During the last general conference, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles likened God’s plan of happiness to a three-act play.
“Those without knowledge of the Father’s plan do not understand what happened in the first act (or the premortal existence) and the purposes established there; nor do they understand the clarification and resolution that come in the third act, which is the glorious fulfillment of the Father’s plan,” Elder Cook said (“Be Peaceable Followers of Christ,” October 2023 general conference).
Speaking to students and faculty gathered in the Marriott Center for a devotional at Brigham Young University on Tuesday, March 19, Elder Brian K. Taylor, a General Authority Seventy, noted Elder Cook’s teaching then asked, “Can you imagine waking up only to find yourself on a stage in the middle of the second act of a complex and fast-moving play with no idea who the characters are, what the plot is and what role you play?”
Failing to comprehend Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness — or all three acts of the play — cultivates a society prone to anxiety and fear, Elder Taylor said.
Fortunately, hope appears as individuals realize God has revealed eternal truths about their divine identity, purpose and destiny. “His fabulous plan provides deep meaning to our lives — literally a ‘why’ in every direction: past, present and future,” Elder Taylor said.
Divine identity and the premortal existence
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that the first principle of the gospel is to know and comprehend the character of God. “If men do not comprehend the character of God [first], they do not comprehend themselves,” Joseph Smith taught.
Said Elder Taylor, “Understanding God’s and our divine identities is the vital foundation for happiness and success, as well as for avoiding the identity and purpose crisis we see around us.”
God is both “merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6). That “divine, spiritual DNA of Almighty God flows in each of His children,” Elder Taylor said. “Never forget you were ‘reared to spiritual maturity in the mansions of the Father,’ and that it is His greatest desire for you to fulfill your divine destiny and return home to Him.”
Elder Taylor testified that God is the Eternal Father. “Knowing His divine identity affirms your eternal birthright, making your life stable, secure and settled.”
The war in heaven
Everyone loves an epic story, where good rises above evil. “Your story,” Elder Taylor told listeners, “is better than any fictitious war that we read about or see on the big screen.”
In the premortal estate (Act 1), there was a great council in heaven where the Father’s plan was presented, and one third of God’s spirit children, led by Lucifer, refused to accept Jesus Christ as the Savior and rebelled.
Many, however, overcame by “the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death” (Revelations 12:11).
Elder Taylor proclaimed, “You rose up in defense of God’s plan. You chose Jesus Christ as your Savior and so fought courageously to help overcome Satan. Your very presence here today, in Act 2, confirms your engagement in that fight against evil. It is Irrefutable, indisputable. That chapter can never be taken away or unwritten from your lives.”
Knowing that can change how individuals view God, Jesus Christ and their own value and worth, he said.
Divine destiny and purpose
Elder Taylor reminded listeners of their divine destiny, quoting President Lorenzo Snow, who said, “My hopes in reference to the future life are supremely grand and glorious, and I try to keep these prospects bright continually; and that is the privilege and the duty of every Latter-day Saint.”
King Benjamin taught that as individuals “hold out faithful to the end, they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness” (Mosiah 2:41).
As individuals catch a glimpse into their divine identity as God’s offspring and divine potential to become like Him, they better understand their purpose in this mortal estate (Act 2), Elder Taylor said.
Gifted with physical bodies, “we come to experience the joy of our redemption as our loyalties to God are ‘proved herewith’ (Abraham 3:25). Through mortality’s challenges we strive to overcome the allure of self-interested living by ‘putting off the natural man [or woman] and becoming a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord’ (Mosiah 3:19). I witness our Savior, Jesus Christ, makes this miraculous change possible,” Elder Taylor taught.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, Latter-day Saints must also engage in the gathering of Israel in preparation for the Lord’s Second Coming, which President Nelson has called, “the greatest cause … and the mission for which you were sent to earth” (“Hope of Israel,” Worldwide Youth Devotional, June 3, 2018).
Elder Taylor concluded by saying, “With every hope and in all the energy of my heart, I invite you to keep always before your eyes God’s eternal vision of your divine identity, purpose and destiny. As you do I promise He will bless you beyond your fondest hopes and expectations, even amidst life’s struggles and challenges.”
