He had just returned from assignments at temples in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, and Miraflores, Guatemala. Each temple, he said, is symbolic of both the God whose house it is and the people who will serve in it.

“It’s a symbol and a manifestation — as it always is — of Heavenly Father’s love, but also of the faith, faithfulness of the people,” he said.

He and Elder Karl D. Hirst, also a General Authority Seventy and member of the United States Central Area presidency, spoke of temples and the blessings of family, of gathering and of connection that come through service in them.

In a Church News video titled, “A Faithful Foundation,” Elder Eddy, Elder Hirst and Monroe Rigby share their feelings about the new temple in southeast Idaho and how those feelings are the same across geographic and genealogical boundaries.

Said Elder Hirst: “I don’t know quite how deep the foundations of this temple go, but it feels to me like it’s about 160 years.”

An Idaho pioneer town welcomes public to new temple

Montpelier Idaho Temple begins open-house phase

“This region is rich in its pioneer heritage, and we pay homage to that heritage today and remember those who have gone before as we celebrate the opening of this, the house of the Lord, in Montpelier,” said Elder Mark D. Eddy, General Authority Seventy and assistant executive director of the Church’s Temple Department.

During the temple’s Sept. 8 media day, Elder Eddy said the building will serve 15,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when it is dedicated on Oct. 18, 2026.

When ground was broken for the Montpelier Idaho Temple in June 2023, Elder Ryan K. Olsen, General Authority Seventy, said, “We are mindful of those who have gone before.”

A story from Elder Karl D. Hirst, General Authority Seventy, reflects that mindfulness.

For him, being in Montpelier when the city was founded might have sounded more familiar than it does today. Most of the city’s first immigrants came from his native England. One of them — Ann Elizabeth Walmsley Palmer — was baptized just miles from where Elder Hirst was baptized in England.

“Ann is significant to me because she is celebrated as being the first female convert to the Church in Europe, and she was baptized almost 190 years ago,” he said.

Walmsley didn’t live long enough to see the construction of the Montpelier Stake Tabernacle more than 25 years after her death. It was in that tabernacle that Elder Hirst shared her story. With the opening of a new temple in the city, her descendants will have the opportunity to do work in the temple for additional family members and continue to honor her legacy of faith.

“For me, and for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in general, this is a symbol of one of the many ways in which Heavenly Father lovingly and carefully offers connection and unity to His children across geography and across generations,” Elder Hirst said.

Standing outside the new temple, Elder Eddy also spoke of that increase in a feeling of connection.

“There’s a great sense of family, of gathering, of connection, of belonging that happens,” he said. “That’s what I hope every individual feels — seen, loved, a sense of that belonging, a sense of that connection.”

Familiar feelings in the temple

Jean Thomas was born in and currently lives an hour away in Malad, Idaho. After graduating from high school in Malad, Thomas left the city for three decades and enjoyed a career as a college professor.

She recalled that a local company used to distribute calendars each year with photos of the Church’s 12 temples, one on each month. More than 40 years later, she says she is happy that everywhere she has lived has been blessed by having a temple built there.

“Every place I’ve been now has a temple. They didn’t when I was there. But they all — every place I’ve been now has a temple,” she said.

For Thomas, the meaning of having more than 200 operating temples around the globe is rooted in the Church’s veracity and in its future.

“The Church is true, and it is growing, and there will be temples dotting the land,” she said.

Thomas toured the temple in Montpelier alongside Martine and Monroe Rigby, who live in northern Utah. Monroe Rigby, 17, splits time between living in Utah and Paris, France. Her father, Micah, grew up 30 miles north of Montpelier in Soda Springs, Idaho.

When traveling, Monroe and her family make time to visit and serve in temples.

“Whether it’s going to Brigham City, going to the Brigham City [Utah] Temple, going to this temple, to the temple in Paris or in Rome, there’s a very similar feeling to where, when you enter the temple, you feel like you’re at home. The feeling is the same,” she said.

Monroe said she sees other teenagers embracing faith in God and looking to Him for answers to life’s questions. She said she receives peace and answers to her own questions when she is in the temple.

“I think it’s beautiful that we have temples like these to remind us, to inspire us, to nurture us,” she said. “And in return, we love it, and we love the gospel.”

Elder Eddy concluded by saying that the blessings of the temple shouldn’t be kept to oneself. They are to be shared.

“If you are anywhere close, you really need to see this temple. And not only for its beauties but, of course, for another opportunity to feel connection. And please bring someone with you,” he said. “Come, come for what it does for you, but just make sure that you have the opportunity to share that with somebody else.”

Bear Lake Valley sees ground broken for temple in Montpelier, Idaho

Montpelier Idaho Temple site identified, less than 7 weeks after temple's announcement

Church News Almanac: Montpelier Idaho Temple

Speaking from the new temple entrance building north of the Salt Lake Temple on Temple Square, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, called the celebration a historic event that will accompany the reopening of the Salt Lake Temple in 2027 following its extensive, seven-year renovation.

“We invite the world — everyone, hundreds of thousands of people, millions of people,” he said. “We expect 5 million people to come and see and enjoy this wonderful experience — what the temple, the house of the Lord, represents.”

President Uchtdorf was accompanied at the event by fellow members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Quentin L. Cook and Elder Neil L. Andersen. Primary General President Rosemary K. Chibota, who began serving one month earlier, spoke about what she believes children can feel as they attend the celebration with their families.

“Everyone is invited,” she said. “We invite you to come and tour the temple. But this is more than touring a remarkable building, it is about coming closer to Jesus Christ.”

Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson; Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman; Presiding Bishop W. Christopher Waddell; three General Authority Seventies, Elder Matthew S. Holland, Elder K. Brett Nattress and Elder Jeremiah J. Morgan; and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox also attended the event.

A special children’s choir performed as part of the program.

The group of 12 children sang an arrangement of “I Love To See the Temple.”

During his remarks, President Uchtdorf said the celebration’s theme will extend to the youth of the Church around the world in 2027 as their theme for the year. FSY conferences, music festivals and other activities will all use the theme of “Rejoice in Christ” alongside the events of the Salt Lake Temple Celebration.

President Freeman said she looks forward to seeing how the youth both prepare for and participate in the celebration.

“We just had the announcement of the Churchwide, worldwide theme ‘Rejoice in Christ,’ and that is also going to be the youth theme this year. [It] will be this ‘Rejoice in Christ’ from Philippians 4:4 all year long,” she said.

President Johnson said she sees a great opportunity for sisters of the Relief Society around the world to worship in temples wherever they are.

“We hope it is unifying for a global Church, because temples do dot the earth,” she said. “There are opportunities to participate in temple ordinances coming with more regularity to our members as temples are coming to more places — remote places.”

And the preparation she invited sisters to do was less about this temple and more about their personal preparation to make covenants with the Lord.

“I would just say to our sisters, I invite you to prepare to be endowed and enjoy the blessings of endowment in the house of the Lord,” President Johnson said. “And whether a temple has been announced in your area or not, live ready to go. Have that temple recommend in hand. Show the Lord you are prepared to take His name upon you in new and higher and holier ways so that you can draw upon His power.”

Rich Sutton, a senior director in the Church’s Temple Department, conducted and spoke at the event.

“Tickets will be released and will continue periodically with batches over the coming months,” he said. Following the event’s conclusion, the first batch of hundreds of thousands of tickets made available through TempleSquare.org was nearly exhausted in less than one hour.

“Please do not get stressed if the first release of tickets reserves very quickly. Additional tickets will open regularly throughout this timeframe,” Sutton said.

This event was held in the new entrance building of the Salt Lake Temple. It was the first chance to see the new addition. A stained-glass installation lines the wall of the new building.

The announcement was streamed live on the Church’s YouTube channel and is available to watch.

Following the event, President Uchtdorf met with members of the media and spoke of personal efforts individuals must make to be protected and preserved like the Church has done for the Salt Lake Temple.

“We have responsibilities to protect the house of the Lord with all the knowledge and the means we have,” he said. “But even more, we have to protect our own foundation. We have to protect our own solid situation within the gospel of Jesus Christ. Not perfection — we need to be willing to be as good as possible. Then we know that Jesus Christ opens the temple doors, and with the temple doors, He opens the door into the eternities.”

Gov. Cox spoke of the temple and its draw to people who aren’t members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“While this is a building of faith for so many that practice this faith, it is also a building of interest — a historic building in the history of westward migration, in the history of faith communities in the United States, a place where people come every year and never get a chance to enter that building. And yet, they come anyway,” he said.

With the open house, that changes for a six-month period.

“Finally, they all get to go inside and see what this is all about and see what has happened on this space,” he said.

More details about the celebration, open house reservations and opportunities to participate in the celebration virtually can be found at TempleSquare.org. More information is expected to be published there in coming months ahead of the celebration’s start in April 2027.

Tour expectations

As individuals make plans to participate in the Salt Lake Temple Celebration and visit Temple Square, time for travel, parking and the tour should all be considered.

The starting point for the open house tours is across the street at the Conference Center. Each tour is expected to take more than an hour to complete. That time doesn’t include stopping for photos around Temple Square, visiting exhibits or watching musical performances.

“In addition to the tour of the temple, there will be many other exhibits, experiences, films, activities and performances on Temple Square that do not require a ticket — all free of charge,” Sutton said.

Parking instructions will become available closer to the beginning of the celebration, but the Church encourages visitors to use public transportation options.

The tours will be available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Mandarin and American Sign Language. Tours are also available for those who are blind or who have low vision. A neurodiverse tour is also available.

The Temple Square app hosts individuals’ tour tickets, the narration of the tour, details of available exhibits or performances, and maps of the grounds.

For those who wish to volunteer during the Salt Lake Temple Celebration, applications are available through Sept. 14.

“During the celebration, we need thousands of welcoming volunteers to create a joyful experience for millions of guests,” Sutton said.

President Freeman said she is excited for youth around the world to share in rejoicing by both celebrating outside the Salt Lake Temple and also serving inside temples.

“It won’t just be the rejoicing that’s happening here on the temple grounds but the rejoicing that also happens on the inside of our temples,” she said. “And the opportunity and the privilege that is ours — the youth all over the world — to enter these temples and to serve there and the great work that is done there and the rejoicing that happens on both sides of the veil — both earth’s side and heaven’s side.”

Virtual tours

The Temple Square app and TempleSquare.org will help those who cannot physically attend the celebration and open house to have experiences not previously available with temple open houses.

“We will bring the celebration on Temple Square to you in your home through various means in a virtual setting,” Sutton said.

The first opportunity to do virtual tours through these two means is scheduled for October.

From the almanac

The Salt Lake Temple’s location was originally determined shortly after pioneers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in July 1847. The groundbreaking for the temple took place six years later, on Feb. 14, 1853, after the valley was settled and the pioneers were more organized.

Construction of the temple took 40 years to complete, as the builders used 19^th-century construction techniques and tools to erect the 222-foot-tall building. It became the sixth temple dedicated in this dispensation.

What to know about the Salt Lake Temple open house, ‘a celebration unlike anything else in the Church’

Restored Salt Lake Temple doors rehung as outside nears completion

Seismic upgrade completed on Salt Lake Temple

Young Men General President Timothy L. Farnes and Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman join Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen for this episode of the Church News podcast to talk about the way youth can develop into stronger disciples of Jesus Christ through these adjustments.

“It’s not just learning, it’s about living and becoming lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ,” President Farnes says in the podcast. Hear how he hopes the Sunday change will also bring about positive changes in the lives of the rising generation.

The two speak about the changes to the “For the Strength of Youth” guide and how that guide has changed in a way that matches the needs of youth today.

“We would refer to it as a guide for strength, and it’s a guide for finding strength in Jesus Christ. Because that’s what the youth today need to face everything that they’re up against,” President Freeman says in the podcast. “What we’re looking for now is much higher and holier than a guide of standards.”

Listen to this episode of the Church News podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, bookshelf PLUS, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.

Transcript:

Jon Ryan Jensen: This is Jon Ryan Jensen, editor of the Church News. Welcome to the Church News podcast. Today, we are taking you on a journey of connection as we discuss news and events of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Recently, youth who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints around the world participated in a special fifth-Sunday lesson to help introduce them and explain what’s going to happen with changes coming to the second hour of their Sunday worship meetings. In those meetings, they talked about the new 25-minute Young Women meetings and Aaronic Priesthood quorum meetings.

And on this episode of the Church News podcast, we’ll talk about those changes and adjustments with Young Men General President Timothy L. Farnes and Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman.

Thank you both for being here with us today on the podcast.

President Emily Belle Freeman: Oh, we’re excited to be here.

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, thanks for having us.

0:47

Jon Ryan Jensen: You know, I think that these adjustments are things that members of the Church are just getting used to and trying to wrap their heads around with. But I want to start from the beginning.

What is it about the “For the Strength of Youth” standard guide, what is it about these lessons, that you really hope that youth will latch onto and get out of?

1:06

President Emily Belle Freeman: I think our greatest hope as we think about the youth of this generation and the great work that is theirs to help the world prepare for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ is to help equip them and empower them with the truths they need to know, not only to live the gospel but also to share the gospel.

We have the greatest missionary force that has ever served in this dispensation serving right now. We just hit 90,000 missionaries around the world. And this curriculum was partly designed to help them be able to live in the world that we live in, but also teach this gospel and have strong testimonies as they talk about Jesus Christ.

1:54

Jon Ryan Jensen: In our preparation for this, we didn’t talk about this, but I think that’s really an interesting comment because “Preach My Gospel” itself has undergone some different iterations to help the missionaries teach. And now this is kind of the pre-“Preach My Gospel” opportunity for youth to prepare to be missionaries.

2:10

President Timothy L. Farnes: I love it as well. It’s not just learning. It’s about living and becoming lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ. You’ll recall the warning from President [Russell M.] Nelson that in a coming day, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. And then President Oaks just repeated that or emphasized that warning again down at BYU.

That’s what this curriculum does for us. It helps prepare us for lifelong discipleship. It helps us live the gospel of Jesus Christ in a different way. And that’s what I’m so excited about, is the core doctrines that are being taught, the eternal truths, and then acting on those helps us, invites the Spirit to be with us. It gives authorization for the Holy Ghost to live constantly with us. And so I’m excited about what that offers the youth as they embrace this new curriculum and the “For the Strength of Youth” guide.

2:58

Jon Ryan Jensen: President, I think that can be really encouraging for youth and parents who are going into these new classes and this new format and thinking: “I didn’t have this ‘For the Strength of Youth’ guide. I didn’t have these lessons.”

What counsel would you give to those leaders and teachers who are coming into this a little bit, you know, feeling off-balance by the changes?

3:21

President Timothy L. Farnes: Well, it’s the doctrines. It’s the eternal truths that they have had. And maybe they’re being emphasized in a more particular way. It’s the strategies and counterstrategies we need for the day. And so I hope they would lean into it.

In a recent trip to Asia, we had question-and-answer periods. And I was amazed at all the questions asked by the youth and the Primary children around are actually questions that are found in the “For the Strength of Youth” guide, and they have questions and answers.

So, if you’re wondering what your children are thinking or having questions about, lean into the guide, and see what questions they may be having, and that’ll help you teach them more fully these eternal truths. So, embrace what you have before you.

4:03

President Emily Belle Freeman: And I think it’s interesting because we grew up in a time where the “For the Strength of Youth” guide was a guide for standards. And I would say we don’t refer to it that way anymore. We would refer to it as a guide for strength.

And it’s a guide for finding strength in Jesus Christ, because that’s what the youth today need to face everything that they’re up against. And as we talk about those quotes from President Nelson and then repeated again by President Oaks, what we’re looking for now is much higher and holier than a guide of standards.

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, a guide of discipleship.

President Emily Belle Freeman: Yup, a guide of discipleship, a guide for finding strength in Christ.

4:50

Jon Ryan Jensen: I think that’s really good context. And it, “For the Strength of Youth,” is not the only resource available. There are lots of new resources available for the youth, their parents and leaders as well.

What of those options should they be leaning on the most? What should they be bringing with them to church? They need to gather all of that?

5:11

President Emily Belle Freeman: So, that’s so good. In the very first introduction of this new curriculum, a lot of people heard us saying this will be the curriculum for the youth program, and that is almost right. So I would love to just clarify that a little bit.

This will be the curriculum for fast Sundays. But for the second, third and last Sundays, you’ll actually need the curriculum that is found in the youth magazine, and we’ll talk a little bit about what that looks like digitally. So, every month this magazine will come, and it will come three weeks before the first of the month, hopefully. That’s what we’re shooting for.

And the last eight pages of every youth magazine will include the curriculum for the month. The curriculum is different than what the Church has ever done before for the youth, because it’s not as much a lesson as it is a discussion guide. That’s how youth are interacting right now. They want to sit down, they want to ask a question, and they want to discuss, “What does that actually look like in my life right now?”

And so each of these outlines is built around a discussion, not necessarily built around a lesson. And they’re all question-based discussions that we’ll be having every week. And each of these will point back to this, but you’ll need the second-, third- and last-Sunday lesson material here in order to have a full curriculum.

Let me say this, too, and you might want to give input. We have a lot of people asking questions about this magazine that we’re hoping will come to church with the youth every single week. And a lot of parents are saying, “What if I have more than one child in my home?”

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s my case. I’ve got three.

7:02

President Emily Belle Freeman: OK. And we only get one magazine delivered. And so what are some of the ideas or solutions if that is true for you?

And a couple ideas if they want a tangible magazine, you could ask your ministering brothers or sisters, if they don’t have youth in their home, if they would order one for you and deliver it every month to one of your youth. This is also provided as a PDF digitally that you can print off for your other youth.

I was thinking the other day, I think I would have loved to have printed each of these off and put them in a binder where they could write on them and be keeping them. And so at the end of the year, they have — they can look back and see, “What did I learn, and what did I do?” But also there’s a digital resource.

7:53

President Timothy L. Farnes: The digital is remarkable as well, and they’ve done a great job having all the elements there, not only to study but the lesson plan and outline for all four weeks. And they can write notes and accept invitations, and that can keep track of those invitations for the young man or young woman. So there’s a lot of resources online available for them as well.

We just got back from Japan, and everyone preferred the online version in Japan. And so that’s what they’re leaning into. But I think the most important thing they bring is a desire to learn, to be a lifelong disciple. And with that desire, other elements will come along with it. You’ve got the magazine, the FSY guide, your scriptures, a heart ready to learn. It’s digitally. I think we’re covering all the bases as far as what resources they have available to them. Just come ready to learn what it means to live as a lifelong disciple of Jesus Christ.

8:42

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love the ability to keep those notes in the digital version, because if you’re going to be studying this for six years as a youth, next year when you come back to a similar lesson, you can remind yourself of what you felt a year ago. And those little spiritual promptings that you have recorded are great reminders.

President Timothy L. Farnes: It’ll give you prompts as well, as to what your invitation you accepted and “Are you remembering it?” And so it’s got a lot of resources online that are available to you.

9:07

Jon Ryan Jensen: And the printing version, you’re not printing the whole magazine. You’d only need to have the last eight pages.

President Emily Belle Freeman: That’s right, yup. You can just print those last eight pages. And so for youth who don’t have a phone yet, they’re not old enough to have a phone that they would bring to church, then that PDF or this magazine coming with them will be a great resource.

9:26

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, with lots of resources, we have dramatically cut the amount of time that we’re going to be using all of them in the class itself. And so we have parents and teachers who are saying, “How are we going to do all of this that’s being asked of us in 25 minutes?” Is there a magic-bullet answer for that question?

9:46

President Emily Belle Freeman: So, we’re actually excited for the 25 minutes. As we traveled around and visited youth classes, we noticed that usually the first several minutes — and by “several,” I mean 20 — were used talking about highs and lows. And as we counseled with President Oaks, he said we need to get into the doctrine sooner. He just felt really strongly about how we would get the youth into the doctrine sooner.

