From the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, Utah,

this is the Saturday afternoon session of the 192nd Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,

with speakers selected from leaders of the Church.

Music for this session is provided by a combined choir of students from Brigham Young University–Idaho.

This broadcast is furnished as a public service by Bonneville Distribution.

Any reproduction, recording, transcription, or other use of this program without written consent is prohibited. President Henry B. Eyring, Second Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church, will conduct this session.

Brothers and sisters, we welcome you most warmly to the Saturday afternoon session of the 192nd Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

President Russell M. Nelson, who presides at the conference, has asked me to conduct the session.

We extend our greetings to all who are in attendance or who are participating by means of any television, radio, or internet.

The music for this session will be provided by a combined choir of students from Brigham Young University–Idaho

under the direction of Paul Busselberg and Randall Kempton with Joseph Peeples and Linda Margetts at the organ.

The choir will open this meeting by singing “Now Let Us Rejoice.”

The invocation will then be offered by Bishop W. Christopher Waddell,

First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric.

[MUSIC PLAYING] “Now Let Us Rejoice”

Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation. No longer as strangers on earth need we roam. Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation, And shortly the hour of redemption will come,

When all that was promised the Saints will be given, And none will molest them from morn until ev’n, And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden, And Jesus will say to all Israel, “Come home.”

We’ll love one another and never dissemble But cease to do evil and ever be one. And when the ungodly are fearing and tremble, We’ll watch for the day when the Savior will come,

When all that was promised the Saints will be given, And none will molest them from morn until ev’n, And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden, And Jesus will say to all Israel, “Come home.”

In faith we’ll rely on the arm of Jehovah To guide thru these last days of trouble and gloom, And after the scourges and harvest are over, We’ll rise with the just when the Savior doth come.

Then all that was promised the Saints will be given, And they will be crown’d with the angels of heav’n, And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden, And Christ and his people will ever be one.

And they will be crown’d with the angels of heav’n, And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden, And Christ and his people ever be one.

Ever be one.

Our Father, who art in heaven,

we, with gratitude and joy,

approach Thee at the beginning of this conference session. We are grateful for that beautiful hymn.

We are grateful to rejoice together, to be gathered together again

after too long apart. We are grateful to be in the presence of prophets, seers, and revelators. And in particular, we give thanks for President Nelson and his leadership and prophetic guidance and pray for him, his counselors, and the Twelve, for all those who will participate this day and share messages of hope and joy in Thy Son.

We are grateful for Jesus Christ. We are grateful for His atoning sacrifice.

We are grateful to be His disciples and pray again for those who will be participating in this session, that they might be blessed with peace,

that we might be blessed to hear the things that are said and also the things that are not said, but that we might receive impressions and thoughts that are necessary for us individually and as a people. We do pray for peace in the world.

We are grateful for the Prince of Peace and again for Thy Son and what He has done for each of us

and pray now for Thy Spirit to be with us at this time and do so in the name of Jesus Christ,

amen.

President Dallin H. Oaks will now present the General Officers

and Area Seventies of the Church

for a sustaining vote after which Brother Jared B. Larson,

managing director of the Church Auditing Department,

will read the annual report.

Brothers and sisters, I will now present the General Authorities, Area Seventies, and General Officers of the Church to be sustained.

Please express your support in the usual way wherever you may be.

If there are those who oppose any of the proposals, we ask that you contact your stake president.

It is proposed that we sustain Russell Marion Nelson as prophet, seer, and revelator and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Dallin Harris Oaks as First Counselor in the First Presidency;

and Henry Bennion Eyring as Second Counselor in the First Presidency. Those in favor may manifest it.

Those opposed, if any, may manifest it.

It is proposed that we sustain Dallin H. Oaks as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and M. Russell Ballard as Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Those in favor, please signify. Any opposed may manifest it.

It is proposed that we sustain the following as members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: M. Russell Ballard, Jeffrey R. Holland,

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, David A. Bednar, Quentin L. Cook, D. Todd Christofferson,

Neil L. Andersen, Ronald A. Rasband, Gary E. Stevenson, Dale G. Renlund,

Gerrit W. Gong, and Ulisses Soares. Those in favor, please manifest it.

Any opposed may so indicate.

It is proposed that we sustain the counselors in the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles as prophets, seers, and revelators. All in favor, please manifest it.

Contrary, if there be any, by the same sign.

The following Area Seventies have been released from their assignments: Mark D. Eddy, Ryan, K Olsen, Jonathan S. Schmitt, and Denelson Silva.

Those who wish to join us in expressing appreciation for their excellent service, please manifest it.

We have extended releases to the Relief Society General Presidency to be effective August 1, 2022, as follows: Jean B. Bingham as President, Sharon Eubank as First Counselor,

and Reyna I. Aburto as Second Counselor.

We have also extended releases to the Primary General Presidency,

which will also be effective August 1, 2022,

as follows: Camille N. Johnson as President, Susan H.

Porter as First Counselor, and Amy Wright as Second Counselor.

All who wish to join us in expressing appreciation to these sisters for their devoted service, please manifest it.

It is proposed that we sustain the following as General Authority Seventies:

Mark D. Eddy, James W. McConkie III, Isaac K. Morrison, Ryan K. Olsen,

Jonathan S. Schmitt, and Denelson Silva. All in favor, please manifest it.

Those opposed, by the same sign.

We note that 45 new Area Seventies were sustained during the general conference leadership meetings on Thursday, March 31,

and then announced in the newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org earlier this week.

We invite you to sustain them in their new assignments. Those in favor, please manifest it. Any opposed, by the same sign.

It is proposed that we sustain the following as the new Relief Society

General Presidency to be effective August 1, 2022:

Camille N. Johnson as President, Jeannie Anette Dennis as First Counselor, and Kristin Mae Yee as Second Counselor.

Those in favor may manifest it. Any opposed may so signify.

It is proposed that we sustain the following as the new Primary General Presidency, also to be effective August 1, 2022: Susan H.

Porter as President, Amy Eileen Wright as First Counselor, and Tracy Y. Browning as Second Counselor. All in favor may manifest it.

Any opposed may so manifest.

It is proposed that we sustain the other General Authorities, Area Seventies, and General Officers as presently constituted. All in favor, please manifest it.

Those opposed, if any. Thank you, brothers and sisters, for your continued faith and prayers on behalf of the leaders of the Church.

We ask the new General Authorities and General Officers to take their places on the rostrum.

As announced, Jared B. Larson will now read the Church audit report for 2021.

To the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:

Dear Brethren, directed by revelation as recorded in section 120 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Council on the Disposition of the Tithes, composed of the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and the Presiding Bishopric, authorizes the expenditure of Church funds.

Church entities disperse funds in accordance with approved budgets, policies, and procedures. Church Auditing, which consists of credentialed professionals and is independent of all other Church departments and entities, has responsibility to perform audits for the purpose of providing reasonable assurance regarding contributions received, expenditures made, and safeguarding of Church assets. Based upon audits performed, Church Auditing is of the opinion that in all material respects, contributions received, expenditures made, and assets of the Church for the year 2021 have been recorded and administered in accordance with Church approved budgets,

accounting practices, and policies.

The Church follows the practices taught to its members of living within a budget, avoiding debt, and saving against a time of need.

