Brothers and sisters, we are grateful to speak to you on another great day at BYU-Idaho. We pray that the Holy Ghost will be with us, that we might learn what Heavenly Father would have us do to rise to the great responsibilities and the great opportunities He has given us.
When I was eleven years old, my family moved from Salt Lake City to Spokane, Washington. Not long after we moved there, I signed up for a paper route.
My bedroom was in the basement of our house, and every morning at about 4:30 my mother would get up and come downstairs and open my door and say, "It's time to get up. Rise and shine." Now, I know that the basic purpose of those words was to get me out of bed and out the door so I could do my route. But I have the feeling now that when my mother said, "rise and shine" she had much more in her mind and heart than getting a paper route done. I think she saw with a mother's eye of faith that, that young boy would someday be a missionary, a husband, a young father, a Church leader, and a man of God. And he would need to know how to get up and get going. He would need to rise to the purposes and destiny God had prepared for him, and he would need to live so the light of the gospel would be in his eyes and in his heart. He would need to "rise and shine" all of his life. And so, she got up early and said those words to that boy, for which I will be eternally grateful.
The call to rise up and prepare for the great work God has given us to do is a call that echoes all through the scriptures down to the living prophets in our day. And we hear it in the Savior's own voice when He said:
"Verily I say unto you all: Arise and shine forth, that thy light may be a standard for the nations;"[1]
This is our call, brothers and sisters. It is our call to rise and shine.
Listen to the words of the hymn the choir sang today:
Rise up, O men of God!
Have done with lesser things.
Give heart and soul and mind and strength
To serve the King of Kings.[2]
This hymn is addressed to the men of the Church. It is a clarion call to rise and shine. But the call, and the principles in the hymn, apply equally well to the sisters. In fact, men and women must face and heed this call together.We would like to focus today on the preparation you need to make now to receive God's greatest gift--the opportunity to create an eternal family and qualify for exaltation and eternal life.
In The Family: A Proclamation to the World, living prophets teach us true doctrine about our eternal identity as sons and daughters of God and about the central role of marriage and family life in Heavenly Father's plan. The Proclamation is a prophetic window on your future as husbands and wives, mothers and fathers of an eternal family. Nothing is more important.You first learned about these blessings in the pre-mortal council:
When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy.[3]
You shouted for joy then because of your faith that Jesus Christ would be the Savior and Redeemer of all mankind. Through the Atonement of Christ you and a beloved eternal companion could create an eternal family, experience the joy of heaven on earth, and return to the presence of Heavenly Father "crowned with celestial glory,"[4] "raised to endless happiness to inherit the kingdom of God,"[5] "in [whose] presence isfulness of joy."[6]
The prophetic window of the Proclamation gives each of us a beautiful picture of what our future holds. Everything about marriage and family life is in that picture, including dating, finding the right one, having children, changing their diapers, loving them, teaching them, and the many, many other challenges and joys that rearing children and building an eternal family bring.
These blessings come at different times to different people. In mortal life we often encounter unexpected delays and disappointments. But it is good to have in front of us a vivid picture of our divine destiny as sons and daughters of God. That picture is real. We bear witness that the promises are true. Through the Atonement of Christ, and through your faithfulness, you can obtain all of God's promised blessings, every one, on the timetable of the Lord.
And so we say, rise up brothers and sisters. Rise and shine. No matter your circumstance, whether you are single or married, there is much you can do now to prepare and qualify for the blessings and the responsibilities of an eternal family.
Preparing for an Eternal Family
The Proclamation teaches us that parents in an eternal family have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness. In this sacred duty, mothers and fathers have four "sacred responsibilities."
By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners.[7]
There are many things you can do now to prepare and qualify for these great blessings, some of which you are doing already--strengthening your faith in the Savior; obeying the commandments; gaining an education; learning how to preside and plan; learning how to sacrifice and serve; learning how to teach; and, of course, learning how to cook, and much else. But we would like to mention some additional preparations that we believe deserve your special focus.
We would like to speak first to the brothers, but we invite the sisters to listen carefully.
Brother Preparation #1: Priesthood Leadership in the Home
Brethren, the greatest experience of your life will be to stand together with your wife at the head of your eternal family. With the power of the holy priesthood in your life and in your marriage, you will love, guide, direct, and teach the children God entrusts to your care. United with your eternal companion, and with the Lord Jesus Christ, you will bring priesthood leadership to your family.
