General Conference Sunday Morning Session 4-5-09

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf - The Way of the Disciple
"It is fitting that during the week from Palm Sunday to Easter morning we turn our thoughts to Jesus Christ, the source of light, life, and love."

"We live in a time when many worry about their livelihood. They are concerned about the future and doubt their ability to resolve the challenges that confront them. Many have experienced personal misfortune and sadness. They hunger for meaning and purpose in life.

Because there is such great interest in these issues, the world is not bashful in offering numerous new answers to every problem we face. People run from one new idea to the next, hoping to find something that will answer the burning questions of their souls. They attend seminars and buy books, CDs, and other products. They get caught up in the excitement of looking for something new. But inevitably, the flame of each new theory fades, only to be replaced by another “new and improved” solution that promises to do what the others before could not.

It’s not that these worldly options don’t contain elements of truth—many of them do. Nevertheless, they all fall short of the lasting change we seek in our lives. After the excitement wears off, the hollowness remains as we look for the next new idea to unlock the secrets of happiness.

In contrast, the gospel of Jesus Christ has the answers to all of our problems. The gospel is not a secret. It is not complicated or hidden. It can unlock the door to true happiness. It is not someone’s theory or proposition. It does not come from man at all. It springs from the pure and everlasting waters of the Creator of the universe, who knows truths we cannot even begin to comprehend. And with that knowledge, He has given us the gospel—a divine gift, the ultimate formula for happiness and success."

"Too often we approach the gospel like a farmer who places a seed in the ground in the morning and expects corn on the cob by the afternoon"

"It is not enough merely to speak of Jesus Christ or proclaim that we are His disciples. It is not enough to surround ourselves with symbols of our religion. Discipleship is not a spectator sport. We cannot expect to experience the blessings of faith by standing inactive on the sidelines any more than we can experience the benefits of health by sitting on a sofa watching sporting events on television and giving advice to the athletes."

Elder Neil L. Anderson - Come unto Him
"Our knowledge of the divine mission of the Church should not bring feelings of superiority or arrogance but should take us to our knees, pleading for the Lord’s help that we might be what we should be."

Elder Steven E. Snow - Get On with Our Lives
"Too often we are reluctant to enter the next stage, begin the next challenge. Maybe we are too comfortable, fearful, or lacking in faith. Grandmother’s lap is often more comfortable than the trials of kindergarten. Our parents’ basement, with unlimited video games, may be more appealing than college, marriage, or a career."

“faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other” (President Thomas S. Monson, “Come unto Him in Prayer and Faith,” Liahona and Ensign, Mar. 2009, 6)

“The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable” (Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, “Come What May, and Love It,” Liahona and Ensign, Nov. 2008, 27).

Sister Barbara Thompson - His Arm Is Sufficient
"Last September in the general Relief Society meeting, Sister Beck outlined three things to help us in our goal to obtain eternal life. They are:

1. 'Increase in faith and personal righteousness.'
2. 'Strengthen families and homes.'
3. 'Serve the Lord and His children.'³ This also means to seek out and care for the poor and needy."

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland - None Were with Him
"As we approach this holy week—Passover Thursday with its Paschal Lamb, atoning Friday with its cross, Resurrection Sunday with its empty tomb—may we declare ourselves to be more fully disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, not in word only and not only in the flush of comfortable times but in deed and in courage and in faith, including when the path is lonely and when our cross is difficult to bear."

President Thomas S. Monson - Be of Good Cheer

"The future is as bright as your faith."

2 Timothy 1:7.
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of ^afear; but of ^bpower, and of ^clove, and of a sound mind.

Ogden Utah Weber Heights Stake Conference 3-22-09

Choral Edition was the choir that sang for this session of conference.

Matthew 12
36 But I say unto you, That every ^aidle ^bword that men shall ^cspeak, they shall give ^daccount thereof in the day of ^ejudgment.

37 For by thy ^awords thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Eph. 4: 29
29 Let no corrupt ^acommunication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

Just like we should be careful what comes out of us, we should be careful what we put in (movies, music, websites...).

Make good choices.

Rev. 3: 21
21 To him that ^aovercometh will I grant to ^bsit with me in my ^cthrone, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

When we go to the temple we can make sense of what is going on in the world.

The speaker said that the word religion comes from the Latin root "to be bound again." He also stated that the word of reconciliation comes from the Latin root "to be seated with again"

It is devotedly Christian to do work for the dead.

1 Peter 3:12
12 For the ^aeyes of the Lord are over the ^brighteous, and his ears are open unto their ^cprayers:

Job 38:7
7 When the morning stars ^asang together, and all the ^bsons of God shouted for ^cjoy?

