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Taken from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's October 2006 Conference Talk Sunday Morning Session, Prophets in the Land Again

Opening Song:

Thought: A general conference of the Church is a declaration to all the world that Jesus is the Christ, that He and His Father, the God and Father of us all, appeared to the boy prophet Joseph Smith

Lesson: Not long after our friend Carolyn Rasmus joined the faculty of Brigham Young University, a group of her new teaching colleagues invited her to join them on a Saturday hike in the mountains above Provo. Carolyn was not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but she had felt particularly welcome in her new circle of associates. She eagerly joined them for the climb.

As the sun steadily rose, so did the hikers on the mountainside. Then, as the ten o'clock hour approached, the group began to find places to sit down. Carolyn thought, "This is wonderful. How did they know I needed the rest?" and she, too, looked for a comfortable spot to stretch out. But the participants seemed unusually earnest about this particular break, some pulling out pencils and notebooks while one intently dialed a transistor radio.

What then happened would be a turning point in her life forever. One of her friends said, "Carolyn, we need to explain something. This is the first Saturday in October, and for us that means not only lovely weather and bright fall foliage, but it also means a general conference of the Church. As Latter-day Saints, wherever we are or whatever we are doing, we stop and listen. So we are going to sit here among the oak and the pines, look out over the valley below, and listen to the prophets of God for a couple of hours."

"A couple of hours!" thought Carolyn. "I didn't know there were prophets of God still living," she said, "and I certainly didn't know there were two hours  worth!" Little did she know that they were going to stop again at two o'clock that afternoon for another two hours and then invite her to tune in at home for four more the next day.

Well, the rest is history. With the gift of a leather-bound copy of the scriptures from her students, the love of friends and families in the LDS ward she began to attend, and spiritual experiences we want all who make their way into the light of the gospel to have, Carolyn was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church. The rest is, as they say, history. With her introduction to general conference that day sitting high atop Y Mountain, Sister Rasmus had seen her own personal fulfillment of Isaiah's prophetic invitation: "Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." 1

Why was Sister Rasmus so amazed about listening to General Conference and prophets?

How many prophets, seers and revelators do we sustain at each General Conference?

Who do we recognize as the High Priest of the Church or Prophet and the only person who holds all of the priesthood keys?

Elder Holland gives three things that every General Conference declares to the world.

1. First, they declare eagerly and unequivocally that there is again a living prophet on the earth speaking in the name of the Lord.

Story of Lehi/Nephi's vision:  "Lehi's Dream," Friend, Sept. 1989, 20 and http://lds.about.com/od/visualmusicalaids/a/tree_of_life.htm

Hold to the Iron Rod, Friend, August 2006 

2. Secondly, each of these conferences marks a call to action not only in our own lives but also on behalf of others around us, those who are of our own family and faith and those who are not. This morning President Hinckley movingly reminded us that this is the 150th anniversary of those handcart companies that, as general conference was convening in October of 1856 here in the Salt Lake Valley, were staggering through the last freezing miles of Nebraska and were soon to be stranded in the impassable snows of the high country of Wyoming. He quoted to us President Brigham Young's inspiring general conference message to the Saints, simply "go and bring in those people now on the plains." 5

As surely as the rescue of those in need was the general conference theme of October 1856, so too is it the theme of this conference and last conference and the one to come next spring. It may not be blizzards and frozen-earth burials that we face this conference, but the needy are still out there- the poor and the weary, the discouraged and downhearted, those "[falling] away into [the] forbidden paths" we mentioned earlier, and multitudes who are "kept from the truth because they know not where to find it." 6 They are all out there with feeble knees, hands that hang down, 7 and bad weather setting in. They can be rescued only by those who have more and know more and can help more. And don't worry about asking, "Where are they?" They are everywhere, on our right hand and on our left, in our neighborhoods and in the workplace, in every community and county and nation of this world. Take your team and wagon; load it with your love, your testimony, and a spiritual sack of flour; then drive in any direction. The Lord will lead you to those in need if you will but embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ that has been taught in this conference. Open your heart and your hand to those trapped in the twenty-first century's equivalent of Martin's Cove and Devil's Gate. In doing so we honor the Master's repeated plea on behalf of lost sheep and lost coins and lost souls. 8

What calls of action have we been asked to do?

How can we load our wagons to be ready when asked to act? Use the barrel picture (duplicate as needed) to load the wagon (enlarged) with "supplies" that will help us be ready when asked to act. (I.e. daily prayer, daily scripture study, attending church meetings, reverent, etc.)

3. Lastly, a general conference of the Church is a declaration to all the world that Jesus is the Christ, that He and His Father, the God and Father of us all, appeared to the boy prophet Joseph Smith.

Activities to help teach the third point:

Joseph Smith Asked Heavenly Father to Help Him Choose the Right, Friend, January 1997


Nativity Flannel board, "Christ's Life on Earth," Friend, Mar 1999, 39

Match the Figures with the Facts, Friend, December 1982

Our Savior and Redeemer, Friend, April 1999 

The Atonement, Friend, March 1989 (story from Elder Dunn's life about the Atonement)

Gospel Art Kit pictures

If the links above do not work, then go to the Gospel Library and search for the title of the link or go to the exact month and year of the Friend to find the flannel board figures.

Testimony:

Closing Song:

Closing Prayer: