BONUS CONTENT: General Conference April 2020 Wrap Up
Podbean: https://thesaviorsaid.podbean.com/
Spotify: http://ow.ly/Zpg650uuNjg
iTunes: http://ow.ly/RGeQ50uuNjb
Stitcher: http://ow.ly/H4Lu50uuNja
This week Lexie talks about some of her favorite moments and quotes from April 2020's General Conference!
MarySilver770 on Instagram post:
Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this. I re-read the First Vision and other materials about that time in church history before Conference and prayed that my heart would be open and receptive to the things the Lord wanted me to learn. I teach the Conference talks in Relief Society so asked God to let me know which of the talks would be good for me to discuss with the sisters in the next 6 months. As I watched and listened to the talks both Saturday and Sunday I came away kind of frustrated. I felt like the talks were often simply repeating the things I had studied before Conference. As a church we tell investigators that our church is centered on Jesus Christ and we do not worship Joseph Smith, nor is this his church, but Christ's church. Instead of hearing inspiration on how to help the thousands of missionaries who are being sent home early, and how to cope with trials we are facing, etc., it felt a bit like a big lesson on Joseph Smith. I revere Joseph and look forward to one day meeting him, but I walked away feeling deflated
----
A quick thought about the April 2020 General Conference:
You are allowed to feel what you feel. And it’s okay.
If you felt it was the spiritual pinnacle of your life, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you felt that you missed out because you were wrestling children and trying to find the Spirit in the middle of the chaos, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you felt like it had some good insights and strengthened your testimony, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you came empty, looking to be filled and somehow it fell short, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you came looking for hope and found it, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you are in a space of overwhelm due to outside influences and that got in the way of your conference experience, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you found peace beyond what this world offers, you are allowed to feel that way.
If something was said that made you angry, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you feel a mix of all of the above, you are allowed to feel that way.
We are all different. We have different testimonies. We have different life situations. We have different backgrounds. We are not all going to listen to General Conference and feel the same way. And that’s okay.
What I invite you to do: go back and listen to the talks, one at a time. When the print version comes online, go back and read the talks. See if listening or reading the talks in small doses in a quiet moment creates a different experience. See if reading or listening at a different time in your life creates a stronger spiritual witness of the message. Your conference experience is not limited to April 4 & 5, 2020. The words that were spoken in this conference will continue on past this weekend. In the future you may find the exact quote, the exact scripture, the exact phrase that makes all the difference in your life, your testimony, the world.
And it’s okay. You are allowed to feel that way.
----
Favorite moments:
Fav talks
Sat morning: An Especially Noble Calling By Joy D. Jones
Primary General President
‘President Nelson: “Of course it’s hard. Everything to do with becoming more like the Savior is difficult. For example, when God wanted to give the Ten Commandments to Moses, where did He tell Moses to go? Up on top of a mountain, on the top of Mount Sinai. So Moses had to walk all the way up to the top of that mountain to get the Ten Commandments. Now, Heavenly Father could have said, ‘Moses, you start there, and I’ll start here, and I’ll meet you halfway.’ No, the Lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.’
So the answer is yes, Pearl. It takes effort, a lot of hard work, a lot of study, and there’s never an end. That’s good! That’s good, because we’re always progressing. Even in the next life we’re making progress.”
President Nelson’s response to these precious children extends to each one of us. The Lord loves effort, and effort brings rewards. We keep practicing. We are always progressing as long as we are striving to follow the Lord.5 He doesn’t expect perfection today. We keep climbing our personal Mount Sinai. As in times past, our journey does indeed take effort, hard work, and study, but our commitment to progress brings eternal rewards.6
What more do we learn from the Prophet Joseph Smith and the First Vision about effort, hard work, and study? The First Vision gives us direction in our unique, continuing roles. As women of faith, we can draw principles of truth from the Prophet Joseph’s experiences that provide insights for receiving our own revelation. For example:
In addition, Joseph Smith restored the knowledge that we have divine potential and eternal worth. Because of that relationship with our Heavenly Father, I believe He expects us to receive revelation from Him.
The Lord instructed Emma Smith to “receive the Holy Ghost,” learn much, “lay aside the things of this world, … seek for the things of a better,” and “cleave unto [her] covenants” with God.8 Learning is integral to progression, especially as the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost teaches us what is needful for each of us to lay aside—meaning that which could distract us or delay our progression.
President Nelson said, “I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation.”9 Our prophet’s words are continually with me as I contemplate women’s ability to step forward. He pleads with us, which indicates priority. He is teaching us how to survive spiritually in a sin-sick world by receiving and acting on revelation.10 As we do so, honoring and living the Lord’s commandments, we are promised, even as Emma Smith was, “a crown of righteousness.”11 The Prophet Joseph taught of the importance of knowing that the path we are pursuing in this lifetime is approved of God. Without that knowledge, we “will grow weary in [our] minds, and faint.”12
In this conference, we will hear truths that inspire us to change, improve, and purify our lives. Through personal revelation, we can prevent what some call “general conference overwhelm”—when we leave so determined to do it all now. Women wear many hats, but it is impossible, and unnecessary, to wear them all at once. The Spirit helps us determine which work to focus on today.13
The Lord’s loving influence through the Holy Ghost helps us know His priority for our progression. Heeding personal revelation leads to personal progression.14 We listen and act.15 The Lord said, “Ask the Father in my name in faith, believing that you shall receive, and you shall have the Holy Ghost, which manifesteth all things which are expedient.”16 Our continuing role is to receive continuing revelation.
---- great stuff about women and the priesthood----
Elder James E. Talmage tenderly reminded us, “The world’s greatest champion of woman and womanhood is Jesus the Christ.”24 In the final analysis of women’s continuing roles in the Restoration, and for us all, what role is preeminent? I testify that it is to hear Him,25 to follow Him,26 to trust Him,
Sat afternoon: Consider the Goodness and Greatness of God
By Elder Dale G. Renlund
Throughout time, even and especially during difficult times, prophets have encouraged us to remember the greatness of God and to consider what He has done for us as individuals, as families, and as a people.1 This direction is found throughout the scriptures but is notably prominent in the Book of Mormon. The title page explains that one of the Book of Mormon’s purposes is “to show unto the remnant of the house of Israel what great things the Lord hath done for their fathers.”2 The Book of Mormon’s conclusion includes Moroni’s appeal: “Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things … that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men … and ponder it in your hearts.”3
The consistency of pleas from prophets to reflect on the goodness of God is striking.4 Our Heavenly Father wants us to recall His and His Beloved Son’s goodness, not for Their own gratification but for the influence such remembrance has on us. By considering Their kindness, our perspective and understanding are enlarged. By reflecting on Their compassion, we become more humble, prayerful, and steadfast.
