Before
you were born on the earth, you lived in the presence of your Heavenly
Father as one of His spirit children. In this premortal existence, you
attended a council with Heavenly Father’s other spirit children. At that
council, Heavenly Father presented His great plan of happiness (see Abraham 3:22–26).
In
harmony with the plan of happiness, the premortal Jesus Christ, the
Firstborn Son of the Father in the spirit, covenanted to be the Savior
(see Moses 4:2; Abraham 3:27).
Those who followed Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were permitted to
come to the earth to experience mortality and progress toward eternal
life. Lucifer, another spirit son of God, rebelled against the plan and
“sought to destroy the agency of man” (Moses 4:3).
He became Satan, and he and his followers were cast out of heaven and
denied the privileges of receiving a physical body and experiencing
mortality (see Moses 4:4; Abraham 3:27–28).
Throughout
your premortal life, you developed your identity and increased your
spiritual capabilities. Blessed with the gift of agency, you made
important decisions, such as the decision to follow Heavenly Father’s
plan. These decisions affected your life then and now. You grew in
intelligence and learned to love the truth, and you prepared to come to
the earth, where you could continue to progress.
Mortal Life
You
are now experiencing mortal life. Your spirit is united with your body,
giving you opportunities to grow and develop in ways that were not
possible in your premortal life. This part of your existence is a time
of learning in which you can prove yourself, choose to come unto Christ,
and prepare to be worthy of eternal life. It is also a time when you
can help others find the truth and gain a testimony of the plan of
salvation.
Life after Death
When you die, your spirit will enter the spirit world and await the resurrection. At the time of the resurrection, your spirit and body will reunite, and you will be judged and received
into a kingdom of glory. The glory you inherit will depend on the depth
of your conversion and your obedience to the Lord’s commandments (see “Kingdoms of Glory,” pages 92–95). It will depend on the manner in which you have “received the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:51; see also 76:74, 79, 101).
Blessings through Knowledge of the Plan
A
testimony of the plan of salvation can give you hope and purpose as you
wrestle with the challenges of life. You can find reassurance in the
knowledge that you are a child of God and that you lived in His presence
before you were born on the earth. You can find meaning in your present
life, knowing that your actions during mortality influence your eternal
destiny. With this knowledge, you can base important decisions on
eternal truths rather than on the changing circumstances of life. You
can continually improve your relationship with family members, rejoicing
in the promise that your family can be eternal. You can find joy in
your testimony of the Atonement and the Lord’s commandments, ordinances,
covenants, and doctrines, knowing that “he who doeth the works of
righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and
eternal life in the world to come” (D&C 59:23).
