October Conference Thoughts

I said I’d take little longer to post my thoughts on this year’s October conference addresses.  Now I’m ready.  There were several talks that hit home for me, so I’m going to focus on them in this post.  I’ve also decided to use a different format than I did in April.  If I like it, I think I’ll use it as my permanent way of presenting my conference thoughts (unless something better comes along later J).

“Which Way Do You Face?” – Elder Lynn G. Robbins:  This talk affected me because I could see myself in it.  There have been times in my life when I have inverted the first and second commandments and found myself trying “to please others before pleasing God.”  None of those situations have worked out well for me—they always come back and bite me in a way I hadn’t expected.  Elder Robbins was very straightforward with this subject.  He pulled no punches and I liked that.  In this day and age when so many people are trying to convince those of us with religious convictions that we are out of step with mainstream thinking and ought to modify our views, by compromising and trying “to save face with men, [we] can unwittingly lose face with God.”  I came away from this talk with a greater desire to do what I can to stay true to Father by keeping myself pointed and focused toward Him and not to the teachings of the world.  (full talk here)

“The Sacrament—a Renewal for the Soul” – Cheryl A. Esplin:  On the heels of Elder Robbins’ talk came this address from Sister Esplin.  Whereas Elder Robbins talk had made me squirm in a way that hopefully will bring about proper change in my character, Sister Esplin reminded me that the way for me to overcome my “natural man” tendencies is through the partaking of the sacrament: “The sacrament becomes a spiritually strengthening experience when we listen to the sacrament prayers and recommit to our covenants.”  Another part that was exciting for me was her take on the Aaronic Priesthood brethren and what they are doing for ward members when they bless and pass the sacrament emblems to the congregation each week: “Aaronic Priesthood holders represent the Savior when they prepare, bless, and pass the sacrament. As a priesthood holder extends his arm to offer us the sacred emblems, it is as if the Savior Himself were extending His arm of mercy, inviting each one of us to partake of the precious gifts of love made available through His atoning sacrifice—gifts of repentance, forgiveness, comfort, and hope.”  The reason I loved this comment the moment I heard it was because I knew immediately that I had to find a way to include it in my Aaronic Priesthood lessons.  I am trying to incorporate women’s voices into them when possible.  So far, I’ve been able to do so in the final lesson, but now I’ll be able to pull this quote into the lesson on the sacrament prayers.  I very much appreciated her words.  (full talk here)

“Free Forever, to Act for Themselves” – Elder D. Todd Christofferson:  A wonderful talk about the relationship of moral agency with justice and mercy.  Also, however, I liked how Elder Christofferson made it plain that we can’t just sit back and do nothing when it comes to receiving God’s grace: “God intends that His children should act according to the moral agency He has given them … It is His plan and His will that we have the principal decision-making role in our own life’s drama. God will not live our lives for us nor control us as if we were His puppets”.  He explained that justice is “an essential attribute of God” and we cannot expect Him to paper over our sins, pat us on the head, and let us into His kingdom without making proper changes in our character: “Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and His grace, our failures to live the celestial law perfectly … Justice demands, however, that none of this happen without our willing agreement and participation.”  Our ability to make choices gives us the capacity to grow, but it does not give us the ability to wipe away or alter God’s truths just because we don’t like or agree with them: “To those who believe anything or everything could be true, the declaration of objective, fixed, and universal truth feels like coercion … But that does not change reality. Resenting the law of gravity won’t keep a person from falling if he steps off a cliff. The same is true for eternal law and justice. Freedom comes not from resisting it but from applying it. … If it were not for the reality of fixed and immutable truths, the gift of agency would be meaningless since we would never be able to foresee and intend the consequences of our actions.”  Good stuff.  (full talk here)

“Joseph Smith” – Elder Neil L. Andersen:  This one touched me because of the way Elder Andersen testified of the prophet.  In recent years, social media appears to have become the court of quick and “definitive” opinion.  Once something (a quote, a video, a blog post) goes viral, people seem to go from 0 to 60 in a matter of seconds to make their opinion known on the said subject.  No matter how hard we may try to challenge every cyber-space misquote or half-truth maligning the character and mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, we may sometimes feel as if we’re bailing water from a boat with a teaspoon.  Elder Andersen reminds “the sincere inquirer that Internet information does not have a ‘truth’ filter. Some information, no matter how convincing, is simply not true.”  I liked his answer to the question: “Why does the Lord allow the evil speaking to chase after the good? One reason is that opposition against the things of God sends seekers of truth to their knees for answers.”  Honestly, the only way a person can truly receive answers about the prophet is by going to his knees and sincerely asking the Source.  I have done so, and the spiritual blessings that have come into my life because of my testimony of Joseph Smith and the work he started continue to enhance my life.  (full talk here)

“Come and See” – Elder David A. Bednar:  There are people who wonder why it is that we send missionaries out to Christians as well as people who are not Christian.  Elder Bednar’s explanation for our focus on missionary work: “When we invite you to attend church with us or to learn with the full-time missionaries, we … are inviting you to hear the restored truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ so you can study, ponder, pray, and come to know for yourself if the things we are sharing with you are true.”  We have something that fills us with joy and brings us peace (at least it should).  It is human nature to share something like that with others.  But for members of the Church, our reason for sharing the gospel is deeper than that: “Our desire to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ with you is a reflection of how important these truths are to us.”  The story Elder Bednar shared about his boys was wonderful and emphasized this point very effectively. (full talk here)

Random Thoughts:  The new wrinkle of allowing foreign language speakers to give their conference addresses in their native language was interesting.  I think it would have been better though, if either the sound of the speaker’s voice was muted more to allow better hearing of the translator or subtitles be employed.  I don’t know.  Maybe I’ll be more used to this new practice next time and it won’t matter as much.  Elder Scott gave a great talk, as usual, but he seemed to be suffering from a cold which was causing him breathing problems.  The timing of his breathing coupled with the look on his face made me wonder if he was thinking: “I’ve told you all these things before, why won’t you listen?”  I know this was not the case, but that was the random thought that popped into my head at the time.  Until six months from now … J