And we have a tradition in our family, and it is if you’re ever teaching a lesson or speaking in church, we have a standing invitation to invite people to open their scriptures within five minutes of starting the lesson. And each of these discussion outlines is built for that to work really well, that you can invite your class within five minutes to have opened up their scriptures to search for something in the lesson that will help.

And I think you will be surprised, if you are doing that, that within five minutes you are into the meat of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and you have invited the Holy Ghost to be part of that conversation.

And over time, I think we will realize that relationships will deepen in our classes and in our quorums, and testimonies will strengthen, because what becomes the priority of those 25 minutes is Jesus Christ and His gospel and His words. And I think we’re going to see lives change because of that.

11:28

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, rather than maybe worrying about “What am I going to teach in that 25 minutes?” maybe it’s “How am I going to inspire, lift, encourage and help them have a greater aspiration to live like a lifelong disciple of Jesus Christ?” So maybe look at the classroom as the seven days of the week, and that time, 25 minutes, you’re coming together to learn how they lived the gospel of Jesus Christ during the week.

So it may require a little bit of preparation and helping them know what to study beforehand, or maybe an invitation on how to live during the week based on that monthly topic or theme. And then you come back and discuss it. So more about living the gospel in that seven days. How are you going to inspire them to live the gospel of Jesus Christ? That creates conversion in their lives.

12:15

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love that. And it’s a good question. And all of this, there is kind of the underlying question as well of: Who is doing that teaching and that inviting?

President Timothy L. Farnes: I love that question. I think too often we have turned it over completely to the young man or young woman. And I think there needs to be that — on a mission, you have a senior companion and a junior companion. In that companionship, the senior companion always assures that the doctrine is being taught and invitations are being extended.

And the same role applies to the adult leader in this relationship, where you want to come with experience and with wisdom and the ability to guide and direct the lesson so that the themes, the core doctrine, the eternal truths are being taught, invitations are being extended and accepted, and testimonies being born.

And then bring that young man or young woman in to testify, to teach where appropriate, and prepare them as a mentor during the week to be prepared to share a scripture or share an example or share a story, but they should never completely turn it over until they’re completely ready to assume that higher role or responsibility.

So the adult leader should really take an active role in making sure it’s done right, it’s taught right and that the testimony is born to create that vision and understanding and the ability for them to live during the week as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

13:39

President Emily Belle Freeman: I think it’s important that we look at how do we help someone grow into what it looks like to be a teacher and to be a discussion leader.

I had the opportunity in July to teach two of my grandkids how to ride a bike. Going through that process reminded me that there’s a lot of running alongside that takes place, and more than maybe we remember. And I think that is true for these lessons. It’s really important as we are preparing these young men and young women for missions and also for leadership in the Church that we take this time to do that training, to do that running beside and helping them.

And so, we don’t anticipate that our youngest classes would be handed an entire 25 minutes. We anticipate adult leaders modeling and mentoring what that looks like, particularly in those younger ages. A lot more of mentoring, especially adult mentoring and teaching, as we help the youth learn, “How do I lead a really good discussion, and what would that look like?”

14:57

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, if the mentor’s role or the adviser’s role is more helping them live the gospel of Jesus Christ for six or seven days a week, and they’re coming together as Elder [David A.] Bednar said in the video, that we’re supposed to own our own learning and then come on Sunday prepared to talk about what we’ve learned during the week or how we’ve lived during the week.

Maybe it should be a whole class participation, where the mentor adviser is making sure that the youth are considering those questions during the week, not just one but all. And then they all participate in that engagement, and engagement invites the Holy Ghost.

And so, look at how you can create that environment of participation, of engagement, within your quorum or class for all to be involved on a Sunday to share what they’ve learned or lived during the week, rather than just one person having that awesome experience of teaching and participating.

15:57

Jon Ryan Jensen: And that means there need to be those daily habits and actions that they’re participating in as well.

President Farnes, in the video that you referenced, you talk about that. You talk about the daily habits of discipleship that the youth need to be developing.

How does class help bring about a culmination of those daily habits?

16:17

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, the classes and quorums. The youth today want to participate. They want to be involved in the cause of Christ and be lifelong disciples. And so when they engage in His work and participate in His gospel, they want to share that. And so imagine a class or quorum when they’re coming ready to share how they’ve lived the gospel.

There’s a — in Alma 31, it talks about the Zoramites, who had fallen away a little bit from the church. And their, if you remember, their main issue was that they worshipped just one day a week, and then they came back the next week not having remembered their God during the week to worship again. To some degree, we fall into that at times.

Well, the Savior gave the perfect pattern in 3 Nephi 17, I think it’s verse 3, when He said, “Go to your homes, ponder on the things, then pray about these things, and then prepare your mind and heart to come back again and share.” And so, as we go to our homes, let’s consider what it means to ponder, to pray about, to prepare or engage or act in the doctrine or the eternal truths that we’re learning, the invitations we’re accepting. And then come back ready to share.

And then it becomes a lively discussion of, “This is how we’re living.” And that’s exciting to be involved in a cause like that. Sure, it’s about learning, but it’s not just about learning. It’s about living as lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ. If we’re not living, we’re not having the full experience of what it means to be a disciple. And so that requires daily engagement, like the Savior taught, less like the Zoramites and more like the Savior taught in 3 Nephi 17.

17:51

Jon Ryan Jensen: President, that reminds me of recently, my own daughter started a new season of soccer. And over the summer, there was not a lot of practice. The teams were not getting together. And in their very first few days of practice, the coach said, “I can tell which ones of you were practicing every day at home, running every day at home,” because when it comes down to the moment where you have to do the thing, you can tell if the habits have been built up. And similarly, I hear what you’re saying. They’re not showing up on Sunday empty and waiting to be filled, but full and ready to share of what they have.

18:21

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah. If we’re not able to survive spiritually without the constant guiding, comforting companionship of the Holy Ghost, then we’re going to have a hard time at life.

Elder [Richard G.] Scott gave a promise a long time ago about engagement. When we engage, when we participate, when we act, we invite or authorize the Spirit to be with us. And so that daily engagement is important to survive daily. And lifelong discipleship begins with daily discipleship. That’s what it’s all about.

18:55

Jon Ryan Jensen: President Freeman, you in the video talked as well about how this daily engagement, how this weekly engagement, is going to help the youth be prepared to serve as missionaries, which we mentioned already.

What is the role of these classes over six years in helping prepare a valiant missionary force?

19:16

President Emily Belle Freeman: So, as we think about these youth and as they are preparing to go on missions, we want them to enter into the MTCs and enter into those situations ready to teach, equipped and empowered to be able to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. And for those who don’t serve missions, they will go into situations where they are leading in Relief Societies or in other ways.

And, again, we want them to leave this program equipped and empowered as lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ to be able to do that and do it well. And as you look through this guide, there have been several things that are different now. We’ve gone from five chapters to 12 on purpose. There are things we want the youth to learn that they weren’t learning previously. And it is principles and doctrine that will help them know who they are and whose they are, and then prepare them to go out and share that with the world.

If you look at the table of contents now in this FSY guide, you’ll notice it’s very different than what it looked like before. And if you take time to look at it in order of how it goes, you realize that every single chapter builds on the chapter before.

And so it starts out teaching them, “God has a plan for you,” and then: “He wants to communicate with you. He knows you, and He’s going to speak to you.” And then: He’s going to tell you His great work for you, and you’re going to be able to understand that. And Jesus Christ will help you in that great work.

And if you walk in God’s light, if you invite the Spirit to be your friend, it will increase your spiritual capacity. You’ll be able to love God and love your neighbor. And that will lead you into understanding ordinances and covenants. First, the Aaronic Priesthood ordinance and covenants of baptism and the sacrament, and second, the Melchizedek Priesthood ordinances and the covenants that we make in the temple.

And as all of that happens, you’ll begin to realize that you are blessed by priesthood keys and authority, and then you’ll enter into that higher relationship and commitment with God of understanding not only that your body is sacred but also the truths that will set you free. And all of that together is going to help you find joy in Jesus Christ.

And as we look at that, those 12 things tied together, we realize that these youth are going to leave this program after six years, and they will have become something. I also love, as we think about our missionaries, that every March, we will be focusing on what it looks like to live as a missionary, being ready always to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. And that whole entire month, every single year, will be focused on the great work that is ours as we help build the kingdom of God.

22:36

Jon Ryan Jensen: The weekly breakdown of these lessons is intentional as well. So, you talked about the 12 lessons, or the 12 chapters, but now every single week, there is a specific reason that certain things are being studied. And there are some nuances here as well, recognizing that we have some different schedules that happen.

Do you want to talk a little bit about that as well?

22:57

President Emily Belle Freeman: Yeah. So, it’s fun as you look at these, and you’ll see when you get in here that we have labeled these lessons “fast Sunday,” “second and third Sunday” and “last Sunday.” And maybe you’re wondering why we didn’t just say first, second, third, fourth Sunday. Why are we having this fast Sunday and last Sunday differentiation? And that actually becomes really important.

Because of the four lessons, we hope that the fast-Sunday and the last-Sunday lessons are never missed. Depending on what’s happening in a year, we don’t always have four lessons in a month. If it’s Easter, if it’s Christmas, stake conference, general conference, then there’s only three Sundays available that month.

And so what we hope is that on every fast Sunday — which, we always have 12 fast Sundays; it might be at the end of a month, it might be in the middle of a month, it might be the first Sunday of the month, but no matter what, you’re going to have that. And you will always teach out of this on fast Sunday, and you will always accept an invitation on that fast Sunday.

Do you want to talk about that for just a minute before I go into second, third and last Sundays? But just that idea of accepting that invitation?

24:12

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, I think it’s a powerful opportunity to look at the topic every month — so the eternal truths being taught, the doctrine being taught — and then tie it together with that invitation. So we’re learning once again what it means to act, to live the gospel of Jesus Christ. So every fast Sunday, they’ll have the opportunity to accept an invitation and then work on something during the month.

I’d maybe tell those advisers to maybe look at the last Sunday and look at the “become statement” and how that become statement might apply throughout the month or might help them look at their teaching or invitations or the way they inspire to lead up to and build up to that become statement at the end.

And maybe it’d be OK to recite that become statement at the fast-Sunday lesson and the second and third and even the last, so it becomes a little more powerful. There’ll be one for all 12 of the months, all 12 of the doctrines, and it always starts with “I am a beloved son or daughter of God, and He has a work for me to do.” And then it leans into the doctrine of the month.

And so it helps them go a little deeper on a theme that’s important for them to remember who they are and whose they are. And maybe it’d be all right for them to recite that at the beginning of every lesson to kind of bring the Spirit in and recognize the Savior and the work He has for them to do here on earth. Those become statements are powerful that happen in the last Sunday of the month, and there’ll be one of those for all 12 of the months.

25:39

Jon Ryan Jensen: And it does help with that unity right at the very beginning, to come right together and say, “This is the thing that we’re going to talk about today.”

President Timothy L. Farnes: And it’s a shorter statement. It’ll help them understand who they’re to be as a father, a husband, a wife and a mother, and as a missionary, as a disciple of Jesus Christ. I think it’ll be more meaningful to them as they, every week, potentially, recite, “I am a son or daughter of God, and He has a work for me to do” and then understand more fully what that is and then live that during the month.

26:05

President Emily Belle Freeman: Yep, and how it ties to that FSY chapter. And the girls will start out, “I am a beloved daughter of heavenly parents with a divine nature and eternal destiny,” and then they’ll go into what that becoming statement is. And those statements are found right at the very top of the fourth-Sunday lessons, or the last-Sunday lessons. And that’s why the last Sunday is the other lesson you will never miss. So you always do the fast-Sunday lesson, and you always do the last-Sunday lesson no matter what.

Now, the second- and third-Sunday lessons, you can accordion as you need to. So either you could combine questions from both, if that’s what you want to do, or your presidency and your adviser over that presidency can pray and think about, “Which of these two lessons does our class need the most?” And then you’ll choose that second- or third-Sunday lesson.

But fast Sunday, no matter where it falls in the month, will always be the FSY guide. And the last Sunday, which could be the third Sunday or could be the fourth Sunday, would be this becoming statement and what we learn from that. Fifth Sundays are always the bishop’s Sunday. So He chooses what happens on those Sundays. That does not come from this.

Jon Ryan Jensen: But that means that there’s always a gospel principle story arc each month. You have a definitive beginning, a definitive end, and that middle portion is where there’s a little bit of wiggle room.

President Emily Belle Freeman: That’s right.

President Timothy L. Farnes: That’s right.

27:37

Jon Ryan Jensen: OK. Well, I’m looking forward to starting this out and seeing exactly how this works. And it’s going to be a growth period for everybody involved — teachers, leaders and the parents.

President Emily Belle Freeman: It is. And I might add one thing that has been interesting to people as we’ve taught. When I first came into this calling, people wondered about this new guide. They weren’t sure if it was going to work the way the old guide did, and they a little bit missed the standards. People would say to us all the time: “We actually don’t know how to use this. We don’t know what we’re supposed to do with this.” And as we prayed about that and thought about that as presidencies, we realized this is a principle-based guide. And in order to understand —

Jon Ryan Jensen: It’s not a rule book. We used to see it as a rule book. It’s not a rule book.

28:20

President Emily Belle Freeman: Yeah, it’s not a rule book. It’s a principle-based guide now. And in order to understand how to use a principle-based guide, you actually need to understand the doctrine behind the principles.

And so, what the second and third Sundays give us is the doctrine behind each of the principles in these chapters. So, a great example is in October, we’ll be studying “Your Body Is Sacred.” This is a chapter that a lot of parents ask us about. They feel like: “We don’t understand how we’re supposed to use this chapter now. The other standards guide was maybe easier for us.” And as we thought about that, we were like: “Oh, it’s because what you really need to understand for ‘Your Body Is Sacred’ is actually the law of chastity and the Word of Wisdom. And if you understand both of those things well, then the principles in this guide are going to be able to help you.”

And so every month in the second- and third-Sunday lessons, you are going to find doctrine that will strengthen these principles. And as the youth come to know and understand the doctrine, this guide is going to become everything they need to live as a youth in the latter days.

29:46

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s powerful. There’s a lot of power that comes in that learning and then having that as a guide that supports the doctrines you already understand.

I’m struck by what you both said as you talked about the beginning of that last-Sunday lesson and reinforcing the divine nature of each individual when they say that, what that means is they’re repeating that to themselves. I think it’s also fair to say that as youth, there might be some of them who are questioning: “Do I really come from a loving Heavenly Father? Do I really have a personal Savior?”

What would you say to them to help them know that this is going to help answer those questions?

30:27

President Timothy L. Farnes: Yeah, give it a chance. Those are the right questions to be asking, and they have every right to feel the witness of the Spirit that they are sons and daughters of God and He has a purpose for them here on earth.

And so as they lean into reading this and understanding it and in the scriptures and daily prayer and turning to their Father in Heaven in prayer, they will feel a witness of that Spirit that they are His sons and His daughters. And I leave that witness with them and that promise that they will have that witness from the Spirit. So, continue forward, and seek Him daily, and you’ll feel that witness. I promise you that.

31:05

President Emily Belle Freeman: I think one thing that they’ll notice is different and that I think will help with that is in those last-Sunday lessons, after they learn those becoming statements and they say those and it becomes part of who they are, we’re going to invite them to turn into pages of scripture.

And the young men are going to go into pages of scripture, and they are going to see scripture heroes, these champions who lived these values and lived them well, and what they can learn from them. And for the young women of the Church, they will turn into pages of scripture. And they will see women who were difference-makers, who were decision-makers, who were out living the gospel in powerful and important ways.

And they will see: “What does it look like to find my identity in Jesus Christ? And what does that look like in my home? And what does that look like in my community?” And these youth will be patterning their lives after men and women in the scriptures who were powerful witnesses of Jesus Christ and this gospel.

32:22

President Timothy L. Farnes: It’s important to recognize that those scripture heroes turn us to the Savior. They’re exemplifying what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

My grandson once went around the room and asked what our favorite scriptures or heroes were in the Book of Mormon. We all responded with the common Alma and Ammon and Moroni and Nephi. And then we turned to him, and at 6 years old, we said, “What’s your favorite story in the scriptures and your hero?” And he thought for a minute, and he said, “Mine is the story of Jesus Christ.”

And so hopefully on every page, we’ll find that story of Jesus Christ. He is our strength. And whether it’s a story of one of these scripture heroes or something else, we’ll recognize who and whose we are and who gives us that strength, and that is Jesus Christ. And we continually lean on Him and rely on Him in all things, in all ways.

33:12

Jon Ryan Jensen: Well, President Farnes and President Freeman, I think this has been a really good conversation with very useful information for everyone as we begin to make these changes.

As the two of you know, we have a tradition on the Church News podcast of giving our guests the last word. And I would love to do that again with you today. President Farnes, I’d like to start with you, and then President Freeman, if you’ll conclude for us today.

But this question is the same: What is it that you know now, having gone through this process and had this discussion?

33:40

President Timothy L. Farnes: Well, I’m grateful for this opportunity to speak to the youth of the world. They are so amazing, incredible in every way, and they’ve been saved for these latter days with purpose and reason. And I pray that they’ll be able to live up to that privilege and blessing and opportunity that’s theirs as sons and daughters of God. They’ll recognize more fully by leaning into these doctrines, these eternal truths. And accepting invitations to act as a disciple of Jesus Christ every single day, they’ll feel His love in a more abundant way and recognize the confidence they should have in who they are and recognize the purpose they have in this life.

And I pray that they’ll feel His warm embrace every single day and know of their goodness and His love and confidence in them, and that they’ll know of our confidence in them as well and they are incredible, and pray that they would know and feel that. And I express my love to them as well. But more importantly, they’ll feel God’s love in this curriculum and meeting weekly, but in leaning into what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

I’m grateful for this opportunity once again. I’m grateful for the Lord’s hand in this work and in His preparing the youth for these last days, and also in preparing this curriculum and other things. But I pray that they’ll bring their desire to learn, their desire to live more fully as a disciple of Jesus Christ, however small that may be at this point, and just exercise even a particle of faith, just begin to live as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

I pray that they’ll know more fully who they are and whose they are as they turn daily to their Father in Heaven, who loves them perfectly and who provided a Savior, a perfect Savior, to help them and strengthen them and give them capacity beyond their own on a daily basis, and then will fully rely on Him who is their strength, even Jesus Christ.

And I witness of Him and testify that Jesus is the Christ. He lives, and His greatest desire is to walk with you every day. And He’s there for you in all ways and in all things. And I testify of that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

35:53

President Emily Belle Freeman: That’s an interesting question at the end of three years. I actually haven’t taken the time to think about it in that way until just right now. And I don’t know how many people will know that this has been three years in the making. And as I look back over what it took to get us here and what it took to get us here, and I think of that question, “What do I know now?” I know that the Lord is aware of His youth. I know He trusts them.

I know that He has spent time inspiring and helping His leaders to know how to equip and empower the youth of this generation. I know that our greatest work as leaders right now of this generation of youth is to prepare them for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. And what we have here are the things that are needed now to prepare these youth for what is ahead for them. And I look back over the past three years, and I see His hand, and I see how we were led and how we were lifted for this moment in time to prepare for what will be ahead.

And what begins on Sept. 6 will be a remarkable time of growth for the youth. That is what I see. It will be a time where these youth have the opportunity to choose to become lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ, and then to choose to learn and to live, as you have talked about, in a way that they never have before, and to bring their friends with them.

This will be a remarkable time. And these youth have been saved for this moment in time. And I look at this, and what I think to myself is, “We believe in who you are, and we believe in who you will become.” And there is a great work ahead for all of us. And I am so excited to see where this leads. And I leave that witness in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Jon Ryan Jensen: Amen.

