Note: These are the instant, post-conference, mildly-filtered things that ran through my brain and heart as I watched this session of General Conference. If you are looking for deep, spiritual analysis, this is not the place. Drive on.
It’s time for another round. We start off with Elder Cook conducting.
A multicultural choir opened with another classic: “How Firm a Foundation.” Amazing. #tabcats had nothing on them.
Followed with a new one, “Bread of Life, Living Water.” Beautiful song.
Elder Patrick Kearon (Always a treat)
“Jesus went about doing good. We read that simple report in the book of Acts. What an enormous understatement that is.”
When speaking to people he encountered, Christ offered a new beginning. “The Savior’s words to these individuals were brief, but with them He painted vast new horizons of forgiveness, healing, restoration, peace, and eternal life.”
“This is the Church of new beginnings. This is the Church of fresh starts.” <– Awesome
“Jesus gives us as many new beginnings as we need.”
Chock full of New Testament references about those who were given a new beginning, from sin, disease, or even death.
“New beginnings are at the heart of the Father’s plan. Fresh starts are the mission of the Son. New dawns, new chapters, and new chances are the simple core of the gospel’s good news.”
“The adversary is the only one that benefits from you thinking you’re sunk. You’re not.”
“You don’t have to be who you’ve been before. Embrace your fresh start, your second or third or fourth, or hundredth chance, offered to you through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ.”
“Please receive your new beginning, even today. Right now.” <– Awesome
Sister J. Annette Dennis, First Counselor, Relief Society.
Told a great story of a 100-year-old track and field competitor. (No notes – you’ll have to go back and listen to it.)
“Our congregations and families can be gathering places where we cheer each other on; covenant communities fueled by the love of Christ for one another.”
“We need each other. Divine strength comes from unity, and that is why Satan is intent on dividing us.”
Struggling people don’t need our judgment. “A couple divorcing, a young missionary coming home early, a youth struggling with their testimony: they don’t need our judgment, they need the pure love of Christ exhibited by us.”
“Put yourself in that person’s place and treat them the way you would want to be treated if you were in their shoes.” (Golden Rule)
“His is not a gospel of checklists. It is a gospel of becoming — becoming as He is and loving as He does. He wants us to become a Zion people.” (Note: Except the checklist parts we call ordinances.)
Spoke about the struggles she had with depression earlier in her life. “Only the Lord fully knows our individual limitations and capacity, and because of that, He is the only one fully qualified to judge our performance.”
Choir break. I need some caffeine.
Elder Steven C. Barlow opens with a telling of the Prodigal Son, relating how we let opportunities go by without showing our love to those close to us.
Like the prodigal son’s brother, we get frustrated as we seek for God’s love, but “The beautiful paradox is that the more we are focused on showing our love for God, the more easily we recognize His love for us.”
“When love is given freely and received sincerely, a virtuous circle is produced with an increase of love between the giver and the receiver”.
He goes into some detail of how we can show God our love in ways that he recognizes as love:
Speaking to Peter, Christ asked, “Lovest thou me more than these.” “We show our love to the Lord when we put Him above ‘these,’ and ‘these’ can be anyone, any activity or anything that displaces Him from being the most important influence in our lives.”
President Nelson once asked: “Are we willing to let God be the most important influence in your life?…Are you willing to allow your will to be swallowed up in His?”
Again Peter: “Feed my sheep.” “Serving each other is an unmistakable way we show our love for God and His beloved Son.”
“We show our love for God by acknowledging Him as the source of every good thing in our lives.”
“The Savior said, ‘If ye love me, keep my commandments.’ This kind of obedience is neither blind nor compulsory but is a sincere and willing expression of love.”
Summary quote: “Our Heavenly Father and our Savior recognize our expressions of love for Them when we put Them first in our lives, serve one another, gratefully acknowledge every blessing from Them, and choose to obey and follow Them.”
Elder William K. Jackson speaking about shepherding. Used Moroni as an example of being a good shepherd.
Numbered his people, knew them by name.
“Christ has organized His Church in such a way that it should be difficult to forget a soul, for each is dear to Him.”
“Every individual in a ward, regardless of age or gender, has a multitude of stewards — shepherds — who are tasked with looking after them, with remembering.”
(Did he say 6,7?)
“People wander off routinely into the mists — and no one notices. How can we be better shepherds? We can learn to count and account.”
(Speaking about making sure nobody is unaccounted for and using lists. Reminds me of a YM leader who would line the boys up and ask, “Who is missing?” whenever we had an activity. Go Rob!)
Spoke about Ward Council where they didn’t talk about people, contrasting with a ward that only talked about how to help people. “We take names, we remember, and we counsel over the welfare of souls.”
“The principle of counting and accounting works. It is the Lord’s way.”
“In the Church of Jesus Christ, we have been instructed by prophets past and prophets present, and by the pattern set by our Savior, how to minister.”
Elder Neil L. Anderson spoke to the compassion and mercy of the Savior and offered hope for those who have serious sins.
“Healing and forgiveness are each found in their fullness in the atoning love of Jesus Christ.”
“If you have committed serious sins and are in the process of or have the desire to fully repent and feel the unspeakable joy of forgiveness, please know this miracle is awaiting you. The Savior continuously calls, ‘Come unto me.’”
“The powerful compassion of the Savior in forgiving sin and in healing the wounds caused by the sins of others is a most miraculous manifestation of the love of God.”
Forgiveness requires complete honesty. “Having a contrite spirit is humbly putting yourself in the hands of God. Having a broken heart brings what the Apostle Paul describes as godly sorrow, a deep longing of the soul to return to Him whatever the cost.”
Be patient in the repentance process. It’s on the Lord’s time. Eventually, He will take away the guilt.
“To those suffering because of the actions of others, Christ has the power to bring beauty to ashes from your suffering.”
First to mention the Michigan shooting.
“As you continue to place your trust in Him, your clouds of darkness and anguished sobbing in the night will be transferred into cascading tears of joy and peace in the morning’s light. … That moment will come. I testify that it will come.”
“I testify of the love, the mercy, and the grace of our Savior and Redeemer. He lives. We are His. We are children of the covenant. As we believe in Him, follow Him, and trust Him, He will lift us from our sorrows and our sins.”
Very tender and hopeful talk. I hope it hits its target. (And by target, I mean all of us.)
Choir ended with another new hymn, “Oh, How Great is Our Joy.” New to me. Love it. Joyful choir.
• It has been a really good day. Talks were strong across the board. Looking forward to tomorrow. I’m gonna go ice my fingers.
See you tomorrow!
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Thank you, Brad, for ALL of your Conference notes. I am a note taker also, but I supplement mine with your comments (especially your personal insights, comic-relief, just all of it). I look forward to this part of Conference, by you, every 6 months. Thx for keeping it going.