Much like Tom, each of us has received gifts that we could not provide for ourselves, gifts from our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, including redemption through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.5 We have received life in this world; we will receive physical life in the hereafter, and eternal salvation and exaltation—if we choose it—all because of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
Every time we use, benefit from, or even think of these gifts, we ought to consider the sacrifice, generosity, and compassion of the givers. Reverence for the givers does more than just make us grateful. Reflecting on Their gifts can and should transform us.
One remarkable transformation was that of Alma the Younger. As Alma was “going about rebelling against God,”6 an angel appeared. With “a voice of thunder,”7 the angel chastised Alma for persecuting the Church and “stealing away the hearts of the people.”8 The angel added this admonition: “Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers …; and remember how great things [God] has done for them.”9 Of all possible exhortations, that was what the angel emphasized.
Alma repented and remembered. He later shared the angel’s admonition with his son Helaman. Alma counseled, “I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them except it was the God of Abraham, … Isaac, and … Jacob; and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions.”10 Alma said simply, “I do put my trust in him.”11 Alma understood that by remembering deliverance from bondage and support during “trials and troubles of every kind,” we come to know God and the surety of His promises.12
Few of us have an experience as dramatic as Alma’s, yet our transformation can be equally profound. The Savior pledged anciently:
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart … , and I will give you an heart of flesh.
“And I will put my spirit within you. …
“… And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.”13
The resurrected Savior told the Nephites how this transformation begins. He identified a pivotal feature in Heavenly Father’s plan when He said:
“And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me. …
“And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me.”14
What does it take for you to be drawn to the Savior? Consider Jesus Christ’s submission to His Father’s will, His victory over death, His taking upon Himself your sins and mistakes, His receiving power from the Father to make intercession for you, and His ultimate redemption of you.15 Are these things not sufficient to draw you to Him? They are for me. Jesus Christ “stands with open arms, hoping and willing to heal, forgive, cleanse, strengthen, purify, and sanctify [you and me].”16
Sat evening: Hosanna and Hallelujah—The Living Jesus Christ: The Heart of Restoration and Easter
By Elder Gerrit W. Gong
In celebrating the ongoing Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we also prepare for Easter. In both, we rejoice in the return of Jesus Christ. He lives—not only then, but now; not just for some, but for all. He came and comes to heal the brokenhearted, deliver the captives, recover sight to the blind, and set at liberty those who are bruised.4 That’s each of us. His redeeming promises apply, no matter our past, our present, or concerns for our future.
--
(You may be interested to know the original of this Harry Anderson painting hangs in President Russell M. Nelson’s office, just behind his desk.)
---
Of course, the significance of Palm Sunday goes beyond crowds greeting Jesus with palms. On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem in ways the faithful recognized as fulfillment of prophecy. As Zechariah8 and the Psalmist prophetically foretold, our Lord entered Jerusalem riding a colt as multitudes knowingly cried, “Hosanna in the highest.”9 Hosanna means “save now.”10 Then, as now, we rejoice, “Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”11
A week following Palm Sunday is Easter Sunday. President Russell M. Nelson teaches that Jesus Christ “came to pay a debt He didn’t owe because we owed a debt we couldn’t pay.”12 Indeed, through the Atonement of Christ, all God’s children “may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.”13 At Easter, we sing hallelujah. Hallelujah means “praise ye the Lord Jehovah.”14 The “Hallelujah Chorus” in Handel’s Messiah is a beloved Easter declaration that He is “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.”
The sacred events between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday are the story of hosanna and hallelujah. Hosanna is our plea for God to save. Hallelujah expresses our praise to the Lord for the hope of salvation and exaltation. In hosanna and hallelujah we recognize the living Jesus Christ as the heart of Easter and latter-day restoration.
Latter-day restoration begins with theophany—the literal appearance of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, to the young prophet Joseph Smith. Said the Prophet Joseph, “Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was written on the subject.”16 Because the heavens are again open, we know and “believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost”17—the divine Godhead.
Significantly, the Book of Mormon describes the “power and resurrection of Christ”29—the essence of Easter—in terms of two restorations.
First, resurrection includes physical restoration of our “proper and perfect frame”; “every limb and joint,” “even a hair of the head shall not be lost.”30 This promise gives hope to those who have lost limbs; those who have lost ability to see, hear, or walk; or those thought lost to relentless disease, mental illness, or other diminished capacity. He finds us. He makes us whole.
A second promise of Easter and our Lord’s Atonement is that, spiritually, “all things shall be restored to their proper order.”31 This spiritual restoration reflects our works and desires. Like bread upon the water,32 it restores “that which is good,” “righteous,” “just,” and “merciful.”33 No wonder the prophet Alma uses the word restore 22 times34 as he urges us to “deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually.”35
Because “God himself atoneth for the sins of the world,”36 the Lord’s Atonement can make whole not only what was but also what can be. Because He knows ours pains, afflictions, sicknesses, our “temptations of every kind,”37 He can, with mercy, succor us according to our infirmities.38 Because God is “a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also,” the plan of mercy can “appease the demands of justice.”39 We repent and do all we can. He encircles us eternally “in the arms of his love.”40
Today we celebrate restoration and resurrection. With you, I rejoice in the ongoing Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As began 200 years ago this spring, light and revelation continue to come forth through the Lord’s living prophet and His Church called in His name—The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—and through personal revelation and inspiration by the supernal gift of the Holy Ghost.
Sun morning: A Perfect Brightness of Hope
By Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
Well, our 1820 list of hopes could go on, but perhaps the most important message of the Restoration is that such hopes would not have been in vain. Beginning in the Sacred Grove and continuing to this day, these desires began to be clothed in reality and became, as the Apostle Paul and others taught, true anchors to the soul, sure and steadfast.8 What was once only hoped for has now become history.
Thus our look back at 200 years of God’s goodness to the world. But what of our look ahead? We still have hopes that have not yet been fulfilled. Even as we speak, we are waging an “all hands on deck” war with COVID-19, a solemn reminder that a virus 1,000 times smaller than a grain of sand9 can bring entire populations and global economies to their knees. We pray for those who have lost loved ones in this modern plague, as well as for those who are currently infected or at risk. We certainly pray for those who are giving such magnificent health care. When we have conquered this—and we will—may we be equally committed to freeing the world from the virus of hunger, freeing neighborhoods and nations from the virus of poverty. May we hope for schools where students are taught—not terrified they will be shot—and for the gift of personal dignity for every child of God, unmarred by any form of racial, ethnic, or religious prejudice. Undergirding all of this is our relentless hope for greater devotion to the two greatest of all commandments: to love God by keeping His counsel and to love our neighbors by showing kindness and compassion, patience and forgiveness.10 These two divine directives are still—and forever will be—the only real hope we have for giving our children a better world than the one they now know.11
In addition to having these global desires, many in this audience today have deeply personal hopes: hope for a marriage to improve, or sometimes just hope for a marriage; hope for an addiction to be conquered; hope for a wayward child to come back; hope for physical and emotional pain of a hundred kinds to cease. Because the Restoration reaffirmed the foundational truth that God does work in this world, we can hope, we should hope, even when facing the most insurmountable odds. That is what the scripture meant when Abraham was able to hope against hope12—that is, he was able to believe in spite of every reason not to believe—that he and Sarah could conceive a child when that seemed utterly impossible. So, I ask, “If so many of our 1820 hopes could begin to be fulfilled with a flash of divine light to a mere boy kneeling in a patch of trees in upstate New York, why should we not hope that righteous desires and Christlike yearnings can still be marvelously, miraculously answered by the God of all hope?” We all need to believe that what we desire in righteousness can someday, someway, somehow yet be ours.
Brothers and sisters, we know what some of the religious deficiencies in the early 19th century were. Furthermore, we know something of today’s religious shortcomings that still leave the hunger and hope of some unfulfilled. We know a variety of those dissatisfactions are leading some away from traditional ecclesiastical institutions. We also know, as one frustrated writer wrote, that “many religious leaders [of the day] seem clueless” in addressing this kind of decline, offering in response “a thin gruel of therapeutic deism, cheap symbolic activism, carefully couched heresy, [or sometimes just] uninspiring nonsense”13—and all at a time when the world needs so much more, when the rising generation deserves so much more, and when in Jesus’s day He offered so much more. As disciples of Christ, we can in our day rise above those ancient Israelites who moaned, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost.”14 Indeed, if we finally lose hope, we lose our last sustaining possession. It was over the very gate of hell that Dante wrote a warning to all those traveling through his Divina Commedia: “Abandon all hope,” he said, “ye who enter here.”15 Truly when hope is gone, what we have left is the flame of the inferno raging on every side.
So, when our backs are to the wall and, as the hymn says, “other helpers fail and comforts flee,”16 among our most indispensable virtues will be this precious gift of hope linked inextricably to our faith in God and our charity to others.
In this bicentennial year, when we look back to see all we have been given and rejoice in the realization of so many hopes fulfilled, I echo the sentiment of a beautiful young returned sister missionary who said to us in Johannesburg just a few months ago, “[We] did not come this far only to come this far.”17
Paraphrasing one of the most inspiring valedictories ever recorded in scripture, I say with the prophet Nephi and that young sister:
“My beloved brethren [and sisters], after ye have [received these first fruits of the Restoration], I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay. …
“… Ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. … If ye shall[,] … saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.”18
I give thanks, my brothers and sisters, for all we have been given in this last and greatest of all dispensations, the dispensation of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. The gifts and blessings that flow from that gospel mean everything to me—everything—so in an effort to thank my Father in Heaven for them, I have “promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.”19
Sun afternoon: Finding Refuge from the Storms of Life
By Elder Ricardo P. Giménez
When faced with these storms, we often experience feelings of despair or fear. President Russell M. Nelson said, “Faith is the antidote for fear”—faith in our Lord Jesus Christ (“Let Your Faith Show,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 29). As I have seen the storms that affect people’s lives, I have concluded that no matter what kind of storm is battering us—regardless of whether there is a solution to it or whether there is an end in sight—there is only one refuge, and it is the same for all types of storms. This single refuge provided by our Heavenly Father is our Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement.
None of us are exempt from facing these storms. Helaman, a Book of Mormon prophet, taught us as follows: “Remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall” (Helaman 5:12).
Elder Robert D. Hales, who had his own experiences with enduring storms, said: “Suffering is universal; how we react to suffering is individual. Suffering can take us one of two ways. It can be a strengthening and purifying experience combined with faith, or it can be a destructive force in our lives if we do not have the faith in the Lord’s atoning sacrifice” (“Your Sorrow Shall Be Turned to Joy,” Ensign, Nov. 1983, 66).
In order to enjoy the refuge that Jesus Christ and His Atonement offer, we must have faith in Him—a faith that will allow us to rise above all the pains of a limited, earthly perspective. He has promised that He will make our burdens light if we come unto Him in all that we do.
“Come unto me,” He said, “all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28–30; see also Mosiah 24:14–15).
It is said that “to one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” (This statement has been attributed to Thomas Aquinas but is most likely a loose paraphrase of things he taught.) However, we have limited understanding of the things that happen here on earth, and often we do not have answers to the question of why. Why is this happening? Why is this happening to me? What am I supposed to learn? When answers evade us, that is when the words expressed by our Savior to the Prophet Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail are completely applicable:
“My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
“And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high” (Doctrine and Covenants 121:7–8).
Although many people indeed believe in Jesus Christ, the key question is whether we believe Him and whether we believe the things that He teaches us and asks us to do. Perhaps someone might think, “What does Jesus Christ know about what is happening to me? How does He know what I need to be happy?” Truly, it was our Redeemer and Intercessor to whom the prophet Isaiah was referring when he said:
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. …
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. …
“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3–5).
The Apostle Peter also taught us about the Savior, saying, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).
Although the time of Peter’s own martyrdom was approaching, his words are not filled with fear or pessimism; rather, he taught the Saints to “rejoice,” even though they were “in heaviness through manifold temptations.” Peter counseled us to remember that “the trial of [our] faith, … though it be tried with fire,” would lead to “praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” and to “the salvation of [our] souls” (1 Peter 1:6–7, 9).
Peter continued:
“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
“But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy” (1 Peter 4:12–13).
President Russell M. Nelson taught that “Saints can be happy under every circumstance. … When the focus of our lives is on God’s plan of salvation … and Jesus Christ and His gospel, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives. Joy comes from and because of Him. He is the source of all joy” (“Joy and Spiritual Survival,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2016, 82).
