Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles just returned from visiting the region of Southeast Africa from November 9–16 where he addressed possibly the "largest gathering of Saints ever in South Africa," according to Robert C. Gay of the Presidency of the Seventy.

Dear Dave,

Few of us know the power and influence angels have in our lives on a regular basis. An angel is any messenger sent by God to do His work. Sometimes that message comes for our benefit, sometimes the message is a request to act on behalf of another, and sometimes we are the messenger. Here are a few things we can learn about angels to awaken our hearts and minds to the many influences they play in our seemingly normal, everyday lives.

When the coast-to-coast telegraph was completed in Salt Lake City in October 1861, Brigham Young sent a clear signal to President Abraham Lincoln: “Utah has not seceded but is firm for the Constitution and laws of our once happy country.” Less than eight years later, on May 10, 1869, hundreds gathered at Promontory, Utah, to witness another coast-to-coast completion. The driving of the last spike of the transcontinental railroad reverberated continuity to a once broken nation.1

Although anyone can feel the power of the Holy Ghost and be guided by it, it's not until we are baptized that we are promised the gift of the Holy Ghost: the ability for the Spirit to stay with us at all times if we are worthy to receive Him. This is a promise so incredible that at times it can be hard to wrap our minds around, much less apply. What, exactly, does it mean to have the gift of the Holy Ghost daily, and how can it help us?

Let me make something clear from the get-go: I don’t think church is boring. At least, not usually. Admittedly, there are times when I am walking out of my meetings wishing for something more. Maybe I’ve already forgotten the subject of the Sunday School lesson or zoned out on that last sacrament meeting talk because Brother Wilson speaks so . . . very . . . slow.

Most people have not met Si Foster in person, but thousands of her social media followers will instantly recognize the face on the cover of LDS Living’s May/June 2020 issueas the woman behind the “A Bountiful Kitchen” food blog.

I remember when Amy, our oldest child, turned eight and was baptized. We had been preparing her for this significant event in her life and had taught her that when she was baptized she was making a covenant with her Heavenly Father that she would always keep His commandments. A few days after her baptism, she looked up at her father with sweet sincerity and asked, “How am I doing, Dad? Have I made any mistakes yet?” I have remembered that question for 35 years and the desire of a sweet eight-year-old to be true to her covenants. When we are baptized we make sacred promises to “stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death” (Mosiah 18:9). Baptism is the gate by which we enter the kingdom of God, and by entering that gate we agree to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ and keep all of God’s commandments. This ordinance is so significant and important that we are asked to think about it, review our actions, and then renew that promise each Sunday in our sacrament meetings as we partake of the sacrament. Essentially, each and every week we have the opportunity to ask ourselves, “How am I doing?” It is the only ordinance I can think of where we are asked to formally recommit to living up to our promises on a regular basis.

At Elder L. Tom Perry’s funeral in the Tabernacle, Elders Dallin H. Oaks and M. Russell Ballard both delivered heartfelt tributes to their colleague and friend. During his address, Elder Ballard related the following:

“Redemption in Christ is a beginning for us all, an invitation to a new life.”