The Plan of Salvation

Quotes

1) "We need to work and learn, search and pray, repent and improve. We need to know God’s laws and live them. We need to receive His saving ordinances. Only by doing so we will obtain true, eternal happiness.” (Monson, Thomas S. “The Perfect Path to Happiness.” General Conference. Oct 2016.)

2) "The names 'brother' and 'sister' are not just friendly greetings or terms of endearment for us. They are an expression of an eternal truth: God is the literal Father of all mankind; we are each part of His eternal family. Because He loves us with the love of a perfect Father, He wants us to progress and advance and become like Him. He ordained a plan by which we would come to earth, in families, and have experiences that would prepare us to return to Him and live as He lives." (Eyring, Henry B. “Gathering of the Family of God.” General Conference. April 2017.)

3) “The more I come to know my Heavenly Father, the more I see how He inspires and leads His children. He is not angry, vengeful, or retaliatory. His very purpose—His work and His glory—is to mentor us, exalt us, and lead us to His fullness...But He wants to change more than just our behaviors. He wants to change our very natures. He wants to change our hearts. He wants us to reach out and take firm hold of the iron rod, confront our fears, and bravely step forward and upward along the strait and narrow path. He wants this for us because He loves us and because this is the way to happiness.” (Uchtdorf, Dieter F. “Perfect Love Casteth Out All Fear.” General Conference. April 2017.)

4) "The purpose of faith is not to change God’s will but to empower us to act on God’s will…Faith means that we trust not only in God’s wisdom but that we trust also in His love. It means trusting that God loves us perfectly, that everything He does—every blessing He gives and every blessing He, for a time, withholds—is for our eternal happiness.” (Uchtdorf, Dieter F. “Fourth Floor, Last Door.” General Conference. October 2016.)

5) “God offered us the opportunity (to come to Earth), and we chose to accept it. Our mortal life, however, is only temporary and will end with the death of our physical body. But the essence of who you and I are will not be destroyed. Our spirits will continue living and await the Resurrection—a free gift to all by our loving Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ." (Uchtdorf, Dieter F. “O How Great the Plan of Our God!” General Conference. October 2016)

6) “Remember, it is by divine design that not all the voices in God’s choir are the same. It takes variety—sopranos and altos, baritones and basses—to make rich music…When we disparage our uniqueness or try to conform to fictitious stereotypes…we lose the richness of tone and timbre that God intended when He created a world of diversity.” (Holland, Jeffery R. “Songs Sung and Unsung.” General Conference. April 2017.)

7) “These are difficult times, and the world’s cultural and sociological landmarks of propriety, honesty, integrity, and political correctness are constantly shifting. Just when we think we know the way to happiness and peace, some new ideology comes along which can lead us down a path that will only heighten our confusion and intensify our despair. At such times, we might well ask, ‘Is there one clear unpolluted, unbiased voice that we can always count on? Is there a voice that will always gibe us clear directions to find our way in today’s troubled world?’ The answer is yes. That voice is the voice of the living prophet and apostles.” (Ballard, M. Russell. “His Word Ye Shall Receive.” April 2001. General Conference.)

8) “Even though we may feel lost in the midst of our current circumstances, God promises the hope of His light—He promises to illuminate the way before us and show us the way out of darkness… God’s light is real. It is available to all! It gives lifte to all things. It has the power to soften the sting of the deepest wound. It can be a healing balm for our loneliness and sickness of our souls…It can illuminate the path before us and lead us through the darkest night into the promise of a new dawn.” (Uchtdorf, Dieter F. “The Hope of God’s Light.” General Conference. April 2013.)

9) “Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. In order to be tested, we must sometimes face challenges and difficulties. At times there appears to be no light at the tunnel’s end—no dawn to break the night’s darkness…if you find yourself in such a situation, I plead with you to turn to our Heavenly Father in faith. He will lift and guide you. He will not always take your afflictions from you, but He will comfort and lead you with love through whatever storm you face.” (Monson, Thomas S. “Looking Back and Moving Forward.” General Conference. April 2008.)

10) “The marvelous doctrine revealed to the Prophet Joseph unveiled to us a plan of salvation that is applicable to all mankind, including those who do not hear of Christ in this life, children who die before the age of accountability, and those who have no understanding.” (Cook, Quentin L. “Our Father’s Plan—Big Enough for All His Children.” General Conference. April 2009.)

Position Statement

Through the process of gathering these quotes, I learned that the Plan of Salvation really deserves a lot more credit than I give it. Although we're living in difficult times, God has it all figured out for us. All that he asks of us is to follow what he tells us to, and he will help us out. The Plan of Salvation helps to balance out the hard situations, and make it easier for everyone to get back to our Heavenly Father. He looks at more than just our actions. He looks at our circumstances and the faith that we had to make it back to Him. I'm grateful for a Heavenly Father who wants us to succeed and become like Him one day. He gives us so much, and he loves us individually. I'm excited to see what I can become one day because of where God sent me in my life.