Step outside digital reality into physical reality. Be spiritually present in the moment.

Can we use AI to deepen experience with nature?

Yes.

A chatbot can suggest hikes, parks, seasonal activities. It can create a nature scavenger list. It can identify plants or insects. But the real exploring happens when we go exploring.

Step outside digital reality into physical reality. Be spiritually present in the moment. Invite friends or family, but put your device away. When we step outside, we step into God’s classroom.

Nature teaches patience as seeds grow, humility as storms pass, and joy as sunlight warms the earth. These lessons are not downloaded, they’re lived. As we reverence in and care for creation, we honor the Creator. Every breath of fresh, crisp air can spark gratitude. Intentionally choose moments that gladden the heart and lift the soul.

Technology can inform us, but without the Spirit, it cannot transform our nature or our being.

Let us wisely use AI and technology tools to deepen faith and spiritual understanding, strengthen relationships and families, and instill reverence and gratitude for God’s creations.

 

Faith, Dignity, and Human Flourishing: Hearing God's Voice in an Age of Artificial Intelligence Elder Gerrit W. Gong June 7, 2026.

they are evidence that He loves you enough to refine and strengthen you

 Brothers and sisters, your proving and strengthening may not look like Moroni’s or Jacob’s or the Prophet Joseph’s. But it will come. It may come quietly, through the trials of family life. It may come through illness or disappointment or grief or loneliness.

I bear witness that these moments are not evidence that the Lord has abandoned you. Rather, they are evidence that He loves you enough to refine and strengthen you. He is making you strong enough to carry the weight of eternal life.

If we remain faithful in our service, the Lord will refine us. He will strengthen us. And one day we will look back and see that those very trials were evidence of His love. We will see that He was shaping us to be able to stand with Him in glory. As the Lord’s Apostle Paul stated at the end of his own life, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

I testify that God knows you. He knows the trials you face. He is with you. He will not forsake you. I testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is our strength, our Redeemer, our hope. If we trust Him, He will make our spiritual power equal to every trial we are called to bear. I so testify in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Proved and Strengthened in Christ

October 2025

General Conference

Henry B. Eyring

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/10/47eyring?lang=eng&verse=#p

God Cherishes Life...As Disciples of Jesus Christ, We Cherish Life.

 the diminishing love for unborn children worldwide is a grave concern. God cherishes life. It is His work and His glory to bring immortality and eternal life to His children. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we cherish life.

Cherishing Life

April 2025

General Conference

Neil L. Andersen

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2025/04/21andersen?lang=eng&verse=#p

You will never be happier than you are grateful.

Ever since that day, I have thanked Heavenly Father morning and night for my ability to breathe. We are surrounded by innumerable blessings that we can easily take for granted if we are not mindful. Conversely, when nothing is expected and everything is appreciated, life becomes magical.

President Nelson has said: “Each new morning is a gift from God. Even the air we breathe is a loving loan from Him. He preserves us from day to day and supports us from one moment to another. Therefore, our first noble deed of the morning should be a humble prayer of gratitude.”

That brings me to my fifth and final observation, which is you will never be happier than you are grateful.

Hallmarks of Happiness

October 2023

General Conference

Gary B. Sabin

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2023/10/31sabin?lang=eng&verse=#p

Life, after all, is made up of little things.

 Let us not think that, because some [things] … seem small and trivial, [that] they are unimportant. Life, after all, is made up of little things. Our life, our being, physically, is made up of little heart beats. Let that little heart stop beating, and life in this world ceases. The great sun is a mighty force in the universe, but we receive the blessings of [its] rays because they come to us as little beams, which, taken in the aggregate, fill the whole world with sunlight. The dark night is made pleasant by the glimmer of what seem to be little stars; and so the true Christian life is made up of little Christ-like acts performed this hour, this minute—in the home” 

(Teachings of Presidents of the Church: David O. McKay [2003], 219)

It is a wondrous journey to be wheat among the tares, sometimes fraught with heartache but always calmed by the maturing and assuring settling of our faith

 We are all “children of the covenant” stretching across the earth in nations and cultures on every continent, numbering in the millions, as we await the glorious return of our Lord and Savior. Shining as a light to those around us, we consciously shape our desires, thoughts, choices, and actions. Seeking with all our heart to know and love the Savior, we separate ourselves from the world through covenants with God, being distinct, uncommon, and special, as we honor Him and His teachings without isolating ourselves from others who believe differently.

