In the last couple of months, we’ve seen new policies regarding our youth. Baptized children can now give talks in Sacrament meeting. And young women will become official greeters.
For years, I’ve heard people marvel at the youngsters who sing with our choirs, something they never see in other faiths’ choirs. I’ve watched children give their own candy to someone who has run out at our Trunk-or-Treat Halloween events. I’ve heard two Primary girls whisper back and forth, about how to invite a particular classmate to church!
Something is happening to our young people. It is happening fast, right before our eyes. And it reminds me of the Army of Helaman, the 2,000 stripling warriors who rescued their own parents by going to what looked like a suicide mission, a truly impossible battle. And yet those boys covenanted! They trusted the Lord because their mothers taught them to. And they were not only victorious, but alive—every last one of them.
This kind of valiance is appearing in the faces, the words, and the actions of our youth. I’m lucky to have a closeup view of this as I teach early-morning Seminary in California.
Believe me, these kids are nothing like teenagers were in my day. We were numbskulls, frankly. Sure, a rare few were striving to know the Lord and do His will. But it seemed like the rest of us were just goof-offs, trying to be cool rather than spiritual, and funny rather than wise.
Not so today. Today the majority of the kids I see at church are phenomenal. Insightful. Sincere. Compassionate. Determined to serve missions. Setting a great example at school. Mature beyond their years. They know the gospel better than college kids did in my day.
Whether it’s their parents, their Primary teachers, or their own motivation to study the scriptures, something has given them an edge. These kids know who they are and how to live with Heavenly Father again. You can see light in the eyes of these youngsters, enthusiasm in their faces.
President Boyd K. Packer observed the same thing. He said, “Despite the opposition, trials, and temptations, you need not fail or fear. I speak to the youth more personally than I usually do, comparing my youth with yours. You are precious beyond measure. I have seen you in dozens of countries and on every continent. You are much better than we were when young. You know more about the gospel. You are more mature and more faithful.”
We have more than 72,000 missionaries serving right now. New missions, like new temples, are coming fast. You may recall a few years ago when we agreed not to proselyte in Israel so that we could lease land there, for the BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Easter Studies. The lease was signed, and then someone remarked, “Oh, we know that you are not going to proselyte, but what are you going to do about the light that is in their eyes?”
And they are not the only ones who have noticed. Elder Richard G. Scott said, “The faculty at our three universities note a significant increase in capacity and spiritual sensitivity of students. Something extraordinary is happening. Do you sense it? Truly, as obedience and morality decline in the world, the Lord is sending more exceptional spirits to earth. As a body they excel the average capacity of their forebears. Their potential for personal growth and positive contribution is enormous.”
No kidding. I see them bear their testimonies with conviction. There’s no squirming or worrying about what peers might think. They stand on solid ground as warriors in God’s kingdom, and nobody can hold them back.
President Russell M. Nelson has said they are “sent to earth at this precise time, the most crucial time in the history of the world, to help gather Israel. There is nothing happening on this earth right now that is more important than that. There is nothing of greater consequence. Absolutely nothing…My beloved younger brothers and sisters, you are among the best the Lord has ever sent to this world. You have the capacity to be smarter and wiser and have more impact on the world than any previous generation! … You are the hope of Israel, ‘children of the promised day’!”
So how can we as parents, teachers, and ward members, rise to the challenge of helping them prepare for future leadership? We need to step up our game as well, and become the kind of people who can build the builders.
It means some serious praying and pondering. We need to set a good example, and take an interest in the youth around us. Learn their names, ask them about their interests, see the potential in every one of them. President M. Russell Ballard once said, “We have raised the bar…But that doesn’t raise it just for the youth. That raises it for the parents, who have the primary responsibility for teaching their children principles. That raises it for the leaders. That raises it for the teachers. We’ve all got to take a step up in a world that is unraveling as fast as this one is.”
Even years ago, President George Q. Cannon said, “God has reserved spirits for this dispensation who have the courage and determination to face the world, and all the powers of the evil one, visible and invisible, to proclaim the gospel and maintain the truth and establish and build up the Zion of our God fearless of all consequences. He has sent these spirits in this generation to lay the foundation of Zion never more to be overthrown, and to raise up a seed that will be righteous, and that will honor God, and honor Him supremely, and be obedient to Him under all circumstances.”
This also means that we owe it to this new generation, to show them optimism. So many today bemoan the way the world has changed. And it has—often it is ugly and frightening. BUT… take a cue from our leaders. The prophet and our apostles are always upbeat. They’re not unaware of today’s challenges, but they have nearly tangible faith in God and in today’s youth.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell said, “You young disciples are so privileged, and though the times in which you will live will be turbulent, there will be glorious accomplishments, too. … My feelings are such that I salute you! Perhaps this feeling is so strong because I have a more keen sense of who you really are than you do, a clearer picture of your rendezvous in these, your days, speaking of you collectively.”
President Boyd K. Packer echoed his confidence: “What a wonderful time to be young! You have knowledge of many more things than we needed to have. It is my conviction that your generation is better and stronger than was ours — better in many ways! I have faith that you young men and young women can meet the world on its own terms and conquer it!”
This is how we adequately prepare the next generation. We’re building the builders, honing the heroes. And then we’ll step back and marvel at what they can do. They’re going to be spectacular.
Joni Hilton is a Latter-day Saint author, Seminary teacher, and shares life hacks at https://m.youtube.com/c/jonihilton. Her novel, Golden, is now an Amazon audiobook.
