Just finished reading and taking notes on each General Conference talk from April 2014. I always have the best intentions to do this but seldom achieve it before the next conference rolls around. Thankfully once again, my testimony of the apostles and their divine mission has been driven home most deeply and I love them with all my heart. I'm so touched at their expressions of love and reassurances for us. I'm so grateful for all the leaders of the church, and their families, for the sacrifices they have made to be modern day shepherds to members of our church. I am putting up this post so I can enjoy these quotes whenever I want or need them and hope they are helpful to anyone searching for truth or encouragement.
I invite you to read them and feel of their assurances. By their fruits ye shall know them and this is good fruit. I know it!
Apr 2014 General and Women's Conference: Favorite Quotes
Be
strong. Live the gospel faithfully even if others around you don’t
live it at all. Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with
compassion, but defend them. A long history of inspired voices,
including those you will hear in this conference and the voice you
just heard in the person of President Thomas S. Monson, point
you toward the path of Christian
discipleship. It is a strait path, and it is a narrow path without a
great deal of latitude at some points, but it can be thrillingly and
successfully traveled, “with … steadfastness in Christ, … a
perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.”19
In courageously pursuing such a course, you will forge unshakable
faith, you will find safety against ill winds that blow, even shafts
in the whirlwind, and you will feel the rock-like strength of our
Redeemer, upon whom if you build your unflagging discipleship, you
cannot fall.
-Elder
Jeffrey Holland Apr 2014
This
afternoon each of us will raise our right arm to the square and
sustain the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles as
prophets, seers, and revelators of The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. This is not a mere formality, nor is it reserved
for those called to general service. To sustain our leaders is a
privilege; it comes coupled with a personal responsibility to share
their burden and to be disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.
-Elder Ronald
Rasband Apr 2014
(Speaking of Jesus Christ) After
that, in the most sublime show of His love for humankind, and in the
full exercise of His will, He walked bravely and determinedly to face
His most demanding trial. In the Garden of Gethsemane, in utter
loneliness, He suffered the most intense agony, bleeding from each
pore. In total submission before His Father, He atoned for our sins
and also took upon Him our illnesses and
afflictions in order to know how to succor us (see Alma
7:11–13).
We
are indebted to Him and to our Heavenly Father because His sacrifice
blessed everyone, from Adam, the first, to the last of all human
beings.
-Elder Carlos
Amado Apr 2014
Youth,
take responsibility for your own spiritual well-being. Turn off your
phone if necessary, sing a Primary song, pray for help, think of a
scripture, walk out of a movie, picture the Savior, take the
sacrament worthily, study For the Strength of Youth, be an example to
your friends, confide in a parent, go see your bishop, ask for help,
and seek professional counseling, if needed.
-
Linda Reeves Apr 2014
Build
more firmly your foundation upon the rock of your Redeemer.
Treasure
more completely His incomparable life and teachings.
Follow
more diligently His example and His commandments.
Embrace
more deeply His love, His mercy and grace, and the powerful gifts of
His Atonement.
As
you do, I promise you that you will see the whirlwinds for what they
are—tests, temptations, distractions, or challenges to help you
grow. And as you live righteously year after year, I assure you that
your experiences will confirm to you again and again that Jesus is
the Christ. The spiritual rock under your feet will be solid and
secure. You will rejoice that God has placed you here to be a part of
the final preparations for Christ’s glorious return.
-Neil
Anderson Apr 2014
God
makes it attractive to choose the right by letting us feel the
effects of our choices. If we choose the right, we will find
happiness—in time. If we choose evil, there comes sorrow and
regret—in time. Those effects are sure. Yet they are often delayed
for a purpose. If the blessings were immediate, choosing the right
would not build faith. And since sorrow is also sometimes greatly
delayed, it takes faith to feel the need to seek forgiveness for sin
early rather than after we feel its sorrowful and painful effects.
