D&C 84:87-88

Elder David A. Bednar
"The single most important thing you can do to prepare for a call to serve is to become a missionary long before you go on a mission" ("Becoming a Missionary," General Conference, Oct 2005).

D&C 84:33

What does is mean to magnify our calling?
President Gordon B. Hinckley
“We magnify our priesthood and enlarge our calling when we serve with diligence and enthusiasm in those responsibilities to which we are called by proper authority. … We magnify our calling, we enlarge the potential of our priesthood when we reach out to those in distress and give strength to those who falter. … We magnify our calling when we walk with honesty and integrity” (“Magnify Your Calling,” Ensign, May 1989, 48–49).

 

D&C 76:79 Valiant in Testimony of Jesus

D&C 76 – Valiant in the Testimony of Jesus

President Ezra Taft Benson, “Valiant in the Testimony of Jesus,” General Conference, April 1982

“Speaking of those who will eventually receive the blessings of the celestial kingdom, the Lord said to Joseph Smith: ‘They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given.’ (D&C 76:51.) These are they who are valiant in their testimony of Jesus, who, as the Lord has declared “overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.” (D&C 76:53.)

‘Those who are just and true’! What an apt expression for one valiant in the testimony of Jesus. They are courageous in defending truth and righteousness. These are members of the Church who magnify their callings in the Church (see D&C 84:33), pay their tithes and offerings, live morally clean lives, sustain their Church leaders by word and action, keep the Sabbath as a holy day, and obey all the commandments of God.

To these the Lord has promised that ‘all thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed and set forth upon all who have endured valiantly for the gospel of Jesus Christ.’ (D&C 121:29; italics added.)

Concerning those who will receive the terrestrial, or lesser, kingdom, the Lord said, ‘These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God.’ (D&C 76:79; italics added.) Not to be valiant in one’s testimony is a tragedy of eternal consequence. These are members who know this latter-day work is true, but who fail to endure to the end. Some may even hold temple recommends, but do not magnify their callings in the Church. Without valor, they do not take an affirmative stand for the kingdom of God. Some seek the praise, adulation, and honors of men; others attempt to conceal their sins; and a few criticize those who preside over them.”

 

Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “Be Valiant in the Fight of Faith,” Ensign, Nov. 1974, 35

“What does it mean to be valiant in the testimony of Jesus? …The great cornerstone of valiance in the cause of righteousness is obedience to the whole law of the whole gospel. …To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to believe in Christ and his gospel with unshakable conviction. …But this is not all. It is more than believing and knowing. We must be doers of the word and not hearers only. It is more than lip service; it is not simply confessing with the mouth the divine Sonship of the Savior. It is obedience and conformity and personal righteousness. …To be valiant in the testimony of Jesus is to … ‘endure to the end.’ (2 Ne. 31:20.) It is to live our religion, to practice what we preach, to keep the commandments.”

 

Elder Lawrence R. Corbridge, “Valiant in the Testimony of Jesus,” Ensign, September 2011.

“You are valiant if you:

• Keep on going when you think you can’t go anymore.

• Admit your mistakes and strive to be better.

• Pick up the scriptures and put down the TV remote.

• Tell the truth when a lie would be easier.

• Refuse to do wrong even when everyone else is doing wrong.

• Set aside personal interests and postpone education to serve a mission.

• Speak no ill of another.

• Are honest even when it seems that no one else is.

• Choose not to click on a pornographic site.

• Smile and help another even when you yourself need help.

• Exercise self-control.

• Pray with all your heart.

• Forgive.

• Strive to raise your children in light and truth.

• Share the gospel without regard to consequences.

• Remember the Lord and keep His commandments.

• Don’t count the cost.”