It is a wondrous journey to be wheat among the tares, sometimes fraught with heartache but always calmed by the maturing and assuring settling of our faith. As you allow your love for the Savior and His love for you to sink deep into your heart, I promise you added confidence, peace, and joy in meeting the challenges of your life. And the Savior promises us: “I [will] gather together my people, according to the parable of the wheat and the tares, that the wheat may be secured in the garners to possess eternal life, and be crowned with celestial glory.”

Drawing Closer to the Savior

October 2022

General Conference

Neil L. Andersen

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/35andersen?lang=eng&verse=#p

But wherever you are going and however you work through your challenges in getting there, I ask you to come unto the Savior, Jesus Christ, as the imperative first step in getting to your personal destination

 Some of you are where you want to be, or you at least know where you want to go with your lives. Some of you seem to have many blessings and wonderful choices ahead of you. Others of you feel, for a time and for whatever reason, less fortunate and with fewer attractive paths lying immediately ahead.

But wherever you are going and however you work through your challenges in getting there, I ask you to come unto the Savior, Jesus Christ, as the imperative first step in getting to your personal destination, in finding your individual happiness and strength, and in achieving your ultimate destiny and success (see 1 Nephi 10:18; 2 Nephi 26:33; Omni 1:26; Doctrine and Covenants 18:11).

All of that can be yours if the answer to the question “Where goest thou?” (Moses 4:15) is “Wherever you are, Lord.”

Pursuing the Fulness of Christ

April 2021

2021

Jeffrey R. Holland

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2021/04/pursuing-the-fulness-of-christ?lang=eng&verse=#p

The gospel story is a family story—nothing more, nothing less.

The gospel story is a family story—nothing more, nothing less. It begins with heavenly parents, and it ends with children making their way through the sometimes exhilarating, sometimes overwhelming challenges of mortality and back to their heavenly home, having received all of the essential ordinances of eternal exaltation.

That’s the story of our lives. God has given us the outline, but He leaves it up to us to flesh out the details through our choices and faithfulness. There is an extraordinarily happy ending in store for all who desire it. But before we can claim it, we have to become more than just His children—we have to become His disciples.

  The Essential Role of Women, Liahona March 2021, M. Russell Ballard

Partner with the Lord and Balance in Our Lives

Life Balance

Right Amount of Attention to the Important Things

Dilema of Our Whole Life

Huntsman Chemical Corporation

Business of your life

Start Your Morning Prayer,  Heavenly Father Please Help me Today,  I have this and this and this

43:45  to 46:03

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bPHrZwILFk&t=2625s

Who would I be angry with? Heavenly Father is in this with me; I am not alone. He is with me all the time.

I’ve known Pat for many years and recently told her that I admired the fact that she is always positive and happy. She responded, “Well, you have not been at home with me, have you? I have my moments. I’ve had rather severe bouts of depression, and I’ve cried a lot.” However, she added, “From the time I started losing my sight, it was strange, but I knew that Heavenly Father and the Savior were with my family and me. We handled it the best way we could, and in my opinion, we handled it the right way. I have ended up being a successful enough person, and generally I have been a happy person. I remember His hand being in everything. To those who ask me if I am angry because I am blind, I respond, ‘Who would I be angry with? Heavenly Father is in this with me; I am not alone. He is with me all the time.’”

Answers to Prayer

April 2019

General Conference

Brook P. Hales

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/04/13hales?lang=eng&verse=#p

We can replace the word cancer with any of the other physical, mental, or emotional ailments we may face. Because of the Resurrection, they have already been cured too.

Each of us has physical, mental, and emotional limitations and weaknesses. These challenges, some of which seem so intractable now, will eventually be resolved. None of these problems will plague us after we are resurrected. Alisa researched survival rates for persons with the type of cancer she had, and the numbers were not encouraging. She wrote: “But there is a cure, so I’m not scared. Jesus has already cured my cancer, and yours. ... I will be better. I’m glad I know this.”

We can replace the word cancer with any of the other physical, mental, or emotional ailments we may face. Because of the Resurrection, they have already been cured too. The miracle of resurrection, the ultimate cure, is beyond the power of modern medicine. But it is not beyond the power of God. We know it can be done because the Savior is resurrected and will bring to pass the Resurrection of each of us too.

