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“Duty to God Certificate Requirements,” Aaronic Priesthood: Fulfilling Our Duty to God [Deacon], 11

The requirements for earning the Duty to God certificate for deacons are outlined below.

Priesthood Duties and Standards

Do all of the following regularly:

• 1. Keep the commandments.

• 2. Live the standards in For the Strength of Youth.

• 3. Have daily personal prayer.

• 4. Read the scriptures.

• 5. Attend sacrament meeting, priesthood meeting, and other Church meetings.

• 6. Keep the Word of Wisdom.

• 7. Pay a full tithe.

• 8. Pass the sacrament.

• 9. Gather fast offerings.

• 10. Perform other assigned priesthood duties.

Family Activities

Do all of the following. Have a parent initial each goal when you complete it.

• ___ 1. Develop the habit of reading the scriptures daily. During your 2 years as a deacon, read 1 Nephi through Mosiah in the Book of Mormon. Share with your family a few of the prophetic statements about Jesus Christ.

• ___ 2. Read For the Strength of Youth, and discuss with your parents the importance of standards and values.

• ___ 3. Under the direction of your parents, organize and teach at least 4 family home evening lessons each year. You may want to consider using topics from For the Strength of Youth.

• ___ 4. Keep a written record of your family history. Ask a parent or the ward family history consultant to help you prepare a 4-generation pedigree chart.

• ___ 5. With the help and permission of a parent, prepare at least 2 meals for your family. Where possible, also wash and iron your clothes for 1 month.

• ___ 6. Read the  twelfth article of faith, and briefly describe to your parents the structure and major functions of your national government.

• ___ 7. Perform at least 2 service projects for your family each year.

Quorum Activities

Do all of the following. Have a priesthood leader initial each goal when you complete it.

• ___ 1. Read the Prophet Joseph Smith’s testimony in Joseph Smith—History 1:1–20, and discuss it with a priesthood leader.

• ___ 2. Explain to a priesthood leader the law of the fast and how fast offerings are used. Read Isaiah 58 and D&C 59.

• ___ 3. As assigned by a priesthood leader, give at least one 3- to 5-minute talk each year in a priesthood or sacrament meeting.

• ___ 4. Discuss with a priesthood leader the history and purposes of the Aaronic Priesthood and quorums.

• ___ 5. Participate in at least 2 deacons quorum service projects each year.

• ___ 6. Participate in baptisms for the dead, if possible. If not, talk with a priesthood leader about the temple and what it means to Latter-day Saints.

• ___ 7. Write a half-page explanation of the purpose of the sacrament. You can refer to Matthew 26:26, D&C 20:75–79, or the Topical Guide.

Personal Goals

To earn a Duty to God certificate in the 2 years you are a deacon, you must complete 8 or more personal goals under each of the 4 categories that follow. If these suggested goals do not fit your needs or abilities, you can modify the requirements, with the approval of your parents and Aaronic Priesthood leaders. Discuss your goals with your parents and a priesthood leader.

Have a parent or priesthood leader initial each goal when you have completed it. Keep a summary of your progress on page 32.

Spiritual Development

Complete 8 or more goals from this category. You can select from the goals listed below or write your own. These goals should help you strengthen your testimony, learn your priesthood duties, and understand the doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

• ___ 1. Identify 4 scriptures that testify of Christ, and talk about them with a parent or priesthood leader.

• ___ 2. Read “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” and “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles.” Review them with a parent or priesthood leader.

• ___ 3. Recite from memory the Articles of Faith to a parent or a priesthood leader.

• ___ 4. Read D&C 20:38–60, and talk with a parent or a priesthood leader about the duties of a deacon.

• ___ 5. At least once each year, bear your testimony.

• ___ 6. Read an account of one of your ancestors, or learn about an ancestor from one of your relatives. Report what you learned in family home evening or in a quorum meeting.

• ___ 7. Complete additional family history work, such as a family group record showing your parents as children with the other members of their families. Share this information with a parent or a priesthood leader.

• ___ 8. If you do not already have one, start a journal, and write in it regularly for 2 months.

• ___ 9. Set up a plan to be spiritually and financially prepared to go on a mission at age 19.

• ___10. Make a list of skills you will need to become a successful missionary. Talk to a parent or priesthood leader about how you can learn these skills.

