin L. Cook has taught, “The purpose of all that the Father has revealed, commanded, and initiated for the inhabitants of earth is to help us come to know Him, emulate Him, and become like Him so we can return to His holy presence.” (2) This purpose is the overarching objective of every single thing that God the Father does. The purpose of every Godly action is to exalt mankind.           

God the Father’s master plan is called The Plan of Salvation, The Gospel of Jesus Christ, The Everlasting Covenant, and The Covenant Path. (3) Safely within God’s Plan, our history is beautiful and our future is magnificent beyond our comprehension.

The Beautiful Plan of God the Father

In the first place, matter was ordered and Intelligence organized (4) by the God of the Universe and we became, us-- made from pure, refined, (5) eternal elements. (6) We lived in His presence and had the benefits of His association, along with other great and noble ones (7). We lived in light and were taught truth (8). We had free will and used agency (9) to chart an individual, premortal path. (10) 

But, the spirit world was not our destiny. Heavenly Father intended to exalt His spirit children. “In order that we should advance and eventually gain the goal of perfection” (11), Heavenly Father purposefully would provide us with all of the experiences and opportunities we would need. God’s eternal plan included a beautiful dwelling place, bodies created by earthly parents, families and angels to support us in our process and progress, ordinances that would bind us to commandments and promises, experiences of growth and development, the Holy Ghost to guide us, and prayer to link us home. 

We understood that along with the joy that this next chapter would bring, we would learn by mistakes and uncomfortable seasons. We also knew that our marvelous bodies would cause us some grief and eventually would fail us. But there was no problem with any of that. None. Because, called and prepared from the foundations of the earth (12), God would send His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ to save in every, single impediment of our experience. 

We were taught this beautiful doctrine, "And He will take upon Him death, that He may loose the bands of death which bind His people; and He will take upon him their infirmities...that He may know...how to succor His people...that He might take upon him the sins of his people, that He might blot out their transgressions..." (13) 

So, because Jesus would go “forth suffering afflictions", He would know how to succor, or comfort, to strengthen, and enable. So that even away from God, we would never be alone. Then, Christ's victory over death through His resurrection would break “the bands" for us, too. We would know immortality in resurrected bodies of perfect form and proper frame. (14) And finally, the Savior would take our sins upon Himself so that our transgressions "might be blotted out". So that we could repent and be clean. So that scarlet, would be white. So that we “...could learn from our experience without being condemned by it.” (15) 

Isaiah called the Savior, “The repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths..” (16) Where there is a washout, He repairs. Where there is a breakdown, He restores. Where there are obstacles, hazards, and stumbling blocks, He is our Savior, our Redeemer, our Intercessor, and our advocate with the Father. He compensates and pleads our cause. Because of Him and partnered with Him, we would be able to return to Heavenly Father. Proven. (17) And clean. We trusted that plan! We believed in Christ! 

Now, Lucifer, in his pride and greed, somehow made it seem like Christ’s execution of the Father’s Plan was a risk. (18) He convinced a third part (19) of the hosts of heaven that they should be frightened of God’s plan, and he taught that there could be another plan. But, there wasn’t, and, we didn’t buy that argument. John the Revelator says, that we overcame this antagonist “...by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of (our) testimon(ies)...” (20) We believed Christ. We had faith and trust in His mission and in His ability to complete it. We exercised our faith in Jesus Christ. (21) 

And as anticipated and prophesied and in the meridian of time, He did it. He finished His infinite, eternal, and saving work. (22) "Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows... he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities...and with his stripes, we are healed." (23) Isaiah shows us Heavenly Father's heart for us, "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; (God) shall see the travail of (Christ’s) soul, and shall be satisfied..." (24) Why is He pleased with Christ’s travail? Because it saves us. The Atonement of Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of the central, mandatory, perfect Plan of Salvation, makes possible the exaltation of God’s children. 

During mortality, we are disqualified and separated from God and access to His power by sin and weakness, thus we are dependent on our Savior, Jesus Christ. “The Savior would… provide an atonement to pay the price for all to be cleansed from sin on the conditions He prescribed. Those conditions included faith in Christ, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and other ordinances…” (25)           

Alma taught that, premortally, we began to talk with great joy (26) and thanksgiving about this plan of redemption that would be efficacious on conditions of our “faith and repentance and...holy works.” (27) Certainly, “holy works” has reference to the ordinances of the gospel and covenant-keeping.           

In this life, we must exercise faith in Christ and repent of sins. (28) At baptism, we present ourselves to one of the Lord’s representatives and declare our intentions to walk in Christ’s path of promises and to repent when we fall short of His perfect standard. We are baptized as a sign that these are our intentions. (29) We can receive a remission of sin through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and then, another most amazing gift-- the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands as a constant protector, assistant, and powerline. (30) With the companionship of the Spirit, we have access to God the Father’s power. Mormon taught his son that the way was prepared for mankind to be worthy of the Holy Ghost and that way was Jesus Christ. “…God prepareth the way that… men may have faith in Christ, that the Holy Ghost may have place in their hearts.” (31)           

By receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, we are given generous access (on conditions of righteousness that is enabled by Christ) to God the Father’s total priesthood power and authority. President Nelson confirmed that “Every woman and every man who makes covenants with God and keeps those covenants, and who participates worthily in priesthood ordinances, has direct access to the power of God.” (32) 

