- Believe in prophet

- Listen to him- Obey his counsel

"Listen to a prophet's voice and obey," Elder Robert D. Hales of the Council of the Twelve said Saturday morning. "There is safety in following the living prophet."

Elder Hales noted that the world is filled with turmoil, sadness and destruction, "much of which is brought on by man's failure to listen to the words of the prophets. There has always been a desperate need for the steady and reassuring voice of a living prophet of God: one who will speak the mind and will of God in showing the way to spiritual safety and personal peace and happiness."

He told the Old Testament story of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, who faced with fear several great armies attempting to possess his land. The king called for a fast in the kingdom and prayed for guidance. The answer came through the prophet Jahaziel who told Jehoshaphat not to fear because the Lord was with him.

Elder Hales then referred to Jehoshaphat's "very important counsel that we today would do well to obey. Indeed, just as the people of Judah, our lives may depend upon it - even our eternal lives:

" `Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.' (2 Chron. 20:20.)"

Prophets declare the will of the Lord in this day just as they have in the past, Elder Hales said.

"The desire of the prophets," Elder Hales continued, "is to assist our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ in bringing about the great objectives of the plan of salvation, or, as one ancient prophet called it, `the great plan of happiness.' (Alma 42:8.)"

Then Elder Hales declared: "If we listen to the prophets of this day, poverty would be replaced with loving care for the poor and needy. Many serious and deadly health problems would be avoided through compliance with the word of wisdom and the laws of sexual purity. Payment of tithing would bless us that we would have sufficient for our needs. If we follow the counsel given by the prophets, we can have a life in mortality where we do not bring upon ourselves unnecessary pain and self-destruction."

That would not mean freedom from all challenges, he continued. "But if we listen to the counsel of our prophet, we will become stronger and be able to withstand the tests of mortality. We will have hope and joy. All of the words of counsel from prophets of all generations have been given so that we may be strengthened and then be able to lift and strengthen others."

Elder Hales bore testimony of the calling of President Gordon B. Hinckley as the one in whom the keys of the priesthood are currently vested.

"Our spiritual safety," concluded Elder Hales, "lies in turning to the clear voice of our living prophet. If we listen to his voice and obey his counsel, we will be able to live as Christ would have us live and endure to the end so that one day we may, along with our families, return back into the presence of our Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ."