President Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, together with his wife Sister Wendy Nelson, met with hundreds of Young Single Adults (YSAs) from Southern Luzon, Metro Manila and Iloilo. The venues in the three locations were filled to capacity as YSAs intently listened to their messages.
President Nelson told young single adults how important they were to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and His Church, and how thankful the Brethren were for their devotion to the Lord and His gospel, and for each time they stood up and spoke the truth. He said that people their age were often referred to as “millennials.” He said that the term “millennial” may be just perfect for the young single adults of the Church, but for a much different reason than experts may ever understand. According to President Nelson, the term millennial is perfect for them if it reminded them of who they really were and what their purpose in life really was. He said that a true millennial was one who was “taught and did teach the gospel of Jesus Christ pre-mortally and who made covenants with Heavenly Father about courageous things, even morally courageous things, that [they] would do while here on earth.” President Nelson emphasized that true millennials help prepare the people of this world for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, for His millennial reign.
President Nelson gave four recommendations of how young single adults could live as true millennials.
Learn who you really are” – President Nelson encouraged YSAs to obtain their patriarchal blessings and to ponder on the fact they are sons and daughters of God created in His image. He testified that they were taught and prepared for anything and everything they may encounter in these latter-days. He said that true millennials have a powerful influence to bring others to the knowledge of the gospel and seize every opportunity to prepare others for the Second Coming. He urged the single adults to record their impressions and follow through with exactness.
Expect and prepare to do the impossible – President Nelson said that God has always asked His covenant children to do difficult things and true millennials will also be asked to do difficult things, far beyond what they may think they are capable of doing. He said that to accomplish the impossible, they had to do whatever it takes to strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ by increasing their understanding of His doctrine and relentlessly seeking truth. He quoted the epistle of Paul to Timothy about persecution in the latter-days and that they should be prepared for it. He assured them that as they kept covenants with increasing precision, they would be blessed with strength and wisdom to accomplish the impossible through very unlikely means.
Learn to access the power of heaven – President Nelson admonished young single adults that they would learn best by asking inspired questions in prayer, as Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ always stand ready to answer their questions through the ministering of the Holy Ghost. To qualify to receive answers, President Nelson said that they should begin by spending more time in holy places – the temple, the chapel where they partake of the sacrament and even in their own rooms which they should make a holy place. He encouraged them to cultivate relationships with friends with eternal perspective and to plead for the gift of discernment so that when conflicting ideas arise they would know what is true. He also encouraged them to give loving service and to spend more time where the Spirit is present, such as on their knees in prayer, reading the scriptures, serving in the temple and doing family history work. He assured them that as they consistently give the Lord a generous portion of their time, He will multiply their abilities in the remainder. President Nelson emphasized that they could know the mind and will of the Lord for their own lives, that they need not wonder if they are where the Lord needed them to be or if they were doing what He needed them to do, as the Holy Ghost would tell them all things which they should do.
Follow the prophets – He recounted a personal experience when he accepted President Spencer W. Kimball’s challenge to study the Mandarin language, issued in a meeting during which the preaching of the gospel to all of the countries of the world was discussed. Heeding the challenge and making an effort to learn Mandarin proved useful and enabled him to have several remarkable experiences in China, culminating in eventually being regarded as “an old friend of China.” He said that prophets see ahead and have specifically been warned about the evils of pornography, that it should be avoided as poison. He urged them to seek an education as a religious responsibility. He concluded by emphasizing that they were born to be true millennials, a chosen generation born to help the people of the world prepare for the second coming of Jesus Christ. President Nelson then blessed the young single adults to become true millennials.
President Nelson’s wife, Sister Wendy Nelson, shared that the most important love they would ever feel is our love for Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ, and their love for us. Sister Nelson mentioned some examples of people in the scriptures who were desperate for the Savior’s help to do things they could never do on their own. According to her, desperation can actually be a great motivator to become the people we were born to be. She urged the YSA to use technology righteously.
Members of the Philippines Area Presidency accompanied President Nelson as he travelled across the country to instruct the YSAs.
Those in attendance expressed their feelings of how blessed they felt to have been in the presence of, and taught by an Apostle of the Lord.
