General Conference Saturday Morning Session 4-4-09

President Thomas S. Monson - Welcome to Conference
"Because of the passing of Elder Wirthlin, there exists a vacancy in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. After much fasting and prayer, we have called Elder Neil Linden Andersen to fill this vacancy."

"We now have approximately 53,000 missionaries serving in 348 missions throughout the world."

"The Perpetual Education Fund, established in 2001, continues to move forward. Since its inception, 35,600 young men and young women have been enrolled in the program and have trained to improve their skills and their employment opportunities. Thus far, 18,900 have finished that training. On average, with the 2.7 years of education they are now receiving, they are increasing their income by three to four times."

Elder Robert D. Hales - Becoming Provident Providers: Temporally and Spiritually
"Today I speak to all whose freedom to choose has been diminished by the effects of ill-advised choices of the past. I speak specifically of choices that have led to excessive debt and addictions to food, drugs, pornography, and other patterns of thought and action that diminish one’s sense of self-worth. All of these excesses affect us individually and undermine our family relationships."

"..additional debt is incurred when we cannot control our wants and addictive impulses."

"Being provident providers, we must keep that most basic commandment, 'Thou shalt not covet'(Exodus 20:17). Our world is fraught with feelings of entitlement."

"...we go into debt to buy...things we do not really need." "We give away some of our precious, priceless agency and put ourselves in self-imposed servitude."

"When our boys were young, we had a family council and set a goal to take a 'dream vacation' down the Colorado River. When any of us wanted to buy something during the next year, we would ask each other, 'Do we really want to buy that thing now, or do we want to take our dream trip later?' This was a wonderful teaching experience in choosing provident living. By not satisfying our every immediate want, we obtained the more desirable reward of family togetherness and fond memories for years to come."

"...addiction is the craving of the natural man, and it can never be satisfied."

“Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted” (2 Nephi 9:51).

Sister Margaret S. Lifferth - Respect and Reverence
"...reverence for God is strengthened as we show respect for each other."

"Ask yourself these questions: Am I an example of respect in my home by the way I treat those I love the most? What is my demeanor during a sports event? If my child has a disagreement with a teacher, coach, or peer, do I listen to both sides of the issue? Do I show respect for the property of others as well as take care of my own? How do I respond to others with whom I disagree in matters of religion, lifestyle, or politics?"

"Reverence is profound respect mingled with love."(David O. McKay, in Conference Report, Apr. 1967, 86.)

"Reverence Invites Revelation." (Boyd K. Packer, "Reverence Invites Revelation," Ensign, Nov. 1991, 21–23.)

"...reverence will increase if our socializing is done in the foyer and if sacrament meeting begins with the prelude music, not the opening prayer."

"Texting or reading e-mails in a Church meeting is not only irreverent, it is distracting and signals a lack of respect for those around us. So we exemplify reverence by participating in the meeting, listening to the speakers, and singing the hymns of Zion together."

Michael A. Neider - Revealed Quorum Principles
"As bearers of the holy priesthood, we should see that the sisters are not the only examples of virtue. "

"And let every man ^aesteem his brother as himself, and practise ^bvirtue and holiness before me." (Doctrine and Covenants 38:24)

"Brethren, we should be earnest students of revealed priesthood and quorum principles."

"Teaching of fundamentals is urgent. That we might better understand our task and our opportunity" (Thomas S. Monson, "Back to Basics," regional representative's seminar, Apr. 3, 1981, 2. )

"Bishops, do not overlook the strength and skill of your Aaronic Priesthood quorum and Young Women class presidencies."

Allen F. Packer - Finding Strength in Challenging Times!
"We must know—and know that we know."

"As we tugged back and forth, amid all the noise I heard a voice yelling, 'Packer, tackle him!' That was enough to bring me to my senses, so I dropped him on the spot.

I have wondered how I heard that voice above all the other noise. I had become acquainted with the voice of the coach during the practices, and I had learned to trust it. I knew that what he taught worked.

We need to be acquainted with the promptings of the Holy Ghost, and we need to practice and apply gospel teachings until they become natural and automatic."

“A testimony of the gospel is a personal witness borne to our souls by the Holy Ghost that certain facts of eternal significance are true and that we know them to be true." (Dallin H. Oaks, “Testimony,” Liahona and Ensign, May 2008, 26.)

