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had gone through tribulations andtrials for the Gospel, and she did notintend, if humanly possible, to let achild of hers lose what she had comeso far to gain.2The wealthy familyused every possible argument, andIsabelle herself cried and begged tobe allowed to go, but Agnes remainedfirm. As you can imagine, 16-year-oldIsabelle felt as if her life was ruined.

Isabelle Hoggan is my great-grandmother, and I am most gratefulfor the testimony and conviction thatburned so brightly in her mothersheart, which did not allow her to tradeher daughters membership in theChurch for worldly promises. Today,hundreds of her descendants whoenjoy the blessings of membershipin the Church are the beneficiaries of

Agness deep-seated faith and conver-sion to the gospel.

Young friends, we live in periloustimes, and the decisions which youare called upon to make on a daily, or

even hourly, basis have eternal con-sequences. The decisions you makein your daily life will determine whathappens to you later. If you do not yethave a firmly rooted testimony andconviction that The Church of JesusChrist of Latter-day Saints is the king-dom of God on the earth, now is thetime to do what it takes to gain thatconviction. To delay making the effortrequired to earn that kind of convic-tion can be dangerous to your soul.

True conversion is more thanmerely having a knowledge of gospelprinciples and implies even more than

just having a testimony of those princi-ples. It is possible to have a testimonyof the gospel without living it. Beingtruly converted means we are actingupon what we believe and allowingit to create a mighty change in us, orin our hearts.3In the booklet True tothe Faith,we learn that conversion is

Isabelle, was lucky enough to findemployment as a servant to a wealthy,non-LDS family.

Isabelle lived in their large homeand helped look after their youngerchildren. In exchange for her services,a small wage was paid each weekto her mother. Isabelle was soonaccepted as a member of the familyand began to enjoy many of the same

privileges, such as taking dance les-sons, wearing beautiful clothing, andattending the theater. This arrange-ment continued for four years, untilthe family for whom Isabelle worked

was transferred to another state. Theyhad grown so fond of Isabelle thatthey approached her mother, Agnes,and asked for permission to legallyadopt her. They promised they wouldprovide her with a good education,see that she married well, and make

her an heir to their estate with theirown children. They would also con-tinue to make payments to Agnes.

This struggling widow and motherhad a hard decision to make, but shedid not hesitate for a moment. Listento the words of her granddaughter,

written many years later: If her lovehad not compelled [her] to say no, shehad an even better reasonshe hadcome all the way from Scotland and

By Bonnie L. OscarsonYoung Women General President

Brothers and sisters, what a hum-bling experience it is to stand atthis pulpit where so many of the

heroes of my life have stood. I wouldlike to share with you some of thefeelings of my heart and direct themespecially to the youth.

One of the great heroes from theOld Testament was the prophet-

warrior Joshua. He extended this

invitation to the children of Israel,whom he led: Choose you this daywhom ye will serve; . . . but as forme and my house, we will serve theLord.1Joshuas declaration demon-strates true conversion to the gospel.For Joshua and all of us, conversionto gospel principles comes throughrighteously living the principles ofthe gospel and being true to our cov-enants with the Lord.

I would like to share a conversion

story from my family history aboutanother of my heroes. Her name isAgnes Hoggan, and she and her hus-band joined the Church in Scotlandin 1861. Suffering great persecution intheir homeland, they immigrated to

America with their children. Severalyears later, Agnes became a widowwith eight children to support andworked hard to keep them fed andclothed. Her 12-year-old daughter,

Be Ye ConvertedTrue conversion occurs as you continue to act upon thedoctrines you know are true and keep the commandments,day after day, month after month.

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a process, not an event. You becomeconverted as a result of . . . righteousefforts to follow the Savior.4It takestime, effort, and work. My great-great-grandmother had a strong convictionthat the gospel was more importantfor her children than all that the worldhad to offer in the way of wealth andcomfort because she had sacrificed,endured, and lived the gospel. Herconversion came through living theprinciples of the gospel and sacrificingfor them.

We have to go through that sameprocess if we want to gain that samekind of commitment. The Saviortaught, If any man will do his will, heshall know of the doctrine, whetherit be of God, or whether I speak ofmyself.5Sometimes we try to do itbackward. For example, we may takethis approach: I will be happy to livethe law of tithing, but first I need toknow that its true. Maybe we evenpray to gain a testimony of the law of

tithing and hope the Lord will blessus with that testimony before wehave ever filled out a tithing slip. It

just doesnt work that way. The Lordexpects us to exercise faith. We haveto consistently pay a full and honesttithe in order to gain a testimony oftithing. This same pattern applies to allthe principles of the gospel, whetherit is the law of chastity, the principle ofmodesty, the Word of Wisdom, or thelaw of the fast.