Respectfully submitted, Church Auditing Department,

Jared B. Larson, managing director.

The choir will now favor us with “I’ll Go Where You Want Me to Go.”

After the singing, we will be pleased to hear from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

He will be followed by Elder Patrick Kearon of the Presidency of the Seventy.

Elder Marcos A. Aidukaitis of the Seventy will then address us.

[MUSIC PLAYING] “I’ll Go Where You Want Me to Go”

It may not be on the mountain height Or over the stormy sea,

It may not be at the battle’s front My Lord will have need of me. But if, by a still, small voice he calls To paths that I do not know, I’ll answer, dear Lord, with my hand in thine: I’ll go where you want me to go.

Perhaps today there are loving words Which Jesus would have me speak;

There may be now in the paths of sin Some wand’rer whom I should seek.

O Savior, if thou wilt be my guide, Tho dark and rugged the way, My voice shall echo the message sweet:

I’ll say what you want me to say. I’ll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, Over mountain or plain or sea;

I’ll say what you want me to say, dear Lord; Dear Lord, dear Lord I’ll be what you want me to be.

There’s surely somewhere a lowly place In earth’s harvest fields so wide Where I may labor through life’s short day For Jesus, the Crucified. So trusting my all to thy tender care, And knowing thou lovest me, I’ll do thy will with a heart sincere: I’ll be what you want me to be.

I’ll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, Over mountain or plain or sea; I’ll say what you want me to say, dear Lord;

I’ll be what you want me to be.

I’ll do thy will;

I’ll be what you want me to be.

With that wonderful music ringing in our ears, I direct my remarks today to the young people of the Church,

meaning anyone President Nelson's age or younger.

I seldom use visuals, but I can't resist sharing this one.

This cree decor comes from my eight- year-old friend, Marin Arnold,

written when she was seven.

I will translate for you her early reformed Egyptian:

“Dear Bishop, general conference was boring. Why do we have to do it?

Tell me why. Sincerely, Marin Arnold.” Well, Marin,

the talk I’m about to give will undoubtedly disappoint you again.

But when you write your bishop to complain, it’s important that you tell him my name is Kearon, Elder Patrick Kearon.

For nearly two years, a pandemic of biblical proportions has enveloped our planet. And while that plague brought a halt to almost everything socially,

obviously it did not bring a halt to brutality, violence, and cruel aggression politically, nationally, or internationally.

As if that were not enough,

we’re still facing long-standing social and cultural challenges

ranging from economic deprivation to environmental desecration to racial inequity and more. Such winds and dark days can be discouraging to the youth among us, those to whom we look for optimism and enthusiasm regarding the tomorrows of our lives.

It’s been said that the power of youth is the commonwealth for the entire world. The young are the faces of our future.

Furthermore, our children are the trustees into whose hands the destiny of this Church will one day be placed.

Given our current times, it's understandable if the idealism of the young is waning a little.

Dr. Laurie Santos, a professor at Yale University,

recently created a class titled “Psychology and the Good Life.”

The first year the class was offered,

nearly one quarter of the entire undergraduate student body enrolled.

Over 64 million people then visited her podcast.

Writing about this phenomenon,

one journalist noted how painful it is to see so many bright young students and adults desperately looking for something they’ve lost or,

worse yet, longing for something they never had.

My plea today to our youth and to you parents and adults who advise them is to begin your search for happiness by embracing the bounty we’ve already received from the Giver of every good gift.

At precisely the moment many in the world are asking deep questions of the soul, we ought to be answering with the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,

which holds aloft the mission and message of the Savior of the world,

offers the most eternally significant way to both find good and do good at such a needful time.

President Russell M. Nelson has said of this generation that they have more capacity to have more impact for good

on this world than any previous generation.

We of all people should be singing the song of redeeming love.

But that takes discipline, discipleship, if you will— essentially the same word—

the kind that guards against negative attitudes

and destructive habits that would pull us off key

as we try to sing that song of eternal salvation.

Even as we stay on the sunny side of the street,

we do run into that fellow from time to time who’s determined to find something bleak and dismal about everything.

You know his motto “It’s always darkest just before it goes pitch black.”

What a malignant vision and what a miserable existence.

Yes, we might sometimes want to run away from where we are,

but we can never run away from who we are—

children of the living God, who loves us,

who is always ready to forgive us and will never, ever forsake us.

You are His most precious possession.

You are His child, to whom He has given prophets and promises, spiritual gifts and revelations, miracles and messages, and angels on both sides of the veil.

He's also given you a church that strengthens families for mortality and binds them together for eternity.

It provides more than 31,000 wards and branches, where people gather and sing and fast and pray for each other and give their means to the poor.

This is where every person is named, accounted for, and ministered to

and where lay friends and neighbors voluntarily serve each other in callings that range from clerical work to custodial duty.

Young adults serve missions by the thousands—senior couples as well— at their own expense, with no say whatsoever as to where they’ll labor. And members, young and old, trundle off to temples to perform sacred ordinances necessary to bind the human family together—

a bold activity in such a divided world

but one which declares that such divisiveness is only temporary.

These are a few of the reasons we give for the hope that is in us.

Of course, in our present day,

tremendously difficult issues face any disciple of Jesus Christ.

The leaders of this Church are giving their lives

to seeking the Lord’s guidance in the resolution of these challenges.

If some are not resolved to the satisfaction of everyone,

perhaps they constitute part of the cross that Jesus said we’d have to take up in order to follow Him.

It's precisely because there would be dark days and difficult issues that God promised He would out of a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night

guide prophets, give an iron rod, open a narrow gate leading to a straight path, and above all, grant us the power to finish the course.

So please, please stay for the whole feast,

even if you're not sure about the broccoli.

Bask in His light, and lend your candle to the cause.

They have it right in Primary; Jesus really does want you for a sunbeam.

When the Jewish leader Jairus plead for Jesus to heal his 12-year-old daughter, who lay dying at home,

the surrounding crowd waylaid the Savior so long that a servant soon came saying to this anxious father, “Thy daughter is dead;

trouble not the Master.

But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only,

and she shall be made whole.” And she was. And so will you.

“Fear not: believe only.”

Because each of you in this audience is precious to God and to this Church,

I close with this special apostolic declaration.

Before you ever received the gift of the Holy Ghost, you had the light of Christ planted in your soul.

That light, which is in all things, giveth life to all things

and is the influence for good in the hearts of all people who have ever lived or ever will live.

That light was given to protect you and to teach you.

One of its central messages is that life is the most precious of all gifts,

a gift which is obtained eternally only through the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Light and Life of the World, the Only Begotten Son of God came to give us life by conquering death.

We must commit ourselves fully to that gift of life and run to the aid of those who are at risk of giving up this sacred gift. Leaders, advisers, friends, family,

watch for signs of depression, despair, or anything hinting of self-harm.

Offer your help. Listen. Make some kind of intervention as appropriate.

And to any of our youth out there struggling,

whatever your concerns or difficulties,

death by suicide is manifestly not the answer.

It will not relieve the pain you are feeling or that you see yourself causing.

In a world that so desperately needs all the light it can get,

please do not minimize the eternal light God put in your soul before this world was. Talk to someone. Ask for help.

