Lesson 211—Teachings of Church Leaders

“Choices for Eternity”

Studying the Teachings of Church Leaders

President Russell M. Nelson

Throughout the year, students will have multiple opportunities in seminary to learn from the teachings of inspired latter-day leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ. This lesson provides an example of how teachers could use the “Template: Teachings of Church Leaders” document to guide the class as they study these messages. The example used in this lesson is “Choices for Eternity” by President Russell M. Nelson ([worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org). This lesson can deepen students’ understanding of principles to help them prepare for eternal life.

Possible Learning Activities

Note: This lesson provides an example of how teachers could use the “Template: Teachings of Church Leaders” document to help students study messages from Church leaders. You can adjust the ideas from this lesson, use a different combination of ideas from the template, or use your own ideas that would better meet your students’ needs.

Begin the lesson

Begin the lesson in a way that creates interest for students and helps prepare their minds and hearts for the learning experience. Consider using a statement or concept from President Nelson’s talk “Choices for Eternity.” The following is one example of how to begin the lesson.

Write the following statement on the board and invite students to think about their future in this life and in eternity:

In an address to young adults, President Russell M. Nelson expressed:

President Russell M. Nelson

I want to talk to you about your future. (Russell M. Nelson, “Choices for Eternity,” [worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org)

Answer the following questions in your study journal:

• What are your thoughts and feelings as you think about your future in this life and in eternity?

• If you could talk about your future with the prophet of God, what questions would you ask him?

Consider inviting a few students to share what they wrote in their study journals. You could also invite students to write on the board some of their questions about their futures. These questions might help students prepare to study the message.

Study the message

As students study, encourage them to focus on increasing their knowledge and strengthening their testimony of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Invite students to record thoughts and feelings that may come from the Holy Ghost as they study.

This part of the lesson will use the “Look for” idea from the “Study the Message” section of the “Template: Teachings of Church Leaders” document. This section is intended to help students focus their study of the talk.

If students do not have access to President Nelson’s talk “Choices for Eternity,” you could provide the three handouts, which contain portions of his remarks. You could divide your class into three groups and have each group study a different handout. Or you could print copies of the entire talk, and students could study the talk in small groups. Invite students to follow the instructions below as they complete the activity.

As you study President Nelson’s talk “Choices for Eternity,” look for truths that can help you prepare for your future on earth and eternal life with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. You might also look for teachings that can answer your questions about your future that you wrote in your study journal or on the board.

Choices for Eternity, Part 1

My purpose tonight is to make sure that your eyes are wide open to the truth that this life really is the time when you get to decide what kind of life you want to live forever. Now is your time “to prepare to meet God” [see Alma 12:24; 34:32]. …

Every righteous choice that you make here will pay huge dividends now. But righteous choices in mortality will pay unimaginable dividends eternally. If you choose to make covenants with God and are faithful to those covenants, you have the promise of “glory added upon [your head] for ever and ever” [Abraham 3:26]. …

The adversary, of course, does not want you even to think about tomorrow, let alone eternal life. But please don’t be uninformed or naïve about the opportunities and challenges of mortality. In that spirit, you need to understand three fundamental truths that will help you prepare your future course: …

First: Know the truth about who you are. I believe that if the Lord were speaking to you directly tonight, the first thing He would make sure you understand is your true identity. My dear friends, you are literally spirit children of God. You have sung this truth since you learned the words to “I Am a Child of God” [Hymns, no. 301]. But is that eternal truth imprinted upon your heart? Has this truth rescued you when confronted with temptation?

I fear that you may have heard this truth so often that it sounds more like a slogan than divine truth. And yet, the way you think about who you really are affects almost every decision you will ever make. …

…Who are you?

First and foremost, you are a child of God.

Second, as a member of the Church, you are a child of the covenant. And third, you are a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Tonight, I plead with you not to replace these three paramount and unchanging identifiers with any others, because doing so could stymie your progress or pigeonhole you in a stereotype that could potentially thwart your eternal progression. …

There are various labels that may be very important to you, of course. Please do not misunderstand me. I am not saying that other designations and identifiers are not significant. I am simply saying that no identifier should displace, replace, or take priority over these three enduring designations: “child of God,” “child of the covenant,” and “disciple of Jesus Christ.”

Any identifier that is not compatible with these three basic designations will ultimately let you down. Other labels will disappoint you in time because they do not have the power to lead you toward eternal life in the celestial kingdom of God. …

Make no mistake about it: Your potential is divine. With your diligent seeking, God will give you glimpses of who you may become. (Russell M. Nelson, “Choices for Eternity” [worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org)

Choices for Eternity, Part 2

Second: Know the truth about what God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, have offered you.

In short, They have offered you everything!

Heavenly Father’s plan for His children allows us to live where and how He lives and ultimately to become more and more like Him. His plan literally makes the richest blessings of all eternity available to us, including the potential for us to become “joint-heirs with Christ” [Romans 8:17].

