Prepare with Vision, Plan with Purpose, Write with Prayer, so you Can Create with Confidence:12 Steps to Bringing Christ More into our Lives and Finances

Bryan L. Sudweeks, E. Jeff Hill, Ashley LeBaronAugust 22, 2017

Bryan Sudweeks gave a presentation on the east coast about how we teach personal finance at BYU. An older gentleman, not of our faith, asked, “How do you teach personal finance differently in a faith-based school than I teach in a secular school?” Bryan pondered the question for a moment and replied, “In addition to what you teach, we teach what the scriptures and prophets have said. That takes personal finance from being a question of money to a question of faith.” The gentleman thought about the response, paused, and then stated, “You have a bigger hammer.”

As both Christians and managers of our finances, we truly do have a bigger hammer. But do we use that hammer as we should? Are we using the restored gospel and the grace and atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives and our finances as we could, or are we doing it on our own? Are we going forward in our daily battles of life as Mormon wrote, “in the strength of the Lord”1 or are we fighting our battles alone?

Personal finance is not simply how we use money; rather, it is how we respond to the commandments of God on how we use the things that He has blessed us with. Dallin H. Oaks said, “There is nothing inherently evil about money. . . The critical difference is the degree of spirituality we exercise in viewing, evaluating, and managing the things of this world and our experiences in it.”2 From our covenants of baptism, stewardship, consecration and our love for God and neighbor, all that we have is from God and becomes part of our stewardship and test in mortality to see how we will use the things he has blessed us with. As such, personal finance is simply part of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The question then becomes, “How do we bring Christ more into our lives and finances?” Melvin J. Ballard said,

Over the years, I have observed that those who accomplish the most in this world are those with a vision for their lives, with goals to keep them focused on their vision and tactical plans for how to achieve them. Knowing where you are going and how you expect to get there can bring meaning, purpose, and accomplishment to life.3

In this paper we present 12 steps to bringing Christ more into our lives and finances. We emphasize the doctrine, principles and the application process of a Christ-centered perspective because of the power it brings to help motivate us to do what we must do. We bring Christ more into our lives as we prepare with vision, plan with purpose, write with prayer, so we can create with confidence. With grace and the power of the atonement of Jesus Christ to help, we can then accomplish all things that we and God need us to accomplish.

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Prepare with Vision

Preparation is a critical part of everything that God does and should be part of everything we do. Recall that with the creation of the world there was a spiritual creation first, then the later physical creation. We believe that preparing, planning and writing our goals and plans are all part of the spiritual creation, and execution of those plans is the physical creation.

Preparation is critical as we seek to bring Christ into our personal finances. We need to choose and strengthen our faith in Christ, catch our vision, elevate our perspective and understanding, and seek wisdom and learning.

1. Choose and strengthen faith. Choose and strengthen our faith in Christ. Neil L. Anderson reminded us “My dear friends. Your faith did not begin at birth and it will not end at death. Faith is a choice. Strengthen your faith.”4 Dallin H. Oaks said, “God will do more than what is best for us . . . The conviction that the Lord knows more than we do and that He will answer our prayers in the way that is best for us and for all of his other children is a vital ingredient of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.”5

The Savior taught the Nephites that they must always pray to the Father in His name, adding, “And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.”6 Dallin H. Oaks further states,

Here the Savior reminds us that faith, no matter how strong it is, cannot produce a result contrary to the will of Him whose power it is. The exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is always subject to the order of heaven, to the goodness and will and wisdom and timing of the Lord. That is why we cannot have true faith in the Lord without also having complete trust in the Lord’s will and in the Lord’s timing.7

We should strive to align our vision and goals with God’s will and exercise faith in Him which includes patience with His timing. Then, with His help, we can accomplish all things.

2. Catch “your” vision. The scriptures teach, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”8 Why is vision so important to motivation? I love the thought, “With increased vision comes increased motivation.”9 Where do we need to improve our vision? Four aspects to consider are visions of who we are, of what we can do, of what we want, and of what God wants us to do.

