"Behold I Am the Light Which Ye Shall Hold Up"
By Elder Ronald A. Rasband
- Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker shares a personal connection with President Nelson, as both have ancestors who settled in the valleys surrounding the Manti Temple and contributed to its construction.
Before the service, we stood outside in the sun with President and Sister Nelson to view the beautiful setting. President Nelson"™s ancestral ties to the area run deep. His eight great-grandparents settled in the valleys surrounding the temple, as did some of mine. My great-grandfather Andrew Anderson served on the construction crew of early pioneers who labored 11 years to complete the Manti Temple, the third in the Rocky Mountains.
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"I Am He"
By President Jeffrey R. Holland
- Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
Jesus's triumphant entry into Jerusalem caused the city to be moved and people to ask, 'Who is this?'
Just a few days earlier, when He had entered the city triumphantly, "all the city was moved," the scripture says, asking, "Who is this?"3[Matthew 21:10] I can only imagine that "Who is this?" is the question those muddled soldiers were now asking!
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"I Am He"
By President Jeffrey R. Holland
- Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
A multitude, including Roman soldiers and officers from the chief priests, sought Jesus with the intent to arrest Him. When Jesus identified Himself, they fell backward to the ground.
Consider this scene from the last week of Jesus"™s mortal life. A multitude had gathered, including Roman soldiers armed with staves and strapped with swords. Led by officers from the chief priests who had torches in hand, this earnest company was not off to conquer a city.1[See Matthew 26:47"“57; Mark 14:43"“46] Tonight they were looking for only one man, a man not known to carry a weapon, receive military training, or engage in physical combat at any time in His entire life. As the soldi ... (continued)
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"I Am He"
By President Jeffrey R. Holland
- Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
Despite Jesus's lack of formal training, He confounded scribes and lawyers with His doctrine, and His victories in difficult situations are attributed to His divine nature.
It could not be from any professional training in the local synagogues because we have no evidence that He ever studied at any of them, though even in His youth He could confound superbly prepared scribes and lawyers, astonishing them with His doctrine "as one having authority."5[Matthew 7:29; see also John 7:15] From that teaching in the temple to His triumphant entry into Jerusalem and this final, unjustifiable arrest, Jesus was routinely placed in difficult, often devious situations in whic ... (continued)
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"I Am He"
By President Jeffrey R. Holland
- Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
Jesus introduced Himself to the Nephites after His Resurrection by declaring His obedience to the Father's will, despite feeling abandoned by His Father during His crucifixion.
When He arrived on the Western Hemisphere following His Resurrection, Christ said to the Nephites: "Behold, I am Jesus Christ. "¦ I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, "¦ in the which I have suffered the will of the Father "¦ from the beginning."14[3 Nephi 11:10"“11] Of the myriad ways He could have introduced Himself, Jesus did so by declaring His obedience to the will of the Father"”never mind that not long before in His hour of greatest need, this Only B ... (continued)
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"This Is My Gospel""”"This Is My Church"
By Elder Dale G. Renlund
- Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
Ascanio Sobrero synthesized nitroglycerin, a powerful but unstable explosive, leading Alfred Nobel to stabilize it with diatomaceous earth, creating dynamite.
In 1846 an Italian chemist named Ascanio Sobrero synthesized a new explosive, nitroglycerin. This oily fluid was at least a thousand times more powerful than black powder. It could easily shatter rock. Unfortunately, nitroglycerin was unstable. If you dropped it from a small height, it’d blow up. If it got too hot, it’d blow up. If it got too cold, it’d blow up. Even placed in a cool, dark room and left alone, it’d eventually blow up. Most countries banned its transpo ... (continued)
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"This Is My Gospel""”"This Is My Church"
By Elder Dale G. Renlund
- Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
Oskar Andersson, a shipyard worker, converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after hearing missionaries, leading to a transformative journey for him and his family.
The combination of the Savior’s gospel and His Church transforms our lives. It transformed my maternal grandparents. My grandfather Oskar Andersson worked in a shipyard on Högmarsö, an island in the Stockholm archipelago. His wife, Albertina, and their children lived on the Swedish mainland. Once every two weeks, on Saturday, Oskar rowed his boat home for the weekend before returning to Högmarsö on Sunday evening. One day, while on Högmarsö, he heard two American mission ... (continued)
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"Ye Are My Friends"
By Elder David L. Buckner
- Of the Seventy
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker and his wife, Jennifer, raised their five children in New York City, where they formed sacred relationships with a diverse group of people.
I too have seen how building higher and holier relationships brings us together as one. My wife, Jennifer, and I were blessed to raise our five children in New York City. There in that busy metropolis, we formed precious and sacred relationships with neighbors, school friends, business associates, faith leaders, and fellow Saints.
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"Ye Are My Friends"
By Elder David L. Buckner
- Of the Seventy
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
On a visit to Ghana, the speaker was struck by the welcoming phrases 'you are welcome' and 'you are invited', which were extended with intentionality, reflecting a sense of belonging.
On a recent visit with my family to the West African country of Ghana, I was enamored with a local custom. Upon arriving at a church or home, we were greeted with the words "you are welcome." When food was served, our host would announce, "You are invited." These simple greetings were extended with purpose and intentionality.You are welcome. You are invited.
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"Ye Are My Friends"
By Elder David L. Buckner
- Of the Seventy
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
In December 1832, Latter-day Saint leaders in Kirtland, Ohio, prayed for divine guidance during times of international trouble, and the Lord comforted them by addressing them as 'my friends'.