Rev. 12: 7
7 And there was ^awar in heaven: ^bMichael and his ^cangels fought against the dragon; and the ^ddragon fought and his angels,

The plan of salvation is also called the plan of redemption and also the great plan of happiness.

If we don't water and nurse our testimony it dies.

Mal. 3: 10
10 Bring ye all the ^atithes into the storehouse, that there may be ^bmeat in mine house, and ^cprove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not ^dopen you the ^ewindows of heaven, and pour you out a ^fblessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

D&C 59: 9
9 And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself ^aunspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of ^bprayer and offer up thy ^csacraments upon my ^dholy day;

A member of the stake presidency talk of avoiding shopping and sporting events on Sunday.

Keep the commandments; keep the commandments!
In this there is safety; in this there is peace.
(Keep the Commandments, Children’s Songbook of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

Each week when taking the sacrament we have the opportunity to evaluate our lives.

The Savior gave us apostles and prophets to guide us. He gave us covenants to remind us.

All roads in this church lead to the temple.

The temple endowment is a personal gift from God.

Church Services This Week at Sullivan Hollow Second Ward Weber Heights Stake Ogden Utah 2-15-09

Priesthood Opening
1 Nephi 3:7
7 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I ^awill go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no ^bcommandments unto the children of men, save he shall ^cprepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.

Elders' Quorum
Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith Chapter 27: Beware the Bitter Fruits of Apostasy 315–26
We may be tempted to think of what others are doing in apostasy, which is perhaps good to be aware of, but we should also be aware of things that we ourselves where our actions and ideas are not in tune with true doctrine.

The manual states, "Losing confidence in Church leaders, criticizing them, and neglecting any duty required by God lead to apostasy."
A couple of things to remember with this quote.
-Neglecting our duty can lead to apostasy. Selfishness breeds apostasy.
-Not criticizing our leaders doesn't mean we don't pray about what they tell us and gain our own testimony of what they say. Those who blindly follow are easily swayed this way and that. Those who pray and get a testimony are strong within themselves. They continue to build on their foundation and less easily swayed by ideas that come by that are not of God.
-Complaining in general tends to make a negative atmosphere and make us negative people. It chases away the spirit in any aspect of our life.

Putting our own knowledge about the Lord's also leads to apostasy.

Sunday School
Lesson 7: “The First Principles and Ordinances of the Gospel” 35
Sinning is like writing with your eyes closed. You lose where you are at and you have trouble making sense of what you are doing and communicating.

"If we place any condition on our willingness to serve the Lord with all our hearts, we diminish our faith." ("Lord, Increase Our Faith", Elder John K. Carmack, Ensign March 2002)

Faith is trust. Faith is action. Hebrews 11:1 talks of the ability to follow through, even when we haven't seen everything.
1 Now ^afaith is the ^bsubstance of things ^choped for, the ^devidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 12:2
2 Looking unto Jesus the ^aauthor and ^bfinisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him ^cendured the cross, despising the ^dshame, and is set down at the right hand of the ^ethrone of God.

He authors our faith and then finishes it after we do our best.
2 Nephi 25:23
23 For we labor diligently to write, to ^apersuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by ^bgrace that we are saved, after all we can ^cdo.

D&C 58: 26
26 For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is ^acompelled in all things, the same is a ^bslothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.

Don't look for the reward. Look for the next thing the Lord would require of us.

True repentance involves a change of heart and not just a change of behavior (see Alma 5:13)” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [1988], 71).

Sacrament Service
Missionary Work
The 40 day fast for missionary work was presented. This was for missionary efforts in our ward and in our lives. It was also for opening up missionary work where the work is currently not allowed to happen.

Charity
Moroni 7:47
47 But ^acharity is the pure ^blove of Christ, and it endureth ^cforever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.

Matthew 22:36-39

36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt ^alove the Lord thy God with all thy ^bheart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy ^cmind.

38 This is the first and great ^acommandment.

39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt ^alove thy neighbour as thyself.

Charitable Contributions
One speaker talked of paying tithing, helping the poor through a generous fast offering, and supporting the missionary effort throughout the world through donations to the missionary fund.

From the Bulletin
"Tithing is a principle that is fundamental to the personal happiness and well-being of the Church members worldwide, both rich and poor. Tithing is a principle of sacrifice and a key to the opening of the windows of heaven. In Primary I memorized the tithing poem, 'What is tithing ? I will tell you every time. Ten cents from a dollar, and a penny from a dime.' But I did not understand it fully until it was taught by Grandfather and President Henry D. Moyle.

