"During our time here on earth, we have been charged to develop the natural gifts and capabilities Heavenly Father has blessed us with. Then it will be our opportunity to use these gifts to become teachers and leaders of God’s children wherever they may be found on earth. To exercise these gifts, we must develop a purity of heart.
"The world needs people who can keep their word, who have a code of honor, and who can finish a task and endure to the end.
"As Latter-day Saints, we need not look like the world. We need not entertain like the world. Our personal habits should be different. Our recreation should be different. Our concern for family will be different. As we establish this distinctiveness firmly in our life’s pattern, the blessings of heaven await to assist us.
"How can we accomplish this goal? I know there is a loving Heavenly Father who wishes to help. He has made available sacred gifts—even the gifts of the Spirit. As we exercise and magnify these gifts, we will be able to accomplish the callings and responsibilities that will come into our lives."
- Robert D. Hales, "Gifts of the Spirit," Ensign, Feb. 2002, pp. 17-18
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The Lord told Joseph Smith, "to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God" (D&C 46:11). Each of us has gifts, and we should develop them appropriately so that we can "become teachers and leaders" in assisting with God's work. That is one of the things that will set us apart from the world:
Elder Hales suggests that finding and developing our personal spiritual gifts will help to bring out our distinctiveness from the world and allow us to serve and bless those around us.
(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2018)
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