Conference Maximus…

Albert Bertha
Apr 4
7 min read

We had three multi-zone conferences this week with all the missionaries. I did not have to worry about a presentation. I was focused on money and bikes; Sandy was making beads for sisters, managing food, and cleaning everywhere we went. I appreciate that she will not let me catch anything. After shaking a few hands, she is always there with hand sanitizer for me.

I spoke with a good friend this week who is a seeker of truth. He studies the Bible and has learned Hebrew to understand it better. He has started reading the Book of Mormon as a gift to me for serving my mission. He told me he was going to go to church this weekend for the first time…I laughed because he would have gone and found an empty building. Twice a year we have General Conference when we watch the apostles and leaders of the church on TV on Saturday and Sunday. So I invited him to take the liberty of not going to church this weekend and watching Conference on TV. His first church visit can wait for another time…

It is on regular TV here in Ghana. Or you can watch it on YouTubeTV or stream it on www.ChurchofJesusChrist.org. 9am and 1pm Pacific Standard. That is 4pm and 8pm in Ghana if you want to know when we will be watching it.

Cliff Notes from the last conference in October 2024:

“Faith is beautiful because it persists even when blessings don't come as hoped for. We can't see the future, we don't know all the answers, but we can trust Jesus Christ as we keep moving forward and upward because He is our Savior and Redeemer.”

-DIETER F. UCHTDORF

“Mortality works! It is designed to work! Despite the challenges, heartaches, and difficulties we all face, our loving, wise, and perfect Heavenly Father has designed the plan of happiness such that we are not destined to fail.”

-BROOK P. HALES

“There is no pain, no sickness, no injustice, no suffering, nothing that can darken our hope as we believe and hold tightly to our covenants with God in the house of the Lord. It is a house of light, a house of hope.”

-NEIL L. ANDERSEN

“Being filled with God's love shields us in life's storms but also makes the happy moments happier. Our joyful days, when there is sunshine in the sky, are made even brighter by the

sunshine in our soul.”

-KARL D. HIRST

“The Church is simply ordinary people, disciples of Jesus Christ, gathered and organized into a divinely appointed structure that helps the Lord accomplish His purposes.”

-DALE G. RENLUND

“When we find it difficult to understand or embrace God's will, it is comforting to remember that He loves us as we are, wherever we are. And He has something better for us. If we reach out to Him, He will assist us.”

-DAVID P. HOMER

“We can provide a sense of joy that is reflected in our countenance; a joy that we share with words of love and acts of kindness. Let us be good neighbors, good employers, and good workers. Let us strive to be good Christians at all times.”

-GREGORIO E. CASILLAS

“We need to love and do good to all. We need to avoid contention and be peacemakers in all our communications. This does not mean to compromise our principles and priorities, but to cease harshly attacking others for theirs. That is what our Perfect Role Model did in His ministry. That is the example He set for us, as He invited us to follow Him.”

-DALLIN H. OAKS

“When it comes to matters of salvation and eternal life, our theme song ought to be, "I did it God's way," because truly there is no other way.”

-D. TODD CHRISTOFFERSON

“As we reach out to Him in faith, He will always be there, and in His time, He will be ready and willing to grasp our hands and pull us up to the safe place.”

-JUAN PABLO VILLAR

“Even as the storms of life in an often troubled world pound upon us, we can cultivate a growing and abiding sense of joy and inner peace because of our hope in Christ and our understanding of our own place in the beautiful plan of happiness.”

-PATRICK KEARON

“Our unique gifts and talents that differentiate us in a secular world unite us in a sacred space. The Savior has called upon us to help one another, lift one another, and edify each other.”

-DAVID L. BUCKNER

“When we are receptive to the guidance of the still, small voice, we are better equipped to more effectively minister to those in need.”

-D. MARTIN GOURY

“Ours is a gospel of joy and

holiness in everyday life.”

-GERRIT W. GONG

“The Lord is not done with us when we make a mistake, nor does He flee when we falter. Our need for healing and help is not a burden to Him, but the very reason He came.”

-KRISTIN M. YEE

“For all the beautiful truths we might learn from that First Vision, perhaps Joseph's main takeaway was simply, "I had found the testimony of James to be true-that a man who lacked wisdom might ask of God, and obtain."

-KYLE S. MCKAY

“Let us not wait for things to get hard before turning to God. Let us not wait until the end of our mortal life to truly repent. Instead, let us now, no matter which part of the covenant path we are on, focus on the redemptive power of Jesus Christ and on Heavenly Father's desire for us to return to Him.”

JORGE M. ALVARADO

“Please remember that The Book of Mormon looks to the future and contains important principles, warnings, and lessons intended for me and you in the circumstances and

challenges of our day.”

-DAVID A. BEDNAR

“Placing your trust in Heavenly Father and in His prophets whom He has sent will help you to spiritually elevate and push you forward towards God's expanded horizon. Your vantage will change because you will change. God knows that the higher you are, the farther you can see. Our Savior invites you to make that climb.”

-TRACY Y. BROWNING

“Your covenant relationship with God and Jesus Christ is a relationship of love and trust in which you have access to a greater measure of Their grace -Their divine assistance, endowment of strength, and enabling power. That power is not just wishful thinking, a lucky charm, or self-fulfilling prophecy. It is real.”

-BRADLEY R. WILCOX

“If you pray, if you talk to God, and if you plead for His help for your loved ones, and if you thank Him not only for help but for the patience and gentleness that come from not receiving all you desire right away or perhaps ever, then I promise you that you will draw closer to Him.”

-HENRY B. EYRING

“The sacred scriptures and living prophets are a major way a loving Heavenly Father makes His plan of happiness available to all His children.”

-QUENTIN L. COOK

“Every time we are taught about our divine nature and destiny, the adversary of all righteousness tempts us to call them into question. How different life, our decisions, would be if we really knew who we really are.”

-RUBÉN V. ALLIAUD

“The best is yet to come, my dear brothers and sisters because the Savior is coming again! The best is yet to come because the Lord is hastening His work. The best is yet to come as we fully turn our hearts and our lives to Jesus Christ.”

-RUSSELL M. NELSON

Other thoughts from the busy week...

“Mind the Gap…between you and the Lord…get closer if you can…”

-SJ teaching about the Spirit

“You change the world by changing yourself…”

-President Jacobsen

“We’re not promised tomorrow”

-Meghan Trainor song

“If you don’t find it, you weren’t meant to find it….”

-…truth learned by AB

“I can’t watch you eat with your fingers.”

-SMB at a fufu lunch

Never settle

Do the right thing

Better together.

-Standard Chartered Bank ads

…I sit in the bank a lot

“We get more inspiration than we give ourselves credit for.”

-P. Jacobsen at Zone Conference to Missionaries

Reality: I was asked by a friend back in California to help them recruit more senior missionaries. I love our mission, but real talk…It’s long. It’s hot. It’s a lot. It’s tiring.

Good things come from doing hard things. It has caused my wife and I to step up our discipleship. We have been tested, we have learned, and we have been supported physically and spiritually for doing this. We love it and would not trade it for anything - Just had dinner with the mission president and his wife. We are all tired…it was a hard week in a shorter than normal 5-week transfer. Sister Bertha has to arrange for emergency travel home; the medical advisor is busy as usual; I have to make sure we get bikes fixed and rotated out and all the finance and bills are done in the evening after we get back from a long day. It’s a good thing being busy, but tonight…the Friday before Conference, we are all tired…that is the reality today…But I invite my friends and family to watch Conference if they can…