"Testimony is to know and to feel, conversion is to do and to become.” (Dallin H. Oaks, quoted in Kenneth Johnson, “Coming to Know for Ourselves,” Ensign, July 2008, 29)

"This witness is not limited to the leaders but is available to all men, women, youth, and even little children. Having the capacity to receive personal inspiration will be necessary in the coming days."

Elder D. Todd Christofferson - The Power of Covenants
3 Nephi 27:20
20 Now this is the commandment: ^aRepent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be ^bbaptized in my name, that ye may be ^csanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand ^dspotless before me at the last day.

"Our access to [moral and spiritual] power is through our covenants with [God]. A covenant is an agreement between God and man, an accord whose terms are set by God"

"Divine covenants make strong Christians."

Elder Henry B. Eyring - Adversity
"Particularly when the comfortable times have gone on for a while, the arrival of suffering or the loss of material security can bring fear and sometimes even anger."

"The very opportunity for us to face adversity and affliction is part of the evidence of Their infinite love. God gave us the gift of living in mortality so that we could be prepared to receive the greatest of all the gifts of God, which is eternal life."

Doctrine and Covenants 121:7-8,10
“My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
“And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.
“Thou art not yet as Job;”

Standards Night Weber Heights Stake 9-14-08

A member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, who was baptized in our stake building 40 years ago, and her husband spoke to us. In Indiana we didn't ever run into any members of The Choir.

First Speaker
She quoted Mosiah 5:15, which I think she said it the youth's theme for the year.
15 Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in ^agood works, that Christ, the ^bLord God Omnipotent, may ^cseal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of him who ^dcreated all things, in heaven and in earth, who is God above all. Amen.

She said that before she moved to Utah she hadn't heard of Mormons, but once she did she envisioned the Amish. Which maybe be do to our pioneer history.

She shared stories about Mormon kids being rude to her when she moved to Utah and when they found out that she wasn't a member of the Church. It reminded me a bit of the story my dad often tells about coming to Utah as a kid and visiting Mormon relatives when he was Catholic.

The speaker expressed to the youth that she couldn't share much with them because the youth of the Church already know the standards of the Church. She said they know because they have been taught and when they don't live the standards they can feel it.

She shared a story about missing several flights on one trip due to many many problems. They, after much frustration, finally ended up in a terminal waiting for the flight that eventually went through for them. Behind them they could hear a man going on to another man about negatives things that he "knew" about the Mormons. They realized that after everything that had happened to them, they ended up exactly where they needed to be. Her husband stood up and walked over to them. He let them both know that he was a bishop and he assured them that he would answer any questions about the Church that they might have and that if they wanted to know if any principle of the Church was true that their Heavenly Father would tell them if they prayed and asked Him.

Second Speaker
He talked of someone that came up to him when he was in a restaurant between meetings when he was away on business. The guy asked if he could sit with him. He then asked if he was a Mormon. He told the guy that he was. The man then said, "Well you aren't a question then are you?" He then asked the man what a Christian was. The man listed off several things that he felt Christians believed. He confirmed to the man that he believed most of that as well. The man then said that Christians believed that they are saved by grace. He told the man that we also believed in grace, but that we also had obey God and follow the Savior.

He shared another story with us about how he was in Paris on September 11, 2001 when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center. He said that those outside the United States had no idea the extent of what was going on here. He didn't know what he would find when he got home.

He talked of protecting ourselves from temptations. He said that even at his age he is tempted dozens of times a day to do something wicked. He says that sometimes he says "no" verbally and sometimes just to his own mind. He said no matter who you are you must determine to always say no to wickedness, because Satan is actively seeking to destroy us and the more we say no the easier it gets. When we do not say no it is harder to say no the next time.

Stake President
He talked of texting on cell phones during church. He stated that it is rude and inappropriate to do it in Sacrament Meeting or Sunday School or any Church meeting. He said that there are missionaries that are being sent home because they can't stand to be out of contact with their friends by texting. They don't focus on the work and they are being consumed by texting.

He talked about MP3 players. He said that we should be careful not to always have ear phones on. He said that it locks you out of the rest of the world and is rude. He also counseled to be cautious of what we put on those MP3 players.

He talked of pornography being a real problem. He called it the plague of the 21st century. He said that pornography is more addictive than cocaine. He said that drugs eventually leave your body, but those pictures can be drawn up by your mind at any time.