Men and women receive their agency as a gift from God, but their liberty and, in turn, their eternal happiness come from obedience to His laws.
Today we find ourselves in another war. This is not a war of armaments. It is a war of thoughts, words, and deeds. It is a war with sin, and more than ever we need to be reminded of the commandments. Secularism is becoming the norm, and many of its beliefs and practices are in direct conflict with those that were instituted by the Lord Himself for the benefit of His children.
President Harold B. Lee said, "Next to life itself, free agency is God's greatest gift to mankind."
Victory in the War in Heaven was a victory for man's agency.
Satan, however, was not done. His backup plan-the plan he has been executing since the time of Adam and Eve-was to tempt men and women, essentially to prove we are undeserving of the God-given gift of agency. Satan has many reasons for doing what he does. Perhaps the most powerful is the motive of revenge, but he also wants to make men and women miserable like he is miserable. None of us should ever underestimate how driven Satan is to succeed. His role in God's eternal plan creates "opposition in all things" and tests our agency. Each choice you and I make is a test of our agency-whether we choose to be obedient or disobedient to the commandments of God is actually a choice between "liberty and eternal life" and "captivity and death."
A useful way to think about the commandments is they are loving counsel from a wise, all-knowing Heavenly Father. His goal is our eternal happiness, and his commandments are the road map. He has given us to return to Him, which is the only way we will be eternally happy. How significant are the home and the family to our eternal happiness? On page 141 of my little brown book, it states, "indeed our heaven is little more than a projection of our homes into eternity."
There are moral absolutes. Disobedience to the Lord's commandments will always deprive us of His blessings. These things do not change.
May we ever be a light on the hill, an example in keeping the commandments, which have never changed and will never change. Just as this small book encouraged LDS servicemen to stand morally firm in times of war, may we, in this latter-day war, be a beacon to all the earth and particularly to God's children who are seeking the Lord's blessings.
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