Living After the Manner of Happiness

  Lifted Together by Kate Lee  

As Conference ended Sunday evening, I sat for a time trying to make sense of all the thoughts running through my head. I believe COVID-19 has everyone mourning something right now. It might be your daughter’s last prom or your son’s graduation. Perhaps it’s a canceled wedding reception or missing the birth of a grandchild. All of us are feeling the ache of missing out on something. We all are feeling cut off from the people and things we love. There is so much to mourn right now. Yet, as I sat there Sunday evening trying to unravel my thoughts, the only words that came to me were HOPE and LOVE. Not just any love, but the all-encompassing love that comes only from our Father above. I have found these two words woven throughout my studies this week as I have focused on the people who witnessed the events of the Holy Week firsthand. Yesterday I studied the story of Thomas (see John 20:24-29). Like all of us, he felt the ache of missing out on something big. Des...

  I am so grateful for living prophets to guide us!  Speaking of General Conference, Elder Holland has encouraged us to "hold fast to the spiritual impressions we have had and the inspired teachings we have heard." (" Tomorrow the Lord Will Do Wonders Among You ")  After conference is over I like to ask myself a series of questions: How can I make General Conference a more powerful influence in my life? my home? my family? I spend some time the week following conference planning how I will study the messages more in-depth and act on the invitations extended and promptings received. There are as many different ways to internalize General Conference. I have used many different methods over the years. The important thing is just to do it.  I am so grateful for living prophets and the opportunity we have to learn from them every six months! Enjoy your conference weekend!

  For more than a decade, Church leaders have counseled us to use the Internet to share the gospel. The first talk I remember having an impact on me was given by Elder Ballard at the BYU-H commencement in December 2006. “[M]ay I ask that you join the conversation by participating on the Internet to share the gospel and explain in simple and clear terms the message of the Restoration. … Talk honestly and sincerely about the impact the gospel has had in your life, about how it has helped you overcome weakness or challenges and helped define your values. The audiences for these … may often be small, but the cumulative effect of thousands of such stories can be great. The combined effort is certainly worth the outcome if but a few are influenced by your words of faith and love of God and His Son, Jesus Christ.” (M. Russell Ballard, " Sharing the Gospel Using the Internet ") Elder Bednar’s talk during the 2014 Education Week shifted things even further for me: “A technology know...

  The Church does a fabulous job providing us with great media to supplement our personal study and teaching. Several years ago I began to use media as one of the tools to prepare myself, my family, and my seminary students for General Conference. Some of the videos cause you to pause and think and others are just fun. Whether you choose to use one of these or another that has touched your life, try taking a minute or two each of the next few days to watch one with your family to springboard a discussion about General Conference.   https://www.lds.org/.../2015-06-022-general-conference... https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/seek-receive-act... https://www.lds.org/.../2015-03-001-find-answers-to-your... https://www.lds.org/.../find-answers-at-general... https://youtu.be/bWks7wPumWk?list=RDbWks7wPumWk https://youtu.be/IASFDExDWz4

When I was younger, my parents could not afford to buy our family a television. They scrimped and saved for six months and rented a TV for a weekend twice a year, so we could watch General Conference. The anticipation for those weekends was almost like Christmas. I loved conference weekends: the anticipation and magic of the television, the love I felt, which I now also realize was the abundance of the Spirit, and we always closed the weekend with root beer floats. "Traditions cement families together and give them the strength to handle whatever comes their way." ( Mormon.org ) Traditions unify and create a sense of belonging. They create memories and provide learning opportunities. Traditions also create security in an ever-changing world. The Spirit helped me understand traditions were an important ingredient in creating a family-building and bonding weekend each spring and fall as we gathered to participate in General Conference. Some traditions are passed down from ge...

One of the very first ways the Spirit taught me I need to prepare for General Conference was to help my children have a positive experience. I wanted my children to love conference weekends and look forward to them in the hopes they would develop their own testimonies of the revelatory experience conference is and the power and protection available we act on the promptings we receive and the invitations extended during conference. Additionally, I knew I could not have the revelatory experience I yearned for and needed if my children were miserable or distracting me. A blog post I read last year summed up perfectly my thoughts as a young mother: "My heart can only hear what it needs during General Conference if my wee ones are successfully busy in their own activities." (Sandra Turley) There are so many ideas available today to help mothers prepare. I will share a few I have seen successfully used and share a few links with lots of additional ideas.  Conference Bingo - either ...

Today marks the beginning of one of my favorite weeks of the year; I have a handful of them. I love General Conference!  General Conference is intended to be a revelatory experience as we learn from the living prophets and apostles through the power of the Holy Ghost. Revelation is a really cool thing. If you think about it, we can all hear the same talk and yet get a message that is specific to just us. Personal revelation can reassure us, comfort us in times of need, and sustain and hold us together when times are tough.  I don't know about you, but I have heard I need to prepare for conference all my life, but I was not sure for a long time just what I needed to do to prepare. I thought I would share one thing I use to help me prepare in the hopes it will be a springboard to help you as the Spirit shows you the best way for you to prepare yourself and your family.  A week before conference, I like to do this activity to begin my preparations. It only takes a couple of ...