Conferences of the Church (Stake Conference)

 What makes us so buoyant and joyful on occasions like this? … It is because there is a union of good feelings, good desires and aspirations and one spirit inspires the whole, forming a phalanx [or organized body] of power, of faith, and of the Spirit of the Lord. A single taper [or candle] will give a light, and it is pleasant to look upon, but thousands of the same kind of light make a general illumination. With us, it is a time of union, of light, of life, of intelligence, of the Spirit of the living God; our feelings are one, our faith is one, and a great multitude possessing this oneness forms an array of power that no power on this side of earth or hell is able to cope with, or overcome.

Chapter 11: Finding Joy in Life

John Taylor

Teachings of Presidents

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/teachings-john-taylor/chapter-11?lang=eng&verse=#p

We can be among the friends who assure these new converts that they belong and are not just guests.

 President Gordon B. Hinckley taught us that a new convert needs “a friend, a responsibility, and nurturing with ‘the good word of God’ (Moroni 6:4).” We can be among the friends who assure these new converts that they belong and are not just guests. We can help them understand that they are disciples of Jesus Christ who can minister to others and accept callings to serve. Young converts should consider serving a full-time mission. All should be determined to strive to live a Christlike life.

The Lord Is Hastening His Work

October 2025

General Conference

Quentin L. Cook

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/10/27cook?lang=eng&verse=#p

No One Sits Alone

The spirit of “room in the inn” includes “no one sits alone.” When you come to church, if you see someone alone, will you please say hello and sit with him or her? This may not be your custom. The person may look or speak differently than you.

No One Sits Alone

October 2025

General Conference

Gerrit W. Gong

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/10/25gong?lang=eng&verse=#p

The Ideal Worship Service

But it’s important to remember that when most people experience the Church of Jesus Christ for the first time, they aren’t thinking about priesthood authority or ordinances or the gathering of Israel. What they’re likely to notice, above all else, is how they feel when they’re with us and how we treat each other.

“Love one another,” Jesus said. “By this all will know that you are My disciples.” Very often, a person’s first testimony of Jesus Christ comes when he or she feels love among disciples of Jesus Christ.

The Savior declared that He restored His Church so “that faith … might increase in the earth.” Therefore, when people visit our Church meetings, the Savior wants them to leave with stronger faith in Him! The love our friends feel among us will lift them closer to Jesus Christ! That is our simple goal every time we gather.
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Now, I realize that I’m describing the ideal. And in this mortal life, we rarely get to experience the ideal. And “until the perfect day,” there will always be a gap between the ideal and the real. So, what should we do when the Church doesn’t feel like the perfect day? When, for whatever reason, our ward doesn’t yet nurture perfect faith or love? Or when it feels that we don’t fit in?

One thing we should not do is give up on the ideal!

The title page of the Book of Mormon includes this important caution: “If there are faults,” it says, “they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God.”

Can a book—or a church or a person—have “faults” and “mistakes” and still be the work of God?

My answer is a resounding yes!
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So, while we hold ourselves to the Lord’s high standards, let’s also be patient with one another. We are each a work in progress, and we all rely on the Savior for any progress we make. That’s true for us as individuals, and it’s true for the kingdom of God on earth.
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It’s natural to want to be around people who look, talk, act, and think like we do. There is a place for that.

But in the Savior’s Church, we gather all of God’s children who are willing to be gathered and who seek the truth. It is not our physical appearance, our political views, our culture, or our ethnicity that brings us together. It is not our common background that unites us. It is our common objective, our love for God and love for our neighbor, our commitment to Jesus Christ and His restored gospel. We are “one in Christ.”
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If you love God, if you want to know Him better by following His Son, then you belong here. If you’re earnestly seeking to keep the Savior’s commandments—even though you’re not perfect at it yet—then you are a perfect fit for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

And what if you’re different from people around you? That doesn’t make you a misfit—it makes you a needed part of the body of Christ. All are needed in the body of Christ. The ears perceive things that the eyes never could. The feet do things that the hands would be ineffective at.

