Be a Standard-Bearer

Please smile with favor upon them. Please listen to them as they lift their voices in prayer unto Thee. Please lead them gently by the hand in the direction they should follow. (From President Gordon B. Hinckley’s prayer for youth, Ensign, January 2001, page 11.)

A standard-bearer is someone who holds a standard high for all to see and follow. Each member of the First Presidency has recently talked about the standards we should live by as members of the Church. Carefully remove these pages from the magazine and put them where you will see them often. Then follow the advice of our prophets, and be a standard-bearer!

President Gordon B. Hinckley

Be grateful. Let a spirit of thanksgiving guide and bless your days and nights. Work at it.

Be smart. You need all the education you can get.

Be clean. Avoid evil talk. … Choose your friends carefully. … Don’t waste your time in destructive entertainment. … [Respect] the body which the Lord has given you. Stay away from [pornography] … and … from illicit drugs. … They will destroy you.

Be true. Be loyal to the Church. … Be true to your own convictions. You know what is right, and you know what is wrong.

Be humble. [Be] willing to listen to the whisperings of the still, small voice.

Be prayerful. You need [the Lord’s] help, and you know that you need His help. You cannot do it alone.
(New Era, January 2001, pages 4–15.)

President Thomas S. Monson
First Counselor in the First Presidency

Choose your friends with caution. We tend to become like those whom we admire … and they are usually our friends.

Plan your future with purpose. You are sons and daughters of Almighty God. You have a destiny to fulfill, a life to live, a contribution to make, a goal to achieve.

Frame your life with faith. Faith becomes an anchor to our lives. … Wherever we may be, our Heavenly Father can hear and answer the prayer offered in faith.
(Ensign, February 2001, pages 2–7 .)

President James E. Faust
Second Counselor in the First Presidency

Change bad behavior. We need to change our bad behavior. We need to repent. As Alma said to his son Corianton, “Wickedness never was happiness.”

Forgive ourselves and others. Forgiveness is an important part of putting bad behavior behind us. As we make the necessary changes, we need to forgive ourselves.

Gain confidence by making good choices. You are now beginning to make important choices. Choices have consequences. In some measure these choices will affect not only the rest of your life but all eternity.

Give service. If we really want to feel better about ourselves, we should do deeds of kindness.

Choose happiness. As President Harold B. Lee once said: “Happiness does not depend on what happens outside of you but on what happens inside of you. It is measured by the spirit with which you meet the problems of life.” It will often be necessary for all of us to choose between having a good time and leading a good life.
(Ensign, March 2001, pages 2–7.)

Illustrated by Phyllis Cahill