OCTOBER 2025 SUNDAY AFTERNOON GENERAL CONFERENCE THOUGHTS
OK, friends - last session. Buckle up…I know it’s going to be epic!
Note: Elder Bednar’s tie is a little more wild than I’m used to from him. I like it! And Elder Stevenson, once again, brought his strong fall colors tie game tot he pulpit.
Moroni is getting a lot of props in this Conference - and rightfully so. Moroni called the final judgement “the pleasing bar”. The day of judgement should be seen as a glorious day. From Elder Bednar “What did Moroni understand that we now need to understand? The overarching purposes of the Father's plan are to provide his spirit children with mortal bodies, grow spiritually and progress eternally.” I love how much Elder Bednar has taught me about “acting for ourselves” and moral agency over the years.
“A familiar hymn is titled ‘Choose the Right’ for a reason. We have not been blessed with moral agency to do whatever we want whenever we will.” The world believes the exact opposite.
The final judgement isn't just about what we've DONE but rather what we have BECOME.
So many amazing quotes from Elder Bednar’s talk that I’m excited to study in the coming weeks.
Enos references: More than I can count…
B. Corey Cuvelier’s (a very young looking 56) “by what name are ye called?” was a great question. Those who take upon themselves the name of Christ become His disciples and witnesses.” I am a child of God, child of the covenant, disciple of Jesus Christ.
Note: I counted the second before I saw the “Not Mother?” Meme from the classic movie “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” would show up on X. It was 12 seconds…
For the record, I’m “Papa” or “dad’ on my kids’ phones…
Loving the references to OT stories, like Hannah, Elisha and the Shunammite woman, and now Elder Matthew Holland with Jonah. “God patiently teaches Jonah that He loves and seeks to rescue all his children. Even greater than manifesting the effects of the Fall, Jonah’s story powerfully directs us to Him who can deliver us from those effects.” Just as Jonah was a flawed man in crisis, there are great lessons in his story for you and me in our times of crisis and our flaws.
"Forsake not your own mercy!" Do not turn your back on that.
Always good to have a “Double Holland” day!
The growth of the Church is Africa has been astounding! Loved what Elder Carlos A. Godoy shared with us and the miracles and faithful stories about the Saints there - despite the trials and challenges. No complaints, only smiling faces. I need to do better with “a smiling face and a grateful heart”.
Back to Back talks using the “Joy” quote from President Nelson: 1
Elder Dale G. Rebound wins on Best Tie of the Conference! I need that tie!
The “RMN Ethos” is such a cool story! Taking on the name of someone else is a big deal! “When we take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ, we link our name with His. We identify with Him. We gladly become known as Christian.” Identification, Remembrance, Emulation, Alignment, and Empowerment.
"FOCUS. GET OVER IT. DO THE BEST YOU CAN" -RMN Ethos | UofU
Elder John D. Amos (another fantastic tie) just won the best accent of the conference…and we’ve had some good ones! Being the foodie that I am, Elder Amos had me at the word “recipe”. The simple secret for happy living is to just follow God's recipe as detailed in the scriptures. The 'good news' recipe. Miss a step in the recipe? Just add more Jesus in my life! Elder Amos cooked!
And yes, I’m going to Amazon to buy some Tony’s creole seasoning! The fact that the words Jambalaya and Étouffée will now be in the Gospel Library is so cool!
Man, these speakers LOVE The Book of Mormon! And Elder Ozani Farias brought it home with his sweet testimony of that awesome book. “The Book of Mormon has been my companion and has become an immeasurable treasure in my mortal journey.” Always take time to bear testimony of the Book of Mormon.
I totally get the no announcing of new temples. It makes sense. The construction will take some time some its good to take a breather and catch up! The family is the whole reason we build temples - we cannot disassociate the two. The purpose of the Church is to exalt children of God in eternal families. The world doesn’t see it the same way, so I am grateful for President Oaks’ message of the purpose of marriage and family. We can’t follow the trends of the world. We are a family church, and yet President Oaks understands deeply what the non-traditional family from his own experience as a 7 year—old. I’ve never seen him get that emotional. He gets it!
This is a masterful job showing that the doctrine of eternal families applies to all of us, regardless of whether our families match the ideal.
The prophetic mantle beginning to rest on this great man. I look forward to sustaining that man in the near future!
What. A. Conference! Looking forward to processing it all over the next 6 months and really seeing what God wants out of me.
The gospel means so much to me and I’m so grateful to be a part of it! Thanks as always for letting me share.