Of course, it is easier to say these things when we are not in the midst of a storm than to live and apply them during the storm. But as your brother, I hope you can feel that I sincerely want to share with you how valuable it is to know that Jesus Christ and His Atonement are the refuge that we all need, regardless of the storms that are battering our lives.
I know that we are all children of God, that He loves us, and that we are not alone. I invite you to come and see that He can lighten your burdens and be the refuge you are seeking. Come and help others find the refuge that they so yearn for. Come and stay with us in this refuge, which will help you resist the storms of life. There is no doubt in my heart that if you come, you will see, you will help, and you will stay.
The prophet Alma testified the following to his son Helaman: “I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day” (Alma 36:3).
The Savior Himself said:
“Let your hearts be comforted … ; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God. …
“Wherefore, fear not even unto death; for in this world your joy is not full, but in me your joy is full” (Doctrine and Covenants 101:16, 36).
The hymn “Be Still, My Soul,” which has touched my heart on many occasions, has a message of comfort for our souls. The lyrics read as follows:
Be still, my soul: The hour is hast’ning on
When we shall be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: When change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last. (Hymns, no. 124)
As we face the storms of life, I know that if we make our best effort and rely upon Jesus Christ and His Atonement as our refuge, we will be blessed with the relief, comfort, strength, temperance, and peace that we are seeking, with certainty in our hearts that at the end of our time here on earth, we will hear the words of the Master: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: … enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:21).
Fav Pres Nelson talk: Hear Him
By President Russell M. Nelson
In the past several weeks, most of us have experienced disruptions in our personal lives. Earthquakes, fires, floods, plagues, and their aftermaths have disrupted routines and caused shortages of food, staples, and savings.
Amidst all of this, we commend you and thank you for choosing to hear the word of the Lord during this time of turmoil by joining with us for general conference. The increasing darkness that accompanies tribulation makes the light of Jesus Christ shine ever brighter. Just think of the good each of us can do during this time of global upheaval. Your love of and faith in the Savior may very well be the catalyst for someone to discover the Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We live in the day that “our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation.”1 We have front-row seats to witness live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision, that “the power of the Lamb of God” would descend “upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”2
You, my brothers and sisters, are among those men, women, and children whom Nephi saw. Think of that!
Regardless of where you live or what your circumstances are, the Lord Jesus Christ is your Savior, and God’s prophet Joseph Smith is your prophet. He was foreordained before the foundation of the earth to be the prophet of this last dispensation, when “nothing shall be withheld”3 from the Saints. Revelation continues to flow from the Lord during this ongoing process of restoration.
What does it mean for you that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth?
It means that you and your family can be sealed together forever! It means that because you have been baptized by one who has authority from Jesus Christ and have been confirmed a member of His Church, you can enjoy the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. He will guide and protect you. It means you will never be left comfortless or without access to the power of God to help you. It means that priesthood power can bless you as you receive essential ordinances and make covenants with God and keep them. What an anchor to our souls are these truths, especially during these times when the tempest is raging.
We live in the day that “our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation.”1 We have front-row seats to witness live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision, that “the power of the Lamb of God” would descend “upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”2
You, my brothers and sisters, are among those men, women, and children whom Nephi saw. Think of that!
Regardless of where you live or what your circumstances are, the Lord Jesus Christ is your Savior, and God’s prophet Joseph Smith is your prophet. He was foreordained before the foundation of the earth to be the prophet of this last dispensation, when “nothing shall be withheld”3 from the Saints. Revelation continues to flow from the Lord during this ongoing process of restoration.
What does it mean for you that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth?
It means that you and your family can be sealed together forever! It means that because you have been baptized by one who has authority from Jesus Christ and have been confirmed a member of His Church, you can enjoy the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. He will guide and protect you. It means you will never be left comfortless or without access to the power of God to help you. It means that priesthood power can bless you as you receive essential ordinances and make covenants with God and keep them. What an anchor to our souls are these truths, especially during these times when the tempest is raging.
---
As we seek to be disciples of Jesus Christ, our efforts to hear Him need to be ever more intentional. It takes conscious and consistent effort to fill our daily lives with His words, His teachings, His truths.
We simply cannot rely upon information we bump into on social media. With billions of words online and in a marketing-saturated world constantly infiltrated by noisy, nefarious efforts of the adversary, where can we go to hear Him?
We can go to the scriptures. They teach us about Jesus Christ and His gospel, the magnitude of His Atonement, and our Father’s great plan of happiness and redemption. Daily immersion in the word of God is crucial for spiritual survival, especially in these days of increasing upheaval. As we feast on the words of Christ daily, the words of Christ will tell us how to respond to difficulties we never thought we would face.
We can also hear Him in the temple. The house of the Lord is a house of learning. There the Lord teaches in His own way. There each ordinance teaches about the Savior. There we learn how to part the veil and communicate more clearly with heaven. There we learn how to rebuke the adversary and draw upon the Lord’s priesthood power to strengthen us and those we love. How eager each of us should be to seek refuge there.
When these temporary COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, please schedule regular time to worship and serve in the temple. Every minute of that time will bless you and your family in ways nothing else can. Take time to ponder what you hear and feel when you are there. Ask the Lord to teach you how to open the heavens to bless your life and the lives of those you love and serve.
We also hear Him more clearly as we refine our ability to recognize the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. It has never been more imperative to know how the Spirit speaks to you than right now. In the Godhead, the Holy Ghost is the messenger. He will bring thoughts to your mind which the Father and Son want you to receive. He is the Comforter. He will bring a feeling of peace to your heart. He testifies of truth and will confirm what is true as you hear and read the word of the Lord.
I renew my plea for you to do whatever it takes to increase your spiritual capacity to receive personal revelation.
Doing so will help you know how to move ahead with your life, what to do during times of crisis, and how to discern and avoid the temptations and the deceptions of the adversary.
And, finally, we hear Him as we heed the words of prophets, seers, and revelators. Ordained Apostles of Jesus Christ always testify of Him. They point the way as we make our way through the heart-wrenching maze of our mortal experiences.
What will happen as you more intentionally hear, hearken, and heed what the Savior has said and what He is saying now through His prophets? I promise that you will be blessed with additional power to deal with temptation, struggles, and weakness. I promise miracles in your marriage, family relationships, and daily work. And I promise that your capacity to feel joy will increase even if turbulence increases in your life.
Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this. I re-read the First Vision and other materials about that time in church history before Conference and prayed that my heart would be open and receptive to the things the Lord wanted me to learn. I teach the Conference talks in Relief Society so asked God to let me know which of the talks would be good for me to discuss with the sisters in the next 6 months. As I watched and listened to the talks both Saturday and Sunday I came away kind of frustrated. I felt like the talks were often simply repeating the things I had studied before Conference. As a church we tell investigators that our church is centered on Jesus Christ and we do not worship Joseph Smith, nor is this his church, but Christ's church. Instead of hearing inspiration on how to help the thousands of missionaries who are being sent home early, and how to cope with trials we are facing, etc., it felt a bit like a big lesson on Joseph Smith. I revere Joseph and look forward to one day meeting him, but I walked away feeling deflated
----
A quick thought about the April 2020 General Conference:
You are allowed to feel what you feel. And it’s okay.
If you felt it was the spiritual pinnacle of your life, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you felt that you missed out because you were wrestling children and trying to find the Spirit in the middle of the chaos, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you felt like it had some good insights and strengthened your testimony, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you came empty, looking to be filled and somehow it fell short, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you came looking for hope and found it, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you are in a space of overwhelm due to outside influences and that got in the way of your conference experience, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you found peace beyond what this world offers, you are allowed to feel that way.
If something was said that made you angry, you are allowed to feel that way.
If you feel a mix of all of the above, you are allowed to feel that way.
We are all different. We have different testimonies. We have different life situations. We have different backgrounds. We are not all going to listen to General Conference and feel the same way. And that’s okay.
What I invite you to do: go back and listen to the talks, one at a time. When the print version comes online, go back and read the talks. See if listening or reading the talks in small doses in a quiet moment creates a different experience. See if reading or listening at a different time in your life creates a stronger spiritual witness of the message. Your conference experience is not limited to April 4 & 5, 2020. The words that were spoken in this conference will continue on past this weekend. In the future you may find the exact quote, the exact scripture, the exact phrase that makes all the difference in your life, your testimony, the world.
And it’s okay. You are allowed to feel that way.
----
Favorite moments:
- "We are grateful that His mission, His very nature, is not to condemn but to save, for we need saving.” - Kyle S McKay from the 70
- It is Well with my Soul
- Pres. Nelson announcing the Shanghai Temple
- Laudy Ruth Kaouk and Enzo Serge Petelo
- Brad Wilcox is in the General YM Presidency!
Fav talks
Sat morning: An Especially Noble Calling By Joy D. Jones
Primary General President
‘President Nelson: “Of course it’s hard. Everything to do with becoming more like the Savior is difficult. For example, when God wanted to give the Ten Commandments to Moses, where did He tell Moses to go? Up on top of a mountain, on the top of Mount Sinai. So Moses had to walk all the way up to the top of that mountain to get the Ten Commandments. Now, Heavenly Father could have said, ‘Moses, you start there, and I’ll start here, and I’ll meet you halfway.’ No, the Lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.’
So the answer is yes, Pearl. It takes effort, a lot of hard work, a lot of study, and there’s never an end. That’s good! That’s good, because we’re always progressing. Even in the next life we’re making progress.”
President Nelson’s response to these precious children extends to each one of us. The Lord loves effort, and effort brings rewards. We keep practicing. We are always progressing as long as we are striving to follow the Lord.5 He doesn’t expect perfection today. We keep climbing our personal Mount Sinai. As in times past, our journey does indeed take effort, hard work, and study, but our commitment to progress brings eternal rewards.6
What more do we learn from the Prophet Joseph Smith and the First Vision about effort, hard work, and study? The First Vision gives us direction in our unique, continuing roles. As women of faith, we can draw principles of truth from the Prophet Joseph’s experiences that provide insights for receiving our own revelation. For example:
- We labor under difficulties.
- We turn to the scriptures to receive wisdom to act.
- We demonstrate our faith and trust in God.
- We exert our power to plead with God to help us thwart the adversary’s influence.
- We offer up the desires of our hearts to God.
- We focus on His light guiding our life choices and resting upon us when we turn to Him.
- We realize He knows each of us by name and has individual roles for us to fulfill.7
In addition, Joseph Smith restored the knowledge that we have divine potential and eternal worth. Because of that relationship with our Heavenly Father, I believe He expects us to receive revelation from Him.
The Lord instructed Emma Smith to “receive the Holy Ghost,” learn much, “lay aside the things of this world, … seek for the things of a better,” and “cleave unto [her] covenants” with God.8 Learning is integral to progression, especially as the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost teaches us what is needful for each of us to lay aside—meaning that which could distract us or delay our progression.
President Nelson said, “I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation.”9 Our prophet’s words are continually with me as I contemplate women’s ability to step forward. He pleads with us, which indicates priority. He is teaching us how to survive spiritually in a sin-sick world by receiving and acting on revelation.10 As we do so, honoring and living the Lord’s commandments, we are promised, even as Emma Smith was, “a crown of righteousness.”11 The Prophet Joseph taught of the importance of knowing that the path we are pursuing in this lifetime is approved of God. Without that knowledge, we “will grow weary in [our] minds, and faint.”12
In this conference, we will hear truths that inspire us to change, improve, and purify our lives. Through personal revelation, we can prevent what some call “general conference overwhelm”—when we leave so determined to do it all now. Women wear many hats, but it is impossible, and unnecessary, to wear them all at once. The Spirit helps us determine which work to focus on today.13
The Lord’s loving influence through the Holy Ghost helps us know His priority for our progression. Heeding personal revelation leads to personal progression.14 We listen and act.15 The Lord said, “Ask the Father in my name in faith, believing that you shall receive, and you shall have the Holy Ghost, which manifesteth all things which are expedient.”16 Our continuing role is to receive continuing revelation.
---- great stuff about women and the priesthood----
Elder James E. Talmage tenderly reminded us, “The world’s greatest champion of woman and womanhood is Jesus the Christ.”24 In the final analysis of women’s continuing roles in the Restoration, and for us all, what role is preeminent? I testify that it is to hear Him,25 to follow Him,26 to trust Him,
Sat afternoon: Consider the Goodness and Greatness of God
By Elder Dale G. Renlund
Throughout time, even and especially during difficult times, prophets have encouraged us to remember the greatness of God and to consider what He has done for us as individuals, as families, and as a people.1 This direction is found throughout the scriptures but is notably prominent in the Book of Mormon. The title page explains that one of the Book of Mormon’s purposes is “to show unto the remnant of the house of Israel what great things the Lord hath done for their fathers.”2 The Book of Mormon’s conclusion includes Moroni’s appeal: “Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things … that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men … and ponder it in your hearts.”3
The consistency of pleas from prophets to reflect on the goodness of God is striking.4 Our Heavenly Father wants us to recall His and His Beloved Son’s goodness, not for Their own gratification but for the influence such remembrance has on us. By considering Their kindness, our perspective and understanding are enlarged. By reflecting on Their compassion, we become more humble, prayerful, and steadfast.
