When I think of a “typical” Latter-day Saint, I think of a pregnant mom pulling out of her driveway in her SUV, five kids in the back seat, and a delicious dinner already cooking in the Crock-Pot. Maybe they’re on their way to soccer practice, piano lessons, or playdates, and they might even have little stickers on their back windshield representing each member of the family. Bonus points if the stickers are wearing Mickey Mouse ears.

I was presenting a missionary discussion to a family in my mission field many years ago. The parents were polite but distant. The daughter, however—a young lady about 18 or 19—was enthralled. The idea of a living prophet aroused in her a remarkable enthusiasm, and she had many questions. I was delighted to answer them. I explained that David O. McKay was a prophet in the same way that Jeremiah and Isaiah and Moses were prophets, and that the Lord revealed his will to his children through his living prophets as he had done in ancient times.

If I were to ask which of the Lord's commandments is most difficult to keep, many of us might cite Matthew 5:48: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

When we read the scriptures, many different words or titles are used for God. Some are used more than any others, and these names have special and significant meaning. Here are just a few and the background behind them.

The temple and its ordinances were the pinnacles of Joseph Smith’s revelatory teachings and prophetic career, desiring each member to be “endowed with power from on high” (D&C 38:38). Your endowment is to receive the power and capacity to one day enter the presence of God and receive a fullness of his blessings. The presentation of the endowment ceremony replicates a metaphorical journey. It takes a fallen person and cleanses them, blesses them, teaches them, and brings them to a celestial redemption in the presence of God. Whether you are going for the first time or hundredth, how can you get the most out of this wondrous and unique temple experience? How do you make the endowment ceremony personally meaningful and spiritually impactful? How do you let it teach you how to come unto God’s exalting presence through his divine Son? One approach that can help is based on a divine pattern of spiritual learning summarized as KNOW, FEEL, and DO.

During the Saturday morning session of the October 2018 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson announced a change to the Church schedule with the aim of strengthening families through a home-centered and Church-supported plan. Although the announced schedule is new, the desire for home-centered and Church-supported gospel learning may not be as new as you think.

A few years ago, a dear friend challenged me to read the Book of Mormon in 28 days, and I’m not exaggerating when I say it changed my life. I only had one baby at that time, and was able to read while he napped during the afternoons. I would make myself a little lunch, sit down on the couch with a comfy blanket, and read for around an hour every day in the quiet family room of our tiny third-story condo.

My Young Women leader asked a hard-hitting question that began to change how I pray.

Editor's note: This article originally ran on LDS Living in December of 2018. We share it again out of love and respect for President Ballard.

The following excerpt from The Holy Temple by President Boyd K. Packer illustrates how we can receive "help from beyond" to do temple work.