That doesn’t mean your job is to change everyone to be like yourself. But it does mean that you have something important to contribute—and that you have something important to learn!
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Mosiah 18:8. When we are baptized, we witness that, among other things, we want to be part of a people who “bear one another’s burdens” and “mourn with those [who] mourn” and “comfort those that stand in need of comfort” (verses 8–9). In other words, when we join the Church of Jesus Christ, we are saying—humbly but clearly—that we want to become more like our beloved Savior, and we want to do it together.

“By This All Will Know That You Are My Disciples”

April 2025

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Visitors Welcome

The Savior beautifully demonstrated this in His call to “come, follow me.” He drew upon the gifts and individual attributes of a diverse group of followers to call His Apostles. He called fishermen, zealots, brothers known for their thunderous personalities, and even a tax collector. Their belief in the Savior and desire to draw unto Him united them. They looked to Him, saw God through Him, and “straightway left their nets, and followed Him.”....the sign Visitors Welcome is not enough. Do we warmly welcome all who come through the doors? Brothers and sisters, it is not enough to just sit in the pews. We must heed the Savior’s call to build higher and holier relationships with all of God’s children. We must live our faith! My father often reminded me that simply sitting in a pew on Sunday doesn’t make you a good Christian any more than sleeping in a garage makes you a car....Coming to church offers the hope of better days, the promise that you are not alone, and a family who needs us as much as we need them.

“Ye Are My Friends”

October 2024

General Conference

David L. Buckner

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2024/10/25buckner?lang=eng&verse=#p

A Purpose of Attending Church Each Sabbath Day

In church we associate with wonderful people striving to serve God. This reminds us that we are not alone in our religious activities. We all need associations with others, and church associations are some of the best we can experience, for us and our companions and children. Without those associations, especially between children and faithful parents, research shows increasing difficulty for parents to raise children in their faith.

October 2021, Dallin H. Oaks,  The Need for a Church

You will face emotional and spiritual challenges that most of your pioneer ancestors could never have imagined.

 Many years ago, some of my younger cousins were assigned to do a service project at our Grandpa Crozier Kimball’s farm. As a reward, they were promised Grandma Clara’s fabulous homemade cake.

When they had completed their tasks, they headed to the kitchen for their reward. Grandpa, however, blocked the kitchen door. My cousin Kathy Galloway, who was about 14 at the time, recalls that he sat down on a piano bench and invited the cousins to sit on the floor. He thanked them for their hard work and then said he had something important to share before they ate their cake.

“There will come a time in your lives when you will need to know and act on what I am about to share with you,” he said.

He explained that his grandfather Heber C. Kimball (1801–68) and other pioneer ancestors had faced arduous physical challenges. Grandpa said the pioneers quickly learned that to survive, they had to work together and love and serve each other.

“This is one of the great legacies they left to you!” he said as tears began to roll down his cheeks.

“In my calling as a patriarch and as your grandfather, when I look down the corridors of time, … my heart aches for you,” he said. “You will face emotional and spiritual challenges that most of your pioneer ancestors could never have imagined.”

Unless the younger generation honors the pioneers’ great legacy of love and service, he added, “many of you will fail because you will not be able to survive on your own.”

Then, with a spirit-to-spirit connection, Grandpa Kimball concluded: “We need each other. In addition to sharing our testimonies of the gospel with one another, our duty is to love and serve and strengthen and nourish and support and sustain each other, … especially in our family. Please remember that in the last days, your very survival may depend on your willingness to work together and to love and serve each other. Now, let us go eat cake!”....We need loving families, service-filled quorums and Relief Societies, and supportive branches, wards, and stakes.

Pursuing the Path of Happiness

January 2022

Liahona

Quentin L. Cook

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2022/01/pursuing-the-path-of-happiness?lang=eng&verse=#p

Pursuing the Path of Happiness

January 2022

Liahona

Quentin L. Cook

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2022/01/pursuing-the-path-of-happiness?lang=eng&verse=#p

The Righteous Saw Those In Need Because They Were Watching and Noticing

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we can move, fix, repair, and rebuild just about anything. We are quick to meet a need with a helping hand or a plate of cookies. But is there more?

