“Heavenly Father’s Plan for Me,” Friend, Oct. 2002, 44
Heavenly Father’s Plan for Me
We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost (A of F 1:4).
Revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith help us understand Heavenly Father’s plan. Because the gospel was restored, we know that we lived with Heavenly Father before we came to earth, that He sent us here to become like Him, and that He wants us to return to Him when our earthly life is finished.
Returning to Heavenly Father is like climbing a staircase—we must take the necessary steps. Joseph Smith taught that those steps include developing faith, repenting, and making covenants. He said, “A man … can never see the celestial kingdom of God, without being born of water and the Spirit.”* In other words, being baptized and then receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost are the first steps we take in returning to God.
The Holy Ghost helps guide us to be worthy to enter the temple. Temple ordinances were restored through the Prophet Joseph, and modern prophets also help guide us to be worthy to receive those ordinances.
We can prepare for baptism by gaining a testimony that Jesus Christ is the Savior and that Joseph Smith was a prophet. After we are baptized, we can prepare to make temple covenants by studying the scriptures and heeding the prophets’ counsel. With each covenant we make, we take another step toward our Heavenly home.
The Prophet Joseph Smith
To remind you that you prepare to go to the temple as you follow Heavenly Father’s plan, complete this dot-to-dot picture, then color it.
Illustrated by Shauna Mooney Kawasaki
Illustrated by Shauna Mooney Kawasaki; photo by Lana Leishman