“Return with honor” is a call that has become familiar to every Latter-day Saint. For Elder Robert D. Hales, this stirring directive was his unit's motto when he served as a jet fighter pilot in the United States Air Force, and he uses it often in his teaching. During his military days, the motto was a constant and powerful reminder to complete each mission honorably — and now it reminds us, the Lord's children, that what we do on earth can make it possible to return with honor to our heavenly home.

A beloved member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Hales writes with keen insight and compassion about the orderly preparations we need to make as we travel through mortality. Our journey of life has four vital stages:

• Decades of Preparation


• Decade of Decision


• Decades of Serving and Pressing Forward


• Decades of Serving and Enduring to the End

Elder Hales considers each of these essential periods using vivid stories from his own life, compelling scriptural insights, and the wisdom he has gained through a tender relationship with the Savior.

Whatever your stage in life, the message Elder Hales offers in Return: Four Phases of Our Moral Journey Home is clear: Keeping sacred covenants, prayerfully making life's important decisions, and embracing the Savior and His Atonement can prepare you for eternal life — the greatest gift of God. This volume is an inspired guide to your journey home.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Our Journey Home
   
   DECADES OF PREPARATION


2. Always Preparing


3. Remember Who You Are


4. Faith unto Salvation


5. Forgetting Those Things That Are Left Behind


6. The Gate of Baptism


7. The Gift of the Holy Ghost


8. Personal Revelation


9. Choosing Friends Wisely


10. The Preparatory Priesthood


11. Daughters of God


12. Lacing Up Your Boots


13. Overcoming the Adversary
    
    DECADE OF DECISION


14. Making Life's Most Important Decisions


15. Becoming Fishers of Men


16. Moving On


17. Avoiding Spiritual Shortcuts


18. Education for Life


19. Choosing an Eternal Companion


20. The House of the Lord
    
    DECADES OF SERVING AND PRESSING FORWARD


21. One Church Fits All


22. Fearless Love


23. Building a Sound Financial Foundation


24. True to Ourselves and Our Mission


25. Strengthening Families
    
    26.Feed My Lambs, Feed My Sheep


26. Feasting upon the Words of Christ


27. Following God's Prophets


28. The Journey of Lifelong Learning
    
    DECADES OF SERVING AND ENDURING TO THE END


29. Learning from Life's Trials


30. Like Simeon and Anna


31. Facing Death


32. The Atonement
    
    Index