Nephi taught that it is because of Christ and His sacrifice for mankind that God is able to give us the Spirit. “…the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me (Jesus); and the Father giveth the Holy Ghost unto the children of men, because of me (Christ’s Atonement).” (33) 

Nephi’s life was a living illustration of dependence on Christ and thus, the availability of the Holy Ghost’s influence. His fifty-five chapters in the Book of Mormon are filled with courageous trust and witness of Jesus Christ and the Savior’s Atonement-mission. He understood his personal dependence on Christ for any righteousness that he might produce. (34)           

Nephi was so generous with his readers in revealing the ways that the Holy Ghost was working in his life. He saw visions of his father’s Tree of Life, and beautiful scenes from the life of Jesus. He was directed to places unknown to him inside the walls of Jerusalem, towards the brass plates, and the promised land. He had words of encouragement and chastisement given to him, and authority to speak them to his brothers. At times he was given physical strength beyond his natural ability (35), like when he escaped the bands in which he was bound.  Nephi was able to speak of the future, which is prophecy. He was given instructions on how to build a boat (36) and where to find the resources to make a bow (37) when he had no prior knowledge of how to do so. And on and on and on. This was a man who understood the workings of the Holy Ghost in his life and was worthy, through Christ, to be magnified by God the Father.           

I am fascinated by Nephi’s last words to his readers in the Book of Mormon. (38) Nephi finished his earthly ministry by sharing the things that he had learned over a lifetime of dependence on God and inspiration from the Spirit. He said, “…the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost… then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.” (39) Nephi is describing the miracles that being clean through Christ enables— the inspiration from and the gifts of the Holy Ghost. 

It is generous and loving of our Father in Heaven to allow men and women access to His power. This is possible through continual, penitent, repentant cleansing through the Atonement of Christ, and then by a magnifying of our capacity through the Gift of the Holy Ghost. For all those who are willing to make and keep covenants and perform ordinances, there is capacity and power available from the God of the Universe. (40) 

Chapter Three- The Holy Ghost is the Powerline

Our Father in Heaven has a superb communication system through which He transmits messages and feelings and power. (1) While the ultimate source of spiritual power is God our Father, the messenger of that power is the Holy Ghost. (2) The Holy Ghost, a third member of the Godhead (2), is "the powerline". (4) He is the channel through which the Almighty reveals Himself to us, and the way God works through us. We are taught in the Doctrine and Covenants, “I (God) will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost.” (5)

The Holy Ghost is our connection to God the Father's total priesthood: to accessing and acting on God’s power, love and brilliance. It is the Spirit who “broadcasts” the knowledge and wisdom of God to mankind. (6) He is our conduit to heaven. He is the "revelation super-highway" running with endless "heavy traffic of eternal truths". (7) 

Covenant-keeping men and women have access to God's intelligence and power through the Holy Ghost for use in their personal lives and within their stewardships. When we honor our covenants and strive to be more like our Savior, we are entitled to a constant stream of divine guidance through the influence and inspiration of the Holy Ghost. (8) Elder Richard G. Scott taught that this is an inexhaustible source of guidance and inspiration from our Heavenly Father and reaffirmed that the path for spiritual guidance is given to mankind through the promptings of the Holy Ghost. (9) This access to His omniscient, omnipotent, all-loving, perfect priesthood power is one of the most amazing gifts that God gives to His children.           

“Power” as applied to mankind, is the miracle of men and women being magnified by God. It is an amplification, an enhancement, and enabling by the Divine beyond our mortal abilities. It is supernatural heavenly strength (10), drawing on God's power to do and know things that humans can't do or know, and being lifted beyond our ordinary capacity. (11) Our power comes when we are magnified by His power, which He kindly gives us access to through the Holy Ghost. 

Spiritual power comes from one source-- God the Father. (12) He is the wellspring. Qualified by and founded upon personal righteousness (13), there is an extraordinary opportunity given to all of His children to act on and draw on God's total priesthood power. 

Elder Ballard taught that God the Father is kind and liberal in allowing mankind access to this power. He said, “Our Father in Heaven is generous with His power. All men and all women have access to this power for help in their lives. All who have made sacred covenants with the Lord and who honor those covenants are eligible to receive personal revelation, to be blessed by the ministering of angels, to commune with God, to receive the fullness of the gospel, and, ultimately, to become heirs alongside Jesus Christ of all our Father has.” (14) 

In order to protect our agency, the initiative must be ours to ask for God the Father’s augmentation. He expects that we will reach for His power. (15) He has said, “If thou ask, thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things.” (16) Our ability to receive strength and enabling from God the Father is potentially limitless. 