Whether you are married or single, the best way to prepare for priesthood leadership in your home is to be a priesthood leader now. No matter what your calling in the Church may be, you can be a priesthood leader.
We want to ask you some questions about your priesthood leadership and about your homes. Think of these questions as guidelines for your personal preparation and development as a priesthood leader in your home:
Are you magnifying your calling as an Elder in Israel?
Do you feel responsible for the spiritual welfare of those God entrusts to your care? Do you act on that feeling and go to them in priesthood service?
Do you act in faith in Christ to follow the impressions of the Spirit even when it is inconvenient or perhaps uncomfortable?
Do you carry out your callings and assignments "by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; by kindness, and pure knowledge"?[8]
Are you always ready and worthy to exercise the holy priesthood, even at a moment's notice?
Is there anything in your life that would prevent you from receiving revelation and spiritual gifts from the Holy Ghost?
Do you live a life of personal honor? Are you "true at all times?"
Do you "feast upon the words of Christ" every day?
Do you pray with real intent, with all the energy of your heart?
Do you attend the temple often? Are your temple covenants written in your heart?
These are important questions for you and for me. All of us should be working toward a resounding "Yes" in answer to them.
Now consider these questions about the home:
Do you follow the counsel given to us by Elder David A. Bednar to be more concerned and diligent at home?
Are you aware of those around you who need words of encouragement, support, and love? Do you share those words with them?
Have you born your testimony to your family at FHE or to your friends or roommates or classmates lately?
Are you consistent in your prayers, in scripture study, and in family home evening?
Is your home or apartment a spiritual sanctuary where the Holy Ghost can dwell?
Do you live providently making wise use of your money, time, and talents?
Do you treat all women and girls with honor and respect as daughters of God?
As you ponder your answers to these questions, I hope you will realize that you are establishing patterns today that will carry over into your homes tomorrow.
If you are faithful and magnify your callings in the priesthood (including being more concerned and diligent at home), Heavenly Father will bless you with the powers of heaven; with the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit; with the watchful care of His angels; and, indeed, with all that He has. You will be a priesthood leader.
Brethren, your eternal family needs you to keep your promises. Your wife and children will need the particular powers of heaven that will come to them only through you and the priesthood. You need to prepare now so that you will be ready then.
I share with you today a personal experience with priesthood power.
Sue and I met about two months after I returned from my mission and were married several months later in June of 1971. At the time of this story, we had been married for six years. I was in graduate school and we had three children--a little boy almost four, a little girl almost two, and a brand new baby boy, about two weeks old.
One day I came home from graduate school to find our home in total chaos. The baby was crying; the two little kids were running around wreaking havoc; there were toys all over our little apartment; and Sue was exhausted and in tears.
I pitched in and tried to corral the older children and clean up the apartment. As I went to work, the Spirit whispered to me. "Give your wife a blessing." So, right there in the middle of chaos, Sue sat on a chair and I gave her a blessing. In that moment it was as if a spiritual cocoon settled in around us. Heavenly Father had prepared a blessing for His beloved daughter, my wife, and I was privileged to deliver His blessing to her by the power of the holy priesthood and in the name of Jesus Christ. The blessing was full of words of astonishing breadth and power. Sue received promises of strength and capacity and sweet blessings about our children and our family here on earth and in the eternities. When I finished, I hugged her for a long time. It was a powerful, spiritual, priesthood experience.
After that blessing we still had to pick up the toys and establish order and get the kids fed and to bed. But I am grateful that my husband heard the whisperings of the Spirit and was prepared in that moment to use the holy priesthood to give me a blessing.
That preparation began many years before. As President Henry B. Eyring taught:
[Preparation] must begin long before the crisis which requires priesthood power.
. . . the preparation that counts will be made by the young men making choices to rise to their great destiny as priesthood servants for God.
What you will need in the dramatic moment will be built in the steady performance of obedient service.
So you must have faith that God lives and that you have won His confidence to allow you to use His power for His purposes.[9]
Here are the great keys to your preparation for priesthood leadership in the home: steady performance of obedient service and increased faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Brother Preparation #2: Cleave Unto Her and None Else
Brethren, the Lord gave this commandment about your relationship with your wife: Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else.
Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else.[10]
Some of you have already found your eternal companion. You know who she is. You have entered into sacred covenants with her. Your commitment to her must be total--she must have all your heart and you must cleave unto her and none else. Her interests and concerns should be your interests. Her happiness and well-being should be the desire of your heart. Nothing should compete in your heart for your emotional, spiritual, and physical affection and devotion to your wife--nothing--no other person, no other thing.
None else means just that--no flirting or emotional relationships with other women. But it also means no devotion to a career or to virtual relationships or social networking online or pornography. It means the needs and interests of your wife and family come before your boss, before the old buddies, before video games, sports, hunting, fishing, four-wheeling, camping, and anything else that would take you away from them. You need to provide for your family. You may still enjoy wholesome activities, but now they happen in the context of your marriage and your family. What you do, you plan together; and many of these activities you enjoy with your wife and your children.
Some of you have not yet found your eternal companion. Even though you don't know who she is, you can cleave unto her and none else while you are looking for her. Now, that means you have to look for her; but the same principles apply--no sexual relations outside of marriage; no commitments or addictions to anything that will interfere with your total devotion to your wife and family.
Brethren, prepare to be a righteous husband and father--avoid lust and the associated affliction of pornography like the destructive, addictive poison they are. Don't get caught up in and addicted to video or on-line games or virtual relationships or social networking or work or outdoor recreation or sports or anything else. If you are caught in an addiction, don't try to justify it. Please get help now. You can be rid of its destructive power, but you have to act now to get help. Don't wait.
Brethren, the hymn we read earlier says it very well: [Now is the time to] "have done with lesser things."[11] Now is the time to prepare and qualify. Now is the time to rise and shine.
Preparation for the Sisters
We would like to speak now to the sisters, but we invite the brethren to listen closely.
Sister Preparation #1: Honor the Priesthood of God
Sisters, whether you are single or married, the most important things in your life and in the life of your eternal family will come to you through the authority and power of God. You receive the gift of the Holy Ghost and temple ordinances and covenants through the holy priesthood. You will be sealed to your husband and receive together the highest blessings of the holy priesthood in the house of the Lord. Blessings and power and joy and happiness will come to your eternal family because you honor God's power and authority.
You can prepare to honor the priesthood of God in your eternal family by honoring the priesthood now.
Honoring the priesthood begins with the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Great High Priest. Learn of Him. Love Him. Keep His commandments.
Honoring the priesthood means keeping your covenants. It means learning about and loving the oath and covenant of the priesthood and the covenant of eternal marriage and the ordinances and covenants of the temple. Go to the temple often. Pray that God will bless you to love the temple and that He will write your temple covenants in your heart. Remember, "in the ordinances [of the Melchizedek Priesthood], the power of godliness is manifest."[12] You will need the power of godliness in your life and in your family. Prepare for it by honoring the priesthood of God.
We have one more bit of advice: honor the priesthood of God by helping the brothers around you honor the priesthood they hold. If you are married, help your husband honor his priesthood. If you are single, encourage the brothers around you. Support them and inspire them. Sisters, listen to this counsel to you from President Henry B. Eyring:
[Y]ou may have friends whose lives could be changed forever by how you feel about the oath and covenant of the priesthood and the covenant of marriage in the house of the Lord. You may have more influence than you can imagine on a young man's keeping the oath and covenant of the priesthood and on whether he will know the joy of making covenants in the temple. If you love those covenants, he is more likely to love and honor them.[13]
There have been many, many young men whose lives have been changed by righteous sisters who helped them honor the oath and covenant of the priesthood. You know that has everything to do with dressing modestly and having high standards for yourself and your eternal companion. Here is a story from Elder Richard G. Scott about his, then future, wife Jeanene:
During my last year at the university, I looked forward to the prospects of a fine professional future and thought I had my life very well outlined. Then a kind and thoughtful Lord placed a bombshell in my little world. Her name was Jeanene Watkins. . .the more I knew her, the more fascinated I became. She radiated goodness. She was exuberantly enthusiastic and happy. Each opportunity to be with her deepened the growing love in my heart. One evening . . . she innocently said, "When I marry, I'll marry in the temple, a returned missionary." That comment struck me to the core. It started me on a process of reflection, contemplation, and prayer that resulted in my receiving a call as a missionary to Uruguay.[14]
Sisters, honor the priesthood, love the Savior, keep your covenants, love the temple, and help the brothers honor the priesthood.