Episode 296: New Sunday schedule to help build disciples of Jesus Christ

Church releases instructional videos for September Sunday schedule changes

How Sunday youth lessons will be structured beginning in September

Heeding the teachings of prophets requires faith. Sometimes a prophet will say something that stands out. Perhaps we don’t understand the principle or doctrine he is teaching. Perhaps the way he says something gives new meaning to the hearer.

A week ago, Church President Dallin H. Oaks traveled outside the United States for the first time since becoming the leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He went to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, to dedicate the Church’s 220^th temple and the 12^th temple in that country.

While there, President Oaks spoke with a Brazilian journalist.

“When we come to the temple, we come to a place which is dedicated exclusively for the service of the Lord,” he said.

So far, so good. That made sense to me. But it was what President Oaks said next that caught me off guard.

“And as a result, the Spirit of the Lord is stronger here than any other building except a well-functioning home,” he said.

That phrase hit me differently than anything else President Oaks said that day. I’m not sure I ever heard a Prophet say that before. I am certain I didn’t ever think about that possibility as much as I have this week.

The idea that my home, with four teenagers and a dog, with a husband and wife who have been married for two decades, that has had adult siblings of both my wife and me living with us at different stages, that has seen its share of both chaos and calm, could be a location where the Spirit of the Lord could be felt as strongly as in the temple made me do a lot of evaluating.

The Spirit of the Lord is stronger here than any other building except a well-functioning home.

President Dallin H. Oaks

Notably to me, President Oaks didn’t say this as though it were an aspirational statement for some time in the future of eternity. He didn’t say a home had to be perfect. He didn’t teach that the home had to have the ideal family structure before the Spirit could be there. He said it needed to be “well-functioning.”

What does that mean?

As I pondered that question, my mind went back to examples I have seen in my life.

As the oldest of five children, I saw the evolution of the home my parents created over the last 50 years. I remember always seeing images of the Savior hanging on the walls. I remember the photo of the Salt Lake Temple, where they were sealed. I remember the cross-stitched “Love one another” that my mother framed and hung on the wall. I remember the “Remember who you are” and the “Return with honor” that my mom would say when a sibling or I walked out the door.

I remember my mom reading to us from the Church’s illustrated “Book of Mormon Stories” book. I remember fighting to stay awake at our early morning Book of Mormon study when I was a teenager. I remember family home evenings each week. And I remember my parents’ constant efforts to get us all together to pray each day.

Not every home looks like this. I know. I feel blessed to have those memories to recall. And I feel equally blessed to be striving to do many of these same things with my family today. We’re not perfect at it. Frankly, sometimes we might be closer to barely functioning instead of well functioning. We are trying.

Whatever a home looks like, though, I believe President Oaks’ statement remains true.

As I looked back at President Oaks’ teachings on the family, I reread his October 2025 general conference message. He offered some ideas on how to strengthen families and invite the Spirit.

“Great blessings come to families if they pray together, kneeling night and morning to offer thanks for blessings and to pray over common concerns. Families are also blessed as they worship together in Church services and in other devotional settings. Family bonds are also strengthened by family stories, creating family traditions and sharing sacred experiences,” he said.

My view of my own home changed this week. And I look forward to putting in the work needed to help it be a well-functioning home, where the Spirit of the Lord can be felt as strongly as in a temple.

— Jon Ryan Jensen is the editor of the Church News.

President Oaks dedicates Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple

'The Family-Centered Gospel of Jesus Christ'

The first week of August of this year, leaders from seven of those organizations met in Salt Lake City to review learnings from the past year’s work and to evaluate what can be done next year to continue to bless families and communities around the world.

Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson sat down with some of those leaders at the Church’s newly opened Humanitarian Center on Thursday, Aug. 6, to talk about how the group has worked together and the outcomes they have seen in the lives of those they have served.

On this episode of the Church News podcast, President Johnson and others speak with Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen and share examples of the successes seen three years into this initiative.

“[The Church’s] members are committed to lifting and caring for all of God’s children,” President Johnson said. “And we’re happy to have the opportunity to collaborate together to make miracles happen in the lives of women and children.”

Listen to this episode of the Church News podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, bookshelf PLUS, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.

Transcript:

Jon Ryan Jensen: I’m Jon Ryan Jensen, editor of the Church News. Welcome to this episode of the Church News podcast.

We’re recording today from the Humanitarian Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This 250,000-square-foot facility is aimed at helping women, children and individuals from all parts of the world to gain necessary skills and other things that they need to help them at different stages of their lives.

In 2023, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints launched a unique initiative with the goal of helping women and children around the world through a consortium of organizations working together. By definition, a “consortium” is a group that pools resources and skills to achieve a common goal.

Those working together in what is now called the Caring for Women and Children Initiative are working across four areas of focus to create the greatest impact for women, children and their families. These four areas are child nutrition, maternal and newborn care, immunizations and education.

We’re joined today to talk with representatives of four organizations working with the Church over the last three years. I’ll introduce them and their organizations.

First off, Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson. Thank you, President Johnson, for being with us today. And along with her from the Church is Elissa Gifford, who is the director of Humanitarian Services here at the Church. Elissa, thanks for coming with us today.

And then to their left, Reed Peterson is the new chief executive officer from iDE. Sarah Bouchie is the president and chief executive officer of Helen Keller Intl. Thank you, Sarah, for being here.

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa is the senior managing director of global health for Save the Children. Winnie, thank you for being here. And Amy Ellis is the deputy director of global health for Catholic Relief Services. Amy, thank you for being here as well.

1:49

Thank you all for being with us today. We’re really excited to have a chance to have a conversation with you and hear what your experiences have been like with this initiative and with working together with each other.

President Johnson, if I could start with you and Elissa, why has the Church placed such an importance on improving the lives of women and children through humanitarian efforts like these?

2:11

President Camille N. Johnson: Well, we know that when we bless a child, we have invested in the future. Providing a child with good nutrition and that mother with prenatal care, we bring a healthy baby into the world with an opportunity for education and advancement. And so we focused on women and children with the hope and expectation that we’ll bless whole families, communities and lift nations.

2:36

Elissa Gifford: In addition, women and children really are often some of the most vulnerable members of a community. But they’re also some of the greatest catalysts for change in those communities. And so by providing this assistance that President Johnson has just described, a woman is able to bless her family, to bless her community and really to help her family to increase their self-reliance and be able to just serve within their communities.

3:05

Jon Ryan Jensen: And I love that idea. And so then the question comes up of: Why did you choose to do a consortium model and work together with so many other organizations?

3:13

Elissa Gifford: We had this, three years ago, we had this idea. We had resources, and we knew that we wanted to focus on women and children. And so we looked at the organizations that we had partnered with, that we’d collaborated with, in the past and invited them to come together.

We could have gone with the same approach that we’ve taken in the past of choosing an organization, providing funding to them, asking them to go and do a specific thing. But this vision that we had was greater than one organization. And it was going to require us to bring together multiple organizations, experts in their field, who could really help us to think through what could be done.

And so we asked them to come together and let us know what they could accomplish together by working together, that they would be able to accomplish more than if they were working individually. And so because it’s more than just a one-organization answer and response, we knew that this was going to require help of many of our friends.

4:21

Jon Ryan Jensen: Building off of that, then, I would really love to hear about some of the opportunities and experiences that you each have had.

Sarah, can I start with you? What — you’ve participated in a consortium in the past — what have you learned about the power of working together among other organizations?

4:36

Sarah Bouchie: It’s such a great question, and it goes back to what Elissa is saying. The problem is huge, right? The vision of the Church was much bigger than what any single organization could accomplish on its own.

At Helen Keller, we like to quote Helen Keller a lot. She was a deaf-blind woman who overcame a lot in her life in order to make a change for what people thought about people with disabilities. And she said, “Alone we can do so little, and together we can do so much.” And we really try to live that at Helen Keller.

We have certain things we do really well. There are certain things we need people to help us with. A car doesn’t get built by one person. A house isn’t built by one person. You need all kinds of expertise to be able to make that happen. And the same thing is true when you’re trying to make lives better for women and children.

5:27

Jon Ryan Jensen: Can you think of an example of how you’ve seen that work as you’ve been doing this?

Sarah Bouchie: Well, a perfect example is the work that we do at Helen Keller, we really try to look at and support how women and families have access to nutrition. But we can’t do that unless they also have access to micronutrients — so, it’s a complicated word just to say the vitamins that they need. We aren’t the best necessarily at bringing vitamins to a community, but we partner with Vitamin Angels in order to make that happen.

Likewise, once a family has the vitamins that they need and we’ve given the education that they need, they need to be able to sustain that by themselves. So, ensuring that they have opportunities to grow nutritious food and earn the income to make that happen, we do that by partnering with iDE, which has been a wonderful opportunity that we have to work together. It’s just a great example of we each do different things, but when we come together, it’s a much more powerful impact that supports better self-reliance, but really just better outcomes for kids and families.

6:36

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love to hear those examples. Amy, I want to come over to you and ask you a similar question. What opportunities have you seen open up to you and your organization’s purpose as you’ve partnered with other organizations?

6:49

Amy Ellis: Well, I think, building on what Sarah said, organizations are a lot like people. We all have different personalities, we all have different strengths, we all have different ways of doing things, and we can achieve a lot more together than we would independently.

So, in our partnership in Ghana, we have partnered with The Hunger Project. And together, they bring strengths, we have brought our experience supporting the Ghana Health Service to build maternal-child health services in their health facilities. The Hunger Project has brought their expertise in inclusive, disability-inclusive programming, and we’ve adopted a lot of their approaches and vice versa in theirs.

So, in addition to creating a lot more coverage and being able to reach more people — since they focus on the south of Ghana, we focus more on the north — we’ve been able to sort of bring the strengths of both of our organizations and increase and improve the outcomes that we’re achieving more together than we would have independently.

7:41

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love this. I met most of you last year, and one of the things that I first noted was the lack of competition among you. Everybody is so excited for what each other are doing.

And Elissa, I’ll come back to you. What is it about all of this that you think are the accomplishments that give you the most encouragement as you see all of this happen?

8:04

Elissa Gifford: I think starting off with what you mentioned, the lack of competition, we brought these individuals together with a feeling that these are the individuals who could work together. It’s not easy to ask organizations who are used to working independently to take a new approach and instead to work this kind of collaborative — they’re working together in the field regularly, but to work at this level in this tight of a collaboration is different.

And so, people who truly were willing to do this kind of work, who were willing to help us to identify best practices, who were willing to help us to identify what’s going well and what’s not going well. Look, we’re interested in solving or addressing the issues, right? And so we don’t want to invest money in things that are not working well, in interventions that aren’t going to get the outcomes that we’re looking for.

And so we’re really looking for organizations who are also equally invested in reaching these outcomes and are willing to talk about what’s not going well and get to where we need to be to apply the interventions that are going to be most beneficial to lift women and children and to lift communities and to help governments provide the services that their communities are in dire need of.

9:34

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, speaking about all of those, President Johnson, I know you’ve had a chance to travel to some of the locations where these have been actually put into practice.

What have you seen making a difference in the lives of these women and children?

9:46

President Camille N. Johnson: Well, it is a beautiful collaboration between these humanitarian organizations and the Church, but also local governments and local communities. One of the three of us can’t do this together, but the three working together can.

And by my observation, the locations we’ve chosen in which to work are places where local governments have a desire to see their people increase in capacity and opportunity. And so, when you reach out to local government and provide them with opportunities, help them see, have a vision for how their nation will thrive as their people have good nutrition and economic opportunity, they buy in as well. And the locations we’re working are places we’ve chosen deliberately where there’s intention on the part of the government to see their people improved.

So I think that’s made a difference, and it really does take the three: the NGO, the Church, lots of good people working on the ground and then those governments willing to participate and communicate with us about needs.

10:54

Jon Ryan Jensen: Dr. Mwebesa, you and I spoke last year, and I was so excited to know you were coming back because I could still hear in my head, after the conversation that we had last year, you kept saying to me, “It makes a huge difference.” And you said it with such a big smile. You were so happy at what was happening.

I’m wondering if you have a story that you could share about the impact that this has all had in those you serve.

11:18

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa: Thank you. And if I wanted, if I was able to tell a story, I would use the story of Bwendo. Bwendo is a mother who we have been able to help in Zambia. So, Zambia is one of the two countries where Save the Children works. And Mongu District, she, Bwendo, showed up after having spent several hours in labor, and she arrived into Mongu District Hospital, which is a district hospital that serves the needs of a catchment area of about 40 health centers.

She’d been in prolonged labor for many hours. And when the health worker, the health team, assessed her, they realized she needed an emergency C-section, cesarean section. So, the surgery went well, but the baby that she delivered struggled to breathe. And in most of the settings where we work, that would be the end of the story.

But because of the investment that has happened through this partnership, the — first of all, the operating theater was functional. It had been recently rehabilitated. There was a NICU, a special newborn care unit that had been equipped with equipment and supplies. The providers had been trained, so they knew what to do in case the baby was struggling to breathe.

And all of this went into motion. And they quickly were able to help that baby, resuscitate the baby and provide the care they needed. And both Bwendo and her baby were able to go back home, and they’re healthy today.

But that’s just one story. Through our programs, we’ve been able to do much more than just help Bwendo. Because of this investment, we’ve been able to transform and equip facilities that are able to do similar work, train healthcare providers. And women like Bwendo are now able to go back home to their families, their babies are able to survive that first life, and communities around them have renewed confidence in the services that their health services are providing.

13:26

Jon Ryan Jensen: When you see something like that happen, what lesson do you bring back to the group about how, then, that can help the rest of you do the work you do better or in a more collaborative way?

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa: It’s really about how we engage. So, early on, President Johnson talked about how we’re working with local governments. It’s making sure that the local governments are in the lead, that they’re helping us identify where those gaps are greatest.

So, the hospital we’re talking about was supposed to be a referral hospital for all these catchment areas, but before they received the refurbishment and equipment and supplies, they were so constrained with what they could do that they had to refer those families further up, which means there’s a cost not only to the family and the community, but there’s also a cost to the health system in general because you’re losing lives that could be saved otherwise.

And so it’s really working with our local governments all the way down at the district level to better identify what those needs are and making sure that as we are putting interventions in place, we’re also making sure that we’re thinking about how they’ll fit in the system, how they will — they’re not only filling a need, but how they will be able to carry them on even after our support has ceased to exist.

14:50

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love hearing those stories and how those single examples can help form greater partnerships. President Johnson?

President Camille N. Johnson: I was just going to say there’s sustainable outcomes when you’re cooperating with local government, even down to the division level. And these wonderful and brave professionals have people, boots on the ground, who are there developing those relationships and identifying needs so that we can satisfy them in a sustainable way.

15:19

Elissa Gifford: When we were talking earlier about why these organizations, because these organizations have proven their ability to create community-centered programs that are locally led and demonstrated that they can teach the interventions and help people have the tools so that when they leave, the interventions live on, that the work continues. And that sustainability. That’s when we know that we’ve been successful, is when the interventions continue once we’ve stepped away.

15:57

President Camille N. Johnson: Can I add something to that? Why women and children? Because when you provide education and information to women, they share it. So they become part of that ongoing effort. They’re educated about neonatal care, about nutrition for their children and their families. They share it with their neighbors and their friends, and so the community rises. So the boots on the ground include those women and families who are willing to share the information that they learn.

16:30

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, we’ve talked a little bit about health, community, family. And none of this can be talked about without talking about economic impact as well.

Reed, why is economic resilience such an important part of improving the outcomes of these women and children?

16:45

Reed Peterson: Yeah, great question. I think that’s because if you look at aid without some type of a long-term, sustainable, market-based solution or a foundational aspect to drive that home, I think often fails. And so we like to build into these programs a little bit more focus on the entrepreneurial element of it. And so, our perspective is powering entrepreneurs to end poverty. And so we look at these market-based solutions to drive the impact long-term.

What we found — I think Sister Johnson talked about this — in our studies, about 90% of the income that these women make goes to three things, and you can guess what they are because it’s the same thing that your mom probably would do for you. But it’s your children’s healthcare, it’s your children’s education, and it’s your family’s nutrition. I mean, it literally is Community Building 101. And so as we look at that, that’s how we found to help drive people out of poverty, is kind of a combination of those things.

17:42

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, what examples are you seeing of families or communities growing when they have these increased economic opportunities?

Reed Peterson: Oh, I love it. Well, I just got back yesterday from 30 days in Africa. I was in Ghana and just recently met a lady, one of the early entrepreneurs from TLTN, Transforming Lives Through Nutrition program with Helen Keller and Vitamin Angels and the Church. And a lady named Ramatu was one of the early kind of adopters of this micronutrients that we were talking about.

Between the age of 0 and 3, 0 and 4, is a pretty critical time to get the right nutrients to the mothers, the right nutrients to the kids. They figured out how to basically drive a little bit more impact into these micronutrients. And we provided this opportunity for this lady, Ramatu, to come up with a business on it.

And she sells this little Vitalac product to the other women in the village, and then she gets the corn from them, she gets the different products and pulls it together, and she’s got her own little factory, and she’s hired local people to engage in that. And slowly she’s moving up that value chain. She’s finding other opportunities to build and grow that little business.

And once we get to a certain point, now she’s got this thriving business out there just right outside Yendi in Ghana, and she’s doing phenomenally well. So we love to see that progress. We love to see that growth. And then we move on to the next and build the next community and build the next. But that’s a long-term, sustainable solution that will last years longer than we ever will be there.

19:17

Jon Ryan Jensen: One of the big numbers that is a part of this — because it’s not just one or two examples — 52 million women and children have been affected by the work that you all have done.

President Johnson, you said that every one of those numbers represents an individual. What hope do you come away with as you think about single individuals as part of that 52 million?

19:40

President Camille N. Johnson: Well, Sarah mentioned that this challenge is immense, but we go at it the way the Savior did, by ministering to the one, identifying the one and addressing the needs of the one. And so, of course, we feel happy that 52 million women and children, their needs had been addressed. And there’s 52 million more, and there’s a “one” in each one of our neighborhoods.

We are looking at this challenge on a global scale and identifying the most vulnerable in places of high need. And in every community in which we live, there are women who can’t read, and there are children who are malnourished.

So, my invitation is for people who are listening to look for the one closest to them and address the needs of that one woman or child. That’s how we’ll tackle this really immense challenge. It’s an opportunity, actually. What I know for sure is that universally women hope for the same things. Everywhere I’ve traveled, women hope for healthy babies, they hope that their family’s free of disease, they hope for economic opportunities so that they can provide education for their children. That universal hope, I think, is what drives women to share what they know so that others can have renewed hope and our communities can be lifted.

21:12

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love that. From outside of the Church and its sponsorship, I’d love to hear from Sarah, Amy, Dr. Mwebesa: What are the hopes that you have as you participate in this? What are the things that you’re seeing that you hope to reach for next?

21:32

Sarah Bouchie: Well, I mean, so the very eloquent words that President Johnson just gave, it gives people a little spark, right? It gives them something to get excited about. And what I want to see is those sparks continue, and they continue moving because really, as fellow human beings, we have an opportunity to make an impact in our family, in our community and ultimately in our nation and in the world. And if we each live our lives in that way, I really truly do see that we can make some important breakthroughs in the world.

So, I mean, it’s — maybe it’s a little too easy to say. My hope lies in women and children themselves. But I really do think that that’s the solution that we’re betting on, and we’re betting on big. We’re betting on big. The Church has put in a lot of money and time. We have put in as individual organizations a lot of money and time. And it’s with that idea that we can spark so much more and just hope that the people that are listening are inspired to see how they can be a part of that.

22:38

Jon Ryan Jensen: You all came together earlier today and were having some discussions about things that you’ve seen going right and opportunities to improve.

