My thoughts on General Conference 2017 talk

Those of you who are familuar with the Latter-day Saints know that we hold two General Conference meetings a year.  One in April and the other in October.  Brief explanation for those who don't know, its when our Prophet and other leaders come together and address the church followers.  They give us inspired talks.

One talk that I really felt a strong spirit in was entitled

Don't look around, Look up by Elder Yoon Hawn Choi of the Seventy

He made some really good points that stuck out to me.  I'm going to quote some of his talk and add my input/feelings that I got from his talk.

"One day, a few months after my baptism, I heard some members criticizing each other in church. I was very disappointed. I went home and told my father that maybe I should not go to church anymore. It was difficult to see members criticize others like that. After listening, my father taught me that the gospel had been restored and it is perfect but members are not yet, neither himself nor me. He firmly said, “Do not lose your faith because of the people around you, but build a strong relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t look around, look up!”"

There have actually been times in my life when I have allowed the way others influence my attendence of church.  I'm not saying that I always attend church.  I am far from doing that.  But there have been times where I have not liked the way a person has acted towards another and even myself to allow that to interfere with my worship.  The only person this is hurting is ME. Why do we allow this to happen.  It takes away from us, not the other person who we have felt has offended us.  NO ONE is perfect, church is not on this earth for the perfect person.  It is here for the sinners who need to come closer to our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  We need to set aside the natural man and choose to serve, and learn from our Heavenly Father. I love the quote "Don't loose your faith because of the people around you."  We must not let others choose how we worship.

"Dear brothers and sisters, it is not easy for us to recognize the love of Heavenly Father when we look around with our temporal eyes, because we see inconvenience, loss, burdens, or loneliness first. On the other hand, we can see the blessings beyond when we look up. The Lord has revealed, “When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.”

There are probably many blessings that i have missed because I am one who tends to look around with my temporal eyes.  I wish I didn't.  I wish that I can by some miricle wake up and find myself looking up towards Heaven and my Heavenly Father and never looking around.  I wish I can be one of those who do a miraculas turn around and strive every day to serve Heavenly Father. Why do I find it hard to wake up, pray to my Heavenly Father and thnk Him for another day at life?  Why do I find it hard to take 5 minutes out of my life to read His word?  5 minutes, that's 1 verse. Can it truely be that hard?  I say yes it can.  But then I don't have the reason as to why it is that hard.  It could be that my temporal eyes are looking around, looking at the loss, the burdens and loneliness of life.  But how, How do you break away from this???

"Elder M. Russell Ballard said: “If you choose to become inactive or to leave the restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where will you go? What will you do? The decision to ‘walk no more’ with Church members and the Lord’s chosen leaders will have a long-term impact that cannot always be seen right now.”6 President Thomas S. Monson encouraged us, “May we ever choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.”7It is never too late to look up to Jesus Christ. His arms are always open to you. There are generations before us and after us depending on us to follow Christ so that we can be an eternal family of God."

This sums it up. When we turn from our Heavenly Father and walk the path of sin it is alot harder to turn from that path and walk the right way.  It's hard to give up adictions like smoking, drinking, not reading your scriptures or even praying.  And when you get to that low point in life, you feel as if you are alone.  But you are never alone.  Heavenly Father is always with you.  You just have to turn towards Him and ask for forgiveness.  Our brother Jesus Christ is always waiting with open arms to welcome you back.  He is always willing to forgive, if we just repent and ask for his forgiveness.  Heavenly Father is a loving father, he doesn't want any of us to go astray.  He wants all of us to return unto him when our mortal life is over.

"It’s not always easy to look up when your parents are opposed to the gospel, when you are a member of a small Church unit, when your spouse is not a member, when you are still single although you did your best to marry, when a child has strayed, when you find yourself a single parent, when you are physically or emotionally challenged, when you are a victim in a disaster, and so on. Hold on to your faith in those hard times. Look up to Christ for strength, balance, and healing. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, “all things shall work together for [your] good.”8

It isn't that easy when your spouse isn't part of the church.  That's one excuse I use.  I always think, well if Chango was a memeber of the church then going to church would be easier, reading the scriptures would be easier.  I always think that having someone else to share the experience with makes it easier.  But I must do it myself.  No one else can do it for me.  I must do it.