"It is the Same" (D&C 1:38)

The nature of the fallen world in which we live is that our existence will inevitably be fraught with upheaval and insecurity. Such circumstances have been prevalent since the fall of Adam and Eve and will persist until the millennial reign of Jesus Christ is ushered in. Indeed, these experiences and trials are one of the purposes for our being in this mortal sphere. How would it be possible for each of us to become the precious masterpiece which we are intended to become without first passing through the refiner's fire?

Among the great consolations given to us by our Father in Heaven is men who may act as his mouthpiece upon the earth. What a privilege it is to be led by a prophet of God in this day, President Russell M. Nelson. I testify that this man is no less a prophet than were Moses, Isaiah, Peter, Lehi or any of the other scriptural prophets. He is the prophet chosen for our day and he speaks the will of the Lord. It is our great opportunity and privilege to hear from the living prophet, along with the members of the quorum of the twelve apostles, in general conference this weekend. As we participate in this sacred opportunity, may we each remember what our Heavenly Father has said in reference to his prophets: "whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." (D&C 1:38). As our prophet, President Nelson, speaks to us, may we view his words as direction from the Savior himself. It is my prayer that during this general conference weekend we will be able to see the true meaning behind these semiannual gatherings. May we approach this brief but sacred moment eager to hear the word of the Lord declared unto us. As we do so it is my testimony that our prayers for knowledge will be answered, our plea for guidance will be heard and our search for conversion will be rewarded. We will be told "in our minds and in our hearts" (D&C 8:2) how to follow our Savior more exactly.

I wonder if those of us who have enjoyed this sublime opportunity for many years, perhaps for our entire life, have become tone deaf as to what takes place on a semiannual basis. Every April and October it is our privilege to participate in something which the overwhelming majority of the world still believes ended with the Bible. The very practice of holding such an event boldly testifies to the world that "God speaks, not spake." Sadly, nearly all of our Heavenly Father's children are left to "wander in strange paths" while unaware that a prophet of God still stands on the watch tower and cries out in warning. Many of those same people would do anything asked of them to simply hear a prophet speak in our day. To have the mouthpiece of the Savior give them comfort and reassurance; to warn of danger and offer encouragement for the future. Thus, the responsibility of inviting all to hear the voice of the prophet rests squarely upon you and me. The Gospel was never intended to be kept or hoarded for ourselves. Nor was it ever part of our sacred covenants to testify of the truths we possess only in moments when it was comfortable to do so or when there was no threat of repercussion or ridicule involved. It is inherent to true discipleship that we share the fruit we enjoy so much with those around us who are staggering helplessly deeper into the mist of darkness while we too often sprawl complacently in the warmth and light of the tree of life. As we approach this conference weekend there are two invitations I wish to extend to each of you. The first is to prayerfully consider the names of persons and picture the faces of those within your sphere of influence who are searching, pleading and pining for the blessing of hearing direction from the Lord. Then, after you have identified those individuals, invite them to participate in at least one of the sessions we will enjoy this weekend. Invite them to come to Bethesda and allow the Savior to banish the cares of this world.

My second invitation is for each of us to more fully give this sacred event the respect and attention it deserves. We will shortly hear the word of God declared to us through the voice of his servants. We will metaphorically be brought to Sinai and hear the voice of Jehovah thundering down from courts on high. Just as Moses was anciently, we will be asked, in our own individual ways, to "remove our shoes for the ground upon which we stand is holy ground".

Too often, however, we who are under covenant obligation to bear the name of Christ “at all times, and in all things and in places…even until death” act as though these two weekends per year are a vacation from attending church rather than sacred opportunities to sit at the feet of the Master. The Redeemer of the World will quite literally hold council with a world to which He will shortly return but the very “children of the covenant” who should be shouting “Hosanna” are busily fretting over whether they should use this rare opportunity to catch up on some shut eye or to spend an extra day in the mountains without having to come back for those pesky church services. Some casually make jokes about conference sleep being the best type of sleep. What a tragedy! Would we honestly wish to one day stand before our Savior and, when he asks how we received his word, be forced to ashamedly respond that we just couldn't keep our eyes open long enough to hear it? I pray that we will never be the disciples who are told to “sleep on and take [our] rest” while the Redeemer is shouldering alone the burden of our complacency just a short way off. Now, I understand we are only mortal and sometimes our couches can overpower us. However, my point in saying this is to invite all of us to give greater respect and attention to this incomparable weekend than we previously have, whatever that may entail for you. I promise that as we make a greater effort to "receive the word of the Lord with gladness" our lives and our eternities will be forever changed.

"Come, listen to a prophet's voice, And hear the word of God." (Hymn No. 21)

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.