For the past 2 days....the POWER of THE WORD....was absolutely INCREDIBLE....What I would like to hear from you is...Do you think there was a THEME....What do you think were the CONCERNS....of the Lord....What were some of your FAVORITE talks? and why????.....Were you motivated to "change" something in your life? Was there something said....that was an answer to a prayer? Was there anything stated that "surprised" you?
Will return with my thoughts...later...
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I was just looking over my Conference notes when I saw your email here....great pondering and thoughtful questions Debbie:)
ReplyDeleteAs Pres. Monson said in closing we HAVE been "richly taught" and "spiritually edified".
..interesting words - if we have been taught, then what were we suppose to learn? and if edified to our spirits, what was suppose to be etched in our hearts?...so much pondering can be found in ALL the words of Conference, even the songs and prayers. And always so sad that it's already over!
My MOVTIVATING statement: was from Jorge Zeballos of the 70....in talking about how it can't be "just" for God to ask more of us than we are capable of, but also...(here it is)...it is NOT JUST for Him to accept LESS than we are capable of!!
My "SURPRISE" was the statement from Elder Scott... "had I not recorded the 1st impression (from the Spirit) I would not have received the last"...meaning, we should write down our feelings and impressions and ask "is there yet more? More I should know?" If we stopped at that first impression, we would never know there WAS MORE just for the asking.....which will add indescribable sweetness and joy, that as he said, WILL ALTER THE COURSE OF OUR LIFE!!!!!
I have favorite statements in each talk, but here are a few:
"AIM HIGH" in EVERYTHING!! we do. (Osguthorpe)
"LOVE" should be our walk and talk; Heavenly Father fills our hearts with BREATHTAKING JOY" (Uchtdorf)
"Don't be discouraged if we don't act like a disciple everyday...keep trying" (same Uchtdorf talk)
Touched by the saints in Asia (Watson choked up when he said this) with their "temperance" in NO MATTER what is entrusted to their care.
Our WAKE UP Call: "Parents should consider how the adversary is approaching our children!" (Christofferson)
COOL thing: Brother Nielson praying for doors to open, when his son would go to that very "impossible" place 32 years later.
Favorite QUOTE: "Don't pull the shades down on our window pointing to heaven." (Andersen)
Theme and concern: Feeling the Spirip: being dependent on and acquiring, keeping and recognizing.
INTERESTING: How the seemingly insignificant things (scripture study, prayer) are and forever will be STILL the way to happiness, indescribable joy and companionship and closeness to the Holy Ghost, our Father and Savior and HOW MUCH they desire us to "Get it"!!
Joanna
Love your comments, Joanna....It is so interesting, to me...to see what caught your attention....I missed hearing that great QUOTE....
ReplyDeleteHere are some of the things I picked up....I found it interesting, again, the importance of our "fine tuning" our getting the HOLY GHOST into our lives...How important it is that we are living in such a way...to receive PERSONAL revelation...in these latter days....
Economic challenges...humbles us...
Elder Osouthorpe: "Do I view myself as a messenger from God"...(in relationship to "teaching")
I was, also, impressed...how much "family relationships" were decussed in great detail...Elder Bednar's talk was FANTASTIC...In the priesthood session was a talk on FATHER and SON relationships....
President Uchtdorf's talk...was perhaps...one of the KEY TALKS given in this conference...How, as a latter-day Saint, we should be most known as a "disciple of Christ"...I loved how he explained HOW to BECOME a DISCIPLE..."Love should be our walk and our talk!" "Love is the defining characteristic of a disciple of Christ"...
LOVE was a MAJOR theme...in this conference...Elder Oaks was very insightful...on LOVE and LAW...
Elder Hale testifying that there IS A GOD...which I found interesting...due to the climate of our society..."removing God from our daily lives"....and how..."there is NO God" attitude...that is growing more and more in today's society....
