“Build up my church.”

D&C 18:2 Wherefore you know that they are true

[Oliver Cowdery] left the Church because he lost the love of the truth; and after he had travelled alone for years, a gentleman walked into his law office and said to him, “Mr. Cowdery, what do you think of the Book of Mormon now? Do you believe that it is true?” He replied, “No, sir, I do not.” “Well,” said the gentleman, “I thought as much; for I concluded that you had seen the folly of your ways and had resolved to renounce what you once declared to be true.” “Sir, you mistake me: I do not believe that the Book of Mormon is true; I am past belief on that point, for I KNOW that it is true, as well as I know that you now sit before me.” “Do you still testify that you saw an angel?” “Yes, as much as I see you now; and I know the Book of Mormon to be true.” (Brigham Young, Eldin Ricks, The Case of The Book of Mormon Witnesses [Deseret News Press, 1971], 8.)

“The worth of souls is great in the sight of God.”

D&C 18:10

My dear brothers and sisters, my thoughts today are on the gathering of Israel, what President Russell M. Nelson calls “the most important thing taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude, nothing else compares in importance, nothing else compares in majesty.”

The gathering is the ultimate recognition that “the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.” It is as simple as that. We are gathering God’s children in these last days that they might have “blessings poured out upon their heads”[ 3 Nephi 10:18] and the promises of “the riches of eternity.”[ Doctrine and Covenants 78:18] It follows that to gather Israel we need missionaries—many more than are serving.(Ronald A Rasband, General Conference, October 2023)

To all who decide to serve Him, I promise you that the 24 or 18 months of service will pass in the mission field just as they would pass if you stayed home, but the opportunities that await the worthy young men and young women of this Church in the mission field are unique. The privilege of representing the Savior Jesus Christ and His Church cannot be ignored. Participating in countless prayers, developing and bearing your testimony several times during the day, studying the scriptures for many hours, and meeting people whom you would never meet if you had stayed home are indescribable experiences. The same level of experience is reserved for the youth whom the Lord calls to serve on service missions. You are very welcome and necessary. Please do not minimize the importance of a service mission, for service missions also provide indescribable experiences. “The worth of souls is great in the sight of God”  including the worth of your soul. (DeNelson Silva, General Conference, October 2022)

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, every one of us has the blessing and responsibility of sharing the gospel. Some of those who need the gospel in their lives are not yet members of the Church. Some were once among us but need to feel again the joy they felt when they embraced the gospel at an earlier time in their lives. The Lord loves both the person who has never had the gospel and the person who is returning to Him. To Him and to us, it doesn’t matter. It is all one work. It is the worth of souls, whatever their condition, that is great to our Heavenly Father, His Son, and to us.The work of our Heavenly Father and His Son is “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life”  Moses 1:39 of all His children, regardless of their current circumstances. Our blessing is to help in this great work. (David F Evans, General Conference, April 2012)

The Lord rejoices when I repent.

D&C 18:11 The pain of all men

In the premortal realm, he had been the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Creator of the earth, the great I AM. From these exalted heights, he descended, coming to earth in the most humble of circumstances that he might be no stranger to our sorrows. Instead of worldly station, he chose to be born in a lowly stable and live the simple life of a carpenter. He grew up in an obscure village in a despised precinct of Palestine. He made himself of no reputation, and was “a root out of a dry ground,” having “no beauty that we should desire him”  Isa. 53:2

He might have had political power and honor; he chose instead to be a healer and a teacher. He might have won the favor of his people by freeing them from Roman oppression; instead, he saved them from their sins and was rejected by his own. He sacrificed the glory of Galilee to experience the humiliation and trial of Jerusalem. Then, in a most literal way, the Lord Jesus Christ paid the utmost demands of our ransom, as he bore “the pain of all men”. (Bruce D Porter, General Conference, October 1995)

D&C 18:13 How great is his joy

If you are burdened by sin and need to repent, please do so immediately. When the Savior healed those who were afflicted, He often invited them to rise up. The scriptures record that they did so straightway, or immediately. To be healed of your spiritual afflictions, please accept His invitation to rise up. Without delay, talk to your bishop, branch president, or mission president and begin the process of repentance now.

The healing power of the Atonement will bring peace to your soul and enable you to feel the Holy Spirit. The Savior’s sacrifice is beyond measure, but our sins, though numerous and serious, may be counted and confessed, forsaken and forgiven. “And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!” (Randy D Funk, General Conference, October 2013)

What possible pearl could be worth such a price—for Him and for us? This earth is not our home. We are away at school, trying to master the lessons of “the great plan of happiness”  Alma 42:8 so we can return home and know what it means to be there. Over and over the Lord tells us why the plan is worth our sacrifice—and His. Eve called it “the joy of our redemption.”  Jacob called it “that happiness which is prepared for the saints.”   2 Ne. 9:43 Of necessity, the plan is full of thorns and tears—His and ours. But because He and we are so totally in this together, our being “at one” with Him in overcoming all opposition will itself bring us “incomprehensible joy.”  [See  Alma 28:8]

Christ’s Atonement is at the very core of this plan. Without His dear, dear sacrifice, there would be no way home, no way to be together, no way to be like Him. He gave us all He had. Therefore, “how great is his joy,”   D&C 18:13 emphasis added.] when even one of us “gets it”—when we look up from the weed patch and turn our face to the Son.

Only the restored gospel has the fulness of these truths! Yet the adversary is engaged in one of history’s greatest cover-ups, trying to persuade people that this Church knows least—when in fact it knows most—about how our relationship with Christ makes true Christians of us. (Bruce C Hafen, General Conference, April 2004)

Joy comes from helping others come unto Christ.

D&C 18:15 How great shall be your joy

As an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, I ask you to serve as a missionary in the gathering of Israel and perhaps even serve again. We need you—we need you. We are grateful to you seniors for the lives you have led and the examples you have been in your homes, wards, and stakes. I now invite you to take your know-how, coupled with your time-honored testimonies, and go on a mission. I pray that the next time I sit down to assign senior couples, there will be hundreds of you waiting anxiously for your call.

I also promise that as you serve, you will feel the love of the Lord in your life, you will know Him, He will know you, and “how great shall be your joy.” Your dedicated service to Jesus Christ will inspire and bless your family, your grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. “Peace, and love [will] be multiplied” [ Jude 1:2] in their lives for years to come. I promise. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen. (Ronald A Rasband, General Conference,October 2023)

With the Holy Ghost dwelling in us, we feel a love for God and all His children. This love casts out fear and fills us with the desire to open our mouths. There is no greater gift we can give others than to bear our testimony to them. There is no greater joy we can have than to bring even one soul unto Christ.  And there is no greater way to strengthen our own testimony than to share our witness of Him with the world. As we do, our families will be strengthened. Our wards, stakes, and communities will be filled with peace and love, and, ultimately, the earth will be prepared for the Second Coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.I can hear the Lord’s voice in the scriptures. (Robert D Hales, General Conference, October 2003)

I can hear the Lord’s voice in the scriptures.

When we read and study the revelations, the Spirit can confirm in our hearts the truth of what we are learning; in this way, the voice of the Lord speaks to each one of us.  As we ponder the teachings of the gospel and apply them in daily living, we become better prepared to receive additional light and truth. (M Russell Ballard, “Marvelous Are the Revelations of the Lord,” Ensign, May 1998, 32)