President Russell M. Nelson (born Sept 9, 1924) was an internationally-renowned heart surgeon when he was called to serve as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1984. He became president of that quorum on July 15, 2015. Following the death of President Monson, he was set apart as president of the Church on January 14, 2018.
"Our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, will perform some of His mightiest works between now and when He comes again. We will see miraculous indications that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, preside over this Church in majesty and glory. But in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.
"My beloved brothers and sisters, I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation. Let this Easter Sunday be a defining moment in your life. Choose to do the spiritual work required to enjoy the gift of the Holy Ghost and hear the voice of the Spirit more frequently and more clearly.
"With Moroni, I exhort you on this Easter Sabbath to 'come unto Christ, and lay hold upon every good gift' (Moroni 10:30), beginning with the gift of the Holy Ghost, which gift can and will change your life."
- Russell M. Nelson, "Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives," General Conference April 2018
Click here to read or listen to the full talk
This was among the profound moments of the recent conference for me. President Nelson's talk at the conclusion of the Sunday morning session was full of insight and inspiration. But this section near the conclusion was spine-tingling as we were given a prophetic glimpse into the future, and a call to prepare:
So while we anticipate the "mighty works" to come, providing us "miraculous indications" of God's involvement in the affairs of the earthly kingdom, we know also that there will be challenges to our faith and faithfulness. We will require the "constant influence of the Holy Ghost" to "survive spiritually." The Holy Ghost will help us to see and understand those "miraculous indications"—otherwise, we will likely overlook them or dismiss them as unimportant.
What a moving thing, to have the Lord's prophet plead with us to seek to grow in our "spiritual capacity to receive revelation." If we want to "hear the voice of the Spirit more frequently and more clearly" then we must "do the spiritual work required to enjoy the gift of the Holy Ghost." What have we done in the two weeks since this call was issued to respond to it? What will we do in the coming weeks and months?
(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2018)
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