-Pres Henry
B Eyring Apr 2014
Political
campaigns and marketing strategies widely employ public opinion polls
to shape their plans. Results of those polls are informative. But
they could hardly be used as grounds to justify disobedience to God’s
commandments! Even if “everyone is doing it,” wrong is never
right. Evil, error, and darkness will never be truth, even if
popular.
-Elder Russell
M Nelson Apr 2014
We
best serve our Father in Heaven by righteously influencing others and
serving them.5 The
greatest example who ever walked the earth is our Savior, Jesus
Christ. His mortal ministry was filled with teaching, serving, and
loving others. He sat down with individuals who were judged to be
unworthy of His companionship. He loved each of them. He discerned
their needs and taught them His gospel. He invites us to follow His
perfect example.
-Elder Richard
G Scott Apr 2014
As
our understanding of obedience deepens, we recognize the essential
role of agency. When Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He prayed
three times to His Father in Heaven, “O my Father, if it be
possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but
as thou wilt.”8
God would not override the Savior’s agency, yet He mercifully sent
an angel to strengthen His Beloved Son.
In
choosing whether we will obey, it is always helpful to remember the
consequences of our choices. Did Lucifer and his followers understand
the consequences of choosing to reject Heavenly Father’s plan? If
so, why did they make such a terrible choice? We might ask ourselves
a similar question: why do any of us choose to be disobedient when we
know the eternal consequences of sin? The scriptures provide an
answer: the reason Cain and some of the children of Adam and Eve
chose to disobey is because “they loved Satan more than God.”12
Our
love of the Savior is the key to Savior-like obedience. As we strive
to be obedient in today’s world, we declare our love and respect
for all of Heavenly Father’s children. Yet it is impossible for
this love for others to modify God’s commandments, which were given
for our good! For example, the commandment “thou shalt not …
kill, nor do anything like unto it”13
is founded upon spiritual law that protects all of God’s children,
even the unborn. Long experience suggests that when we ignore this
law, immeasurable sorrow results. Yet many believe it is acceptable
to terminate the life of an unborn child for reasons of preference or
convenience.
-Elder Robert D Hales Apr 2014
I
pray that we will not lose sight of the way so that we may always be
connected with the heavens, so that the currents of the world do not
sweep us away.
If
any one of you reaches the point of abandoning the Lord’s way—at
any point along that way—with great remorse you will feel the
bitterness of having set at naught the counsels of God, of having
broken the most sacred promises made before God, of having trusted in
your own judgment, or of having boasted in your own wisdom.
May
we have the capacity to grasp, give heed to, comprehend, and
correctly interpret the message of “that God who made [us]” so as
not to stray from His way, I plead in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
- Elder Claudio D Zivic Apr 2014
Paul
warned, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth,
but [only] that which is good [and] edifying, that it may minister
grace unto the hearers” (Ephesians
4:29).
His words resonate with a certain purity.
What
does the phrase “no corrupt communication” mean to you? We all
regularly experience highly charged feelings of anger—our own and
others’. We have seen unchecked anger erupt in public places. We
have experienced it as a sort of emotional “electrical short” at
sporting events, in the political arena, and even in our own homes.
Fully
owning the limits of my own imperfections and rough edges, I plead
with you to practice asking this question, with tender regard for
another’s experience: “What are you thinking?
When
our truck cab filled with smoke, my wife acted in the bravest manner
she could imagine to protect our son. I too acted as a protector when
I questioned her choice. Shockingly, it did not matter who was more
right. What mattered was listening to each other and understanding
the other’s perspective.
The
willingness to see through each other’s eyes will transform
“corrupt communication” into “minister[ing] grace.” The
Apostle Paul understood this, and on some level each of us can
experience it too. It may not change or solve the problem, but the
more important possibility may be whether ministering grace could
change us.
