All of us can receive divine direction for our lives. If you are doing your best to honor the covenants you have made with your Heavenly Father, you can act in faith knowing that you will receive His guidance in your life. I was pleased to share my thoughts on this during a conversation with the director of social media for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during my time at BYU-Idaho last week.

Susan and I were overwhelmed by the love we felt as we looked back on the first 25 years of BYU-Idaho (@byuidaho) this weekend. And while we appreciate the past, let us also embrace the future as disciples of Jesus Christ and witnesses of the kingdom of God rollingforth in all the world.

Ahí están a los que defienden!!!

Putting money or something of value at risk to bet on a particular outcome or event is an activity that has plagued mankind almost, I suppose, from the beginning of time. And time has not made it any more worthwhile or any less harmful. Unfortunately, in recent years, gambling has become incredibly pervasive. #GeneralConference

Many of our hearts ache for loved ones who have stepped away from obedience to God’s laws. In our grief, we continuously ponder the whys, hows, and what ifs. We feel we have failed. We preach, teach, and invite—but often to no avail. By divine design, brothers and sisters, everyone must choose for themselves to follow Jesus Christ. I ask you to turn over to Jesus Christ your despair for those wayward souls. We cannot change their hearts, but He can; He is a God of miracles. Our Savior has already paid for the sins and errant choices of all of God’s children, including those for whom you and I grieve. He knows them. He knows their hearts; He loves them. He gave His very life to bring them home, all the way home. By the power of Jesus Christ’s Atonement, there is always a way back! In the vernacular, the Savior says to all who grieve, “I’ve got this!” Never, never, give up on those you love. Remember Jesus Christ is the answer. He is, always has been, and always will be. Trust Him. He’s got this! #GeneralConference

El viernes 25 Luis Ramírez Alcántara fue asaltado por varios delincuentes que trataron de robarle su vehículo, en Villa María del Triunfo. Estaba con tres niños, dos hijos y un sobrino. Repelió el ataque con un arma legal, hiriendo a un delincuente (prontuariado) y haciendo huir a los demás. Ramirez esta protegido por la ley de legítima defensa (32026) aprobada por el anterior Congreso. Y ahora nuevamente hay una campaña para desarmar a los civiles que cumplen la ley y permitir que solo los delincuentes estén armados. (En la foto Ramírez cargando a su hija de 11 meses con el arma en la mano).

Atención: 5,5 millones de muertos en el Congo: silencio 500 mil muertos en Siria: silencio 500 mil muertos en Sudán: silencio 400 mil muertos en Yemen: silencio 300 mil muertos en Iraq: silencio 250 mil muertos en Afganistán: silencio 70K muertos en Gaza (la mayor parte terroristas): ¡¡¡GENOCIDIO!!! ¿Deficiencia aritmética, insensibilidad o simple antisemitismo?

For the first time in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more than 90,000 missionaries are now serving throughout the world. The milestone was announced this week as the number of young women serving as full-time missionaries — over 30,000 — became the largest cohort of sister missionaries ever in the Church’s history. These missionaries serve in more than 500 missions around the world, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, serving in local communities and inviting others to come unto Christ. newsroom.churchofjesuschrist…

When you decide to follow Jesus Christ, it is not because it is the easiest choice, the default option, or the path of least resistance.   That would prove nothing about you or about the virtues of His gospel.   At some point in every human life, you get the opportunity to show, by your choices, what really matters to you. You get to demonstrate just how much you love God and how earnestly you want to be with Him.   Last week, Harriet and I were thrilled to speak at the Provo Missionary Training Center with our remarkable missionaries—including our wonderful grandson Niklas—who are showing their love for God by choosing to serve others as missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   For each of us who serves Jesus Christ, we get to demonstrate, by our consistent choices, that we believe in what we are building and that it will be monumental, even majestic.   Never be weary of well-doing. Instead, be joyful, be grateful, rejoice in the freedom to choose this wonderful work.

We had a heavenly experience this week on the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, meeting with 114 faithful missionaries from Haiti. Missionaries in Haiti have not had the opportunity to meet with a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for many years—certainly more than a decade.  It was my sacred privilege to personally convey the love, gratitude, and admiration of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for these amazing disciples of Jesus Christ.  Their devotion to the Savior and His work is inspiring to witness.

Charlie Kirk had a unique gift for articulating the good — the goodness of family, faith, and America. One year ago today, he was killed for it. We’ll honor his legacy by building great things and holding to account the enemies of civilization.

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the groundbreaking date for the Piura Peru Temple. The groundbreaking ceremony will be held on Saturday, November 14, 2026. Elder Steven C. Barlow, a member of the South America Northwest Area Presidency, will preside at the event. Read more on Church Newsroom. newsroom.churchofjesuschrist…

The Church made a $1.2 million donation to strengthen maternal and newborn health services in Pakistan. The donation will help launch and sustain a new two-year initiative with @UNICEF.

During the week of Aug. 30 to Sept. 5, the First Presidency sent out a letter invitation to general conference, the Church announced the theme for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration, plus seven more stories.

We grieve for those who have lost their homes, who have lost their possessions, or are living in uncertainty following the devastating wildfires last month in Spokane, Washington. But we rejoice that lives were saved. That is a miracle. Affected members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints lost nearly everything, but they didn’t lose their faith in Jesus Christ. Despite overwhelming tragedy and loss, their faith is safe. I marvel at the faith of Cody and Haylee Woodbury (below). While fleeing from their home, they helped neighbors to learn of the danger. We rejoice in what we’ve seen of people taking care of people, independent of whether they are a member of the Church or not. We are all sons and daughters of God, and we are all linked together.

Real men are accountable for their actions, acknowledge their mistakes, apologize, and try to set things right. I met some real men recently, members of my home ward I want to tell you about. Recently, my wife Ruth substituted as a teacher in a youth Sunday School class. The students were 12- and 13-year-old young men and young women. Some of the young men were acting like, well, 12- and 13-year-old young men. They were a bit casual and less than engaged than ideal in the lesson about Job. Ruth had given the students a handout with some scriptures to read. Of course, paper airplanes were made of the handouts (is anyone surprised?). Ruth who is an excellent and adaptable teacher collected the airplanes, continued with the lesson, and thought no more about it. On the following Thursday evening, we had a knock on our door. Three of the young men were on the porch. They handed Ruth a letter that read: Dear Sister Renlund, We want to apologize for our behavior in Sunday School. We meant no disrespect even though our actions said otherwise. We failed to meet our duty as Deacons and we are sorry. We have learned from our mistake and better learned what our Aaronic Priesthood duty is. We have made a bouquet of paper airplanes for you to show our appreciation for teaching our class and for helping us learn our duty better. Thank you for what you do for the Church. Love, The Deacons Quorum I am grateful for their example to me of being priesthood holders and real men.