Your vision of who you are. We are “all the children of God by faith in Jesus Christ,”10 each “with a divine mission and destiny.”11 Paul reminds us, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.”12 Do we believe in this great potential? “No doctrine is more basic, no doctrine embraces a greater incentive to personal righteousness . . . as does the wondrous concept that man can be as his Maker.”13 Someone once said, “Don’t tell me what to do, tell me who I am. Once I know who I am, I will know what to do.”14 We are children of God, and that opens immense possibilities.

Your vision of what you can do. Some think that in order to believe something they must first see it. Ether taught us differently; we will see it when we believe it. “And it came to pass that Ether did prophesy great and marvelous things unto the people, which they did not believe,

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because they saw them not.”15 The people were so hard in their hearts that they could not imagine these wonderful things happening, so they did not believe that they could happen. Later in that same chapter, Ether shares about some other people who believed it first and then saw it. He writes, “And there were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad.”16 As we catch the vision of what we can do, if we will believe it, we will see it come to pass.

Your vision of what you want to accomplish. Once we have the vision of who we are and what we can do, our challenge then becomes one of deciding what it is we want out of life. Do you have that vision of what you want out of life? Have you thought about your desires and goals? Have you prayed about them to make sure they are the desires and goals that Heavenly Father would have you accomplish? Have you read and pondered your patriarchal and other blessings recently to understand God’s plan for you?

If your vision requires financial considerations, have you thought about how much you will need to save each month to do the things you have planned? Most importantly, are you willing to sacrifice for them? Nelson Mandela said, “Once a person is determined to help themselves, there is nothing that can stop them.”17 As our vision of what we want increases, our willingness to do the things necessary to achieve our vision increases as well. I love the poem by Jesse Rittenhouse that says,

I bargained with Life for a Penny, and Life would pay no more, However I begged at evening, when I counted my scanty store. For Life is a just employer, He will give you what you ask, But once you have set the wages, why, you must bear the task. I worked for a menial’s hire, only to learn, dismayed, That any wage I had asked of Life, Life would have willingly paid.18

We will get out of life what we are willing to have a vision for, set a goal for, and then work to achieve. We will not get more than this. Once we have our vision for ourselves, we can then work on setting our goals. Melvin J. Ballard said, “I believe that one important key to happiness is to learn how to set our own goals and establish our own plans within the framework of our Heavenly Father’s eternal plan. If we focus on this eternal path, we will inevitably qualify to return to His presence.”19 He also said,

During the coming weeks, find time to review your life’s [visions,] goals and your plans, and make sure they align with our Heavenly Father’s great plan for our happiness. If you need to repent and change, then consider doing so now. Take the time to prayerfully think about what adjustments are needed to help you keep your “eye single to the glory of God.”20 21

Your vison of what God would have you do or become. Correctly understanding who we are is critical to understanding our work, destiny and mission in life. The scriptures remind us of our work when it says, “Behold, this is your work, to keep my commandments, yea, with all your might, mind and strength.”22 Just as God has His work, we have our work as well.

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The Proclamation on the Family states: “All human beings—male and female, are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny.”23 How do we come to know that divine destiny? Tad R. Callister said, “It is this doctrine of identity that defines our potential destiny of godhood. If one does not correctly understand his divine identity, then he will never correctly understand his divine destiny. They are, in truth, inseparable partners.”24

Finally, on our mission’s in life, John H. Groberg commented,

What is your mission in life? What does God expect you to accomplish during your sojourn here upon the earth? And are you doing it? To help answer these questions, I hope the Spirit of the Lord will impress upon us all the importance of at least these three eternal truths: 1. God, our Father in Heaven, does have a specific mission for all of us to fulfill and perform while we are here upon this earth. 2. We can, here and now, in this life, discover what that mission is. 3. With His help we can fulfill that mission and know and have assurance, here and now, that we are doing that which is pleasing to Him. With the help of the Spirit of the Lord we can understand these truths and move the course of our life in tune with them.25

3. Elevate your perspective and understanding. Lift your thoughts and think longer term. The Lord counseled, “Let the solemnities of eternity rest on your minds.”26 If we will think about eternity (which is definitely longer-term), we will either know why we want or need to accomplish something, or it will diminish in its importance and motivation. Consider why is it important? What will it do for you? David A. Bednar recommends we think of doctrines, principles, and application as our powerful framework for learning.27

Boyd K. Packer said, “True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior. That is why we stress so forcefully the study of the doctrines of the gospel.”28 The doctrines are the “why’s” we do these things. These answer the hard questions of the soul.