Do our sheep know we are watching over them with love and we will take action to help?

In Matthew 25 we read:

“Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you … :

“For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: …

“Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

“When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in?”

Brothers and sisters, the key word is saw. The righteous saw those in need because they were watching and noticing. We too can be a watchful eye to aid and comfort, to celebrate and even dream. As we act, we can be assured of the promise in Matthew: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these … , ye have done it unto me.”

Becoming a Shepherd

October 2018

General Conference

Bonnie H. Cordon

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2018/10/becoming-a-shepherd?lang=eng&verse=#p

The stranger was in a situation of great vulnerability, and his survival depended on the protection he received from the local population.

Throughout time the people of God have been commanded to care for all individuals who are strangers or who may be seen as different. In ancient times a stranger benefited from the same obligation of hospitality as a widow or an orphan. Like them, the stranger was in a situation of great vulnerability, and his survival depended on the protection he received from the local population. The people of Israel received precise instructions on this subject: “But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.”....if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?...

A passage from the novel Les misérables illustrates how priesthood holders can treat those individuals viewed as strangers. Jean Valjean had just been released as a prisoner. Exhausted by a long voyage and dying of hunger and thirst, he arrives in a small town seeking a place to find food and shelter for the night. When the news of his arrival spreads, one by one all the inhabitants close their doors to him. Not the hotel, not the inn, not even the prison would invite him in. He is rejected, driven away, banished. Finally, with no strength left, he collapses at the front door of the town’s bishop.

The good clergyman is entirely aware of Valjean’s background, but he invites the vagabond into his home with these compassionate words:

“‘This is not my house; it is the house of Jesus Christ. This door does not demand of him who enters whether he has a name, but whether he has a grief. You suffer, you are hungry and thirsty; you are welcome. … What need have I to know your name? Besides, before you told me [your name], you had one which I knew.’

“[Valjean] opened his eyes in astonishment.

“‘Really? You knew what I was called?’

“‘Yes,’ replied the Bishop, ‘you are called my brother.’”

In this Church our wards and our quorums do not belong to us. They belong to Jesus Christ. Whoever enters our meetinghouses should feel at home. The responsibility to welcome everyone has growing importance....

It is very likely that the next person converted to the gospel in your ward will be someone who does not come from your usual circle of friends and acquaintances. You may note this by his or her appearance, language, manner of dress, or color of skin. This person may have grown up in another religion, with a different background or a different lifestyle.

Unity is not achieved by ignoring and isolating members who seem to be different or weaker and only associating with people who are like us. On the contrary, unity is gained by welcoming and serving those who are new and who have particular needs. These members are a blessing for the Church and provide us with opportunities to serve our neighbors and thus purify our own hearts.

So, my brothers, it is your duty to reach out to anyone who appears at the doors of your Church buildings. Welcome them with gratitude and without prejudice. If people you do not know walk into one of your meetings, greet them warmly and invite them to sit with you. Please make the first move to help them feel welcome and loved, rather than waiting for them to come to you.

After your initial welcome, consider ways you can continue to minister to them.

Ye Are No More Strangers

October 2013

General Conference

Bishop Gérald Caussé

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2013/10/ye-are-no-more-strangers?lang=eng&verse=#p

Friendship is one of the grand fundamental principles of ‘[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints]’

Friendship is one of the grand fundamental principles of ‘Mormonism’; [it is designed] to revolutionize and civilize the world, and cause wars and contentions to cease and men to become friends and brothers. …

Chapter 40: How Glorious Are Faithful, Just, and True Friends, Joseph Smith, Teachings of Presidents

Does it appear my family doesn’t need home and visiting teachers? Please think again.

Does it appear my family doesn’t need home and visiting teachers? Please think again.

Today, when we talked about when you could come visit my family and me, you said, “Oh, I know you are fine. We’ll catch you another time.”

