177th Annual General Conference

I absolutely love General Conference. It is such a spiritual few days that give me a boost for not only the next 6 months until the next general conference, but also for the rest of my life, hopefully even into the eternities. I thought I'd share some of the comments that specifically touched me on Saturday and Sunday. (It's kind of long, but hey! Conference was amazing!

• "As we sustain the officers of the church let us not only participate with our uplifted hand, but by pledging our hearts." -Pres. Thomas S. Monson
• Our Heavenly Father has created numberless cosmos and worlds, yet I can talk to Him and He will answer me. (Elder Richard G. Scott)
• When you receive no direct response to your prayer, give thanks to your Father in Heaven. He is trusting in your judgement and ability. Go forward with trust in His trust in you, and at the right time you will receive the conviction of whether what you are doing is right or wrong. (Elder Richard G. Scott)
• "God will always answer your prayers in the way and in the time that will be best for your eternal good." -Elder Richard G. Scott
• "We get nearer to the Lord by music than perhaps any other thing except Prayer" -J. Reuben Clark (quoted by Jay E. Jensen)
• Prelude from the Hymnbook teaches the gospel by offering those listening the opportunity to contemplate the words of the hymns. (Jay E. Jensen)
• "Commit yourselves to the Lord now." -John B. Dickson
• "Beware concerning yourselves, and give dilligent heed to the words of eternal life." -John B. Dickson
• "Success will come as you earnestly, prayerfully and humbly seek to commit yourself to the Lord." -John B. Dickson
• "As you commit to the will of the Lord, He will strengthen you." -John B. Dickson
• "It is by words that every human works when he works by faith." -Joseph Smith (quoted by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland)
• "The stroke of the whip maketh marks in the flesh, but the stroke of the tongue breaketh bones." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
• "If any man offend not in words, teh same is a perfect man." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
• "The tongue is also a little member, but behold how great a forrest a little fire can burn." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
• Negative speaking about others often flows from negative thinking about ourselves. (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland)
• "The spirit of the gospel is optomistic! The pessemistic spirit drags men away from God." -Orson F. Whitney (quoted by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland)
• "No misfortune is so bad that whining about it will not make it worse." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
• "The parable of the pickle": For a pickle to become a cucumber you must prepare it and clean it. Then you must completely immerse and saturate it in salt brine. Then you must seal it in a sterile jar. Like pickles, we must be clean, we must prepare, we must completly immerse ourselves in Christ, even until, like the pickles, we absorb it permanently into our very beings. Then, we must seal it by the Holy Ghost, binding it both on earth and in Heaven. (Elder David A. Bednar)
• "Because our Savior died on Calvary, death has no hold over any of us." -Pres. Thomas S. Monson
• The Word of Wisdom completes the Armor of God. (Pres. Boyd K. Packer)
• The Tabernacle in Salt Lake has become symbolic of the Restoration of the Gospel. It was built up by poor people in the diest of circumstances, and now it is known all over the world. (Pres. Boyd K. Packer)
• Those who murmur do not know the dealings of their Lord who created them. (Bonnie D. Parkin)
• "When was the last time you thanked the Lord for a trial or tribulation?" -Bonnie D. Parkin
• Calls to "Remember" are almost always a call to action. (Marlin K. Jensen)
• Delaying forgiveness causes us to forfeit the peace we could be experiencing. (Pres. James E. Faust)
• Every single trial I go through is necessary for my salvation. (Pres. James E. Faust)
• Hatred retards spiritual growth. (Pres. James E. Faust)
• "We know that Jesus is the Christ, we have the priesthood, we have the Holy Ghost, and the Book of Mormon. It's true isn't it? Then what else matters?" -Neil L. Anderson
• One thing about knowing the Joseph Smith Story is true, is that you simultaneously know that God the Father and Jesus Christ are at the head of this church, and they want you to know it is true. (Glenn L. Pace)
• "The Holy Bible is Holy because it teaches us to know God." -Elder M. Russel Ballard
• "The Book of Mormon testifies of the Bible, and Both testify of Christ." -Elder M. Russel Ballard
• "We declare to the world with boldness that the fulness of the gospel has been restored to the earth. This is the day referred to by biblical prophets as the latter days. " - Elder L. Tom Perry
• "Do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until 'someday.'......'This day' is a precious gift of God." -Elder Henry B. Eyring
• "By choosing to serve this day, you will feel of His love, and you will grwo to love Him and know Him better. You would not want to delay that blessing until 'someday'." -Elder Henry B. Eyring
• "There never was a time such as this."
  We, as the Youth of Zion have a great work to do, and we have been given the talents and abilities to do so.
  "Who's on the Lord's side, Who?" -this commitment to truth and right should always be on our minds.
  Not a day goes by that we are not asked that in some way or another.
  There are two ways that will help us always answer in favor of the Lord:
  1) Never forget who you are- "I am a child of God." He has not left us without help here on this earth. We have our Family, friends, and the "for the strength of youth" pamphlet. ALWAYS keep a copy of it with you, and "when you're sitting waiting for a bus" etc....pull it out, read it, and recommit to it's standards.
  2) Learn to control your thoughts.- there will always be temptations. Memorize music, scriptures, and good poetry to replace bad thoughts.
  There is a clearly defined line between the Lord's side and the adversary's side of the line, and day after day, you will have to make choices that will land you on either side of the line. If you remain on the Lord's side of the line, the adversary cannot easily tempt you onto his.
  God knows us by name, and He will not leave us alone in making those desicions that will determine our "side of the line."
  Live you life in such a way that when faced with the question, "Who's on the Lord's side, Who?" You can answer, "I AM!" -Charles W. Dalquist II
• Although tithing is paid with money, it is more importantly paid with faith. (Yoshiniku Kikushi)
• Repentance brings a frewsh attitude towards God, ourselves, and life in general. (Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf)
• Just because we remember our sin, doesn't mean God will remember them. If we remain true and faithful, our memory of our sins will soften over time. The Lord will have already forgotten them. (Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf)
• Extending forgiveness is a precondition to receiving forgiveness. (Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf)
• "Wherever you are on your journey through life, there is always a point of safe return. There's always hope." -Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
• "Repentance is not easy, but the prize is worth the price." -Elder Russel M. Nelson
• The Lord insists on our repentance. (Elder Russel M. Nelson)
• When we have repentant hearts Virtue will garnish our thoughts, confidence grows, truth becomes more attractive and things praiseworthy become more engaging. (Elder Russel M. Nelson)