Every April and October, my church gathers together for a televised conference session. We hear from the leaders of our church, and receive guidance through times of tribulation. It has been a long time since I have sat and watched conference, I usually just read it in the Ensign the following month. This year, I made the kids conference packets to keep them busy and sat hold Jackson while I soaked in all of the messages of love, friendship, religion, and motivation.
I especially loved Elder Uchtdorf's talk, "Come Join With Us." He is such an invigorating speaker, and one of my favorites. In his address, he speaks to the doubters, the righteous, those who have fallen away, and those who are not members of our faith. He talks about the imperfections we have and how we are all still chosen sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. Here are a few of my favorite quotes from his talk:
"It's natural to have questions- the acorn of honest inquiry has often sprouted and matured into a great oak of understanding. There are few members of the church, who at one time or another, have not wrestled with serious or sensitive questions. One of the purposes of the Church is to nurture and cultivate the seed of faith- even in the sometimes sandy soil of doubt and uncertainty. Faith is to hope for things which are not seen but which are true."
"Please, first doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith."
"It is unfortunate that some have stumbled because of the mistakes made by men. But in spite of this, the eternal truth of the restored gospel found in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not tarnished, diminished, or destroyed."
"I suppose the Church would be perfect only if it were run by perfect beings. God is perfect, and his doctrine is pure. But he works through us- His imperfect children- and imperfect people make mistakes."
I am one of those imperfect people; though everyday I strive to live as Heavenly Father would want me to. I thoroughly enjoyed the message of Elder Uchtdorf and you can find his entire talk here: http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/2013/10/come-join-with-us?lang=eng
Jenna watched all of conference with me, and we decided on the break between the Saturday sessions we needed some one-on-one time at Olive Garden. ;) After some delicious pasta Jenna ordered a White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Mousse. It was divine! Here she is enjoying it!
In the end, I am eternally grateful for a Father in Heaven who knows me and knows my struggles. My life has been anything but easy, and I testify in the great redeeming grace of repentance and forgiveness and can personally attest to their importance in my life. I am thankful for the gospel and the love and importance it is to me. I have a testimony of eternal families and look forward to spending forever with mine. I know that this church is true and there is a true prophet living on this earth to lead and guide us back to our Heavenly home. I have a testimony of the scriptures and general conference, as our road maps on this journey called life. I love the Lord and the sacrifice he made for me.
Amen.
"It's natural to have questions- the acorn of honest inquiry has often sprouted and matured into a great oak of understanding. There are few members of the church, who at one time or another, have not wrestled with serious or sensitive questions. One of the purposes of the Church is to nurture and cultivate the seed of faith- even in the sometimes sandy soil of doubt and uncertainty. Faith is to hope for things which are not seen but which are true."
"Please, first doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith."
"It is unfortunate that some have stumbled because of the mistakes made by men. But in spite of this, the eternal truth of the restored gospel found in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not tarnished, diminished, or destroyed."
"I suppose the Church would be perfect only if it were run by perfect beings. God is perfect, and his doctrine is pure. But he works through us- His imperfect children- and imperfect people make mistakes."
I am one of those imperfect people; though everyday I strive to live as Heavenly Father would want me to. I thoroughly enjoyed the message of Elder Uchtdorf and you can find his entire talk here: http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/2013/10/come-join-with-us?lang=eng
Jenna watched all of conference with me, and we decided on the break between the Saturday sessions we needed some one-on-one time at Olive Garden. ;) After some delicious pasta Jenna ordered a White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Mousse. It was divine! Here she is enjoying it!
Amen.
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