In that process of counseling, is there something else that you learn that you take back to your own organizations to say, “Oh, we talked about it in a certain way,” or is there something about the process that you take back to your organizations as well?

22:59

Amy Ellis: That’s a great question. We had a wonderful discussion today. I think that we all arrived at a lot of commonalities. I think we all as implementers appreciate so much the investment that the Church is making and the way in which you’re convening people, which I think is with so much humility and openness and listening and really inviting us to contribute our perspective and our experience and giving us some liberty to invest and to move and to adapt as we think best.

And I think that there was a lot of exchanging of what’s working well and how we can do that better, and a lot of momentum to continue doing that as we move forward and to continue to collaborate and engage and see the bright spots, see where we’re having a lot of impact.

I think in our consortium, we are so delighted this past year. The first year, I think, was a lot about laying down foundations, about building systems, about rehabilitating things, about training people. And in this past year, we’ve really seen the impact of all that investment. We’ve seen in our consortium an 89% reduction in neonatal deaths, which is huge. That’s a lot of babies that are alive today that wouldn’t have been even a year ago.

And my hope is that will only continue to increase over time. And that will have knock-on effects for generations. So I think there’s a lot of sparks, there’s a lot of hope that we’re going to continue to bring back to our organizations and hopefully share amongst ourselves.

24:26

Jon Ryan Jensen: Winnie, I want to ask you: I know it’s not all sunshine and roses. There are disagreements that happen as well. And for those who are listening, they might see that in their own community, that there are differences that seem insurmountable.

So, how do you maintain optimism when individuals or groups see differences in each other?

24:45

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa: That’s a great question. I think it’s maybe focusing less on the differences but more on what makes us stronger together.

Just reflecting on our consortium, we just — Save the Children has been very focused on the health systems and strengthening health at both the facility and the community level. Now in Zambia, we’ve partnered with CARE and with The Hunger Project. And we’re seeing the benefit of going beyond just strengthening the health components, but also looking at some of the more nutrition-sensitive expertise that CARE can bring, and then some of the ag-related work that The Hunger Project is bringing, so we can have a deeper engagement and deeper impact in the communities where we’re working.

So I think for me, it’s less — it’s, instead of dwelling on what our differences are, it’s actually putting those differences to use because as a group, we are much stronger when we are letting that part be what shines rather than what overshadows what we’re trying to work towards.

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s beautiful. That’s beautiful.

25:49

Sarah Bouchie: Can I just jump in a little bit? You know, I really appreciate that focus of staying on: “How do we collaborate? What is working? How do we leverage each other’s strengths?” But if we’re honest about this, it’s hard. It’s hard to work across lots of different organizations. I mean, anybody who has a partner, has lived in a family or has been to a classroom understands that you’re going to have different ideas about things.

And what’s important is that you take the time to reflect and decide, “Which way are you going?” And sometimes you say: “We’re going to go in two different ways. We’re going to try it, and then we’ll come back together and do that reflection.”

But there’s a need to keep continuing building the bonds of trust and support and making sure that our differences are smaller than the things that bring us together. And it’s opportunities like what the Church has done in bringing us together as organizations that have worked in these fields for a very long time, often right next to each other, and sometimes in collaboration.

But I think what’s so lovely about the ways that we’ve been talking today is to really try to say: “OK, so how do we get to that problem, and what else could we add to it? What else would make us to get there?” And I really appreciate that opportunity to step back, reflect and make sure we have more in common than we have not, even though we have some things not in common. And that’s part of being human. That’s part of being living, breathing organizations that have perspective in the world.

27:19

Jon Ryan Jensen: Because of what you just said, I want to ask Reed — Reed’s the newest member of the group, with only a few months in iDE, and so probably less time getting familiar with all of what’s happened in the consortium.

What have you seen? What have been your first impressions gathering together with these groups?

27:36

Reed Peterson: I mean, these ladies are absolutely incredible. I just have to say what a privilege to learn from them, first of all. I think the second thing is I come from the private sector, so this is all a little bit new for me as well. But understanding and seeing how we can apply some of the background and what we do in the private sector with what’s happening in the national development space — which has kind of been a little bit thrown asunder, I would say. It’s been a bit of a challenge. But I think trying to bring those things together, I think, has been really good.

What I love is I love that even though there’s differences of opinions and different ways of doing things, everybody knows what they’re good at, and everybody also focuses on how we can harness the positive from the different perspectives. I think it’s the diversity of thought and opinion and perspectives that brings out the best in the consortium, I think, at least what I’ve seen.

28:29

Jon Ryan Jensen: As we were here in the Humanitarian Center earlier this afternoon, each of you had your first chance to tour this facility. And Reed, I know at the end there was a video that was shown that showed some of the disaster-relief process that the Church goes through, and you had a personal attachment to that.

Would you be willing to share just a little bit of your thoughts having seen that and maybe how that plays into the overall mentality of helping women, children and families?

28:58

Reed Peterson: Sure. That was really cool for me, actually, seeing that for the first time. It’s something that I love doing with my kids when we lived in Georgia. Every year, it sounds terrible, we’d almost hope for some type of a hurricane or natural disaster because then we get to go out and do this work. And it was such a great way to volunteer and to go engage and have the Mormon Helping Hands yellow shirts on.

But what was really cool is watching and seeing that, everywhere from Vidalia to Augusta, all the work that’s done, the volunteer work that’s done, to engage and to support. It’s a privilege to be a part of that. It’s a privilege to be able to volunteer and to engage in that way. But it shows the breadth of the way that the Church gets involved and helps.

29:38

Jon Ryan Jensen: Carrying on that topic, do the rest of you see that same thing happen with each of your organizations, where it takes someone seeing a need, they’re not quite sure how to get started until there’s an immediate need sitting right in front of them? And what would you say to someone who maybe is waiting for that push to get going in helping somewhere in their community?

30:00

Sarah Bouchie: I’d just say: You have so much to offer. Don’t underestimate what the power of one can do, and just try. The worst thing that can happen is it doesn’t turn out as well as you thought it would. That’s not a harm. Everybody needs practice to get better at things. So continuing to make that try until the thing feels right — and you’ll know when it feels right — I think that’s what we try to do and live in Helen Keller on a regular basis. And I can see that reflected in the consortium partners here as well.

30:34

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s great. Dr. Mwebesa?

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa: Yeah. At Save the Children, we are humanitarian. I think very often we say we’re the first to arrive and the last to leave. And what’s amazing is that you shouldn’t be afraid, because you’re probably not going to be the only one who shows up.

And that’s really what’s encouraging, is that there are so many others who show up, and you get to contribute to something that’s really big, that’s much bigger. And I’m sure, Reed, that’s what you experienced serving in Georgia with your sons, is that we experience that over and over again. And it’s because this need, the need is so great that each of us has something that’s valuable that we can contribute. And it can be small or big, but it does make a huge difference.

31:19

Reed Peterson: And just one other thing. I think there’s a joy in service, as you get out and just find whatever it is that you can do. All of us have different skills and abilities and ways to connect. And I think using each of our different personalities, each of our different characteristics or skill set to serve in a different way, sometimes that may be the way that resonates with a specific person or specific group. So I think just that spark of just getting out and doing something, it doesn’t really even matter what it is yet. So I just think that’s important.

31:50

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s great. Elissa, as you hear all of these stories shared, I wonder what your takeaway is as you see the good that’s happening and the sustainable nature of all of this process.

32:04

Elissa Gifford: You know, I’ve been sitting here thinking about a meeting that I got to sit in with President Johnson and Sarah about four or five — I don’t remember — five months ago. Well, I guess it was longer than that. And President Johnson told Sarah and another colleague, Ana, to believe in miracles. She challenged them to believe in miracles, and that is something that has stuck with me.

And I have looked for the miracles in the work that has been done. And the miracles that I see are as simple as the individuals that are working at the local level for each of these organizations that are implementing the work, for the way that they’re implementing the work, for the vastness that we’re able to touch so many lives, for the continual efforts, for the children, the children whose lives are saved because of these midwives or community health workers who’ve now been trained to provide the service that is needed for these women, these women who are mothers who don’t know, who are gaining the new knowledge that they need to help their families thrive.

Those are the miracles that I see, and so I’m so grateful for that invitation to look for the miracles and to believe in those miracles. And I think we will continue to see miracles as we continue to work towards solutions in this ever-changing environment. I can’t even imagine — five years ago I wouldn’t have imagined that this is the environment that we would be working in now. It’s very different, and we’re looking to the future, trying to anticipate, “What is the next five years going to look like?” And it’s hard to envision what that will look like, but there are miracles that are yet to come, and I believe that that will happen, and I look forward to seeing those miracles.

34:09

President Camille N. Johnson: I remember that day distinctly. And the first miracle was that Sarah from Helen Keller Intl and Ana Céspedes from Vitamin Angels called and said, or sent me an email, “We’re traveling together, and we’d like to come and say hello.” And I thought, “Well, has the Church scheduled a meeting that I don’t know about that they’re coming to Salt Lake City?” There was the first miracle. They’re working together in collaborative ways and traveling together because they’re not just professional colleagues, but they’re genuine friends.

So, we sat around the round table in my office, and Elissa was there, and they asked, “What can we expect moving forward?” And I said, “We can expect miracles.” And I know that’s true because we’re engaged in work that matters to our Heavenly Father.

He knows all of His children. I’m sure of that. And He’s aware of each individual all around the world. He wants to bless the lives of His children, and so He will draw upon every resource and put good people together who have the same motive, and that is to lift and bless women and children, families and communities.

He’s instilled in all of these good people love. I know that’s what motivates you ultimately. It’s our love of God and our love of His children that brings us together. And so I know we can expect miracles because we’re doing His work.

35:40

Jon Ryan Jensen: Amy and Winnie, the two of you were not part of that story, but as you heard it, are there things that you hear in that that you can look back at and say, “Yeah, we’ve seen the miraculous, we’ve seen the inexplicable happen as we’ve been engaged in this”?

35:55

Amy Ellis: As you were speaking, I was thinking about the many times that I’ve been to see our projects on the ground, and I am always so awestruck by the commitment that people bring. People in very rural and impoverished places who show up, they do incredible work, they are volunteering their time. That’s a miracle to me, is what the people will contribute and what they can accomplish with so little.

I know stepping back, we’re talking about a lot of money, but when it trickles down to communities, it ends up being a relatively small amount, but what they do with it is so impactful and so impressive. And I think just the ability to achieve as much as we’ve achieved and what the people on the ground — not really us. I mean, I’m in an office. I don’t do that much actual work on the ground.

But, you know, the community health workers, the project staff, the volunteer mothers, the midwives, they’re the ones that make miracles happen. And every day, the work that they do is so impressive. And I’m so grateful to be a part of that in any small way because it’s such important, impactful work and has such incredible ripple effects.

37:00

Dr. Winifride Mwebesa: So, I get to see those miracles through the lens of some of the groups that we’re invited to. So, in our — we’ve been invited to and added to WhatsApp groups. These days, those groups allow a lot of people to stay connected. And in Zambia, they’ve created, after some of the trainings that they received around how to help mothers survive delivery and babies survive, small babies, better survive, they started, they created a WhatsApp group where they share what they’re learning.

So we get to witness. They send us pictures of their mentorship sessions where they’re communicating and teaching each other and challenging each other and to try and acquire, see how they can better learn these skills, because not everyone gets to go to every training. But then they go back, and then they share some of that learning with those who are not able to so that they can provide better services. And we get to see that and witness it.

And then we also see the numbers, where they get to celebrate the lives that are being saved because they have better skills. So just being connected to that gives me a lot of encouragement because we know that this is something that we can do more of because you’re actually starting to see them being their own agents of change within their facilities and helping to bring their peers along, but with a goal of saving more lives.

38:24

Jon Ryan Jensen: Well, I have to say that as a journalist, it is a pleasure to watch organizations with different purposes and goals work together. And today, again, even with the larger group, so great to see all of you trying to understand each other, work together with each other to make the world a better place, which, again, is what everybody wants.

President Johnson, we have a tradition here at the Church News podcast where we like to give our guests the last word, and I would like to give that to you today as we close this episode of the Church News podcast.

Having been through the growth of this consortium and its efforts over the last three years, what is it that you know now?

39:02

President Camille N. Johnson: I’m optimistic for the future. Working with these wonderful, professional people who are my friends, I am confident that they will commit their resources, their time, their talents and their energy to lifting and building women and children.

I’m so grateful to be part of a Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is committed — its members are committed — to lifting and caring for all of God’s children. And we’re happy to have the opportunity to collaborate together to make miracles happen in the lives of women and children.

I know that’s what our Father in Heaven wants for His children — opportunities for education, opportunities for good nutrition, for sound emotional and physical health and economic opportunities. And because I know that it is His work in which we’re engaged, we can expect those miracles.

More than 52 million women and children blessed by Church initiative

Relief Society global initiative for women and children seeks to provide the Savior’s relief

Episode 194: The Relief Society general presidency on the blessings of the global initiative for women and children

Listen to more episodes of the Church News podcast

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invited leaders from seven global humanitarian and nongovernmental organizations to participate in its second annual Caring for Women and Children Initiative Consortium in the Church Office Building on Temple Square on Thursday, Aug. 6, and Friday, Aug. 7.

“Because of the impact and change the strong collaboration established and our confidence in this important work, I am pleased to announce a Year 3 commitment of $65 million,” President Johnson said.

This brings the Church’s total investment in this unique project to $184 million over three years. Last year, the Church announced a $63 million donation at the first gathering of the consortium.

The results of the initiative thus far have shown President Johnson what she said can happen when “people come together in a spirit of compassion.”

Blaine Maxfield, managing director of the Church’s Welfare and Self-Reliance Services Department, recognized the leaders of the various organizations working with the Church across 12 countries in Africa and Asia.

“The true impact of this work is found in individual lives,” Maxfield said. “This is what matters most.”

He said the gathering celebrates the progress being made around the globe while still understanding there is much work left to do.

“Lasting change occurs when individuals, families and communities are empowered to care for themselves and one another,” he said.

The Church’s announcement of $65 million in donations for the coming year is indicative of the Church’s commitment to the work that has been done and that will be done moving forward.

“There is still important work ahead of us,” Maxfield said.

President Johnson said that helping 52 million women and children has been a tremendous undertaking. One point she hoped individuals will consider is that it hasn’t been one effort to collectively bless 52 million people. It has been a shared effort to bless 52 million individual children of Heavenly Father.

“We believe that every person is a beloved child of God,” President Johnson said. That knowledge inspires Church members to help build lives of hope and opportunity, she said.

Turning to those in attendance representing the seven organizations working with the Church, President Johnson expressed her feelings of gratitude.

“Thank you for your friendship, your leadership and your unwavering commitment to this work,” she said.

Group learnings panel discussion

Following the initial remarks by President Johnson and Maxfield, leaders from some of the organizations joined President Johnson in a panel discussion about what they have learned, seen and felt over the past three years.

Heather Danton, the director for food security and nutrition at CARE, compared working with other organizations in the consortium to a beehive.

“Bees each bring a unique strength to the hive for a higher good,” she said. The outcomes sought by the consortium come from “being able to layer these areas of expertise that no one organization has.”

Beyond the Church and the organizations it works with, Danton said the work extends to communities, schools, governments and others as they collaborate.

Dr. Winnie Mwebesa is the senior managing director of global health for Save the Children. She said the involvement of different organizations is good and that they share the hope that they can empower communities and then move to the next need.

“Communities need ownership of the processes and the outcomes,” she said.

As the organizations work together, they avoid creating parallel systems by feeding into existing priorities of communities, Mwebesa said.

Timing is also an important part of the consortium’s success. Mwebesa explained that getting involved early enough at the individual and community levels is part of what helps ensure that changes are generational and not dependent on any organization having a permanent presence.

Ana Céspedes is the CEO of Vitamin Angels.

“Each one of these organizations are superstars,” Céspedes said. And as groups that excel in their field, she said, the group is then able to help make transformative changes wherever it goes.

One example comes as the group works to transform lives through nutrition. Céspedes spoke of the need for micronutrients in newborn children. She said that providing a simple vitamin A supplement can reduce mortality rate of children under the age of 5 by 24%.

The part of the three-year project that has impressed her the most, however, is the way the groups have worked together under shared values.

“This makes us share values and share concerns with each other and about each other and about the communities that we serve,” she said.

Notwithstanding the good that has been done over the past three years, Céspedes said, she hopes that individuals will pay attention to how it is all coming about.

“I wish that people understood more profoundly the work the Church is doing in these communities,” she said. “This is an innovative initiative. It is going to gain and is gaining more recognition for the health of women and children on a global scale.”

Reed Peterson, CEO of iDE, has been in his role for only a few months. But he said the work he has seen is impressive.

“Working with these ladies and working with this consortium is truly an honor,” he said.

Peterson said he recently spent a month seeing the work done in different parts of Africa and came away with an appreciation for the way the groups are working together for long-term success.

“When we create long-term, sustainable change, you have increased economic impact,” he said.

For those who are looking for a way to help out closer to home, Peterson said the need likely exists closer than they realize.

“What about your street? What about your neighborhood? What about your area?” he said.

Looking for a place to serve will open doors that might not seem obvious, he said. And going through the process to find a way to use talents and resources will also change the heart of those who serve, he said.

Jenna Recuber, deputy CEO of The Hunger Project, spoke about the way women bear a great responsibility around the world to care for those in their homes.

“Women in households bear the primary responsibility for meeting basic needs,” she said. “When a woman is supported with knowledge, she does not keep it to herself.”

In one case, Recuber said, a group of 3,500 mothers in Ghana have become educators in their country and in their communities. They have helped create mother-to-mother support groups. Mwebesa said she sees the same thing as women create WhatsApp groups to share health information with one another.

Recuber said one group has helped mothers “to speak openly about their feelings after childbirth.”

Through the groups they are able to support each other with both physical and mental health needs, she said.

President Johnson said that watching representatives from the organizations as they serve has helped her see Christlike characteristics exhibited.

“I am very impressed by the humility of these people who are experts in their field and their willingness to go to the ground and ask people, ‘What do you need? What do you think will help us resolve this situation?’” President Johnson said.

Danton said that kind of communication helps the group know how to invite adjustments to everyday behaviors that can have permanent results.

“Sustained outcomes or improved outcomes for nutrition really do rely on making changes in the way people do things,” she said.

And then talking with those who make those changes can reveal more than the simple passing on of knowledge, Peterson explained.

“To hear in their voices the self-confidence they have, the self-dignity,” he said.

As they learn to do tasks that benefit others in their communities, “they have been able to create income, and now they have something to pass down to their children and then watch children learn the same skill,” he said.

President Johnson closed with an observation.

“Women universally hope for healthy children. They hope that their families will be free of disease,” she said. Working with others who share that hope has created both professional relationships and lifelong friendships.

“I count them all as my friends,” she said of those in the consortium.

And for those looking for their own way to make a difference, don’t look too far from home, she invited.

“My invitation to all of you is to recognize the one,” she said. “There are women who cannot read in your community. There are children who are hungry in your community. So if we’ll each look for the one, that is the way we will address these challenges.”

‘A visionary project’: Millions blessed by Church’s global initiative collaboration

Jon Ryan Jensen: ‘Aware of all of His children’

On this episode of the Church News podcast, 2026 Utah Area YSA Conference co-chairs Zach Sutton and Shelby Hurst talk with Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen about their preparation to host thousands from around the world at the Church’s largest annual gathering of young single adults.

“The YSA conference has a very special spirit about it,” Sutton says in the podcast. “I’m just so grateful that we can be able to help to organize that kind of thing. ... When we go to this YSA conference, what better place for [Heavenly Father] to direct paths?”