Much like Tom, each of us has received gifts that we could not provide for ourselves, gifts from our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, including redemption through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.5 We have received life in this world; we will receive physical life in the hereafter, and eternal salvation and exaltation—if we choose it—all because of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
Every time we use, benefit from, or even think of these gifts, we ought to consider the sacrifice, generosity, and compassion of the givers. Reverence for the givers does more than just make us grateful. Reflecting on Their gifts can and should transform us.
One remarkable transformation was that of Alma the Younger. As Alma was “going about rebelling against God,”6 an angel appeared. With “a voice of thunder,”7 the angel chastised Alma for persecuting the Church and “stealing away the hearts of the people.”8 The angel added this admonition: “Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers …; and remember how great things [God] has done for them.”9 Of all possible exhortations, that was what the angel emphasized.
Alma repented and remembered. He later shared the angel’s admonition with his son Helaman. Alma counseled, “I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them except it was the God of Abraham, … Isaac, and … Jacob; and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions.”10 Alma said simply, “I do put my trust in him.”11 Alma understood that by remembering deliverance from bondage and support during “trials and troubles of every kind,” we come to know God and the surety of His promises.12
Few of us have an experience as dramatic as Alma’s, yet our transformation can be equally profound. The Savior pledged anciently:
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart … , and I will give you an heart of flesh.
“And I will put my spirit within you. …
“… And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.”13
The resurrected Savior told the Nephites how this transformation begins. He identified a pivotal feature in Heavenly Father’s plan when He said:
“And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me. …
“And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me.”14
What does it take for you to be drawn to the Savior? Consider Jesus Christ’s submission to His Father’s will, His victory over death, His taking upon Himself your sins and mistakes, His receiving power from the Father to make intercession for you, and His ultimate redemption of you.15 Are these things not sufficient to draw you to Him? They are for me. Jesus Christ “stands with open arms, hoping and willing to heal, forgive, cleanse, strengthen, purify, and sanctify [you and me].”16
Sat evening: Hosanna and Hallelujah—The Living Jesus Christ: The Heart of Restoration and Easter
By Elder Gerrit W. Gong
In celebrating the ongoing Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we also prepare for Easter. In both, we rejoice in the return of Jesus Christ. He lives—not only then, but now; not just for some, but for all. He came and comes to heal the brokenhearted, deliver the captives, recover sight to the blind, and set at liberty those who are bruised.4 That’s each of us. His redeeming promises apply, no matter our past, our present, or concerns for our future.
--
(You may be interested to know the original of this Harry Anderson painting hangs in President Russell M. Nelson’s office, just behind his desk.)
---
Of course, the significance of Palm Sunday goes beyond crowds greeting Jesus with palms. On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem in ways the faithful recognized as fulfillment of prophecy. As Zechariah8 and the Psalmist prophetically foretold, our Lord entered Jerusalem riding a colt as multitudes knowingly cried, “Hosanna in the highest.”9 Hosanna means “save now.”10 Then, as now, we rejoice, “Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”11
A week following Palm Sunday is Easter Sunday. President Russell M. Nelson teaches that Jesus Christ “came to pay a debt He didn’t owe because we owed a debt we couldn’t pay.”12 Indeed, through the Atonement of Christ, all God’s children “may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.”13 At Easter, we sing hallelujah. Hallelujah means “praise ye the Lord Jehovah.”14 The “Hallelujah Chorus” in Handel’s Messiah is a beloved Easter declaration that He is “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.”
The sacred events between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday are the story of hosanna and hallelujah. Hosanna is our plea for God to save. Hallelujah expresses our praise to the Lord for the hope of salvation and exaltation. In hosanna and hallelujah we recognize the living Jesus Christ as the heart of Easter and latter-day restoration.
Latter-day restoration begins with theophany—the literal appearance of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, to the young prophet Joseph Smith. Said the Prophet Joseph, “Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was written on the subject.”16 Because the heavens are again open, we know and “believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost”17—the divine Godhead.
Significantly, the Book of Mormon describes the “power and resurrection of Christ”29—the essence of Easter—in terms of two restorations.
First, resurrection includes physical restoration of our “proper and perfect frame”; “every limb and joint,” “even a hair of the head shall not be lost.”30 This promise gives hope to those who have lost limbs; those who have lost ability to see, hear, or walk; or those thought lost to relentless disease, mental illness, or other diminished capacity. He finds us. He makes us whole.
A second promise of Easter and our Lord’s Atonement is that, spiritually, “all things shall be restored to their proper order.”31 This spiritual restoration reflects our works and desires. Like bread upon the water,32 it restores “that which is good,” “righteous,” “just,” and “merciful.”33 No wonder the prophet Alma uses the word restore 22 times34 as he urges us to “deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually.”35
Because “God himself atoneth for the sins of the world,”36 the Lord’s Atonement can make whole not only what was but also what can be. Because He knows ours pains, afflictions, sicknesses, our “temptations of every kind,”37 He can, with mercy, succor us according to our infirmities.38 Because God is “a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also,” the plan of mercy can “appease the demands of justice.”39 We repent and do all we can. He encircles us eternally “in the arms of his love.”40
Today we celebrate restoration and resurrection. With you, I rejoice in the ongoing Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As began 200 years ago this spring, light and revelation continue to come forth through the Lord’s living prophet and His Church called in His name—The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—and through personal revelation and inspiration by the supernal gift of the Holy Ghost.
Sun morning: A Perfect Brightness of Hope
By Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
Well, our 1820 list of hopes could go on, but perhaps the most important message of the Restoration is that such hopes would not have been in vain. Beginning in the Sacred Grove and continuing to this day, these desires began to be clothed in reality and became, as the Apostle Paul and others taught, true anchors to the soul, sure and steadfast.8 What was once only hoped for has now become history.
