Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Brent H. Hielson Talk

Sunday Session 5, Talk 3 – Brent H. Hielson, of the Seventy

My Notes:

  • Kimball’s Prophetic Address that challenged the Church to stronger missionary work.
  • The rising generation is the fulfillment of prophesy of the Gospel blanketing the earth.
  • Scripture Quote Matthew 28:18-20 – Teach all nations
  • Jacob – Olive Tree Story, working in the vineyard.
  • The Savior said to Peter and Andrew: “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men”
  • The new generation should do their part and teach all nations.
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Quentin L. Cook Talk

Sunday Session 5, Talk 2- Quentin L. Cook, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My Notes:

  • Accountability/Stewardship
  • Rationalization will be seen in their true light.
  • Repentance means the Lord will forgive and FORGET your sins.
  • Stewardship:
    • Our Family/Children:
      • Remember that having religious observance at home is as important as providing food, clothing and shelter.
      • Children are accountable for time/talents are increasingling subject to foolishness and unrighteousness that are pervasive in the world.
      • Family Proclamation: “Individuals who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand responsible before God.”
    • Caring for the poor and those in need
      • We are Stewards of those in need. “If any man shall take of the abundance which I have made and impart not his portion of the poor and the needy, he shall with the wicked lift up his eyes in hell, being in torment.
      • Accountable as stewards of earthly blessings the Lord has provided.
  • Emulate Jesus
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Jeffery R. Holland Talk

Sunday Session 5, Talk 1 – Jeffery R. Holland, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My Notes:

  • There is one kind of latter day destruction that has sounded more personal … spiritual destruction
  • Held in his hand the very Book of Mormon that Hyrum had read.
  • Direct Testimony and Quote:

    “One cannot come into full faith in this latter day work and thereby find the fullness measure of peace of comfort of these are times until he or she embraces the divinity of the book of Mormon and the Lord Jesus Christ of whom it testifies. If anyone is foolish enough or misled enough to reject 531 pages of a here before unknown text, teaming with literary and symbolic complexity without honestly attempting to account for the origin of those pages somehow. Especially, without accounting for their powerful witness of Jesus Christ and their profound spiritual impact, that witness has had on what is now tens of millions of readers…if that’s the case, then such persons, elect or otherwise have been deceived. And if they leave this church, they must do so by crawling over or under or around the book of Mormon to make their exit. In that sense, the book is what Christ himself was said to be a stone of stumbling and a rock of offensive, a barrier in a path of one who wishes not to believe in this work. Witnesses, even witnesses who for a time hostile to Joseph, testified to their death that they had seen an angel and had handled the plates…”

Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Thomas S. Monson Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 6 – Thomas S. Monson, President of the Church, Prophet

My Notes:

  • Service
  • “Often we live side by side, but do not communicate heart to heart.”
  • Story of Father who asked “What did you do for someone today?” at the dinner table each night.
  • King Benjamen “When you are in the service of your fellow beings, you are only int he service of your God.”
  • Savior taught us “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it. But whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.”
  • He is telling us that unless we lose ourselves for service to others, there’s little purpose to our own lives.
  • “Man’s greatest happiness comes from losing himself for the good of others.” – President David O. McKay
  • At Baptism – covenanted to bear one another’s burden that they may be light.
  • Warm Fuzzies! Embodied by little things in a jar! 🙂
  • Notes from children who helped others:
    • “My grandpa had a stroke and i held his hand”
    • “My sister and I served my family by organizing and cleaning the toy closet. It took us a few hours and we had fun. The best part was that we surprised my mom and made her happy because she didn’t ask us to do it!”
    • “There was a family in my ward that did not have a lot of money. They have 3 little girls and mom and dad had to go somewhere, so I offered to watch the three girls. The dad was just about to hand me a 5 dollar bill. I said “I can’t take it”. My service was that I watched the girls for free.”
    • Mongolia – “Brought water from a well so his mother would not have to do so”
    • “My dad has gone for army training for a few weeks. My special job is to give my mom hugs and kisses”
    • “I picked strawberries for my great grandma. I felt good inside.”
    • “I played with a lonely kid.”
    • “I went to a ladies house and asked her questions. And sang her a song. It felt good to visit her. She was happy because she never gets visitors.”
  • Elder Richard L. Evens of the Quorum of the Twelve:”It isn’t easy for those who are young to understand the loneliness that comes when life changes from a time of preparation and performance to a time of putting things away. To be so long the center of a home, so much sought after, then almost suddenly to be on the sidelines watching the precession pass by, this is living into loneliness. We have to live a long time to learn how empty a room can be that is filled only with furniture. It takes someone beyond hired service, beyond institutional care, or professional duties to thaw out the memories of the past and keep them warmly living in the present. We cannot bring them back, the morning hours of youth. But we can help them live in a warm glow of a sunset made more beautiful by our thoughtfulness and unfeigned love.”
  • Matthew Chapter 25 quoted.
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Russell M. Nelson Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 5 – Russell M. Nelson, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My Notes:

  • Technology allows us to communicate rapidly.
  • Even more amazing than modern technology is our opportunity to access information directly from heaven. Without: hardware, software or monthly service fees.
  • It’s one of the most marvelous gifts the Lord has offered to mortals.
  • Wrote down an idea for General Conference and arose from sleep and wrote down his impressions. The next morning he looked at the paper and his writing was illegible. He writes more carefully now.
  • To access information from Heaven you need:
  1. have a firm faith and deep desire.
  2. Ask with a sincere heart and real intent having faith in Jesus Christ. Real intent means that one really intends to follow divine direction given.
  3. Study the matter diligently. Study it out in your mind. The ask God if it is right. If it is right, he will cause a burning in your bosom, therefore you shall FEEL that it is right.
  4. Know and obey the teachings of the Lord.
  • The natural man knows very little of God and even less of his prophet.
  • Paul wrote: “The natural man receives not the things of the spirit of God for they are foolishness unto him, neither can they know them because they are spiritually discerned.”
  • Another Prophet said: “The natural man is an enemy to God and has been from the fall of Adam and will be forever and ever unless he yields to the enticings of the holy spirit and puteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord. And becometh as a Child: Submissive, Meek, Humble, Patient, Full of Love, Willing to submit of all things with the Lord see fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doths submit to his father.”
  • Gives the Definition of Discernment:
  • Gift of Discernment is a Spiritual is a supernal gift: it allows members of the Church to see things not visible and to feel things not tangible. Bishops are entitled to this gift to seek out the poor and care for the needy.
  • Sisters may view trends in the world and detect those, however popular, are shallow or even dangerous.
  • Members can discern between schemes that are flashy and fleeting – and those refinements which are uplifting and enduring.
  • Discernment was implicit, in important instructions President John Taylor gave long ago, taught stake presidents, bishops and others :

    “It is the right of those holding these positions to obtain the word of God with regard to the duties of their presidencies , that they more effectually carry out his holy purposes. None of the callings or positions int he priesthood are intended for the personal benefits, monuments and fame of those who hold them. But are expressly given to fulfill our purposes of our heavenly father and build up the kingdom of god upon the earth. We seek to understand the will of God and then carry it out and then see that it is carried by those over whom we have the charge.”

  • To receiving revaluation unique to our needs and responsibilities, Certain Guidelines prevail:
    • Develop faith, hope, charity and love with an eye single to the glory of god. then with your firm faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility and diligence you may ask and you will receive, knock and it will be upon unto you.
    • Revelation from god is always compatible with his eternal law, never contradicts his doctrine. facilitated by proper reverence for Deity. “I the Lord am merciful and gracious to those who fear me and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end. Great shall be their reward, and eternal shall be their glory. to them i will reveal all mysteries. and my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.
    • Revelation need not come all at once, may be incremental:

      “I will give unto the children of men, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little there a little and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom, for unto him who receiveth, i will give more.”