President Packer....testified that we are CHILDREN of GOD....that there is an ETERNAL PLAN...Prayer is the KEY to opening up HEAVEN...and I loved how he said that he ends his prayers with "thy will be done"....
Elder Eyring, also, talked about the "motivating power of LOVE"...."message of the RESTORED gospel...is for us to become "better"...
Elder Perry...quoting Ronald Reagan...in "learning lessons from the past for the FUTURE"...
Loved Elder Burton's quoting...how personal traits is an "outward manifestation of the inner man"... "Integrity is the "mother" of many virtues..."
Ann Dibbs: "scripture stories generally do not deal with those who lead "blissful" lives..." HOLD FAST TO THE IRON ROD...and you will NEVER PERISH!
Elder Nelson...was one of at least 3 or more who mentioned the "natural man"...
President Monson's talk on SERVICE...was EXCELLENT!!!! One I plan on REREADING....with great interest....
Elder Holland...My daughter, Rebekah, said it best...She and her husband were in the Conference Center...when he gave this quote...She said it was like FIRE in the entire building...and NOT A WORD or SOUND could be heard....I FELT that HEAT as well...in the chapel...where I FELT HIS TESTIMONY through every fiber of my being...
Loved Brent Nielson's talk...on the fullfillment of Spencer W. Kimball's prophecy...Garvin and I both REMEMBER that address by President Kimball...Garvin served a mission because of that talk...He went ONE YEAR after he joined the church....
Elder Renlund...NEW HEART...CHANGED HEART...and right after his talk...was Elder Ringwood...on that "might change"...LOVE IT!!!
Will REREAD Elder Christoffersen's with great interest....MORAL discipline...intertwined with government controls/laws....vs. AGENCY...
I know...I will REDISCOVER many things I did not write down...in my notes...or in this post...
I did receive insights...into challenges that I have experienced...I did receive answers to some of my prayers....but, most of all...I DESIRED...to "better" myself....In spite of the "latter days" in which we live...I found get STRENGTH in their words...I can TESTIFY...of the POWER of the WORD...through LIVING PROPHETS...and the BOOK of MORMON...especially....I truly LOVED the POWERFUL SPIRIT I felt..."sitting at the feet of these living prophets..." I am so looking forward to READING these talks...and receiving more INSIGHTS...I may have missed....
Yikes- Google tells me this is too long so I'll try posting in 3 parts:
ReplyDeletePart 1
Yikes it was so great I could go on forever. Can’t wait to get my hands on the transcripts of the talks.
Kaitlyn’s (the love bird newlywed) favorite was "I give counsel to husbands and wives. Pray for the love which allows you to see the good in your companion. Pray for the love that makes weaknesses and mistakes seem small. Pray for the love to make your companion's joy your own. Pray for the love to want to lessen the load and soften the sorrows of your companion." She is already a master at this where I have room to work on it!
Having a daughter who struggles I loved President Eyring’s counsel To the parents of a wandering child, he said the Savior is the perfect example of persisting in love. "You can pray for your children, love them, and reach out to them with confidence that Jesus reaches for them with you. When you keep trying you are doing what Jesus does."
Like Joanna I loved Elder Scott’s counsel "I believe that you can leave the most precious, personal direction of the Spirit unheard because you do not respond to, record, and apply the first promptings that come to you," Elder Scott said. "Impressions of the Spirit can come in response to urgent prayer or unsolicited when needed. Sometimes the Lord reveals truth to you when you are not actively seeking it, such as when you are in danger and do not know it. However, the Lord will not force you to learn. You must exercise your agency to authorize the Spirit to teach you. "
I loved it when Elder L. Whitney Clayton reminded us that gossip and unkindness can add to the burdens of others
I loved Elder Osguthorpe talk on teaching because he reiterated everything we train Seminary teachers to do. It was summed up as he quoted President Monson "The aim is to inspire the individual to think about, feel about and then do something about living gospel principles.” He also noted how the teacher was a messenger from God who saved his life and helped his faith grow.