This power is transformative. Parley P. Pratt explained that “The gift of the Holy Ghost…quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands…(He) inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness and charity…(He) invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man.” (17) 

Elder Brian Ashton taught that we can receive this kind of power through “the channel” of the Holy Ghost. “It is Heavenly Father who sends both the influence and the gift of the Holy Ghost into our lives. Through the gift of the Holy Ghost, the glory—or intelligence, light and power—of the Father can dwell in us.” (18) 

This “intelligence, light and power” is the capacity to do things that are superhuman. It is the ability to know things that we wouldn't have ever known of ourselves and to do things that we are not, of ourselves, capable. It is the opportunity to see and understand things that humans can't see and understand. It is spiritual augmentation that transcends our innate abilities so that we have the power we need to do His work. (19)

To know that we have this access to God the Father through the gifts of the Holy Ghost fills us with confidence in our varied roles and responsibilities. We can know that we are not left to do God’s work with merely the talent, skills and strength that we now possess. Elder James E. Faust taught this comforting doctrine, “Latter-day Saints, having received the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, are entitled to personal inspiration in the small events of life as well as when they are confronted with the giant Goliaths of life.” (20)  To call the challenges of life "Goliaths" is really fitting. Goliath was extraordinarily advantaged in the fight against little David and it seemed impossible that the young shepherd boy could be equal to the battle that he was slated to fight. (21) But like David learned so long ago, the promise of God is that through the Holy Ghost we can do things that for us, alone, would be impossible. 

Elder Scott taught that we can depend on God’s magnification. He said that we can reach out to God the Father in prayer with the needs that reach beyond our own abilities and that He can augment us through the Holy Ghost. “We do not have to measure our potential for success by our known capabilities alone. We can count on the power of God and its expanding influence on our lives. We can know that our ability and strength can be magnified to meet any challenge that confronts us. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, we must strive to become increasingly sensitive to its singular influence in our lives. Prayer is our communication link with God. He answers earnest prayer through the Holy Ghost, which brings inspiration, direction, and power into our lives.” (22)

An amazing partial list of promises of the power made available from God the Father through the Holy Ghost might include: prophecy, revelation, sanctification, new information, wisdom, understanding, ability, capacity, tongues and languages, righteous desire, belief, counsel, testimony, healing, warnings, dreams, casting out devils, visions, instruction, guidance, knowing what to speak, words in your mind, voices, remembrance, charity, ideas, witnesses, remission of sins, things are shown to you, discernment, the authority to speak, the authority to chastise, protection, strength, the mysteries of God, a softening of heart, and a convincing power. 

In short, we have access to all of the gifts of the Spirit that the Father sees fit to bless us with. (23) Moroni directed, “… deny not the gifts of God, for they are many; and they come from the same God….and they are given by the manifestations of the Spirit of God unto men (or mankind).” (24) Moroni teaches that gifts come from God the Father and are ferried to us through the Holy Ghost.

The scriptures are brimming with examples of people who were strengthened by God’s power. Jacob said that he could command the trees, mountains, and waves of the sea. (25) Paul spoke with tongues, healed diseases, and cast out evil. (26) Samuel the Lamanite and Abindi were given authority and the words to chasten and warn. (27) Phillip was able to perceive the thoughts and needs of the Eunich from Ethiopia. (28) Chains fell from Peter’s wrists. (29) Captain Moroni had wisdom beyond his own to guide his armies. (30) King Mosiah was able to translate the Jaredite record that was written in an unknown language. (31) The scriptural examples that show humans being magnified are endless. There are countless true stories where mere mortals were magnified to comprehend the things of God and were able to do things beyond their own capacity.          

The Opportunity Begins with Baptism

In His explanation of the Doctrine of Christ, the Savior taught that after we have repented, been baptized, and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, we are given a command: “He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do." (32) And then, “Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, …For the works which ye have seen me do shall ye also do; for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do.”  (33)           

If I might restate these two scriptures a bit—“You've been baptized. You have received the Holy Ghost which is access to the power of God the Father.  Now, GO! Go and do the things that you've seen Jesus do!” This is a directive to covenant men and women to now access the total priesthood power and authority of God through the gift of the Holy Ghost to do the same kinds of miracles that Christ was able to do by the power and authority of God the Father. It mentions specifically "speak with the tongues of angels", but, as listed above, there are many, many other things, that we have seen Christ do, and that we, too, are able to do through "the powerline" of the Holy Ghost.           

The Savior taught the church leaders of this dispensation that, “…every soul who believeth on your words and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost. And these signs shall follow them that believe— In my name they shall do many wonderful works; In my name they shall cast out devils; In my name they shall heal the sick; In my name they shall open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf.” (34) This scripture is so inclusive. It teaches that every soul who is baptized and receives the Holy Ghost can do “many wonderful works”. 

Recently, President Henry B. Eyring told a personal story from a time when he was a young adult and a student at a prestigious university studying mathematics and physics. He was discouraged and uncomfortably aware of his personal limitations. In answer to these feelings of insufficiency, he had an experience where he learned of God’s power to magnify. 

Elder Eyring said that during this difficult time he had this insight come to his mind, “I was a spirit child of God. I had inherent in me the potential to learn what He knows. Because of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ and my faith in Him, my sins could be washed away…I could receive the gift of the Holy Ghost as a companion. And I came to know that by the power of the Holy Ghost, we may know the truth of all things…(God) knows all truth—in physics and in everything else…if I live worthy of the Holy Ghost, I can learn true things beyond my human ability.” (35)  President Eyring was taught that because a person is clean through Christ, he/she can learn what God the Father knows through the Holy Ghost. After this experience, he understood better how he could be magnified through the Spirit in his school work. 

For the entirety of our lives we must repeat the process of relying on Christ and repenting so that scarlet sins and weaknesses are washed away. (36) This process enables righteousness in us and makes us more and more worthy of the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. (37) Then, as President Eyring taught, we can know what God the Father knows.           

