Why Does the Restoration Matter to Me?
Christ’s Church was lost and then restored. But what does that mean for me in my everyday life?
Two hundred years ago, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith in a pillar of light. Since then, light and truth have flooded the earth, bringing joy to members of the restored Church all over the world. Yes, in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, we can sometimes forget exactly how life-changing the Restoration truly is. What blessings would we not have if the Church had never been restored? How does the Restoration apply to us in our day?
Understanding what has been restored since Joseph Smith’s First Vision has helped me see how the Restoration matters to me in my daily life. Here are three restored blessings that I have become beyond grateful for:
1. God’s Priesthood
Christ’s early disciples—John the Baptist, Peter, James, and John—appeared to Joseph to restore God’s priesthood authority (see Joseph Smith—History 1:68–72). With the priesthood, we are authorized to do the Lord’s work on earth (see Doctrine and Covenants 13:1; 27:12; 107:1–6). The priesthood has blessed me in innumerable ways.
Before each school year began, my uncle would give my siblings and me a priesthood blessing. As soon as the blessing was over, I would rush to write down every word that I could remember! I wanted to keep these blessings recorded so I could look back at them throughout the school year. These words became a treasure to me during hard times. And this has been true for me over and over again: in times where I’ve been sick, weak, directionless, and discouraged, I’ve received priceless priesthood blessings that have given me healing, strength, guidance, and comfort.
Each time the hands of a priesthood holder rest upon my head to give me a blessing, I feel as if they are my Heavenly Father’s hands. I can, in a very real way, feel a divine power pour into me as God speaks to me through these worthy men. I’m grateful that the Lord has restored the priesthood so I can have these tender, uplifting moments with Him. My patriarchal blessing, too, has guided me throughout high school and college years, missionary service, and the most fundamental decisions of my life like dating and marriage.
The sacred gift of priesthood power also increases my faith in what we can do as Christ’s disciples. We can perform miracles according to the Lord’s will—we can quite literally move mountains, cast out devils, and tame the seas (see Jacob 4:6). “If God had commanded [us] to do all things [we] could do them” (1 Nephi 17:50), as we are blessed with His power. Sister Sheri Dew, former Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, has explained that women who are “endowed with power in the temple [have] complete access to God’s power—or priesthood power—for [their] own [lives].”1 As a temple-endowed, covenant-keeping woman, I know I have access to God’s power.
I can’t imagine living without priesthood and patriarchal blessings. Neither would I want to live without the knowledge that “I can do all things through Christ” as I keep my covenants (Philippians 4:13). God’s priesthood power is just what you’d expect it to be—empowering. Through it, God empowers me to continue strong when I am weak. And He will empower me to one day reach my heavenly home.
2. Salvation for the Dead and Eternal Families
Think of it. How many people have died without the opportunity to hear Christ’s name, let alone receive His gospel? But because God is loving and just and wants all of His children to have the chance to receive eternal life, He restored work for the dead (see 1 Corinthians 15:29; Doctrine and Covenants 124). This way, everyone can be saved in the celestial kingdom if they choose to be.
I had an amazing experience with this about a year ago. My mom and I had spent weeks doing temple work for an entire family we found on one of our genealogy lines. We did temple work for a mother and all the work for four out of her five daughters. After sealing the daughters to their mother, we realized that we hadn’t performed the endowment or the sealing for the oldest daughter, Annie Lou.
My mom and I didn’t have much time or energy to continue working at the temple, but after sealing Annie Lou’s mom and sisters together without her, I thought about how Annie Lou’s family was just like mine—she had four sisters and two brothers, just like I did. I realized that if we left now, she would have to wait to be sealed to her family until we could return to the temple. Tears suddenly filled my eyes. I didn’t want to keep her waiting. I knew we had to stay and finish her work. I have never felt a greater surge of love for an ancestor and their eternal salvation—and their eternal family—than I did that day.
Because of the Restoration, families can be sealed together forever. Marriages don’t have to be “till death do you part,” and neither do our families! (See Doctrine and Covenants 132:15–19.) My heart swells with gratitude every time I realize that my family, including Annie Lou and her family, can be together forever.
This knowledge gives me peace and comfort when my family faces death and trials. It also changes the way I treat my family, since I know my relationships with them are intended to last beyond this life.
3. Living Prophets
God called prophets all throughout biblical times, and He continues to call them today to lead and guide us. With the restored blessing of living prophets, we can know the will of the Lord regarding not only eternal truths but also the complex issues of our day. Just within the past few years, we’ve been prepared by the prophet to face many of today’s challenges:
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The new Come, Follow Me curriculum and a home-centered, Church-supported approach to living the gospel2 have prepared us to take our spiritual nourishment into our own hands and homes during a worldwide pandemic.
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Ministering in a higher and holier way3 has helped us care for one another amid social isolation and economic struggle.
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Women and children who are baptized can now serve as witnesses for baptisms outside of the temple;4 mothers with dependent children and men serving in certain callings can now serve as temple workers.5 As temples reopen and the work there begins again, I believe these revelatory changes will be a huge blessing to us and our ancestors who are waiting.
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President Russell M. Nelson has said that “in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.”6 In a world full of never-ending voices, our living prophet urges us to “hear Him,” the Savior.
For me, a living prophet is one of the most applicable aspects of the Restoration in my everyday life. In his recent Face to Face event for young adults, Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reminded us that “the leaders of this Church are not foreign to that which is going on in your lives.” He said: “We know there are those of you who are mourning, perhaps the loss of loved ones. We know fires are burning. We know hurricanes are occurring. We know winds are coming. And yet we can take comfort and confidence that the Lord Jesus Christ loves this Church, loves this people, and as He has said innumerous times, if you’re going to stand on holy ground, you need not be troubled.”7 As I listen to the prophets, my wandering heart is bound to my Savior. And as I obey, I prepare myself and my heart for His Second Coming. During these times where chaos and uncertainty surround and would overwhelm me, I’m grateful that God blesses me, and all of us, with living prophets.
Christ Can Light Our Way
Many doctrines and practices of Christ’s Church are restored, but the most exciting part is that there’s more on the way! “We believe … that [God] will yet reveal many great and important things” (Articles of Faith 1:9). In the proclamation on the Restoration, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles “gladly declare that the promised Restoration goes forward through continuing revelation. The earth will never again be the same.”8 And this is why! The earth will never go back to the spiritual darkness it once was in.
Instead, we live in a time where light and truth are ever increasing. Because we live in this time, our lives—today—can be lit by the glorious light of Christ. We rejoice that priesthood power, temple work, eternal families, and living prophets are all blessings available to us. And we can rejoice in these blessings every single day. We are here during the Restoration not only to feel this joy but also to help bring it to the world.
Think about other truths that have been restored since the First Vision. Why do they matter to you? I promise that as you ponder the blessings of the Restoration, God will show you what He’s done for you by placing you on the earth here and now. Out of all the blessings a Father could give, I’m glad He’s given me the blessing of living during the Restoration. The restored Church means everything to me! The truths taught here change the way I feel. They elevate the way I think. And they light the way so I can truly live. I live a better, happier, more fulfilling life as Christ and His restored truths light my way.