Listen to this episode of the Church News podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, bookshelf PLUS, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.

Transcript:

Shelby Hurst: Growing up in the gospel, there’s a lot of people around you also growing up in the gospel. And so sometimes you see those people fall away. But I think coming to the conference and seeing that there’s still a lot of young adults still active is really strengthening for me to see that. You know, we see a lot of information on social media about people falling away and leading others astray. And I think just coming to the conference and seeing that here in Utah, there’s still a really strong group of young adults who are still actively participating in the gospel and love their Savior and want to grow in the gospel.

0:31

Jon Ryan Jensen: This is Jon Ryan Jensen, editor of the Church News. Welcome to the Church News podcast. Today, we are taking you on a journey of connection as we discuss news and events of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Over the last few years, the Church has sponsored young single adult conferences around the world. One of the pinnacle conferences held every year happens in the Utah Area, and today we are excited to talk with two of the YSA organizers of that conference, and we welcome them here to our studio today.

Zach Sutton, Shelby Hurst, thank you for coming in and talking with us about this year’s conference.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, of course.

Zach Sutton: Thank you for having us.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, thank you.

1:08

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, this year, one of the first things that I noticed was that the conference itself does not have a separate theme than the Utah Area theme.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the decision to adopt the Utah Area theme in general for just this conference.

Shelby Hurst: I think we focused a lot this year on focusing on the individuals that are coming alone, the one. And I think that ties in really nicely with the Utah Area theme of “Joyfully gathering Israel one by one.” And I think focusing on that one is so important.

I think we each have a unique role to play in gathering that one, because if we each just reach out to one individual, what an impact that could make, if everybody reached out to one individual. I think it’d be amazing to see that at the conference as well, just everybody meeting one new person and making one person feel invited and loved and seen. I think it’d be really powerful.

1:57

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, I think that’s a beautiful thought. Zach?

Zach Sutton: I, when I think about the Utah Area theme and how we’re just so unified with it, I think about in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Savior says, “If ye are not one ye are not mine” (Doctrine and Covenants 38:27).

And if we were trying to do something else and have our own separate theme, maybe we’d have good intentions, but we’re not aligned with the priesthood keys, the authority that cover the entire Utah Area. And by accessing those keys and by being aligned with them, we can access all the YSA and their hearts, especially the individuals, the people who might be on the edge, might be on the fence of coming to the conference. We want to really help access them.

2:28

Jon Ryan Jensen: I mean, there might be individuals who are on the fence about coming. But it’s also important to note that this is one of the most well-attended young single adult events that the Church puts on every year.

Zach Sutton: It’s true.

2:42

Jon Ryan Jensen: What is the attendance that you’re expecting and hoping for this year?

Zach Sutton: Yeah, last year we had over 20,000 YSA attending the conference. So we’re anticipating hopefully those numbers as well, some repeat customers, if you will.

2:54

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, I think even if we don’t get as much as last year, I think this year the conference is going to be so powerful. I think we have a lot of great keynote speakers and breakout session speakers set up. And I think it’s going to be a really powerful experience for those that do come. And I know if they come with a willingness to participate and to learn and to grow, that they are going to have powerful spiritual experiences.

3:14

Jon Ryan Jensen: I’d love to talk a little bit about some of those guests who are going to be speaking this year, because one of the things that I think that this conference does well is have that great mix of those spiritual experiences, devotionals and the breakout sessions and other keynote speakers.

Who are you most excited for people to hear from this year?

3:33

Shelby Hurst: I’m most excited to hear from the Holdmans. They’re one of our keynote speakers this year. I had the opportunity a couple months ago to go down to their studio with a YSA group and tour their studio and hear a little bit about the Holdmans’ story of how they got into stained-glass work and working in the temples. And he just has an amazing story and just such a strong faith and testimony. And so I’m really excited to hear from them and how they involve creativity in their testimony of the gospel.

3:57

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, I’ve heard them speak before, and it’s so refreshing to hear them talk about their view on the gospel and how the Savior and His Atonement really has an effect on the work that they’re doing regularly.

Zach, what about you?

Zach Sutton: Well, jumping to one of the breakout sessions, Brother [Jared] Halverson, one of the BYU faculty, he’s going to be attending there. And I love the way that he approaches the gospel. He approaches the gospel with really hard-to-answer questions that we have a lot of times. And he approaches them with faith, with boldness, and has helped me a lot in my journey.

Jon Ryan Jensen: And you are a BYU student?

Zach Sutton: Yes, yes, absolutely.

4:34

Jon Ryan Jensen: There are Church leaders who are going to be speaking at the conference this year as well, on Friday and Saturday.

So, what can YSAs who attend, who can they expect to hear from?

Shelby Hurst: I think something unique that we’re doing this year is we’re having a scripture study with the area presidency. I think that’s going to be a really great opportunity to learn from the area presidency and sit down with them and just learn about studying the scriptures and have their perspective on the gospel and just learn a lot from them through that scripture study.

5:03

Jon Ryan Jensen: In June, I remember listening at the Seminar for New Mission Leaders to Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. And he spoke about the importance of learning to study the scriptures when he was on his mission. And he had a mission president who taught him and the late President Jeffrey R. Holland how to find the Savior in the Book of Mormon. And he said even to this day, those who served in that mission, they still use those same principles of scripture study.

And I think that what you’re saying is absolutely right. Learning to study the scriptures in different ways and from those who have studied them deeply can be very helpful.

5:36

Zach Sutton: It’s also just kind of a different setting. I remember last year with Sister Oaks, when she came and spoke to us. It’s just so cool to see these different perspectives in a YSA setting. You’re either in this big auditorium with 10,000 people which is in your similar age group. And to have people, these leaders of the Church, these well-beloved and respected leaders of the Church, think and ponder and pray for months ahead of time for us, it really is something special. It’s something unique.

We have general conference, which is wonderful, ward conference, stake conference, but the YSA conference has a very special spirit about it. And I’m just so grateful that we can be able to help organize that kind of thing.

6:15

Jon Ryan Jensen: With that in mind, and thinking about that one-by-one message that you shared earlier, what would you say to that person who is thinking: “Oh no, this is a big social activity. I’m more of an introvert”?

What would you say to them to encourage them to come and be able to feel that spirit of that well-prepared-for message?

6:36

Shelby Hurst: I think it’s definitely an act of faith, especially to come alone. I think it definitely can be scary. I mean, I’m not going to minimize it and say that it’s not. I think it’s definitely scary because it is a big environment with lots of people, and maybe you don’t know anybody.

But I know that if you want to be part of it, participation is really important, that you get out what you put in. So if you go expecting to feel lonely and expecting to feel awkward, then that’s what you’re going to find. But if you go with an attitude of wanting to be involved, to find a place to participate, then that’s what you’re going to find. I know it takes some effort and that as you put in that effort, the Lord’s going to bless you, and He’s going to help you meet people or have a positive experience.

And I know that there’s a lot more to the conference than just the social aspect. There’s a really strong spiritual aspect. So maybe you’re not going for the social aspect, but you’re going because you want to grow closer to your Savior, Jesus Christ, through the breakout sessions, or you want to gather more skills from a professional-development perspective. So I think there’s a lot more than just the social aspect, but I think you get in what you put out.

7:36

Jon Ryan Jensen: Shelby, my daughter, my oldest daughter, is 16 and attended FSY this year. And everything you said is what my wife and I were saying to her, because we talked with her about getting out of it what you put in. And she decided after praying that she wasn’t going to attend with any of her friends. She said, “If you’re right, then I’m going to go by myself, and I’m going to find the people who I need to find.”

And then it became a test of our faith as parents. But she did. She had an amazing experience. She did find people who not only were like her but who were going through the same process of building their testimony in the way that she was. And it really was an answer to her prayers and to our prayers. And so I can testify that that will definitely happen.

8:18

Zach Sutton: And I think it’s just a testimony that the Lord, He knows us. When we go to this YSA conference, what better place for Him to direct paths than at the YSA conference?

And if you’re going alone, the Lord knows that. And there are so many people there that I’m sure the Lord can nudge, and He can nudge you as well to put you in their path, to put them in your path. I have a testimony of that, that the Lord is so good at arranging, somehow, the Lord is so good at arranging our paths to have impossible meetups with people. And I know that’s going to happen at this YSA conference as well.

8:47

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, I completely believe that that happens in our everyday lives. But the fact that this conference is happening on a regular basis really is an amazing thing as well.

What is the purpose of having a conference like this where young single adults, members of the Church, can gather and spend this time together?

9:08

Zach Sutton: Well, my thoughts, if I can open up a scripture really quick, my thoughts go into the book of Matthew. And the Lord says in Matthew, chapter 18, verse 20, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

And I think that if this principle is true for two or three people — you know, maybe us here in this room — how much more true is it for 2,000 or 3,000 or 10,000 or 20,000 people? And if we’re all united around Jesus Christ, we can really feel His presence there. We can see how He’s directing our lives and His work.

So that’s, to me, why I think this is so important for us to gather together as this bastion in the world — which is so confusing and dark, and there’s wildfires and earthquakes and tempests, so much confusion — but we can gather together thousands and thousands of people just trying to make the world a better place. Nothing like it.

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love that.

10:05

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, I would agree with what Zach said. I think also there’s a pervasive loneliness amongst our generation, where we feel lonely and we compare ourselves to others. And I think it’s really a great opportunity to come to the conference and see that we’re not the only ones in our situation. We’re not the only one feeling lonely. We’re not the only one maybe struggling with our testimony.

And it’s just a great opportunity to gather with those of our age group who are in similar situations and to feel of their strength and to see that we’re not alone and that there’s still a lot of young adults who are still active in the gospel with strong testimonies.

10:37

Jon Ryan Jensen: So, the conference takes place over a couple of different days.

And so, outside of the devotionals, what are the other kinds of activities that people can expect when they attend?

Zach Sutton: Yeah, well, actually starting on Thursday before maybe the main days of the conference, we’re having what’s called the “Rally Kickoff.” And it’s kind of like an intro into the conference. There’s going to be a rally, like a scavenger hunt that’s going to be happening throughout the entire course of the conference. And this is another way to help build some interaction and help see so much of the conference.

I think last year, one of the feedback points that we got was, “Oh, I didn’t know that ‘blank’ was an offering at the conference.” And so we want to help everybody to know what’s happening at the conference. And that’s going to happen on Thursday.

11:20

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, I’m really excited for the rally. It’ll be a great opportunity for individuals to get together in teams and complete little tasks and prompts to gain points. And I think it’ll be great to —

Jon Ryan Jensen: Tap into the competitive nature.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah.

Zach Sutton: A little bit, not too much, hopefully.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, yeah. I think it’ll help build connection in the conference and help people make new friends and also experience new things at the conference, like Zach was saying.

11:40

Zach Sutton: But there’s also, there’s going to be a big hangout zone where, outside of the breakout classes and the main keynote speakers and the music, there’s a lot of places with board games. I think this year we’re still doing the cart racing.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, the tricycles.

Zach Sutton: The tricycles. And yeah, just different places for a more casual setting to get to know people.

12:03

Jon Ryan Jensen: There’s something to be said about gathering, like you said, gathering in the name of the Savior, gathering with people who share similar beliefs. As part of this, I understand that — at least up where I am — the Layton Utah Temple is going to have some different options for young single adults to be attending the temple together as well.

What are some of the things that you’ve heard from past conferences or feedback that you’ve gotten about how maybe YSA wards or other groups are building on this idea and taking it beyond just the weekend of the conference?

12:39

Zach Sutton: Yeah, well, I know in the Orem Utah Temple district, we’ve had temple nights where for, maybe call it like Thursday evening, is going to be just the entire temple is just for YSA. And you don’t need an appointment. You can just show up, and you can go to the Church building nearby. And they give you this little medallion depending on the ordinance you want to do. They have food. And it’s a very special experience to see just so many. And it’s packed. The parking lot is completely packed. It’s hard to find, which is a really great problem to have attending the temple altogether.

13:07

Shelby Hurst: Love that. I know the Layton temple has done something similar, like you mentioned. I think also last year, we had some wards here in Salt Lake host the visitors. So, a group came up from St. George, and they didn’t have anywhere to go to church. So a ward hosted them, and they had this big linger longer after. And so there’s a lot of wards and stakes locally who are hosting those that are visiting. And it’s a great opportunity for connection and getting to mingle with those who are up here for the conference, just visiting for the weekend.

13:33

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love to hear about that. As my son goes into this YSA age group, it’s always something that, as a parent, we want to know that our children are going to be in places where they can find people who will meet their social needs and also share in their testimonies.

As you’ve prepared for this conference, I know that we’ve heard in the past that sometimes when somebody prepares a talk, when somebody prepares a lesson, that they’re the ones who feel they get the most out of it.

What do you feel you’ve gotten out of the preparation side of this?

14:06

Shelby Hurst: I feel like I’ve just gained a really strong testimony that the Utah Area presidency and the Church as a whole really care about young single adults. Getting to see behind the curtain and see how much work goes into a conference like this has really strengthened my testimony to see that they really care a lot, that they want us to gather and that our Savior wants us to gather, that this is His conference and that He wants us to be together and to experience a conference like this together because they care a lot about us.

Jon Ryan Jensen: That’s great.

14:32

Zach Sutton: Yeah, from my perspective — so, I attended the first, my first time at the conference, was I think two conferences ago, and it was great. I wasn’t part of the committee at that point, and I showed up and had a wonderful time with my friends and was spiritually enriched.

And then I joined the committee. I got called into the committee last — the next year. And seeing how many people put so many hours and work and effort and prayers and thoughts into the conference, it really blew my mind. And how the Church leadership are just so aware of the YSA, and they just love, and they’re praying about us and caring for us.

That just surprised me so much. I guess it didn’t surprise me, but I was just very honored to be able to, again, like Shelby said, peek behind the curtain a little bit and help in that effort.

And so I just hope everyone knows this. As soon as the last conference ended, the very next week we were back on our Teams call, and we were planning the next conference, this coming conference. And it’s been a really marvelous experience to help see how it’s changed.

15:33

Jon Ryan Jensen: Zach, I want to ask you — because you’re from the East Coast of the United States, and so maybe your experience growing up was a little different than what you experience now here — what has it meant for you to come here, where there is a higher concentration of members, and then to be able to participate in this way in helping them gather together?

15:51

Zach Sutton: It’s very unique. It really is. I grew up outside Washington, D.C., in the Northern Virginia area. And the Church there is quite strong. But of course, it’s pretty different to here in Utah, where you’ve got thousands of Church buildings and temples dotting the entire valley. And so coming here was a really wonderful opportunity just to serve in a different way.

Everywhere that the Church is established, it’s a different — maybe a different energy or a different kind of slightly different structure, but it is the same gospel. It’s the same Church. And being here in Utah with so many people together, kind of like the scripture I mentioned before, just gathering together with thousands and thousands of people is very strengthening for me personally. And it’s, yeah, it’s an honor to be able to participate in this way.

16:39

Jon Ryan Jensen: And Shelby, I’ll ask a similar but opposite question for you.

Being closer to the Salt Lake Valley, what’s it like for you to have thousands of people come who maybe aren’t as familiar with Temple Square and all that the Church has around where we are?

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, it’s a cool opportunity to be a part of it. I think being here in Utah, it’s hard to see — growing up in the gospel, there’s a lot of people around you also growing up in the gospel. And so sometimes you see those people fall away. But I think coming to the conference and seeing that there’s still a lot of young adults still active is really strengthening for me to see that.

We see a lot of information on social media about people falling away and leading others astray. And I think just coming to the conference and seeing that here in Utah, there’s still a really strong group of young adults who are still actively participating in the gospel and love their Savior and want to grow in the gospel is really strengthening to me, like I said. And I think it’s just really cool to be a part of that, to have a group of us here that love the gospel.

17:37

Jon Ryan Jensen: When you come together, we’ve talked about the devotionals, we’ve talked about the breakout groups, but the concert has always been a big draw for this event as well.

Do you want to share a little bit about what people can expect at this year’s concert?

Zach Sutton: Yes, I’m so excited to talk about Iam Tongi. He’s the concert performer this year. He performed a couple of years ago in the conference as well, and he is just amazing. Such a fun energy. For those who don’t know, he was the American Idol winner a little bit ago.

And I think one of the unique parts about this is that as he’s a member of our faith, he can talk about his testimony. And we can see this big concert performer, someone who’s very musically gifted, but at the same time seeing that he’s like us as well and that he can talk about his faith. And it’s a very unique setting than maybe other concerts that I’ve been to.

18:24

Jon Ryan Jensen: In addition to Iam Tongi, there’s another musical guest who’s coming who has kind of a repeat performance from last year’s conference. Is that right?

Zach Sutton: Yeah, so that group is the King will come, and it’s kind of an interfaith gospel group. And last year they came, and it was really powerful. The message is very moving. And yeah, it’s much more of the worship Christian rock style of music that I think will be a perfect pairing for Iam Tongi as well.

18:45

Shelby Hurst: I think with the concert, something that has really stood out to me is that it is at the Salt Palace Convention this year, which is smaller than Rio Tinto Stadium or being at the Delta Center. And it was really cool when we were planning the conference a couple months ago, when we were discussing the concert, Sarah and Hailey — who are the production team for the conference — came and said, “We’re going to have the concert at the Salt Palace Convention Center.”

And they said, “We looked at all the other stadiums and event sites in Utah, and all of them were booked.” And so they thought, they discussed and said, “Well, let’s just have it at the Salt Palace Convention Center.” And then they met with Elder [Brian K.] Taylor, President Taylor. And President Taylor, not having talked with them, said, “Let’s have the concert at the Salt Palace Convention Center.”

And it was really cool to hear that story, because that just shows me that the Savior has a plan for this conference and that the concert this year is supposed to be at the Salt Palace Convention Center. Just to have that unique environment where it’s smaller and you can really feel that connection with Iam and just have that Spirit there, I think, is going to be really unique and really cool.

19:46

Jon Ryan Jensen: I’ve been to actually a number of concerts there for other big conventions that have happened. And there is a different feeling when you get to put a lot of people in a small space. And, again, you’re there for the same purpose.

We’ve also seen this with For the Strength of Youth concerts that have been held in Brazil and Mexico City, and the outcomes are just so positive because you put all of — you’re concentrating so much energy in a smaller space.

What would you say for, if you’re talking to parents or ward leaders who are considering how to encourage YSAs that they know to come, what would be your invitation to them to help get people here?

20:29

Zach Sutton: That’s a great question. I think I would just really encourage them to rely on their keys as well. They know the specific needs of their wards and their stakes. And if in any way possible they can just reduce the barriers of entry that might — that the YSA might — be in to come to the conference, that would be so important. If they can maybe provide some transportation or help organize some carpooling or whatever it might be to help reduce the barriers of entry, remove some obstacles, relying on their keys that the Lord knows how to reach them.

And then personal invitations as well. There’s so many people who have already signed up, and they’re going to be going no matter what. But I think we’ve been focusing a lot on who’s on the fence, who might come, who might not come. But how could we help to encourage them and entice them, invite them as the Savior would to come and participate, come and see how it’s going to be?

21:23

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, I agree with Zach. I think breaking down those barriers is really important. I also think it’s important to highlight that, like I’ve mentioned, this is the Savior’s conference. He wants us to gather. And so it’s more than a dance party. It’s more than the concert. It’s coming to learn about our Savior and gathering together in Christ.

And I think that’s so important because when we’re all focused on Christ, it doesn’t matter our differences. We can all have different experiences and life events and beliefs. But when we are all together in Christ, Christ is our center. He’s our focus. And that just creates such a beautiful strength and power at the conference that I’m excited for young adults to feel together.