Thus our look back at 200 years of God’s goodness to the world. But what of our look ahead? We still have hopes that have not yet been fulfilled. Even as we speak, we are waging an “all hands on deck” war with COVID-19, a solemn reminder that a virus 1,000 times smaller than a grain of sand9 can bring entire populations and global economies to their knees. We pray for those who have lost loved ones in this modern plague, as well as for those who are currently infected or at risk. We certainly pray for those who are giving such magnificent health care. When we have conquered this—and we will—may we be equally committed to freeing the world from the virus of hunger, freeing neighborhoods and nations from the virus of poverty. May we hope for schools where students are taught—not terrified they will be shot—and for the gift of personal dignity for every child of God, unmarred by any form of racial, ethnic, or religious prejudice. Undergirding all of this is our relentless hope for greater devotion to the two greatest of all commandments: to love God by keeping His counsel and to love our neighbors by showing kindness and compassion, patience and forgiveness.10 These two divine directives are still—and forever will be—the only real hope we have for giving our children a better world than the one they now know.11
In addition to having these global desires, many in this audience today have deeply personal hopes: hope for a marriage to improve, or sometimes just hope for a marriage; hope for an addiction to be conquered; hope for a wayward child to come back; hope for physical and emotional pain of a hundred kinds to cease. Because the Restoration reaffirmed the foundational truth that God does work in this world, we can hope, we should hope, even when facing the most insurmountable odds. That is what the scripture meant when Abraham was able to hope against hope12—that is, he was able to believe in spite of every reason not to believe—that he and Sarah could conceive a child when that seemed utterly impossible. So, I ask, “If so many of our 1820 hopes could begin to be fulfilled with a flash of divine light to a mere boy kneeling in a patch of trees in upstate New York, why should we not hope that righteous desires and Christlike yearnings can still be marvelously, miraculously answered by the God of all hope?” We all need to believe that what we desire in righteousness can someday, someway, somehow yet be ours.
Brothers and sisters, we know what some of the religious deficiencies in the early 19th century were. Furthermore, we know something of today’s religious shortcomings that still leave the hunger and hope of some unfulfilled. We know a variety of those dissatisfactions are leading some away from traditional ecclesiastical institutions. We also know, as one frustrated writer wrote, that “many religious leaders [of the day] seem clueless” in addressing this kind of decline, offering in response “a thin gruel of therapeutic deism, cheap symbolic activism, carefully couched heresy, [or sometimes just] uninspiring nonsense”13—and all at a time when the world needs so much more, when the rising generation deserves so much more, and when in Jesus’s day He offered so much more. As disciples of Christ, we can in our day rise above those ancient Israelites who moaned, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost.”14 Indeed, if we finally lose hope, we lose our last sustaining possession. It was over the very gate of hell that Dante wrote a warning to all those traveling through his Divina Commedia: “Abandon all hope,” he said, “ye who enter here.”15 Truly when hope is gone, what we have left is the flame of the inferno raging on every side.
So, when our backs are to the wall and, as the hymn says, “other helpers fail and comforts flee,”16 among our most indispensable virtues will be this precious gift of hope linked inextricably to our faith in God and our charity to others.
In this bicentennial year, when we look back to see all we have been given and rejoice in the realization of so many hopes fulfilled, I echo the sentiment of a beautiful young returned sister missionary who said to us in Johannesburg just a few months ago, “[We] did not come this far only to come this far.”17
Paraphrasing one of the most inspiring valedictories ever recorded in scripture, I say with the prophet Nephi and that young sister:
“My beloved brethren [and sisters], after ye have [received these first fruits of the Restoration], I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay. …
“… Ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. … If ye shall[,] … saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.”18
I give thanks, my brothers and sisters, for all we have been given in this last and greatest of all dispensations, the dispensation of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. The gifts and blessings that flow from that gospel mean everything to me—everything—so in an effort to thank my Father in Heaven for them, I have “promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.”19
Sun afternoon: Finding Refuge from the Storms of Life
By Elder Ricardo P. Giménez
When faced with these storms, we often experience feelings of despair or fear. President Russell M. Nelson said, “Faith is the antidote for fear”—faith in our Lord Jesus Christ (“Let Your Faith Show,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 29). As I have seen the storms that affect people’s lives, I have concluded that no matter what kind of storm is battering us—regardless of whether there is a solution to it or whether there is an end in sight—there is only one refuge, and it is the same for all types of storms. This single refuge provided by our Heavenly Father is our Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement.
None of us are exempt from facing these storms. Helaman, a Book of Mormon prophet, taught us as follows: “Remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall” (Helaman 5:12).
Elder Robert D. Hales, who had his own experiences with enduring storms, said: “Suffering is universal; how we react to suffering is individual. Suffering can take us one of two ways. It can be a strengthening and purifying experience combined with faith, or it can be a destructive force in our lives if we do not have the faith in the Lord’s atoning sacrifice” (“Your Sorrow Shall Be Turned to Joy,” Ensign, Nov. 1983, 66).
In order to enjoy the refuge that Jesus Christ and His Atonement offer, we must have faith in Him—a faith that will allow us to rise above all the pains of a limited, earthly perspective. He has promised that He will make our burdens light if we come unto Him in all that we do.
“Come unto me,” He said, “all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28–30; see also Mosiah 24:14–15).
It is said that “to one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” (This statement has been attributed to Thomas Aquinas but is most likely a loose paraphrase of things he taught.) However, we have limited understanding of the things that happen here on earth, and often we do not have answers to the question of why. Why is this happening? Why is this happening to me? What am I supposed to learn? When answers evade us, that is when the words expressed by our Savior to the Prophet Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail are completely applicable:
“My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
“And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high” (Doctrine and Covenants 121:7–8).
Although many people indeed believe in Jesus Christ, the key question is whether we believe Him and whether we believe the things that He teaches us and asks us to do. Perhaps someone might think, “What does Jesus Christ know about what is happening to me? How does He know what I need to be happy?” Truly, it was our Redeemer and Intercessor to whom the prophet Isaiah was referring when he said:
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. …
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. …
“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3–5).
The Apostle Peter also taught us about the Savior, saying, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).
Although the time of Peter’s own martyrdom was approaching, his words are not filled with fear or pessimism; rather, he taught the Saints to “rejoice,” even though they were “in heaviness through manifold temptations.” Peter counseled us to remember that “the trial of [our] faith, … though it be tried with fire,” would lead to “praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” and to “the salvation of [our] souls” (1 Peter 1:6–7, 9).
Peter continued:
“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
“But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy” (1 Peter 4:12–13).
President Russell M. Nelson taught that “Saints can be happy under every circumstance. … When the focus of our lives is on God’s plan of salvation … and Jesus Christ and His gospel, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives. Joy comes from and because of Him. He is the source of all joy” (“Joy and Spiritual Survival,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2016, 82).
