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November, Week 1

Day 1

Primary
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 124:1-36.
2. Watch the video “Building Nauvoo.”
3. As difficult as the last six years had been for the Saints, things started to look better in the spring of 1839: The refugee Saints had found compassion among the citizens of Quincy, Illinois. Guards had allowed Joseph Smith and other Church leaders to escape captivity in Missouri. And the Church had just purchased land in Illinois where the Saints could gather again. Yes, it was swampy, mosquito-infested land, but compared to the challenges the Saints had already faced, this probably seemed manageable. So they drained the swamp and drafted a charter for a new city, which they named Nauvoo. It means “beautiful” in Hebrew, though it was more an expression of faith than an accurate description, at least at first. Meanwhile, the Lord was impressing His Prophet with a sense of urgency. He had more truths and ordinances to restore, and He needed a holy temple where He could “crown [His Saints] with honor, immortality, and eternal life” (Doctrine and Covenants 124:55). In many ways, these same feelings of faith and urgency are evident in the Lord’s work today.

Youth
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 124:1-36.
2. While the Prophet Joseph Smith was in Liberty Jail, thousands of Saints were driven out of their homes in Missouri. After his release, Joseph reunited with his family and almost 5,000 other refugees from Missouri who had been taken in by the kind people of Quincy, Illinois. The Lord directed the Saints to buy and gather on inexpensive swampland near the edge of the Missouri River. They lived in tents and wagons while they began to build a city they would later call Nauvoo. Mosquitos infected many Saints with malaria, which caused severe fevers, chills, and many deaths.
3. One person they visited was Elijah Fordham. He was so sick that his wife, Anna, was weeping and preparing his burial clothes.

Joseph approached Elijah and took his hand. “Brother Fordham,” he asked, “have you not faith to be healed?”

“I am afraid it is too late,” he said.

“Do you not believe that Jesus is the Christ?”

“I do, Brother Joseph.”

“Elijah,” the prophet declared, “I command you, in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, to arise and be made whole.”

The words seemed to shake the house. Elijah rose from his bed, his face flush with color. He dressed, asked for something to eat, and followed Joseph outside to help minister to many others. (Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days, vol. 1, The Standard of Truth, 1815–1846 [2018], 402–3)

Day 2

Primary
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 124: 37-83.
2. As the Saints settled in Nauvoo, Illinois, the Lord commanded them to build a temple as He had previously done in Kirtland, Ohio; Jackson County, Missouri; and Far West, Missouri. At the time of the Lord’s command to build the Nauvoo Temple, He had already revealed the doctrine of baptisms for the dead to the Prophet Joseph Smith.
3. Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles helps us understand the Lord’s purpose in giving us temple ordinances.

We do not build or enter holy temples solely to have a memorable individual or family experience. Rather, the covenants received and the ordinances performed in temples are essential to the sanctifying of our hearts and for the ultimate exaltation of God’s sons and daughters. (David A. Bednar, “Let This House Be Built unto My Name,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2020, 85)

4. In the Kirtland Temple, the Savior and other heavenly messengers appeared (see Doctrine and Covenants 110). The Kirtland Temple was also a place of inspiration and learning. In Nauvoo, the Lord revealed additional ordinances that take place in temples today. Today in temples, faithful members of the Church perform baptisms for the dead, receive endowments (including washings and anointings), and participate in temple sealings.
5. Read “what are temples?”

Youth
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 124: 37-83.
2. As the Saints settled in Nauvoo, Illinois, the Lord commanded them to build a temple as He had previously done in Kirtland, Ohio; Jackson County, Missouri; and Far West, Missouri. At the time of the Lord’s command to build the Nauvoo Temple, He had already revealed the doctrine of baptisms for the dead to the Prophet Joseph Smith.
3. Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles helps us understand the Lord’s purpose in giving us temple ordinances.

We do not build or enter holy temples solely to have a memorable individual or family experience. Rather, the covenants received and the ordinances performed in temples are essential to the sanctifying of our hearts and for the ultimate exaltation of God’s sons and daughters. (David A. Bednar, “Let This House Be Built unto My Name,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2020, 85)

4. In the Kirtland Temple, the Savior and other heavenly messengers appeared (see Doctrine and Covenants 110). The Kirtland Temple was also a place of inspiration and learning. In Nauvoo, the Lord revealed additional ordinances that take place in temples today. Today in temples, faithful members of the Church perform baptisms for the dead, receive endowments (including washings and anointings), and participate in temple sealings.
5. When you join the Church, you receive two ordinances: baptism and confirmation. Likewise, the temple endowment is received in two parts.

In the first part, you will privately and individually receive what are called the “initiatory” ordinances. These ordinances include special blessings regarding your divine heritage and potential. As part of these ordinances, you will also be authorized to wear the sacred temple garment.

