18 WAYS TO GET THE MOST OUT OF GENERAL CONFERENCE

(By Ty Harmon)

General conference is coming!!  Now, depending on your relationship with it, that sentence could evoke either a "Yay!!" or an "Ugh..." reaction.

Having grown up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, General Conference has always been a big deal in my home.  As a boy I was always strongly encouraged to sit and watch a session or two during "conference weekend." And I'll admit, as a kid I wasn't always very excited to sit and listen as old men droned on and on for what seemed like forever.

As I've matured, I've grown to love it, to understand and appreciate its purpose and relevance to me personally, and it went from being a tolerable drudgery to actually becoming a highly anticipated and incredibly fulfilling experience. But it's  taken years and years for me to develop that perspective.

Now, as a parent of two girls and two boys I find it absolutely indispensable.  So much so, that I have tried really hard to make General Conference a special event in our home. I want my kids to look forward to it the way I do now, and not to dread it the way I did as a kid. I want them to understand why it's important to our family and how it can make our lives better.  How it can protect us, bring us closer as a family and help us get back to our Father in Heaven.

Regardless of when you decide to read this, General Conference is right around the corner. I can say that because it happens every 6 months. And thank heavens it does, because the world needs the inspiring and revelatory words of the Lord through his servants now more than ever to guide us through these turbulent times.  These are truly the last days!

Unless you've been living under a rock, you too have watched in horror as hurricane after hurricane has pummeled the south-eastern states and the Caribbean.  Earthquakes have ravished multiple parts of the world, fires rage on the Pacific coast and tornadoes rip through cities and towns on the plains.  There are droughts here and floods there.  It's enough to make one stock his shelves and drop to his knees and repent... Well, hopefully.

And these are just Mother Nature's physical manifestations of the signs of the times. As a parent of 4 children, every single day gets more precarious with how my children are influenced in the world. 

Music is saturated with immoral messages and vulgar language. Movies and videogames are robbing our children of their innocence, purity and productivity.  In short, there has never been a time in history when Satan has worked harder to lead mankind away from God.

Fortunately, just like he did for the Jaredites, who were tossed about in their tight dish-like ships and often swallowed up in the depths of the ocean on their way to the promised land, our loving Heavenly Father has provided a light in the darkness. He has given us words of wisdom, counsel, and comfort amid the tumultuous and confusing events of these latter days. And he does this through his servants, the prophets, apostles and other general authorities in General Conference.

Now, going back to those reactions of "Yay!!" and "Ugh..."

Whether you already love conference or you just want to not dread it, I pray the following list of suggestions will help you get more out of it.

1- Think of specific questions you want answered:

It is much easier for the Spirit to teach us when we are proactively seeking to learn. When you watch, read or listen to talks from General Conference with specific questions in mind (and I recommend no more than one or two questions at a time at the very most), you are humbling yourself to hear the answers that you need. Your humility and desire to learn, coupled with the Spirit's ability to teach perfectly will result in answers that you need... Truth.

2- Get rid of unnecessary distractions:

Life doesn't stop just because General Conference is on. From kids needing breakfast to incessant incoming texts and phone calls, it's hard to achieve true focus for an entire talk, let alone an entire session. But most of life's distractions can be mitigated with a little preparation and proactivity, even if only for short time.

I'm not saying you need to cut the world out entirely, but all of us could afford to pay a little more attention to the valuable and timely words of the prophet. Impossible you say?  Too many things competing for your attention?  Well, perhaps we can take some literal advice from the scriptures here.

In Mosiah 2:6, Benjamin, the king and prophet, addressed his people from atop a tower near the temple, and we read that the people pitched their tents with their doors toward the temple so they could hear him from within their tents.

The image this conjures in my mind feels like a combination of General Conference and camping. And there's no better place to get away from technological interruptions than camping! Perhaps in this case, we can, and should, take scriptures literally. Put up a tent in your family room with the door towards the television while General Conference is on. Heck, this could even be a fun new family tradition! While in that tent, power down. Turn OFF (not silence) cell phones, laptops, tablets and other distracting devices. Get up early enough to have breakfast together before conference begins.

