Conference Weekend

This weekend is the semi-annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We gather on Saturday and Sunday to hear counsel and teachings from the General Authorities of the Church. The first weekend in April and October are two of my favorite weekends each year. There are a few things that I do that make these weekends especially meaningful to me.

Every six months, as Conference approaches, I think of different questions I have in my life, things I’ve been wondering about, or some problems I’m dealing with. I then write a post-it note with about three different topics on it. Each topic is only a word or two long. I often pray about these topics as well.

Without fail, each topic I write down is addressed. Every question I have is answered. This time around, they were all addressed at least once in just today’s meetings. I can’t wait to see how they are addressed tomorrow.

I take notes in my journal. That way I know exactly where they are and can look back on them throughout our church meetings over the next six months. In my notes, I write what the speakers say in print. And I write what I feel in cursive (or Portuguese). It helps me separate the two.

And then, when the Conference edition of the Ensign or Liahona arrives the following month, I make sure I read through the whole thing before the start of the next Conference. Sometimes I do better at that than other times. But reviewing the talks and reading over them again helps cement what was said in my head. It makes General Conference more of a constant flow in my life than a large flood only twice a year.

I also re-watch the DVDs on Sundays while I’m getting ready for church in the morning or cooking dinner in the evening. I should stop being surprised since it happens so often, but what I learn when I hear it live is different from what I learn when I read it, and is different again from what I learn when I watch it again.

I’m very grateful that my parents always made General Conference a part of our family. I don’t remember a time when we didn’t do what needed to be done to watch every session, whether that was turning on the tv at home or driving to the Church building to watch it there. And now I watch it over the internet from my own home.