David L. Beck: The Magnificent Aaronic Priesthood

I am very interested in Brother Beck's talk because of the new Duty to God program. He gives some good explanations, so I have included many of his remarks for future reference.

Tonight I will help you see how you can discover for yourselves the magnificence of the Aaronic Priesthood.


When God entrusts you with His sacred priesthood, He shows great confidence in you. He knows He can trust you to use the priesthood to serve others, just as He has trusted other young men to do some of His most important work.


Brother Beck set the stage to discuss the new Duty to God program with this quote from President Monson: "Great things are expected of you. 'Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.'


Brother Beck continues with both the reasons for the new program and the way it will work:
To help you respond to that urgent call, the Church is introducing a new Duty to God program.  As a deacon, teacher, and priest, you will participate in activities that will help you build spiritual strength and learn and fulfill your priesthood duties. Each activity follows this simple pattern:

• First you learn about a gospel principle or a priesthood duty. You discover what Heavenly father wants you to do, and you strive to gain a spiritual witness about why it is important.
• Next you make plans to act on what you have learned. This is a wonderful chance to take responsibility for your own growth and develop spiritual self-reliance.
• Then you share what you learn and experience with others. You will increase you ability to talk about the gospel with others.

Your Sunday quorum meetings will provide regular opportunities to learn, act, and share. The new Duty to God program will guide you on your journey to fulfill your duty to God and discover the magnificence of the Aaronic Priesthood.  You will learn why the Aaronic Priesthood is so important in your life and how vital it is to the Church.


Brother Beck concluded with this counsel and testimony:
I testify that your faithful service in the Aaronic Priesthood will change the lives of those you serve. There are people who need your priesthood service. Your family needs you. Your quorum needs you. The Church needs you. The world needs you.


He related an experience from a trip to Portugal where he came across a monument to the early Portuguese explorers. I see you when I think of that monument of courageous explorers. I see you on a personal journey that few in the world today choose to pursue. I see you fulfilling your duty to God.

President Henry B. Eyring: Be Ready

President Eyring started out with a story about being prepared to use the priesthood to bless (literally) others:

When the call came, I was ready. The preparation was far more than having consecrated oil close at hand. It must begin long before the crisis which requires priesthood power. Those who are prepared will be ready to answer.


The preparation begins in families, in Aaronic Priesthood quorums, and mostly in the private lives of young men. The quorums and the families must help, but the preparation that counts will be made by the young men making choices to rise to their great destiny as priesthood servants of God.


The destiny of the rising generation of priesthood holders is far more than to be ready to bring God's power down to heal the sick. The preparation is to be ready to go and do whatever the Lord wants done as the world is preparing for His coming. None of us know exactly what those errands will be. But we know what it will take to be ready, so each of us can prepare.


He then talked about "two of the things you will need and the preparation it takes to be ready."

The first is to have faith. So you must have faith that God lives and that you have won the confidence to allow you to use the power for His purposes.


He also added a caution: Not all of the youth choose to prepare.  That choice must be their own. They are responsible for themselves. That is the Lord's way in His loving plan. But many young men have little or no support from those who could help as they prepare. Those of us who can help will be held accountable by the Lord.


The second thing they will need is confidence that they can live up to the blessings and the trust which God has offered them.


Young men need to listen to the Spirit, even when their peers and others around them are suggesting they choose sin: If young men choose sin, those messages  from God will become more faint. We can help them even more by our example of a faithful and inspired servant.


President Eyring then talked about his bishop and how he watched out for President Eyring and the other young men in their ward:

The bishop had a system. Every adviser of every quorum was to contact every young man he had not spoken to that Sunday. They were not to go to bed until they had either talked to the boy who had been missing, to his parents, or to a close friend. The bishop promised them that he would not turn out his light until he had heard a report about every boy. I don't think he gave them an order. He simple made it clear that he did not expect their lights to go out until they had given that report.


He and those who served under him were doing far more than watching over us. They were showing us by example what it means to care for the Lord's sheep.  I have no idea whether they thought any one of us was going to be anything special. But they treated us as if they did by being willing to pay any personal price to keep us from losing faith.