Christlike Character Grows Out of a Christlike Heart

 

The Character of Christ

By President D. Todd Christofferson

Second Counselor in the First Presidency

When we consider the character of the Savior, we tend to focus immediately on His attributes, such as virtue, integrity, humility, compassion, and courage, but we should also consider, What is it in Jesus that gives rise to such character traits? I believe they are the natural fruit of the thoughts, desires, and intents of His heart. Christlike character grows out of a Christlike heart. Thus, if we are to succeed in developing a Christlike character, we must possess His motivations—His thoughts, desires, and intents of the heart. For us, it will require what the scriptures call a mighty change of heart....

The love of Christ yields character traits such as compassion, patience, a willingness to correct “when moved upon by the Holy Ghost,” and certainly a willingness to forgive....

The meek are models of self-control, using or withholding their considerable powers and gifts as is best in every situation.

Developing a Deep Bond with Our Heavenly Father

 

Choose Jesus Christ as Your Guide

By Elder Edward B. Rowe

Of the Seventy

We follow in His footsteps within the covenant path by being in holy places, like the temple, and by having sacred experiences through partaking of the sacrament, praying, studying the scriptures, and ministering to others. The more time we spend with our guide in this way—and strive to follow His example—the more we will develop a deep bond and special relationship with Him and our Heavenly Father.

We will feel the Savior’s love, be blessed with His strength, and have greater trust in Him. Even our very natures will change to become more like Him. We will feel more joy. And our love and gratitude for Him will grow.

The Lord Wants a Relationship with You, Not For You to Be Comfortable

 

Growing Closer to God in Times of Change

By Sister Kristin M. Yee

Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency

I think the Lord is more interested in building a relationship with you and me than He is in our comfort in knowing what lies ahead.

He has promised His power, perspective, and peace as we prioritize our covenants and time with Him—in personal prayer, studying His word, repenting often, ministering in His name, engaging in His healing work of family history, and worshipping in His house, the house of the Lord.

I’ve learned that having faith, even great faith, does not preclude us from seeing our weaknesses and opportunities to change. In fact, the closer we come to Christ and become more like Him, the more we “see” by the Spirit those things we need to change.

Turning to Him in our humility and weakness builds trust and love.

Increasing our faith in Christ increases our peace in Christ.

Accessing Christ's Power to Change our Natures

 

The Book of Mormon and the Miracle of Easter

By Bradley R. Wilcox

Former First Counselor in the Young Men General Presidency

Through the doctrine of Christ, we can access His power, and He can change our very natures. Without faith and repentance, there would be little desire to change. Without baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost, there would be limited power to change. Without the principle of enduring to the end, the change to our internal landscape would forever be superficial and temporary, without time to sink deep into our hearts and become part of who we are....

the Savior taught, “Blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost” (verse 6). The Holy Ghost is the sanctifier, “the messenger of grace by which the blood of Christ is applied to take away our sins and sanctify us (see 2 Nephi 31:17).” With His constant companionship, we become merciful and pure in heart like Christ. The Holy Ghost will help us become peacemakers who can endure persecution just as Christ did. (See 3 Nephi 12:7–11.)

The Holy Ghost can help us change our behavior and lift our desires and motivations to a higher level.

Truly Make Christ Your God

“With every covenant we make and every effort we give to keep it, we can receive ‘a new heart’ and a fuller measure of ‘a new spirit.’ Little by little, the more we invite His goodness into our hearts and cast out the self-defeating voices in our heads, we become His people because we truly make Him our God. Jesus so keenly wants to be our King and our Shepherd and our Prince of Peace, and we can choose to make Him so in our own hearts and minds.”

Elder Patrick Kearon “Jesus Christ and Your New Beginning,” general conference, Oct. 2025, Gospel Library

 

Butterflies are a symbol of transformation

 “Butterflies are a symbol of transformation,” she says. “A homely caterpillar builds a chrysalis, completely dissolves itself, and then becomes a beautiful butterfly. That’s such a metaphor for life. Change and trials are hard, and we’re constantly having to reinvent ourselves and push our limits and hopefully become what God wants us to become.”

https://magazine.byu.edu/article/andrea-jackman-rosborough-stained-glass-butterflies/

We Change for the Better When We Focus on Him

 

Taking on the Name of Jesus Christ

By Elder Dale G. Renlund

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

For us, the more we identify with and remember Jesus Christ, the more we want to be like Him. As His disciples, we change for the better when we focus on Him, more so than when we focus on ourselves. We strive to become like Him and seek to be blessed with His attributes. We pray fervently to be filled with charity, the pure love of Christ....