While there are many important doctrines, for us to understand the “why’s” we take the view of eternity from four different perspectives and ask “why” this is important. From a spiritual or God’s perspective, everything God does is to bring us to Christ, for in Christ comes “every good thing.”29 As such, that should be our objective as well. From a temporal perspective, we should seek to be wiser stewards over what we have been given. God has given us much, and we need to be responsible for what we have. From a family perspective, everything we do should be to help us return with our families back to Heavenly Father’s presence. Heaven would not be heaven without our families. And finally, from an individual perspective, our work and purpose should be to help us accomplish our “divine nature and destiny.”30 Each of us has a divine mission in this life, and we should strive to accomplish it.

Next, know what you want to do. What are the principles or “what’s” on which our doctrines or “whys” are based? While there are specific principles for each of our “how’s” or things you need to do (i.e., principles of budgeting, principles of saving, principles of investing, etc.) there are overriding principles or “what’s” for all of what we do. We believe these “what’s” should be based on four key principles learned from the scriptures. If we truly understand these four

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principles, making life and financial decisions in life will be much easier. The first principle is ownership. None of the things we have belong to us, even ourselves. They are given or on loan to us from a loving Heavenly Father.31 Second is stewardship. Because we do not own these things, we are stewards over all the Lord has given us.32 We should strive to be wise stewards with what we are, have, and will be given. Third is agency. David O. McKay said, “Next to the bestowal of life itself, the right to direct that life is God’s greatest gift to man.”33 We should use our agency wisely. Finally, accountability. We will be held accountable for not only our thoughts, words, and actions,34 but also for every dollar that goes through our hands. This accountability should motivate us to do better each day in our lives and finances.

Finally, know “how’s” or the way we are to create and accomplish what we need to do. There are two parts to application. There are the things we will do, or how we will accomplish what we need, i.e., live on a budget, stay out of debt, save for long-term goals, etc., and the process by which we accomplish those “how’s” which we call the “creative process.” For the purpose of this article, we will discuss the process.

The creative process is to have a vision for what we are trying to accomplish, and then set goals, which are tools to help us keep focused on our vision. Then we build the tactical plans that will take us to our goals, while at the same time understanding the constraints, or things that must be accomplished for us to accomplish our vision. Finally, we communicate those vision, goals, and plans to those who will or we need to help us.

Perhaps an example to put the “how’s” or creative process in perspective. Heavenly Father’s vision is the exaltation of his children. His goal is to “bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”35 His plan is the Plan of Salvation or the Plan of Happiness. He is constrained by the agency of His children, although He has no constraints as to who His plan can help. And He communicates his plan with His children through prophets and scriptures.

In elevating our understanding, Dieter F. Uchtdorf reminds us,

While understanding the “what” and the “how” of the gospel is necessary, the eternal fire and majesty of the gospel springs from the “why.” When we understand why our Heavenly Father has given us this pattern for living, when we remember why we committed to making it a foundational part of our lives, the gospel ceases to become a burden and, instead, becomes a joy and a delight. It becomes precious and sweet. . . Seek out the majesty, the beauty, and the exhilarating joy of the “why” of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The “what” and “how” of obedience mark the way and keep us on the right path. The “why” of obedience sanctifies our actions, transforming the mundane into the majestic. It magnifies our small acts of obedience into holy acts of consecration.36

As we understand the doctrines, principles and application, or the “why’s”, “what’s” and “how’s” and we elevate our understanding, we see things differently. We have a longer-term or eternal perspective and are aware not only of what we should be doing, but also why we are doing these things and how we are to accomplish them. This awareness will help us lift our thoughts above the current and enticing temptations to spend. Since there are no temporal commandments,37 the challenge of personal finance is not simply a question of money but a question of faith. Finally, the “why’s” give us a benchmark on how we are doing. If our finances

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are bringing us closer to Christ, helping us be wiser stewards, helping us prepare to live with our families in Heavenly Father’s presence, or helping us accomplish our personal and family missions, we are doing our finances right.

