Former Seventy teaches about righteous living in BYU–Idaho devotional

Elder W. Don Ladd, a former member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, taught Brigham Young University–Idaho students about the importance of charting a righteous course in life during a devotional address given Tuesday, June 13.

Elder Ladd began his address by stating it is a great time for students to set a pattern for the rest of their lives, even their eternal lives. He said, “It is so critical for you to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.”

Not being raised in the Church, Elder Ladd recalled that when he was a teen, a bishop put his arm around him and got him interested in the Church. “I will always be eternally grateful for that,” he said. Elder Ladd went on to say the Lord has always chosen valiant young men and women for his callings in the Church, and to prepare now for what is to come.

He spoke of Jesus Christ as a young man, Joseph of Egypt, young David, the boy prophet Samuel, Mary the mother of Jesus, Ruth, Nephi, Mark, and the Prophet Joseph Smith. “Like these young men and women—you don’t have to be older to be great,” Elder Ladd said. “You can be great in your youth, and you can be great in this time in your life and prepare yourself for the future.”

Elder Ladd then described the final week of the Savior’s life on earth during His ministry, discussing the New Testament, and more specifically, the four gospels. He relayed President Hinckley’s answer to why our Church doesn’t have the cross as a symbol. President Hinckley said, “The cross is a symbol of the dying Christ, but we believe in the living Christ…”

Elder Ladd paralleled the Savior’s life with the challenges of life today. “We have the gift of the Holy Ghost as our guide,” he said. “We should live our lives so when we are going off the path, we will have the sensitivity that will make us step in and prohibit it.”

Speaking more of President Hinckley’s answer to the question of the cross, Elder Ladd said the members of the Church are its symbol, instead of the cross. “We must live our lives so that we, in essence, are the symbol of our faith to those we come in contact with,” Elder Ladd said.

Concluding his remarks, Elder Ladd said, “There is no way in the life, or in the life to come that we can ever repay our debt to the Savior. We can, however, show our gratitude by the way we live our lives and express our own appreciation by trying to emulate his life as closely as we can. May that be our happy lot."