And There Shall Be No More Death April 2016 General Conference Elder Paul V. Johnson

Connecting Dots...Commit To Doing the Easy Things, Pefectly!

Connecting the Dots

One of the great innovators of our time, Steve Jobs of Apple, had this insight: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”

What did he mean by that? In the late 19th century, artists such as Georges Seurat and Paul Signac began painting in a new style that would become known as neo-impressionism. Their technique consisted of dotting canvases with small specks of color. Close up, these dots appear unconnected and random. But when you take in the entire painting, you can see how the dots blend into colors and how the colors form shapes that reveal a beautiful pattern. What once seemed arbitrary and even confusing begins to make sense.

Sometimes our lives are like neo-impressionistic art. The dots of color that make up the moments and events of our days can appear unconnected and chaotic at times. We can’t see any order to them. We can’t imagine that they have a purpose at all.

However, when we step back and take an eternal perspective, when we look at our lives in the frame of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we can begin to see how the various dots in our lives interconnect. We may not be able to see the entire picture just yet, but with patience we can see enough to trust that there is a beautiful, grand design. And as we strive to trust God and follow His Son, Jesus Christ, one day we will see the finished product, and we will know that the very hand of God was directing and guiding our steps.

We will know that the Master Artist had a plan for those random dots all along. We will see that He amplified our talents, prepared opportunities, and introduced us to possibilities far more glorious than we ever could have imagined or accomplished on our own. I have certainly seen this in my own life....

Don’t get overwhelmed by the many large, difficult tasks of life. If you commit to doing the “easy” things—the “small” things God asks you to do—and you do them as perfectly as you can, big things will follow.

Some of these small and easy things you could do perfectly are study the scriptures, live the Word of Wisdom, attend church, pray with real intent, and pay tithes and offerings.

Do these things even when you don’t want to. These “sacrifices” may appear to be small, but they are important, for “sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven.”

In a sense, your small and simple sacrifices are the dots of daily living that make up the masterpiece painting of your life. You may not see how the dots connect now, and you don’t need to yet. Simply have faith enough for the moment you are living in now. Trust in God, and “out of small things [will come] that which is great.”

Your Adventure through Mortality

March 2019

Ensign

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Your Adventure through Mortality

March 2019

Ensign

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

As You Incline Your Hearts to Him...He Will Intervene in Your Life and Direct Your Path

My purpose is to offer my certain witness that your Father in Heaven knows you, hears you, and will never abandon you. As you incline your hearts to Him and strive to follow His way, He will intervene in your life and direct your path as you journey through this great and exciting adventure of mortality.

Your Adventure through Mortality

March 2019

Ensign

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

I Have Given You [These Challenges] That You Might Teach My People with Authenticity

 “I was doing some pensive pondering and these 13 instructive and reassuring words came into my mind: ‘I have given you leukemia that you might teach my people with authenticity.’” He then went on to express how this experience had blessed him with “perspective about the great realities of eternity. … Such glimpses of eternity can help us to travel the next 100 yards, which may be very difficult.”

Lift Up Your Head and Rejoice, October 2018 General Conference, M. Joseph Brough

Energy is always required to provide lift over opposing forces

Energy is always required to provide lift over opposing forces. These same laws apply in our personal lives. Whenever an undertaking is begun, both the energy and the will to endure are essential. The winner of a five-kilometer race is declared at the end of five kilometers, not at one or two. If you board a bus to Boston, you don’t get off at Burlington. If you want to gain an education, you don’t drop out along the way—just as you don’t pay to dine at an elegant restaurant only to walk away after sampling the salad.

Whatever your work may be, endure at the beginning, endure through opposing forces along the way, and endure to the end. Any job must be completed before you can enjoy the result for which you are working.
Endure and Be Lifted Up, Russell M. Nelson, April 1997 General Conference

Genuine Discipleship Is a State of Being

Many people hear the word disciple and think it means only “follower.” But genuine discipleship is a state of being. This suggests more than studying and applying a list of individual attributes. Disciples live so that the characteristics of Christ are woven into the fiber of their beings, as into a spiritual tapestry....

We measure our faith by what it leads us to do—by our obedience. 