Of course, it is easier to say these things when we are not in the midst of a storm than to live and apply them during the storm. But as your brother, I hope you can feel that I sincerely want to share with you how valuable it is to know that Jesus Christ and His Atonement are the refuge that we all need, regardless of the storms that are battering our lives.
I know that we are all children of God, that He loves us, and that we are not alone. I invite you to come and see that He can lighten your burdens and be the refuge you are seeking. Come and help others find the refuge that they so yearn for. Come and stay with us in this refuge, which will help you resist the storms of life. There is no doubt in my heart that if you come, you will see, you will help, and you will stay.
The prophet Alma testified the following to his son Helaman: “I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day” (Alma 36:3).
The Savior Himself said:
“Let your hearts be comforted … ; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God. …
“Wherefore, fear not even unto death; for in this world your joy is not full, but in me your joy is full” (Doctrine and Covenants 101:16, 36).
The hymn “Be Still, My Soul,” which has touched my heart on many occasions, has a message of comfort for our souls. The lyrics read as follows:
Be still, my soul: The hour is hast’ning on
When we shall be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: When change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last. (Hymns, no. 124)
As we face the storms of life, I know that if we make our best effort and rely upon Jesus Christ and His Atonement as our refuge, we will be blessed with the relief, comfort, strength, temperance, and peace that we are seeking, with certainty in our hearts that at the end of our time here on earth, we will hear the words of the Master: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: … enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:21).
Fav Pres Nelson talk: Hear Him
By President Russell M. Nelson
In the past several weeks, most of us have experienced disruptions in our personal lives. Earthquakes, fires, floods, plagues, and their aftermaths have disrupted routines and caused shortages of food, staples, and savings.
Amidst all of this, we commend you and thank you for choosing to hear the word of the Lord during this time of turmoil by joining with us for general conference. The increasing darkness that accompanies tribulation makes the light of Jesus Christ shine ever brighter. Just think of the good each of us can do during this time of global upheaval. Your love of and faith in the Savior may very well be the catalyst for someone to discover the Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We live in the day that “our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation.”1 We have front-row seats to witness live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision, that “the power of the Lamb of God” would descend “upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”2
You, my brothers and sisters, are among those men, women, and children whom Nephi saw. Think of that!
Regardless of where you live or what your circumstances are, the Lord Jesus Christ is your Savior, and God’s prophet Joseph Smith is your prophet. He was foreordained before the foundation of the earth to be the prophet of this last dispensation, when “nothing shall be withheld”3 from the Saints. Revelation continues to flow from the Lord during this ongoing process of restoration.
What does it mean for you that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth?
It means that you and your family can be sealed together forever! It means that because you have been baptized by one who has authority from Jesus Christ and have been confirmed a member of His Church, you can enjoy the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. He will guide and protect you. It means you will never be left comfortless or without access to the power of God to help you. It means that priesthood power can bless you as you receive essential ordinances and make covenants with God and keep them. What an anchor to our souls are these truths, especially during these times when the tempest is raging.
We live in the day that “our forefathers have awaited with anxious expectation.”1 We have front-row seats to witness live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision, that “the power of the Lamb of God” would descend “upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”2
You, my brothers and sisters, are among those men, women, and children whom Nephi saw. Think of that!
Regardless of where you live or what your circumstances are, the Lord Jesus Christ is your Savior, and God’s prophet Joseph Smith is your prophet. He was foreordained before the foundation of the earth to be the prophet of this last dispensation, when “nothing shall be withheld”3 from the Saints. Revelation continues to flow from the Lord during this ongoing process of restoration.
What does it mean for you that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth?
It means that you and your family can be sealed together forever! It means that because you have been baptized by one who has authority from Jesus Christ and have been confirmed a member of His Church, you can enjoy the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. He will guide and protect you. It means you will never be left comfortless or without access to the power of God to help you. It means that priesthood power can bless you as you receive essential ordinances and make covenants with God and keep them. What an anchor to our souls are these truths, especially during these times when the tempest is raging.
---
As we seek to be disciples of Jesus Christ, our efforts to hear Him need to be ever more intentional. It takes conscious and consistent effort to fill our daily lives with His words, His teachings, His truths.
We simply cannot rely upon information we bump into on social media. With billions of words online and in a marketing-saturated world constantly infiltrated by noisy, nefarious efforts of the adversary, where can we go to hear Him?
We can go to the scriptures. They teach us about Jesus Christ and His gospel, the magnitude of His Atonement, and our Father’s great plan of happiness and redemption. Daily immersion in the word of God is crucial for spiritual survival, especially in these days of increasing upheaval. As we feast on the words of Christ daily, the words of Christ will tell us how to respond to difficulties we never thought we would face.
We can also hear Him in the temple. The house of the Lord is a house of learning. There the Lord teaches in His own way. There each ordinance teaches about the Savior. There we learn how to part the veil and communicate more clearly with heaven. There we learn how to rebuke the adversary and draw upon the Lord’s priesthood power to strengthen us and those we love. How eager each of us should be to seek refuge there.
When these temporary COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, please schedule regular time to worship and serve in the temple. Every minute of that time will bless you and your family in ways nothing else can. Take time to ponder what you hear and feel when you are there. Ask the Lord to teach you how to open the heavens to bless your life and the lives of those you love and serve.
We also hear Him more clearly as we refine our ability to recognize the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. It has never been more imperative to know how the Spirit speaks to you than right now. In the Godhead, the Holy Ghost is the messenger. He will bring thoughts to your mind which the Father and Son want you to receive. He is the Comforter. He will bring a feeling of peace to your heart. He testifies of truth and will confirm what is true as you hear and read the word of the Lord.
I renew my plea for you to do whatever it takes to increase your spiritual capacity to receive personal revelation.
Doing so will help you know how to move ahead with your life, what to do during times of crisis, and how to discern and avoid the temptations and the deceptions of the adversary.
And, finally, we hear Him as we heed the words of prophets, seers, and revelators. Ordained Apostles of Jesus Christ always testify of Him. They point the way as we make our way through the heart-wrenching maze of our mortal experiences.
What will happen as you more intentionally hear, hearken, and heed what the Savior has said and what He is saying now through His prophets? I promise that you will be blessed with additional power to deal with temptation, struggles, and weakness. I promise miracles in your marriage, family relationships, and daily work. And I promise that your capacity to feel joy will increase even if turbulence increases in your life.
Comments
Post a Comment