21:58

Jon Ryan Jensen: As I heard you describe that, it really brought to mind when President Russell M. Nelson spoke about the identities that we should have and that we share. And it sounds, listening to the two of you, like that really is the focus. It’s not about the “Who likes the same music?” It’s about “How are we finding our shared identity in Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ?”

Is that something that you as a committee have worked hard as you’ve created the schedule for this event?

22:25

Shelby Hurst: Yeah, for sure. We actually had a retreat a couple months ago as a YSA committee to talk about the conference and what we wanted the focuses to be on for the breakout rooms and the keynote sessions. And we really focused a lot on identity and who we are as members of the Church.

Especially when we’re young single adults, and as we get older and maybe we’re not in a relationship or we’re not married, how do we fit into the gospel? When sometimes it seems like we’re supposed to grow up and get married, but then that doesn’t happen. So then where do we fit now?

And I think we focus a lot on identity and our identity as a child of God and how that impacts us. And that’s really been a big focus of the conference.

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, those “supposed to”s can be hard.

Zach Sutton: Yeah.

23:05

Jon Ryan Jensen: But following that covenant path, as our Church leaders — especially the members of the Quorum of the Twelve and First Presidency have taught — finding that together, equally important.

Zach Sutton: Yeah, I think that the retreat that we had, that Shelby was talking about, was one of the most powerful experiences in planning for this conference. And it took a lot of work. We were there in the Church building for like eight hours, I think, and just talking and discussing and putting lots of ideas and talking about hard topics, things that we’re actually facing in our wards and in our stakes and in our lives in this decade of decisions that we’re in right now. It’s so pivotal.

And coming to the end of that with so many different ideas and feeling the spirit of unity from the Lord, it provided a lot of direction for us. And so, yeah, if any YSA is listening to this, just know that we have thought about you and prayed about you for the past year, and we know that the Lord can touch your heart by attending the conference.

24:01

Jon Ryan Jensen: For those who are hearing this and saying, “OK, I do want to go, I do want to learn more information,” where can they find that info?

Shelby Hurst: I think the Utah YSA conference Instagram page is really great. It has a lot of great information. But if they don’t have social media, the website is a great option. I don’t have the URL memorized, but there is a website for the Utah Area conference that has a lot of great information, all the information you need.

24:22

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, so that website is utahysaconference.org.

Shelby Hurst: That has a lot of great information, all the information you need.

Jon Ryan Jensen: And that also went to all of the ward leaders and stake leaders around the state in the Utah Area as well. So all of them should have that information as well.

Shelby Hurst: Yeah.

24:37

Jon Ryan Jensen: Before we end, we have a tradition on the Church News podcast where we like to give our guests the final word.

And so I’d like to invite the two of you to answer the question: What do you know now, having had the experiences that you’ve had? So Zach, we’ll have you go first, and Shelby, we’ll let you wrap us up today.

24:56

Zach Sutton: One thing I want to share is that I know that the Savior lives. And I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know that more than the things that I see and the things that I hear, because the things that I see and that I hear deceive me all the time, especially in this confusing world. But by the witness of the Holy Spirit to my spirit, I know the Savior lives. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

25:18

Shelby Hurst: Something that I’ve known, know now, that I’ve been able to learn over the past year is that I can go through a hard trial and a hard experience and not have that impact my relationship with my Heavenly Father and my Savior, Jesus Christ.

I think it can be really easy to go through a hard trial and say to our Heavenly Father and our Savior: “Why are You doing this to me? Why are you allowing me to go through this?” But I think I’ve learned that I can say: “You know what, today was a hard day. I felt lonely today. Today I felt sad. But I know that that is not from my Savior, that He’s not doing that to me. Rather, He’s allowing me to have those experiences because He knows the individual I need to become. And I know that He’s going to help me learn and grow. He did not put me on this earth to fail. I know my Savior’s not going to let me fail.”

And that’s something that I’ve learned, that I can have hard days, that I can say, like I said, “Today was hard, but I know that that doesn’t have to impact my relationship with my Heavenly Father, that I can remember that He loves me, that He’s there for me.”

And I know that He, like I said, won’t let me fail. And I know that’s the same for everybody in the Church and in the world, that our Savior did not put us here to fail. And if we just trust in Him, He will be there to love and support us, and we will have the strength we need to make it through this life and the trials that we face. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

26:32

Jon Ryan Jensen: Thank you for listening to the Church News podcast. I’m your host, Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen. I hope you learned something today about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had your faith in the Savior increase by looking through the Church News window as a living record of the Restoration. Please subscribe, rate and review this podcast so it can be accessible to more people. And if you enjoyed the messages we shared today, please share the podcast with others. Thanks to our guests and to others who make this podcast possible. Join us every week for a new episode. Find us on your favorite podcasting channels or with other news and updates about the Church on TheChurchNews.com or on the Church News app.

Keynote speakers announced for 2026 Utah Area YSA Conference

Iam Tongi announced as concert headliner for 2026 Utah Area YSA Conference

19 conferences for single adults happening outside of Utah

This year’s anniversary celebrations felt a little different than the previous years. Emotions were mixed across the board for all six members of our immediate family.

Our oldest child received his mission call before graduating high school a few months ago, and he will begin his missionary service in the coming days. Serving as a missionary is something that brought my wife and me a lot of joy. I served in Colombia. She served in Brazil.

We both made many lifelong friends while serving. Our companions, our ward and branch members, those we taught, our mission leaders, all mean a great deal to us. We shared faith-building moments with all of them.

Helping our son prepare for his mission has brought back a flood of memories from our missions. And watching him answer questions from his three younger sisters has helped us see where perhaps we’ve done both a good job and left room for improvement in our parenting.

We know he will work hard. We know he will serve with faith. We know he has a testimony of Heavenly Father’s plan, of our Savior and His Atonement, and of the Holy Ghost’s ability to testify of the truth to each individual’s heart.

A testimony is a personal matter.

President Dallin H. Oaks spoke in June to the Church’s mission leaders. I listened with spiritual ears that were attuned in a different way this year as I looked for teachings that I needed to share with my son. President Oaks spoke of testimony in his message to those leaders.

“Our testimony of Jesus Christ is based on the revelations of God to His prophets and to us individually,” he said.

Righteous behaviors and patterns are not guarantees of a testimony. Prayer, scripture study, fasting and attending our church meetings all help us. As President Oaks said, testimony is based on revelation. Heavenly Father reveals truth to individuals through the help of the Holy Ghost.

“We have a unique and true testimony of Christ. This is the key to everything else,” he said.

And when we have gained a testimony of a gospel truth through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, we also have a responsibility to share that with others.

The Savior taught this principle to Simon, saying, “When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Luke 22:32).

In a more modern phrase, we might say, “See something; say something.”

If we have witnessed God’s goodness, we tell others what we have seen. Unlike a board game where one must have all the answers before solving a mystery and becoming the winner, in life, we share what we know when we know it. We want others to have the pieces of the puzzle that God has revealed to us.

As we do that for and with each other, we can gain hope that missing pieces to our own testimony puzzles will be found and put in place in due time.

Entering the mission field does not require a perfect testimony of all things. If it did, who among us would qualify for that work?

When the gospel was restored on the earth, the Lord explained some of the first missionary qualifications like this:

“If ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work; … faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work. Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence” (Doctrine and Covenants 4:3, 5-6).

It wasn’t about answering all the questions on a gospel quiz. It was about willingness, worthiness and Christlike characteristics that made one qualified to serve.

And in serving, a missionary fulfills a specific purpose while having that calling.

“Invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end,” it reads in “Preach My Gospel.”

I didn’t know everything when I started my mission 27 years ago. I didn’t know everything when I came home 25 years ago. And I don’t know everything today.

But I know what I know.

And I know that as I continue to serve the Lord and become more like Him, He will continue to help strengthen my faith and testimony. He does that every day for those who diligently seek Him.

— Jon Ryan Jensen is editor of the Church News.

President Oaks teaches 3 characteristics of ‘the only true and living Church’

Read summaries, see photos from the 2026 Seminar for New Mission Leaders

Elder Becerra’s talk summary

In the Book of Mormon, the prophet Alma taught the people of Gideon to avoid a dilemma experienced by their neighbors in Zarahemla. That dilemma was a type of double-mindedness.

“A double-minded person is one who is wavering, indecisive or conflicted; someone who lacks commitment to a single purpose or belief.”

Focusing first on God brings blessings.

“From the beginning of time God has taught His children to put Him first in their lives.”

The Lord commanded Adam and Eve to worship God and offer the firstlings of their flocks as a sacrifice to Him.

“Payment of tithes and offerings will enhance our spiritual capacity as we put God first and offer our ‘firstlings of the flock.’”

Spiritual power and direction that individuals have not previously had will come into their lives as they honor the law of obedience and the law of sacrifice.

“Evidence of this truth is found in the simple statement of the Lord after Adam had offered sacrifice, ‘And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam’ (Moses 5:9).”

Jesus Christ is the perfect example of putting God first. He laid down His life as a symbol of submission to His Father’s will.

Read the full text of Elder Becerra’s talk: ‘Tithing — Putting God First’

Notable quotes

“From the beginning of time God has taught His children to put Him first in their lives.”

“Payment of tithes and offerings will enhance our spiritual capacity as we put God first and offer our ‘firstlings of the flock.’”

“Jesus Christ is the perfect example of how to put God first in our lives.”

See more quotes, stories, video clips and other study helps for this talk

Who is Elder Becerra?

• Elder Jorge T. Becerra is a General Authority Seventy serving as the second counselor in the Utah Area presidency.
• Elder Becerra served a mission as a young man in the California Arcadia Mission, where he met fellow missionary and his future wife, Sister Debbie I. Schneberger.
• Elder and Sister Becerra later returned to the California Arcadia Mission when he was called to be the mission’s president.

What has Elder Becerra done recently?

• Elder Becerra spoke in the April 2021 general conference about lifting those in need.
• Elder Becerra presided at the media day of the Lindon Utah Temple days before that temple’s public open house began.
• Elder Becerra presided at the groundbreaking of Colombia’s third temple — the Cali Colombia Temple — in March 2025.

Read Elder Becerra’s previous general conference addresses.

April 2026 general conference: Announcements, talk summaries, photos, session highlights

President Oaks also spoke during the Sunday morning and Sunday afternoon sessions.

President Oaks’ talk summary

Most of the Church’s 17 million members know that general conference is hosted twice each year. Saturday’s session is different than most because it begins with a solemn assembly.

Solemn assemblies happen in only the first conference after a new president and prophet of the Church has been called.

“I am grateful to be among those whose leadership callings are formally recognized in this way, and to express appreciation for your participation in this significant occasion.”

Church members sustain the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and other senior leaders by voting in blocks of quorums and groups.

“I express our gratitude as leaders of the Church for our members’ sustaining vote, prayers and support.”

Church leaders pray for its members to receive guidance as they serve God’s children throughout the world.

“I reaffirm our testimony of the resurrected Lord and recognize that He is the head of this Church.”

‘Love even your enemies,’ President Oaks says during Sunday morning session of April 2026 general conference

President Oaks' closing remarks during the Sunday afternoon session of the April 2026 general conference

Read the full text of President Oaks’ talk: ‘Introduction’

Notable quotes

“[I] express appreciation for your participation in this significant occasion.”

“I am grateful to be among those whose leadership callings are formally recognized in this way.”

“I reaffirm our testimony of the resurrected Lord and recognize that He is the head of this Church.”

See more quotes, video clips and other study helps for this talk

Who is President Oaks?

• President Dallin H. Oaks was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1984 and as the first counselor in the First Presidency in January 2018. In 2022, he became the 19th latter-day apostle to reach the age of 90. Following President Russell M. Nelson’s death, he became the senior apostle and leader of the Church as president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. On Oct. 14, 2025, President Oaks was set apart as the 18th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• President Oaks was a law clerk to Chief Justice Earl Warren at the U.S. Supreme Court and served as a Utah Supreme Court justice until his call to apostleship in 1984.
• As president of Brigham Young University from 1971 to 1980, he oversaw creation of the J. Reuben Clark Law School and the graduate business school.
• President Oaks and his late wife, Sister June Dixon Oaks, are the parents of six children. She died July 21, 1998. On Aug. 25, 2000, he married Sister Kristen M. McMain in the Salt Lake Temple.

What has President Oaks done recently?

• During October 2025 general conference on Sunday afternoon, President Oaks spoke about the importance of the family. “The doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints centers on the family.”
• At a devotional at Brigham Young University, President Oaks offers the way to overcome any doubt — draw closer to the Savior.
• Read how President Oaks has defended religious freedom throughout his apostolic ministry.
• President Dallin H. Oaks dedicated the Burley Idaho Temple, a place of “much significance to him.”
• President Oaks says he feels the responsibility of the prophetic mantle, which is”‘very holy.”

Read more of President Oaks’ general conference addresses, or follow him on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and X/Twitter.

April 2026 general conference: Announcements, talk summaries, photos, session highlights

What is a solemn assembly?

First Presidency extends twofold Easter invitation, testifies of Christ’s love in new video

“I know that children are very precious to our Father in Heaven and that He loves them,” President Chibota said as she sat in the now-calm setting of the Church Office Building lobby on Monday, April 6.

President Chibota and her counselors, Sister Nina M. Garfield and Sister Theresa A. Collins, will have a few months to let the calling set in before they begin their service on Aug. 1.

The three described their feelings and the range of emotions they felt as they participated in the two-day general conference in the Conference Center.

Once the conference concluded, they began to realize the magnitude of the callings they would soon serve in.

Sister Garfield said she knows that the role of a Church-supported focus of gospel teaching includes trying “to help parents learn to teach children more about Jesus Christ.”

And Sister Collins said the presidency’s “sacred responsibility” with Primary children includes making an effort to “care [for] them, to teach them, to lead them, to guide them and to help them.”

New Primary general presidency sustained Saturday afternoon

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April 2026 general conference: Announcements, talk summaries, photos, session highlights

Read more stories about children and Primary in the Church News

Thousands of years later, the ways families share stories about one another have evolved from engravings on metal plates to typing, recording and saving to the cloud.

Keeping those stories alive and present for living family members is a slightly different task than protecting them for future generations. At this year’s reunion of the Abinadi and Hannah Olsen family in Joe’s Valley, Utah, aunts, uncles and cousins stepped to a microphone and shared stories of family members that they have discovered over the years.

Anne Carroll Peterson Darger, a great-granddaughter of Hannah and Abinadi Olsen, spoke about her father, Nad Alma Peterson. She said her dad weighed only 2 pounds when he was born in 1926 and that he was not expected to live past a few days. Defying those odds, he lived to be 90 years old.

“Daddy never missed one day of school and emphasized and considered it a privilege to provide for the education of all five of his children,” Darger said. An example to his children, he studied at the University of Utah and George Washington University, where he earned a law degree after serving in World War II as a Seaman First Class in the U.S. Navy.

“At the tender age of 30, he became a bishop in the Alexandria Ward with the daunting task of building the beautiful Alexandria Ward chapel,” Darger said. He served in various other callings throughout the rest of his life.

Nancy Brown, a great-granddaughter of Hannah and Abinadi Olsen, shared a story about her uncles, Don Dee Olsen and Homer Nad Olsen. Homer Olsen died while serving in Germany in World War II at age 33. Don Olsen lived to be nearly 80 years old and was known partly for being the family photographer while always wearing “his zippered, short-sleeved jumpsuit,” Brown said.

She shared that Homer Olsen loved Jules Verne’s book “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea” so much that he decided to build a diving apparatus that would allow him to do underwater rescues at local lakes in Utah.

“When [Homer] was just 19 years old, after a year of college, he and a friend spent $300 and one full year buying, repairing and testing a diving suit and helmet,” Brown said.

The week after their first successful test of the apparatus, two aluminum fishing boats crashed into each other at Pineview Reservoir, an hour north of Salt Lake City. One of the boats sank, and Homer Olsen was called on to make his first — and perhaps only — recovery dive, Brown said.

In 2026, more than 600 “Joe’s Valley cousins,” as many in the family call themselves, joined the Olsen family reunion. Due to extremely dry conditions, there were no stories told around a campfire this year. But there were still plenty of stories being told on the trails, at the pond or under pop-up shades.

‘Pull together’ as families, says Church President Dallin H. Oaks at biennial family reunion

Shanna Olsen Spencer is a granddaughter of Hannah and Abinadi Olsen’s youngest son, George Olsen. She made an acrostic out of her father’s name — Paul. She said he was patient, amusing, under the radar and loyal.

“He never wanted to be in the spotlight. He just kind of quietly served and quietly did,” Olsen Spencer said. “And he just never wanted to be right in front of people, but he just did everything.”

Julie Webster is a granddaughter of Farrier “Foyer” and Fae Olsen. Farrier went by his middle name of Foyer and was the second-to-last child of Hannah and Abinadi Olsen. Webster spoke of the love her father, Fayne Olsen, had for her and her siblings.

“He loved his family. He was so dedicated to us,” she said.

“He told me one day, ‘Julie, you know you’re my daughter.’ And I said, ‘I know, Dad.’ And he says, ‘No, you’re my daughter.’ And I said, ‘I know, and you’re my dad.’ And he says, ‘I know.’ And I remember that, and I think he probably did that to every one of us kids and told us that we were his. And we were his,” Webster said.

Family reunions don’t have to be built around the stories of ancestors, but for many in the Olsen family, sharing the stories of their parents and others helps bring them together. And because the family gathers every other year, there is always space for the telling of a newly discovered story or photograph to help the family bonds grow stronger and “turn the heart of ... the children to their fathers” (Malachi 4:6).

President Dallin H. Oaks at October 2025 general conference: ‘The Family-Centered Gospel of Jesus Christ’

Church News podcast, Episode 259: Church leaders on ‘The Family Proclamation,’ Part 1: Eternal truths strengthen families

Church News podcast, Episode 262: Church leaders on ‘The Family Proclamation,’ Part 2: All are part of God’s family

Ahead of that change, the outgoing Primary general presidency shared some of the ways their testimonies grew and the ways their faith in Jesus Christ increased over the past four years.

A Church News video shares excerpts from that podcast conversation. In it, President Susan H. Porter, Sister Amy A. Wright and Sister Tracy Y. Browning testify of the Savior and His love for God’s children around the world.

“We can walk through, through covenants and living His gospel, back to His presence,” President Porter said. “And I am so grateful to be a member of His Church and to be led by a living Prophet.”

Podcast Episode 305: Primary general presidency talks about discovering the ‘character of the Lord’ by serving children

Women share experiences serving on the Church’s executive councils

President Susan H. Porter: ‘Here Am I, Send Me’

On this episode of the Church News podcast, President Susan H. Porter and her counselors, Sister Amy A. Wright and Sister Tracy Y. Browning, talk with Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen about their observations of children around the world who are learning the gospel of Jesus Christ at home and in church settings.

“We have tried to drink so deeply from the Savior’s example in 3 Nephi,” President Porter said in the interview. “When He gathered children so often around Him, and He prayed for them, and He called down angels, and He invited them, He loosed their tongues, invited them to share.”

The three members of the Primary general presidency recall favorite moments from their time serving together and the ways their own testimonies of the Savior grew through fulfilling a calling that President Porter described as initially being “overwhelming” but became a blessing in each of their lives.

Listen to this episode of the Church News podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, bookshelf PLUS, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.

Transcript:

Jon Ryan Jensen: I’m Jon Ryan Jensen, editor of the Church News. Welcome to this episode of the Church News podcast.

Today, we’re excited to have with us the Primary general presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to talk with us about the time that they’ve had serving as the Primary general presidency and serving with parents, leaders and teachers as they’ve ministered around the world.

We welcome them today to our studio. Sisters, thanks for being with us today.

President Susan H. Porter: Thank you.

0:33

Jon Ryan Jensen: I really am excited to have this conversation with the three of you today. You found out, or probably knew a little ahead of time, that in April a new Primary general presidency would be called. And yet you are powering forward in the last few months of your calling.

