Saturday, July 13, 2013

Elder Timo Pew's Farewell Talk

How I Deepened My Conversion Before My Mission

(These are the notes from his talk since he didn't write it out)
  1. Understand why I should be converted
    • Everything God does for us is to help us be happy
    • Conversion will help us to not only desire to do good, but to act in faith in obeying the commandments and give us the strength to consistently make good decisions
    • President Hinckley simply said, "Conversion makes the difference."
  2. It's a lifelong process
    • Line upon line, persistence and patience, leads us to do the will of the Lord.
    • Doing the little things every day: reading scriptures, saying prayers, going to church, attending the temple...
  3. Desire
    • If we desire to deepen our conversion the Lord will strengthen us.
  4. Obedience
    • Listening to parents
      • Our parents are given to us to help us, so we should listen to them. They love us and we should trust them.
    • Obeying the commandments
      • Like our parents, our Heavenly Father loves us, so we should listen to Him and trust Him
    • Happiness comes through obedience
  5. Repent
    • It will increase our knowledge and trust in the Lord and help us do our best
  6. Service helps us be more converted
    • By following the example of our Savior and helping others, you become converted
    • We are lucky to live in an area where there are many examples of daily service.
  7. The Book of Mormon and Prayer
    • The biggest thing my parents taught me is to pray and read the Book of Mormon every day.
    • The Book of Mormon testifies of Christ and shows us the great things the Lord has done
    • We can pray for anything, especially our desire to become better.
    • It has taught me that Heavenly Father and the Savior are there for us
    • Increases our love for Them and Their plan
    • Our relationship with our Savior is an important part of our conversion, so we need to use the Atonement. The Book of Mormon helps us do that.
  8. Luke 22:31-32 "When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren"
    • When we strengthen those around us when we are converted, it brings happiness to us and to those we help.
       Photos from the gathering after church.