In the second part, you will receive the rest of your endowment in a group setting. This takes place in an instruction room with others who are attending the temple. Events that are part of the plan of salvation are presented. They include the Creation, the Fall of Adam and Eve, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the Apostasy, and the Restoration. You will also learn more about the way all people can return to the presence of the Lord. Some of the endowment is presented through video and some by temple officiators.

During the endowment ordinance, you will be invited to make certain covenants with God. These covenants include the following:

Law of obedience, which includes striving to keep God’s commandments

Law of sacrifice, which involves doing all we can to support the Lord’s work and repenting with a broken heart and contrite spirit

Law of the gospel, which is the higher law that Jesus taught while He was on the earth

Law of chastity, which involves having sexual relations only with the person to whom we are legally and lawfully wedded according to God’s law

Law of consecration, which involves dedicating our time, talents, and everything with which the Lord has blessed us to building up Jesus Christ’s Church on the earth

When you keep your covenants, you come closer to the Savior and your relationship with Him grows more powerful. God promises that those who keep their covenants will receive blessings in this life and the opportunity to return to live with Him forever.

At the end of the endowment, participants symbolically return to the Lord’s presence as they enter the celestial room. There you can take time to ponder, pray, read the scriptures, or quietly share your thoughts with family and friends. It is a place of peace, where you can also find comfort and divine guidance. (See “About the Temple Endowment,” temples.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.)
6. Why do I need to receive temple ordinances? Elder Robert D. Hales (1932–2017) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

The primary purpose of the temple is to provide the ordinances necessary for our exaltation in the celestial kingdom. Temple ordinances guide us to our Savior and give us the blessings that come to us through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. (Robert D. Hales, “Blessings of the Temple,” Ensign, Oct. 2009, 48)

Day 3

Primary
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 124:84-122.
2. Shortly after the Prophet’s father, Joseph Smith Sr., passed away, the Lord called Hyrum Smith to the calling that his father had held—the Patriarch to the Church.
3. Read “When to Receive Your Patriarchal Blessing.”

Youth
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 124:84-122.
2. Shortly after the Prophet’s father, Joseph Smith Sr., passed away, the Lord called Hyrum Smith to the calling that his father had held—the Patriarch to the Church.
3. Read “When to Receive Your Patriarchal Blessing.”

Day 4

Primary
1. Today, read about the Nauvoo Temple.
2. Watch the video presentation about the restored Nauvoo, Illinois temple.

Youth
1. Today, read about the Nauvoo Temple.
2. Watch the video presentation about the restored Nauvoo, Illinois temple.

Week 2

Day 1

Primary
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 125 and 126.
2. On July 9, 1841, the Lord gave a revelation to Brigham Young through the Prophet Joseph Smith. After Brigham served multiple missions in the United States, Canada, and England, the Lord said his missionary journeys were acceptable to Him. He said it was time for Brigham to take special care of his family.
3. One of Brigham Young’s greatest challenges was public speaking. He said, “I was about as destitute of language as a man could well be” (in Journal of Discourses, 5:97). He recalled a time one week after his baptism when he expected four experienced speakers who were members of the Church to preach, but they did not. He said:

I was but a child, so far as public speaking and a knowledge of the world was concerned; but the Spirit of the Lord was upon me, and I felt as though my bones would consume within me unless I spoke to the people and told them what I had seen, heard and learned—what I had experienced and rejoiced in; and the first discourse I ever delivered I occupied over an hour. I opened my mouth and the Lord filled it. (Brigham Young, in Journal of Discourses, 13:211)

4. The same year Brigham Young was baptized, his wife passed away. At great sacrifice, he arranged for the care of his two children and served missions to New York and upper Canada, where he baptized several people. After serving a mission for about a year, Brigham described his arrival in Kirtland, Ohio:

If any man that ever did gather with the Saints was any poorer than I was—it was because he had nothing. … I had two children to take care of. … I was a widower. … [I had] not a shoe to my foot, except a pair of borrowed boots. I had no winter clothing, except a homemade coat that I had had three or four years. … I had travelled and preached and given away every dollar of my property. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young [1997], 243)

5. After remarrying and serving five other missions, Brigham was called, with other Apostles, to serve a mission to England. Brigham described his mission:

We landed … as strangers in a strange land and penniless, but through the mercy of God we have gained many friends, established Churches in almost every noted town and city in the kingdom of Great Britain, baptized between seven and eight thousand, printed 5,000 Books of Mormon, … and have left sown in the hearts of many thousands the seeds of eternal truth … : in all these things I acknowledge the hand of God. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young [1997], 6)