Do not destroy a life that Christ gave His life to preserve.

You can bear the struggles of this mortal life because we'll help you bear them. You're stronger than you think.

Help is available from others and especially from God.

You are loved and valued and needed. We need you. Fear not, and believe only. Someone who faced circumstances far more desperate than you and I ever will once cried, “Go forward,” my beloved young friends. “Courage . . . ; and on, on to the victory!

Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad.”

We have so much to be glad about. We have each other, and we have Him.

Do not deny us the chance to have you,

I plead in the sacred and holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Master,

amen.

Marin, I’m Elder Holland, and things are about to go downhill.

We are all intrigued by survival stories.

We hear tales of intrepid explorers and ordinary people alike who managed to keep themselves alive against all odds and expectations, and we can’t help but ask ourselves,

“Could I have done that?” I think immediately of British explorer Ernest Shackleton and the crew of his ship HMS Endurance shipwrecked in Antarctic ice and then stranded on a barren island for nearly two years. Shackleton's extraordinary leadership and indomitable resolve saved the lives of his men despite the harshest conditions. Then I think of the crew of Apollo 13 hurtling through space to land on the moon.

But disaster struck when an oxygen tank explosion exploded, and the mission had to be aborted.

Short of oxygen, the crew and mission control ingeniously improvised and brought all three astronauts safely back to earth.

I marvel at the astonishing survival of individuals and families victimized by war, imprisoned in camps, and those who become refugees who heroically and courageously keep alive

the flame of hope for fellow sufferers, who impart goodness in the face of brutality, and who somehow managed to help others endure just one more day. Could you or I survive in any one of these extreme circumstances?

Perhaps some of you, however, consider these accounts of survivors and your soul cries out that you are living a survival story right now

as a victim of abuse, neglect, bullying, domestic violence, or any suffering of this kind.

You are in the midst of your own desperate attempt to survive a situation that feels very much like a disastrous shipwreck or a promising mission suddenly aborted. Will you ever be rescued?

Will you make it through your own survival story? The answer is yes.

You can survive. You have, in fact, already been rescued.

You have already been saved by the one who has suffered the very torment you are suffering and endured the very agony you are enduring.

Jesus has overcome the abuses of this world to give you power to not only survive, but one day, through Him, to overcome and even conquer— to completely rise above the pain, the misery, the anguish— and see them replaced by peace.

The Apostle Paul asks, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? . . . Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”

You'll remember when President Nelson issued the following invitation in general conference. He said,

“As you study your scriptures . . . , I encourage you to make a list of all that the Lord has promised He will do for covenant Israel. I think you will be astounded!”

Here are just a few of the powerful, comforting promises our family found.

Imagine the Lord speaking these words to you—

to you who are surviving—because they are for you. Fear not.

I know your sorrows, and I have come to deliver you. I will not leave you.

My name is upon you, and my angels have charge over you.

I will do wonders among you. Walk with me; learn of me. I will give you rest.

I am in your midst. You are mine.

With those assurances very much in mind, I want to speak directly to those who feel as though there is no way out of their survival story because of the trauma inflicted by the cruel actions of others.

If this is your survival story, we weep with you.

We yearn for you to overcome the confusion, shame, and fear and long for you, through Jesus Christ, to conquer.

If you have experienced any kind of abuse, violence, or oppression, you may be left with the idea that these events were somehow your fault and that you deserve to carry the shame and guilt you feel.

You may have had thoughts such as: “I could have prevented this.”

“God doesn’t love me anymore.” “Nobody will ever love me.”

“I am damaged beyond repair.”

“The Savior’s Atonement applies to others but not to me.”

These erroneous thoughts and feelings may have been a barrier to seeking help from family, friends, leaders, or professionals,

and so you have struggled alone.

If you have sought help from those you trust, you may still be wrestling with ideas of shame and even self-loathing.

The impact of these events can remain for many years.

You hope that one day you will feel better, but somehow that day has not yet come.

The abuse was not, is not, and never will be your fault, no matter what the abuser or anyone else may have said to the contrary. When you have been the victim of cruelty, incest, or any other perversion, you are not the one who needs to repent.

You are not responsible. You are not less worthy or less valuable

or less loved as a human being or as a daughter or son of God because of what someone else has done to you.

God does not now nor has He ever seen you as someone to be despised.

Whatever has happened to you,

He is not ashamed of you or disappointed in you.

He loves you in a way you have yet to discover. And you will discover it as you trust in His promises and as you learn to believe Him when He says you are “precious in [His] sight.”

You are not defined by these terrible things that have been done to you.

You are, in glorious truth, defined by your eternally existing identity as a son or daughter of God, by your Creator's perfect, infinite love and invitation to whole and complete healing.

Though it may seem impossible, feel impossible,

healing can come through the miracle of the redemptive might, of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, who is risen with “healing in his wings.”

Our merciful Savior, victorious over darkness and depravity, has power to right all wrongs,

a life-giving truth for those wronged by others.

Please know that the Savior has descended below all things, even what has happened to you. Because of that, He knows exactly what real terror and shame feel like and how it feels to be abandoned and broken. From the depths of His atoning suffering,

the Savior imparts hope you thought was lost forever,

strength you believed you could never possess, and healing you couldn’t imagine was possible.

There is no place for any kind of abuse—physical, sexual, emotional, or verbal—in any home, any country, or any culture.

Nothing a wife, child, or husband might do or say makes them deserve to be beaten. No one in any country or culture is ever asking for aggression or violence from someone else in authority or by someone who is bigger and stronger. Those who abuse

and who seek to hide their grievous sins may get away with it for a time. But the Lord, who sees all, knows the deeds and thoughts and intents of the heart. He is a God of justice, and His divine justice will be served.

Miraculously, the Lord is also a God of mercy to the truly repentant abusers. Abusers—including those who were once abuse themselves—who confess,

forsake their sin, and do all in their power to make recompense and restitution have access to forgiveness through the miracle of the Atonement of Christ. For the falsely accused, the unspeakable gravity of these accusations brings its own purgatory. But they, too, are blessed by the Savior's vicarious suffering for them and the knowledge that ultimately truth will prevail.

But unrepentant abusers will stand before the Lord to account for their heinous crimes. The Lord Himself is crystal clear in His condemnation of abuse of any kind:

“But whoso shall offend one of these little ones . . . , it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”

Dear friends who have been so terribly wounded—and for that matter, anyone who has borne the injustices of life—

you can have a new beginning and a fresh start. In Gethsemane and

on Calvary, Jesus “took upon Himself . . . all of the anguish and suffering ever experienced by you and me,”

and He has overcome it all! With arms outstretched,

the Savior offers the gift of healing to you. With courage, patience, and faithful focus on Him, before too long, you can come to fully accept this gift.

You can let go of your pain and leave it at his feet.

Your gentle Savior declared, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:

I am come that [you] might have life, and that [you] might have it more abundantly.” You are a survivor.

You can heal, and you can trust that with the power and grace of Jesus Christ, you will overcome and conquer.

Jesus specializes in the seemingly impossible.

He came here to make the impossible possible, the irredeemable redeemable to heal the unhealable, to right the unrightable, and to promise the unpromisable.

And He’s really good at it. In fact, He’s perfect at it.

