Digital Only: Young Adults
Because God Loves Us, He Leads Us
Life as a young adult is full of twists and turns, but we’ve felt Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ helping us find our way.
The Good Shepherd, by Del Parson
“Does God really love me?”
You’re probably not the only one who has ever thought this. In the uncertain and chaotic times we live in, it can be so difficult to feel Heavenly Father’s love for us individually. With all the unpredictability, loneliness, and confusion we sometimes go through, it might feel like we are walking alone, wondering if Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ really are with us.
But They have not abandoned us.
In fact, They love us so much that They knew we would need help navigating the good, the bad, and the craziness of mortality.
One of those ways is through the words of modern-day prophets and apostles.
Through His servants, we can hear Heavenly Father’s voice and find answers and guidance for our lives. As Elder Allen D. Haynie of the Seventy lovingly testified: “Current conditions in the world have caused some to panic. As God’s covenant children, we do not need to chase after this or that to know how to navigate through these troubled times. We do not need to fear [see 1 Nephi 22:16–17]. The doctrine and principles that we must follow to survive spiritually and endure physically are found in the words of a living prophet [see 1 Nephi 3:18].”1
We on the YA Weekly staff have had moments throughout young adulthood where we have faced anxiety and fear about the future, and we cherish prophetic counsel that has helped us continue to choose faith on the covenant path. Here are some messages from living prophets that we have often relied on for guidance and hope:
Hope in Hard Times
Being a young adult was hard for me. There were lots of times when I really didn’t have much hope for the future I wanted for myself. And that got pretty depressing.
One quote I turned back to again and again and again—so much so that I finally just decided to memorize it—was from President Dieter F. Uchtdorf when he was Second Counselor in the First Presidency. He said, “No matter how bleak the chapter of our lives may look today, because of the life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we may hope and be assured that the ending of the book of our lives will exceed our grandest expectations.”2
I would think about this quote every time I was going through something that made my heart ache or had me questioning my future. I’m grateful for the words of the prophets and how they give me hope in hard times. When something they say speaks to my soul, it’s a reminder to me that God loves me. He speaks to me and guides me through the words of His living prophets and apostles.
Mindy Selu, Assistant Managing Editor over Young Adult Content
Choosing Faith Changes Everything
I love life. But in all honesty, life can be so hard at times. There have been many moments in mine when I have been desperate for reassurance that things are going to work out when the odds were against me. Having challenges like chronic illnesses, anxiety, and difficult family circumstances has made me feel hopeless at times. I’ve often longed for miracles that seem impossible.
However, it’s this truth from President Russell M. Nelson that I constantly cling to with a vice-like grip: “Faith in Jesus Christ is the greatest power available to us in this life. All things are possible to them that believe [see Mark 9:23].”3
Faith is the basic principle of the gospel—and I thought I had most of this building block figured out when I reached young adulthood. But the way President Nelson has taught about faith has completely changed my perspective of this “greatest power.”
He has taught me that choosing faith changes everything about life. And it does for me every day. His teachings that coincide with faith, like letting God prevail,4 increasing spiritual momentum,5 overcoming the world,6 and being a peacemaker7 have transformed my testimony and my life. President Nelson’s words never fail to give me hope, bring me peace, and remind me of Heavenly Father’s love when nothing else can. When I remember his words, they enable me to keep moving forward with faith.
Chakell Wardleigh Herbert, Lead Writer for YA Weekly
We Can Let God Prevail in Uncertainty
I like to make plans. Lots of plans—for my career, my family, and just about every other part of my life. I tend to believe that if I don’t have a careful plan, the things I want most won’t work out.
When I start putting pressure on myself to make flawless plans that account for every possible outcome, I try to remember these questions from President Nelson:
“Are you willing to let God prevail in your life? Are you willing to let God be the most important influence in your life? … Are you willing to let whatever He needs you to do take precedence over every other ambition? Are you willing to have your will swallowed up in His?”8
When I ask myself these questions, I remember that my plans are always going to be shortsighted and flawed. And that’s OK because I have an omnipotent Heavenly Father who created a perfect plan of happiness. Allowing my will to be “swallowed up in His” means trusting Him instead of myself. While that idea used to make me nervous (because I like to feel in control), it now brings me great peace to know that someone far more wise and powerful than me is helping everything in my life “work together for [my] good” (Doctrine and Covenants 90:24).
Alison Wood, Digital Content Copyeditor
All the Dots Will Connect One Day
In the space of only a few years, my life turned inside out. When people would talk about the young adult years as being an exciting time of life, I felt more than discouraged. Everything was falling apart for me, and things seemed to be coming to an end rather than joyfully beginning.
After years of struggling (to put it very lightly), I came across an address by Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf where he said: “When we step back and take an eternal perspective, when we look at our lives in the frame of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we can begin to see how the various dots in our lives interconnect. We may not be able to see the entire picture just yet, but we’ll see enough to trust that there is a beautiful, grand design. And as we strive to trust God and follow His Son, Jesus Christ, one day we will see the finished product, and we will know that the very hand of God was directing and guiding our steps.”9
I desperately wanted to have the dots connect for my life, and so in the midst of my very chaotic circumstances, I held on to what Elder Uchtdorf promised.
And in some ways, after a couple of years, the dots did start to finally connect! Nothing is perfect by any means, but there have been things that have connected enough for me to see that Elder Uchtdorf was right.
So although my story isn’t complete and is still a little scary at times, God has given me enough to not give up!
Jessica Anne Lawrence, Intern for YA Weekly
No matter where life takes us, we continue to find comfort, guidance, and hope through the words of the prophets. They truly are messengers from Heavenly Father to His children to help us find joy on the covenant path back to Him. We hope you can continue to find peace and feel the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ through their words.