The law of tithing is simple: we pay one-tenth of our individual increase annually. Increase has been interpreted by the First Presidency to mean income. What amounts to 10 percent of our individual income is between each of us and our Maker. There are no legalistic rules. As a convert in Korea once said: 'With tithing, it doesn't matter whether you are rich or poor. You pay 10 percent, and you don't have to be ashamed if you haven't earned very much. If you make lots of money, you pay 10 percent. If you make very little, you still pay 10 percent. Heavenly Father will love you for it. You can hold your head up proud.'

Some may feel that they cannot afford to pay tithing, but the Lord has promised that He would prepare a way for us to keep all of His commandments. To pay tithing takes a leap of faith in the beginning, but as Jesus said, 'If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine.' We learn about tithing by paying it. Indeed, I believe it is possible to break out of poverty by having the faith to give back to the Lord part of what little we have.

Members of the Church who do not tithe do not lose their membership, they only lose blessings. Through Malachi the Lord asks, 'Will a man rob God?...But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.' If we will trust in the Lord, He will open the windows of heaven to us as we give back to Him the one-tenth He asks of us.

The ultimate offering was that offered by the Savior Himself in giving His very life. It causes each of us to wonder, 'How many drop of blood were shed for me?' "(President James E. Faust, General Conference, 1998)

Sunday June 8, 2008 - Services Sullivan Hollow Second Ward

Announcements

-July 4, 2008 - Breakfast celebration for the entire community. At our chapel at 8am.

-Volleyball at the chapel Tuesdays at 9pm.

-July 11, 2008 - Children's Health - Doctors volunteer to give free exams for children whose families can not afford medical care. They will be at James Madison Elementary, which tehy say use to be a junior high school.

Priesthood Opening

Mormon 3:20-21

20 And these things doth the Spirit manifest unto me; therefore I write unto you all. And for this cause I write unto you, that ye may know that ye must all stand before the ajudgment-seat of Christ, yea, every soul who belongs to the whole human bfamily of Adam; and ye must stand to be judged of your works, whether they be good or evil;
21 And also that ye may abelieve the gospel of Jesus Christ, which ye shall bhave among you; and also that the cJews, the covenant people of the Lord, shall have other dwitness besides him whom they saw and heard, that Jesus, whom they slew, was the every Christ and the very God.

-The spirit speaks to us in the moment as well as in general guidance for our families and lives.

Elders' Quorum

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith

Chapter 10: Prayer and Personal Revelation p. 125–34

God knows what we need and what we are thankful for, but prayer is about us, our hearts, and our character. What is a child's character and countenance like who says "please" and "thank you" and doesn't just expect to be served or taken care of.

The Church and priesthood were restored after Joseph prayer and asked about it, not by God just thrusting it upon him. It was necessary for him to exercise faith and grow within himself to receive the answer.

"If you don't feel like praying, pray until you do." Someone attributed this quote to Brigham Young. I did not actually look up the reference myself, but one talk I saw had a reference next to a similar quote as (Discourses, p. 46). I did find the quote in the book True to the Faith in the Personal Prayer section, but they did not attribute it to anyone.

It was suggested that we should pray for the companies that we work for to make correct decisions as they transact business. Someone added to that that we should "pray always" (3 Ne. 18: 15, 18-19, 21). We should pray in everything that we are doing whether it be work, entertainment, disciplining our children, reading, and so forth.

The manual stated “We believe that we have a right to revelations, visions, and dreams from God, our heavenly Father; and light and intelligence, through the gift of the Holy Ghost, in the name of Jesus Christ, on all subjects pertaining to our spiritual welfare; if it so be that we keep his commandments, so as to render ourselves worthy in his sight.” (Letter from Joseph Smith to Isaac Galland, Mar. 22, 1839, Liberty Jail, Liberty, Missouri, published in Times and Seasons, Feb. 1840, p. 54. )

Sunday School

Book of Mormon - Lesson 21: “Alma … Did Judge Righteous Judgments” p 94

Articles of Faith 1:12

12 We believe in being asubject to bkings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in cobeying, honoring, and sustaining the dlaw.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." - Declaration of Independence

The Nephites lived under kings until after Mosiah. Then they were lead by Alma and other judges, a sort of democratic republic. Under Mosiah and Alma the government was also established on a faith in God, just like the government of the United States was established that way, as seen above with the reference to the creator in the Declaration of Independence.