In the name of Jesus Christ, our Healer,

amen.

Speaking to Thomas B. Marsh, a recent convert, the Lord said encouragingly,

“Lift up your heart and rejoice, for the hour of your mission is come.”

I believe this invitation can serve as an inspiration for all members of the Church. After all, we have each received from our Heavenly Father the mission of gathering Israel on both sides of the veil.

That gathering, President Russell M. Nelson has said,

is the “most important thing taking place on earth today.”

Nothing else compares in magnitude. Nothing else compares in importance. Nothing else compares in majesty.

Certainly there are many worthy causes in the world.

It is impossible to name them all.

But wouldn't you like to participate in a great cause within your reach and where your contribution makes a vital difference?

The gathering makes an eternal difference to all. People of all ages can participate in this cause regardless of their circumstances and where they live. There is no other cause in the world more inclusive.

Speaking specifically to the youth, President Nelson said that “our Heavenly Father has reserved many of His most noble spirits—perhaps . . . His finest team— for this final phase.

Those noble spirits—those finest players, those heroes—are you!” Yes, you have been prepared from before this life and born now to participate in the great work of the gathering of Israel on both sides of the veil in these latter days. And why is this cause so important?

Because the “worth of souls is great in the sight of God,”

and because “whoso believeth in [Jesus Christ], and is baptized, the same shall be saved . . . and shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

Furthermore, “all that [the] Father hath shall be given unto [those who receive his ordinances and keep his covenants].”

In addition, the laborers are few. Only in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints do we find the power,

the authority, and the way to offer such a blessing to others, whether living or dead. As President Nelson said, "Anytime you do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—take a step toward making covenants with God and receiving their essential baptismal and temple ordinances, you are helping to gather Israel.

It is as simple as that.” While there are many ways to help in the gathering, I would like to speak of one in particular—serving as a full-time missionary. For many of you, this will mean being a teaching missionary. For many others,

it will mean being a service missionary.

But the world tries to distract youth from this most sacred responsibility using fear and insecurities.

Some distractions might be experiencing a pandemic, leaving a good job,

putting off education, or being particularly interested in someone romantically. Everyone will have his or her own set of challenges.

Such distractions can arise at precisely the time of embarking in the service of the Lord. And choices that seem obvious later are not always as easy in the moment. I know from experience the troubled mind of such a young person. When I was preparing to go on my mission, some surprising forces tried to discourage me. One was my dentist.

When he realized my appointment was so I could be a missionary,

he tried to dissuade me from serving.

I had not had the least notion that my dentist was against the Church.

The interruption of my education was also complicated. When I asked for a two-year leave of absence from my university program,

I was informed that it was not possible. I would lose my place at the university if I did not return after one year. In Brazil,

this was serious since the only criteria for admittance in a university program was a very difficult and competitive examination.

After repeatedly insisting, I was reluctantly informed that after being absent for one year, I could apply for an exception on extraordinary grounds. It might be approved or not.

I was terrified at the idea of retaking that difficult admissions test after two years away from my studies.

I also was especially interested in a young woman.

Several of my friends shared that same interest.

I thought to myself, “If I go on a mission, I’m running a risk.”

But the Lord Jesus Christ was my great inspiration not to be afraid of the future as I strove to serve Him with all my heart.

He also had a mission to fulfill. In His own words, He explained,

“For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” And was His mission easy? Of course not.

His suffering, which was an essential part of His mission, “caused [Him], even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that [He] might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink—

nevertheless, glory be to the Father. . . .

[He] partook and finished [His] preparations unto the children of men.” Serving a full-time mission may seem difficult to us. Perhaps it requires that we give up important things for a moment.

The Lord certainly knows this, and He will always be by our side.

In fact, in their message to missionaries in Preach My Gospel, the First Presidency promises, “The Lord will reward and richly bless you as you humbly and prayerfully serve Him.”

It is true that all the children of God are blessed in one way or another.

But there is a difference between being blessed and being richly blessed in His service.

Remember the challenges that I thought I faced prior to my mission? My dentist— I found another. My university— they made an exception for me.

Remember that young woman? She married one of my good friends.

But God truly blessed me richly,

and I learned that the blessings of the Lord can come in ways different from how we expect.

After all, His thoughts are not our thoughts.

Among the many rich blessings He has given me for serving Him as a full-time missionary are a greater faith in Jesus Christ and in His Atonement and a stronger knowledge and testimony of His teachings so that I am not easily swayed by every wind of doctrine.

I lost my fear of teaching. My capacity to face challenges with optimism increased. By observing individuals and families I met or taught as a missionary, I learned that the teachings of God are true

when He says that sin does not bring true happiness and that obedience to the commandments of God help us prosper, both temporally and spiritually.

And I learned for myself that God is a God of miracles.

All of these things were instrumental in my preparation for adult life, including possible marriage and parenthood,

Church service, and professional and community life.

After my mission, I benefited from my increased courage to present myself as a faithful follower of Jesus Christ and His Church in all circumstances and to all people, even sharing the gospel with a beautiful woman who would become my virtuous, wise, fun, and beloved eternal companion, the sunshine of my life. Yes,

God has blessed me richly far beyond what I imagined, just as He will all those who humbly and prayerfully serve Him.

I am eternally grateful to God for His goodness.

My mission completely shaped my life.

I learned it is worth the effort to trust in God, to trust in His wisdom, in mercy, and in His promises.

After all, He is our Father, and without any doubt, He wants the best for us.

Dear youth throughout the world, I extend the same invitation that our prophet, President Nelson, has made to all of you to enlist in the youth battalion of the Lord to help gather Israel.

President Nelson said, “There is nothing of greater consequence. Absolutely nothing. This gathering should mean everything to you. This is the mission for which you were sent to earth.”

We were born at this time for a divine purpose—the gathering of Israel. When we serve as full-time missionaries, we will be challenged at times. But the Lord Himself is our great exemplar and guide in such circumstances. He understands what a difficult mission is.

With His help, we can do hard things.

He will be by our side, and He will bless us greatly as we humbly serve Him.

For all of these reasons, I am not surprised that the Lord said to Thomas B. Marsh and to all of us,

“Lift up your heart and rejoice, for the hour of your mission is come.” In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

On a signal from the conductor, we will stand and join the choir in singing

“I Feel My Savior’s Love.” After the singing, we will hear from Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He will be followed by Elders Adrián Ochoa and Kevin S. Hamilton of the Seventy.

[MUSIC PLAYING] “I Feel My Savior’s Love”

This is the Saturday afternoon session of the 192nd Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I feel my Savior’s love In all the world around me.

His Spirit warms my soul Through ev’rything I see.

He knows I will follow him,

Give all my life to him.

I feel my Savior’s love,

The love he freely gives me.

I feel my Savior’s love Its gentleness enfolds me, And when I kneel to pray, My heart is filled with peace.

He knows I will follow him, Give all my life to him. I feel my Savior’s love, The love he freely gives me.

Friends, brothers, and sisters, we each have a story. As we discover our story,

we connect, we belong, we become. My name is Gerrit Walter Gong.

Gerrit is a Dutch name. Walter, my father’s name, is an American name.

Gong, of course, is a Chinese name.

Experts estimate some 70 to 110 billion people have lived on the earth.