But I want to go back to the beginning and, President Porter, perhaps start with you and ask how, when you accepted a new calling to serve here, what emotions that brought and what you did to kind of set the tone for accepting this calling and beginning to serve in it.

1:14

President Susan H. Porter: Well, a calling like this is overwhelming. There’s just this profound feeling of humility. There was also joy in knowing I would have two counselors. And Sister Wright and I had served together in the presidency with [President] Camille Johnson for one year. Also, we had known each other as Sister Wright had served on the Young Women general advisory council.

And then Sister Browning, we had had some wonderful associations as members of the Relief Society general council, and I just felt so grateful for the very clear inspiration that brought them both. And I realized that each of these sisters brought a unique perspective and unique life experiences, and unique and very strong testimonies. So I was so grateful for that.

2:05

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love you sharing that, because the opportunity to serve in a presidency is something that we see happen across the Church. It doesn’t matter if we’re starting from the youngest youth classes, you have new presidents called to serve, and they’re choosing presidents. And it’s a similar process all the way up through the organizational presidencies of the Church.

As the three of you began to serve together, what was it like for you to come to consensus on things you wanted to focus on as you would begin your ministry?

2:39

President Susan H. Porter: I’d love to hear from Sister Wright and Sister Browning and just start with: We wanted to know: “How did the Savior view children? How did He minister to them? What did He invite them to do?” We really wanted to follow His example.

And so for the whole time we’ve served together, we’ve just referred again and again to the chapters in 3 Nephi when the resurrected Savior visited the people in this continent — 3 Nephi chapters 11, 17 and 26. And I think we all have them memorized and have pulled out the principles. But I’ll just start with one and want to hear from Sister Wright and Sister Browning.

The first one is that He testified to the people, when He descended, of who He was, and then He invited them to do something. He said, “Arise, and come forth unto me, that you can feel my hands and the marks in my side, so that you can have this experience one-on-one with me.”

It’s interesting to us that that would have included children. And so children were invited to come have an individual experience with the Savior so that they could hear Him, see Him, feel His presence, feel the marks in His hands. And then they had an opportunity to bear record. And we have used those scriptures in 3 Nephi chapter 11 over and over again, as we’ve wanted to invite children to have a personal experience with the Savior.

4:15

Jon Ryan Jensen: Sister Amy A. Wright?

Sister Amy A. Wright: You know, it’s so interesting when you look at the secular world serving in a position like this, people tend to begin with: “What is going to be my legacy? What am I going to create or produce or change that’s directly connected to me?” And that is not how we serve in the kingdom of God. And that’s absolutely not how President Porter leads either.

And so we came together as a presidency without any preconceived notion or ideas of what we felt like our service should look like. And so we just got on our knees and asked the Lord, “What would You have us do?” And I think that’s so beautiful, because every time we presented to councils a particular product or a proposal, we weren’t emotionally attached to it, because we knew that this was not our work. This was the Lord’s work. It’s His work and His glory. He’s perfectly capable of doing His own work.

And so, when we received answers in those councils — because His way is not one of debate; it’s of counsel and seeking revelation and learning together to discern His will — and so our answers, I don’t feel like we ever received a “no.” It was a resounding “yes.” Or equally important is a “not now.” Or my favorite was “I have a better way.” And then we would come back to our presidency and counsel, and the Lord would give us line upon line.

And it’s just another witness to me that this is Jesus Christ’s work. And the miracle of it all is that He invites us to be part of His work so we can have opportunities to learn and to grow, to strengthen our testimony in our Heavenly Father and in our Savior, but also to strengthen the love and the relationships we have with one another, with those that we serve with.

6:12

Jon Ryan Jensen: Sister Tracy Y. Browning, you have had the doubly unique experience to carry on that topic a little bit, being part of the council and presenting two councils to have work considered.

Have you felt different being on this side, being part of a presidency and having that role versus having something that you’ve worked on go in front of a council?

6:38

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: Certainly it’s different being a Church employee versus being called to serve in the presidency of an organization. There are some things that overlap, meaning that you seek to bring whatever the Lord has allowed you to be blessed with, and each of the things that He calls you to do. I felt very much called to work for the Church, for my personal life and to give a portion of my professional life to that. And within that, I gained some unique perspectives and some skills that I hopefully was able to bless my time serving in the Primary presidency. But it was such a joy to then be asked to serve with President Porter and Sister Wright. That was just, for me, one of the choicest blessings that I’ve had in my life.

And to consider the question that was asked originally, just to kind of connect to what President Porter said about coming immediately to this assignment and feeling very connected to the scriptures and the Lord pointing us directionally to a set of scriptures that help to give a vision of how He sees children and a vision of how we might serve. And then to spend a lot of time on our knees as a presidency, seeking the Lord’s will to understand what are some priorities.

Something that came to my mind, or came out of that process with the presidency, was really just the magnificence of the spiritual ministry that is Primary. It is such a privilege to be called to minister, to teach and minister, to support, to prepare the Savior’s youngest disciples as they’re growing in their covenant relationship with Him.

It’s such a privilege to be a support to parents as they’re seeking to fulfill their responsibilities. It’s such a privilege to have association with leaders and teachers and all those who are seeking to bless and to behold the Savior’s youngest disciples. It’s been one of our priorities to help raise the vision of what it is to be called to serve in this organization, because we have come to really see that the Savior has invited us to really look at these young disciples and to consider how to help them walk more with the Savior, to grow in love in that relationship and to feel confident that they have, as they make covenants, they have access to the same priesthood power, the same blessings that anyone who makes a covenant with the Lord has access to.

It’s expressed differently in their season of life as children, certainly. They come with less complexities at times, for some children, in that season of life. But the Lord invites them into a covenant relationship with Him. And helping those who are invited to come and be a part of this spiritual ministry, raise their vision to what that means, has just been a joy for us to come to that.

9:39

Jon Ryan Jensen: I was talking recently with a brother who’s being released as a bishop, and he said, “I used to hear outgoing bishops say, ‘Oh, only in this Church can you go from being a bishop to serving in the Nursery, serving in the Primary.’” And he said, “I used to think that that was kind of demeaning to those in the Primary.” He said, “Now that I’ve served as a bishop, I’ll say the same thing, but I say it because I know that if they can get off on the right foot spiritually, that it prevents so many other challenges that they can experience in their lives.”

And so as I hear you talk about this, I see a modeling that the three of you are doing. How do you talk about that, as you go around the world and as you meet with those who you are serving? How do you help them to do the same things you are doing and feel empowered to honor the Spirit and the impressions that they get?

10:31

President Susan H. Porter: You know, we point out that more than half of the children in Primary, the adversary has no access to their hearts because of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. It’s so encompassing that those little children there, those who serve in Primary, their testimonies of Christ can sink deep into those little children’s hearts and change their lives. So when we think about, “Who are we going to call to serve in Primary?” wouldn’t it be the ones with the deepest and sweetest testimony of the Savior to share with those precious children?

Also, when we travel, we often invite adults to share experiences. Is there a Primary teacher or leader that changed your life? Those witnesses are powerful and help open eyes. I mean, I could be teaching the 5-year-olds, and it looks to me like they’re climbing over the chairs and they’re hitting each other and they’re wiggling. And I think, “Wow, all that preparation, what’s it doing?” We have no idea what is sinking deep into their hearts and will stay with them and be with them throughout their lives.

11:40

Jon Ryan Jensen: As soon as you said that, I could think immediately of Sister Rather, who was my Valiant teacher when I was in Primary. And I can go back to those classes when she was just so excited for us to be learning about the Savior. And yeah, I agree; we all have those moments.

One of the changes that I think we’ve seen happen during the time that you all have been serving is an increase in children not just being in Primary, actively being taught in Primary, but them taking a step forward and having a chance more frequently to be in sacrament meetings or in stake conferences.

How have you seen that affect wards and stakes and locations that you’ve visited during this time?

12:21

Sister Amy A. Wright: Well, it’s definitely expanded vision. And most specifically, the vision that’s expanded is seeing the capacity of children to contribute in magnificent ways.

You know, when you look at the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000, and the Savior multiplied the offering of the loaves and the fishes, and I always thought it was interesting that He did not distribute the loaves and fishes. He invited His disciples to do that, because He wanted them to be part of the miraculous. He wanted to strengthen their faith in Him and also have opportunities to serve.

And that’s exactly what we’re doing with children. These children that are baptized and confirmed, they are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and therefore they have a covenantal responsibility to help build the kingdom of God and prepare for the Savior’s return. And they are absolutely essential.

President Porter talks often about the body of Christ and how they’re an important part of the body of Christ. And sometimes you use the analogy that children are the toes, and you think, “Oh, well, that’s because they’re cute and little,” right? But when you look at a foot, toes not only give us balance, but they also propel us forward. They are essential in helping us move forward.

And as we invite them to participate in this work, we are seeing miracles all over the world. And sometimes the greatest miracle is coming from adults who say: “I had no idea our children were so smart. I had no idea that their testimonies were so deep. I had no idea that they could contribute in such a significant way in building the kingdom of God.”

14:04

Jon Ryan Jensen: Sister Browning, what are some of the other ways, other than or including those meeting participation, that we can help those Primary children — as you called them, young disciples — how do we help them grow in that discipleship of Jesus Christ?

14:16

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: Well, I think that continuing to give them opportunities to lead in ways is certainly helpful. There are ways that they can do that in Primary. And Primary, naturally, is a place that helps them prepare them for leadership in the Lord’s kingdom.

In Primary, they learn how to pray, and they’re doing so for their class and for the groups of children that they’re gathered with, they’re giving talks. They’re also interacting with other children and learning how to serve each other in that space. And then we sort of take and build upon those experiences in Primary to help continue to prepare them.

Parents are doing it at home as well. They’re inviting them to pray in their homes. They’re allowing them to maybe be the ones to teach the lessons, and they’re asking them questions that bring out their testimony, that invite them to share what it is that they’re learning.

And then as leaders in the wards and in the branches, we are inviting them beyond the Primary walls, again, back to the sacrament meeting. They are invited to go and pray on behalf of the ward, invited to go and give prayers or invited to speak.

And what’s kind of beautiful there is that this is not something novel or new. This has always been a part of what the Church has invited children to do. It’s a part of our handbook. And all we’ve really done is pointed leaders to the areas and said that, “Here is what the Lord’s restored Church has invited all members to do.” And a member, as Sister Wright has described, is as young as an 8-year-old because they are confirmed members of the Lord’s Church.

So, continuing to find those opportunities to build on the natural things that they’re already being taught in Primary, that helps them to lead and bring them outside of the Primary walls and allow them to do that in the ward and then in their homes and then in the community, continues to grow that discipleship.

16:07

President Susan H. Porter: That’s interesting, Ryan: So, we’ve been talking about how I think in the first few years of our presidency, we did feel really drawn to helping children fulfill their covenantal responsibilities as members of the Church, in the Church. And with President Russell M. Nelson as our Prophet during those times, and he just stressed the blessings that come to us as covenant members.

And then a few years ago, we’re reviewing the work of a team that is writing the history of Primary — and marvelous work, and we can’t wait to see it whenever it’s done — but one day we were looking at some pictures from the Deseret News right after World War II, and there were pictures of Primary children carrying boxes to a train, and the caption said these Primary children were carrying clothes and toys that were donated by Primary children to be shipped to Primary children in Europe who were, of course, suffering in the aftermath of World War II.

Remarkably, there was another picture in the Deseret News with children in the Netherlands standing on the steps of a church in Holland, and the caption in the Deseret News said they’re wearing clothes donated by children in Salt Lake City. And we started to realize that we could invite our Primary children to do more.

We love God. That’s the first great commandment. We love God, we serve Him, and then we serve our fellow man, which includes looking out in our communities. And we realized our children have great capacity to make a difference in their communities. And that kind of was the genesis of the invitation to have an annual community service activity.

18:08

Jon Ryan Jensen: And those are something that leaders are now put in a position to say: “What does that look like for me? What do we do?”

Episode 227: Primary general presidency invites children to share Jesus' love through service

What has the response been for that? And what guidance would you give as you’ve seen what those look like in their varying ways around the world?

18:29

Sister Amy A. Wright: It’s been extraordinary. We’ve received letters from all over the world of Primaries, as small as a handful of children to very large Primaries. And I think where it becomes most significant is when the children are part of the revelatory process.

The older Valiant-aged children are part of the council to determine what type of service that they’ll be engaged in, and then also that they’re part of the invitation process. Many of them make invitations, they distribute, they invite members and members of other faiths, people throughout their community to come and gather.

And then also, when the service is focused on children serving children — because we have a history of that here in the valley, we have a history of that at the early inception of the Church of children seeing the need and coming together, whether it’s building a hospital or donating clothing post-World War II.

And so that’s where I think we’ve seen the greatest impact, is that children are part of the entire process, from the very ideation, revelatory phase of “What should this look like?”

19:37

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: I’ve participated in several of these, and I’ve just watched how remarkable these experiences are for the children and for all those who have been gathered. Because children, it really taps into one of their natural talents, which is to kind of naturally seek to be a blessing to others.

We often ask children questions about, “What can you do to be a blessing or follow the Savior’s example this week?” And more times than not, the answer is a service-oriented answer. They want to help someone in need. They want to feed the sick. They want to be a blessing in some way. That sounds like service.

So, as I’ve gone around and participated in these, I’ve watched what is just natural to children. They, when invited to do this, are very bold. They are very intentional in the ways that they seek to support others. They have ideas, so they want to share those ideas. And it’s just a fantastic opportunity to watch them really glow in their discipleship as they’re given this opportunity to really think about the ways that they can serve and support.

And we’ve seen in the last year and a half that this invitation has been extended around the world so many children doing various things in their communities to be a blessing. And we’ve seen them invite others not of our faith to participate with them. And we’ve also seen them invite the adult members or the youth to join with them. It’s just been a remarkable experience.

Jon Ryan Jensen: How beautiful.

21:06

President Susan H. Porter: It ties so well also into the current teachings of our Prophet, President Dallin H. Oaks, in his most recent talk, about peacemakers.

Just recently, Sister Browning and I had the opportunity to travel to Mexico, and we went to the southernmost state in Mexico, in Chiapas, and had the opportunity there to participate in a large community service activity that involved children from several stakes. And they were there to plant trees, paint picnic tables, clear up playgrounds in a large, beautiful park in a large city.

And a member of the local government was there. He was over religious affairs. He was very interested to be there, because he felt like the answer to some of the challenges in that state of Mexico, of crime and poverty, was to promote and support religious faith of all faiths. And so for him to be there and see those children who were participating in a park that would bless everyone in their community was quite a profound experience for him.

What were your thoughts there, Sister Browning, as we met with him?

22:27

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: Yeah, I also felt that he was really impressed by just the capacity of the children and their interest in this, because as I went around to each of these children as they were serving in the park, they were so joyful. I think sometimes we might expect that children being asked to paint, to clean, to do those things that they may do at home might sound like a chore.

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, they’re not excited to do it around the house.

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: They’re not excited, right. And yet they were gathered together, so happy to be there, so excited to be painting and knowing that they were beautifying their community and putting a tree and planning a tree in the ground that they could come back and visit sometime later and see its growth. It was just a joyful experience.

And to what President Porter mentioned, what I think that government official was able to see was how you can also look to the rising generation as part of that solution in helping meet the challenges and opportunities that they’re trying to resolve, which is create this sense of civic alongside their spiritual-mindedness, basically by inviting them to be participants in their community. And you can do that when they’re young, because they were so happy to be doing this for their community.

23:41

Jon Ryan Jensen: You don’t wait till a certain age to say, “Now you’re old enough to serve.”

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: Correct.

Jon Ryan Jensen: You can start from the very beginning.

23:46

Sister Amy A. Wright: Yeah. They’re altruistic by nature. “Love, share and invite” is just part of their nature, their DNA.

And you know what’s so interesting about it is we started serving as the world was coming out of COVID, and our hearts were very tender towards these children who were not gathering, some of them, for well over a year, and they were hungry to be together. And many of them were instruments in bringing their entire family back to church, knowing that their Primary teacher loved them and would be looking for them, or their bishop knew their name.

And so one thing that we started doing as a presidency as we would go on assignment is have children’s devotionals, where we invited children to conduct the meeting. They led the music, they were part of the choir, they played the organ, the piano, they taught, they testified. We would bring musical instruments and teach through music. We would teach through the scriptures, gospel principles. We would engage them as they would draw pictures of what they can do to participate in the work of salvation and exaltation, receiving answers: “I can give a copy of the Book of Mormon to my friend. I can share my food with someone at school who’s hungry.”

One question that was really significant when asked, “What can you do to unite your family for eternity?” Without skipping a beat, a young child said, “I can be a peacemaker in my home.” We always think that temple work only takes place in the house of the Lord, but it begins at home.

And so, what we saw there was the capacity of children. And their parents are present, their leaders are present, so everyone’s vision is expanded as these little ones teach and testify boldly. As we ask them, “What do you know about Jesus?” and we receive pure testimony, or “What can you do to follow Jesus?” and they share some of these examples that President Porter and Sister Browning shared.

And so that really did more than even our leadership instructions, because it wasn’t a telling, it was showing the capacity of these baptized and confirmed children and where their hearts are. And then what we started doing is having service projects after the devotional. So they’re taught gospel principles, they teach one another what they can do to follow Jesus, and then they go and do. They arise and go forth.

And it’s just been extraordinary to see, as it’s not just something that we’re doing, but areas are doing it on their own. And the revelation that they’re receiving that is unique to that area is really miraculous and inspiring.

26:25

Jon Ryan Jensen: Well, we’ve talked about learning, teaching, serving. One of my most memorable parts of Primary was the music. And many members of the Church are anxiously waiting for the final release of a hymnbook, but happy to have the gradual release of new songs. And I can’t help but wonder what your experience has been as you’ve engaged with music and Primary children around the world. Are you seeing the Primary children excited about the songs of the Church as well?

26:52

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: Primary music is an integral part of the Primary experience. We know that it’s there to help teach children the doctrine, and it is there to infuse a great amount of joy in that experience of learning the gospel and coming closer to the Savior. It’s a very accessible and easy way to tap into the Spirit really quickly, and that is true for children as well.

So, one of the things that’s lovely about Primary is it’s one of the few places where I go where I don’t see necessarily open hymnbooks, but everybody seems to know the songs, and they’re singing from memory because it’s planted really deeply. It’s just an experience that it comes quite organically from them. Those words are in their mind, and they’re repeating them over and over for a really long time.

So, what’s nice about this new hymnal is you sort of see this opportunity for the Primary children to go into spaces where they’re learning these songs and really know them, like “I Will Walk With Jesus.” It’s memorized for them. And then they go into the chapel, and you finally hear their voices because they’re the ones that are familiar with these songs, and their voices may ring a little louder as the adults are learning and are catching up to some of the new hymns that are being sung. And children have this blessed opportunity to be the ones that are teaching these new songs to the Church because they love them.

And so we’re really excited as new songs are released, and we always love and encourage teachers to really look at the music as — and parents — as an opportunity to teach doctrine. There’s real truth being taught there that will be a blessing for a child, not just in that particular season of life, but as they grow, it can return to them to help them in that covenant relationship.

28:50

President Susan H. Porter: This new hymnbook is such a blessing because it does; it puts the Primary songs, children’s songs and hymns in one book. And so we’re seeing more and more of this music being sung, and it’s a blessing for children. It’s also a blessing for adults. I spoke to one priesthood leader who was attending a sacrament meeting, sitting on the stand, and realized “This Little Light of Mine” was going to be kind of an intermediary hymn, you know, between two speakers.