Ammon understood this principle.  He knew that he, of himself, was weak, but he also knew that God would give him strength and power beyond his own. “I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in His strength I can do all things.” (38)

In the midst of abridging the Book of Mormon record, Mormon gives us a good example of being aware of where his own capacity ended and where the magnification from God began. “And I (make this abridgment of the record) for a wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but (God) knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do according to his will.” (39) Mormon taught that even though he was insufficient, God the Father was omniscient and would work with him through the Holy Ghost. 

The Fruits of the Gift of the Holy Ghost are for All

Some years ago my husband and I attended a brother-in-law’s wedding in Brazil.  It was an amazing event, and the music and dancing were upbeat and went on enthusiastically for more than five hours. Much of the time I enjoyed just sitting at the side and watching the people dance. You see, my shoes were too small, I was wearing several too many layers of clothing for this Brazilian summer evening, and my dress was too long so I kept tripping on its fabric.           

I loved watching what was going on the dancing floor, but I was not in a position to join. This seemed to be of great concern to Max the wedding planner, whose job it was to see that every guest was participating joyfully. He must have wondered if I was joyful. Near the end of the night, the traditional Brazilian group dances began and our new friends were determined. Max grabbed my hands and said in his heavy Portuguese accent, "For All". I didn't immediately understand his words, but he said them several times, "For All!" "For All!" “For All!” Finally, I got it! That dance was for everyone-- married, single, male, female, American, Brazilian, really good dancers and beginners with awkward dresses like me. That dance was "for all".  

Max had his assistant take my dress up off the floor by tying a big knot in the hem, and I was swept out to the dance floor where he taught me a little Samba step. I had so much fun. I was so glad that I was encouraged to participate in something so delightful and so glad that it was meant "for all". Like that Brazilian dance, access to God the Father’s infinite and endless power is also, “for all”. Magnification by God the Father through the Holy Ghost is the privilege and the right of every member of the Church. (40)

President Joseph F. Smith taught that the many, many gifts are available to men and women through the Spirit. And although this quote speaks to women, notice that he included mention of "sons of Zion” as well. These promises are for men and women who have received the Holy Ghost.           

"The daughters of Israel have been born of the water and of the Spirit, and they have been endowed with the gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands of those who had authority to convey that power and that gift to the daughters of Zion, as well as to the sons of Zion. I believe that every mother has the right to … know what to do in her family and in her sphere, over her children, in their guidance and direction; and that mother and every mother possessing that spirit has the gift of revelation, the gift of inspiration and the gift of knowledge, which is the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of discernment, a gift of God to them, to govern their households and lead their children in the path of righteousness and truth." (41) 

This quote was a launching pad for me in the search for my own personal access to God and His power. When I read that mothers/women were endowed with the gift of the Holy Ghost, and thus revelation, prophecy, discernment, knowledge and inspiration, I immediately knew where I was sourced. I am not sure that I can even write how relieved and empowered I was to understand my conduit to God the Father and His behemoth power.           

That led me to ask how men are powered. I guess I had assumed that they were fueled by Melchizedek Priesthood since there is much talk about the significance of being an ordained priesthood holder. But that was erroneous. Baptized boys and girls, starting at the tender, accountable-age of eight years old, can access the power of God through the Gift of the Holy Ghost. All covenant-keepers have access to the power and authority of the omnipotent, omniscient Heavenly Father. He is the source of all power and priesthood, and He is how all of us are potentially lifted beyond our natural abilities. That privilege is not gender-exclusive. It is simply worthy-exclusive. These blessings are vast and awesome, and universally accessible from God the Father.           

On April 28, 1842, Joseph Smith spoke at a meeting of the Female Relief Society of Nauvoo. Part of his discourse was based on the Apostle Paul’s teachings in 1 Corinthians about the gifts of the Spirit. (42) Joseph Smith emphasized that “these signs, such as healing the sick, casting out devils, etc. should follow all that believe.” (43) It has also been written, “Because Latter-day Saint women (and men) have received the gift of the Holy Ghost, they can seek and be blessed by spiritual gifts such as the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.” (44) 

Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught that faithful men and women are equally blessed with augmentation from God the Father. “Where spiritual things are concerned, as pertaining to all of the gifts of the Spirit, with reference to the receipt of revelation, the gaining of testimonies, and the seeing of visions, in all matters that pertain to godliness and holiness and which are brought to pass as a result of personal righteousness—in all these things men and women stand in a position of absolute equality before the Lord. He is no respecter of persons nor of sexes, and he blesses those men and those women who seek him and serve him and keep his commandments.” (45) 

This would explain how mothers and fathers, Elder and Sister missionaries, Young Men and Young Women leaders, Primary teachers, wives and husbands, girls and boys, are enhanced by God the Father through the Holy Ghost. 

In recognizing communication with the Holy Ghost, we don’t want to miss that the wellspring is the endless, boundless power or priesthood of God the Father. Although we correctly credit inspiration to the Spirit, we rarely “push” the Divine-gift of revelation backwards a step to the true source of power. It is especially strengthening to remember that we are “fueled” by the God of this Universe for these miracles of inspiration, amplification, enhancement, and magnification beyond our human ability. Our General Conferences, Sacrament meetings, and family conversations are filled with experiences and examples of the Holy Ghost’s inspiration. It is important to understand that our potential for magnification comes from our most magnificent Heavenly Father. By framing it this way, we realize that this miracle of tapping into God’s power has already been happening in our lives. Sister Reyna Aburto of the General Relief Society Presidency said, “The truth is that we have already been drawing upon God's power without knowing it, but maybe we just need to be more intentional in (crediting Him in) our personal life and in our callings.” (46) To fully understand the possibilities, we need to attribute this process to God and to His omnipotence and omniscience. 

