"On Being Genuine" - President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/on-being-genuine?lang=eng




This talk reminds me a bit of "Truly Good and Without Guile" or whatever the title of that one was. It is all about being true to our testimony, remembering the reason we do things and going about them for the right reason. Not seeking praise of anybody. The Lord sees in secret.

President Uchtdorf asks us to look inside of ourselves and ask why we are here. I took "here" to be an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I think he meant it more literally, speaking of conference. Before I went on reading I tried to answer that. I thought "I am here because the fruits of the Gospel are better than any you could find any other place on Earth." That would be my very simple reason, and felt good enough for me. But when I read President Utchdorf's response, I wanted to change it. He says, "I am here because I desire with all my heart to follow my Master, Jesus Christ. I yearn to do all that He asks of me in this great cause. I hunger to be edified by the Holy Spirit and hear the voice of God as He speaks through His ordained servants. I am here to become a better man, to be lifted by the inspiring examples of my brothers and sisters in Christ, and to learn how to more effectively minister to those in need.

In short, I am here because I love my Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ."

Yes! This!!! This is why I am here. This needs to be why we are all here. I think if we kept this in mind being genuine would come more naturally to us. We wouldn't be in church concerned with other things. We would fulfill the callings we hold. We would seek the Lord constantly. He reminds us that even sparks of tesimony can be stoked into blazing bonfires. That's what I'm trying to do. I want the Burning Man of testimonies and I am working hard for it.

Probably everyone has heard by now his analogy of the church not being a showroom for cars, but a repair shop. We need to remember that coming to church is not to put your best face on, but to receive the maintenance we need. 

I left my phone at home this last Sunday. On purpose. I thought it was time to try to get a little more out of my lessons. Particularly Sacrament meeting. I reached for my phone probably 5 times. To check something, to text someone, to take a picture of my kids... Even though I usually feel naked without it, it was quite a relief to not have it. I was able to listen, and to pull out my actual scriptures. Most people just use their LDS apps for scriptures and I am not saying there is anything wrong with that. However, for me the phone is a distraction. I think I will leave it home every Sunday. I think it will bless my life to have just 3 hours a week without it. 

I love the Gospel. I know people fall away because they have problems with the church sometimes. The people, the History... whatever it is, these things are not the Gospel. People make mistakes but our Father in Heaven doesn't and His Word is pure and true. I think, if we are all genuine we will make such good missionaries. Imagine a church of real Christ-like people. Who could resist that?

"Priesthood and Personal Prayer" - President Henry B. Eyring

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/priesthood-and-personal-prayer?lang=eng

   President Eyring has long been one of my favorite speakers. I enjoy reading his words and even books. This talk was given in Priesthood session but is definitely for all of us. I love that. He starts by talking about a missed opportunity of his youth. Because he hadn't been diligently seeking the Spirit, he was caught off guard and unable to maybe help someone. Often there are times when we will need the Spirit on hand, without time for preparation. We need to be constantly seeking the Spirit so we may have it on hand at all times. President Joseph F. Smith said, "“We do not have to cry unto him with many words. We do not have to weary him with long prayers. What we do need, and what we should do as Latter-day Saints, for our own good, is to go before him often, to witness unto him that we remember him and that we are willing to take upon us his name, keep his commandments, work righteousness; and that we desire his Spirit to help us.” Our prayers need to be constanly asking the Spirit to attend us.

    President Eyring is speaking in terms of having the Spirit to use the Priesthood, but it applies to all of us. We need the Spirit constantly. Sometimes we don't have time to call on Him and pray when we need revelation or inspiration. We need to already have prepared. We all have stewardships that need care. I have my family and those I visit teach. Our own judgment isn't enough. We need to know what the Lord would have us to do care for them.

   Because we have such potential, whether in the Priesthood or as women, the adversary targets us when we try to stay close to the Spirit. I heard a story once about two men. If you could see through the veil, you would see one man had many strong devils surrounding him and the other just had one tiny devil. The viewer asks why the one is so encompassed by evil, assuming the man with many devils was an evil person. The truth is that the man with only one devil doesn't need much to persuade him to do evil. The man with many devils was so righteous that it took many to tempt him. Our prayers for the Spirit need to include asking to be warned of evil and temptation.

   I like this talk because it applies to everyone. It is not just about the Priesthood. We all need to take care to have the Spirit in our everyday lives. Without it we would miss opportunities to do good and be tempted.

"The Priesthood - A Sacred Gift" - President Thomas S. Monson

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/the-priesthood-a-sacred-gift?lang=eng

   I listened to this talk a couple of days ago in the car and just haven't had time to write about it. I generally don't write Friday-Sunday anyway. I just don't have the same free time in the mornings.

   I liked the story about President Monson giving his first priesthood blessing. For some reason this story stood out to me in a comforting way. I always worry that I am not doing enough for my kids spiritually, but President Monson had never even seen a priesthood blessing until he was in the Navy. For some reason that just makes it seem like I'm doing okay. If God's prophet had to read a manual on how to give a blessing, my kids might just be fine.

   My next few posts may not be very long. They are all priesthood talks. There is plenty in there to analyze and love, but it is not really directed to me. I will say that I am very glad my husband has the priesthood and uses it for our family. We just did father's blessings two weeks ago and that is always a special time for us. This year, Lily did exactly what Levi did last year. She hopped up ready to receive a blessing for school and wouldn't take no for an answer. I will probably always carry the image of her folding her arms so tight and being so reverent.

