Last weekend I had the opportunity to watch the General Conference of my church. There were so many great lessons taught. I am grateful for the opportunity we have twice a year to sit at the feet of prophets and to learn from them.
Many of the talks spoke to me and to the things I'm going through right now, but the talk that spoke to me the most was President Dieter F. Uchdorf's from the Priesthood session (the session that only men attend).
Here are three quotes from his talk on patience that I loved.
"Patience, the ability of put our desires on hold for a time, is a precious and rare virtue. We want what we want and we want it now. Therefore the very idea of patience may seem unpleasant and at times bitter. Nevertheless, without patience we cannot please God. We cannot become perfect. Indeed, patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, depends happiness, focuses attention and offers hope for peace."
"Patience [is] far more that simply waiting for something to happen. Patience require[s] actively working toward worthwhile goals and not getting discouraged when results [don't] appear instantly or without effort. There's an important concept here. Patience is not passive resignation. Nor is it failing to act because of our fears. Patience means active waiting and enduring. It means staying with something and doing all that we can, working, hoping and exercising faith, bearing all hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of our hearts are delayed. Patience is not simply enduring. It is enduring well."
"Knowledge and understanding come at the price of patience. Often the deep valleys of our present will only be understood by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience. Often we can't see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after our trials have passed. Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way for future opportunities, understanding and happiness."
The last five minutes or so of this talk are also wonderful, and very quote-worthy, but much to long to transcribe here. If you'd like to watch the talk in its entirety, follow this link. At the bottom of the screen click on "Priesthood" and then scroll across to President Uchtdorf's talk. It's about 20 minuts long, but it's very illuminating. Incidentally I also really enjoyed and felt inspired by his Sunday AM talk. It was amazing! If you want to listen to it follow the link above, click on "Sunday AM" and scroll over until you find President Uchtdorf's talk. It's really beautiful!
I don't usually get religious on my blog. But right now I feel very close to God. I know He knows me. He knows my troubles. I know that Jesus Christ suffered for me. He has experienced the anguish that I now feel, and I feel his love as he lifts the sadness from my heart and helps me to move forward. President Uchdorf's words are inspired and true. Patience is not an easy thing, but it is necessary for our growth. We need to have patience to be able to grow closer to our Father in Heaven and to align our will with His. I am grateful for this knowledge. I am grateful for the wonderful men who lead and guide the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints according to the will of God.
