"Faith, which is the very essence of personal conviction, has always been and always must be at the root of religious practice and endeavor."With penetrating insight and stirring conviction, Gordon B. Hinckley, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, explains how our lives can be enriched by an abiding faith in God and his gospel.Just as faith inspired the great religious movements in history, from the Exodus to the Reformation to the Restoration, faith can play a key role in our personal lives. President Hinckley writes, "Faith can become the very wellspring of purposeful living. There is no more compelling motivation to worthwhile endeavor than the knowledge that we are children of God." This "living, vital force" is a marvelous gift available to everyone.President Hinckley imbues his discussion with the confidence that the Lord will bless with success those who seek a testimony of the four gospel cornerstones: the divinity of Jesus Christ, the vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the truth of the Book of Mormon, and the restoration of the priesthood. "Without certitude on the part of believers," he observes, "a religious cause becomes soft, without muscle, without the driving force that would broaden its influence and capture the hearts and affections of men and women."