Youth
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 125 and 126.
2. On July 9, 1841, the Lord gave a revelation to Brigham Young through the Prophet Joseph Smith. After Brigham served multiple missions in the United States, Canada, and England, the Lord said his missionary journeys were acceptable to Him. He said it was time for Brigham to take special care of his family.
3. One of Brigham Young’s greatest challenges was public speaking. He said, “I was about as destitute of language as a man could well be” (in Journal of Discourses, 5:97). He recalled a time one week after his baptism when he expected four experienced speakers who were members of the Church to preach, but they did not. He said:

I was but a child, so far as public speaking and a knowledge of the world was concerned; but the Spirit of the Lord was upon me, and I felt as though my bones would consume within me unless I spoke to the people and told them what I had seen, heard and learned—what I had experienced and rejoiced in; and the first discourse I ever delivered I occupied over an hour. I opened my mouth and the Lord filled it. (Brigham Young, in Journal of Discourses, 13:211)

4. The same year Brigham Young was baptized, his wife passed away. At great sacrifice, he arranged for the care of his two children and served missions to New York and upper Canada, where he baptized several people. After serving a mission for about a year, Brigham described his arrival in Kirtland, Ohio:

If any man that ever did gather with the Saints was any poorer than I was—it was because he had nothing. … I had two children to take care of. … I was a widower. … [I had] not a shoe to my foot, except a pair of borrowed boots. I had no winter clothing, except a homemade coat that I had had three or four years. … I had travelled and preached and given away every dollar of my property. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young [1997], 243)

5. After remarrying and serving five other missions, Brigham was called, with other Apostles, to serve a mission to England. Brigham described his mission:

We landed … as strangers in a strange land and penniless, but through the mercy of God we have gained many friends, established Churches in almost every noted town and city in the kingdom of Great Britain, baptized between seven and eight thousand, printed 5,000 Books of Mormon, … and have left sown in the hearts of many thousands the seeds of eternal truth … : in all these things I acknowledge the hand of God. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young [1997], 6)

Day 2

Primary
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 127.
2. In August 1840, Joseph Smith first taught the doctrine of baptism for the dead. Church members rejoiced in the opportunity to provide saving ordinances for their deceased relatives. Joseph Smith wrote letters to the Saints to instruct them regarding the ordinance of baptism for the dead.
3. Watch the video “Saints Learn About Baptisms for the Dead.”

Youth
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 127.
2. In August 1840, Joseph Smith first taught the doctrine of baptism for the dead. Church members rejoiced in the opportunity to provide saving ordinances for their deceased relatives. Joseph Smith wrote letters to the Saints to instruct them regarding the ordinance of baptism for the dead.
3. Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles testified of Jesus Christ and the redemption of the dead.

Our charge extends as far and as deep as the love of God to encompass His children of every time and place. Our efforts on behalf of the dead bear eloquent witness that Jesus Christ is the divine Redeemer of all mankind. His grace and promises reach even those who in life do not find Him. Because of Him, the prisoners shall indeed go free. (D. Todd Christofferson, “The Redemption of the Dead and the Testimony of Jesus,” Ensign, Nov. 2000, 11)

4. Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that those in spirit prison are freed when they accept the ordinances performed on their behalf in the temple (see also Doctrine and Covenants 138:30–33):

Temple and family history work is not just about us. Think of those on the other side of the veil waiting for the saving ordinances that would free them from the bondage of spirit prison. (Quentin L. Cook, “Roots and Branches,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 46)

5. How did some of the early Saints respond to hearing the doctrine of baptism for the dead? President Wilford Woodruff (1807–98) declared:

The moment I heard of [baptism for the dead] my soul leaped with joy. … I went forward and was baptised for all my dead relatives I could think of. …

… I felt to say hallelujah when the revelation came forth revealing to us baptism for the dead. I felt that we had a right to rejoice in the blessings of Heaven. (Wilford Woodruff, “Remarks,” Deseret News, May 27, 1857, 2; punctuation modernized)

Vilate Kimball (1806–67) wrote:

President Smith has opened a new and glorious subject. … He says it is the privilege of this church to be baptised for all their kinsfolks that have died before this Gospel came forth; even back to their great-Grandfather and Mother. … By so doing, we act as agents for them and give them the privilege of coming forth in the first resurrection. …

… Thus you see there is a chance for all. Is not this a glorious doctrine? (Vilate Kimball, letter to Heber C. Kimball, Oct. 11, 1840, Church History Library, Salt Lake City; spelling and punctuation modernized)

6.When did Heavenly Father institute the ordinance of baptism for the dead? President Russell M. Nelson taught:

Through the ages, many of His children have had access to the blessings of the gospel, but many more have not. Before the foundation of the world, our Heavenly Father instituted the ordinance of baptism for those who die without a knowledge of the gospel [see Doctrine and Covenants 124:33]. He loves those children too. (Russell M. Nelson, “Generations Linked in Love,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 92)