Sacrament Meeting
1st Speaker
Spoke on keeping a journal

2nd Speaker
Spoke on the first vision.
He used a talk by President Hickley (The Stone Cut Out of the Mountain) as part of the source of their talk.

We call it the first vision, but of the point of it is that it was not the first. It was the first in this dispensation, but it was a continuation of God's pattern of calling prophets.

There are miracles that have happened and are happening, but are they personally miracles to us? Do we recognize them as miracles? Do they have an impact on our testimonies?

3rd Speaker
Revelation is communication from God to man. It does not have to be foreseeing future events as some in the world might think.

We are all entitles to revelation of that which we have stewardship over.

Revelation can be our conscience and it can inspire us to action.

The speaker also spoke of why people have weaknesses and how those weaknesses can be strengthened through receiving revelation.

Ether 12: 27
27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their ^aweakness. I ^bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my ^cgrace is sufficient for all men that ^dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make ^eweak things become strong unto them.

Saturday March 31, 2007 - Morning Session of General Conference

General Conference
News Story from Deseret News
Morning Session
F. Michael Watson (Audio, Text ) gave the statistical report. A hundred thousand or so short of 13 million. Just under 300,000 convert baptisms this year.

Elder Richard G. Scott - Apostle (Audio, Text)
Prayer
The most powerful being in the universe encourages us to have audience with him on a daily basis. This is extended to everyone no matter of worldly status. The audience can be for as long as we want.

Prayers could be improved by:
1. Trying to ask for what he wants for us and not what we want for ourselves.
2. When we don't feel like praying or don't feel worthy of prayer is when we need to pray the most.
3. Don't wait until we encounter a totally over powering problem to go to God in prayer.
4. Do your part to study the problem and work on a solution yourself while waiting on the Lord.

Answers don't necessarily come while you are praying. They come as we exercise faith through our obedience.

Elder Jay E. Jensen - Seventy(Audio, Text)
Music in our meetings should not be a performance. Music becomes a performance when it draws attention to itself.

Music has great power. We can prepare ourselves to receive the messages of church meetings by coming early and listening to the prelude music.

Sing hymns as lullabies for our children.

Inappropriate music drives the Spirit from us.

Elder John B. Dickson - Seventy(Audio, Text)
Directed to the youth of the church.
Word of Wisdom
He said that we are less tempted by things we haven't partaken of. That is a different that what some say about trying something to find out you won't like it or the teaching that one should take time to "sow their wild oats" before they settle down.

Choose before you have to choose. Choose now that vulgar words and jokes will never fall from your lips. Choose now that you will never lie or cheat.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland - Apostle(Audio, Text)
He talked of James counseling us that he that bridals his tongue control the entire body is a perfect man. A horse can be controlled with a bit in his mouth. A boat is controlled with a comparably small rudder. The savior said, "Not that which goeth into the mouth ^adefileth a man; but that which cometh out of the ^bmouth, this defileth a man." (Matt. 15: 11)

He condemned abuse (verbal, physical, emotional, sexual, or any kind) and also gossip and backbiting. He said to speak positively about everyone including ourselves. "The stroke of the whip maketh marks in the flesh, but the stroke of the tongue breaketh the bones."—Apocrypha., Ecclesiasticus 28:17 He noted that verbal abuse knows no gender.

One should never call their children names. We should also be careful when comparing children. When we say that one child is smart and one is pretty. All the children here is that one of not smart and one is not pretty.

He said that we should be cheerful. No misfortune is so bad that whining can't make it worse. There was undoubtedly someone in the golden age of society who complained that everything was too yellow.

Elder David A. Bednar - Apostle (Audio, Text)
He talked of how a pickle is created by a specific process. If you alter that process it does not become a pickle. You must prepare the cucumber by cleaning it properly and submerse it in salt brine for a certain time. If you just sprinkle it with salt or just occasionally dunk it in the brine you will not get a pickle.

We must be prepared and follow the process to become born again. Just occasionally reading our scripture, praying, going to church, giving service, performing any of the other parts of the gospel of Jesus Christ does not make us born again. We must be totally immersed in the gospel. Also, the process takes time. It does not happen immediately. One must keep immersed and keep at it.

President Thomas S. Monson - 1st Counselor to the Prophet (Audio, Text)
He shared some thoughts on the hope we have after death. Death is not like some imagine. It is much like going into another room.

He quoted from Acts 7 to talk about the resurrection. "55 But he, being full of the ^aHoly Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the ^bglory of ^cGod, and ^dJesus ^estanding on the ^fright hand of God," We see here the distinct beings, God the Father and His son Jesus Christ.