Personal Worthiness

There were three main qualifications that the manual emphasized and they were:

1. Clean thoughts
2. Moral Cleanliness
3. Keeping the Commandments

Personal Worthiness is Necessary to Accomplish Missionary Work
D&C 38: Christ is only pleased with cleanliness. If we are not one we are not his. We need to be living the commandments of Christ in order to have his Spirit and to properly share our testimonies.
D&C 133 talks more about remaining clean and proclaiming the word. "Go ye out from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness, which is spiritual Babylon...But let not your flight be in haste, but let all things be prepared before you." We need to rid ourselves of wickedness and prepare ourselves before we can become clean, basically. The rest of the chapter was full of prophecies about the coming of Christ, the weak being made strong, and the raising of the dead.

The manual was full of really intimidating quotes about what we needed to be doing and changing in our lives, and all the standards that we are held to. But there was one really wonderful thing that stood out to me that seemed to speak to my current feeling and situation:

"We are not asking for perfection. The work of the Lord is done by ordinary people who work in an extraordinary way. The Lord magnifies those who put forth the effort. Nowhere is this more evident than in missionary service...With small means the Lord accomplishes His marvelous work." ("Missionary Service," First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 2003, 17-18)

Personal Worthiness Allows us to Receive Temple Blessings
Psalms 24- The only people that dwell with the Lord are those with clean hands and a pure heart. Essentially, keep the commandments, repent and forsake your sins and you will be saved.
D&C 109- As we receive our temple blessings, we are armed with God's power to do good, and we are given angels to watch over us. We will bear tidings of joy and truth. No one will prevail against us.
I really don't understand the things that go on in the temple, or the importance of them. I haven't been through the temple, it makes sense. But those sound like blessings worth having, and worth keeping my covenants for.


The Repentance Process Allows us to Become Worthy

Isaiah 1:16 ¶ ^aWash you, make you ^bclean; put away the ^cevil of your doings from before mine eyes; ^dcease to do evil;

17 ^aLearn to do ^bwell; seek ^cjudgment, ^drelieve the oppressed, ^ejudge the fatherless, plead for the ^fwidow.

18 Come now, and let us ^areason together, saith the Lord: though your ^bsins be as scarlet, they shall be as ^cwhite as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19 If ye be ^awilling and ^bobedient, ye shall eat the ^cgood of the land:

20 But if ye refuse and ^arebel, ye shall be ^bdevoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.


Isaiah always did have the words to make you never want to sin ever again.

Helaman 14:13 And if ye ^abelieve on his name ye will repent of all your sins, that thereby ye may have a remission of them through his ^bmerits.

It's been a topic of conversation with friends of mine about why we believe that works are so important and why we have to do more than have faith enough to believe in Jesus Christ and claim him as our Redeemer. My answer to that has always been: "Why would the Lord spend all that time and effort filling the mouths of prophets with commandments to do good and with cries of repentance if it were just a suggestion?

Another scripture about repentance for those that are concerned that if they have sinned they will not be worthy of the same blessings.

D&C 58:42 Behold, he who has ^arepented of his ^bsins, the same is ^cforgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.

43 By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins—behold, he will ^aconfess them and ^bforsake them.

We need to forsake the sins, confess them, and then forget them and stop feeling bad about our past. There's no use in beating ourselves up over things that we've done if we have faith that Christ is our Redeemer, and if we have a determination to change.

Isaiah 43:25 I, even I, am he that ^ablotteth out thy ^btransgressions for mine own ^csake, and will not remember thy sins.

Hebrews 8:12 For I will be merciful to their ^aunrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I ^bremember no more.

Alma talks about his repentance process and the experience that he had of having his sins lifted from him, which were great and many:

Alma 36:18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, ^ahave mercy on me, who am ^bin the ^cgall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting ^dchains of ^edeath.

19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my ^apains ^bno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

20 And oh, what ^ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!