Becoming a Disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ, Robert D. Hales, April 2017 General Conference

The spirit of service is best taught at home.

The spirit of service is best taught at home. We must teach our children by example and tell them that an unselfish spirit is essential to happiness.

Boyd K. Packer, Called to Serve, October 1997 General Conference

We are waging a war with sin, my brothers and sisters, but we need not despair. It is a war we can and will win.

The world can at times be a frightening place in which to live. The moral fabric of society seems to be unraveling at an alarming speed. None—whether young or old or in-between—is exempt from exposure to those things which have the potential to drag us down and destroy us. Our youth, our precious youth, in particular, face temptations we can scarcely comprehend. The adversary and his hosts seem to be working nonstop to cause our downfall.

We are waging a war with sin, my brothers and sisters, but we need not despair. It is a war we can and will win. Our Father in Heaven has given us the tools we need in order to do so. He is at the helm. We have nothing to fear. He is the God of light. He is the God of hope. I testify that He loves us—each one.

Looking Back and Moving Forward, April 2008 General Conference, Thomas S. Monson

He Realized That He Could No Longer Sit Around Moping

I read the account of a young man who had experienced some severe personal trials. In the course of a few months his brother died, then he lost his job, and finally his girlfriend broke up with him. Although he was feeling misunderstood by his boss and somewhat betrayed by his girlfriend, he didn’t lose his faith. In fact, he prayed to the Lord for counsel because he really wanted to be happy.

After praying, he opened the scriptures, determined to act on whatever verse he found. The book fell open to section 88 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Almost immediately he recognized a call to action contained in these words of scripture:

Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated.

And above all things, clothe yourselves with the bond of charity. [D&C 88:124–25]

As the young man pondered this counsel and applied it to his own situation, he realized that he could no longer sit around moping. He needed to be anxiously engaged in a good cause, like finding another job—and another girlfriend. There was a lot about his life that he decided to change, including his sleeping habits. He also decided to begin to pray for the gift of charity. This timely advice helped him put the past behind him and look forward to the future.

Choose Happiness, Larry R. Lawrence, BYU Speeches Mar 08, 2016

Satan's Favorite Tool - The Wedge of Discouragement

All of us need a little cheering up sometimes. Book of Mormon readers are often surprised when they come to the chapter in which Nephi was grieving over his imperfections. He expressed himself in these words: “O wretched man that I am!” (2 Nephi 4:17). Most of us on a good day wish we could be as “wretched” as Nephi. His sorrowful lament makes us wonder, “Why do good people—even prophets like Nephi—occasionally feel discouraged and unworthy?”

Let me tell you a fable about the devil that offers some perspective.10 The story goes that Satan went into his garage one day and noticed that everything was a complete mess. He couldn’t find what he was looking for because there were so many rusty tools lying around cluttering up the place.

Satan decided on a solution. He would have a garage sale. He cleaned up his old tools and offered them at a discount price for other devils to purchase. Some tools sold right away—for example, the hammer of hatred, the wrench of fear, and the clamp of addiction. They were very popular items.

When he was asked why he was selling off so many of his tools, Satan explained that he had decided to concentrate all of his personal efforts on bringing down the Latter-day Saints. He preferred to use his favorite tool on them. What do you think it was?

It was the wedge of discouragement. Satan boasted about it, saying, “With this one tool I can inflict major damage on the faithful. Discouragement works wonders every time—even when nothing else will. It can bring misery to the most conscientious souls—those who are striving to keep the commandments.”

Then Satan, using his favorite tool, went about whispering lies. To the humble followers of Christ he said, “You are worthless,” “You never do anything right,” “Give up,” “No one cares about you,” and “You can never change.” Sadly, many good people believed him.

There is a lesson to be learned from this fable. The devil specializes in discouraging the faithful and those who are trying to repent. For that very reason, Church members must continually lift and encourage each other.

Don’t forget that Satan wants all men to be “in misery, like unto himself” (2 Nephi 9:9). Jesus, on the other hand, wants men and women to “receive a fulness of joy” (D&C 138:17).

In summary, Jesus votes for us, Satan votes against us, and we cast the deciding vote. It is my prayer that each of us will use our agency to choose happiness.

Choose Happiness, Larry R. Lawrence, BYU Speeches Mar 08, 2016