That may be true based on what you see: a good marriage, financial security, faithful church attendance, dedication to Church callings, and well-adjusted children. From the outside, it may look like we have things under control and don’t need help from anyone. While it’s true that we have been deeply blessed in many ways and we feel grateful to Heavenly Father for His kindness, it’s not true that we don’t need home and visiting teachers.

For instance, did you know that over the years we have moved several times and have experienced difficulty in starting over in a new ward? Did you know that because of the size of our family I am sometimes overwhelmed with the tasks at hand? Did you know that my husband’s frequent travels shift much of the heavy burden of running the home and family to my shoulders? Did you know that we have children who are grown and living outside of our home, and that I have worried about one of them and his testimony? Did you know that we have been dealing with depression and an eating disorder among our children? And did you know that both my husband and I are struggling right now with some health issues?

Of course, life is full of challenges and problems for all of us. Some days run more smoothly than others. These trials and challenges are just part of our earthly existence.

Even if you were to come to do home or visiting teaching, we might choose not to share some of these private things, but we would still love to have you in our home. That way, if the time came that we did feel like sharing some of our burdens, we would feel that you were a safe person to share with. Maybe we could even begin a friendship.

We might not ask you to do anything for us—that’s generally not our way—but we would like the company of fellow Latter-day Saints in our home, sharing their spirit and their testimony of gospel principles with our family. We would love our children to see how the process of home and visiting teaching works.

Please know that we see you as our brother or sister. Please come to our home and teach our family. Please come to our home, sit with us, and help us fill our cup. Then we will all be refreshed.

Ensign January 2017, Awaiting Your Visit: One Sister's Perspective

In That Dreaded 'Never, Never Land'

Primary leaders, do you know the children you are serving? Young Women leaders, do you know your young women? Aaronic Priesthood leaders, do you know the young men? Relief Society and Melchizedek Priesthood leaders, do you know the women and men over whom you have been called to preside? Do you understand their problems and their perplexities, their yearnings, ambitions, and hopes? Do you know how far they have traveled, the troubles they have experienced, the burdens they have carried, the sorrows they have borne?

When you really love those you serve, they will not find themselves in that dreaded “Never, Never Land”—never the object of concern, never the recipient of needed aid. It may not be your privilege to open gates of cities or doors of palaces, but true happiness and lasting joy will come to you and to each one you serve as you take a hand and reach a heart.

President Thomas S. Monson, Sugar Beets and the Worth of a Soul,: Ensign, Jul 2009, 4–7

O What Power It Has Over My Mind

Wise men ought to have understanding enough to conquer men with kindness....When persons manifest the least kindness and love to me, O what power it has over my mind, while the opposite course has a tendency to harrow up all the harsh feelings and depress the human mind.

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, (2011), 423–34

This Topic of Judging Others - Stop It

This topic of judging others could actually be taught in a two-word sermon. When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following:

Stop it!

It’s that simple. We simply have to stop judging others and replace judgmental thoughts and feelings with a heart full of love for God and His children. God is our Father. We are His children. We are all brothers and sisters. I don’t know exactly how to articulate this point of not judging others with sufficient eloquence, passion, and persuasion to make it stick. I can quote scripture, I can try to expound doctrine, and I will even quote a bumper sticker I recently saw. It was attached to the back of a car whose driver appeared to be a little rough around the edges, but the words on the sticker taught an insightful lesson. It read, “Don’t judge me because I sin differently than you.”

 April 2012 General Conference -  The Merciful Obtain Mercy   -  President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Whether A Brother Wears A Coon Skin Cap Or A Fine Beaver Hat Is All The Same To Us.

We have not in our society an aristocratic circle. Whether a brother wears a coon skin cap or a fine beaver hat is all the same to us. If a person is a faithful servant of God we do not object to his coming to meeting, though he has only a piece of buffalo skin to wear on his head. We partake of theSacrament with him, hail him in the street as a brother and a friend, converse with him, meet him in social parties and greet him as an equal (DBY, 283–84).

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young, (1997), 352–59