“Spiritual Power of Our Baptism,” Friend, Mar. 2000, inside front cover
Spiritual Power of Our Baptism
(Adapted from a March 1999 General Young Women Meeting address. See Ensign, May 1999, pages 89–91.)
The power of the Holy Ghost … is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him (1 Ne. 10:17).
The Savior has likened our baptism to being reborn. I want you to think about two of the greatest moments in your life: the day you were born and the day of your baptism, two essential births in this lifetime. None of us can remember the day we were born. You can only imagine that your mother held you close in her arms and dreamed of what you would become.
As you grow older, it probably will not be as hard to remember the day you were baptized—your second birth. Baptism cleanses us from head to toe and allows the companionship of the Savior through the gift of the Holy Ghost. He will accompany each of us along the road of life.
Four things happen when we are baptized and confirmed: (1) We become members of Christ’s church and commit to follow Him, (2) we have our sins forgiven, (3) we qualify for entrance into the celestial kingdom if we keep the commandments, and (4) by receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, we gain the spiritual power to become holy.
A story is told of the son of King Louis the Sixteenth of France. As a young man, he was kidnapped by evil men when they dethroned the king. For six months, he was exposed to every evil thing that life had to offer, yet he never buckled under the pressure. This puzzled his captors, and they asked him why he had such great moral strength. His reply was simple: “I cannot do what you ask, for I was born to be a king.”*
You were born the sons and daughters of a Heavenly King. By being baptized, you have been promised the blessings of royalty as you sanctify yourselves and become holy.
I pray that you will keep your baptismal covenants. As you say your prayers, especially each Saturday night, ask Heavenly Father to prepare you to take the sacrament so that the spiritual power of your baptism will be present in your life.
Illustrated by Dick Brown