Julie B. Beck, Relief Society General President -- "As Latter-day Saints, you have learned the importance of the temple and of temple ordinances. Over the centuries, many people have died without knowledge of the gospel. These people are your near and distant relatives. They are waiting for you to do the necessary research to link your families together and perform saving ordinances in the temple in their behalf.
"Having some knowledge of technology aids temple and family history work. You are a specially prepared generation with the technological talent to do this. My grandma Bangerter had a deep testimony and feeling of urgency for family history work. Many years ago, when she was compiling 25,000 names of her family, she had to enter each name by hand on forms. She would have been so grateful for a computer program to help her be more accurate and efficient. Now she has hundreds of talented young people among her descendants who are capable of assisting her from this side of the veil.
"The Lord has promised to plant in your hearts the promises given to the fathers and that your hearts would be turned to the fathers so that the earth would not be utterly wasted at His coming (see Doctrine & Covenants 2:2–3). Your technical skills are a partial fulfillment of this prophecy, and I hope you are feeling a sense of urgency about this work. You were born in this age to do temple and family history work. Your family needs your help. Your ward or branch needs your help in this important responsibility.
"You will receive personal blessings as a result of participation in temple and family history work. One of these is the opportunity to qualify for a temple recommend, which signifies your worthiness before the Lord. A temple recommend is a symbol of obedience."
( from Julie B. Beck, Relief Society General President; "This is Your Work"; Ensign; February 2012.)
The complete article may be found at the following link:
https://www.lds.org/ensign/2012/02/this-is-your-work
Sister Beck presented these thoughts originally as part of a CES fireside address entitled "Unlocking the Door to the Blessings of Abraham" on 08 Mar 2008.
The entire talk is available on the BYU Speeches website at http://speeches.byu.edu. (Note: CES refers to Church Education System).
Sister Beck presented these thoughts originally as part of a CES fireside address entitled "Unlocking the Door to the Blessings of Abraham" on 08 Mar 2008.
The entire talk is available on the BYU Speeches website at http://speeches.byu.edu. (Note: CES refers to Church Education System).
