Instant Conference Thoughts: Priesthood Session

Note:  These are the instant, mildly-filtered things that ran through my brain and heart as I watched this session of General Conference. If you are looking for deep, spiritual analysis, this is not the place. Drive on. Please check back later for that, after I have had some time to process.

Just got back from taking the boys out to dinner – a post-Priesthood tradition. I hope that with the availability of this session on the internet that men don’t stop having a special night out with their boys to attend together. I highly recommend it.

Priesthood Session was interesting. I have been to a lot of them, but this one felt somehow different to me. I can’t really put a finger on it than to say that it seemed somewhat “subdued.” There were hardly any jokes, very few laughs, very few personal stories, and no stirring congregational hymn a la Praise to the Man, or Called to Serve. Even the music was calm-ish until the last, beautiful rendition of Army of Helaman.

Either way, it was a wonderful session. Here are some thoughts that I had…

• Elder Neil Anderson gave a brilliant talk that invited us to ask ourselves, “How does the Savior see your faith?” The main discussion involved how to gain and strengthen faith and to repel doubt.

“Using our mind without our heart will not bring spiritual answers.”

He gave ample warning about the bozos that try to destroy faith. (OK, he didn’t use the word “bozos.”)

One of the great parts was when he talked to those who experience doubts about the prophet Joseph Smith. He pointed out that many such doubts are based on 200 year-old information that people dredge up on the internet. He suggested that those who are Joseph’s critics, and those who struggle with doubt to..

“Give Brother Joseph a break!” He counseled us to “consider the totality of his life,” and then bore his own powerful testimony of the Prophet Joseph, and then told us to “settle this in your mind.”  Chills.

He spent a lot of time going telling the tragic story of the Openshaw family who died in an airplane crash, and the faith demonstrated by the surviving sons. I recommend you read it, because I won’t do it justice.

Finally, key quote here: “Faith is a choice.”

 

• Elder Randalll K. Bennett also spoke on Faith. “When faith is exercised, faith increases.”

He compared our quest for increased faith to a child learning how to walk – to continue trying to take steps, and the Lord will match us. “Strength is given to those who keep seeking and trying.”

Three of the steps he encouraged us to focus on are:

1) Keeping the Sabbath day holy. (Yet another Sacrament shout-out.)

2) Doing temple work for ourselves and others.

3) Counter the natural man’s tendency to procrastinate or give up.

 

• At this time we sang the rest hymn – after only two speakers,  Maybe someone was sick? We sang, “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” and it was gentle and beautiful. For some reason, reading the words as we sang really struck me, and it was a tender experience for me.

 

• President Uchtdorf gave a big-time sermon on faith and doubt, which is ever so timely. (Notice the “Faith” trend this weekend so far?)

He used the story of Daniel in Babylon as the vehicle for his teachings, and asked us if we merely “talk the talk, or do we walk the walk?”

He warned us not to be impressed with popular trends, to disregard the ridicule of the ungodly, and to overcome our own laziness.  Boom! (I added the “Boom!”)

He talked about how Daniel passed his tests, but ours still continues.  Satan is out to thwart us. Satan teaches that doubters, skeptics and cynics are “sophisticated.” While the faithful believers are “brainwashed.”

Then the discourse moved into a discussion on how to gain and build faith, drain on the teachings of Alma 32, and the planted seed.

He has little use for skepticism, pointing out how easy it is to be a skeptic – “everyone can do it”

He concluded with the idea that “some things can only be understood with spiritual eyes,” and that “we can choose to believe.”  (Yes, the exact same concepts Elder Anderson taught just before.)

 

• President Eyring went about it in a completely different fashion. Where Elders Anderson and Uchtdorf took broad concepts and multiple ideas and worked through them, President Eyring took one simple concept and spent the entire address teaching that one principle through stories and examples. Here it is:

“When you do your part, the Lord adds his part to your efforts.” There it is.

A very effective part of his talk was when he spoke of his ancestor’s conversion and mission call to the church, back in the 1850s.  Read it – it is great.

 

• I learned that if you listen to a choir sing the lovely hymn, “Lord, I will Follow Thee,” slowly enough, it is a lot like taking Ambien.

 

• President Monson was the concluding speaker.  I was glad to see him, and glad he was able to deliver his full sermon about keeping the commandments.

He, too, warned us about lowering standards to be popular. He counseled us that there are loud voices out there, and we need to turn the volume down so we can hear the still, small voice.

He referred to the following things as “Plagues:” Permissiveness, pornography, drugs, and abortion. He warned us to watch out for any sort of addiction – drugs, alcohol, pornography, immorality.

Keep the commandments. (Simple concept – struggle of a lifetime!)

 

• My sons loved the all-you-can-eat shrimp special at Outback, so it was a good night all around.

• Sorry if this is sloppy – it is late and it has been a long – but great – day.

• Until tomorrow!

 

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