Perhaps only one has been named Gerrit Walter Gong. We each have a story.

I love the rain on my face and the wind as it rushes by.

I waddle with penguins in Antarctica.

I give orphans in Guatemala, street, kids in Cambodia,

Maasai women in the African Mara

their first very own photo of themselves.

I wait at the hospital as each of our children is born.

Once, the doctor has me help. I trust God.

I believe we are that we might have joy,

that there are times and seasons to everything under heaven.

Do you know your story? what your name means?

World population grew from 1.1 billion people in 1820 to nearly 7.8 billion in 2020. The year 1820 seems to be an inflection point in history.

Many born after 1820 have living memory and records to identify several family generations.

Can you think of a special, sweet memory with a grandparent or other family member? Whatever the total number of individuals who have lived on the earth, it is finite,

countable, one person at a time. You and I, we each matter.

And please consider this. Whether or not we know them, we’re each born of a mother and father. And each mother and father is born of a mother and father by birth or adoptive lineage. We're ultimately all connected in the family of God and in the human family. Born AD 837 , my 30th great-grandfather First Dragon Gong started our family village in southern China.

The first time I visited Gong village, the people said, “Wenhan huilaile” (“Gerrit has returned”). On my mother’s side,

our living family tree includes thousands of family names with more to discover. We each have more family with whom to connect.

If you think your great-aunt has completed all your family genealogy,

please find your cousins and cousins’ cousins.

Connect your living memory family names with the 10 billion searchable names

FamilySearch now has in its online collection and the 1.3 billion individuals in its family tree.

Ask friends or family to draw a living tree. As President Russell M. Nelson teaches, living trees have branches and roots.

Whether you or your first or tenth known generation, connect yesterday for tomorrow. Connect the roots and branches in your living family tree.

The question “Where are you from?” asks lineage, birthplace, home, country, or homeland. Globally, 25% of us trace our homeland to China, 23% to India, 17% to other Asia Pacific, 18% to Europe, 10% to Africa,

7% to the Americas. The question “Where are you from?”

also invites us to discover our divine identity and spiritual purpose in life.

We each have a story. A family I know connected five family generations when they visited their old home in Winnipeg, Canada.

There, the grandfather told his grandsons about the day two missionaries—

he called them angels from heaven—

brought the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, changing their family forever.

A mother I know invited her children and their cousins to ask their great- grandmother about her childhood experiences. Great-grandma’s adventures and life lessons are now a treasured family book uniting generations.

A young man I know is compiling a dad journal.

Years ago, a car hit and killed his father.

Now to know his father, this courageous young man is preserving childhood memories and stories from family and friends.

When asked where meaning comes in life, most people rank family first.

This includes family living and gone before.

Of course, when we die, we don't cease to exist.

We continue to live on the other side of the veil. Still very much alive,

our ancestors deserve to be remembered. We remember our heritage through

oral histories, clan records and family stories,

memorials or places of remembrance, celebrations with photos, foods, or items which remind us of loved ones.

Think of where you live. Isn't it wonderful how your country and community remember and honor ancestors, family,

others who served and sacrificed?

For example, at the Harvest Remembrance in South Molton, Devonshire, England,

Sister Gong and I loved finding the little church and community where generations of our Baden family lived.

We honor our ancestors by opening the heavens through temple and family history work and by becoming a welding link in the chain of our generations.

In this age of “I choose me,”

societies benefit when generations connect in meaningful ways.

We need roots to have wings, real relationships, meaningful service, life beyond fleeting social media veneers.

Connecting with our ancestors can change our lives in surprising ways. From their trials and accomplishments, we gain faith and strength. From their love and sacrifices, we learn to forgive and move forward. Our children become resilient.

We gain protection and power. Ties with ancestors increase family closeness, gratitude, miracles. Such ties can bring help from the other side of the veil. Just as joys come in families, so can sorrows.

No individual is perfect, nor is any family.

When those who should love, nurture, and protect us fail to do so,

we feel abandoned, embarrassed, hurt. Family can become a hollow shell.

Yet with heaven's help, we can come to understand our family and make peace with each other.

Sometimes unwavering commitment to abiding family relationships helps us accomplish hard things. In some cases, community becomes family.

A remarkable young woman whose troubled family moved frequently found a loving church family wherever she was to nurture and give her place.

Genetics and family patterns influence but do not determine us.

God wants our families to be happy and forever.

Forever is too long if we make each other unhappy, and happy is too short

if cherished relationships stop with this life. Through sacred covenants, Jesus Christ offers His love, power, and grace to change us and heal our relationships.

Selfless temple service for dear ones makes our Savior’s Atonement real for them and us. Sanctified we can return home to God’s presence as families united eternally.

Each of our stories is a journey still in progress as we discover, create, and become with possibilities beyond imagination.

The Prophet Joseph said, “It may seem to some . . . a bold doctrine that we [speak] of— a power which records or binds on earth and binds in heaven.”

The sociality we create here can exist with the eternal glory there.

Indeed, we without our family members cannot be made perfect. Neither can they without us be made perfect. What can we do now?

First, imagine your image reflected back and forth between two mirrors of eternity. In one direction, picture yourself as daughter, granddaughter, great-granddaughter. In the other direction, smile at yourself as aunt, mother, grandmother. In each time and role, notice who’s with you.

Gather their photos and stories. Make their memories real.

Record their names, experiences, key dates. They’re your family—

the family you will have and the family you want.

As you perform temple ordinances for family members,

a manifestation of the Holy Ghost,

the spirit of Elijah will knit the hearts of your fathers, mothers, and children together in love.

Second, let the adventure of family history be intentional and spontaneous.

Call your grandmother. Look deeply into the eyes of that new baby.

Learn and acknowledge with gratitude and honesty your family heritage.

Celebrate and become the positive. And where needed,

humbly do everything possible not to pass on the negative.

Let good things begin with you. Third, visit FamilySearch.org.

Download the available mobile apps.

See how you’re related to people in the room. How easy and rewarding it is to add names to your living family tree.

Fourth, help unite families eternally. Remember the demographics of heaven.

There are more on the other side of the veil than on this side.

As more temples come closer to us,

please offer those waiting for temple ordinances opportunity to receive them.

The promise at Easter and always is that in and through Jesus Christ, we become our best story and our families can become happy and forever.

In all our generations, Jesus Christ heals the brokenhearted,

delivers the captives, sets at liberty them that are bruised. Covenant belonging with God and each other

includes knowing our spirit and body will be reunited in resurrection, and our most precious relationships can continue beyond death with a fulness of joy. We each have a story. Come discover yours.

Come find your voice, your song, your harmony in Him.

This is the very purpose for which God created the heavens and the earth and saw that they were good. Praise God’s plan of happiness, Jesus Christ’s Atonement, continuing restoration in His gospel and Church.

Please come find your family, all your generations, and bring them home.

In the sacred and holy name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Is the plan working? Recently I had a conversation with a young adult who served a mission several years ago

and was now involved in his professional work.

In some ways, his life was going well, but his faith was in decline.

He was sinking into a sea of doubt about the Savior and His Church.

He explained that he wasn't receiving the blessings he expected from the restored gospel. He didn't feel that the plan of happiness was working in his life.

My message today is for all those who might have similar feelings.