God knows all and sees all. In all of eternity, no one will ever know you or care about you more than He does. No one will ever be closer to you than He is. You can pour out your heart to Him and trust Him to send the Holy Ghost and angels to care for you. He demonstrated His ultimate love when He sent His Only Begotten Son to die for you—to be your Savior and your Redeemer!

Through His Atonement, the Lord Jesus Christ overcame the world [see John 16:33; Doctrine and Covenants 50:41]. Therefore, He is “mighty to … cleanse [you] from all unrighteousness” [Alma 7:14]. He will deliver you from your most excruciating circumstances in His own way and time. As you come unto Him in faith, He will guide, preserve, and protect you. He will heal your broken heart and comfort you in your distress [see Luke 4:18; Alma 7:10–12]. He will give you access to His power. And He will make the impossible in your life become possible. …

God has a special love for each person who makes a covenant with Him in the waters of baptism. And that divine love deepens as additional covenants are made and faithfully kept. Then at the end of mortal life, precious is the reunion of each covenant child with our Heavenly Father [see Psalm 116:15].

He also cares deeply that all His children have an opportunity to hear the glad tidings of the restored gospel. Heavenly Father has sent His children to earth for more than six millennia. Most of these people have not yet received the ordinances that would qualify them for eternal life. That is why temples are so significant. That is why the gathering of Israel on both sides of the veil is the most important cause on earth today. You, my dear colleagues in this holy work, have an essential role in this gathering, and I thank you for it. (Russell M. Nelson, “Choices for Eternity” [worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org)

Choices for Eternity, Part 3

Know the truth related to your conversion. The truth is that you must own your own conversion. No one else can do it for you.

Now, may I invite you to consider a few questions? Do you want to feel peace about concerns that presently plague you? Do you want to know Jesus Christ better? Do you want to learn how His divine power can heal your wounds and weaknesses? Do you want to experience the sweet, soothing power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ working in your life?

Seeking to answer these questions will require effort—much effort. I plead with you to take charge of your testimony. Work for it. Own it. Care for it. Nurture it so that it will grow. Feed it truth. Don’t pollute it with the false philosophies of unbelieving men and women and then wonder why your testimony is waning.

Engage in daily, earnest, humble prayer. Nourish yourself in the words of ancient and modern prophets. Ask the Lord to teach you how to hear Him better. Spend more time in the temple and in family history work.

As you make your testimony your highest priority, watch for miracles to happen in your life.

If you have questions—and I hope you do—seek answers with the fervent desire to believe. Learn all you can about the gospel and be sure to turn to truth-filled sources for guidance. We live in the dispensation when “nothing shall be withheld” [Doctrine and Covenants 121:28]. Thus, in time, the Lord will answer all our questions.

In the meantime, immerse yourself in the rich reservoir of revelation we have at our fingertips. I promise that doing so will strengthen your testimony, even if some of your questions are not yet answered. Your sincere questions, asked in faith, will always lead to greater faith and more knowledge. …

As you take charge of your testimony and cause it to grow, you will become a more potent instrument in the hands of the Lord. You will be “inspired by a better cause” [Alma 43:45]—the cause of Jesus Christ!

There is nothing happening on this earth more important than gathering Israel for Him. Let your Heavenly Father know that you want to help. Ask Him to put you to work in this glorious cause. And then stand back and marvel at what happens when you let God prevail in your life.

My dear young friends, I love you. I thank you. I believe in you. As the Lord’s prophet, I bless you to know the truth about who you are and to treasure the truth about what your glorious potential really is. I bless you to take charge of your own testimony. And I bless you to have the desire and strength to keep your covenants.

As you do, I promise that you will experience spiritual growth, freedom from fear, and a confidence that you can scarcely imagine now. You will have the strength to have a positive influence far beyond your natural capacity. And I promise that your future will be more exhilarating than anything you can presently believe. (Russell M. Nelson, “Choices for Eternity” [worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org)

Invite students to ponder what they learned that can help them prepare for their future lives on earth and eternal life. They could also reflect on which of their questions about the future were answered and how. Consider asking a few students to share how their questions were answered.

Deepen understanding

This part of the lesson will use the “Create Something” idea from the “Deepen Understanding” section of the “Template: Teachings of Church Leaders” document.

The purpose of this section is to help students reflect on and discuss President Nelson’s talk “Choices for Eternity.”

Ponder insights you gained as you studied President Nelson’s message. Create something that can help you remember what you learned or that could inspire others to prepare for a meaningful future and eternal life. The following are some examples of what you could create:

• A picture

• A poem

• A meme

• A social media post

  If possible, you may want to provide paper and other needed supplies. When students are finished, consider inviting a few of them to share what they created. As they share, you might ask follow-up questions such as the following:

• What part of President Nelson’s message inspired you to create that? Why did it inspire you?

• How could remembering that message help guide you now and in the future?

• How might your creation motivate someone to look to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?

Consider sharing your testimony of truths that inspired you from President Nelson’s message. Encourage students to act on any promptings they may have felt.

Choices for Eternity, Part 1

Choices for Eternity, Part 2

Choices for Eternity, Part 3