For as long as I can remember I have viewed General Conference as a spiritually power-packed weekend – one that I would do well to make the most of in terms of my spiritual growth and development. And, for me, for many years, “making the most of” meant attending as many of the conference sessions as possible (in my case, via live satellite broadcasts) and reading a portion of the conference talks when they appeared in the May or November issue of the Ensign.
I admit that while I have always been moved and inspired by General Conference, my testimony strengthened and my resolve to do better renewed, I have also always been a little overwhelmed by trying to partake of so much spiritual feasting in one short weekend. Despite my best intentions and my most enthusiastic note-taking efforts each time conference weekend rolled around, I simply wasn’t able to take every talk in to the extent I wanted and needed to, in order to retain and act on what I had learned.
I realize now that as much as I loved conference, I had made the mistake of viewing it as a powerful experience to be almost fully absorbed and processed in a two-day period with a few brief follow-up sessions spent reading a handful of talks in the conference issue of the Ensign.
But, in recent years, I have come to understand that partaking of general conference need not be limited to a weekend feast with a few small follow-up snacks. Rather, if we are willing to do our part to make it so, the inspired talks given at general conference can serve as a nonperishable feast to be partaken of as an initial weekend feast but also little by little, day by day over weeks, months and even years, a spiritual feast that can actively power and light our lives year-round.
I began to gain a fuller understanding of the power of General Conference to positively affect our lives no matter the time of year when I was called to serve as a Relief Society teacher in my ward several years ago. At that time, I was called to teach one lesson each month based on one or more specified conference talks.
I was thrilled by the opportunity to teach the sisters in my ward and felt blessed to share the inspired teachings and counsel of church leaders with them, but I knew, given the ages of my five young children and the heavy responsibilities my husband worked so hard to meet in his career and in the newly-formed bishopric in our ward, that I would be challenged in carving out the time necessary to give these conference talks the attention they deserved in preparation for my lessons.
Answer to Prayer
So, like so many LDS women I know, I prayerfully searched for a creative solution to the time constraints I faced in fulfilling my calling. And, the answer to my prayers came quickly and in the form of a surprisingly simple physical solution – a small handheld digital voice recorder. I felt prompted to read the assigned conference talks into the voice recorder and then to listen to them periodically in the course of my days, whether while I was washing dishes in the kitchen, transporting kids across town to soccer or violin lessons, or taking a brief and much-needed walk through our neighborhood.
The first talk I recorded and listened to was “Out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light,“ a talk given by Elder Robert D. Hales in the April 2002 General Conference. I love the topic of inviting the Lord’s light into our lives, so I was eager to hear what Elder Hales had to say on the subject.
On first listening, I connected deeply with the overall themes he shared, including the physical and spiritual law that “light and darkness cannot occupy the same space at the same time;” the spiritual truth that “when the spiritual light of the Holy Ghost is present, the darkness of Satan disappears;” and the charge that we must each learn to claim the protective light of the gospel as our own.
But, as powerfully affected as I was the first time I listened to Elder Hales’ talk, that first time through provided me with just a small peek at the possibilities for spiritual nourishment contained within his message. During each subsequent listening, I heard something new and especially affecting that I hadn’t fully heard or taken in before.
As I listened to Elder Hales’ talk – his stories, his quoting of scriptures, his divinely-inspired counsel – a second, third, fourth and more times, I grew in my understanding of the spiritual truths of light and darkness and the reality that, as Elder Hales tells says, “Unless you are fully engaged in living the gospel – living it with all your ‘heart, might, mind and strength,’ you cannot generate enough light to push back the darkness.”
Through prayerful, open-hearted and repeated listening, Elder Hales’ talk had become, for me, an extraordinarily rich meditation on key gospel truths. As I listened to and pondered Elder Hales’ message, the Spirit bore witness to me that what he shared was indeed true and that he was the Lord’s servant, divinely called and set apart to teach and lead us as church members in the latter days. My testimony grew by leaps and bounds to an extent surprising even me as I had worked to make the most of just one conference talk.
On Fire with the Spirit
By the time my Sunday to teach Relief Society rolled around, I was on fire with the Spirit. I couldn’t wait to share what I had learned with the sisters in my ward. I do not remember all the details of the Sunday I shared Elder Hales’ talk, but I remember the strong sense that I was an instrument in the Lord’s hands, that the Spirit bore witness to the truths I communicated to the sweet sisters in my ward. And I remember the feelings of peace I felt as I looked into the faces of the sisters and saw their receptive and affirming nods and listened to their meaningful input and personal testimonies.
Yes, I felt on fire with the Spirit that day in Relief Society, but that fire had not been lit for just one Sunday. Rather, a spiritual fire, even an immense spiritual fire, had been lit in my daily life.
My husband and I began to share spiritual discussions on a deeper level, pondering and giving thanks together for the truths and beauties of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; I gained a clearer understanding of my role as a mother to actively lead my children in truth and light, to teach them more fully how to seek for truth and light themselves in the midst of a world so dark; and I desired, as never before, to invite more truth and light into my life and to apply that truth and light to the very smallest details of my day-to-day life.
Blessings of Technology
I will never forget that experience of making the absolute most of just one conference talk. In recent years, I have, through the blessings of technology, become even more resourceful in making the most of many conference talks.
I was tickled when I first purchased the conference talks on CDs to listen to as I ran errands or lifted weights at the gym. I was delighted when I discovered that I could download conference talks onto my computer and listen to them while I cleaned house, but I was absolutely thrilled when I recently purchased an mp3 player and learned how to download conference talks to that amazing featherweight gadget to take with me almost anywhere I go to listen to conference at the touch of one button.
These portable conference sessions never fail to inspire me to pull out my May or November issue of the Ensign to re-read, highlight, and savor favorite passages of the various talks.
Inspired by my experience with Elder Hales’ April 2002 talk, I have taken in many conference talks more fully than I otherwise would have. And, in doing so, I have yet to listen to a single conference talk without being moved and even changed by it.
I learn something, many things, really, from every talk I take in. And, the result is that each one of those talks has become part of me, woven deeply into the fabric of my spirit and daily life.