4. Seek Wisdom and Learning. Personal finance is a changing and somewhat challenging topic. Learn about what you are trying to accomplish, and learn as much as you possibly can. “And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith.”38 We would add to seek learning from those who are not trying to sell you something or those who do not have a vested interest in your doing things for them. We would also avoid the unfaithful and faithless when striving for religious truth.

Seek truth and learn wisdom. Where is wisdom to be found? Alma counseled his son, “O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God.”39 How do we learn wisdom? The Lord said, “Let him that is ignorant learn wisdom by humbling himself and calling upon the Lord his God, that his eyes may be opened that he may see, and his ears opened that he may hear; For my Spirit is sent forth into the world to enlighten the humble and contrite.”40 By living the commandments and humbly listening to the Spirit’s guidance, we learn wisdom.

Plan with Purpose

Once we have prepared our life with vision, our next step is to plan our lives with purpose. We plan with purpose as we strive to understand our vision, set our goals (which are tools to focus us on that vision), and develop the plans to accomplish those goals. We bring Christ into our goals and plans as we counsel with the Lord, decide to decide, do it willingly, and understand our constraints and communicate.

5. Counsel with the Lord. We have been told to “counsel with the Lord in all our doings, and He will direct thee for good.”41 That includes His help to develop the plans to accomplish our goals and vision. The commandment to “ask and ye shall receive” is found in not just one volume of scripture but in all the standard works.”42 Clearly we have been counseled to seek the Lord’s help in our lives.

However, many people in working on their vision, goals and plans think they have to do these things alone. They may think that because they created their challenges (which may be true), the Lord is unwilling to help them. A prophet asked, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”43 He then answered his own question by stating, “I believe the Lord can do anything he sets his mind to do.”44 We believe that includes helping you develop your vision, goals and plans.

Counseling with the Lord is part of preparation, planning and creation. In planning, seek His help and His guidance as you determine your goals and develop your plans. Key to this process is to make sure your goals are consistent with the things that He would have you accomplish. You can do nothing better than to do what He would have you do.

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6. Decide to decide. Make the decisions now about what you need to do, and commit to those decisions today! Decide now what you will and will not do to help yourself and your family, and then be done with those decisions. Spencer W. Kimball said,

We hope we can help our young men and young women to realize, even sooner than they do now, that they need to make certain decisions only once. . .We can push some things away from us once and have done with them! We can make a single decision about certain things that we will incorporate in our lives and then make them ours—without having to brood and re-decide a hundred times what it is we will do and what we will not do. . . My young brothers [and sisters], if you have not done so yet, decide to decide!45

Seek the Lord’s help as you seek to develop your goals and tactical plans to help you accomplish your goals. There is no one who loves you more and is more committed to helping you. Commit to what you need to do and follow through. The sweet psalmist of Israel wrote, “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”46 With the help of the Lord, He will “give unto you success.”47

7. Do it willingly. On his way to Carthage, Joseph Smith knew that he would not return. “I am going like a lamb to the slaughter, but I am calm as a summer’s morning; I have a conscience void of offense towards God, and towards all men . . . And it shall yet be said of me—he was murdered in cold blood.”48 He brought his will in subjection to the will of Heavenly Father. Is not that one of the purposes of life, to bring our wills in line with the will of the Father? We know we will either “bend the knee” willingly of our own free will and choice, or we will be compelled to do it when He comes again.49 Either way, we will come to recognize Christ.