I agree that the theme seemed to be LOVE. Elder Bednar reminded us “We simply should sincerely and frequently express love. … We should remember that saying 'I love you' is only a beginning. We need to say it, we need to mean it, and most importantly we need to consistently show it.” He also reminded us that children are very alert and sensitive and if our public statements of love aren’t followed by private actions it is hypocrisy.
Part 2
ReplyDeleteI also loved Elder Watson’s talk on temperance and his object lesson talking about tempered glass in a car accident. Loved his quote, "Likewise, a temperate soul — one who is humble and full of love — is also a person of increased spiritual strength. With increased spiritual strength, we are able to develop self-mastery and to live with moderation. We learn to control or temper our anger, vanity, and pride. With increased spiritual strength we can protect ourselves from dangerous excesses and destructive addictions of today's world."
Don’t you love it when Elder Anderson talks? I love that he was a long time Florida resident! He said the invitation to repent is rarely a voice of chastisement, but rather a loving appeal to turn around, and to return toward God; a beckoning "to be more than we are, to reach up to a higher way of life, to change, and to feel the happiness of keeping the commandments. … Repentance is a blessing to all of us." This was a good reminder to me that as we pray for and desire for others to repent we also want to avoid chastisement but instead appeal with love,
Just when I was feeling sad we hadn’t heard quite enough stories Elder Packer spoke (so sorry to see him in a wheelchair) Didn’t you love the story about President Faust feeling bad his whole life for not helping his Grandmother stock the wood for the stove. That story gave me two thoughts: first I am sure his Grandmother was happy to gather that wood to keep her sweet grandchildren toasty. Second I need to repent more fully of even tiny offences—yikes I wrote in my margin next to this story I AM GOING TO HELL FOR SURE.
Oh and of course since I so love my doggy and my chickens and all the birds and animals I loved the story about praying for Bossy the cow!
Wasn’t it a great visual reminder to pray when Elder Nelson reminded us that “we have access to information directly from heaven, without hardware, software or monthly service fees” I love that phrase. And I loved President Monson telling us about (and showing us- I’m a visual learner) his Warm fuzzy jar.
And of course I loved hearing President Holland’s powerful testimony. Could you believe he was in tears before he even began! Wonderful!
I loved hearing about the Jewish leaders and Martin Luther King Junior touring Welfare Square, the Humanitarian efforts and the temple open house.
Part 3
ReplyDeleteHaving visited my parents in South Africa on their mission I was thrilled to hear Elder Renlund’s talk! Wonderful!
And it was sobering to hear Elder Chirstoffersons talk. As we read the promises in the Book of Mormon that this will remain a land of liberty and promise as long as we are righteous he gave us this sobering quote:
"It was brought on by multiple causes, but one of the major causes was widespread dishonest and unethical conduct, particularly in the U.S. housing and financial markets." I have realized how much bad moral conduct, abortion etc. had lead to our current and rapid loss of liberties but hadn’t realized that greed has had a huge part of it also. The truth is if we were a Zion people and were caring for the poor and needy the government wouldn’t be steamrolling our freedoms and stepping into that roll themselves.
Perhaps my favorite quote from conference was the one shared from the
Catholic Bishop Fulton Sheen, "We would not accept the yoke of Christ; so now we must tremble at the yoke of Caesar." Sobering!
Wow it was so awesome! Debbie we miss you so much and wish you had been watching from your Florida home!
Sandee
Oh...Sandee and Joanna....Just reading your understanding and remarkable NOTES...helped me remember things I did not get written down...or perhaps missed...I am so grateful for the ENSIGN and the ability to access the talks through the internet....Garvin said that what he hopes to do...is read his scriptures...then, watch ONE talk a day at work...BEFORE he starts working on his students' papers...He leaves for work BEFORE 6:00 every morning....Has a wonderful computer and big screen...It is very QUIET at that time in the morning...(smile) I LOVED his idea...and hope to incorporate this in my life...as well....Thank you, my dear Sisters, for your STRENGTH in the gospel.....
ReplyDeleteI am spechless!!!Amen to all your comments. How were you able to keep so many and neat notes? I tried to scribble so fast that I'm experiencing what Elder Nelson described when he told his story about keeping notebook and pen to write the thoughts that come to him in the middle of the night. In this occassion he woke up with some really neat impressions and wrote them down but when he tried to read them to ponder on them, he couldn't understand his writing.Nonetheless, I agree the theme was love and I would like to add also - service to each other.I think the Lord wants to show us the power that Love has to change everything within us and around us. That spirituality will provide us with inspiration and power and that Satan's lie is "privacy" (Elder Richard G. Scott).Through the talks He assured all of us that "If we heed his words and live his commandments, we'll survive this time of permisivness" (Pres. Monson).My favorite talks (It's really hard to pick)Elder Clayton told the story about a man in Cuzco, Peru, carrying bundles of wood and how that can be similar to carrying our own burdens. It touched me because as I was growing up in Guatemala,this was a familiar scene. As he talked I had a vivid image in my mind of this man carrying that heavy weight. Not knowing about the gospel then, I never related it to burdens but when I saw it happen, I felt sorry for those that carried huge bundles in their backs and admired them for their strenght, I don't remember one of them having a prideful attitude, instead they were very humble, courteous and with difficulty even managed to smile and greet you as they passed you by. How true I find this analogy in our lives today and how grateful I am to have a Heavenly Father that as Elder Clayton says "in His own time and ways offers deliverance and eases our burdens" If our burdens can really help us to yield to the enticings of the Spirit, become as little children and want to bear one another's burdens, I think I will look at mine in a much different way from now on. I know now, the Lord will ease mine, He always has but I didn't always recognized it.I really enjoyed so many of the talks that you already covered that I'm sharing about more of my favorites. This one was given by Bishop Burton and he reminds us to let virtue garnish our thoughts unseasingly so that our confidence may wax strong in the prescence of God. What a wonderful world this could be if every single person could recognize that our personal traits or virtues are the foundation of the christian life. Bishop Burton called them the "ity virtues" it's a catchy name. He said that Heavenly Father expects us to exercise all the "ity virtues" responsibility, integrity, humility, spirituality, charity, accountability, civility, fidelity, generosity etc. That integrity is the firm adherence to a core of moral values and that it's difficult for a person to maitain virtue without integrity. How true that is!I felt motivitated to work on developing my personal traits so that I can develop them into virtues.Yes, I have been inspired and motivated to change a few things in my life, I did receive answer to prayers and I was happy and surprised to learn that despite our economic troubles,the construction of temples is still going strong and five additional temples were announced.
ReplyDeleteLilia, you are so CUTE!!!! When we can identify with an 80 year old apostle...and can say..."I can relate to his situation...." at OUR AGE....well...all I can say is...."hope everyone will have a sense of humor" when our minds are completely gone!!! (smile) LOVED your comments, Lilia........SISTERS...WITH OUR FAITH UNITED TOGETHER....we will "make it" to the very end!!!!
ReplyDeleteHuh?? WAIT, WHA.....? NO, NO I CAN"T HEAR A THING ABOVE ALL THE KIDS SCREAMING!!!! MAYBE I"LL HAVE TO READ THE TALKS AND GET BACK TO YOU GUYS!
ReplyDelete(sigh) Someday I'll be able to concentrate more on Conference, right? =)
Too funny, Sarah...I do believe...most everyone on this blog...can relate....We had Nathan...this conference....and he was a reminder....that 1 1/2 year olds...are not too interested in sitting for 2 hours a shot...(smile)
ReplyDeleteLilia,
ReplyDeleteI know you truly took general conference to heart especially the part about serving others. Thanks so much for taking such extra tender care of me this last week and for praying that things went well for me! I know they went better because of your prayers!
Sandee