by President Russell M Nelson
Lesson by Diane Bott
Listening to our prophet as he opened this conference, with his calming peaceful words, filled my soul with peace and my heart with gratitude that we have been blessed with a strong spiritual leader at this time.
As he said, we had no idea that the world would be thrust into this dire situation at this time. But even though conference was presented in this unique and different way, the Spirit was as strong and apparent as usual. I also know that it is because of my faith in Jesus Christ and the knowledge that He is directing us through our prophet, that I have been able to be at peace with anything that we have been asked to do.
Speaking of the trial we are going through right now, President Nelson says;
“How can we endure such trials? The Lord has told us that “if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.” Our ultimate quest in life is to prepare to meet our Maker. We do this by striving daily to become more like our Savior, Jesus Christ. And we do that as we repent daily, receive his cleansing, healing, and strengthening power. Then we can feel enduring peace and joy, even during turbulent times.”
Pres. Nelson has been preparing us all year, as we have all been looking forward to the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of The First Vision. About this great event, Pres. Nelson said, “The purpose of this, and every general conference, is to help us to Hear Him. We have prayed, and invite you to pray, that the Spirit of the Lord will be with us in such rich abundance that you can hear the messages that the Savior has especially for you. — Messages that will bring peace to your soul. Messages that will heal your broken heart. Messages that will illuminate your Mind. Messages that will help you know what to do as you move ahead through times of turmoil and trial.“
I personally did hear many of these messages, and they did have such a powerful effect on my spirit. I have had no fear throughout this trial, and have felt the love and support of our leaders, friends and family members.
In Pres. Nelson‘s talk entitled, “Go Forward in Faith”, he summarized all of the memorable things that happened and were talked about during this conference. I feel that it was an especially wonderful few days that we had; listening to great leaders, experiencing beautiful music, hearing some great ideas of things that we can do to go forward now with faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that His plan for us, is to have joy and to return to him.
Especially sweet was the prophet’s apostolic blessing that he bestowed on each and every one of us. My heart is so full, knowing that he loves us all very much and is so concerned for our safety and well-being, that he would pray so fervently to the Lord in our behalf. These are the words of his prayer —
“I bless you with peace and increasing faith in the Lord.
I bless you with a desire to repent and become a little more like him each day.
I bless you to know that the Prophet Joseph Smith is the prophet of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness.
Should there be illness among you or your loved ones, I leave a blessing of healing, consistent with the will of the Lord.
I so bless you, adding once more my expression of love for each of you in the sacred name of Jesus Christ,
amen. “
I invite you all to think deeply of his prayer for you. How your life has been blessed by the restoration and our prophet’s words today. Read about and remember all of the things in this talk that Pres. Nelson recalled to have taken place during this conference. He emphasized how important all of these things are for us right now.
I also pray for your safety and peace. I love you and miss you and hope that we can meet together again soon. These thoughts I share with you in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen
