I see LDS women of God in the war chapters of the Book of Mormon.

In those war chapters, the Nephites had a great commander, armor, and shields, and they fought with the Lord at their side. As I was recently reading in Alma 43, I actually saw, in my mind’s eye, righteous women defending “their homes and their liberties, … Their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church.” This is where we are today and we have been called out to do just that, fight in the war.

Sometimes, I feel insecure and self-conscious when I hear women speak out against the prophet or the church. I’m not sure if I should say anything, and if I were to, what could I say that would make a difference? Some of those negative voices are clever, quick-tongued, and extremely intelligent; far more intimidating than I could ever be, and my confidence flies right out the window.

But Jesus Christ needs us. He needs women to speak for Him and He needs to be able to depend on us to stand strong against wicked dissenters.

Yes, the war chapters of the Book of Mormon even include LDS women of God gearing up for battle. As Captain Moroni has no qualms about fighting with “stratagem,” we should be prepared to fight with stratagem. We are smart, professional, fully capable; but more importantly, we are faithful and righteous. As a result, we can “stand against the Lamanites with power” (Alma 43:50), or whoever would threaten our beliefs.

As President Nelson said in his talk, A Plea to My Sisters, “We need women who have a bedrock understanding of the doctrine of Christ.” This is the only way to fight. We need to have knowledge and confidence in the doctrines of our church in order to defend them. We need to show our “strength and courage that covenant-keeping women always demonstrate.”

As Captain Moroni stationed his armies in strategic places, in order to thwart the enemy at every turn, so must we–the women of the church–fearlessly prepare to fight wherever we are stationed.

I imagined our commander, Sis. Burton, directing her armies, our ward and stake leaders, to station women in strategic places where we can stand as “courageous defenders of morality and families.”

Our voice is our weapon. We need to feel confident enough to speak truth; our faith cannot become shaken (see Jacob 7:5). Our voices must ring pure, full of heavenly power and charity. As Pres. Nelson said, “We need women who can detect deception in all of its forms. We need women who know how to access the power that God makes available to covenant keepers and who express their beliefs with confidence and charity.”

On the battlefield, we must all be “women [who] teach fearlessly” through our actions, our words, and most importantly, our examples.

The truth of the matter is that evil will always fight dirty. But righteousness is a power all its own and if we give ourselves to our Redeemer and Savior, we will be unstoppable. We women are capable of uniting and combining our talents and faith to fulfill the many prophecies that have paved our glorious path.

Sisters, may we organize ourselves as captains and leaders of a true army of faithful women. May we stand firm on truth and speak the words of God. May we always be kind and loving, but resolute in our devotion. Our gospel is our armor and we must clothe ourselves in it. Any confrontation with the enemy must be met with truth and power.