I would like to share an exampleof how living a principle helps usbecome converted to that principle. I

was a young woman in the 60s andthe only LDS girl in my high school.It was a revolutionary period charac-terized by the rejection of traditionalmorals, drug use, and an anythinggoes mentality. Many of my peers

were good people but found it easyto get caught up in the excitement of

this new morality, which actually wasjust the old immorality. My parentsand teachers at church had impressedupon me the value of treating mybody with respect, keeping a clearmind, and most of all, learning to trustin the Lords commandments. I made

the decision to avoid situations whereI knew alcohol would be present andto stay clear of tobacco and drugs. Itoften meant I was not included at par-ties, and I rarely dated. Drug use wasbecoming more and more commonamong young people, and the dangers

were not as well known as they aretoday. Many of my peers later sufferedpermanent damage from mind-alteringdrugs or got caught up in seriousaddictions. I was grateful to have been

taught to live the Word of Wisdom inmy home, and I gained a deep testi-mony of that principle of the gospel asI exercised faith and lived it. The goodfeeling that came to me from livinga true gospel principle was the Spiritof the Holy Ghost confirming that theprinciple was true. That is when trueconversion begins to take place.

The prophet Moroni, in the Book ofMormon, taught, I would show unto

the world that faith is things which arehoped for and not seen; wherefore,dispute not because ye see not, for yereceive no witness until after the trial of

your faith.6In our world where instantgratification is the expectation, we areoften guilty of expecting the reward

without having to work for it. I believeMoroni is telling us that we must do the

work first and exercise faith by livingthe gospel, and then we will receivethe witness that it is true. True con-

version occurs as you continue to actupon the doctrines you know are trueand keep the commandments, day afterday, month after month.

This is a glorious time to be ayouth in the Church. You are the firstto participate in the youth curriculum

Come, Follow Me,which has as oneof its main purposes your conver-sion to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Itis well to remember that no matterhow inspired your parents and youthleaders may be, you have [the]primary responsibility for your ownconversion. No one can be convertedfor you, and no one can force youto be converted.7Conversion takesplace as we are diligent about saying

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our prayers, studying our scriptures,attending church, and being worthyto participate in temple ordinances.Conversion comes as we act uponthe righteous principles we learn

in our homes and in the classroom.Conversion comes as we live pureand virtuous lives and enjoy thecompanionship of the Holy Ghost.Conversion comes as we under-stand the Atonement of Jesus Christ,acknowledge Him as our Savior andRedeemer, and allow the Atonementto take effect in our lives.

Your personal conversion will helpyou as you prepare to make covenants

in the temple, serve missions, andestablish your own future homes. As

you are converted, you will have adesire to share with others what youhave learned, and your confidence

and ability to testify to others withconviction and power will increase.This desire to share the gospel withothers and the confidence to tes-tify boldly are natural results of trueconversion. The Savior taught Peter,When thou art converted, strengthenthy brethren.8

Remember Joshua, the prophet-warrior? He was not only convertedhimself, but he worked tirelessly to

the end of his life to bring the chil-dren of Israel to God. We read in theOld Testament, And Israel served theLord all the days of Joshua.9A person

who has experienced true conver-sion draws upon the power of the

Atonement and receives salvation forhis or her own soul, then reaches outto exert a powerful influence upon allthose who know him or her.

Living the gospel and standing inholy places is not always easy or com-fortable, but I testify that it is worthit! The Lord counseled Emma Smithto lay aside the things of this world,and seek for the things of a better.10I suspect we cannot begin to imagine

just how magnificent those things of abetter world are!

I testify that we have a lovingHeavenly Father whose greatest desireis to help and bless us in our efforts tolive the gospel and be converted. Hehas clearly stated that His main focusand work is our immortality and

eternal life.11He desires to bring ushome to His presence. I testify that as

we act upon the doctrines of the gos-pel and put them into daily practice,

we will become converted and willbecome the means of accomplishingmuch good in our families and in the

world. May we all be blessed in ourdaily efforts to reach for that goal ismy prayer in the name of Jesus Christ,amen.

NOTES

1. Joshua 24:15. 2. Fuschia Stringham, Sketch of the Life

of Isabelle Hunter Hoggan Stringham(unpublished personal history, 1934), 4.

3. Mosiah 5:2. 4. True to the Faith: A Gospel Reference

(2004), 41. 5. John 7:17. 6. Ether 12:6. 7. True to the Faith,43. 8. Luke 22:32. 9. Joshua 24:31.10. Doctrine and Covenants 25:10.11. Moses 1:39.