Here are a few modern-day examples of mankind being magnified with the power of God through the Holy Ghost:

We know that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon by the power and authority of God (47). A young adult with a third-grade education (48), took etchings of ancient Reformed Egyptian (49) and with the powers of tongues and translation, produced a book of scripture in English. This was work that was way beyond Joseph’s educational and intellectual ability at the time and he could not have accomplished it without the power of God through the Holy Ghost. And remember that translation was done in large part before Joseph had been ordained to any Aaronic or Melchizedek priesthood office. (50) 

President Thomas S. Monson told this story about being compelled by the Holy Ghost to act: “I felt the unmistakable prompting to park my car and visit Ben and Emily, even though I was on the way to a meeting…I approached the door to their home and knocked. Emily answered. When she recognized me…she exclaimed, “All day long I have waited for my phone to ring. It has been silent. I hoped that the postman would deliver a letter. He brought only bills. Bishop, how did you know today was my birthday?” I answered, “God knows, Emily, for He loves you.”  (51) This story illustrates how God’s knowledge and omniscience were evidenced through inspiration from the Holy Ghost to President Monson. He did not know that it was Emily’s birthday, but God did. 

Wilford Woodruff had a similar experience where God’s knowledge of the future was given to him in the form of a warning. "...an impression… came to him (Brother Woodruff) in the night telling him to move his carriage and mules away from a large tree. He did so, and his family and livestock were saved when the tree crashed to the ground in a tornado that struck 30 minutes later." (52)

The following experience that Elder Dallin H. Oaks shared is also illustrative. It teaches that God knows the timing and the future needs (omniscience) of His children and can inspire us with thoughts and ideas through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.           

"I had another choice experience with impelling revelation a few months after I began my service at BYU. As a new and inexperienced president, I had many problems to analyze and many decisions to reach…One day in October, I drove up Provo Canyon to ponder a particular problem. Although alone and without any interruption, I found myself unable to think of the problem at hand. Another pending issue I was not yet ready to consider kept thrusting itself into my mind…After ten or fifteen minutes of unsuccessful efforts to exclude thoughts of this subject, I finally realized what was happening. The issue…did not seem timely to me, and I was certainly not seeking any guidance on it, but the Spirit was trying to communicate with me on that subject. I immediately turned my full attention to that question and began to record my thoughts on a piece of paper. Within a few minutes, I had recorded the details...Hurrying back to the campus, I reviewed it with my colleagues and found them enthusiastic. A few days later the Board of Trustees approved our (proposal) barely in time to make (it) effective (for the next academic year)." (53) 

Several years ago, I was asked to prepare a Primary display for our new church building's open house. I studied the Primary manuals for several weeks but was still unsure on how to proceed in presenting our children’s ministry to the community. One Friday night, my husband and I attended the Dallas Temple. During that session, I felt like heaven opened up to me. I was immersed in a series of ideas and even saw in mind the pieces of the display. I knew where to focus and what to emphasize. I saw décor, execution and presentation, phrases, and scriptures. I left the temple that evening, wrote down all that I had seen, and then over the next weeks simply executed what had been shown to me in that time of personal revelation. This was a powerful experience where God inspired me in my preparations through ideas, scenes, and information given to me by the Holy Ghost. 

When I was a young adult, I recall a Sunday where I was seated in a Sacrament Meeting with my younger siblings. My brother Michael, who had a congenital heart defect and had struggled through multiple life-threatening times in his life, was very sick again. Sickness was not new in his fragile little body, and our family had seen his life extended for years through many, many miracles. During that church meeting, words came into my mind, "This time is going to be different, Valerie. Michael will not get better." This was new information that I had not sought out. I was surprised, yet comforted by the message. As prophesied to me, he died a few weeks later. The Spirit had told me, in advance, things that I did not know, but that God knew. I believe this prophecy came to me so that I could prepare for the grief and loss. 

These examples are just a few that show a divine pattern-- access to God’s total priesthood power is shared with us, His children, through the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost magnifies and enhances our natural abilities to see and do and know. The source for men and women is always God the Father, and the powerline is always The Spirit. The Holy Ghost is the channel through which the Almighty reveals Himself to men and women, and the way He works through us.  This is an amazing and empowering doctrine.

Chapter Four- Spiritually Powerful Individuals are Ready to Do God’s Work

According to God the Father’s Plan and His power (1), Jesus Christ was sent to earth and atoned for our sins. The Atonement of Christ cleanses us through repentance and enables righteousness in us through ordinances. A person who has made covenants and keeps them, is worthy of the gift and companionship of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the powerline through which God the Father gives mortals access to His Supreme attributes and total priesthood power. This power magnifies our mortal abilities.           

