I’m squeezing in two talks this week because we’re getting dangerously close to general conference and I’m hoping to finish. Only two weeks and two talks left after this. Exciting, right?
What stood out to you as you read both these talks? What role has faith played in your life? What does discipleship mean to you? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
(A reminder to those of you who are new to General Conference Book Club: You’re welcome to return to this post any time this week and leave your comment and thoughts in the comment section below. You may also want to see what others are saying about the talk and engage in a conversation for mutual understanding and encouragement. A new talk will be posted each Sunday and will be studied and discussed throughout the week.)
This week’s talk addresses the distance we sometimes feel between God and ourselves, especially at difficult times in our lives. “Many of us, in moments of personal anguish, feel God is far from us….” President Eyring discusses ways to recognize Him, know He is close to us, and move ourselves closer to Him. He encourages us to have child-like faith and trust in knowing of his care and active role in our lives.
What stood out to you from this talk? What can we do to avoid and remove pavilions in our life? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
(A reminder to those of you who are new to General Conference Book Club: You’re welcome to return to this post any time this week and leave your comment and thoughts in the comment section below. You may also want to see what others are saying about the talk and engage in a conversation for mutual understanding and encouragement. A new talk will be posted each Sunday and will be studied and discussed throughout the week.)
This week we will be studying Elder Andersen’s talk from the Saturday afternoon session of conference. I love the talk because I think it sets a clear path of how to navigate questions and doubts with faith and in a way that will bring answers and truth and testimony. My favorite part is when he points out the right sources to turn to when we are looking for answers and clarification.
One of the fastest ways we can come closer to Christ is to repent and regain the Holy Ghost. The Spirit can comfort, quiet fears, answer questions, resolve doubts, and restore confidence.
What stood out to you from this talk? What strategies have been helpful to you when your faith needed bolstering? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
(A reminder to those of you who are new to General Conference Book Club: You’re welcome to return to this post any time this week and leave your comment and thoughts in the comment section below. You may also want to see what others are saying about the talk and engage in a conversation for mutual understanding and encouragement. A new talk will be posted each Sunday and will be studied and discussed throughout the week.)
Over at Real Intent, they are hosting a series about spiritual gifts.I wrote a guest post about my own patterns in testimony and gospel learning. Go check it out here.
ALSO, for your viewing pleasure, here is a video of some highlights the entire session of conference. It’s a fantastic crash-course review. Definitely worth watching and sharing:
When you click on the link to the talk up above, you will see a screen where you can read the message in full. It will look like this:
← On the right side/margin of the screen, right next to the talk text, you will see where you can click to watch the talk, listen to the talk, or download it as a .pdf or .mp3 (to listen to on your ipod, etc.).
Anyway, Elder Cook’s talk is a great lesson of how to appropriately deal with the times when we feel our testimony ebb and flow, and when we recognize that we are in a weak spot or plateau in our faith. I love that he gives guidelines of how to find strength in those lower moments and therefore reinforce our testimonies; and, he also points out what kinds of behaviors and attitudes to avoid so that we do not fall into Satan’s traps of disillusionment and apathy.
Here are a couple of quotes I liked from his talk that specifically referred to creating a culture of faith in our homes:
Please take a few minutes to discuss what stood out to you the most in this week’s talk. How do you think Elder Cook’s counsel can be helpful to you and your family?
(For those of you who are new to General Conference Book Club, you’re welcome to return to this post any time this week and leave your comment and thoughts in the comment section below. You may also want to see what others are saying about the talk and engage in a conversation for mutual understanding and encouragement. A new talk will be posted each Sunday and will be studied and discussed throughout the week.)
Diapers and Divinity 