94. Ward Conference, and counsel by Elder Holland

We had Ward Conference yesterday, where the Stake Presidency, and Stake leaders come.  Sacrament meeting was great, and talked a lot about missionary work -- After a 1 1/2 hour Sacrament meeting, the Priesthood and Relief Society met in the cultural hall, and that was so inspirational. 

The week before they had handed out papers on which anyone could write a question that they would try to answer in the ward conference, on things they wanted to know about the Gospel.

  First Pres. Kevin Ence, our Stake Pres. told about some things that Elder Jeffrey Holland had told them about a month ago when he was here in St. George -- in a meeting with 13 Stake Presidents, and about 125 bishops, and all their counselors.  So here goes --

Elder Holland said that one of the greatest problems in the Church today is apathy, and people losing faith, (probably just getting too busy with everyday life to think of spiritual things.)  Then he got into women and the Priesthood.  He said there are doctrinal issues and cultural issues.  The cultural issue has been -- for example -- if women could give prayers in General Conference, and in the last conference they started it, and he said they probably should have started it long ago.  But the idea of women holding the Priesthood is doctrinal, and that will never change!  Anita and I mentioned it yesterday at our family dinner, and we totally agreed we have no problem with that issue!  Anyone who does, male or female, is on the road to apostacy.

Then he talked about the Boy Scouts of America, BSA, and how they are letting "gays" in -- He said the Church is very aware of all that is happening in that issue, and that the Church won't leave the BSA unless it goes against the standards that the Church will keep (as far as our individual wards and scout troups are concerned).  But if it does, the Church already has their own scout program all ready to go, to replace the BSA if that is necessary.  (That was interesting!)  

Right now, in 60 countries, a Temple marriage is not considered a legal marriage, and a couple has to be married by civil authority and then go to the Temple.  He said that bishops will never have to worry about being asked to perform a same-sex marriage.  If the countriy's law comes to that, the Church will not allow any bishops to perform any kind of a marriage, to save them from being forced to perform a same-sex marriage.  He said if the day comes that that would happen in Utah, we would also have to do like they do in those 60 countries, and a couple be married civilly before a Temple marriage.  (It makes you wonder what can happen even here in the future?)

He also said that modern medicine is inspired of God, and that it isn't going against the Lord to use all medical means available --

Elder Holland also addressed the issue of people getting married in the Temple, and then one not staying worthy of that Temple marriage.  He said when we are sealed in the Temple we are "sealed to God", which meant that anyone who lives worthy will have that blessing in the hereafter, and if one person doesn't live up to those Temple blessings, the other partner will still have those blessings in the hereafter.  We have known that already --  

He said that every generation has to come to it's own faith, and if one generation left the faith, the Church could fall.  (It reminds me in the Book of Mormon -- Mosiah Chapter 26, verses 1-4.)

1. Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the words of king Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto the people; and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers. 

2. They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ. 

3. And now because of their unbelief they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened. 

4. And they would not be baptized, neither would they join the church.  And they were a separate people as to their faith . . . . . 

We need to help our rising generation get it's own testimony! 

 (I WILL ADD MY NOTE -- THAT IS  THE REASON I WRITE THIS BLOG -- HOPING TO HELP STRENGTHEN THE FAITH OF ANYONE WHO READS IT, ESPECIALLY MY OWN POSTERITY !)

Our Stake Pres. talked about the St. George Temple being remodeled after the Temple is built in Cedar, 45 miles away, but that it would remain open, and probably be made closer to what it was when in pioneer times and it was first built -- (That was interesting ? )  Also, they will build, probably soon, a new Family History Library, quite large, here in St. George.  Right now it is in a rented building.  It will be built close to the Temple.

There was strong counsel against pornography!  A family should keep all computers in a public place in the home.  You can download free a site that is a really good internet blocker to bad things --  K9 Web Protection.  Bishop Troyer said that he and his wife each know a word in the password, and they both have to agree to use it.  I haven't tried it because we have a good one from our internet company.  He said that the first thing that happens when a man ( or maybe a teenager) starts porn is that he loses respect for his wife, and for women.  He said that he was sure there were men in that audience that had this problem.  (There was a large audience, almost filled the cultural hall.)  He mentioned that women also are getting into it.

He said that it was so important to have parental discussions and talk about all kinds of things, especially about that, probably starting at young ages.  He says the law behind that is the law of chastity.  He also said to not let teenagers go to bed with a cell phone, as they could, in the privacy of their bedrooms, do things on the phone, lose sleep, and no one know about it.  Some of this was said by our Bishop Troyer, who is a seminary teacher.  Our Stake Pres. asked some of the others to answer certain questions.  He also said that porn is all money driven, that people who sell it -- it's all about the money they make -- and he said -- someone said "You can buy anything in this world for money!"

A note written a few minutes after I posted this -- I sent the bulk of this entry as a missionary letter to my missionary granddaughter.  She just sent me an answer which is this:

"Thanks you guys! Isn't Elder Holland great?! And just for your information the K9 Protection is WONDERFUL! My dad got it for all the computers that the kids would use (including mine at one point) and you have complete control over EVERYTHING, ANYONE views."