I speak to those who at one time felt to sing the song of redeeming love

but do not feel so now. Our Heavenly Father has prepared a wonderful plan for our eternal happiness.

But when life does not unfold the way we hoped,

it might seem that the plan is not working. Perhaps we feel the way Jesus’s disciples felt when they were in a ship in the “midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.”

Then, very early in the morning, “Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, . . .

and they cried out for fear.

But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying,

Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come.

And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, . . . Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith,

wherefore didst thou doubt?”

Could I share with you three principles I learned from Peter?

I pray that these principles might help anyone who feels that the plan of happiness isn't working in their lives.

First, act in faith in Jesus Christ.

I am in awe of Peter’s faith at Jesus’s simple invitation to come.

He left his storm-tossed ship.

He seemed to know that if Jesus Christ invited him to do something,

he could do it. Peter trusted the Savior more than he trusted his boat,

and that faith gave him power to act with courage during a stressful,

frightening situation. Peter's faith reminds me of an experience that I heard from Elder Jose L. Alonso.

Shortly after Elder Alonso’s son passed away leaving a family with young children,

Elder Alonso overheard the children talking. “What are we going to do?”

they asked. A five-year-old daughter answered, “Daddy is okay.

He’s preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Like Peter, this little girl saw beyond her challenges

and trusted in Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

Faith in the Savior brings peace and the strength to move forward.

If you look back on your life,

I believe you will see that you have exercised faith many times.

Joining the Church is an act of faith.

Speaking with Heavenly Father in prayer is an act of faith.

Reading the scriptures is an act of faith.

Listening to my message in this general conference is an act of faith.

As President Russell M. Nelson has said,

“Do not minimize the faith you already have.”

Another lesson I learned from Peter is this. In times of trouble,

turn to Jesus Christ right away. As He walked toward the Savior,

Peter was frightened by the wind and began to sink.

But when Peter realized what was happening, he did not try to tread water on his own swimming back to the ship.

Rather than let go of his faith in Christ, he held on more tightly, crying,

“Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him.” All of us face boisterous winds that can shake our faith and cause us to sink. When this happens, please remember that Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness has another name—

the plan of redemption. The plan was not for us to glide easily through life, never stumbling, never sinking, with a smile always on our face.

Heavenly Father knew that we would need to be redeemed.

This is why He prepared the plan of redemption.

This is why He sent our Redeemer. When we struggle for any reason,

that doesn’t mean the plan isn’t working.

That is when we need the plan the most.

In those moments, follow the example of Peter. Turn to the Savior right away.

Now is the time and the day of your salvation.

Do not procrastinate the day of your repentance.

No matter where we are and where we have been, repentance is the way forward.

President Nelson has taught, “Nothing is more liberating, more ennobling, or more crucial to our individual progression than is a regular, daily focus on repentance. . . .

Whether you are diligently moving along the covenant path, have slipped or stepped from the covenant path,

or can’t even see the path from where you are now, I plead with you to repent.

Experience the strengthening power of daily repentance— of doing and being a little better each day.”

Coming unto Christ means more than just thinking about Him or talking about Him or even loving Him. It means following Him.

It means living the way He teaches us to live.

And for all of us, that means repenting without delay.

One of my daughters used to work at the missionary training center.

She told me of an elder she taught who had confided in her that he wasn't sure the Book of Mormon was true.

He had prayed and prayed for a spiritual witness,

but he received no answer.

My daughter prayed to know what she should do to help this missionary.

The impression she received was that the scriptures were not given only so we can read them and obtain a testimony;

they were also given to teach us to keep the commandments of God.

My daughter shared this thought with the missionary.

Later, she saw this missionary again, looking much happier.

He told her that he had finally received a testimony that the Book of Mormon is true.

He knew that this witness came because he was making a great effort to do what the Book of Mormon teaches.

Let us follow Peter's example of turning to the Savior during times of trouble.

Follow Jesus Christ instead of relying on your own wisdom and strength.

No matter how long you’ve been trying to tread water without Him,

it's never too late to reach out to him. The plan works.

A third principle I learned from Peter

and his experience is this: humble yourself before the Lord,

and He will lift you up to greater things.

Peter had shown faith both in walking on the water and reaching out to the Savior when he needed help.

Even so, the Savior saw in Peter the potential for so much more.

“O thou of little faith,” He said, “wherefore didst thou doubt?”

Peter could have resented this rebuke. But he accepted it humbly.

He continued to seek greater faith in Jesus Christ. Through many additional faith-building experiences—some of them very, very difficult—

Peter eventually became the rock-solid leader the Lord needed him to be.

He accomplished great things in the Lord’s service.

What great things does the Lord want you to accomplish?

In His Church and kingdom, there are many opportunities to serve and minister to others as the Savior did.

He wants you to be part of His great work.

Never will the plan of happiness become more real to you than when you are helping others to live it. While building my own faith,

these words of Alma were life changing:

“Blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble.”

Let us humbly put ourselves in a position where Jesus can lift us, lead us, and make the most of our abilities.

I testify that the plan of happiness works. It was created by your Heavenly Father, who loves you.

It works because Jesus Christ overcame sin and death through His Atonement.

Come unto Him, follow him,

and “immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you.”

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

President Thomas S. Monson once shared the story of prison warden Clinton Duffy. “During the 1940s and 1950s, . . .

[Warden] Duffy was well known for his efforts to rehabilitate the men in his prison. Said one critic,

‘You should know that leopards don’t change their spots!’

Replied Warden Duffy, ’[And] you should know I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change [their spots] every day.’”

One of Satan's greatest lies is that men and women cannot change. This untruth gets told and retold in many different ways

as the world says that we simply cannot change or, worse yet, that we should not change. We are taught that our circumstances define us.

We should embrace who we really are, the world says,

and be authentic to our true selves.

While it is, indeed, good to be authentic, we should be authentic to our real, true selves—as sons and daughters of God with a divine nature and destiny to become like Him.

If our goal is to be authentic to this divine nature and destiny,

then we will all need to change.

The scriptural word for change is repentance.

“Too many people,” President Russell M. Nelson teaches, “consider repentance as punishment—something to be avoided except in the most serious circumstances. . . . When Jesus asks you and me to ‘repent,’

He is inviting us to change.”

Computer software developers use conditional statements to tell computers what to do. These are sometimes referred to as “if-then” statements—as in, if x is true, then do y.

The Lord also operates through conditions—conditions of faith, conditions of righteousness, conditions of repentance.

There are many examples of conditional statements from God, such as “If you keep my commandments and endure to the end,

[then] you shall have eternal life, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God,”

or “If ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent,

having faith in Christ, [then] he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.”

Even God's love, although infinite and perfect, is also subject to conditions.

For example, “If ye keep my commandments,

[then] ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.”

Elder D. Todd Christofferson further expounded on this gospel truth when he taught.

“Some are wont to say, ’The Savior loves me just as I am,′ and that is certainly true.

But He cannot take any of us into His kingdom just as we are, ‘for no unclean thing can dwell there, or dwell in his presence.’

Our sins must first be resolved.”

The blessing of receiving God's power to help us change is also conditional.

The Savior in the Book of Mormon taught, “If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness.

