Understanding Our Divine Nature

Read the following with the sisters you visit, and discuss the questions, scriptures, and teachings from our Church leaders. Share your experiences and testimony, and invite those you teach to do the same.

President James E. Faust, Second Counselor in the First Presidency

“The new declaration of the Relief Society begins, ‘We are beloved spirit daughters of God.’ To be a daughter of God means that you are the offspring of Deity, literal descendants of a Divine Father, inheriting godly attributes and potential. To be a daughter of God also means that you have been born again, changed from a ‘carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness’ [Mosiah 27:25]. … Being a daughter of God means that if you seek it, you can find your true identity. You will know who you are” (“What It Means to Be a Daughter of God,” Ensign, Nov. 1999, 100, 102).

Mosiah 5:7

“And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.”

D&C 138:38–39

President Joseph F. Smith (1838–1918) saw in vision Jesus Christ’s visit to the spirit world while His body lay in the tomb: “Among the great and mighty ones who were assembled in this vast congregation of the righteous were Father Adam, the Ancient of Days and father of all,

“And our glorious Mother Eve, with many of her faithful daughters who had lived through the ages and worshiped the true and living God.”

President Gordon B. Hinckley

“Woman is God’s supreme creation. Only after the earth had been formed, after the day had been separated from the night, after the waters had been divided from the land, after vegetation and animal life had been created, and after man had been placed on the earth, was woman created; and only then was the work pronounced complete and good.

“Of all the creations of the Almighty, there is none more beautiful, none more inspiring than a lovely daughter of God who walks in virtue with an understanding of why she should do so, who honors and respects her body as a thing sacred and divine, who cultivates her mind and constantly enlarges the horizon of her understanding, who nurtures her spirit with everlasting truth” (“Our Responsibility to Our Young Women,” Ensign, Sept. 1988, 11).

“Live up to the great and magnificent inheritance which the Lord God, your Father in Heaven, has provided for you. Rise above the dust of the world. Know that you are daughters of God, children with a divine birthright. Walk in the sun with your heads high, knowing that you are loved and honored, that you are a part of his kingdom, and that there is for you a great work to be done which cannot be left to others” (“Live Up to Your Inheritance,” Ensign, Nov. 1983, 84).

Questions

What could cause us to forget that we are daughters of God?
How does knowing you are a daughter of God with divine potential affect the decisions you make and the way you live? How does this knowledge influence the way you relate to God, your family, and others with whom you associate?

Illustrated by Del Parson