Sorta-liveblogging general conference: Sunday morning session

Sunday morning, the extra-special holy session! (Or at least that’s the assumption i always had growing up.)

Russell M. Nelson, president of the high priesthood

• There has been much tribulation recently; the darkness of tribulation makes the light of Jesus Christ all the brighter.
• “We have front row seats to see live what the prophet Nephi saw only in vision”—that the people of God would receive the power of God in glory.
• Messages from God are simple, quiet, and easy to understand, in contrast to messages from the adversary, which tend to be loud, brash, and boastful.
• God our Father knows that when we are surrounded by uncertainty and fear, the thing that will help us most is to hear God the Son.
• The pattern for success, happiness, and joy in this life is built into the command: “Hear him.”
• We must be intentional in seeking out and hearing the word of God, whether from the scriptures, or in the temple, or heeding the words of the prophets.
• When the current restrictions are lifted, schedule regular times to serve in the temple—but in the meantime, increase your time spent in family history work.
• Transition into a new proclamation (the sixth in the history of the church): “The Restoration of the Fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World”.
• And then a transition into the Hosanna Shout.

David A. Bednar, of the quorum of apostles

• The sealing authority as restored through Elijah is necessary as part of the “rescue of this generation” (as Joseph Smith phrased it).
• The essence of the Lord’s work is changing and purifying hearts through ordinances, particularly temple ordinances.
• The ordinances of the temple allow the power of God to enter our lives.
• We do not go to the temple to escape the evils of the world, but rather to attain power to overcome the evils of the world.
• Over the next few years, the number of languages in which temple ordinances are available will likely double (from 88) as more and more temples are built.<.li>
• Brigham Young said that the work requires not just one temple, but thousands of temples.
• The work of the temples will one day destroy evil and bring about the salvation of the human family.

Jeffrey R. Holland, of the quorum of apostles

• God is a loving parent, not a harsh taskmaster or an absentee landlord.
• Two centuries ago doubt about the reality of the atonement and resurrection was beginning to take hold in Christendom, but the additional scripture that came with the restoration affirmed that Jesus really is the Christ.
• In our Father’s house are many mansions, but they would be nothing more than tumbledown shacks if we could not share them with our families.
• We can look back and see hopes that were fulfilled through the restoration—but what about looking forward? What hopes remain to be fulfilled?
• We are working now to eliminate the effects of the coronavirus, and we will ultimately succeed—and after that, we should work to eliminate the scourges of hunger and poverty, and we should work to ensure that children attend schools without fear of violence, and that there is personal dignity for all children of God unmarred by prejudice.
• We all need to believe that what we hope for in righteousness will someday be our reality.
• “If we finally lose hope, we lose our last sustaining possession.”
• Quoting someone else: “We did not come this far, only to come this far.”

Bonnie H. Cordon, general president of the young women organization

• By virtue of the restoration, we can be filled with the light of the gospel—but that light isn’t supposed to be for us alone, but must be shared.
• [Great story about her as a child leading L. Tom Perry along a dark path, but not realizing that he needed to see the light from her flashlight on the path to walk safely.]
• Just as Jesus doe with the Samaritan woman at the well, we can begin with something familiar to those we interact with, and then move onward to sharing our light with them.
• We can and should intentionally share our light as the Holy Spirit helps us.

Ronald A. Rasband, of the quorum of apostles

• The church is a living example of the restitution inherent in the fulness of times.
• Many prophets spoke of our day and looked forward to it.
• We are the people tasked with ushering in the second coming of Jesus Christ.
• “Regardless of how we look or dress, we are one people…”
• Temple Square serves not just as a draw for members of the church to do temple work, but also as a draw for people visiting from around the world.
• The restoration as prophesied by prophets ancient and modern continues today.