I bear humble witness that we can "minister grace" through compassionate language when the cultivated gift of the Holy Ghost pierces our hearts with empathy for the feelings and context of others. It enables us to transform hazardous situations into holy places. I testify of a loving Savior who "looketh on [our] heart" and cares what we are thinking. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
-Elder
W Craig Zwick Apr 2014
What
a great time to be alive. This is the last dispensation, and we can
feel the hastening of the work of salvation in every area where a
saving ordinance is involved.19
We now have temples across much of the world to provide these saving
ordinances. Attending the temple for spiritual renewal, peace,
safety, and direction in our lives is also a great blessing.20
The
essential doctrine of uniting families came forth line upon line and
precept upon precept. Vicarious ordinances are at the heart of
welding together eternal families, connecting roots to branches.
The
leadership of the Church has issued a clarion call to the rising
generation to lead the way in the use of technology to experience the
spirit of Elijah, to search out their ancestors, and to perform
temple ordinances for them.26
Much of the heavy lifting in hastening the work of salvation for both
the living and the dead will be done by you young people.27
If
the youth in each ward will not only go to the temple and do baptisms
for their dead but also work with their families and other ward
members to provide the family names for the ordinance work they
perform, both they and the Church will be greatly blessed. Don’t
underestimate the influence of the deceased in assisting your efforts
and the joy of ultimately meeting those you serve. The eternally
significant blessing of uniting our own families is almost beyond
comprehension.28
-Elder Quentin L Cook Apr 2014
Whoever
exercises priesthood authority should forget about their rights and
concentrate on their responsibilities.
-Elder Dallin
H Oaks Apr 2014
Well,
we meet in this priesthood meeting because who we are is not who we
can become. We meet here tonight in the name of Jesus
Christ.
We meet with the confidence that His Atonement gives every one of
us—no matter our weaknesses, our frailties, our addictions—the
ability to change. We meet with the hope that our future, no matter
our history, can be better.
Selfishness
is the antithesis of priesthood responsibility, and if it is a trait
of our character, we need to change.
When
we participate in this meeting with the “real intent” to change
(Moroni
10:4),
the Spirit has full access to our hearts and minds. As the Lord
revealed to the Prophet Joseph
Smith,
“And it shall come to pass, that inasmuch as they … exercise
faith in me”—remember, faith is a principle of power and of
action—“I will pour out my Spirit upon them in the day that they
assemble themselves together” (D&C
44:2).
That means tonight!
-Elder Donald
Hallstrom Apr 2014
As
important as it is to leave home every day with a full charge on your
cell phone, it is far more important to be fully charged spiritually.
Every time you plug in your phone, use it as a reminder to ask
yourself if you have plugged in to the most important source of
spiritual power—prayer and scripture study, which will charge you
with inspiration through the Holy
Ghost (see D&C
11:12–14).
It will help you know the mind and will of the Lord to make the small
but important daily choices that determine your direction. Many of us
immediately stop whatever we are doing to read a text message—should
we not place even more importance on messages from the Lord?
Neglecting to connect to this power should be unthinkable to us. (see 2 Nephi
32:3).
-Randall
Ridd Apr 2014
Always
remember, with the Savior’s help, you can break free from
addiction. It may be a long, difficult path, but the Lord will not
give up on you. He loves you. Jesus Christ suffered the Atonement to
help you change, to free you from the captivity of sin.
The
most important thing is to keep trying—sometimes it takes several
attempts before people find success. So don’t give up. Don’t lose
faith. Keep your heart close to the Lord, and He will give you the
power of deliverance. He will make you free.
Don’t
allow selfishness! Don’t allow habits that could lead to addiction!
Don’t allow competing priorities to lull you into indifference or
detachment from blessed discipleship and ennobling priesthood
service!
-Pres
Uchtdorf Apr 2014
Above
all, remember that of all the service you give, none is greater than
to help people choose to qualify for eternal life. God has given that
overarching direction to us on how to use our priesthood. He is the
perfect example of it. This is the example we see in small part in
the best of His mortal servants:
-Pres
Eyring Apr 2014
The
call for courage comes constantly to each of us. Every day of our
lives courage is needed—not just for the momentous events but more
often as we make decisions or respond to circumstances around us.
