My Conference Notebook 184th Annual General Conference – April 2014

THIS BELONGS TO:

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www.sugardoodle.net

Start thinking now about

questions or concerns you have. Write them down, and pray that you will find solutions and guidance during conference and pray for those who are assigned to speak.

Do those things which invite the Spirit into your life so you will have a better understanding of what will be taught.

Have a willing heart, ready to obey the words of the prophets.

Be awake for conference. Get a good night’s sleep!

Prepare a notebook, pens, your scriptures, snacks and anything else you might need.

“There are messages in

each general

conference given as a gift and a blessing

from heaven specifically

for our personal

life situations.”

- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Attend or view all the

sessions, including the priesthood session for priesthood bearers or the General Young Women Meeting for women.

Listen carefully—not just to the speakers, but to the prayers and songs also.

Keep notes, including any personal inspiration you might receive during conference.

Listen earnestly for answers to the questions you have.

Between conference sessions, participate in activities that will invite the Spirit.

Follow the prophets by

obeying their counsel.

Re-read your notes. Remember the inspiration you had while you were listening to conference. Make goals right away to motivate you to do what you felt inspired to do. Don’t overwhelm yourself with a lot of goals at once. Make your goals practical and obtainable.

Re-read the conference talks in the May Ensign. Studying the words of the prophets again will help you remember their most current counsel for you personally.

SEVEN IDEAS TO HELP YOU LEARN MORE FROM THE WORDS OF THE PROPHETS:

General Conference is one way the prophets and apostles invite us to do things to change our lives. Each time you encounter one of these invitations, jot it down. As you make a list, you’ll get a clearer idea of ways you can become better. Also look for words of encouragement. Something a Church leader has said may be just what you or a friend needs to hear in a particular situation.

Cause-and-effect statements include an action and the blessings that come by following it. For example, President Thomas S. Monson said, “A knowledge of truth and the answers to our greatest questions come to us as we are obedient to the commandments of God.” In other words, if you are asking Heavenly Father for answers to questions you have, then you will receive them more readily when you show obedience to His commandments. Such statements that show cause and effect help us because they tell us how to receive specific blessings we need. As you review conference, make a list of the blessings you read about and the things you need to do to receive them. As you do, take notice of the blessings Heavenly Father wants us to enjoy.

Think of the deep questions you have-about life, your family, friends, your calling, school, or anything else on your mind. As you study Church leaders’ messages, prayerfully ask the Lord for help with the issues you are facing. Sometimes the answer may come directly from the words you read, but at other times the Spirit may prompt you with the guidance or strength you need to deal with your situation because you’ve studied the words of prophets. Either way, you’ll discover that God communicates to us through Church leaders. As you receive answers and promptings, be sure to write them down and apply them to your life.

Church leaders frequently explain a series of steps or principles we can follow to accomplish goals or improve our lives. Sometimes these lists are easy to find because they are numbered or bulleted. Sometimes, however, lists may occur as a series in a sentence or spread out over several paragraphs. For example, President Boyd K. Packer recently listed several roles of missionaries. “The elders came as comforters, as teachers, as servants of the Lord, as authorized ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” A deeper under-standing of these roles could come from prayerfully studying each one listed, including finding scriptures about them. You can gain a deeper understanding of the gospel by studying other such lists given at conference.

*** These tips are taken from the June 2013 New Era Magazine

(pgs.41-42) by Matthew Garrett from Washington, USA.

Repetition is a great teacher. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf taught, “Prophets have always taught by repetition; it is a law of learning…..We continue to hear messages on similar issues because the Lord is teaching and impressing upon our minds and hearts certain foundational principles of great eternal importance that must be understood and acted upon before we can move on to other things.” Often, the more something is repeated, the more important it is for us at the moment. As you study conference, look for recurring doctrines, themes, and ideas. You might even review notes from previous conferences to identify topics that are emphasized over time.

If a word seems unusual or sticks out in your mind, study it. Try to figure out why the speaker chose that specific word and what deeper meaning it has. To study a topic in more depth, read the scripture references and any notes listed at the end of a talk, or look in the “Topic Index” at the front of the Ensign to find more talks on the subject.

As you study the words of the prophets, set goals that will help you grow. Then keep track of how you’re doing by writing in your journal. Measuring your development will make a huge difference in your success. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Last conference I wrote down some questions I had about things happening in my life and prayed to receive answers during general conference. During conference I took notes, and when I reviewed my questions, I realized that all my questions had been answered. Some were simply reminders of what I already knew, and some were answered in unlikely ways. General Conference is a blessing in so many ways. (Grace H., 18, Taiwan)

What questions would you like answered? Ponder and then list them below: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

WELCOME TO CONFERENCE! The prophet gives a welcoming address at the beginning of general conference. Write down your impressions or thoughts from his message.

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“What is said is not as important as what we hear and what we feel. That is why we make an effort to experience conference in a setting where the still, small voice of the Spirit can be clearly heard, felt, and understood.” ~ Elder Robert D. Hales (October 2013 General Conference)

What music inspired you most this conference? _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________

….that you can listen to music from

LDS General Conference back to 2008 by clicking on “Show Music” at the top of each page in

the conference section on LDS.org

(gc.lds.org)? You can also access an

index of general conference music at GCmusic.lds.org. You can search across multiple archives and conferences. The music can be

streamed or downloaded. The

collection includes hymns sung by the

Mormon Tabernacle Choir and other

choirs at general conference. The

archive goes back over 10 years, and

more music is being added all the time.

The First Presidency issues a statistical report in each April session of

conference concerning the growth and status of the Church for the previous calendar year…in this case, January 2013 to

December 2013.

Report was given by:

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Use this area to diagram /illustrate part of his talk. You can add to this as you re-read his talk in the Ensign:

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Use this area to diagram /illustrate part of his talk. You can add to this as you re-read his talk in the Ensign:

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Use this area to diagram /illustrate part of his talk. You can add to this as you re-read his talk in the Ensign:

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“If your goals are righteous, of God-given perspective, eternal in their nature, then go for them. Pray for the inner strength to have the discipline to do those things that will guarantee through your activity and your life that you will reach your goals. Then, I think, perhaps as important as anything, we have to have faith. We have to have faith in God. We have to have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And oh, how desperately we have to have faith in ourselves.” – Elder M. Russell Ballard

Whether you are a parent, a teenager, a Sunday School/YW/YM or Seminary Teacher, you have probably heard of the

“Come, Follow Me” curriculum. You can use the conference talks to help you prepare and study for each month’s lessons. As the speaker concludes their remarks, decide if their comments fit in some of the categories below. If they do, write down

the speakers name so you can study their talk in greater detail when it becomes available online or in the Ensign.