Last updated on March 9th, 2024 at 12:45 pm
General Conference Applied
“The Power of Jesus Christ in Our Lives Every Day” by Elder Joaquin E. Costa; October 2023 General Conference
Corresponding General Conference Applied episode show notes: S2 E23
Talk Outline
Invitations
“I have found that the source of that strength is faith in Jesus Christ as we intentionally seek to come unto Him each and every day.”
Directives (“an official or authoritative instruction”)
- “How do we begin exercising a little bit of faith every day? For me it begins in the morning: When I wake up, instead of looking at my phone, I say a prayer. Even a simple prayer. Then I read a scripture. This helps me with my weekly covenant that I make as I partake of the sacrament to ‘always remember him.’ When I begin my day with a prayer and a scripture, I can ‘remember Him’ when I do look at my phone.”
- “Our covenants are not merely transactional; they are transformational.”
- “Intentionally remembering Jesus Christ always is powerful.”
- “When Elder Soares visited Argentina last June and asked Flavia about her tragic accident, she faithfully replied, ‘I experienced turmoil, bitterness, anger, and hate when [this happened]. Something that helped me was not to ask, ‘why me?’ but ‘what for?’ … This was something that brought me closer to others and the Lord. … Instead of distancing myself from Him, I had to cling to Him.'”
Promises
- Action: “When our pain or the pain of someone we love is so much that we can’t bear it, remembering Jesus Christ and coming unto Him”
Promise: “can lighten the burden, soften the heart, and ease the pain.” - Action: “Trusting God and keeping our covenants with Him”
Promise: “bring power to our weakness and comfort to our grief.” - Promise: “I know that He stands ready to endow us with His power”
Action: “if we come to Him each and every day.”
Doctrines
Atonement of Jesus Christ: “Jesus Christ was the only one capable of making a perfect Atonement. His Atonement included His suffering for our sins in the Garden of Gethsemane, His death on the cross, and His Resurrection from the tomb. In addition to suffering for our sins, He also took upon Himself our pains, sicknesses, and infirmities (see Alma 7:11–13). Jesus Christ overcame physical and spiritual death. Because of His Atonement, everyone will be resurrected (see 1 Corinthians 15:20–22). Those who repent, obey the commandments, receive the saving ordinances, and keep their covenants will receive the gift of eternal life (see Articles of Faith 1:3).”
Principles
The Life of Christ: “Jesus taught: ‘Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you’ (John 15:13–14). He willingly and humbly went through the sorrow in Gethsemane and the suffering on the cross so we could receive all the blessings of the plan of salvation. To receive these blessings, we must come unto Him, repent of our sins, and love Him with all our hearts.”
Christlike Attributes
Hope: “Your ultimate source of hope is Jesus Christ. The prophet Mormon asked, ‘What is it that ye shall hope for?’ He then answered, ‘Ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise’ (Moroni 7:41; see verses 40–43).
“As you center your hope in Christ, you have the assurance that all things will work together for your good (see Doctrine and Covenants 90:24). This assurance helps you persevere with faith when you face trials. It can also help you grow from trials and develop spiritual resilience and strength. Hope in Christ provides an anchor for your soul (see Ether 12:4).”
Attribute Activity
- “One of my greatest desires is to inherit eternal life in the celestial kingdom. (Moroni 7:41)”
- “I am confident that I will have a happy and successful mission. (Doctrine and Covenants 31:3–5)”
- “I feel peaceful and optimistic about the future. (Doctrine and Covenants 59:23)”
- “I believe that someday I will dwell with God and become like Him. (Ether 12:4)”
Most Important Quote
“One of the mistakes we often make is to think that keeping covenants, or the promises we make to God, is somehow a transaction we make with Him: I obey, and He protects me from anything bad ever happening to me. I pay my tithing, and I will never lose my job or the fire will not burn my house. But then when things don’t go as we expected, we cry unto the Lord, ‘Carest thou not that I perish?’
“Our covenants are not merely transactional; they are transformational. Through my covenants I receive sanctifying, strengthening power of Jesus Christ, which allows me to become a new person, to forgive what seems unforgivable, to overcome the impossible. Intentionally remembering Jesus Christ always is powerful; it gives me added strength to ‘keep his commandments which he has given [me].’ It helps me to be nicer, to smile for no reason, to be a peacemaker, to avoid conflict, to let God prevail in my life.
“When our pain or the pain of someone we love is so much that we can’t bear it, remembering Jesus Christ and coming unto Him can lighten the burden, soften the heart, and ease the pain.”
Powerful Stories
“We have seen the manifestation of the Savior’s power in a widow who lost her husband while they were on the Lord’s errand in Bolivia. We have seen it in a young woman in Argentina who fell under a train and lost her leg, just because someone wanted to steal her cell phone. And in her single father, who now must pick up the pieces and strengthen his daughter after such an unexplainable act of cruelty. We have seen it in the families that lost their homes and every possession during fires in Chile just two days before Christmas in 2022.”
The Best Footnote
Footnote 3: “See “Elder Soares Tells Global Faith Leaders That Human Dignity Is a Constant in a Changing World,” June 9, 2023, newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.”
Questions for Reflection Asked by the Speaker
- “What gives them the power to go through hard things? What gives an extra layer of strength to go on when everything seems lost?”
- “How do we begin exercising a little bit of faith every day?”
- “Did the Lord expect them to use their faith to calm the storm? To rebuke the winds?”
Tags
Adversity | Dedication | Faith | Jesus Christ
Additional Content
Previous Talk Outline (“We Are His Children” by Elder Christophe G. Giraud-Carrier)