Tuesday, May 12, 2009

General Conference

My conference report arrived today!
I am truly impressed with all those who thoughtfully study the scriptures in search of guidance for their lives. I try to do likewise. I am, however, deeply grateful that I am not on my own to discover what direction Peter, Paul or Moses might have given had they lived in my own time. Just as these men were inspired by God to speak to the people of ancient Israel, Judah and the Mediterranean world, there are men inspired in our time to speak the words of God to us.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints holds a worldwide General Conference twice a year, in October and April. I first comprehended the significance of these conferences when, as a teenager, I sat half a world away from the Tabernacle in Salt Lake city and listened to men called as Apostles and Prophets of God speak inspired words to the church worldwide, broadcast through the modern miracles of satellite communication. What moved me that day was not so much the words they spoke but the incontrovertible witness of the Spirit in my own heart that these men were indeed Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, called and commissioned by His authority to stand as his witnesses to the world. That day, I knew that God does indeed speak to our day through prophets and apostles. I have never forgotten that witness.
Years have passed, I have moved forward with my life and now I face the daily challenges of raising a family in a world that has largely rejected God. I look forward to every October and April General Conference, when I can again sit at the feet of the Lord's Apostles, chosen and commissioned for our day, and receive guidance and counsel tailored specifically to the needs of our time. And once the conference is over, I look forward to receiving the printed transcript published in the conference report issue of the Ensign magazine, so that I can again study their words and seek for applications to my own life.
So now my Conference Report is here, and I look forward to once again feasting on the words of modern day prophets and apostles.

Conference archives are also available online at
http://lds.org/conference/sessions/display/0,5239,23-1-1032,00.html

2 comments:

Unknown said...

My favorite way to enjoy conference is by listening to the MP3 files. I put them on my player and listen to them over and over again. I'm not much of a reader, so I get a lot more out of it that way.

Kelley said...

Ours came, too, and I'm trying to keep them out of Josh's reach long enough to read them again. Josh loves Conference, and takes the Ensigns to bed with him to read. This is fine and dandy, except that it is very hard on the Ensigns. They start coming apart after a while. I'm amazed, though, that he likes them so much at such a young age.