The result of mankind magnified is that there is an army of powerful individuals, ready to assist God with His work. Powerful individuals are men and women who are covenant-makers and covenant-keepers. The Doctrine and Covenants describe powerful individuals as those who have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost because they hold the “scepter of righteousness and truth.” They interact with others with kindness, purity, and patience. They are kind, smart, gentle, meek, and loving. They are full of charity and belong to “the household of faith”. Their confidence is strong in the presence of God because they are virtuous and clean through the Atonement of Christ. (2) They do miracles in their stewardships by the power of God through the Holy Ghost. This ability is based on principles of personal righteousness.

The scriptures show us what powerful individuals looks like and what the spiritually mighty can do. The Romans became “servants of righteousness” because they were free from sin. (3) Gidgiddoni was a great prophet to his people because he had the spirit of revelation and prophecy. (4) Tabitha was a woman “full of good works and almsdeeds” who served the most vulnerable. (5) Barnabus was a compelling missionary and disciple of Christ because he was “a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith.” (6) The widow from Zarephath listened to the Spirit, fed a prophet, and saved herself and her starving son. (7) Nephi, the son of Helaman had great power and authority given to him because he was a proven “man of God”. And his brother, Lehi, was “not one whit behind as to things pertaining to righteousness.” (8) Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a meek, humble, submissive woman who feared God and was called a “precious and chosen vessel”. (9) Shiblon was “a just man, and he did walk uprightly before God” by doing good and keeping commandments. (10)

Marion D Hanks described “powerful individuals” when he said that “(The Gospel) provides the objective, the plan, the motivation, and the power to produce persons who make a difference.” (11) Baptized and confirmed members of The Church of Jesus Christ who have received the Holy Ghost can, indeed, make a difference.

But what of the fact that we are fallible and insufficient? Well, that is exactly why we are dependent on God the Father’s power in order to be effective in doing His work. When we have pure, righteous intentions and look beyond ourselves and bless others, He gives us permissions and increased ability through the Holy Ghost. God the Father gives us access to His capacity so that we can be successful in our personal earthy sojourn, and so that we can help others with theirs.           

The Family and The Church are Tools

God the Father’s saving, perfecting plan included coming to earth, being gifted a physical body, and then traveling a lifetime along a path of ordinances and covenants that prepare us to return to Him. While on that path through mortality and in this probationary state, God the Father has provided at least two supportive ways that He can accomplish His purposes of exalting His children. The first is the family. The second is Christ’s Church because it houses and protects proper Melchizedek Priesthood authority so that that saving ordinances can be performed. Both exist to assist God in His eternal, one-by-one work-- to bring people to Christ so that the eternal life of mankind is possible. (24) Both are successful when there are powerful individuals serving within the ranks: mothers and fathers, and willing workers in the engine of the Church. We are effective and inspired when we access God the Father’s total priesthood power and authority through the Holy Ghost. This is how we are equal to the enormous responsibility that we have to one another. 

The next chapters discuss in depth God’s tools for helping His children return to Him-- the family, marriage, fathers, mothers, the Church, ordinances, Melchizedek Priesthood, and God’s service organizations-- the priesthood quorum and the Relief Society. He has prepared every detail. If we are to help God, we must become a more and more spiritually powerful individual. Then we will be magnified to fulfill, inspired, and effectively, our roles in the family and the Church. In every one of these efforts, we need the guidance and enhancement of the Holy Ghost. 

Let’s get busy doing His work.




Chapter Five- The Family- A Heavenly Organization

Family is a heavenly, celestial organization. Our pre-mortal family consisted of Father, Mother, and children, and was an order presided over by our Heavenly Parents and directed by love, kindness, gentleness, and godly persuasion. (1)
 

Our earthly families are designed after the heavenly order that was modeled by God the Father and our Heavenly Mother. When a man and a woman marry and make commitments and promises to one another in a holy temple, a new family, a kingdom, or government within itself is created. (2) The husband and wife love each other. They create a home and prepare physical bodies for the spirit children of God. Mothers and fathers, have the predominant responsibility for teaching, preparing and inviting their children to repent, receive ordinances, and make and keep covenants. (3) Mothers and fathers are God’s secret weapon in the salvation of mankind. 

The family is central to God’s Plan of Salvation. Family relationships are covenanted partnerships to love and care for each other, back into the presence of God. (4)  Men and women, with distinct, but complementary roles, bear and labor for each other, and they bear and labor for their children. Not only do families love and minister with tremendous success, they are designed by God to be effective with “the one”. In this hard, important work, we need God’s power. We need to be magnified by the Holy Ghost. 

Family is a Saving Organization

Families who are functioning according to God’s Plan, ensure that each partner in a covenant-keeping marriage is never separate and alone in their earthly walk. Through the ups and downs, there is always someone by your side to help you. Marriage provides each person his or her own personal "helper" (5): a strength, an advocate, a teammate, a partner.           

Family can also ensure that a child has what he or she needs to be able to return to our Heavenly Father. Parenthood is instant love. From the first look at new baby fingers and toes, moms and dads love their children eternally. That love is a holy endowment. Loving parents ensure that there will always be someone invested, someone who will forgive and exercise compassion, someone who will not give up, someone who will always teach, guide, and lead children to Christ. The family is a loving, teaching, caring bridge, from God's arms premortally to God's arms eternally.            

