SARATOGA SPRINGS, Utah -- Financial legend Howard Ruff, who now lives in Saratoga Springs and spoke to a Young Single Adult multistake conference Saturday, said the only sure way to surf through the difficult times ahead is to live the gospel.

Ruff said the economic recession will not get better soon but probably will get worse and last for many years.

He said it can be scary to marry and to start a family without financial security assured, but that shouldn't stop or delay any young Mormon's plans.

"Some of you may wait to marry and start a family. That's foolish," he said.

"For now, concentrate on your schooling and your education," Ruff said. "Take typing and computer courses and public speaking."

He said investing in precious metals and in alternative energy may be a good idea but he refrained from suggesting a course of investment.

"If the family is taken care of, you'll be OK," he said. "That's a very, very important principle. Create a strong family, a family that will help each other in hard times."

Ruff said real security comes from living the gospel of Jesus Christ.

"There's no security in accumulated dollars," he said. History has seen a number of cycles where the value of paper dollars has come and gone and that inflation will decrease the value of American dollars in coming years.

To stay solvent, he said, following the counsel of church prophets is wise: Stay out of debt, accumulate emergency commodity storage and get an education in a useful area.

He said storing commodities -- not just food -- means buying items of need at low prices and consuming them when prices are much higher.

The economic mess created by greed and poor decisions on the part of government officials and big companies can drive people into bad decisions.

He said packaging mortgages together has created problems for big companies who've now gone out of business.

He said borrowers did not read the fine print on home loans for homes larger than they need. "People treated their homes like piggy banks," he said.

Pouring money -- "I'd never thought in trillions before," he said -- will only guarantee a spree of runaway inflation down the road, he said.

It's all quite concerning, he said, but there are ways to successfully come through the mess.

"The church has given us wonderful guidance, practical financial advice. In the final analysis, be a practicing Latter-day Saint," he said.

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