"The Book of Mormon is filled with examples of spiritual counterfeiters, who followed Satan's methods of lying and deceiving others for their own gain. By studying their tricks ad tactics, we begin to notice their mistakes and errors in the same way a trained eye begins to notice the difference between genuine and counterfeit currency. The more we train our eye to identify the differences, the better prepared we will be to expose the counterfeiters of today and resist their lies."
- Dennis C. Gaunt (April Ensign 2014, Recognizing Satan's Counterfeits)
Girls, it is crucial that you learn to recognize the counterfeits of Satan. He is the father of all lies. Satan will tell you one thing and do another, while Jesus Christ will actually do what he says. Even as an adult I have had to learn to see through counterfeits, especially with friends. I have had many experiences where I have been betrayed by those who I thought were my friends. In reality, these individuals were never really my friend, but were using me for their own purposes. The pain of being betrayed is awful, it hurts on the inside and isn't easy to fix. I often think of our Savior and how he was betrayed by one of his twelve apostles, Judas Iscariot. In order to get money, Judas betrayed the Savior by kissing Him on the cheek in front of some of the soldiers so they would know who Jesus was and arrest Him. How heartbreaking this must have been for our Savior to be betrayed by someone he thought was His friend.
It is important for us to understand what the atonement of Jesus Christ really is and how it applies to each one of us as daughters of a Heavenly Father who loves us without condition. Christ's atonement is something very personal and powerful. When we really understand His atonement we will be better equipped to recognize Satan's counterfeits and to stay as far away from them as possible. Satan's only goal is to drag you down into an endless misery.
- Love, Sister Landers
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