As we make additional covenants with God, we take upon ourselves more fully the name of Jesus Christ. Consequently, God blesses us with more of His power....

We become more spiritually receptive. We have more courage to confront seemingly impossible circumstances. We are strengthened more in our resolve to follow Jesus Christ. We more speedily repent and return to Him when we transgress. We become better at sharing His gospel with His power and authority. We help those in need while being less judgmental, far less judgmental. We retain a remission of our sins. We have greater peace, and we are more cheerful because we can always rejoice. His glory will be round about us, and His angels will have charge over us.

Offer Him Our Own Sacrifice

 "Come unto Christ and Receive His Gifts"

Elder David P. Homer

Liahona Dec 2025

"If we truly love Christ, we will offer Him our own sacrifice - a humble heart and a willingness to follow Him." 

Spiritual Heart Tests

 

The Lord Looketh on the Heart

By Elder Ronald M. Barcellos

Of the Seventy

...it is not just about what we do—our words and actions—but also why we do what Jesus Christ has asked us to do—our desires and motives. He said, “For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.” Our Heavenly Father desires more than mechanical acts of obedience and service from His children. He wants us to do those things with real intent because we love Him with all our hearts. He wants us to desire to become like Him....

Assessing Your Heart with Spiritual Tests

First, Our Focus, Priorities, and Motives

A treasure is something precious to us, something to which we dedicate effort and attention. Where we choose to spend our time and focus our attention, as well as what motivates us to do what we do, says a lot about our hearts. The Savior warned that while many are called by Him, few are chosen “because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and [they] aspire to the honors of men.” Do I make the Savior a priority in my life? Is my eye single to His glory in all that I do?...

Second, Our Willingness to Obey God’s Commandments

While the Savior does not expect perfection in keeping His commandments, He does ask that we desire and strive to keep them with all our hearts.

Third, Our Diligence in Studying the Scriptures and Seeking Revelation

Am I making a sincere effort to study the scriptures daily and to apply my heart to understand them through prayer?

Fourth, Our Thoughts and Words

The quality of our thoughts and words is a good indicator of the purity of our hearts. Am I fostering too many negative thoughts about others’ actions or motives, or even about myself? Am I too quick to judge and condemn others? Do I seek to find excuses or justification for my mistakes? And what about my words? Do they lift and inspire those around me? Or do they often create conflict and resentment?...

Improving Your Heart’s Spiritual Health

First, Strengthen Your Relationship with Christ

As we dedicate time daily to come closer to Christ, our hearts are changed. Daily study of the scriptures, accompanied by sincere prayer and regular fasting, will increase your love for the Savior and strengthen your faith and desire to repent and humbly yield your heart to God.

Second, Align Your Will with His

As we strive daily to keep His commandments, sincerely repent from our sins, and persevere in taking His name upon us and aligning our will with His will, we can be blessed with the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

Last, Serve God and Others with All Your Heart

When we choose to do each thing the Lord has asked us to do—such as keeping the commandments, partaking of the sacrament, worshipping in the temple, and serving others—with a sincere heart and with real intent, each act of service and worship becomes a powerful spiritual experience that strengthens our faith and testimony and fills our hearts with joy and love for God and our fellow man....

Brothers and sisters, I invite you to give your whole heart to the Savior today. Let each act of worship and service be sincere and intentional. Set aside the distractions of the world and strive to have meaningful time for the Lord every day of your lives. Repent and return to Him with all your heart, and He will forgive you and encircle you in the arms of His love. Seek not the things of this world, but choose to have your eye single to His glory and seek the things of a better one. He knows your thoughts and the desires of your heart, and as you come unto Him, He will bless you with strength, confidence, peace, and joy in this life and a place in His celestial kingdom for all eternity.

Love of God and a Willing Mind

 "The heart is symbolic of love and commitment. We make sacrifices and bear burdens for those we love that we would not endure for any other reason. If love does not exist, our commitment wanes...

"Having 'a willing mind' connotes giving our best effort and finest thinking and seeking God's wisdom. It suggests that our most devoted lifetime study should be of things that are eternal in nature. It means that there must be an inextricable relationship between hearing the word of God and obeying it."

Elder Donald L. Hallstrom, "The Heart and a Willing Mind," Ensign, June 2001, 31-32.

