Setting goals remind us why we're here

Goals that will help us become worthy to dwell eternally with our Heavenly Father may take an entire lifetime. Some goals may not even be attained during a lifetime on earth, but may require additional effort in the hereafter. In the scriptures Heavenly Father has stated His major goal concerning His work: "For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). In order for His goal to be realized in our lives, we need to set goals that will enable us to make our lives productive and happy and that will help us be worthy to return to our Heavenly Father. Success should not necessarily be gauged by always reaching the goal set, but by progress and attainment.

Although each of us is individually unique, our main goal in life should be the same—to become worthy to achieve exaltation in the celestial kingdom and return to live with our Heavenly Father as a part of His eternal family. Because individual talents, abilities, and weaknesses differ, each of us needs to set different individual goals to help us achieve our main goal. For example, some of us may need to improve our ability to pay tithing, whereas this may already be easy for some. Some of us may need to learn to keep the Sabbath day holy, while this may pose no problem for others. We will not always have the same goals as others because our individual needs are not always the same.

Our patriarchal blessings will also help us understand what our individual goals should be. Achieving our righteous goals will come as a result of planning, effort, and prayer. We should remember that we will never fail as long as we are striving to reach these goals and seeking to understand Heavenly Father’s will for us. We have accepted the gospel and joined the Church to help us become like our Father in Heaven.

Setting goals will help us accomplish our worthy desires in mortality and in the hereafter. Individual goals can guide us to achieve personal triumphs. Family goals can lead us to become unified, exalted families. As we work to accomplish righteous goals, we are striving to fulfill the Lord’s commandment, "Be ye therefore perfect" (Matthew 5:48). Ponder what you want to achieve in mortality, and prayerfully seek to know Heavenly Father’s will for you.