George Albert Smith was showing visitors around Salt Lake City. They were expressing sadness that the saints had been driven out of their beautiful city of Nauvoo. George’s answer was instructive, “No, not at all. We came here willingly, because we had to!”50 As we think on these things, realize how much better it is to do the things willingly that we need to do because we have faith in Christ and are seeking to obey His commandments.

8. Understand your constraints and communicate. Once you have your goals and plans, understand your constraints. What are the things that are required for you to accomplish those goals? What are the things that are critical that can keep you from achieving your goals and plans? Understand these constraints and think through them to make sure they will not deter you from your vision.

Finally, let others know what you are doing, by sharing with them your vision, goals, plans and constraints. There are four purposes here. First, in our experience, embarrassment sometimes is more powerful than guilt in motivating us to accomplish more. Share your vision, goals and plans with your spouse, children, mentors and friends. Let them know of your successes and failures. Second, as we let others know what we desire to accomplish, they can help us to accomplish our goals and give us increased motivation to do what we should. Third, we may fall short of our goals and vision. If so, spouses, mentors and friends can often help us understand where we fell short and give us help to improve. Finally, as we share our vision, goals and plans with others, we give them permission to work on their own vision and goals as well. They may be thinking about the very things you have shared, and as such, you have helped them in their

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lives by increasing their vision. As you share with others, you give them permission to catch similar visions and goals for themselves.

Write with Prayer

9. Write with prayer. As our vision for the things we want to become and to accomplish in life becomes clearer, we are ready for the next step. Take that vision and use it to help define your goals, the things you want to accomplish in your life and the plans for how you will accomplish those goals. Your goals are tools to help you keep focused on your vision. Your plans are those steps necessary for you to accomplish our goals. Your constraints are those things you will need to overcome to accomplish your goals. And communication is who you will share these things with. Write your vision, goals, plans and constraints with thought and prayer, and then be ready to share them. Bring Christ into your life planning and writing session so you make sure your vision, goals, plans and constraints are consistent with what Heavenly Father would have you set. Someone said, “A goal not written is only a wish.”51

Melvin J. Ballard said, “I believe that one important key to happiness is to learn how to set our own goals and establish our own plans within the framework of our Heavenly Father’s eternal plan. If we focus on this eternal path, we will inevitably qualify to return to His presence.”52

While there are many different perspectives, we like to separate vision into four different areas: spiritual, temporal, family, and individual, with our goals in similar areas. Once we have written them down, think about them and pray about them. Are they what we should be working toward? Are they balanced? If so, pursue them with passion and fire, and develop the plans to achieve each one. Thoreau said, "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."53

The word “remember” occurs 269 times in the scriptures. While there may be many reasons for this, one might be to remind us of the things that have already happened to help us increase our faith in things that have not yet happened. Can we use this same logic in our lives?

We recommend keeping a journal of the things we are doing and what we have accomplished. As we prepare with vision and write our goals with prayer, and then visualize ourselves achieving them, it will give us increased incentive to work on your goals. As we record our successes and challenges, we will see the Lord’s hand in our life and our progress toward our goals. As we see what we have accomplished in the past, it will give us increased incentive to reach other goals as well.

Create your Vision with Confidence

Once we have prepared with vision, planned with purpose, written our goals, tactical plans and constraints with prayer and communicated our vision, goals and plans with others, we have done the spiritual creation. It is now time to execute our plans. Realize that two people can do anything, as long as one is the Lord.54

In execution, it is important that we work our plans with Christ’s help to create the physical creation, the actual accomplishment of our vision and goals. We bring Christ into our personal

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finances as we try to do our best, embrace and give grace, and cleave to our covenants and promised blessings.