If, after trying any or all of the aforementioned tactics, you still find yourself getting interrupted to the point of being unable to get anything out of the talks & music, relax...  You can always read, listen to or watch it again when things settle down around you a bit.

As fun as putting up a tent in your living room just to watch general conference sounds, the suggestion (although it can be taken literally) is intended to be metaphorical.  Your "tent" is what matters to you; it's your responsibilities, interests and concerns. The "door" to that "tent" is your attention. When your attention is directed at the Prophet, it will be easy to let the proper content into your "tent."

In short, when you can, cut out the distractions, and give the Lord a chance to speak to you with your full attention.

3- Anticipate and talk about General Conference as a family:

I have found that the more I anticipate something, the more of an impact it has on my life, when an event is preceded by much anticipation the event tends to become larger in our minds. We attach feelings and emotions to it, we assign a value to it in relation to the amount of time, energy and preparation we'll be investing in it, and we tend to be better prepared for it.

Because General Conference happens every six months, we have ample time to prepare for and anticipate it. One of the best ways I know of to do this is to discuss it during family meal times and family home evenings. We can ask our children what they know about it, what they like and dislike about it. We can help them identify their own questions that can be answered in conference and we can demonstrate our own enthusiasm for it.  If we've done this well, by the time General Conference weekend arrives, the whole family can be anxious for it to begin!

4- Listen carefully:

We can only hear with our ears but there are several ways to listen. One can listen with their mind and one can listen with their heart.  I recommend both.

Another way to describe listening with your heart is to listen with your spirit.  Your spirit is much more sensitive to truth than your mind is.  When we listen - I mean really listen - we open ourselves to other perspectives, possibilities and paradigms.  We allow ourselves to be taught, influenced, and molded.  

When you watch or listen to General Conference talks, listen to it as though you will be teaching the principles you hear.  Eventually, you probably will.

5- Take notes:

I always take notes whenever I'm in a meeting or class.  I write down what I hear the speaker say and I write down the impressions I received from my mind and from the Spirit.  

I highly recommend note-taking during general conference.  Some people even keep a journal for just this type of thing. It's a great idea.  I also recommend identifying ahead of time WHY you are taking notes. Perhaps it is to remember what was said or to capture what is prompted. Or maybe it is even to teach to someone else later.

Take notes as though you will be using them as bullet points in a future talk or discussion. Having this mindset will help you to absorb and retain more information.

6- Review previous General Conference talks:

The just like the prelude music before sacrament meeting can set the tone for a good, spirit-filled experience, so too, can listening to or reading a talk or two the week leading up to Conference help prepare you for General Conference.

Sometimes, just going through the material of another conference talk prior to watching conference live can open my mind to other things I hadn't thought to listen for.

7- Express gratitude:

The scriptures tell us that "...in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things..." (D&C 59:21)

As saints living in the Latter-Days, we have the unique privilege of hearing regularly from, and even sustaining, a living prophet.  As a people, we often sing the words "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet," but do we thank Heavenly Father personally, and in private?

I do a lot for my kids. I wake them up and get them ready for school, I feed them and clothe them. I help them with their homework and drive them to their friends houses. I know they appreciate it. I know it because I know them. They're good kids.  They're respect full and appreciative most of the time. But still, there's nothing quite like being told by your children how grateful they are for what you do. Knowing it is probably sufficient, after all, because I love them I would probably do it even if they weren't very appreciative.  But hearing them express their thanks, their gratitude, is music to my ears. It is the icing on the cake, and what keeps me doing things for them with a good attitude.

Heavenly Father knows whether we are grateful or not, but it's important to express our gratitude to him for all the things he does. The fact that we have a living prophet today through whom we receive direction and instruction, is a pretty big deal, and definitely something for which we should give Him thanks.

