Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, listed four in a recent general conference talk:. When we face serious challenges, sometimes we find it difficult to trust in the Lord.
But trusting in Him brings us the hope we need in order to face our challenges. Sister Stevens, first counselor in the Primary general presidency, said the family held tight to the gospel and to their temple covenants after Brother Gatrell was diagnosed with cancer. The gift of the Atonement gives us the hope of eternal life—something we need when we suffer trials or the death of a loved one. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency. During a recent general conference, Elder Andersen shared a story about a Laurel who was ridiculed and called names for standing up for traditional marriage.
We can always turn to the Prince of Peace when we feel alone or overwhelmed, sad or worried, afraid or worthless. We do so by:. He alone touches our tortured souls with His comforting words. There He took upon Himself the weight of the sins of all who would ever live.
The agony of the Atonement was completed on the cross at Calvary. The importance of the Atonement was summarized by the Prophet Joseph Smith. With that authority and with profound gratitude, I so teach and testify of Him. His exemplary life constituted His mortal ministry. It included His teachings, parables, and sermons.
It encompassed His miracles, loving-kindness, and long-suffering toward the children of men see 1 Nephi It embraced His compassionate use of priesthood authority. It included His righteous indignation when He condemned sin see Romans and when He overthrew the tables of the money changers see Matthew It also included His heartaches.
He was mocked, scourged, and disowned by His own people see Mosiah —even betrayed by one disciple and denied by another see John —3, 25— Wonderful as His ministerial acts were, they were not and are still not unique to Him. There is no limit to the number of people who may follow the example of Jesus.
Similar acts have been done by His prophets and apostles and others among His authorized servants. Many have endured persecution for His sake see Matthew ; 3 Nephi That is as it should be. That is His hope for us. The Lord asked us to follow His example. His appeals are crystal clear:. These and other similar scriptures were not written as suggestions. They are divine imperatives! We are to follow His example! To facilitate our desire to follow Him, perhaps we could consider five aspects of His life that we can emulate.
If I were to ask which characteristic of His life you would identify first, I think you might name His attribute of love. That would include His compassion, kindness, charity, devotion, forgiveness, mercy, justice, and more.
Jesus loved His Father and His mother see John — He loved His family and the Saints see John ; 2 Thessalonians And He taught us how we can show our love for Him. He served His Father, and He served the people with whom He lived and labored. In both ways we are to follow His example.
And we are to love our neighbors by serving them see Galatians ; Mosiah — We start with our families. The deep love that binds parents to their children is forged by service to them through their period of total dependence. Later in life dutiful children may have the opportunity to reciprocate that love when they serve their aging parents.
During His mortal ministry He demonstrated the importance of the ordinances of salvation. He was baptized by John in the Jordan River. Not only was the ordinance essential, but the example set by Jesus and John was also essential. Later the Lord instituted the ordinance of the sacrament. He explained the symbolism of the sacrament and administered its sacred emblems to His disciples see Matthew —28 ; Mark —24 ; Luke Our Heavenly Father also gave instruction regarding ordinances.
He has provided for these ordinances in His holy temples. His focus on ordinances is a powerful part of His example to us. Jesus prayed to His Father in Heaven and also taught us how to pray. I love the great Intercessory Prayer offered by the Lord recorded in John, chapter It is a model of effective and compassionate prayer.
As mentioned earlier, many non-Christians acknowledge that Jesus was a great teacher. Indeed, He was. But what truly distinguished His teaching? Was He a skilled instructor of engineering, mathematics, or science? We find Jesus teaching the multitudes, training disciples, casting out demons, and proclaiming the in-breaking of the Kingdom of God.
But if we step back and look at the whole life of Jesus, we should see it as Jesus rewriting the history of the human race. Jesus is showing us how God designed life to be before it was distorted by sin and rebellion against God. The Scriptures tell us that Satan tried desperately to tempt Jesus, but at every point of assault, Jesus, unlike Adam, chose to obey God, to reject the forces of the rebellion, and to live without sin.
When Jesus is tempted in the desert and declares that he will love the Lord God and serve him only, you are there with him in the desert learning how, in Christ, we can resist the devil and serve God. When Christ confronts the demonic world, exercising authority over the rebellion, you are there in Christ defeating the enemy.
You are in Christ as he obeyed, just as you were once in Adam as he disobeyed! In every situation where the first Adam disobeyed, the second Adam obeyed.
Whenever the first Adam said no to God, this Adam said yes. In Christ, the entire history of the human race is being rewritten, and now we can turn the clock back and get it right. The final test culminates in the Garden of Gethsemane. The whole thing started in the Garden of Eden, and now here we are in another garden, facing the same question of obedience.
The Second Adam is now poised to obey or disobey, just as the first Adam was in the first garden.
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