10. Try our best. The Lord declared to the Prophet Joseph Smith, “Verily I say unto you, [the gifts of God] are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep . . . my commandments, and [for them] that seeketh so to do.”55 For us, “seeking so to do” is sometimes all we can offer. We are appreciative that we don’t have to be perfect, but we do have to try. Jeffrey R. Holland said,

Aren’t we all thankful for that added provision “and … seeketh so to do”! That has been a lifesaver because sometimes that is all we can offer! We take some solace in the fact that if God were to reward only the perfectly faithful, He wouldn’t have much of a distribution list. . . It says again and again that we are going to be blessed for our desire to do good, even as we actually strive to be so.56

He also encouraged and promised us when he said,

If gospel standards seem high and the personal improvement needed in the days ahead seems out of reach, remember Joshua’s encouragement to his people when they faced a daunting future. “Sanctify yourselves,” he said, “for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”57 I declare that same promise. . . . It is the promise of this Church. It is the promise of Him who performs those wonders, who is Himself “Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, . . . The Prince of Peace.”58 Of Him I bear witness. Of Him I am a witness.59

As we bring Christ into our finances, and sanctify ourselves as we strive to obey His commandments, He will bless and strengthen us so that we truly will see “the Lord do wonders among [us]” with our vision, goals and plans.

11. Embrace and give grace. Dieter F. Uchtdorf defined grace as “the divine assistance and endowment of strength by which we grow from the flawed and limited beings we are now into exalted beings of “truth and light.”60 It is a gift from Christ, where He gives us the help we need, and we use His help to become better and more like Him. We will need his help if we are to accomplish what we should.

Remember, weaknesses are not penalties from God; rather, weaknesses are God-given stepping-stones to help us become more like Him. He gives us weaknesses so that we will learn to be humble, to overcome them (and ourselves), and to become more like Him. Ether taught,

And if men come unto me [Christ] I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.61

Along with our weaknesses, we should remember that God also gave us our natural abilities. Since He gave them to us as well, if we seek His help, He can, through His grace, help us to work beyond them. We have been counseled, “You can perform beyond your natural abilities;

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you can accelerate your learning—providing you live in accordance with God’s commandments.”62 David A. Bednar explained the source of this power, “The enabling and strengthening aspect of the Atonement [grace] helps us to see and to do and to become good in ways that we could never recognize or accomplish with our limited mortal capacity.”63 Richard C. Edgeley said,

Some burdens that we are called to bear are so heavy that we can only conquer them through humility, submissiveness, and contrition. That sounds like a contradiction, doesn’t it—gaining strength and power through humility, submissiveness, and contrition. But that is one of the great ironies of life—we can receive power beyond our natural ability by submitting our will to the Father.64

As you rise each morning, talk with Heavenly Father about what you will try to accomplish that day as part of your personal prayer and daily creation. Seek Heavenly Father’s grace and help in planning and preparing for the day, then listen for His guidance and counsel. Leave with a prayer in your heart that you will follow His guidance and do what is necessary to accomplish that goal today. Continue praying and seeking His help throughout the day.

Then, in your prayer at the end of the day, review with Heavenly Father what you did, your physical creation for that day, giving thanks for what you were able to accomplish and humbly seeking help and guidance for the things you have yet to do. As you counsel with the Lord in all your doings, you can have His help and His guidance to help you accomplish them.

Finally, how do we give grace? We take the grace we have received and pass it on to others by helping and serving, by doing the things that Christ would do were He here, and by being His hands to his children wherever we are.

12. Cleave to your covenants and promised blessings. The Lord has said “Wherefore, lift up thy heart and rejoice, and cleave unto the covenants which thou has made.”65 We all make covenants at baptism, at the sacrament table, and in the Lord’s temples. These covenants are two-way sacred promises with God, where if we fulfill our side of the covenant, He promises to fulfill His—and He will always fulfill His promises. We find peace, contentment and safety as we cleave to those covenants. We have been counseled,

I urge each one to qualify for and receive all the priesthood ordinance you can and then faithfully keep the promises you have made by covenant. In times of distress, let your covenants be paramount and let your obedience be exact. Then you can ask in faith, nothing wavering, according to your need, and God will answer. He will sustain you.66

As we cleave to our covenants—our promises to God and His promises to us—we can have faith that God will sustain us and help us in our righteous vision, goals and plans.

