General Conference

So twice a year, in April and October we (as Mormons) have what's called General Conference. This is a live feed of wonderful hymns, and speakers with profound messages. I had a pretty busy weekend so luckily I logged onto LDS.ORG and was able to watch things that I could not see live. I am not finished watching all of the messages and speakers just yet but it has already left a big impact. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said " Defend your beliefs with courtesy and compassion but defend them" This is such a strong message. Often when defending yourself the first feeling one may have is anger, and may turn into arguing rather then stating beliefs. I know because just this weekend I kind of fell into the defensive mode. For those of you who may or may not know me personally I have struggled most of my life with not having my biological father in my life. For all intense purposes up until my mom met her current husband and love of her life Rod, my papa (grandpa) has been my dad. Well my biological father and his family do exist and we have tried to connect throughout the years. I am actually pretty close with my uncle and aunt from that side. So this weekend when my technical half sister asked me to support her with a school function I just had to go and be there for her. My grandfather on that side cringed when I said I was Mormon. Now he is an openly gay man and said " well you must really hate me now." This caught me off guard because I do not actually hate anyone. I am pretty forgiving and do a lot of human rights work and volunteering. I love all people. I told him that I am no different then I was months ago before my conversion on my stance for caring about him as a person. He then tried to tell me how bad my church was and I immediately thought of defensive arguments. But all I said was I love you and I am a forgiving person. It was not worth trying to prove I was a forgiving person because of my faith...but to show I was forgiving and loving.

Below is an excerpt from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: 'The cost — and blessings — of discipleship' speech:
“You may wonder if it is worth it to take a courageous moral stand in high school, or to go on a mission only to have your most cherished beliefs reviled, or to strive against much in society that sometimes ridicules a life of religious devotion,” he said. “Yes, it is worth it, because the alternative is to have our ‘houses’ left unto us ‘desolate’ — desolate individuals, desolate families, desolate neighborhoods and desolate nations ... (see Matthew 23:37-38).


After this weekend it really rung true. We are really given challenges that the Lord knows we can handle.  This weekend my personal biggest challenge was seeing my biological father..actually be a father to his two new kids. I am sorry if he or his family are reading this..but it is true. O felt like an outsider, but it was also nice to be there for these two kids who are half related to me. Basically families are all weird combinations. 

Find your faith. Fight with compassion and conviction. Pray for others.