President Ezra Taft Benson quoted Doctrine and Covenants 132 and explained, "...it is the opportunity and responsibility of wives (and husbands) to multiply and replenish the earth...(and) to fulfill the promise which was given by (The) Father"...(to exalt) His children…That they might bear the souls of men; for herein is the work of The Father continued." (6) This is beautiful doctrine-- the family is “the work of the Father continued”. What started with the organization of our spirits and the teaching and training we received pre-mortally, continues during our earth life with a mother and father “bearing the souls of men”.           

Elder D. Todd Christofferson taught, “A family built on the marriage of a man and woman supplies the best setting for God’s plan to thrive—the setting for the birth of children, who come in purity and innocence from God, and the environment for the learning and preparation they will need for a successful mortal life and eternal life in the world to come.” (7) 

Some time ago I took a walk through the stunning St Patrick's Cathedral in Charleston, South Carolina. The stained-glass windows depicted scenes from the Savior's life, and they were spectacular! Walking the perimeter of that cathedral, while the sunlight poured into these windows, was a moving experience for me. One window was especially beautiful. It showed Christ is His majestic red robe, holding and comforting little children. His eyes were kind and full of love. Watching close by were more children waiting for their turn to feel His love. It was a lovely, tender-hearted scene.            

As I stood there a bit longer, I noticed that those children were in the arms of mothers. The kids had been brought to the feet of Christ in families. One of the mothers was teaching and listening and explaining what the child was experiencing. Another was comforting and supporting a child who was hesitant or confused. The third, was a mother who was helping the baby be patient and take his turn. Inside the halls of St Patrick's that day, I felt a brilliant burst of purpose reaffirming this-- that parenting was about bringing children to the Savior. And that He has the ability to bring us back to God.  

The Blueprint for this Work is The Family Proclamation  

The Family Proclamation is a one-page, humankind-stabilizing document that was delivered by President Gordon B. Hinckley. (8) The document, first publically read in 1995, has been distributed far and worldwide to Heads of State, Kings and Queens, Parliaments, and Government Officials. (9)

The document teaches that God’s purposes are accomplished by heavenly delegation in the form of Godly roles and responsibilities sometimes associated with gender. The Family Proclamation teaches that each of us are children of God and have "divine nature and destiny". That "gender is eternal". That marriage is God's and is between a man and woman. That each have equally important, God-given roles that they fulfill with the love and support of one another. A father is to provide, preside and protect, and a mother is to create, nurture and minister. Both, with full attention and intention. Together, side by side, they run a home and family that is full of faith, love, forgiveness, teaching, activities and respect. The family's purpose is to assist heaven in "returning" God's children back to Him.

Matriarchs give life and guide children to truth. Patriarchs prepare children for and then offer ordinances. (10) Mothers create life, influence, nurture, and prepare children for covenants. Fathers preside and teach, train and offer saving ordinances. (11) 

Elder Russell M. Ballard has said, “Men and women have different gifts, different strengths, and different points of view and inclinations. That is one of the fundamental reasons we need each other. It takes a man and a woman to create a family, and it takes men and women to carry out the work of the Lord. A husband and wife righteously working together, complete each other.” (12) Heavenly Father needs women and men to magnify distinct but equally-vital family roles in order to bring His saving purposes to pass.

Valerie Hudson-Cassler, an author, offered this insightful explanation, “God’s plan is a circle. We leave Him to gain a mortal body and agency and opportunity, but His plan is that we come back to Him, cleansed by the Atonement and ordinances. Men and women play different roles in helping God with these objectives…Here is it in simplicity: A mother offers children what they need from their earthly home. The chance to leave Heavenly Father (through birth), life (a body), and a probationary state. She creates an earthly home full of nurturing. Then stands close to teach and nurture and love. A father offers children what they need to return to our heavenly home: ordinances and spiritual leadership…In a family and marriage relationship no one is working alone and independently.  Our responsibilities and roles cross and intersect at every turn…a couple works together as partners, (even though) there are some distinctive roles assigned by gender.” (13)

So, a mother offers what a child needs in order to leave the presence of our Heavenly Father and navigate the tricky earthly-test of agency-- a body and a “home full of nurturing” and teaching.  A father offers the child what he or she needs to return to our Heavenly Father—ordinances and guidance through spiritual leadership. These are cross-winding, interconnected, supportive roles. For example, a father provides temporal resources so that mother can focus her efforts inside the earthly home. And the mother teaches and trains in spiritual matters to assist the father in preparing children for ordinances. In this interwoven saving work, they support one another as equal partners.

Elder Richard G. Scott taught that a father and mother’s roles are compatible and complementary. “Our Heavenly Father endowed His sons and daughters with unique traits especially fitted for their individual responsibilities as they fulfill His plan. To follow His plan requires that you do those things He expects of you as a son or daughter, husband or wife. Those roles are different, but entirely compatible. In the Lord’s plan, it takes two—a man and a woman—to form a whole. Indeed, a husband and wife are not two identical halves, but a wondrous, divinely-determined combination of complementary capacities and characteristics.” (14)

President Spencer W. Kimball explained that the way families are organized not man-made, but was crafted by our Father in Heaven. “The Lord organized the whole program in the beginning with a father who procreates, provides, and loves and directs, and a mother who conceives and bears and nurtures and feeds and trains. The Lord could have organized it otherwise but chose to have a unit with responsibility...The family is the great plan of life as conceived and organized by our Father in Heaven.” (15)

