091116 Multistake conference

Elder Waddell

When studying the scriptures, ask there questions :
Why was this included?
How does this apply today?

We can't avoid challenges, but we must faith them with faith.

We may not win every battle zbut we will win the war.

Find quote by Elder Bednar : if we stay the same spiritually, it won't be enough. We need to be stronger.

The book of Mormon helps us remember.

Sister Oscarson

What does it mean to be a true disciple? If someone were to observe you without you knowing it, would they know you were a disciple of Christ?

Don't ever check your religion st the door.

Modesty,, morality, and integrity

Can you be a Mormon and still have fun?

A true disciple chooses to live the gospel because they have received a testimony, nit because their parents expect them too.

Elder Hallstrom

*set up regulations temple trips for kids - Saturday mornings? Friday nights?

Elder Ballard

Sequoia trees on BYU campus one died from last of water, long term members can fall away

Essential habits: sincere prayer, fast g, regal study scriptures and Ensign, sabbath day, sacrament, temple worship, reaching out to poor and lonely

Talk about being addicted to cell phones. Us in the evening, Chandler at school.

We can disagree, but not be disagreeable.

Never look down on those who are less educated than we are. Including gospel topics.

Sunday afternoon session, Fall 2016

David A. Bednar
*Is it possible to know it, without believing it?
* we can know the Lord and we can also know about him

Brian K. Ashton
*read this talk

Carl B. Cook
*As we serve Him, we get to know God and become more like Him
*Serving in the Church can be scary
*Fulfilling callings requires faith

Ronald A. Rasband
*Heavenly Father, are you really there?
* Heavenly Father knows and loves each of us, and He is always ready to help.
* When I'm struggling remember the times that I had spiritual experiences
* Generations are affected by the choices we make
* Remember to write down the spiritual experiences that I have

Evan A. Schmutz
* There can be Godly purpose in our suffering
* Mark scripture by Paul about light affliction
* st. Paul had a thorn 3 times went to his knees look it up
* suffering in and of itself does not Grant anything on to US unless we deliberately become involved in the process of learning from our afflictions

K. Brent Nattress
*If everything my children knew about the gospel had come from me, how much would they know?
*reading the book of Mormon everyday

Dale G. Renlund
*Firecracker
*Repentance means change
*Repentance is a choice
*Blaming others allows us to excuse our actions
*Instead of making excuses, let us choose repentance
*The fact that we can repent is the good news of the gospel

Sunday morning session, Fall 2016

President Monson
*

Russell M. Nelson
*Men are that they might have joy
*Story of 80 huddled in freezing cabin, and they were joyful
*When the focus of our lives is on the plan of salvation, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening in our lives
*Focusing on joy brings God's power into our lives

Peter F. Meurs
*Ways to increase the Sacrament
*Prepare in advance
*Arrive early
*Sing and learn from the words of the Sacrament hymn
*Spiritually participate in the Sacrament prayers
*Ponder and remember Him as the Sacrament emblems are passed

Linda S. Reeves
*Story of President Packer not remembering his sins because he had repented of them
*We receive joy and happiness when we repent
*Story of missionary who confessed and had to go home, but came back after a year
*It is not possible for you to sink lower than the inifinite light of Christ shines

M. Russell Ballard
*Never abandon the truths revealed by Joseph Smith
*We must not assume that just because something is unexplainable by us, it is unexplainable.
*If we seek, really seek with full purpose of heart, and with prayer, we will receive answers
*We must love and encourage those who have strayed from the path

Dean M. Davies
*True worship
*Sometimes we go about serving in our callings as if they were a job
*Worship is essential to our lives

Lynn G. Robbins
*read talk
*

Henry B. Eyring
*Gratitude on the Sabbath
*"Count Your Blessings"
*The greatest blessing is the feeling of forgiveness when we are partaking the sacrament
*

Sunday morning session, Fall 2016

President Monson
*

Russell M. Nelson
*Men are that they might have joy
*Story of 80 huddled in freezing cabin, and they were joyful
*When the focus of our lives is on the plan of salvation, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening in our lives
*Focusing on joy brings God's power into our lives