   Kyle is very good at making sure our children have the gospel. While I am generally the leader in enforcing or changing things in our house, he is always very quick to follow my lead. For instance, we started soccer recently. Our kids love soccer. But it doesn't leave us with many free nights or time. We have not been able to read our scriptures and that has been disappointing. Really if I think toward the future, I see this only getting worse, not better. As activities multiply, night time reading together just won't happen. A couple of days ago, I asked him how he felt about getting up just after six to read with our kids before school. He was not excited. He already has to get up pretty early to take them to school and this would cut out almost 30 minutes of his sleep. Yet, he agreed that it was a reasonable solution and said he would do it. I kind of thought he would just not get up when the time came, but he did. He was excellent. He is always willing to help our family get on the best track possible. That is honoring your priesthood. Not just doing the things set forward as priesthood duties, but leading your family as our Father would have him do. I am rather lucky.

"Blessings of the Temple" - President Thomas S. Monson

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/blessings-of-the-temple?lang=eng

   This talk was sweet and simple. But then, aren't the truths of the Gospel simple? Our Heavenly Father clearly cares that we attend the temple. That is why He has His prophet remind us. Reading this talk, I am stuck by the fact that President Monson doesn't talk about temple "work," or about our duty to those on the other side. He talks instead about the peace and answers available to us in the temple. The temple is truly there for us. I am glad that my marriage is eternal. In yesterday's talk, the woman said she knew her testimony was there because she wanted her children to be married in the temple. That is definitely what I want for my children. Every time I go to a civil wedding, I want to cry when the officiator says "'Til death do you part." What a sad, sad promise. I don't understand how people believe that the Lord wants us to find someone, spend 70-80 years with them, really grow with them, and then die and be alone in the after life. What a scary thought. That plan does not come from the loving Heavenly Father that I know.
   I am glad that my marriage is eternal. I'm basically planning on piggy backing on Kyle's entrance into Heaven. If we were separated I might not make it! Don't misunderstand, my husband had flaws and weaknesses and I am not oblivious to them, nor do I idolize him. However, he is constant in his testimony and strength. It amazes me. You know how I have to read the scriptures and go to church and focus all my energy to be on track? Kyle has none of that. The Spirit doesn't leave him. I am a little bit envious.

   A couple of days ago, I told a friend that the Book of Mormon doesn't really inspire me very often. I find it a burden to read and am not struck with feelings of its truth or beauty very often. Well, I usually listen to it in the car. Yesterday I had some time to sit and flip through actual pages. I found something that I had marked, I don't know when or why. It wasn't the chapter I was even on, but I stopped to read it. It was beautiful! It was poetry. I was totally inspired and so glad to be eating my words. =) In case you were wondering, the scripture was 2 Nephi 4: 27-35. If I can give you advice: pull out an actual Book of Mormon. Convenience may help us to get more reading in, but it is the quality of our study,  not the quantity that is going to help us.

"Returning to Faith" - Rosemary M. Wixon

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/returning-to-faith?lang=eng

This was a good talk. Not one written for me at this moment. Perhaps a month ago it really would have been very personal. Instead of writing my feelings about this one today, I sent it to a friend who I thought could use it. Seeing friends struggle is hard. But I guess this is just a chance for me to finally be there for someone else. Usually my friends are picking my mess up. =)

"Is it still Wonderful to You?" Bishop Gerard Clausse

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/is-it-still-wonderful-to-you?lang=eng

    This might be my new favorite talk from conference. Wow. I just loved it. It reminded me of one a few years ago... I had to look it up. It was called "Can ye Feel So Now?" by Quentin L. Cook. Both of these talks warn us of complacency towards the Gospel. The same complacency that gets all of us slowly. You may think you are immune, but it sneaks in. If you aren't constantly feeding your testimony and feeling the awesomeness of the Gospel, you are leaving cracks for the complacency to creep in. Let's remember Heber J. Grant saying, "O God, bless me that I shall not lose my testimony and keep faithful to the end!" If he needed constant feeding and awe, how much more do we, with our silly activities committee callings, need it?

    Just a few days ago one of the talks also reminded me that we need to be in constant amazement at the atonement. It is not something that can become everyday and mundane to us. Bishop Clausse says, "To marvel at the wonders of the gospel is a sign of faith." It means we understand and acknowledge the Lord's hand in our everyday life.

    Bishop Clausse goes on to give 3 ways to continue in our faith, with love and amazement for the Savior:

    1. Never tire of discovering the truths of the Gospel. I am sure there are some people out there that think they know everything there is to know about the Gospel. I am so far from there that this is no problem. I am an itty bitty seedling still trying to grow a tree of knowledge.

     2. Anchor our faith in the plain and simple truths of the Gospel. I love this. So many people could have the Gospel in their lives if they would heed this. Some of the complexities or history of the church can be distracting. Let's focus instead on the fruits that we bring forth. Let's focus on the Atonement of Jesus Christ and on the restoration of the Gospel in the latter days. Let's focus on the fact that we have the Priesthood, the very power of God, available for our use on earth.

    3. Seek and Cherish the companionship of the Spirit. I notice a difference almost instantly of when I have the Holy Ghost in my life. I have a very large swing. I don't just hover somewhere safely. I am either quoting scripture, on fire with the Spirit, or falling off of a cliff somewhere. Perhaps that is why I like this talk so much. It is reminding me to stay safely in awe of the Gospel, to marvel at the atonement and the simple truths of the Gospel. They may be simple, but they are wonderful.