Finally, too often we focus on the difficulties of the things we are doing and fail to remember the Lord’s promised blessings to help us. The Lord counseled the prophet and us when He said, “And remember also the promises which were made to you, if you did not transgress them.”67 The following are just a few of His promised blessings that we need to keep in mind. Mosiah taught,

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And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.68

You shall be “armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”69 You shall “inherit the kingdom of God . . . [and] [your] joy will be full forever.”70 The Lord will “be with you and will stand by you.”71 “None shall stay [you].”72 The Savior will “go before you and . . . be in your midst, and you shall not be confounded.”73 “Nothing shall prevail against [you].”74 “Power shall rest upon [you]; thou shalt have great faith, and [He] will be with [you].”75 He “will uphold [you].”76 He “will take care of your flocks.”77 You will be “received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where [we] will rest from all [your] troubles and from all care and sorrow.”78 “Great shall be your blessing—yea, even more than if you should obtain treasures of earth.”79

He “will send upon [you] the Comforter.”80 He “will go before your face. [He] will be on your right hand and on your left.”81 His angels will be “round about you.”82 You “shall have great faith.”83 You will be “enabled to keep [God’s] laws.”84 You “[shall] have revelations.”85 “Your sins are forgiven you.”86 And most importantly, you “shall be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.”87

Summary

As we invite Christ into our personal finances, we can have His strength, love, help, and support to accomplish what we need to accomplish. But we need to do it His way as we prepare with vision, plan with purpose, write with prayer, and then we can create with confidence.

As we do what He would have us do, bringing Christ more into our personal finances will help us accomplish more of what we should and ultimately to be more like Him. Mormon counsels, “Be wise in the days of your probation; strip yourselves of all uncleanness; ask not, that ye may consume it on your lusts, but ask with a firmness unshaken, that ye will yield to no temptation, but that ye will serve the true and living God.”88 If our vision and goals are what God would have us accomplish, then we can know that we will have His help to do what must be done and we will be patient with His timing.

As we strive to bring Christ into our finances and our life, His grace will reach out and help us accomplish the things that we should do but could not do without His help. He has promised that there will not be any commandments He has given us “save he shall prepare a way. . . that [we] may accomplish the thing which he commandeth [us].”89 This includes the commandments to live within our means, get out of debt, and save for long-term goals.

As we prepare with vision, we choose and strengthen faith in Christ, catch our vision, elevate our perspective and understanding, and seek wisdom and learning. We will come to understand and know God’s will for us and know that He can help us do all things.

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As we plan with purpose, we counsel with the Lord, decide to decide, do it willingly, and understand our constraints and communicate. As we do these things, the “spiritual creation” of what we and God want us to accomplish will come to life. Moreover, your motivation will increase as we will know these are the things God would have us accomplish and we will have help to accomplish our vision and goals.

As we write with prayer, we develop in detail our vision, goals, plans, constraints, who we will communicate them with, and then write this down prayerfully. We solidify them in our heart, mind, and on paper. We will have God’s help to know the things we should be working on and moving toward.

Finally, we create with confidence as we try our best, embrace and give grace, and cleave to our covenants and promised blessings. As we do these things, we will have the Savior’s help to be able to accomplish the “physical creation”—the execution or completion of our temporal and spiritual goals. As we do, we will not only bring Christ more into our finances and accomplish our individual and family vision and goals, we will become more like our Savior Jesus Christ.

In managing our finances with the gospel of Jesus Christ as our guide, we truly do have a bigger hammer. We can also have the confidence and strength that as we go and fight the daily battles of life and our finances that we “go in the strength of the Lord God.”90 David A. Bednar reminds us, “Truly, brothers and sisters, in the strength of the Lord we can do and endure and overcome all things. . . In the strength of the Lord and through His grace, I know that you and I can be blessed to accomplish all things.”91

