- Be obedient to guiding principles of gospel

- Follow the counsel of the prophets- Live in a way to receive influence from Holy Ghost

The greatest protection against temptation is an active and vibrant testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Elder Rulon G. Craven said in the Sunday afternoon session.

"Temptation is a necessary part of our earthly experience," explained Elder Craven of the Seventy. "The Lord, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, explains the reason why we are tempted: `It must needs be that the devil should tempt the children of men, or they could not be agents unto themselves; for if they never should have the bitter they could not have the sweet.' " (D&C 29:39.)

Elder Craven said that Nephi explains the consequences of yielding to temptation in the Book of Mormon: "The temptations of the devil . . . blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost." (1 Nephi 12:17.)

"To blind the eyes is not to see or acknowledge the consequences of our actions," Elder Craven said. "To harden the heart is to ignore or not be willing to accept counsel. To be led into the broad roads is to give in to worldly enticements and lose the influence of the Holy Spirit in our lives."

Elder Craven likened temptation to a magnetic force that holds a metal object in its power. "It loses its magnetic force and power when you turn away from it," he explained. "So we must turn away from temptation, then it will loose its power."

Allowing worldly thoughts to enter your mind, Elder Craven said, can lead to unrighteous acts. "When evil thoughts arise - Stop! Think! Control your mind! Visualize a large exit sign in your mind's eye. Immediately change your thoughts. Get off that avenue of thinking," he counseled.

To overcome temptation, Church members must control their thoughts, he continued. "Discipline what you allow your eyes to see, your ears to hear, your mouth to speak and your hands to touch."

Yielding to temptation, he said, can lead to the addiction of both body and spirit.

Elder Craven said that when people allow themselves to succumb to temptation they are acting against counsel: the counsel of the Holy Ghost, the prophet, sound doctrine, covenants and often those who love them most.

He defined temptation as "an inner struggle to do what is right," and said members should expect temptation, "for without it there would be little education and little character improvement."

He counseled members to overcome temptation by: "Obedience to the guiding principles and doctrines of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, following the counsel of the prophet leaders and living in such a way that our lives are constantly influenced by the power of the Holy Ghost."

Elder Craven asked members to train their mind to obey gospel principles and covenants.