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The following is excerpted from LDS Daily. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
For many, General Conference is a feast of inspiration and direction from heaven. However, there are also many who experience feelings of pain, loneliness, and even anger as they listen to the messages. The reasons for these feelings are varied and unique to the person.
Regardless of the cause or trigger, how can we reconcile some of these feelings with gospel truths? If you find yourself struggling with General Conference, these four points are important to remember and ponder upon.
You’re Not Alone
Do not feel broken or damaged because you had a different reaction than many other Conference-goers. You are not alone in how you feel. From the very beginning, disciples of Christ have struggled to understand, accept, and implement God’s teachings.
After Jesus taught he was the bread of life and that those who “eateth of this bread may live forever”, many of his followers responded with, “This is an hard saying; who can hear it?”
When Nephi expounded upon his vision of the tree of life and the justice of God, his brethren said, “Thou hast declared unto us hard things, more than we are able to bear.”
Joseph Smith, the prophet of the Restoration, struggled immensely with following the Lord’s command to begin practicing plural marriage. The Church explains, “Joseph told associates that an angel appeared to him three times between 1834 and 1842 and commanded him to proceed with plural marriage when he hesitated to move forward. During the third and final appearance, the angel came with a drawn sword, threatening Joseph with destruction unless he went forward and obeyed the commandment fully.”
Helen Mar Kimball Whitney would later record, “Joseph put off the dreaded day as long as he dared.”
From these examples, we can see the struggle to submit our will to the Lord’s is a very real one. What is more important than our initial reaction is our eventual choice. Do we seek God in an effort to understand his will through the prophets or do we walk away?
To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
