October 6, 2014

HELLO FAMILY!!!! What an amazing weekend!!! I think that I saw my favorite session I've ever seen this week! There were so many great talks and so many little lessons I learned that the Spirit was able to confirm to my heart that I need to start working on. I took 14 pages, front and back, of notes total from all 4 sessions! I don't think that I've ever been so excited to sit down for 10 hours and listen to people speak! I was totally reminiscing this week about all the times we went to conference. I loved going to Priesthood Session then going to Crown Burger afterwards. The only problem was it was ALWAYS packed!! Or if we just went to the stake center, Arctic Circle was always packed afterwards too. But that was always my favorite part, going out afterwards. Now, I'd have to say my favorite part is definitely just the talks. :)

14 pages of notes is a lot of ink. Grandma Despain let me have a pen because I forgot to grab one before the first session started. It was a G-2 medium (size 10) pen. The reason this is important is because in the middle of the last session, I ran out of ink. The pen was brand new with that little piece of plastic or wax covering the head so it wouldn't write when I got it from grandma and within about 24 hours, I had used it all! But it was all for good. I put stars next to my favorite quotes and insights in my notes and there are a lot of stars. I'm sure you have most of these as well and soon we will have all the talks in our hands with the Ensign coming out so I won't tell them all, just the ones that hit me the hardest and that I feel inspired to share.

Saturday Morning:

- In response to the cliché saying, "Somebody must pay for this!", the thought that entered into the ladies heart was and will now enter into mine every time I think of this phrase as "Someone already has paid." (President Packer) How often do we actually put all our pains and sorrows onto the Savior to take away from us? I feel like sometimes we feel like we deserve "justice" or "vengeance" when something or someone does us wrong. But that price has already been paid by our Savior Jesus Christ and we need to learn to put it all onto Him every time we are hurt.

- Jesus Christ is the best example we have for being the most fearless of man and yet the most fearing of God.

- Resenting the law of gravity will not prevent us from falling if we step off a cliff. Neither will it do us any good resenting or not believing in God and His laws... Freedom does not come from resisting them, but applying them. (Elder D. Todd Christofferson)

- Truths don't change, but our understanding of those truths do.

- Should we disagree, we should not be disagreeable. (Elder Dallin H. Oaks) I really need to work on this. When I don't agree with someone or something that has been said, I state my opinion and why I disagree. I need to learn that everyone has their opinions and just because I feel like mine is more correct, that doesn't mean that they are wrong.

Saturday Evening:

- We should not disregard truth to be false just because we don't understand it. (Elder Neil L. Anderson)

- 6 things that we need to do to help our Spiritual Confidence increase:

1) Take responsibility for our own spiritual well-being

2) Take responsibility for our own physical well-being

3) Embrace whole-heartedly the Gospel of Jesus Christ

4) Become good at repenting frequently, quickly, and fully

5) Become good at forgiving frequently, quickly, and fully

6) Accept trials, setbacks, and surprises with gratitude.

    *Going on with number 6, it is important to realize that some trials come from being righteous! (Elder Jorg Klebingat) 

- Acknowledge and face your weaknesses, bu do not let them take over your life. (Elder Jorg Klebingat)

- "Follow me", "Come unto me", and "Be ye prefect" are all ways we are invited to not just watch but ACT! (Eduardo Gavarette)

- We obtain a remission of our sins by asking for forgiveness. But we retain a remission of our sins by serving and caring for the needy and poor in heart. (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland)

- I may not be my brother's keeper, but I am my brother's brother. (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland)

- We may come to understand Christ through the words we read in the Bible and the impressions we get from the Holy Ghost, but we will come to know Him as our Brother as we do as he would do. (Elder L Tom Perry)

Priesthood Session:

- Decisions Determine Destiny - President Monson (Elder Quinton L. Cook)

- Many choices are not inherently evil, but if they absorb up all of our time, that's when it becomes a hindrance. (Elder Quinton L. Cook) This can even happen with good things! Water is a necessity in life, but too much of it is very dangerous.

- Some people think that a testimony is like a light switch, you either have one or you don't. But it is more like a tree. Every tree, even the biggest ones in the Red Wood Forest, started off as a small seed. Our testimonies always start off with a small spiritual experience and can eventually become like a giant tree! (Elder Craig. C. Christensen)

- "Lord, is it I?" Those were the words of the apostles to Jesus Christ. They didn't point the finger of shame towards anyone else, they looked within themselves and looked on what they could do to improve so they would not be the one to betray our Master. (President Dieter F. Uchtdorf)

- None of us likes to admit when we are drifting off course, and when we do admit it, we use excuses and justification. (President Dieter F. Uchtdorf) If our weaknesses and shortcomings remain in the shadows, the healing light of the atonement cannot have any influence on us!