Said Scottish poet and novelist Robert Louis Stevenson: “Everyday
courage has few witnesses. But yours is no less noble because no drum
beats for you and no crowds shout your name.”2
-Pres
Thomas S Monson Apr 2014
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.
-Pres
Uchtdorf Apr 2014
Inviting
is certainly part of the process. But notice that there is much more
to missionary work for members than simply extending invitations to
people to listen to the missionaries. It also includes follow-up with
the missionaries in the cultivation of faith, the motivation to
repentance, the preparation for making covenants, and enduring to the
end.
-Elder
Melvin J Ballard Apr 2014
We
can come to feel, as C. S. Lewis described: “I pray because I
can’t help myself. … I pray because the need flows out of me all
the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God. It changes
me.”3
-Jean
Stevens Apr 2014
Dear
friends, you are in the midst of an exhilarating journey. In some
ways, you are racing down the half-pipe or sled track, and it can be
challenging to perform each element or navigate each turn along the
way. But remember, you’ve prepared for this for millennia. This is
your moment to perform. This is your four minutes! The time is now!
I
express my utmost confidence in your abilities. You have the Savior
of the world on your side. If you seek His help and follow His
directions, how can you fail?
-Bsp
Gary Stevenson Apr 2014
Each
of us also carries a load. Our individual load is comprised of
demands and opportunities, obligations and privileges, afflictions
and blessings, and options and constraints. Two guiding questions can
be helpful as we periodically and prayerfully assess our load: “Is
the load I am carrying producing the spiritual traction that will
enable me to press forward with faith in Christ on the strait and
narrow path and avoid getting stuck? Is the load I am carrying
creating sufficient spiritual traction so I ultimately can return
home to Heavenly Father?”
Sometimes
we mistakenly may believe that happiness is the absence of a load.
But bearing a load is a necessary and essential part of the plan of
happiness. Because our individual load needs to generate spiritual
traction, we should be careful to not haul around in our lives so
many nice but unnecessary things that we are distracted and diverted
from the things that truly matter most.
.....Not
only does the Atonement of Jesus Christ overcome the effects of the
Fall of Adam and make possible the remission of our individual sins
and transgressions, but His Atonement also enables us to do good and
become better in ways that stretch far beyond our mortal capacities.
Most of us know that when we do things wrong and need help to
overcome the effects of sin in our lives, the Savior has made it
possible for us to become clean through His redeeming power. But do
we also understand that the Atonement is for faithful men and women
who are obedient, worthy, and conscientious and who are striving to
become better and serve more faithfully? I wonder if we fail to fully
acknowledge this strengthening aspect of the Atonement in our lives
and mistakenly believe we must carry our load all alone—through
sheer grit, willpower, and discipline and with our obviously limited
capacities.
It
is one thing to know that Jesus Christ came to the earth to die for
us. But we also need to appreciate that the Lord desires, through His
Atonement and by the power of the Holy Ghost, to enliven us—not
only to guide but also to strengthen and heal us.
....Thus,
the Savior has suffered not just for our sins and iniquities—but
also for our physical pains and anguish, our weaknesses and
shortcomings, our fears and frustrations, our disappointments and
discouragement, our regrets and remorse, our despair and desperation,
the injustices and inequities we experience, and the emotional
distresses that beset us.
There
is no physical pain, no spiritual wound, no anguish of soul or
heartache, no infirmity or weakness you or I ever confront in
mortality that the Savior did not experience first. In a moment of
weakness we may cry out, “No one knows what it is like. No one
understands.” But the Son
of God perfectly
knows and understands, for He has felt and borne our individual
burdens. And because of His infinite and eternal sacrifice (see Alma
34:14),
He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy. He can
reach out, touch, succor, heal, and strengthen us to be more than we
could ever be and help us to do that which we could never do relying
only upon our own power. Indeed, His yoke is easy and His burden is
light.
