President George Albert Smith on staying on the Lord's side of the line

President George Albert Smith (1870-1951) was the son of John Henry Smith (1848-1911) and grandson of George A. Smith (1817-1875), both of whom served as members of the Twelve. He was called as an apostle in 1903, and then served as the 8th president of the Church from 1945 until his death in 1951.

"I think I would like to repeat something I have told many times as a guide to some of these younger men. It was an expression of advice of my grandfather for whom I was named. He said: 'There is a line of demarcation well defined between the Lord's territory and the devil's territory. If you will remain on the Lord's side of the line, the adversary cannot come there to tempt you. You are perfectly safe as long as you stay on the Lord's side of the line. But,' he said, 'if you cross onto the devil's side of the line, you are in his territory, and you are in his power, and he will work on you to get you just as far from that line as he possibly can, knowing that he can only succeed in destroying you by keeping you away from the place where there is safety.'

"All safety, all righteousness, all happiness are on the Lord's side of the line. If you are keeping the commandments of God by observing the Sabbath day, you are on the Lord's side of the line. If you attend to your secret prayers and your family prayers, you are on the Lord's side of the line. If you are grateful for food and express that gratitude to God, you are on the Lord's side of the line. If you love your neighbor as yourself, you are on the Lord's side of the line. If you are honest in your dealing with your fellow men, you are on the Lord's side of the line. If you observe the Word of Wisdom, you are on the Lord's side of the line. And so I might go on through the Ten Commandments and the other commandments that God has given for our guidance and say again, all that enriches our lives and makes us happy and prepares us for eternal joy is on the Lord's side of the line. Finding fault with the things that God has given to us for our guidance is not on the Lord's side of the line."

- George Albert Smith, Conference Report, Oct. 1945, pp. 115-120
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The concept of a "line of demarcation" is helpful for us in thinking about our commitment to standards, and the environments in which we find ourselves in life. If there are areas or situations that might be considered "the devil's territory," it's pretty clear there is danger there and we would be wise to avoid frequenting the area:

President Smith's suggestions of ways to stay on the Lord's side of the line were interesting and helpful. Those suggestions included things such as observing the Sabbath day, individual and family prayer, loving neighbors, dealing honestly, and so on. In short, "all that enriches our lives and makes us happy and prepares us for eternal joy is on the Lord's side of the line."