Sister Preparation #2: Love to Learn, Love to Teach
Nurturing children in light and truth is a partnership with God. By divine design, mothers are the great educators of mankind. Prepare now, sisters, to love to learn and love to teach. You will have powerful influence on your children (and your husband) because you love learning and teaching.
The key to this preparation is the Holy Ghost. As you teach your children the gospel, and everything else, the Holy Ghost will help you, support you, and bless you. Prepare now for that great day by listening to the whisperings of the Spirit in your life and qualifying for the companionship of the Holy Ghost. You have been given majestic promises:
Therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment.[15]
These are your privileges. If you act in faith to keep the commandments and follow the guidance of the Spirit, God will bless you with these great gifts.
Your time in the university can be a time of preparation in learning and teaching by the Spirit. As you study and prepare in school, pray that God will bless you with insights and gifts that will help you prepare to teach your children. Pray for a love of the scriptures and of the words of the prophets. Pray for a love of the commandments and the covenants and the temple of God. Pray for your heart to be changed by the Atonement of Christ so that He may work in you to help you become more and more like Him.
Pray for a love of ideas, a love to read, a love to explore the marvelous world around us. Pray that you will find joy in the creations of God--the earth, the stars, the plants and animals--so that you will see in them "God moving in his majesty and power."[16] Pray that God will bless you with a love of music, art, and literature, and a love of creative work of all kinds, including sewing, cooking, and crafts. And pray to love helping others to love these things, too.
Pray and then get up off your knees and go to work! Read, study, explore, and create! Keep the commandments; listen to the Spirit, and God will bless you to love to learn and love to teach and your children will love these things too. They will love the Lord because you love Him. They will learn to love because you love. They will want to be clean and pure because you are. And they will experience the joy of learning and teaching because that joy is in you.
Sisters, now is the time to have the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Now is the time to act in faith to love to learn and to love to teach. Now is the time to rise and shine.
Conclusion
We have spoken today of the gifts and blessings Heavenly Father has prepared for you. We have urged all of you to rise and shine, to prepare to create an eternal family, and to qualify for exaltation and eternal life.
Each of you is in a different stage of your personal spiritual development. Each of you will face different challenges. But each of you, no matter your circumstances, can rise and shine.
What we have described today may seem far above where you are right now, perhaps far above what you think is possible. You may be worried and even afraid that the blessings won't come, that you won't be able to do it. You may be afraid for your children or afraid you won't have children. You may be unsure of the way forward.
Brothers and sisters, don't be afraid. We want to leave you today with encouragement and hope.
We know you can rise and shine because we have seen you rising and shining. We have seen your obedience, your courage, and your hard work. We have seen your unselfish service, your humility, your love, and your faith and trust in the Savior. And we have seen His love for you. He has lifted you and strengthened you, and we are witnesses of His almighty power.
We know from our experience that everything about becoming a husband or wife and a father or mother in an eternal family is an act of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Looking for your eternal companion, finding that companion, and deciding to marry is an act of faith. Deciding to have children is an act of faith. Rearing children in love and righteousness is an act of faith.
All of these things take sacrifice and effort. But getting married and having children is not about money or skill. It is about faith. These are acts of faith in Jesus Christ, in His atoning sacrifice, and in His redeeming love. These are acts of faith that the Savior can change your heart, lift your burdens, and strengthen your capacity with His almighty power.
We bear witness of Jesus Christ. He is the living Son of the living God. We testify of His love, of His mercy, and of His grace. We have seen Him work in power in our lives and in the lives of our children. We know He lives and leads His Church through His living prophets. In His power and with His strength we know you can rise and shine. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] D&C 115:5
[2] "Rise Up, O Men of God," Hymns, no. 324
[3] Job 38:7
[4] D&C 101:65
[5] Alma 41:4
[6] Psalms 16:11
[7] "The Family: A Proclamation to the World," Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102
[8] D&C 121:41-42
[9] Henry B. Eyring, "Be Ready," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 59-62
[10] D&C 42:22
[11] "Rise Up, O Men of God," Hymns, no. 324
[12] D&C 84:20
[13] Henry B. Eyring, "Because He First Loved Us" (chapter title: Making Covenants with God) Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2002. p. 37-51.
[14] Richard G. Scott, "Finding Peace, Happiness, and Joy," Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2007. p. 184.
[15] Moses 6:61
[16] D&C 88:47