In December 1832, as "appearances of troubles among the nations" were becoming "more visible"2[Doctrine and Covenants 87section heading.]than at any time since the organization of the Church, Latter-day Saint leaders in Kirtland, Ohio, gathered for a conference. They prayed "separately and vocally to the Lord to reveal his will unto [them]."3["Minute Book 1," 3, josephsmithpapers.org; spelling modernized.]In acknowledgement of the prayers of these faithful members during times of intense ... (continued)
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"Ye Are My Friends"
By Elder David L. Buckner
- Of the Seventy
📅 October 2024
📖 general conference
In May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, New York City's religious leaders met virtually to support each other, focusing on commonalities and praying together, which led to united service to the community.
In May of 2020, just as the world was grappling with the spread of a global pandemic, members of the New York City Commission of Religious Leaders met virtually in an abruptly called meeting. There was no agenda. No special guests. Just a request to come together and discuss the challenges we were all facing as faith leaders. The Centers for Disease Control had just reported that our city was the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. This meant no more gathering. No more comin ... (continued)
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A Higher Joy
By Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
- Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
Elder Uchtdorf recounts how the Wright brothers' father, Milton, overcame his fear of flying when he finally consented to fly with his sons, experiencing the exhilaration of flight and joyfully encouraging them to fly higher.
It"™s hard to believe it was only 120 years ago when Wilbur and Orville Wright first lifted off and flew over the sands of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Four short flights on that December day changed the world and opened the door to one of the greatest inventions in the world"™s history.
Flying was risky in those early days. The brothers knew this. And so did their father, Milton. In fact, he was so terrified of losing both of his sons in a flying accident that they promised him they would ne ... (continued)
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A Higher Joy
By Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
- Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
Elder Uchtdorf shares the story of a woman from the New Testament who, despite being considered 'unclean' due to her illness, showed great faith by reaching out to touch Jesus's clothes, believing it would heal her, which it did.
Do you remember the woman in the New Testament who endured a bleeding illness for 12 years? She had spent all she had on physicians, but things only grew worse. She had heard of Jesus; His power to heal was well known. But could He heal her? And how could she even get near Him? Her sickness made her "unclean" according to the law of Moses, and therefore she was required to stay away from others.
Approaching Him openly and asking for healing seemed out of the question.
Still, she thought, "If I ... (continued)
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker testifies of his personal witness to the growth of the Church and the fulfillment of Joseph Smith's prophecy regarding the spread of God's truth.
I am an eyewitness to the ongoing Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the fulfilling of the prophecy of Joseph Smith that "the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear."7[Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith(2007), 444.]
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker reflects on his early career as a trial lawyer, emphasizing the importance of credible witnesses in the courtroom.
After I graduated from law school, my wife, Marcia, and I chose to join a law firm that specialized in trial law. As I began my on-the-job training, I spent much of my time preparing witnesses to testify at trial. I quickly learned that facts were determined in a courtroom as witnesses, under oath, testified to the truthfulness of what they had both seen and heard. As witnesses testified, their words were both recorded and preserved. The importance of credible witnesses was always at the forefro ... (continued)
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker draws a parallel between his legal training and his religious duties, realizing the significance of being an 'especial witness' after being sustained as a new Area Seventy.
When I was sustained as a new Area Seventy, I opened the scriptures to learn my duties and readDoctrine and Covenants 107:25which states, "The Seventy are also called "¦ to be especial witnesses unto the Gentiles and in all the world." As you can imagine, my eyes were drawn to the term "especial witnesses." It became clear to me that I had a responsibility to bear my witness"”to testify of the name of Jesus Christ"”wherever I traveled in the world.
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker recounts his experience in high school seminary, where he had to identify all 15 temples of the Church, contrasting it with the challenge of identifying the much larger number of temples today.
During my senior year of high school, to graduate from seminary I had to identify all 15 temples of the Church. A picture of each temple was at the front of our classroom, and I had to know where each was located. Now, years later, it would be an enormous challenge"”with 335 operating or announced temples"”to identify each one. I have personally seen many of these houses of the Lord and testify that the Lord is offering His blessings and ordinances to more and more of His children across the ... (continued)
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker describes his limited perspective of the worldwide Church while raising his children in Idaho and how it expanded when he and his wife were assigned to serve in the Pacific Area.
As we raised our children in Twin Falls, Idaho, our perspective of the worldwide Church was limited. When I was called to be a General Authority, Marcia and I were assigned to serve in the Pacific Area, a place we had never been. We were pleased to find stakes from the top of New Zealand to the bottom, with a temple that was dedicated in 1958. It was one of those 15 I had to memorize in seminary. We found temples in every major city of Australia, with stakes across that continent. We had assignm ... (continued)
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker shares his astonishment at the growth of the Church in the Philippines and his subsequent assignments that expanded his view of the Church's global reach.
After our service in the Pacific Islands, we were assigned to serve in the Philippines. To my surprise, the Church of Jesus Christ in the Philippines is growing beyond anything I had realized. There are now 125 stakes, 23 missions, and 13 operating or announced temples. I witnessed a church of over 850,000 members in that country. How had I missed the establishment of Christ"™s Church across the world? After three years in the Philippines, I was asked to serve in the Missionary Department. My ... (continued)
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A Record of What I Have Both Seen and Heard
By Elder Brent H. Nielson
- Of the Presidency of the Seventy
📅 April 2024
📖 general conference
The speaker expresses his admiration for the missionaries and members of the Church he has met worldwide, and their role in the growth of the Church.
Our wonderful missionaries who now cover the globe are 74,000 strong. Working together with members, they baptize over 20,000 people every month. It has recently been 18-, 19-, and 20-year-old young men and young women who, with the help of the Lord, have produced this mighty miracle of gathering. We find these young women and young men in the small villages of Vanuatu and in the large cities of New York, Paris, and London. I have watched them teach about the Savior in remote congregations in Fi ... (continued)
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