Resentment Removed From My Heart

 

The Love of God

By Elder Benjamin M. Z. Tai

Of the Seventy

President Russell M. Nelson has invited us to “remove, with the Savior’s help, the old debris in our lives” and to “lay aside bitterness.” He has encouraged us to “bolster our spiritual foundations” through “centering our lives on [the Savior] and on the ordinances and covenants of His temple.” He promised that “as we keep our temple covenants, we gain greater access to the Lord’s strengthening power. … We experience the pure love of Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father in great abundance!”

I have a friend who was blessed with a beautiful family and a promising career. This changed when an illness left him unable to work, which was followed by a divorce. The years since have been difficult, but his love for his children and the covenants he has made with God have sustained him. One day he learned that his former spouse had remarried and had requested a cancellation of their temple sealing. He was troubled and confused. He sought peace and understanding in the house of the Lord. The day after his visit, I received the following message from him:

“I had an amazing experience in the temple last night. I think it was obvious that I still held quite a bit of resentment. … I knew that I must change, and I have been praying all week to do so. … Last night in the temple I literally felt the Spirit remove the resentment from my heart. … It was such a relief to be freed from it. … An ominous physical burden bearing down on me has been lifted.”

What does it mean to have a hardness of heart?

 Harden Not Your Heart

By Elder Christopher H. Kim

Of the Seventy

What does it mean to have a hardness of heart?

The Korean translation of “hardness” in the Book of Mormon is 완악 (Wan-Aak: 頑惡). This phrase uses the Chinese character “Wan” (頑), meaning “stubborn,” and “Aak” (惡), meaning “wicked.” When we harden our hearts, we are blinded, and good things cannot come into our hearts or our minds. We become stubborn and begin to place more focus on worldly desires, closing our hearts to the things of God. We choose to focus solely on our own thoughts while not accepting the opinions and guidance of others. We choose to not open our hearts to the things of God but instead to the influence of the things of the world and the adversary. When our hearts are hardened, we resist the influence of the Holy Ghost. We are “slow to remember the Lord,” and over time we become “past feeling” His words....

What can we do to not harden our hearts?

First, we can practice daily repentance....

Second, we can practice humility....

Third, we can trust and rely on our Savior.

Contention is Spiritually Unhealthy for Us

 

The Peace of Christ Abolishes Enmity

By Elder Dale G. Renlund

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Yet, in some instances, the spiritual stress test has shown tendencies toward contention and divisiveness. This suggests that we have work to do to change our hearts and to become unified as the Savior’s true disciples. This is not a new challenge, but it is a critical one....

His latter-day work is compromised when contention or enmity⁹ exists among His disciples.¹⁰ Second, contention is spiritually unhealthy for us as individuals. We are robbed of peace, joy, and rest, and our ability to feel the Spirit is compromised....

If I am quick to take offense or respond to differences of opinion by becoming angry or judgmental, I “fail” the spiritual stress test. This failed test does not mean that I am hopeless. Rather, it points out that I need to change. And that is good to know.

After the Savior’s visit to the Americas, the people were unified; “there was no contention in all the land.”¹² Do you think that the people were unified because they were all the same, or because they had no differences of opinion? I doubt it. Instead, contention and enmity disappeared because they placed their discipleship of the Savior above all else. Their differences paled in comparison to their shared love of the Savior, and they were united as “heirs to the kingdom of God.”¹³ The result was that “there could not be a happier people … who had been created by the hand of God.”¹⁴

Unity requires effort.¹⁵ It develops when we cultivate the love of God in our hearts¹⁶ and we focus on our eternal destiny.¹⁷ We are united by our common, primary identity as children of God¹⁸ and our commitment to the truths of the restored gospel. In turn, our love of God and our discipleship of Jesus Christ generate genuine concern for others. We value the kaleidoscope of others’ characteristics, perspectives, and talents.¹⁹ If we are unable to place our discipleship to Jesus Christ above personal interests and viewpoints, we should reexamine our priorities and change.

We might be inclined to say, “Of course we can have unity—if only you would agree with me!” A better approach is to ask, “What can I do to foster unity? How can I respond to help this person draw closer to Christ? What can I do to lessen contention and to build a compassionate and caring Church community?”

When love of Christ envelops our lives,²⁰ we approach disagreements with meekness, patience, and kindness.²¹ We worry less about our own sensitivities and more about our neighbor’s. We “seek to moderate and unify.”²² We do not engage in “doubtful disputations,” judge those with whom we disagree, or try to cause them to stumble.²³ Instead, we assume that those with whom we disagree are doing the best they can with the life experiences they have.