In his address to the worldwide membership of the Church, President Russell M. Nelson began by sharing a deeply personal experience to illustrate how the restored gospel of Jesus Christ can bring peace and hope during our deepest sorrows. President Nelson opened up about the final moments he spent with his daughter Wendy before she passed away.
“Jesus Christ invites us to take the covenant path back home to our Heavenly Parents and be with those we love,” said President Nelson. He stressed that we can be together with our families in the next life only if we receive sacred ordinances in the temple and keep the covenants we make there.
President Nelson encouraged all to take up the Savior’s invitation to “come, follow me” and to do the “spiritual work” to develop deeper faith in God and the restored Church of Jesus Christ.
Watch President Nelson’s full message from the Sunday morning session.
Temple Announcements
Speaking of temples, President Nelson talked of our sacred responsibility to care for them. He shared additional information regarding restoration work for some of the first temples of the Church and announced plans to build 8 new temples.
Of the importance of the work done within the Church’s 162 dedicated temples, President Nelson said, “God’s objective should be our objective. He wants His children to choose to return to Him, prepared, qualified, endowed, sealed, and faithful to covenants made in holy temples.”
He shared this message and his love on social media.
President Nelson closed the conference with an invitation to make our homes into sanctuaries that welcome the Spirit of the Lord. “Despite contention all around us, one’s home can become a heavenly place, where study, prayer, and faith can be merged with love,” he said. “We can truly become disciples of the Lord, standing up and speaking up for Him wherever we are.” Watch President Nelson’s full message from the Sunday afternoon session.
An Invitation to Do Better and Be Better
During the general priesthood session of conference, President Nelson encouraged priesthood holders to focus on daily repentance. He taught that while we are not expected to be perfect in this life, we should strive to do better and be better each day.“ Whether you are diligently moving along the covenant path, have slipped or stepped from the covenant path, or can’t even see the covenant path from where you are now, I plead with you to repent,” he said. “Prayerfully seek to understand what stands in the way of your repentance. Identify what stops you from repenting. And then, change! Repent! All of us can do better and be better than ever before.” Read some of the ways President Nelson counseled priesthood holders to improve their relationships with their wives and families. Watch President Nelson’s full message from the general priesthood session.