Youth today are being raised in enemy territory with a declining standard of morality, declared President Boyd K. Packer in his Saturday morning conference address. However, he promised — as a servant of the Lord — that they will be protected and shielded from the attacks of the adversary if they will heed the promptings that come from the Holy Ghost.
To young people who might wonder what he, at age 87, can contribute to their lives, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve, said, "I have been where you are and know where you are going. But you have not yet been where I am."
President Packer spoke of how, losing the war in heaven, Lucifer was cast out into the earth (Rev. 12:9) and is determined to disrupt Heavenly father's plan, seeks to control the minds and actions of all and "is abroad in the land'" (Doctrine and Covenants 52:14).
Speaking of uncertain times, President Packer told how "everything around us came apart one Sunday morning" when he was 17 as the United States went to war with Japan after it bombed Pearl Harbor and, a short while later, went to war with Germany.
"All at once our future was uncertain. We did not know what was ahead. Would we live to get married and have a family?
"Today there are 'wars and rumors of wars,' and the whole earth [is] in commotion'" (Doctrine and Covenants 45:26).
He spoke of the great plan of happiness, of which the family is the center. "The family depends on the worthy use of those life-giving powers that are in your body. ...
"The great penalty Lucifer and his followers brought upon themselves was that they were to be denied a mortal body. Many of the temptations you face, certainly the most serious ones, relate to your body. You not only have power to create bodies for a new generation, but you also have agency."
He said that by the time he graduated from high school, many of his classmates had gone away to war; some never returned. "The rest of us were soon to enter the military." He said that while he was in military flight training he received his patriarchal blessing, which promised that if he would heed the whisperings of the Holy Spirit he would be warned of dangers, and if he heeded those warnings, Heavenly Father would bless him so that he might be reunited with his loved ones.
"That word if though small in print, loomed as big as the page," he said.... "It is not expected that you go through life without making mistakes, but you will not make a major mistake without first being warned by the promptings of the Holy Spirit...."Some will make critically serious mistakes, transgressing the laws of the gospel. Here it is time to remind you of the Atonement, repentance and complete forgiveness to the point that you can become pure again....
"If the adversary should take you prisoner due to misconduct, I remind you that you hold the key that will unlock the prison door from the inside. You can be washed clean through the atoning sacrifice of the Jesus Christ, our Savior."
He said only repentance can heal what hurts. "But repentance can heal what hurts no matter that it is.
"If you are slipping into things that you should not slip into, or if you are associating with people who are pulling you in the wrong direction, that is the time to assert your independence, your agency. Listen to the voice of the Spirit and you will not be led astray."
He stated again that youth today are being raised in enemy territory and promised that they will be protected and shielded from the adversary if they heed the promptings of the Holy Ghost.
He counseled the youth: "Dress modestly; talk reverently; listen to uplifting music. Avoid all immorality and personally degrading practices. Take hold of your life and order yourself to be valiant. Because we depend so much on you, you will be remarkably blessed. You are never far from the sight of your loving Heavenly Father."
