Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spoke this evening from Salt Lake City, Utah in a general conference that was broadcast worldwide.
Elder Mark A. Bragg
Elder Mark A. Bragg opened the meeting by sharing the principle of spiritual poise. He taught that having spiritual poise requires that you know who you are, remember your divine identity and know the enabling power of Jesus Christ and His Atonement.
Christ is the “ultimate example of spiritual poise” as He peacefully ministered with joy, even in the most turbulent accounts we read in the New Testament.
“It is through Christ and His Atonement that all good things come into our lives,” Elder Bragg said. “As we remember who we are, knowing there is a divine Plan of Mercy, and drawing courage in the strength of the Lord, we can do all things. We will find calm. We will be good women and men in any storm.”
Brother Milton da Rocha Camargo
In his remarks, Brother Camargo shared the four problems that each of us will experience that Christ has already overcome — physical death, the pain and trials we face in a fallen world, spiritual death caused by sin, and our limited and imperfect human nature.
Brother Camargo centered his message on the blessings that come from turning the focus of our lives to the Savior. He shared that President Russell M. Nelson’s introduction of the Come, Follow Me program in 2018 came with four promises that will help us grow closer to the Savior in our homes.
— Sabbath days will be a delight
— Children will be excited to “live and learn the Savior’s teachings”
— The influence of the adversary in one’s home will decrease
— Changes in one’s family will be “dramatic and sustaining”
Brother Camargo closed his remarks by emphasizing that Christ can be “an active and daily presence in our lives” and that we must remember He is the solution to life’s problems.
Elder K. Brett Nattress
Elder Nattress shared an experience of a young man named Danny he worked with as a local Church leader who had fallen into the world of drugs and addiction after graduating high school. Once he had the desire to change his lifestyle and turn to the Savior, he doubted if he could make such a difficult change and truly be forgiven. Elder Nattress shared the account of Alma the Younger in Alma chapter 36 of the Book of Mormon.
Danny felt the prophet Alma’s experience ring true to his own and he knew he needed to trust in the Lord and forgive himself to return to the Lord’s fold. Over time he repented, became temple worthy and served a full-time mission.
“To those who have strayed from the covenant path, please know there is always hope, there is always healing, and there is always a way back,” Elder Nattress said. “(The Savior’s} eternal message of hope is the healing balm for all who live in a troubled world.”
Elder Juan A. Uceda
Elder Uceda emphasized the importance of ministering as the Savior would. He used the Savior’s parables of the lost sheep, the woman with the lost coin and the prodigal son to show how Christ cares about us individually.
Elder Uceda also shared the experience of a friend he met while living in Central America. Brother Florian had spent much of his life serving and ministering to members of the Church. After passing through many trials in his life, he began to feel criticized by members of the Church and felt more alone than ever. According to Elder Uceda, a “negative spirit filled his heart” and he stopped attending church.
Elder Uceda met with Brother Florian and invited him to share some of the experiences he had when ministering, visiting and serving. After hearing his experiences, Elder Uceda felt prompted to apologize to him as a servant of God and invite him back to church. Brother Florian did return to church and regularly attended until he passed away a few months later.
The Logan Institute Choir provided the music for this session of conference and President Dallin H. Oaks presided over the meeting. While the transcriptions of these remarks are not yet available, recordings of this session and previous sessions of general conference are available on the Church website.