When we used to watch General Conference with my husband’s mother, Martha, the same thing recurred again and again. When the Tabernacle Choir had sounded their last note, we’d ask her how she liked conference, and with a considerable jauntiness, she’d turn in her upholstered chair toward us and give us a definite thumbs up, saying, “This is the best conference ever.” She was always right, and it was always true because when you feel the Lord’s spirit, there is nothing so good, so delicious or so sweet.
This April 2025 General Conference was no exception, with stirring speeches culminating with the prophet, President Russell M. Nelson. At 100, because of lessening strength, President Nelson was with us in the Conference Center for only the last session, and we felt his absence, but when he joined us and spoke, his message was a powerhouse, focused on helping us have confidence to stand in the presence of the Lord.
He wasn’t talking about having confidence some time in a future, far-off day. “When I speak of having confidence before God, I am referring to having confidence in approaching God right now!” President Nelson said. “There’s the key! In the Lord’s own words, charity and virtue open the way to having confidence before the Lord.”
“As the world grows more wicked, we need to grow increasingly pure…The great opportunity before us is to become the people God needs us to be”
President Nelson did not say as much about the Second Coming as he did at the last conference, but he did acknowledge: “Increased time in the temple will help us prepare for the Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We do not know the day or the hour of His coming. But I do know that the Lord is prompting me to urge us to get ready for that ‘great and dreadful day.’
President Nelson ended his talk with a specific invitation: “I invite you to take intentional steps to grow in your confidence before the Lord. Then, as we go to our Heavenly Father with increasing confidence, we will be filled with more joy, and our faith in Jesus Christ will increase. We will begin to experience spiritual power that exceeds our greatest hopes.”
Themes—Jesus Christ’s Atonement
The prominent theme in this conference was clearly the Savior’s atonement and its power to bless and comfort us, heal us and make us whole. Here’s a sampling of quotes:
Sister Camille N. Johnson
Relief Society General President
Sister Johnson told the story of the ten lepers who were healed, but one, “shouting praises to God”, “returned to the Savior, fell at his feet, and expressed gratitude.”
“And the Savior said to him who was thankful, ‘Thy faith hath made thee whole,’
“Jesus Christ had healed ten lepers. But one, coming back to the Savior, received something in addition. He was made whole.
“Nine lepers were physically healed.
“One was physically healed and made spiritually whole.”
“In pondering this story, I have wondered if the converse is true. If healing and wholeness are not the same, can one be made spiritually whole by Him, but not yet physically and emotionally healed?”
…”I can be whole, while I wait for healing, if I am whole hearted in my relationship with Him.”
Elder Gerrit W. Gong
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
“This is Easter in Jesus Christ: He answers the longings of our hearts and the questions of our souls. He wipes away our tears, except our tears of joy.
“When our tears flow, we sometimes apologize, embarrassed. But knowing Jesus Christ understands life’s pains and joys can give us strength beyond our own10 as we navigate bitter and sweet.
“Easter in Jesus Christ helps us mend, reconcile, make right our relationships, on both sides of the veil. Jesus can heal grief; He can enable forgiveness. He can free us and others from things we or they have said or done that otherwise bind us captive.
“Easter in Jesus Christ lets us feel God’s approbation. This world tells us we are too tall, too short, too wide, too narrow, not smart, pretty, or spiritual enough. Through spiritual transformation in Jesus Christ, we can escape debilitating perfectionism.
“With Easter joy, we sing, ‘Death is conquered; man is free./ Christ has won the victory.’ Christ’s Resurrection frees us from death, from time’s frailties and physicality’s imperfections.
“Jesus Christ’s Atonement also restores us spiritually. He bled from every pore, weeping blood as it were, to provide us escape from sin and separation. He reunites us, whole and holy, with each other and God. In all good things, Jesus Christ restores abundantly—not only what was but also what can be…
“God’s plan of moral and mortal agency allows us to learn by our own experience. Some of our greatest life lessons come from things we would never choose. In love, Jesus Christ descended below and ascended above all things.18 He rejoices in our divine capacities for creativity and delight, kindness without hope for reward, faith unto repentance and forgiveness. And He weeps in sorrow at the enormity of our human suffering, cruelty, unfairness—often brought by human choice—as do the heavens and the God of heaven with them.”
Theme: Divine Identity
Elder Dale G. Renlund
Of the Quorum of the Twelve
When Jesus told the parable of the talents, Elder Renlund noted:
“In this parable, a man gave differing amounts of money, referred to as talents, to three servants; to one servant he gave five talents, to another he gave two; and to a third he gave one. Over time, the first two servants doubled what they had received. But the third servant simply buried his single talent. To both servants who had doubled their talents, the man said, ‘Well done … good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.’
“The man then chided the servant who had buried his talent for being ‘wicked and slothful.’ This servant’s talent was taken away, and he was banished. Yet, had this servant doubled his talent, he would have received the same commendation and reward as the other servants.
“One message of this parable is that God expects us to magnify the abilities we have been given, but He does not want us to compare our abilities to those of others. Consider this insight provided by the 18th century Hasidic scholar, Zusya of Anipol. Zusya was a renowned teacher who began to fear as he approached death. His disciples asked, ‘Master, why do you tremble? You’ve lived a good life, surely God will grant you a great reward.’