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1 W of M. 1:14.2 Dallin H. Oaks, “Spirituality,” Ensign, November 1985.3 M. Russell Ballard, “Return and Receive,” April 2017 General Conference Afternoon Session and Ensign, May 2017.4 Neil L. Anderson, “Faith is not by Chance, But by Choice,” Ensign, November 2015.5 Dallin H. Oaks, “Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ,” Ensign, May 1994.6 3 Nephi 18:20.7 Oaks, Ibid.8 Amos 3:7.9 Ted R. Callister, “The Power in the Priesthood in the Boy,” Ensign, May 2013.10 Gal. 3:26.11 Spencer W. Kimball, “Proclamation on the Family,” 1995.12 Romans 8:17.13 Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah: The First Coming of Christ (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1978), 133.14 Anonymous. 15 Ether 12:5.16 Ether 12:19.17 Nelson Mandela.18 Quoted in Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill, 1960, p. 40. 19 M. Russell Ballard, “Return and Receive,” General Conference Afternoon Session, April 2017.20 D&C 4:5.21 Ibid.22 D&C 11:20.23 “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, November 1995.24 Tad R. Callister, “Our Identity and Our Destiny,” BYU Speeches, Aug. 14, 2012.25 John H. Groberg, “What is Your Mission,” New Era, January 1987.26 D&C 43:34.27 From David A Bednar, Increase in Learning, Deseret Book, Salt Lake City, 2011, Chapter 4. Doctrines, Principles, and Applications: A Framework for Learning, pp. 151-172.28 Boyd K. Packer, “Little Children,” Ensign, Nov. 1986, 16. 29 Moroni 7:22.30 Spencer W. Kimball, “Proclamation on the Family,” 1995.31 Psalms 24:1.32 D&C 136:27.33 Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: David O. McKay (2003), 208.34 Alma 12:14.35 Moses 1:39.36 “Forget me Not, Ensign, Nov. 2011.37 D&C 29:35.38 Italics added, D&C 88:118, 109:7.39 Alma 37:35.40 D&C 136:32-33.41 Alma 37:37.42 D&C 88:63, John 16:24, Moses 6:52 and 3 Nephi 27:29.43 Spencer W. Kimball, “When the World Will Be Converted,” Ensign, September 1984.44 Ibid.45 Spencer W. Kimball, “Boys Need Heroes Close By,” Ensign, May 1976, 45.46 Psalms 37:5.47 Alma 26:27.48 D&C 135:4.49 Mosiah 27:31. 50 Boyd K. Packer, “Follow the Rule,” Speech to BYU, January 14, 1977.51 Anonymous.52 M. Russell Ballard, “Return and Receive,” General Conference Afternoon Session, April 2017.53 Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854.54 Philippians 4:13.55 D&C 46:9.56 Jeffrey R. Holland, “Tomorrow the Lord Will Do Wonders among You,” Ensign, May 2016.57 Joshua 3:5.58 Isaiah 9:6.59 Holland, Ibid.60 Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “The Gift of Grace,” Ensign, May 2015.61 Ether 12:27.62 Carlos E. Asay, “Would You Sell?”, Ensign, May 1985.

63 David A. Bednar, “In the Strength of the Lord,” Ensign and Liahona, Nov. 2004, 77.64 Richard C. Edgley, “Behold the Man,” Ensign, October 1999.65 D&C 25:13.66 D. Todd Christofferson, “The Power of Covenants,” Ensign, May 2009, p. 22.67 D&C 3:5.68 Mosiah 2:41.69 1 Nephi 14:14.70 2 Nephi 9:18.71 D&C 68:6.72 D&C 1:5.73 D&C 49:27.74 D&C 32:3.75 D&C 39:12.76 D&C 93:51.77 D&C 88:72.78 Alma 40:12.79 D&C 19:37-38.80 D&C 79:2.81 D&C 84:88.82 D&C 84:88.83 D&C 39:12.84 D&C 44:5.85 D&C 28:8.86 D&C 31:5, 36:1, 60:7, 62:3.87 D&C 6:7, 11:7.88 Mormon 9:28.89 1 Nephi 3:7.90 Psalm 71:16.91 “In the Strength of the Lord,” Ensign, Nov. 2004