• ___11. Invite at least 2 friends to a Mutual activity, Sunday meeting, or family home evening.

• ___12. Write a letter to your parents, your grandparents, or a ward or stake leader. Thank them for their example and positive influence on you.

• ___13. _______________________________________________________________

Physical Development

Complete 8 or more goals from this category. You can select from the goals listed below or write your own. These goals should help you develop good health habits, become more physically fit, learn teamwork, and practice safety.

• ___ 1. Run 2 kilometers or 1 1/4 miles, and set a goal for steady improvement.

• ___ 2. Develop and begin a 1-year plan to improve your personal physical fitness.

• ___ 3. Swim 50 meters, using 2 different strokes.

• ___ 4. Learn to float on your back in the water for at least 2 minutes.

• ___ 5. Learn how to rescue someone who is drowning.

• ___ 6. Hike 10 kilometers or 6 miles in 1 day.

• ___ 7. Prepare the equipment for an overnight camping trip. Show that you can set up a tent, cook on an open fire or on a camp stove, build a latrine, and restore the surroundings to how they were before your stay.

• ___ 8. While camping, show that you know the proper way to build a cooking fire or set up a camp stove. Teach someone else how to build a fire, emphasizing 5 safety rules.

• ___ 9. Learn a new game or sport.

• ___10. Play on a sports team in your quorum, ward, school, or community.

• ___11. Learn the rules of play, and officiate for a sport of your choice.

• ___12. Explain to a parent or priesthood leader the rules of safe bicycle riding. Complete a 30-kilometer or 20-mile ride.

• ___13. _______________________________________________________________

Educational, Personal, and Career Development

Complete 8 or more goals from this category. You can select from the goals listed below or write your own. These goals should help you become more self-reliant, develop talents, and gain leadership qualities.

• ___ 1. Make a plan to improve basic reading, writing, and arithmetic skills, and follow the plan for at least 3 months.

• ___ 2. Choose 2 careers you may be interested in doing someday. Find out what educational or other requirements you would need for them, and interview someone in each position to learn what you must do to prepare for these careers.

• ___ 3. Visit a government office. After your visit, explain to a parent or priesthood leader the function of the office.

• ___ 4. Learn how to purify water and to wash and prepare fresh fruits and vegetables.

• ___ 5. Learn emergency treatment for electrical shock, near drowning, serious burns, broken bones, heat exhaustion, and serious falls.

• ___ 6. Attend a cultural event such as a church, school, or community play, music program, or musical.

• ___ 7. Learn to play a musical instrument.

• ___ 8. Perform a musical selection in sacrament meeting or another church or community meeting.

• ___ 9. Develop and follow a financial budget for 3 months.

• ___10. Read at least 4 issues of a Church magazine.

• ___11. Learn computer and keyboarding skills. Demonstrate these skills by typing family history information in Personal Ancestral File or another similar program.

• ___12. Read the Word of Wisdom in D&C 89, and explain to a parent or priesthood leader what is meant by “and shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures.”

• ___13. _______________________________________________________________

Citizenship and Social Development

Complete 8 or more goals from this category. You can select from the goals listed below or write your own. These goals should help you serve others, improve social skills, and become a better member of your family, ward, community, and nation.

• ___ 1. Explain to a parent or priesthood leader how to be a friend, maintain a friendship, and resolve conflicts between friends.

• ___ 2. Be a friend to someone who may feel left out, and invite him to a quorum or Mutual activity.

• ___ 3. Show a parent or a priesthood leader that you know how to use proper manners while eating, greeting acquaintances in formal and informal settings, greeting a person of authority, and introducing a speaker at a public event.

• ___ 4. Teach your family to play a new game or sport.

• ___ 5. Explain to a parent or priesthood leader what it means to obey, honor, and sustain the law.

• ___ 6. Participate in a cultural event such as a school play or musical.

• ___ 7. Learn and practice proper dance etiquette.

• ___ 8. Explain Luke 6:31, and tell a parent or priesthood leader about when and how you have applied its teachings.

• ___ 9. Help organize and carry out a quorum or ward youth activity.

• ___10. With your quorum, clean up or repair a part of your neighborhood.

• ___11. Participate in 4 family, quorum, or ward social activities.

• ___12. Sing with a church, school, or community choir.

• ___13. _______________________________________________________________