“Zusya said, ‘If God says to me, ‘Zusya, why were you not another Moses?’ I will say, ‘Because you didn’t give me the greatness of soul that you gave Moses.’ And if I stand before God and He says, ‘Zusya, why were you not another Solomon?’ I will say, ‘Because you didn’t give me the wisdom of Solomon.’ But, alas, what will I say if I stand before my Maker and He says, ‘Zusya, why were you not Zusya? Why were you not the man I gave you the capacity to be?’ Ah, that is why I tremble.
“Indeed, God will be disappointed if we do not rely upon the merits, mercy, and grace of the Savior to magnify the God-given abilities we have received. With His loving assistance, He expects us to become the best version of ourselves. That we may start with differing abilities is irrelevant to Him. And it should be to us.”
Elder Patrick Kearon
Of the Quorum of the Twelve
I would like to talk about one all-encompassing gift of eternal truth that underpins our ability to receive all else our Father desires to endow us with; a vital gift that when fully accepted and received deep in the soul, contextualises the joys and hardships of life, and our unanswered questions: it is that we really are God’s children. That truth is breathtaking! Stunning! And it is not figurative.
Imagine you are hearing this for the first time! You really are His cherished daughter. You really are His precious son. And the path you are on is His plan of happiness. With His omniscient love, He knows exactly who you were before you were sent to earth, what you have experienced so far in your mortal life, and He has mercifully planned for your every tomorrow. And oh, how He yearns to one day have you return to Him, to receive the supreme intent of all His beautiful gifts, eternal life with Him.
The question is not whether this gift of truth is real, but whether we will discover and receive it. The gift has already been bestowed upon us by the Father. The price for the ultimate purpose of this gift has already been paid by the Saviour. But if you have been taught this, said this, sung this truth for years, maybe the awesome wonder of it has long since faded and you no longer feel its power and peace.
If this priceless gift of understanding—and all the goodness, peace, and hope that flow from it—are left unaccepted, unopened, and unreceived, what a terrible loss for us! What a sadness for the Giver! “For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift? Behold, he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift”.
I invite you to receive either for the first time, or to a greater extent than ever before, the magnificent realisation that you truly are God’s beloved child. You must undo the bow, tear off the wrapping paper, open the box, and actively receive with grateful humility a true, pure understanding of this foundational truth. The Holy Spirit can witness to your heart that you are indeed a child of the Most High.
When you welcome this majestic reality into your very soul and feel both the comfort and the thrill of it, your entire paradigm shifts! You can feel His love, hear His voice, and recognise His hand no matter what is happening, or not happening, in your life. Your covenant bond with your Saviour becomes even stronger, and through the lens of this sweet gift, life takes on new brilliance, beauty, and hope.
Theme—Hastening His Work
Elder Ronald A. Rasband
Of the Quorum of the Twelve
“President Russell M. Nelson said at our last conference, ‘Do you see what is happening right before our eyes? I pray that we will not miss the majesty of this moment! The Lord is indeed hastening His work.’
“’Hastening’ is a word that matters. It suggests moving quickly, accelerating, and even urgency. In the growth of the Church and the plan of Christ, hastening is happening. And we are all a part of it.
“In April, 1834, in Kirtland, Ohio the Prophet Joseph Smith gathered all who held the priesthood into a little schoolhouse, about fourteen feet square. We could fit dozens of those schoolhouses in this conference center, with room to spare.
“Joseph Smith said, ‘It is only a little handful of Priesthood you see here tonight, but this Church will fill North and South America – it will fill the world.’ That prophecy is being fulfilled ‘right before our eyes.’ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is growing in members and families, missions and missionaries, meetinghouses, and temples, and in enrollment in our seminaries, institutes, and universities all around the world.
“We are grateful to be on earth when the Church is increasing in numbers and influence, but more importantly in the hearts and lives of its members. We are known as disciples of Jesus Christ. We share our testimonies of Him, His Church, His ways, and His covenant path. We are His people, and He is our Savior. I marvel at what President Nelson calls the ‘majesty of this moment’ and express profound gratitude to the Lord for His work. I encourage us to stand tall as his disciples, eyewitnesses to the fulfillment of prophecy, both ancient and modern.
“There are naysayers who shout, “Lo here and lo there” just as they did in the Prophet Joseph Smith’s time. However, they are and will be but mere footnotes in this noble work. Remember the words of Joseph Smith: “[N]o unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage . . . but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”
President Steven J. Lund
Young Men General President
“This January, as I sat in sacrament meeting over a dozen young men were sustained to be advanced in the Aaronic Priesthood. I felt the world changing beneath our feet.
“It struck me that all around the world, time zone by time zone, in sacrament meetings like that one, tens of thousands of deacons, teachers, and priests were being sustained to be ordained into lifelong priesthood ministries that would span the length and breadth of the gathering of Israel.
“Each January, hands are laid on the heads of about 100,000 young men, connecting them through ordinance to a bright line of authority stretching back through the Restoration epoch to Joseph and Oliver, to John the Baptist, and to Jesus Christ.
“Ours is not always a very demonstrative church. Here, we do understatement.
“But still, seeing this rolling thunder of newly ordained priesthood holders spread across the earth, I wondered—in a “Church of joy” kind of way—if it shouldn’t be shouted from the rooftops.
“‘Today,’ I thought, ‘there should be trumpets and crashing cymbals and blazing Roman candles. There should be parades!’
“Knowing God’s power for what it truly is, we were witness to the disruption of the very patterns of this world by Godly authority flooding the earth.
“These ordinations launch these young men into lifetimes of service as they will find themselves in consequential times and places where their presence and prayers and the powers of the priesthood of God they hold will profoundly matter.”