It's not uncommon for people to be thankful, to BE grateful. And yet, somehow missed the simple but important step of expressing it.  Expressing your own personal gratitude for the privilege of hearing prophetic council on a regular basis will help prepare you mentally for more of it.

8- Open you're heart and your mind to all the speakers and topics of Conference:

If you're anything like me, you have your favorite General conference speakers. There are some general authorities who just have a knack for delivering power and importance directly into our hearts and minds. There's certainly nothing wrong with having your favorites. Remember, though, that the Lord decides who speaks in conference, and it is his message being declared regardless of who has been invited to deliver it in conference.

If, as sometimes happens, you have difficulty connecting with a speaker because of their particular style of presentation, personality type or you have a hard time deciphering their words through a thick foreign accent, let me encourage you to go back and read that which has been spoken after conferences over. The Lords words are there and they are all important.

Let's face it, personal revelation can sometimes seem to come out of left field. And you never know what kinds of things you will be prompted to do, or stop doing, when you watch General Conference.

There are many times when I've watch conference and heard one of the brother in telling a story and, suddenly to my mind comes a completely unrelated prompting.

What's being said is never quite as important as my intent to learn from the Spirit.  I showed up. I prepared. I humbled myself and I want to learn.  I'm watching general conference with the intent to be instructed.  At this point, the rest is up to the Spirit, and he may or may not use a talk to deliver his message.  Perhaps all the Spirit needs is the environment of a prepared teacher and a listening student.

Then, what's probably equally important, is what you do with instruction you receive.  Act on promptings and you're sure to get more. Ignore promptings and you risk cutting off communication with your Father in Heaven.

9- Get good rest before & during Conference:

I think this one is pretty self-explanatory but let me just say this... It's one thing to not get enough sleep and then have to go to work the next day and HAVE TO perform. Anybody can make that happen. You have to. It's your job.

But it's another thing entirely to not get enough sleep and then try to stay awake through General conference. Number one, there's no paycheck motivating you to keep watching even though you're exhausted. Number two, you're comfortable and at home. Number three, and let's face it, it's not exactly hard to fall asleep in conference.  Comfortable at home is, well, comfortable... and at HOME!  What better place for an unintentional nap??

All things being equal, the better-rested person is going to have the easier time staying awake.  This isn't just about staying awake though. It's about getting the most out of your experience. It's about being alert and receptive. And when you're groggy and cloudy, the spirit is going to have a much more difficult time teaching you what you need to know.

10- Don't try to multi-task during Conference:

First of all, let's be clear… Human beings can not multi-task. Not really. When you do two things at the same time your attention really is only on one of those two things at any given moment. It may be back and forth quickly enough to be able to accomplish two tasks simultaneously, but that doesn't mean your attention is on both.  In reality, your actual attention is unidirectional.

I always laugh when someone says they need my "undivided attention," because a person's attention cannot be divided in the first place.  That is really a misnomer.  You can either focus on this or you can focus on that.  This is precisely why texting and driving is so dangerous. You may be texting AND driving at the same time, but your attention, your focus, is either on the text OR what's happening on the road.  As your eyes dart back-and-forth from your phone to the road, your thoughts focus on the phone. What you see in your split second glances at the road isn't registering in your brain the same way the screen of your phone is.

Now, having said that, we all know how precious Saturdays & Sundays are to working Latter-day Saints.  And conference can take up a lot of that precious time.  So why not get some things done while listening to conference, right?

Right.  Seriously, go for it.  If it's all you can do, it's certainly better than nothing, and you shouldn't feel bad about that.  It's certainly better to catch bits and pieces of talks while accomplishing a chore than missing conference entirely.

But when you're ready, really ready to devote your full attention to the message, there is simply no substitute for giving the words of the prophet your complete attention.  When your attention is fully engaged, the Spirit has no competition for your attention, and it can inspire, uplift, direct, teach, remind, prompt, comfort and touch you the way you need to be.

