Where Did I Come From? My life before Earth

“I am a child of God, and he has sent me here.” 1 Did we exist and have a life before we were born on earth? Yes. We are literal children of God, both our Heavenly Father and our Heavenly Mother.

“All men and women are in the similitude of the universal Father and Mother, and are literally the sons and daughters of Deity…the offspring of celestial parentage.” 2

We are as beloved of our Heavenly Parents as earthly parents should love their children.

Where did I come from? My life before Earth is explained in the Plan of Salvation

Because parents love their children, they want them to learn, grow, reach their highest potential, experience happiness, and to dwell near them. Our Father in Heaven is no different. In the preexistence--the life before this Earth life--God created a plan to help us, his spirit chidren, accomplish these goals.

This plan is called the Plan of Salvation. God was the author of it; the Plan of Salvation is an evidence of God’s love for us. Knowing that our life before began as a child of God and that he has a plan for us helps to answer the question: 'Where did I come from?'

God's stated work related to 'Where did I come from?'

The scriptures describe Heavenly Father’s work as it relates to the Plan of Salvation: “This is my work and my glory: to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” 3

1. Immortality means we will be resurrected—our bodies and spirits will be reunited forever.
2. Eternal life means living the life that God lives--where he lives and how he lives. 4

'Where did I come from?'--gifts, challenges and divine help

The question to 'Where did I come from?' is 'I came from God.' When our Heavenly Father created the Plan of Salvation, he provided that we can receive the greatest of his blessings, based upon our choice. Therefore, Heavenly Father gave us our freedom to choose between right and wrong with the stipulation that we accept the results of our choices, both good and bad. Good choices bring blessings; bad choices bring consequences, which we are required to face and overcome.

Additionally, Heavenly Father's Plan of Salvation mandated that we would need to confront our weaknesses and deal with challenges of every kind that we might change our behavior and develop Godlike characteristics. But how could we survive this life and its harsh lessons, overcome constant internal and external obstacles, cleanse ourselves from the effects of sin, then face and conquer death?

We couldn’t.

We would need help.

We would need a Savior.

Because God is a God of love he determined that he would send his most capable and beloved Son to save us. The Savior, Jesus Christ, is the central figure in God’s Plan of Salvation.

'Where did I come from?'--The answer to 'life before' revealed.

Before Heavenly Father created the Earth, he called all of his children to a great council in which he presented his Plan of Salvation. 5 When he asked for a volunteer to come to earth and save us from sin, sorrow, and death, Jesus Christ, the Firstborn Son of Heavenly Father, stood and offered to fulfill the Father’s plan. He would come to Earth and sacrifice his life for us, and he would give all the glory to the Father.

Then Lucifer, another spirit son of God, rebelled against Heavenly Father and the Plan of Salvation, and “sought to destroy the agency [freedom] of man”…“He became Satan, and he and his followers were cast out of heaven and denied the privileges of receiving a physical body and experiencing mortality.” 6

Questions about 'Where did I come from? My life before Earth'

• Are you a literal child of God? Did you exist and live with him before this life?
• What was that existence called?
• In the preexistence, Heavenly Father created a plan to help us progress and return to him. What is the name of that plan?
• What did God say was his work and his glory?
• Who do immortality and eternal life mean?
• What are some gifts, challenges and divine help that are associated with the Plan of Salvation?
• In the preexistence, who was chosen as the central figure of the Plan of Salvation to help us through the expereince of this life and return safely to God?
• In what setting did Heavenly Father reveal to us his Plan of Salvation?
• Who opposed Heavenly Father, his plan of Salvation, and the appointment of Jesus Christ as our Savior?

References for 'Where did I come from? My life before Earth'

1. (Hymns, #301)
2. (From an official statement of First Presidency, Improvement Era 1909 Nov:75-81)
3. (Moses 1:39)
4. (John 17:3) – And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
5. (Abraham 3:22-26) – Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones; And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born. And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them; And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.
6. (Moses 4:3-4; (See True to the Faith, p.116; Abraham 3:27-28) – Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down; And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice. (Moses 4:3-4) (See True to the Faith, p.116). And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first. And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him (Abraham 3:27-28).