Consider the great mercy and fairness of God, who, before the foundation of the world, provided a way to give temple blessings to those who died without a knowledge of the gospel. (Russell M. Nelson, “Becoming Exemplary Latter-day Saints,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2018, 114)

Day 3

Primary
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 128:1-14.
2. Joseph Smith wrote letters to the Saints about the doctrine of baptism for the dead. He expounded upon biblical prophecies to help the Saints understand the importance of being baptized on behalf of their relatives who had died. This lesson can help students find information about their deceased ancestors and prepare to perform ordinances for them in the temple.
3. Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that we have the responsibility to perform temple ordinances for specific people:

The doctrine of the family in relation to family history and temple work is clear. The Lord in initial revelatory instructions referred to “baptism for your dead” [Doctrine and Covenants 127:5; emphasis added]. Our doctrinal obligation is to our own ancestors. This is because the celestial organization of heaven is based on families. (Quentin L. Cook, “Roots and Branches,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 45)

4. President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency testified about our important responsibility:

Many of your ancestors did not receive those ordinances. But in the providence of God, you did. And God knew that you would feel drawn to your ancestors in love and that you would have the technology necessary to identify them. He also knew that you would live in a time when access to holy temples, where the ordinances can be performed, would be greater than ever in history. And He knew that He could trust you to accomplish this work in behalf of your ancestors. …

… Many youth have discovered that giving of their time to do family history research and temple work has deepened their testimony of the plan of salvation. It has increased the influence of the Spirit in their lives and decreased the influence of the adversary. It has helped them feel closer to their families and closer to the Lord Jesus Christ. They have learned that this work saves not just the dead; it saves all of us [see Doctrine and Covenants 128:18]. (Henry B. Eyring, “Gathering the Family of God,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 21, 22)

Youth
1. Today, read Doctrine and Covenants 128:1-14.
2. Joseph Smith wrote letters to the Saints about the doctrine of baptism for the dead. He expounded upon biblical prophecies to help the Saints understand the importance of being baptized on behalf of their relatives who had died. This lesson can help students find information about their deceased ancestors and prepare to perform ordinances for them in the temple.
3. Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that we have the responsibility to perform temple ordinances for specific people:

The doctrine of the family in relation to family history and temple work is clear. The Lord in initial revelatory instructions referred to “baptism for your dead” [Doctrine and Covenants 127:5; emphasis added]. Our doctrinal obligation is to our own ancestors. This is because the celestial organization of heaven is based on families. (Quentin L. Cook, “Roots and Branches,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 45)

4. President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency testified about our important responsibility:

Many of your ancestors did not receive those ordinances. But in the providence of God, you did. And God knew that you would feel drawn to your ancestors in love and that you would have the technology necessary to identify them. He also knew that you would live in a time when access to holy temples, where the ordinances can be performed, would be greater than ever in history. And He knew that He could trust you to accomplish this work in behalf of your ancestors. …

… Many youth have discovered that giving of their time to do family history research and temple work has deepened their testimony of the plan of salvation. It has increased the influence of the Spirit in their lives and decreased the influence of the adversary. It has helped them feel closer to their families and closer to the Lord Jesus Christ. They have learned that this work saves not just the dead; it saves all of us [see Doctrine and Covenants 128:18]. (Henry B. Eyring, “Gathering the Family of God,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 21, 22)

5. How can performing ordinances for our ancestors help us become like Jesus Christ? Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles declared:

The Lord gives us divine opportunity to become more like Him as we offer proxy saving temple ordinances others need but cannot do for themselves. We become more complete and perfected as we become “saviours … on mount Zion” [Obadiah 1:21]. (Gerrit W. Gong, “Happy and Forever,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 84–85)

6. President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency taught:

The day can then come when, as a youth, they receive a temple recommend to perform proxy baptisms in the temple. In that experience, their feeling can grow that the ordinances of the temple always point to the Savior and His Atonement. As they feel they are offering a person in the spirit world the chance to be cleansed of sin, their feeling will grow of helping the Savior in His sacred work of blessing a child of our Heavenly Father. (Henry B. Eyring, “I Love to See the Temple,” Liahona, May 2021, 30–31)

Day 4

Primary
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 128:15-25.
2. Watch the video “The Promised Blessings of Temple and Family History Work.”
3. Then watch “The Promised Blessings of Temple and Family History Work 2.”

Youth
1. Today read Doctrine and Covenants 128:15-25.
2. Watch the video “The Promised Blessings of Temple and Family History Work.”
3. Then watch “The Promised Blessings of Temple and Family History Work 2.”