A message from President Monson

At a youth fireside on Sunday Morning, Elder Ochoa, second counselor in the Young Men general presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, told us about when he was set apart to that calling by President Monson.

President Monson, as you may know, has served on the national board of the Boy Scouts of America since 1969. He loves Scouting, and he loves boys.

Anyway, when he set apart the Young Men general presidency, he gave them a message to deliver to young men leaders throughout the church. It was this:

Tell the young men leaders not to lay the ladder flat. If you lay it flat, boys will just fall through the holes. Don't lay the ladder flat. Raise it up.

The message here is that boys need to do hard things. If we make it too easy on them, they will just fall through the holes. But by raising the ladder up, and expecting them to do hard things, they can climb to greater heights.

Elder Ochoa said this not at the adult training on Saturday, but at the youth fireside on Sunday. He was speaking both to adult advisers and to quorum leaders. He spoke at some length about the importance of youth leadership in the Aaronic Priesthood quorums (and by extension, Scouting).

Except for the Bishop, it is the youth who hold the keys of presidency in the young men program. In fact, 50% of the people who hold Priesthood keys in a ward are young men. The Lord trusts young men to lead. Elder Ochoa insisted that it be so.

He said we were at war and unless the quorum presidencies are presiding then the enemy is winning every single battle.

Presiding over their quorums is one of those hard things youth need to be doing. Don't lay the ladder flat.