- Reprove with sharpness then show an increase in love. This means that they must first know that you love them, and you must truly love them as the Lord loves them. Then, as you reprove them, you need to SHOW an increase of that love for them, not just reprove. (President Henry B. Eyring)

- A ships rudder is small in size but very essential. (President Thomas S. Monson) Our Heavenly Father has given us a rudder called the Light of Christ. The Light of Christ leads us back to our Father in Heaven's safe harbor, but without that light we will only go in circles throughout our lives.

Sunday Morning: (this was my favorite session of conference I've ever watched!!)

- The revelation of the parent continues though the personal revelation of the child. (President Henry B. Eyring)

- Our sustaining of the prophet is and oath-life covenant we make. We have an obligation to stand behind him, pray for him, stand up for him, and do as he directs as commanded by the Lord. (Elder Russell M. Nelson)

- The pass-over has always consisted of bread, wine, and the sacrificial lamb. (Elder James J. Hamula) I wonder if when the apostles saw the bread and wine, they wondered where the sacrificial lamb was? How many of them truly understood Christ was that Lamb?

- The ordinance of the sacrament has been called of the most holy and important ordinances we can take part of in this life. (Elder James J. Hamula)

- The question is not whether or not we will live after death, but with whom will we live? Ever person will stand before God to be judged, but not every person will live with Him. (Elder James J. Hamula)

- First we declare we are willing to remember him, then we declare we do always remember him. We tell God we are willing to always remember Him in prayer then show God we do always remember Him by our actions. (Elder James J. Hamula)

- I came up with the "4 'R's of the Sacrament.

1) We "Repent" of our mistakes we made that week

2) We promise to "Remember" Him and His sacrifice for us

3) We promise to "Represent" Him as we take upon ourselves the name of Christ

4) When we do these things, we will "Receive" the Spirit of God into our hearts for all time

- "I walked where Jesus walked!" That's great, but more important is "walking AS Jesus walked." (President Thomas S. Monson)

Sunday Evening:

- During the prayer, the guy made a mistake then corrected himself. But it wasn't actually a mistake but a profound statement. He said in essence that "we need to have both our faith strengthened AND our strength faithened."

- As we pray, we will feel "buoyant peace" that will keep us "afloat" in the storms of life. (Elder Richard G. Scott)

- The 4 tools to find happiness and peace in this life:

1) Prayer

2) Scripture Study

3) Weekly FHE

4) Go the the Temple

All of these seem so simple and easy, yet they will help us draw ourselves and our families to Jesus Christ. (Elder Richard G. Scott)

- A choice is not always good verses bad, but sometimes good verses better! (Elder Carlos A. Godoy)

- He who serves in something is good for something. He who serves for nothing is good for nothing! (Elder Hugo E. Martinez)

- There are many currents in our lives. These forces are real and should no be ignored. There are both good and bad currents. These currents include the friends we choose and the groups we join and they will either pull us closer to God, or further away from God. (Elder Larry H. Kacher)

- A missionary is a follower of Christ who testifies of Him. That is why the saying "Every Member a Missionary" is true. It is not just a suggestion of  one-time action, but more a way of life. (Elder David A. Bednar)

These were just a few of the quotes and thoughts that I loved from conference! It was a lot more than I anticipated writing but I know that all of these sayings are directly from God and need to be carefully studied and pondered.

There was something interesting that I pointed out to a member and that he pointed out to me. In the Priesthood Session, I noticed that this conference there was a lot of talk about fast offerings. I know that fast offerings are to help the poor and needy. This made me wonder if the church is trying to prepare itself for the destruction that is coming from the second coming. I pointed that out to a member named brother Michael Watson. He agreed then pointed out this interesting fact: Anytime that the Lord has given hints to what is coming in the future, he quotes or points to Isaiah. When Christ came to the America's, he quoted Isaiah and then told them to study the words cause they were full of importance. When Moroni came to Joseph Smith, he quoted Isaiah talking about the Book of Mormon coming forth. He then pointed out that at least 3 times so far this conference, the general authorities have quoted or referenced Isaiah. If we want to know what is going to happen next, we need to study the talks that have been given this conference and on top of that, the words of Isaiah that were quoted and the other verses from those chapters.

I know that Joseph Smith was the Prophet that God chose to restore the Gospel to the earth in it's fullness. I know that the Book of Mormon is another Testament of Jesus Christ, that He lived, died, was resurrected, and came to the People in America. I know that President Monson is the only true and living prophet that has all the keys of the priesthood and all authority to use those keys. I know that all other general authorities have been called of God and that the words that were spoken in conference are new scripture that we need to study, pray about, and apply into our lives. I know that the Plan of Happiness is meant for everyone on this earth and that because of our continuation of faith to Jesus Christ and the Gospel, we will live with each other for eternity with our Father and Jesus Christ. I love you all so much!! I pray that you will remember the words that have been spoken by our beloved prophet and never forget to Repent quickly, love always, and go forward in faith through all of our trials.

~Elder Kyle Harris