I give unto men weakness that they may be humble;

and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me;

for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me,

then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”

Now, looking more closely at what the Lord is teaching us here, He first says that He gives men and women weakness, singular,

which is part of our mortal experience as fallen, or carnal, beings.

We have become natural men and women because of the fall of Adam.

But through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can overcome our weakness, or our fallen natures.

He then says that His grace is sufficient and if we will humble ourselves and have faith in Him,

then He will “make weak things [plural] become strong unto [us].”

In other words, as we first change our fallen natures, our weakness,

then we will be able to change our behaviors, our weaknesses.

Let's review the requirements to change according to the Lord's pattern.

First, we must humble ourselves. The Lord's condition for change is humility.

“If they humble themselves before me,” He said.

The opposite of humility is pride.

Pride exists when we think we know better—

when what we think or feel takes priority over what God thinks or feels.

King Benjamin taught that “the natural man is an enemy to God . . . and will

be, forever and ever, unless he . . . putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, [and] humble.”

In order to change, we need to put off the natural man and become humble and submissive. We must be humble enough to follow a living prophet,

humble enough to make and keep temple covenants,

humble enough to repent daily.

We must be humble enough to want to change, to yield our hearts under God.

Second, we must have faith in Jesus Christ. Again, the words of the Savior: “If they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me,”

He will give us the power to overcome our weaknesses.

Humility, coupled with faith in Jesus Christ, will allow us to access the enabling power of His grace and the fulness of blessings available because of His Atonement.

President Nelson has taught that “true repentance begins with faith that Jesus Christ has the power to cleanse, heal, and strengthen us. . . .

It is our faith that unlocks the power of God in our lives.”

Third, through His grace He can make weak things become strong.

If we humble ourselves and have faith in Jesus Christ,

then His grace will enable us to change.

In other words, He will empower us to change.

This is possible because, as He says, “My grace is sufficient for all men.”

His strengthening, enabling grace gives us power to overcome all obstacles,

all challenges, and all weaknesses as we seek to change. Our greatest weaknesses can become our greatest strengths. We can be changed and become new creatures.

Weak things literally can become strong under us.

The Savior worked out His infinite and eternal Atonement so that we could in fact repent, change, and become better. We can actually be born again.

We can overcome habits and addictions and even the “disposition to do evil.”

As sons and daughters of a loving Father in Heaven,

we have the power within us to change.

The scriptures are full of examples of men and women who changed.

Saul, a Pharisee and active persecutor of the early Christian church, became

Paul, an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Alma was a priest in the court of wicked King Noah.

He heard the words of Abinidai, fully repented, and became one of the great missionaries of the Book of Mormon.

His son, Alma, spent his youth seeking to destroy the Church.

He was among the very vilest of sinners until he had a change of heart and became a powerful missionary in his own right.

Moses was adopted into Pharaoh's family and raised in luxury as an Egyptian prince. But when he came to understand who he really was and learned of his divine destiny,

he changed and became the great law- giving prophet of the Old Testament.

My wife’s grandfather, James B. Keysor, has always impressed me with his own mighty change of heart.

Born of faithful, Latter-day Saint pioneer ancestors in the Salt Lake Valley in 1906,

he lost his mother at a young age and struggled throughout his youth.

His teenage and young adult years were spent away from the Church,

during which he acquired a number of bad habits.

Nevertheless, he met and married a faithful woman, and together they raised five children.

In 1943, following the difficult years of the Great Depression and during World War II, Bud— as he was called by friends and family— left Utah and moved to Los Angeles, California, to look for employment.

During this time away from home, he lived with his sister and her husband, who was serving as the bishop of their ward.

With the love and influence of his sister and brother-in-law,

he started to revive his interest in the Church and began to read the Book of Mormon each night before going to sleep.

One night, while reading an Alma chapter 34,

his heart was touched as he read the following words: “Yea,

I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer. . . . For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.” While reading these verses,

a powerful feeling came over him and he knew that he had to change, to repent, and he knew what he must do.

He got up from his bed and knelt down and began to pray,

pleading with the Lord to forgive him, to give him the strength he needed to make changes in his life.

His prayer was answered, and from that time forward, he never looked back.

Bud went on to serve in the Church and remained a faithful, committed Latter-day Saint to the end of his life. He changed in every way.

His mind, his heart, his actions, his very being were changed.

Brothers and sisters, our divine destiny and purpose is ultimately to become like our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. We do this as we change, or repent.

We receive the Savior's image in our countenance. We become new, clean, different. And we simply continue to work at it every day.

Sometimes it may feel like two steps forward and one step back, but we continue to humbly move forward in faith.

And as we humble ourselves and exercise faith in Jesus Christ,

the grace of Christ and His infinite atoning sacrifice makes it possible to change. I witness and testify that Jesus Christ is in reality our Savior and Redeemer. His grace is indeed sufficient.

I declare that He is the way, the truth, and the life. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

We are grateful for all who have spoken to us this afternoon and for the beautiful music that has been provided.

We remind the sisters of the women’s session of general conference, which will commence in the Conference Center this evening at 6:00 p.m. Mountain daylight time.

The nationwide broadcast of Music & the Spoken Word will be aired tomorrow morning from 9:30 to 10:00 a.m. Mountain daylight time.

The Sunday morning session of conference will immediately follow.

Our concluding speaker for this session will be Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Following his remarks, the choir will close this meeting by singing “Thy Spirit, Lord, Has Stirred Our Souls.”

The benediction will then be offered by Brother Jan E. Newman, who serves as Second Counselor in the Sunday School General Presidency.

I am grateful for President Russell M. Nelson’s powerful prophetic call to missionary service and President M. Russell Ballard’s and Elder Marcos Aidukaitis’s inspiring missionary messages today.

A missionary assignment to Great Britain late last year allowed me to reflect on the precious spiritual events that were foundational to my decision to serve as a missionary. When I was 15 years old,

my beloved older brother, Joe, was 20—

the age of eligibility then to serve a mission. In the United States, because of the Korean conflict, very few were allowed to serve.

Only one could be called from each ward per year.

It was a surprise when our bishop asked Joe to explore this possibility with our father. Joe had been preparing applications for medical school.

Our father, who was not active in the Church, had made financial preparations to help him and was not in favor of Joe going on a mission. Dad suggested that Joe could do more good by going to medical school. This was a huge issue in our family.

In a remarkable discussion with my wise and exemplary older brother,

we concluded that his decision on whether to serve a mission and delay his education depended on three questions:

(1) Is Jesus Christ divine? (2) Is the Book of Mormon the word of God?

And (3) Is Joseph Smith the Prophet of the Restoration?

If the answer to these questions was yes,

it was clear that Joe could do more good taking the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world than becoming a doctor at an earlier date. That night I prayed fervently and and with real intent.

The Spirit, in an undeniably powerful way,

confirmed to me that the answers to all three of these questions were true.

This was a seminal event for me.

I realized that every decision I would make for the rest of my life would be influenced by these truths.

I also knew that I would serve a mission if given the opportunity. Over a lifetime of service and spiritual experiences,

I have come to understand that true conversion is the result of the conscious acceptance of the will of God,

and we can be guided in our actions by the Holy Ghost.

I already had a testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ as Savior of the world.