  • Patience, perseverance are part of our eternal progression
  • Prophets describe what it feels like when receiving revelation:
    • Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery: “The veil was taken from our minds and the eyes of our understanding were opened”
    • Joseph F Smith: “As I pondered over these things which were written, the eyes of my understanding were opened and the spirit of the lord rested upon me”
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Ann M. Dibb Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 4 – Ann M. Dibb, Second Counselor, Young Woman General Presidency

My Notes:

  • Using your Safety Equipment
  • Workers two weeks away (year task) from painting a bridge when a scaffolding collapsed.
  • Held on for hours. Thought of their family.
  • Could have been avoided with safety equipment.
  • They chose not to use the safety equipment.
  • The rod of iron is our safety equipment.
  • Invited to reread Lehi’s vision of the iron rod.
  • “Get a Grip” on the iron rod. “Repent, hold on and don’t let go.”
  • Daughter of President Monson!
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: H. David Burton Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 3 – H. David Burton, Presiding Bishop

My Notes:

  • Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly, then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God.
  • 13th Article of Faith
  • Civility
  • Stand tall and be firmly fixed in perpetuating Christ like virtues, even the “ity” virtues.
  • Teaching virtuous traits begins in the home with parents who care and set the example. A good parent example encourages emulation. A poor example give license to disregard and even expand. An hypocritical example destroys credibility.
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: L. Tom Perry Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 2 – L. Tom Perry, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My Notes:

  • Temples
  • Learn from the past to help us face the future.
  • Pagent of Manti
  • Kimball promised a temple on the hill in Manti.
  • If you want to have a temple, get busy and build it!
  • The older temples are built with sacrifice.
  • Norwegian Ship builders used the principles of ship building helped build the roof of the Manti temple.
  • Use the lessons from the past to help meet the challenge. (We can us the Gospel in our lives the same way – Principles and Truths in the Past to help us face the future.)
  • Being baptized means you must teach others
  • Three subjects taught to investigators:
    1. Restoration
    2. Plan of Salvation
    3. Gospel of Jesus Christ
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Henry B. Eyring Talk

Sunday Session 4, Talk 1 – President Henry B. Eyring, 1st Counselor of the First Presidency

My Notes:

  • Become Better than you are now
  • Do not feel like you are good enough.
  • Do not give up trying to be better.
  • The message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that we CAN and we must expect to become better as long as we live.
  • We believe that through living the Gospel, we can become like the saviour who is perfect.
  • “I’m trying to be like Jesus” Primary Song
  • Family is the testing ground for learning Love
  • Love is putting others above ourselves.
  • Sorrow comes primarily from selfishness, which is the absence of love.
  • The idea God holds for us is to form families in a way that is most likely to lead to happiness and away from sorry.
  • A man and a woman are to make sacred covenants that they will put the welfare and happiness of the other at the center of their lives.
  • Children are to be born into a family where parents hold the needs of the children equal to their own in importance.
  • Children are to love parents and each other.
  • That is the idea of a loving family.
  • Choices to qualify that there will be no empty chairs in our families in the world to come:
    1. Pray for the love that allows you to see the good in your companion. Pray for the love that makes the weaknesses and mistakes seem small. Pray for the love to make your companions joy your own. Pray for the love to want to lessen the load and soften your sorrows of your companion.
    2. Council to the parents of a wandering child. The savior is the perfect example of persisting in love. Story of Jesus re-inviting the Nephites to come to him. Story of the Prodigal Son gives us hope.

      Elder Orson F. Whitney, General Conference in 1929, to the faithful parents that honor temple sealings to their children:

      “Though some of the sheep may wonder, the eye of the Shepard is upon them and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of divine providence reach out after them and drawing them back to the fold…Pray for your careless and disobedient children, hold on to them with your faith. Hope on, trust on ’till you see the salvation of God. You can pray for your children. Love them. Reach out to them with confidence that Jesus reaches for them with you. When you keep trying, you are doing what Jesus does.”

    3. Council to the children. Lord gave you a commandment with a promise. The only commandment with a promise… Honor thy Father and Mother.
  • “Try to show kindness in all that you do. Be gentle and loving in deed and thought.”
Posted on

The 179th Semiannual General Conference: Boyd K. Packer Talk

Saturday Session 2, Talk 7 – President Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

My Notes:

  • Pray even if you are you and wayward like the prophet Alma.
  • Pray often.
  • Pray in your mind.
  • Pray in your heart.
  • Pray on your knees.
  • Prayer is your personal key in Heaven.
  • Learned to close all prayers with “thy will be done.”