11- Decide (and list) why General Conference is important to you:

We're blessed in the Latter-days to have the opportunity to hear from a living prophet and apostles of Jesus Christ regularly.  But just being a member of the church doesn't necessarily give one an appreciation for this great blessing. Not everyone appreciates it the same way.  We're all progressing through life at different levels and at varying speeds.

Like anything else, there are people with all kinds of feelings about General Conference, all the way from those who can't wait to immerse themselves in it throughout the entire weekend, to those who consider it a welcome reason NOT to go to church without experiencing any guilt.  Most of us are somewhere in between those extremes.

You're reading this, which tells me you're probably (even if you don't want to admit it) closer to the "liking Conference" side of things.  But whether you love it, like it or just WANT to like it, it behooves you to ask yourself "WHY."  Why invest time in General Conference?  Not, "why does your Bishop invest in it" or "why does your family invest in it," but, rather, "why should YOU invest time in it?"  Why is General Conference important for you?  Only you can answer that question accurately.

12- Pray for help to learn from General Conference:

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." (James 1:5)

When Joseph Smith read those words, he discovered that, as the Source of truth and light, God has all the answers, and prayer was the way to access it.  It was the way to gain knowledge and help.

While He probably won't find a quiet activity for your noisy children to do, silence your cell phone, or prioritize your huge list of Saturday honey-do's so you can watch Conference, Heavenly Father just might HELP YOU do it all IF you ask him.  

He just might inspire you about where those quiet activities can be found.  He just might give you the courage to turn your phone off during a session.  He just might make your desire to watch Conference strong enough that you want to get up early enough to get  your whole Saturday's-worth of activities done and still squeeze in a session or two.

How do I know He'll help?  Because "...the Lord giveth no commandments into the children of men, save He shall prepare a way for them, that they may accomplish the thing which he hath commanded them." (1 Nephi 3:7).  The caveat, though, is that you have to ASK Him for help, and then put forth the effort to make it happen.  Help Him help you.

13- Share what you learn from General Conference with others:

Sharing is caring, right?  As disciples of Jesus Christ in the last days, it's our duty to share His gospel whenever, wherever and however we can.  And let's face it, in today's super-connected world, it couldn't be easier to share an idea with others.  There's an ocean of stuff out there to share, but if you're going to take the time to share something, why not make it something that is WORTH sharing?  Something that will enlighten, improve, uplift, or inspire someone else?  Sharing a scripture, a story, an entire talk, or a sound bite from General Conference couldn't be more virtuous, lovely, of good-report or praiseworthy... or sharable.

Sharing is a massive part of the human experience as it benefits both the giver and the receiver.  I know that for me, the extent to which I enjoy a good experience is greatly limited to my ability to share it with someone I care about.

 

14- Invite someone to watch Conference with you:

Whether it's a friend, a neighbor, a co-worker, or just your own family, watching Conference with someone else makes it a little more special and personal somehow.

A massive part of the human experience is based on experiencing it with others.  Experiencing something together brings people together.  I know that for me, the extent to which I enjoy a good experience is greatly limited to my ability to share it with someone I care about.  When we enjoy something, we want our loved ones to enjoy it too. Even though a song, a food or a ride at Disneyland could be enjoyed when you're by yourself, they are more enjoyable experienced with someone else. Sharing with someone else completes the experience.  Sharing an experience gives us common ground and unites us as we discuss our varied perceptions of it. 

And interestingly, the things we experience with others can speak volumes about us too. It's a reflection of us, in a way. The things we like, dislike and share become a type of collage that represents Who we are and when we share that collage we open ourselves to judgment, critique and also unity and belonging. There's a reason they say that birds of a feather flock together.

When you experience something with someone else, you send them a message that says the things you find important are worth sharing with them, and that makes them feel important too.

15- Participate in as many sessions as possible:

Attending just one session of General Conference is like attending just one meeting of a regular two-hour church block.  Although that's certainly better than nothing, it fails to deliver the full and intended purpose of the whole experience.