That night I received a spiritual testimony of the Book of Mormon and the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Your testimony will be strengthened when you know in your heart, through your prayers, that the Prophet Joseph Smith was an instrument in the Lord’s hands. During the past eight years, one of my assignments in the Twelve Apostles was to review and read all the remarkable Joseph Smith papers and documents and the research that led to the publication of the Saints volumes.

My testimony and admiration of the Prophet Joseph Smith has been greatly strengthened and enhanced after reading the inspiring details of his life and foreordained prophetic ministry.

Joseph’s translation of the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God was foundational to the Restoration.

The Book of Mormon is internally consistent, beautifully written, and contains the answers to life's great questions. It is another testament of Jesus Christ.

I testify that Joseph Smith was righteous, full of faith,

and an instrument in the Lord’s hands in bringing forth the Book of Mormon.

The revelations and events recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants provide the keys, ordinances, and covenants necessary for salvation and exaltation.

They set forth not only the essentials required to establish the Church

but also provide profound doctrine that allows us to understand the purpose of life and gives us an eternal perspective.

One of the numerous examples of Joseph Smith's prophetic role is found in the 76th section of the Doctrine and Covenants.

It is an explicit record of the vision of heaven, including kingdoms of glory,

which the Prophet Joseph and Sidney Rigdon were blessed to receive on February 16, 1832. At the time, the vast majority of churches were teaching that the Savior’s Atonement would not provide salvation for most people.

It was believed that a few would be saved and the vast majority would be doomed to hell and damnation, including endless tortures of the most awful and unspeakable intensity.

The revelation contained in the 76th section

provides a glorious vision of the degrees of glory, where the vast majority of Heavenly Father’s children who were valiant in their premortal estate are profoundly blessed following the ultimate judgment.

The vision of the three degrees of glory, the lowest of which “surpasses all understanding,”

is a direct refutation of the then- strong but erroneous doctrine that the majority would be doomed to hell and damnation.

When you realize Joseph Smith was only 26 years old,

had a limited education, and little or no exposure to the classical languages from which the Bible was translated,

he was truly an instrument in the Lord's hands.

In the 17th verse of section 76,

he was inspired to use the word unjust instead of damnation that was used in the Gospel of John. It is interesting that 45 years later, an Anglican Church leader

and academically credentialed classical scholar Frederic W Farrar,

who wrote The Life of Christ,

asserted that the definition of damnation in the King James version of the Bible was the result of translation errors from Hebrew and Greek to English. In our day,

many have adopted the concept that there should be no consequence for sin.

They support the unconditional condoning of sin without repentance.

Our revealed doctrine not only refutes the idea that most people would be eternally condemned to hell and damnation but also establishes that personal repentance is a commanded prerequisite to partake of the Savior’s Atonement and inherit the celestial kingdom. I testify that Joseph Smith was truly an instrument in the Lord's hands in bringing forth the Restoration of His gospel. Because of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ,

we understand the importance of both repentance and the works of righteousness.

We understand the overwhelming significance of the Savior’s Atonement

and of His saving ordinances and covenants, including those performed in the temple.

The works of righteousness emanate from and are the fruits of conversion.

True conversion is brought about by the conscious acceptance and commitment to follow the will of God.

The banquet of consequences and blessings that flow from conversion are true and permanent peace and the personal assurance of ultimate happiness

despite the storms of this life. Conversion to the Savior changes a natural man

into a sanctified, born again, purified person—a new creature in Christ Jesus.

What are the obligations that flow from conversion? In Liberty Jail,

the Prophet Joseph noted that many “are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it.”

In the Lord’s preface to the Doctrine and Covenants,

a big picture declaration of the Lord’s purpose for us was set forth.

He declared, “Wherefore I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth,

called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments.”

He further instructs, “That the fullness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world.”

That includes full-time missionaries. That includes each of us.

This should be a laser-like focus to everyone who has been blessed with a conversion to the will of God.

The Savior graciously invites us to be His voice and His hands.

The love of the Savior will be our guiding light. The Savior taught His

disciples, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations.” And to Joseph Smith, he declared, “Preach my gospel unto every creature who has not received it.”

One week after the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, on April 3, 1836—which was Easter Sunday and also Passover—

the Lord appeared in the magnificent vision to Joseph and Oliver Cowdery.

The Lord accepted the temple and declared,

“This is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people.” After this vision closed, Moses appeared “and committed . . . the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north.” President Russell M. Nelson, our beloved prophet today, who holds these same keys, taught this morning, “You young men have been reserved for this time when the promised gathering of Israel is taking place.

As you serve missions, you play a pivotal role in this unprecedented event!”

For the Savior’s mandate to share the gospel to become part of who we are, we need to become converted to the will of God.

We need to love our neighbors, share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, and invite all to come and see. As members of the Church, we cherish the Prophet Joseph's reply to John Wentworth, the editor of the Chicago Democrat, in 1842. He was requesting information about the Church.

Joseph concluded his response by using the standard of truth as a preface to the 13 Articles of Faith.

The standard conveys in a concise way what must be accomplished:

“No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing;

persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble,

calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every climb, swept every country, and sounded in every ear; till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”

This has been the clarion call for generations of Latter-day Saints,

especially missionaries. In the spirit of the standard of truth, we are grateful that in the midst of a worldwide pandemic,

faithful missionaries have shared the gospel. Missionaries, we love you.

The Lord asks each one of us to share His gospel in word and deed.

Our personal conversion includes the responsibility to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the world.

The blessings of sharing the gospel include increasing our conversion to the will of God and letting God prevail in our lives.

We bless others to experience a mighty change of heart. There is truly eternal joy in helping to bring souls unto Christ.

Laboring for the conversion of oneself and others is the noble task.

I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

[MUSIC PLAYING] “Thy, Lord, Has Stirred Our Souls” Thy Spirit, Lord, has stirred our souls, And by its inward shining glow We see anew our sacred goals And feel thy nearness here below. No burning bush near Sinai Could show thy presence, Lord, more nigh.

“Did not our hearts within us burn?” We know the Spirit’s fire is here. It makes our souls for service yearn; It makes the path of duty clear. Lord, may it prompt us, day by day, In all we do, in all we say. Lord may it prompt us, day by day, In all we do, in all we say.

Amen.

Our Heavenly Father, we are grateful for the beautiful and inspiring messages of this conference. We’re thankful for prophets, seers, and revelators. We love them and sustain them.

Father, we pray for any and all who are in despair or have been injured by the evil acts of others. We'll comfort them and send many to minister to them.

We pray for the youth of the Church, that they will heed

the invitation of our dear prophet to go forth and serve

and gather scattered Israel.

We pray for those who are serving missions, that they will be protected

and that they will be given success.

Father, we love Thee, and we love Thy holy Son.

Wilt Thou forgive us of our sins as we repent.

And may we be purified through His infinite Atonement.

And we say this in his sacred name, even Jesus Christ, amen.

This has been a broadcast of the Saturday afternoon session of the 192nd Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Speakers were selected from leaders of the Church.

Music for this session was provided by a combined choir of students from Brigham Young University–Idaho.

This broadcast has been furnished as a public service by Bonneville Distribution.

Any reproduction, recording, transcription, or other use of this program without written consent

is prohibited.