Peter F. Meurs
*Ways to increase the Sacrament
*Prepare in advance
*Arrive early
*Sing and learn from the words of the Sacrament hymn
*Spiritually participate in the Sacrament prayers
*Ponder and remember Him as the Sacrament emblems are passed

Linda S. Reeves
*Story of President Packer not remembering his sins because he had repented of them
*We receive joy and happiness when we repent
*Story of missionary who confessed and had to go home, but came back after a year
*It is not possible for you to sink lower than the inifinite light of Christ shines

M. Russell Ballard
*Never abandon the truths revealed by Joseph Smith
*We must not assume that just because something is unexplainable by us, it is unexplainable.
*If we seek, really seek with full purpose of heart, and with prayer, we will receive answers
*We must love and encourage those who have strayed from the path

Dean M. Davies
*True worship
*Sometimes we go about serving in our callings as if they were a job
*Worship is essential to our lives

Lynn G. Robbins
*read talk
*

Henry B. Eyring
*Gratitude on the Sabbath
*"Count Your Blessings"
*The greatest blessing is the feeling of forgiveness when we are partaking the sacrament
*

Priesthood session, Fall 2016

Jeffrey R. Holland
*Home teaching
*A monthly visit is still the ideal, but in some areas others ways can be used
*Priority is given to those in need for the home visits
*Lift your vision of home teaching
*Home teachers are God's emissaries to his children

LeGrand R. Curtis Jr.
*Church freeze in Ghana
*2 Nephi 25 "We talk of Christ..."
*Read the Book of Mormon as a family

Dieter F. Uchtdorf
*Alma the Younger
*Everyone would have known him and what he did
*Amulek said that he was called many times and would not hear. He knew concerning these things yet would not believe.
*What can I learn from Alma? How am I like Amulek?
*To be successful, you must find your Amulek

Henry B. Eyring
*See the potential in others
*Melchizedek priesthood holders needs tor each down and help the Aaronic priesthood holders and help them grow

President Monson
*Word of Wisdom
*Those who follow the WofW are promised great blessings

Saturday afternoon session, Fall 2016

Quentin L. Cook
*We don't all have the same stumbling blocks
*Don't elevate anything, even in the gospel, above our devotion to the Savior
*Be valiant in our testimony of Christ
*Avoid the stumbling blocks that impede our progress

Gary E. Stevenson
*Is the Book of Mormon the keystone of my testimony?
*The Book of Mormon was written for me and my day
*Read it more every day. Replace screen time with reading time.

D. Todd Christofferson
*Love can transform a soul
*We all have potential
*We shouldn't be content with where we are, we can always be more

W. Mark Bassett
*Toy golden plates, intent on what was on sealed portion, never read what was on unsealed portion
*The Lord's pattern for learning is timeless
*We not expected to know all things

Japanese guy Yamashita
*Be ambitious for Christ
*I need to keep praying and fasting for Taylor
*We can feel joy in the midst of trials
*We are ambitious for Christ when we serve faithfully , accept humbly, endure nobly, pray fervently, and partake worthily.

Dallin H. Oaks
*God loves all of children
*We should love all as our brothers and sisters
*What could be more joyful than sharing God's truths with God's children
*First, pray for the desire
*Second, live it
*Third, pray for inspiration for what we can do personally to share the gospel. Tell the Lord that if He inspires us to speak to someone, we will do it.
*Pray personally and in our families for missionary opportunities
*People learn when they are ready to lean, not when we are ready to teach them
*Invite them to learn more about Christ, not more about our church
*Cab driving missionary
*Release the tongue = release the thumbs

Saturday morning session, Fall 2016

The First Presidency is sitting on the wrong side!

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

*read/listen to his talk again

Robert D. Hales

*Teach children

*Family Home Evening

*You cannot pray away agency

*Wayward children - Pray to know when to talk and when to be still

*Sometimes it's their life experiences that help them come back

*Let the Savior be your caregiver

*Teach children to love and serve one another

Carol F. McKonkie, YW presidency

*If we expect to receive, we must ask

*We pray to Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Ghost, thus using all three members of the Godhead when we pray.