-Elder
David A Bednar Apr 2014
Beyond
comprehension, my brothers and sisters, is the love of God for us.
Because of this love, He sent His Son, who loved us enough to give
His life for us, that we might have eternal life. As we come to
understand this incomparable gift, our hearts will be filled with
love for our Eternal Father, for our Savior, and for all mankind.
That such may be so is my earnest prayer in the sacred name of Jesus
Christ, amen.
-Pres
Monson Apr 2014
Your
secret yearnings and tearful pleadings will touch the heart of both
the Father and the Son. You will be given a personal assurance from
Them that your life will be full and that no blessing that is
essential will be lost to you.
As
a servant of the Lord, acting in the office to which I have been
ordained, I give those in such circumstances a promise that there
will be nothing essential to your salvation and exaltation that shall
not in due time rest upon you. Arms now empty will be filled, and
hearts now hurting from broken dreams and yearning will be healed.
Joseph
Smith and
Sidney Rigdon recorded the following after a sacred experience:
“And
now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is
the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
Their
words are my words.
I believe
and I am
sure that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that He lives. He
is the Only Begotten of the Father, and “by him, and through him,
and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants
thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C
76:24).
I
bear my witness that the Savior lives. I know the
Lord. I am His witness. I know of His great sacrifice and eternal
love for all of Heavenly Father’s children. I bear my special
witness in all humility but with absolute certainty, in the name of
Jesus Christ, amen.
-Elder Boyd
K Packer Apr 2014
Although
the admonition came from a letter from Robert Harris, I believe that
countless forefathers would send the same message to their children
and grandchildren: First, we must not forget the experiences we have
had in the temple, and we must not forget the promises and the
blessings that come to each of us because of the temple. Secondly, we
must not forget that we are led by a prophet of God.
-Elder William Walker
Apr 2014
Too
often we think of obedience as the passive and thoughtless following
of the orders or dictates of a higher authority. Actually, at its
best, obedience is an emblem of our faith in the wisdom and power of
the highest authority, even God. When Abraham demonstrated his
unwavering faithfulness and obedience to God, even when commanded to
sacrifice his son, God rescued him. Similarly, when we demonstrate
our faithfulness through obedience, God will ultimately rescue us.
-Elder L
Tom Perry Apr 2014
Opposition,
criticism, and antagonism are companions to the truth. Whenever the
truth with regard to the purpose and destiny of man is revealed,
there will always be a force to oppose it. Beginning with Adam and
Eve in the Garden of Eden, down to the ministry of Christ, and on
down to our day, there has always been and will ever be an effort to
deceive, derail, oppose, and frustrate the plan of life.
-Elder Lawrence
Corbridge Apr 2014
I
bear testimony that our priorities, tendencies, inclinations,
desires, appetites, and passions will have a direct bearing on our
next estate. Let us always remember the words of the Savior: “For
where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” May our
hearts be found in the right place is my prayer, in the name of Jesus
Christ, amen.
-Elder
Michael John U Teh Apr 2014
We
invite all to study the fruits and the works of this Church.
Those
who are interested in the truth will be able to recognize the
difference that the Church and its members make in the communities
where they are established. They will also note the improvement in
the lives of those who follow its teachings. Those who examine these
fruits will discover that the fruits of The Church of Jesus
Christ of
Latter-day Saints are delicious and desirable.
-Elder
Aidukaitis Apr 2014
We
face many serious challenges in the world today, but I assure you
that our Heavenly Father is mindful of us. He will guide and bless us
as we put our faith and trust in Him and will see us through whatever
difficulties come our way.
-Pres Thomas S. Monson Apr 2014
Temple
ordinances lead to the greatest blessings available through the
Atonement of Jesus
Christ.
They are those ordinances necessary for our exaltation in the
celestial kingdom. As we strive to keep our covenants, our feelings
of inadequacy and imperfection begin to fade, while the ordinances
and the covenants of the temple come alive. Everyone is welcome to
walk that path to eternal life.