Men and boys (11 years and older) are encouraged to attend the Priesthood Session on Saturday evening.  Women and girls (8 and older) are encouraged to attend the Women's Session the weekend before General Conference.  And everyone is encouraged to participate in the other 2 Saturday sessions and the 3 Sunday sessions.

Each session has a range of speakers, and all of which are prayerfully selected.  None of the speakers are given a specific topic for which they should base their remarks.  Because He knows each one of us, and what each one of us need to learn, the Lord directs each speaker through revelation as he or she prayerfully seeks the will of the Lord.  When your sincere will to be instructed by the Lord is combined with His servant's earnest desire to deliver His will, the Spirit is unrestrained, and you can receive personal direction from heaven specifically for you.

The more sessions you participate in, the more likely you are to hear exactly what you need from Heavenly Father.

Participating in conference can go much further than just attendance too.  Whether your actually at the Conference Center or just watching the proceedings from your living room,

Taking notes, raising your hand to sustain newly called general authorities, 

16- Don't get too comfortable:

Thanks to the magic of the Internet and TV, we're blessed with the convenience of being able to watch or listen to Conference in the comfort of our own homes.  

Unless you're careful though, the comfort of your own home can be SO comfortable that you end up dozing or even full-on sawing logs through a talk... or an even entire session.  In his April 2017 talk, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf jokingly dubbed this "church sleeping ."

17- Create new traditions around General Conference:

Traditions are awesome.  Especially family traditions.  They make special occasions even more special.  They give us something to anticipate, participate in, and talk about together after the fact.

Over the years I've heard of some really great tradition ideas.  Eating a special breakfast, gathering with extended family, playing conference-related games, staying in PJs all day, doing service projects between sessions, etc.

When my oldest daughter was just 3 or 4 years old, we bought a brand new  sectional that could be configured in just about any layout you could imagine.  Of all the configurations we've put that couch into, by far, the family favorite was the "Mega-Couch" configuration.

"Mega-Couch" was special for two reasons.  First, because it meant pushing all the sections together into a single mass of cushions that resembled something closer to a king-sized bed with guard rails than a couch.

Secondly, it was special because it only happened twice per year - you guessed it, only during General Conference.

"Mega-Couch" was awesome because it gave us a place to watch General Conference while snuggling up together in pillows & blankets, eat snacks, color pictures of the prophet with crayons, or just take notes.  The whole family looked forward to it because it brought us closer, made General Conference fun, and was nearly as rare as Christmas.

18- Don't get overwhelmed:

Every spring and fall, as the first pipe organs begin to play in the conference center, I get an exhilarating rush of excitement for what is to come. 

I'm reminded of the 11-year-old Harry Potter walking into the great Hall at Hogwarts for the first time and, after having been sorted into Gryffindor, seeing the long tables magically become filled with an impossible amount of every food imaginable! Where does one start in on a massive assortment of everything good?

Although, to those who aren't familiar with the "smorgasbord of spirituality" that is the General Conference experience, I'd imagine it might seem like an overwhelming amount of content to "consume."

Although it is all present in one weekend, just like in an enormous feast on Thanksgiving Day, one cannot possibly consume all of it at one time. It isn't intended, or even possible, to be consumed all in one sitting!

Watch what you can.  Listen where you're able.  Take notes.  But above all, relax and ENJOY.

In his infinite wisdom, Heavenly Father has endowed our time with wonderful technologies that allow you to record and replay every talk, hymn and announcement of conference at YOUR  own convenience. What's better still, the life-changing promptings that God intends to give you, will still come whenever you access the content of General Conference, be that during a live session, or days, months or even years later.

General Conference is truly an opportunity to "feast on the word."  But if you, or someone you know, find the entirety of General conference a bit much to take in all in one weekend, relax, and remember that even when it comes to things of a spiritual nature, we must experience "all things in moderation."  Like any great feast, It isn't intended to be consumed all in one sitting. It's meant to be shared, enjoyed and, possibly portioned out to be enjoyed again later as leftovers.  Unlike leftovers, though, it won't dull in savor or expire over time. It can and should be experienced over and over again.