By BARBARA R. ACKROYD
Honor the name you have been given by remembering your ancestors and keeping a family book of remembrance, said Elder L. Tom Perry at Tuesday’s Devotional.
In his talk titled “The Value of A Good Name,” Elder Perry said, “The name we have been given is special because it blesses us with a heritage by which we can receive the great promise of the Lord to his children, even the gift of life eternal,” Elder Perry said.
From Abraham to Joseph Smith the value and importance of their names have been carried on and blessed their families for generations to come.
The first lesson taught to the Prophet Joseph Smith by Moroni was the necessity of families being sealed together, Elder Perry said.
Elijah brought the sealing power to bind on earth that which will be bound in the eternities to come, making it possible to perform the ordinances of the gospel for both the living and the dead, Elder Perry said.
“This made it possible for the eternal linking of families together,” he said.
“Genealogy,” Elder Perry said, “has become the number one hobby in the nation.”
The spirit of Elijah is the spirit of family kinship and unity. It motivates the concern to search out ancestral family members through family history, he said.
In 1966 when the Church announced a priesthood genealogy program, which said a knowledge of the written testimonies and spiritual experiences of family members and of the proved genealogies of the fathers helps families understand the doctrines that pertain to the exaltation of the family.
“Every faithful family should be diligently compiling a Book of Remembrance. In it should be found the story of the family, especially the story of its spiritual life, written by inspiration. It should also contain a genealogy of the family’s pedigree chart and family group records so that children may have the opportunity to acquire knowledge of their fathers,” Elder Perry said.
Those who keep a book of remembrance are more likely to remember the Lord in their daily lives, Elder Perry said.
“Journals are a way of counting our blessing and leaving an inventory of these blessings for our posterity,” Elder Perry said, quoting President Spencer W. Kimball.
“As I have studied the history of my family and have learned how much they sacrificed for the gospel, I have grown to appreciate the value of a good name. It has built me a greater desire to do what I can do to bring honor to this good family name. It has also impressed upon me the responsibility I have to future generations,” he said.
Elder Perry said that your heritage and good name connects you with past generations, but your service, action and testimony will carry on your good name for future generations.
