We live in the time of the ongoing Restoration, a time when the heavens are open and God wants to continue to speak to us. And He does! He teaches us both through personal revelation and through His appointed servants at general conference. Twice a year, we have the opportunity to listen as God’s mouthpiece – the prophet – and also other global leaders teach us what God would have us know.
However, our lives become busy, and the commitments on our social and work calendars fill up. It’s hard to take two weekends out of the year and completely step away from the world, tuning in to general conference broadcasts all weekend when there are so many other things we could be doing. Our Heavenly Father knows that it is a big sacrifice. He blesses us for our efforts to hear from Him, no matter how big or small those efforts are. Here are three specific reasons why we should watch general conference:
- To find answers to questions
- To receive spiritual power
- To increase our faith
Finding Answers to Our Personal Questions
General conference is a way for God to speak to us individually. Our leaders are inspired by Him in the messages that they prepare for conference. Even though they may not know us personally, we have a loving Heavenly Father who does. He is aware of every trial, pain, heartache, and question we face. We can come to general conference to find answers to our questions. In the Book of Mormon, the missionary Ammon taught, “And he looketh down upon all the children of men; and he knows all the thoughts and intents of the heart; for by his hand were they all created from the beginning” (Alma 18:32). Just as we receive revelation from the scriptures, listening to our prophet today is our modern-day scripture and revelation for our lives.
Wilford Woodruff invited the Saints in an 1881 discourse,
“Seek after God; call upon Him in your secret places, and do not turn away from righteousness and truth. There is nothing to be gained by doing that, but everything to lose.”[1]
Often, our busy days are filled with the noise of work stress, media intake, and family. As a result, it can be hard to hear the still, small voice of the Spirit speaking to us. When we set aside all of the noise, we put ourselves in a position to tell God we’re ready to hear what He has to say. This is one way we can “seek after God,” as Wilford Woodruff pleaded for us to do.
Receiving Spiritual Power
Spiritual power comes as we follow the prophet’s counsel. Hearing God’s message for us can bring us hope, assurance, confidence, and a clear path to follow. The world we live in is filled with voices of relative truth and contention. Peace and power flood into our lives as we come together in hearing direction from God, given specifically for our world today.
We are all at different points in our journey back to God. So, no matter what we may be struggling with, we can feel joy, peace, and light when we listen to the words of Jesus Christ. God’s message to us through His servants gives us instructions and warnings for the trials we face in our day. As we listen to and apply their messages, we can be strengthened to combat the struggles we each go through.
Wilford Woodruff said,
“We cannot build up the kingdom of God in our day and overcome the powers of evil which prevail over the world without inspired prophets and apostles, gifts, powers and blessings, any more than they could in the days of Jesus and his apostles.”[2]
We need the power that comes from doing what God asks us to do through His appointed prophets, seers, and revelators. They are our watchmen on the tower, protecting us from the evils of the world and guiding us to God’s light. (See Isaiah 62:6.)
Increasing Our Faith in Jesus Christ
We learn in the Bible Dictionary that “Faith [in Jesus Christ] is kindled by hearing the testimony of those who have faith”.[3] Both the prophet and our other global leaders are examples we can look to, teaching us how to draw upon the power of Jesus Christ in our lives. Some of President Nelson’s most recent charges to us include making time for the Lord, such as thinking celestial, becoming peacemakers, increasing our time in God’s holy temples, taking charge of our own testimonies, and preparing for the second coming of our Savior. Each of these invitations from our beloved prophet points us toward Jesus Christ and leads us to lasting faith in Him.
President Nelson said,
“I plead with you now to take charge of your own testimony of Jesus Christ and His gospel. Work for it. Nurture it so that it will grow… As you make the continual strengthening of your testimony of Jesus Christ your highest priority, watch for miracles to happen in your life.”[4]
That is certainly a powerful promise from our prophet! We put in the work necessary to deepen our individual relationships with Jesus Christ, subsequently bringing forth miracles. The Lord loves action and effort and therefore blesses us for any steps we take toward Him. Listening to general conference is an opportunity to show God that we trust Him enough to sacrifice our time to hear His voice.
Jeffrey R. Holland said,
“Please remember tomorrow, and all the days after that, that the Lord blesses those who want to improve, who accept the need for commandments and try to keep them, who cherish Christlike virtues and strive to the best of their ability to acquire them. If you stumble in that pursuit, so does everyone; the Savior is there to help you keep going.”[5]
Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ know that we are not perfect. They love us for who we are, with all of our weaknesses. Because of this, they love us enough to help us reach our full potential. We can show our love back to God and help Him see our readiness to let Him prevail in our lives by listening to His voice at general conference. He will then bless us abundantly with revelation and with the peace and enabling power we need to move forward in our trying circumstances.
Aubrey Barzee
is a Public Relations Intern for the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation. She is from Kansas City, Missouri, and currently studies at Brigham Young University, majoring in Exercise and Wellness and studying in the Seminary and Institute teaching program. Aubrey had the opportunity as a missionary to come to know Jesus Christ better and serve the people in the Oregon Portland Mission.
Being a part of this project has been an opportunity to share her love of the Savior and His restored gospel. Learning about the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gives Aubrey joy and she finds infpiration in the journals and life of the prophet Wilford Woodruff.
The Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation’s mission is to digitally preserve and publish Wilford Woodruff’s eyewitness account of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and make his records universally accessible in order to inspire all people, especially the rising generation, to study and to increase their faith in Jesus Christ. For more information, please explore wilfordwoodruffpapers.org.
- Discourse by Wilford Woodruff, June 26, 1881, p. 2, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/discourse/1881-06-26. ↑
- Discourse by Wilford Woodruff, June 12, 1863, p. 1, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/discourse/1863-06-12. ↑
- Bible Dictionary, “Faith.” ↑
- Russell M. Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest,” October 2022 general conference, ChurchofJesusChrist.org. ↑
- Jeffrey R. Holland, “Tomorrow the Lord Will Do Wonders among You,” April 2016 general conference, ChurchofJesusChrist.org. ↑