There is Strength in the Division of Labors and in Defined Roles

With a collaborated, coordinated, sometimes gender-based division of labors, men and women came to earth prepared to excel in and be skilled at family posts of responsibility. (16) God has wisely divided the highest, most essential duties of family equally between men and women. (17)

Elder Russell M. Ballard encouraged us not to try to change God’s mind about what He has developed, “Do not spend time trying to overhaul or adjust God’s plan. We do not have time for that.” (18) Elder Neal A. Maxwell also cautioned, “We know so little, brothers and sisters, about the reasons for the division of duties between womanhood and manhood as well as between motherhood and (fatherhood with Melchizedek Priesthood). These were divinely determined in another time and another place…(men and women) do not envy each other, lest by reversals and renunciations of role, we make a wasteland of both womanhood and manhood.” (19)

The preceding warning is fitting for our day. Both women and men in family roles are under attack. If the adversary can destroy the family, he has undercut a most effective, beautiful foundation of God’s Plan. If he can whisper into the ears of men and women a spirit of discontent and competition, he can blur the roles and put the children of God at odds with one another. This breeds exactly what Elder Neal A. Maxwell described as a “wasteland of both” man and woman. And it makes the adversary prance and leap and laugh.

The blurring of lines and the destruction of roles can only be described as sinister. Former General Young Women’s Leader, Florence Jacobson, questioned the wisdom of redefining womanhood. “Those who tell women to rise up and be liberated and demand a new role in life are only advocating liberation from the very functions created in them by God that make them different from men.” (20) Is it really freedom when mankind has destroyed what God designed? Here is a caution-- just because a person may not want the role that God has prescribed, does not change that God has given it. In order to understand roles, we need to see our lives as an integrated part of the beautiful, God-prescribed, heavenly orchestration of people-saving.

At a time in the world when families are sometimes upside-down, it is important to lay aside what might be normal or acceptable to society and be willing to default with faith to the way that God has laid things out. A family is fashioned for Divine purposes and by a God who is omniscient. Sister Sheri Dew, a former member of the General Relief Society Presidency, once emphasized that the way that families (and this is true about the Church, too) was arranged by God and is not being improvised or formulated as humanity rolls along. She said that we are not "a test case, rats scurrying about in a great, cosmic lab.” (21) We can with full confidence trust that God is doing this right!

Elder Dallin H. Oaks acknowledged the perils when he said, “We live in a day when there are many political, legal, and social pressures for changes that confuse gender and homogenize the differences between men and women. Our eternal perspective sets us against changes that alter those separate duties and privileges of men and women that are essential to accomplish the great plan of happiness.” (22)

Instead of wondering about why heavenly things are the way they are, we might use our energies to work God’s plan. There is great power in differing roles and a division of labor. People can become experts at what they do. Men and women can take an assignment and run with passion. They can launch out into extraordinary efforts. They can focus on a part without being cumbered by holding all of the responsibilities. But most importantly, men and women anxiously engaged in the work of family can please God and assist him in His saving efforts.

On February 14th, 2018, Alaina Petty, an LDS 14-year-old, died at the hands of a peer in Parkland, Florida. She was one of seventeen who perished in a sad act of violence inside her high school. When I heard of this attack, I was horrified, as was the nation. A roar of anger sounded as people tried to figure out how to make sure that this kind of evil did not happen again. The ideas were plentiful, but were limited to the arena of policy and law.

In the weeks that followed the tragedy, I read a news release from the Church of Jesus Christ’s Newsroom about the shooting where Alaina's Dad, Ryan Petty, spoke about a different idea of what would help prevent this situation from happening again. His words were just exactly where my head had been since hearing about the tragedy.

“I’m not angry at the shooter. I feel like we, as a society, failed this young man. He did not have the opportunity to live in a family that could love him the way he needed to be loved; to take care of him and understand the challenges and emotions he was feeling, and to give him positive ways to deal with them.” Then Brother Petty added, “Loving families are often remedies to such challenges. I can’t help but think that the solutions to these types of problems don’t lie in the policy realm—they lie in having strong families that (care) for their children and live according to Heavenly Father’s plan.” (23)

Ryan Petty and his family acted so extraordinarily in the wake of this personal loss and taught a grieving nation spiritual truths-- that the demise of families was hurting our society. He declared that families were saving institutions and that there was great power in a parents’ love and obligation to their children. One might use the old African proverb, "It Takes a Village to Raise a Child" to delegate children to a community. And while it is true that children benefit from many loving and caring helper-people, we can never lose sight of the fact that it takes intentional and present parents, a mother and a father, to raise a child.

And while there is no guarantee that children will use their free will and agency to immediately follow even the most beautiful of parental love, modeling, and teaching. And while a functional family is not a guarantee that children will be free of organic dysfunction and imperfection, we should still bank on the family. Reclaiming a child who has diverted or been difficult, or nurturing a child who has illness or disability is best accomplished through patient intervention, love, compassion, urging, and nurturing from a mother and a father. In the end, intentional families win.

The Lord saves and exalts us, one by one. That pattern is divinely effective. We all need a family. Adults need a marriage partner, children need a mother and father. The Family Proclamation calls on parents to “come home” in their hearts and minds, in body and in soul, and see their greatest contribution to society as the work that they do within their individual families. And to see themselves as a tool in God’s work of salvation for the small audience of ones’ own family.