-Rosemary
Wixom 2014 Apr Gen Women's Mtg
Thank
you to all the women of the Church who are reaching out across age
and cultural lines to bless and serve others. Young women are serving
Primary children and the elderly. Single sisters of all ages spend
countless hours watching out for the needs of those around them. We
recognize the thousands of young women who are giving up 18 months of
their lives to share the gospel with the world. All of these things
are evidence that, as our beloved hymn states, “The errand of
angels is given to women.”5
If
there are barriers, it is because we ourselves have created them. We
must stop concentrating on our differences and look for what we have
in common; then we can begin to realize our greatest potential and
achieve the greatest good in this world. Sister Marjorie P.
Hinckley once said, “Oh, how we need each other. Those of us who
are old need you who are young. And, hopefully, you who are young
need some of us who are old. It is a sociological fact that women
need women. We need deep and satisfying and loyal friendships with
each other.”6 Sister
Hinckley was right; oh, how we need each other!
Sisters,
there is no other group of women in the world who have access to
greater blessings than we do as Latter-day Saint women. We are
members of the Lord’s Church, and regardless of our individual
circumstances, we can all enjoy the full blessings of priesthood
power through keeping the covenants we have made atbaptism and
in the temple. We have living prophets to lead and teach us, and we
enjoy the great gift of the Holy
Ghost,
which serves as a comfort and guide in our lives. We are blessed to
work hand in hand with righteous brothers as we strengthen homes and
families. We have access to the strength and power of temple
ordinances and so much more.In
addition to enjoying all of these magnificent blessings, we have each
other—sisters in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have been blessed
with tender and charitable natures which enable us to render
Christlike love and service to those around us. As we look beyond our
differences in age, culture, and circumstance to nurture and serve
one another, we will be filled with the pure love of Christ and the
inspiration which leads us to know when and whom to serve.
-Bonnie
Oscarson Gen Women's Mtg Apr 2014
I love
the women of the Church, young and old. I have seen your strength. I
have seen your faith. You have something to give and are willing to
give it. You do this without fanfare or publicity, drawing attention
to the God we worship, not yourselves, and with no thought of what
you will receive.11 That’s
what disciples do!
“Between
now and the day the Lord comes again, He needs women in every family,
in every ward, in every community, in every nation who will step
forward in righteousness and say by their words and their actions,
‘Here am I, send me.’
-Linda
K Burton Gen Women's Mtg 2014
You
were tutored by Him before you came into this life. He helped you
understand and accept that you would have trials, tests, and
opportunities perfectly chosen just for you. You learned that our
Father had a plan of happiness to get you safely through those trials
and that you would help bring others safely through theirs. This plan
is marked by covenants with God.
It
is our free choice whether we make and keep those covenants. Only a
few of His daughters have the opportunity in this life to even learn
of those covenants. You are one of the favored few. You dear sisters,
each of you is a daughter in the covenant.
Heavenly
Father taught you before you were born about the experiences you
would have as you left Him and came to earth. You were taught that
the way back home to Him would not be easy. He knew that it would be
too hard for you to make the journey without help.
You
have been blessed not only to find the way to make those covenants in
this life but also to be surrounded by others who will help—who,
like you, are covenant daughters of Heavenly Father.
He
sees that glorious potential in all of His daughters, wherever they
are. Now, that puts a great responsibility on each of you. He expects
you to treat every person you meet as a child of God. That is the
reason He commands us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves and
to forgive them. Your feelings of kindness and forgiveness toward
others come as your divine inheritance from Him as His daughter. Each
person you meet is His loved spiritual child.
As
you feel of that great sisterhood, what we thought divides us falls
away. For instance, younger and older sisters share their feelings
with the expectation of being understood and accepted. You are more
alike as daughters of God than you are different.
-Pres
Eyring Gen Women's Mtg Apr 2014
