Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “Although our memory of it is withheld, before we came to this earth we lived in the presence of God, our Eternal Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ. We shouted for joy when given the privilege of coming to this earth to receive a body and to move forward in God’s plan for our happiness. We knew that we would be tested here. Our determination was to live obediently to be able to return to be with our Father forever. Part of that testing here is to have so many seemingly interesting things to do that we can forget the main purposes for being here. Satan works very hard so that the essential things won’t happen” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1997, 78; or Ensign, May 1997, 53–54 ).
The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles: “The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan” ( “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102 ).
Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “Understanding the gospel of Jesus Christ and following him as our Savior and our Redeemer will influence every aspect of our lives, including all of our individual choices. Those who live according to Heavenly Father’s eternal plan will not want to absorb any information that is illicit or untoward, nor will they destroy their spiritual sensitivity through immoral acts or the consumption of any harmful substances. Neither will they search for doctrinal loopholes to find reasons to challenge the ordained leadership of the Church nor tamper with the simple truths of the gospel. They will not attempt to justify any lifestyle that is contrary to the plan of happiness. If they do any of these things, they will never find the inner peace and joy that living the gospel brings. All of our Father’s children can seek prayerfully to know who they are and can find real happiness if they obey God’s commandments and endure to the end” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1995, 31; or Ensign, May 1995, 24 ).

Ja nii ongi!

V