*We need to know to receive the answers to our prayers

*Pray always with full hearts

*We receive answers most clearly when we silence what we want and open our hearts to what God wants for us

President Monson plopped into chair after song

Craig C. Christensen

*Do not let your questions paralyze your faith

*Read the Book of Mormon as if you are Joseph Smith translating it for the first time.

*When Joseph translated the Book of Mormon, he learned about things that would happen to him before they had happened

Juan A. Uceda

*Story about not listening to prompting and almost losing life

*In the morning he prayed with his lips, in the evening, he prayed with his heart

*When you pray, are you really praying, or are you saying your prayers?

J. Devn Cornish

*Sisters and Brothers

*We false judge our self worth by the opinions of others

*The only option of us that matters is what out Heavenly Father thinks of us

*Yes, I am good enough

*Yes, I will make it as long as I keep repenting and do not rationalize or rebel

*All the Lord expects of us is to try, but we really have to try

*It is not possible to sink lower than Christ's infinite Atonement

*Premeditated sin is the worst

*With repeated sin, we distance ourselves from the Savior

Neil L. Andersen

*Temple work is like a giant puzzle

*Guilt has an important role. It awakens us to the changes we need to make.

*The timing of someone else's conversion is not up to us. Think Taylor.

*Share the gospel, and don't be discouraged if someone says no

General Women's Session, Fall 2016

Jean B. Bingham
Charity
Paused, good discussion about not judging each other especially as family
Choose to only say positive about myself and others - look for the positive

Carole M. Stephens
Our faith in Christ enables us to meet every situation
*read this talk again and again!

Bonnie L. Oscarson
We need to be prepared for the storms that lie ahead
We need to see ourselves as essential participants in the gospel
If we don't teach our children true doctrine, and teach it clearly, then the world will them Satan's lies

Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Faith is being sure of what we know and being certain of what we do not see
There are more ways to see than with our eyes, more ways to feel than with our hands, more ways to hear than with our ears
Don't say listen harder, but listen differently
One sees clearly with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.
Two things faith cannot do. First, It cannot violate another's agency. God will invite and persuade, but he will never compel.
Second, Faith will never force our will upon God. The purpose of faith is not to change God's will, but to empower us to act on God's will.
We trust not only in God's wisdom, but that we also trust in his love.
In the end, all things will make sense.
Story - 2 missionaries didn't give up, etc floor, last door, mother just lost husband, young girl asked to listen, joined church, deacon in ward grateful for those missionaries who didn't give up

When we want God to speak to us

Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles:

“When we want to speak to God, we pray. And when we want Him to speak to us, we search the scriptures; for His words are spoken through His prophets. He will then teach us as we listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

“If you have not heard His voice speaking to you lately, return with new eyes and new ears to the scriptures. They are our spiritual lifeline” (“Holy Scriptures: The Power of God unto Our Salvation,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2006, 26–27).

For those in the Ordain Women movement

Elder H. Ross Workman of the Seventy spoke about murmuring. He said that “murmuring consists of three steps, each leading to the next in a descending path to disobedience.”

First, when people murmur, they use their own judgment and begin to question the teachings of the living prophets. “They [question] first in their own minds and then [plant] questions in the minds of others.”

Second, those who murmur begin “to rationalize and excuse themselves from doing what they [have] been instructed to do. … Thus, they [make] an excuse for disobedience.

“The third step inevitably follows: slothfulness in following the commandment of the Master [see D&C 58:29]. …

“I invite you to focus on the commandment from living prophets that bothers you the most. Do you question whether the commandment is applicable to you? Do you find ready excuses why you cannot now comply with the commandment? Do you feel frustrated or irritated with those who remind you of the commandment? Are you slothful in keeping it? Beware of the deception of the adversary. Beware of murmuring” (“Beware of Murmuring,” Ensign, Nov. 2001, 85–86).

Chicks

I saw this on Pinterest and had to try it. My fruit cups had the expiration date and stuff on the top, so I took some fingernail polish remover and a cotton ball and took it off. I then drew the chick's on with Sharpies. They turned out so cute!

Just a hint

My latest crochet project...

I'll post pictures when it is done.

Unicorn Poop

These were so fun to make. I had the help of The Princess and her cousin, so it got a little messy, but they had so much fun! They end up similar to a Peep, but more flavorful.

What you'll need:

*3 bags of big marshmallows
*6 small boxes of Jell-O - one for each color of the rainbow, or whatever you want!
*Bowl of water
*Treat bags

And that's it. Super simple.

Pour one box of Jell-O into a zipper bag. Work with one flavor/color at a time. Dip a marshmallow into the water, getting the whole thing wet. Shake off the excess water, then drop into the Jell-O. Close the bag and shake to coat. Take the marshmallow out and place on cookie sheet to dry. Your fingers will get stained!

One small box of Jell-O did about 20-22 decent looking marshmallows, and a few more that were too ugly to hand out. The younger your helpers are, the fewer pretty ones you'll get!

We ended up with 16 bags that had every color. Of course, some were eaten along the way, and we didn't bag the ugly ones...they got eaten too! The Princess wanted labels, so she designed one that said, "Here's a bag of Unicorn poop for my friend." Nice, right?

Try them out and let me know how you liked them!

If it is not good

"If it is not clean, do not think it; if it is not true, do not speak it; if it is not good, do not do it." - Carlos E. Asay

Follow the Prophet

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained why it is of critical importance for us to follow the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles today:

“The apostolic and prophetic foundation of the Church was to bless in all times, but especially in times of adversity or danger, times when we might feel like children, confused or disoriented, perhaps a little fearful, times in which the devious hand of men or the maliciousness of the devil would attempt to unsettle or mislead. Against such times as come in our modern day, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve are commissioned by God and sustained by you as prophets, seers, and revelators. . . .

“. . . Such a foundation in Christ was and is always to be a protection. . . . In such days as we are now in—and will more or less always be in—the storms of life ‘shall have no power over you . . .’ [Helaman 5:12]” (in Conference Report, Oct. 2004, 5; or  Ensign,Nov.2004,7).

Follow the Prophet

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that we, like the Nephites, must follow our prophet if we hope to find safety, peace, prosperity, and happiness:

“It is no small thing, my brothers and sisters, to have a prophet of God in our midst. Great and wonderful are the blessings that come into our lives as we listen to the word of the Lord given to us through him.... When we hear the counsel of the Lord expressed through the words of the President of the Church, our response should be positive and prompt. History shows that there is safety, peace, prosperity, and happiness in responding to prophetic counsel” (in Conference Report, Apr. 2001, 84; Ensign, May 2001, 65).

Becoming offended

Elder David A. Beggar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles described the fact that we, like Pahoran, can choose to not be offended:

“When we believe or say that we have been offended, we usually mean we feel insulted, mistreated, snubbed, or disrespected. And certainly clumsy, embarrassing, unprincipled, and mean-spirited things do occur in our interactions with other people that would allow us to take offense. However, it ultimately is impossible for another person to offend you or to offend me. Indeed, believing that another person offended us is fundamentally false. To be offended is a choice we make; it is not a condition inflicted or imposed upon us by someone or something else. . . .

“Through the strengthening power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, you and I can be blessed to avoid and triumph over offense. ‘Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them’ (Psalm 119:165). . . .

“. . . As described by Elder Neal A. Maxwell, the Church is not ‘a well-provisioned rest home for the already perfected’ (in Conference Report, Apr. 1982, 57; or  Ensign, May 1982, 38). Rather, the Church is a learning laboratory and a workshop in which we gain experience as we practice on each other in the ongoing process of ‘perfecting the Saints.’

“Elder Maxwell also insightfully explained that in this latter-day learning laboratory known as the restored Church, the members constitute the ‘clinical material’ (see ‘Jesus, the Perfect Mentor,’  Ensign, Feb. 2001, 13) that is essential for growth and development. . . .

“You and I cannot control the intentions or behavior of other people. However, we do determine how we will act. Please remember that you and I are agents endowed with moral agency, and we can choose not to be offended” (in Conference Report, Oct. 2006, 95–97; or  Ensign, Nov. 2006, 90–91).