Viewpoint: Heed Counsel Given During General Conference
Contributed By From the Church News
Thousands attend the 184th Annual General Conference Saturday, April 5, 2014, in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City.
Article Highlights
- President Monson urged all to treat each other with kindness and respect, especially at home.
- President Eyring encouraged people who agonize over loved ones who have strayed to “take both the short and the long view.”
- President Uchtdorf spoke of gratitude as a way to remove bitterness and sorrow in life.
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To those who bear the standards of truth, opposition is bound to arise and courage is needed to do what is right, but God will bless those who stand for the right.
That message, repeated often during the 184th Annual General Conference, April 5-6, should be a great comfort to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
“We live in a world where moral values have, in great measure, been tossed aside, where sin is flagrantly on display, and where temptations to stray from the straight and narrow path surround us,” President Thomas S. Monson said in his address during the priesthood session of conference. “We are faced with persistent pressures and insidious influences tearing down what is decent and attempting to substitute the shallow philosophies and practices of a secular society.
“Because of these and other challenges, decisions are constantly before us which can determine our destiny. In order to make the correct decisions, courage is needed—the courage to say ‘No’ when we should, the courage to say ‘Yes’ when that is appropriate, the courage to do the right thing because it is right” (“Be Strong and of a Good Courage”).
We will, he said, “almost certainly be called upon to defend that which we believe ” (“Be Strong and of a Good Courage”).
Every six months, general conference serves as a powerful reminder that the Lord has called a prophet, apostles, and other leaders to guide a troubled world and to provide instruction, perspective, and encouragement to its inhabitants. This conference was no exception. The speakers provided scripture, perfectly tailored and suited for our times. What they said was both inspiring and spiritually edifying. It gave answers to all that may ail people in a confused world.
Thousands make their way to the Conference Center for the 184th Annual General Conference Saturday, April 5, 2014 in Salt Lake City.
Those who are not members of the Church may have pondered what God would say were He to speak to the world today. President Monson provided powerful answers to that question.
“We cannot truly love God if we do not love our fellow travelers on this mortal journey,” he said in his Sunday morning address. “Likewise, we cannot fully love our fellow men if we do not love God, the Father of us all” (“Love—the Essence of the Gospel”).
In a sermon on love as the “essence of the gospel,” he urged all to treat each other with kindness and respect, especially at home. “Let us not demean or belittle. Rather, let us be compassionate and encouraging. We must be careful that we do not destroy another person’s confidence through careless words or actions” (“Love—the Essence of the Gospel”).
This seemingly simple message grows in profundity as we contemplate the tenor of daily communications on social media, talk radio, political discourse, or in comments attached to blogs and news stories on the Internet. Even casual observers cannot miss how hurtful and belittling much of daily communication has become.
“May we begin now, this very day, to express love to all of God’s children, whether they be our family members, our friends, mere acquaintances, or total strangers,” President Monson said. “As we arise each morning, let us determine to respond with love and kindness to whatever might come our way” (“Love—the Essence of the Gospel”).
Imagine what a difference would occur in the world if everyone followed this prophetic counsel. Imagine the encouragement people would feel; the increase in feelings of self-worth; and the comfort that would come to those who feel friendless or who mourn.
Imagine the difference it would make if all Latter-day Saints followed their prophet in this regard, no matter how they might be treated in return. Paraphrasing the author and lecturer Dale Carnegie, President Monson said, “Each person has within himself or herself the power to increase the sum total of the world’s happiness” (“Love—the Essence of the Gospel”).
President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency, encouraged people who agonize over loved ones who have strayed to “take both the short and the long view” (“A Priceless Heritage of Hope”).
“In the short run there will be troubles and Satan will roar,” he said in an address Saturday morning. “And there are things to wait for patiently, in faith, knowing that the Lord acts in His own time, and in His own way” (“A Priceless Heritage of Hope”).
President Eyring has been counselor to two prophets of God. “They are individuals with unique personalities. Yet they seem to share a consistent optimism,” he said. “When someone raises an alarm about something in the Church, their most frequent response is, ‘Oh, things will work out.’ They generally know more about the problem than the people sounding the alarm” (“A Priceless Heritage of Hope”).
President Thomas S. Monson shakes hands of the twelve as he exits the stand following the morning session of the 184th Annual General Conference Saturday, April 5, 2014 at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. Photo by Scott G Winterton, Deseret News.
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency, spoke of gratitude as a way to remove bitterness and sorrow in life.
“It might sound contrary to the wisdom of the world to suggest that one who is burdened with sorrow should give thanks to God. But those who set aside the bottle of bitterness and lift instead the goblet of gratitude can find a purifying drink of healing, peace, and understanding,” he said in his Sunday morning conference address (“Grateful in Any Circumstances”).
Further, he declared, “Being grateful in times of distress does not mean that we are pleased with our circumstances. It does mean that through the eyes of faith we look beyond our present-day challenges” (“Grateful in Any Circumstances”).
As members of the Church, we understand well that we are living through troubled times, and that truths once accepted generally are now being challenged or rejected outright. Many of us are confronted with the need to defend our beliefs against an unbelieving world.
May we be grateful that the Lord is mindful of His followers and that He speaks to the world through His anointed servants. It is a blessing that should not be taken lightly.