And he kind of thought, “Oh wow, is this appropriate for sacrament meeting?” He said, “Fortunately, I didn’t say anything.” So it comes to that song, and he said every adult who’d kind of been looking at their phone, or every youth who was kind of a little bit checked out, sat up, smiled and just started singing that joyful reverence. It was totally appropriate for sacrament meeting. It was joyful. And it engaged everyone in that joyful invitation to let that light that is in all of our hearts shine and bring others closer to our Savior.

29:52

Sister Amy A. Wright: I’m reminded of an experience. One aspect of our ministry, our global ministry, which has been so joyful, is to minister in homes. And one opportunity I remember took place in Guatemala, and my husband and I were there on assignment with Elder and Sister Giuffra, and we were ministering to the home of a 9-year-old little boy, and he was there with his grandmother. He received permission to be excused from school early, and he had a three-piece suit on. It was the sweetest thing.

And I asked him if it would be OK if he led us — I asked him what his favorite Primary song was, and he said, “Families Can Be Together Forever.” I said, “Would it be OK if you led us in singing that song together?” And he was so excited. And so we all sang “Families Can Be Together” as he led us in Spanish.

And then afterwards, I asked him, “What are you feeling right now?” He said: “I feel peace. I feel joy.” I said, “Where do you think those feelings are coming from?” He said, “God.” I said: “Why? Why do you think God wants you to feel peace and joy when you sing ‘Families Can Be Together Forever’?” And he paused for a moment, and he thought. And then he responded, “Because He has a work for me to do.”

Now, remember, this is just a 9-year-old little boy. And I followed up with one final question: “What is that work that God has for you to do?” And without hesitation, he declared, “He wants my family to be eternal.” Now, notice I didn’t tell him what he was feeling, where those feelings were coming from or why. He taught and testified to us. And it all began with a Primary song filled with doctrine that invites the Spirit into our hearts, into our homes, into our Sabbath worship. And then out of that came profound truths taught by a 9-year-old little boy.

31:48

Jon Ryan Jensen: All these experiences are wonderful. And the Church is, we say, the same no matter where you are. You can walk into a sacrament meeting, and you have an idea of what to expect. Primary, I imagine, is similar.

Are there things, though, that you have learned as you’ve been serving? Are there things that you’ve learned as you’ve gone to other places and thought, “Oh, I wish —” Are there things you want to transplant to other places and that you see? And how has that learning experience been as you’ve visited the Church around the globe?

32:21

President Susan H. Porter: One thing we’ve learned and we’ve felt — and every culture has it, but it’s expressed in different ways — is the joy we’ve been talking about. So you might be in Africa. I remember sitting there for the first time on my first assignment in Africa West and sitting there, and there was going to be a song sung. And all of a sudden I realized, “There must be 500 people here.”

The same with children, that way of expressing joy through song. Returning recently from Brazil, I think easily 800 hugs and kisses. So that joy expressed there. So, I think that, as Elder [Patrick] Kearon has reminded us, this is a church of joy.

And I think that’s been one learning for me as I’ve traveled, is the many beautiful ways to express joy in our Savior, in our Heavenly Father and in His Church, through this joyful singing, through this warm embrace, whatever that looks like in whatever culture, that embrace of one another, that we all belong and we’re all part of the body of Christ. So I’ve loved experiencing culturally how children express joy in Christ.

33:34

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love that you mentioned that. The Africa West Area, you’re looking at Ghana, Togo, Benin. The first time that I went to the Africa South Area, I was with Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. And we were about to head to Zambia. And he said: “Ryan, I just need you to know: You might think you know the New Testament, but you don’t know the New Testament. They know the New Testament.”

He said, “Also, you’re used to hearing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir,” as it used to be known. He said, “This will not be like that experience, but you will feel something different.” And the very first song that they sang in the very first meeting we attended, I was absolutely blown away as they had their unit singing as we arrived. And it is a joyful, joyful sound. Sister Browning?

34:27

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: You know, as I think about some of the things that we’ve gotten to experience as we’ve visited all these various cultures around the world, as President Porter mentioned, there is this beauty in the diversity that we’ve found there in the way that they express how they live the gospel of Jesus Christ and how that fits into that context of culture and of society and things of that nature.

But what’s been interesting to me also is finding the ways that children are all alike around the world, which has been beautiful, particularly for me. Because sometimes when we go on these assignments, we’re given a lot of context to help us understand more about the culture and have experiences and invite us to really think about how they express their spiritual lives in the context of that culture.

And yet, what I have found to be true is that love kind of sits on top of all of that, that people respond really well to love. And also children will be engaged if you seek to engage them. Every child, regardless of their culture, will find it fun when you infuse fun into their lessons and you allow the natural part of what childhood means, which is, “I like to wiggle,” and maybe not expect them — I don’t know that I’ve been to any culture where a child didn’t appreciate a moment where we sort of stomped our feet and got up and stretched and went outside for a minute or came back in. Even in cultures that might be more reserved, we still see that children are children, and the ways that they’re similar around the world has been beautiful to me. And I’ve loved that.

One of my favorite memories is in Japan of a little, Nursery-aged Primary child who was so fascinated. We didn’t speak the same language, but I could tell that she was just fascinated with me when I was in class. And then several hours later, when we were in a children’s devotional, she was supposed to be a part of the musical number that they were doing. And I was sitting on the stand, and here is this, in a very obedient culture, this little Nursery-aged friend who just ignored the instructions from the teacher to get ready and line up with the other children to sing a song, and just marched herself up on the stand with her arms wide open to me to give me a hug. And then she was ready to go and sing.

And there was something really teaching for me in that moment, which is that love is such an important principle and can kind of supersede what we think we understand about culture. And secondly, children are children. They respond to love and are very interested in being engaged when you invite them to have an experience one by one or invite them into things that allow them to feel like they belong and are a part.

37:15

President Susan H. Porter: I have to just tell one experience thinking about children and engaging them and teaching them. And this comes from something I learned from Sister Browning in a children’s devotional. Whatever the theme is, if it’s helping them become missionaries or follow Christ or serve others, Sister Browning invited them, she would say: “If I’m giving a really good example of, let’s say, trying to be a missionary, you just stand up and put your hand on your heart. If it’s not a good example of being a missionary, I want you to call out, ‘Try again.’”

To take that principle of joyful repentance, all it means is try again. So you get frustrated with your little brother and you yell at him or whatever, just try again. And I’ve seen so much joy in teaching that principle through children and allowing them, not just lecturing them what it is, but allow them to participate in helping us understand joyful repentance.

38:22

Jon Ryan Jensen: One of the things that I think a lot of members of the Church don’t know or understand super well is exactly what the three of you get to do. And we did a series in the Church News a couple of years ago about the process of councils and counseling in general.

And each of you serves on councils, but I would love to hear from your perspective what kind of role that plays in the calling and how important it is to the work that you’re called to do.

38:50

President Susan H. Porter: What a blessing it was when we were first called, we each received letters from the First Presidency of the Church inviting us to each participate in executive councils. Receiving that letter from the First Presidency to be a member of a council gave us pause in that it helped us realize we needed to actually be spiritually prepared to be a contributing member and speak those words and those thoughts that the Lord put into our heart.

I remember the first time I was going to attend one of the executive councils I had been assigned to, and I was walking over. There are two sisters assigned to each executive council. We were walking over together. And I remember very clearly saying: “Everybody else in this council has been serving together for a number of years. They know the topics. They know the issues. We’re brand new.” I said, “I don’t know about you, but me personally, for the first month or so, I’m going to listen and learn.”

And I’ll never forget that first council meeting. We’re all sitting around a table, and the member of the Quorum of the Twelve who was the Apostle started the meeting. The first issue came before the council, and he turns to me, and he says, “Sister Porter, what are your thoughts on this?” What a teaching moment.

Councils in the Church aren’t about what’s our professional experience on this topic, but that we come, as I said before, humble before the Lord, spiritually in tune and seeking to share something that He’s put in our hearts.

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah, you weren’t feeling like you were going to say, “No, no, I’m good, thank you.”

President Susan H. Porter: I opened my mouth and offered something.

40:39

Jon Ryan Jensen: And I just want to clarify: Two sisters serve on each council, not from the same presidency. So you’re on those councils with members of the Young Women general presidency and the Relief Society as well, correct?

President Susan H. Porter: Yes, I was walking to that council with Sister Kristin Yee, and what a sweet association that’s been for the past number of years to serve on that council together. And that’s really been a sweet association.

41:00

Jon Ryan Jensen: Yeah. Sister Wright? Sister Browning?

Sister Amy A. Wright: Yeah, currently I serve on the Missionary Executive Council. I’ve been serving on there for just over five years. And we meet every Wednesday for two hours, and they do give you information to study prayerfully and read so you can come prepared the night before.

And my first day, I had a very similar experience to President Porter, where Elder [Dieter F.] Uchtdorf was leading that council, and an item came to the forefront that was not on the agenda, and it was significant. And he turned and said, “Sister Wright, what do you think?” And he was teaching me something very profound that day. First and foremost, the Brethren want and need to hear the voice of women. And two, I had responsibility, as President Porter so beautifully expressed, to come prepared to contribute.

And one thing that was profound, too, and interesting to note — and we’ve all had this experience — is the assignments, we have assignments that are extended invitations beyond that council. I served initially with Sister [Bonnie H.] Cordon, the other general officer, and now it’s with Sister [Emily Belle] Freeman. President Cordon and President Freeman.

And we have had invitations to be at press conferences when there’s been a significant change with the Missionary Department or missionary service. We have helped with the launch of Light the World or the Easter initiative. We have been on assignments with Apostles that serve on that council, where we’ve met with missionaries and missions. We are invited to instruct new mission leaders every year at the new mission leader seminar, as well as new service missionary coordinators and newly called MTC leaders, presidencies.

And so it’s really, like you said, it’s a good portion of what we do. And some of the greatest opportunities for growth and stretching have come from invitations that were extended by these wonderful Apostles to sisters to serve and minister and teach in various capacities. And it’s probably been one of the greatest blessings of my service as a general officer.

43:08

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: I love serving on these councils, first because I get this wonderful opportunity to be on councils where they are presided over by at least one Apostle, sometimes more. And to be in that space where you have prophets, seers and revelators who have been asked to oversee this work, you can obviously imagine, can be an instructive experience at times and wonderful to be invited by them to participate in discussions and in council about topics that for me have been really stretching.

As President Porter mentioned, you don’t always feel quite qualified to be in some of these spaces and to be asked to share any perspective on some of these topics. But really, these experiences have brought me to meet with leaders from around the world. That’s an unusual experience for me. They have brought me to the Utah Capitol. I’m not someone who spends a lot of time with leaders who might be leading nations or states or cities or things of that nature.

It has allowed me to consider how the messages of the Church and the message and the ministry and the mission of the Savior can be expressed in different ways to help people understand more about the Savior, understand more about His Church, understand who we are as a faith and what we hope to do to be more of a blessing to all people in the world.

It’s allowed me to consider how even the artwork that we see and we send out into the world can be a tool to teach people about the Savior and how we look at that art and find ways to be instructive to families and to be instructive to children and where we should use that in part of the messaging that we have to share with the world.

It’s been a really beautiful experience and certainly instructive as I’ve allowed, as I’ve been given the opportunity to stretch. And that’s what I’ve felt that the executive councils have allowed me to do and stretch in ways that I couldn’t have imagined before and under the direction of prophets and apostles.

45:31

President Susan H. Porter: Over the period of four years that we’ve served as a presidency in the executive councils I’ve served in, there have been changes in assignments for which members of the Quorum of the Twelve preside over those councils.

And so what a blessing it’s been to see how each one brings their unique capabilities, their unique talents and their unique way of leading, all under the direction of the Savior. I think it’s a beautiful thing. It gives us humility but also confidence that the Lord takes what you have uniquely to offer it, and He can use it to move His work forward. So we’ve seen how the work of the Lord moves forward under different styles, capacities and talents that are offered with a fullness of heart.

46:22

Jon Ryan Jensen: I love that too because, again, going back to every ward member has a calling, and you have responsibilities within that calling. So even the Apostles have assignments within their calling, just like you have assignments to those executive councils.

Sisters, I’m so grateful for all of the things that you have shared today and for the things that you’ve shared throughout your service. We have a tradition on the Church News podcast, and I would love to give you an opportunity to share one final testimony with us today, and ask you: What do you know now, having served as the Primary general presidency of the Church?

46:54

Sister Tracy Y. Browning: I started my presidency, serving in this presidency, being invited by the Lord to read Matthew chapter 18, in a really profound way, where — this is the passages where the Savior is asked the question, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom?” (verse 1). And a child was set in their midst. And we were instructed, we are instructed, to consider their humility. We’re invited to receive them in such a way that we are promised that receiving them will allow us to be received by the Savior and that we’re also receiving the Savior.

And as I’ve considered these last several years of having one of the choicest blessings of my life, being able to serve the Savior and my Heavenly Father in this way, I’ve come to recognize how discipleship is a plan for all of God’s children, and it starts when we’re really young. And He’s given us the ability, when He sends us here to earth, to have within us the capacity to feel very connected back to the Savior.

And we need to be quite humble in that as His children, the way to connect ourselves with this Spirit that makes us ready and meet for the kingdom of God, that He points to children is this sense of being humble in that. I have felt very humble and privileged as I have tried to understand the ways in which the Savior would have me receive His little ones, and also recognizing that a big blessing that’s come from that is that I have felt closer to the Savior in my own life and that the Savior seeks to bless me as I joyfully serve His youngest disciples, and that I can find myself learning that simple doctrine, which is what we teach in Primary.

The truths of the gospel are quite simple, and that out of simplicity can come really deep spiritual conversion, really deep testimony. My testimony of Jesus Christ has deepened as I’ve been seeking to understand the ways that I can connect with Him through prayer, through singing songs, through teaching the doctrine of Christ, through loving more and connecting more by showing appreciation for those who served.

I have a greater testimony that Jesus Christ is the Light and the Life of the World and our Savior and Redeemer. And I’m grateful that that privilege of the last four years has had — that I’ve had that opportunity to begin there with that testimony and to grow that testimony deeper as I’m concluding my service. And I share that with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

49:49

Sister Amy A. Wright: Ryan, I was born into a family of all boys. I even have a twin brother, married into a family of all boys, mother of all boys, grandmother of one grandson. And as a young girl, I used to pray for a sister. I love how the Lord compensates the righteous for the righteous desires of our hearts. And I have been blessed with sisters. And it is such a sacred sisterhood. I love these women dearly, as family, as friends.

As I think about our service together, it’s not just as a Primary presidency, but we’ve also been called as general officers, and so we serve on executive councils. We have been called all over the world to teach and testify to men, women, youth and children.

And I’m reminded of a scripture that I’ve been pondering a lot lately, because endings remind us of beginnings, right? And it’s in Deuteronomy 2:7, and this is where the children of Israel are standing on the precipice of their inheritance, and Moses is reminding them of some of the things they learned during this 40-year journey.

And he says — and this just resonates with me in the sacred work that we as sisters have been called to do — “For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand.” We are witnesses of His tender mercies, that as we serve faithfully and joyfully, He will magnify our efforts, and far beyond any natural ability or talent. And we have seen this every single day.

And then the verse continues, “He knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness.” God knew exactly what our presidency was going to experience, what we were going to be asked to do, how we needed to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, and the strength and the wisdom that we would need to be able to move forward.

And then he says, “These forty years the Lord thy God hath been with thee.” We have felt Him with our presidency every single day. Some days it felt like 40 years, some days it felt like four minutes.

And then my favorite phrase: “Thou hast lacked nothing.” It is with immense gratitude and a firm testimony in our Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ, that I witness that we as a presidency “hast lacked nothing.”

As we have put our whole heart, might, mind and strength into this calling and offered what little offering we had, as we were the means, God provided the increase again and again and again. We did not walk this alone. This is His work, His glory, and it has been an absolute privilege to walk this path with these dear friends and to participate in such a miraculous and glorious work.

I testify that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ. I testify that if we are obedient and keep our covenants to the best of our ability, we can become partakers of all of our Heavenly Father’s promised blessings. I can’t begin to imagine the definition of “all,” but I do know the greatest of which is eternal life and exaltation, the privilege of returning to live with God the Father and Jesus Christ again as eternal families and to live the type of life they live. This is what we hope for, for all of God’s precious children. This I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

53:33

President Susan H. Porter: I would say what I know now is more about the character of the Lord Jesus Christ, through our association with children, through praying for them, through spending time with them.

When we talked about how we have tried to drink so deeply from the Savior’s example in 3 Nephi, when He gathered children so often around Him and He prayed for them and He called down angels and He invited them, He loosed their tongues, invited them to share.

But it’s very interesting. Early in that ministry, He invited all to come, as we mentioned earlier in the podcast, and then He taught them about baptism. But then He said this in 3 Nephi 11: “Again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, ... or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God” (verses 37–38). And we’ve just — I’ve just come to know more clearly what it means to become as a little child.

As we read about the character of Christ in many scriptures, they’re humble, meek, submissive, gentle — all these qualities of Christ. Little children have those qualities. And how much we can learn from them. One quality of children I was just thinking of recently was — that relates to the Savior — is children love to give gifts. Each of us has countless numbers of pictures that children have drawn of us. It’s very revelatory. They draw pictures of their families, of their pets, of those they love, and they want to give it to us from their heart.

And I just think about our Lord and Savior, we’re taught, is the Giver of all good gifts. All good gifts come from Him. (See James 1:17.) So I just feel profound gratitude to my Heavenly Father for the invitation to focus on, to pray for, to learn from and to teach His littlest children, who can help us become as the Savior is.

I leave with my testimony and witness that God, our Heavenly Father, lives. And as evidence of that love, He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to show us the way home, to teach us what we need to do and then to open the door, to rent the veil in half so that we can walk through, through covenants and living His gospel, back to His presence. And I am so grateful to be a member of His Church and to be led by a living prophet. And I do leave that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Episode 289: Get to know the new General Authority Seventies and Primary general presidency through their testimonies

We didn’t call them family reunions when my family got together. But we had yearly traditions. One side of the family attended the same rodeo together for decades. On the other side of the family, we gathered together on the Fourth of July at the home of an aunt.

With one family, we played Wiffle ball, lit fireworks, made orange-pineapple ice cream and drank homemade root beer. With the other, we ate Oahu frappé (a frozen citrus dessert), shucked fresh corn on the cob and threw a football around.

None of those activities is specifically outlined in the scriptures or in a general conference message as being imperative to keeping our family intact for eternity. But being together as a family certainly helped us grow closer to one another each time we met. It helped us develop a love for each other. It helped us learn to care for each other.

In the April 2026 general conference, President Dallin H. Oaks asked those who follow Christ to be peacemakers in their families.

“In our families and other personal relationships, let us avoid what is harsh and hateful. Let us seek to be holy, like our Savior,” he said.

While I recognize that not every family gathering around the world is peaceful and loving, as I look back at my own experiences with both my mother’s side of the family and my late father’s, I feel blessed that our experiences were largely in line with what the Prophet invited. My memories are filled with laughter, grandmotherly cheek pinching, height comparisons among cousins and talk of getting back together soon.

I don’t remember hearing harsh or hateful words.

It wasn’t some utopia. We had our share of sickness and disagreement. But neither of those stands out as having kept us from enjoying each other’s company.

Being together as a family certainly helped us grow closer to one another each time we met. It helped us develop a love for each other. It helped us learn to care for each other.

And watching the large family of Abinadi and Hannah Olsen come together for their biennial reunion felt strangely familiar to me despite them not being my own family.

Teenage cousins asked each other about their recent missions and school and dating. Younger cousins invited each other to play tag and kickball or to go play in the water. Generally, the families got along with each other despite any differences they may have individually. And they did it all without Wi-Fi, cellphone service, bathrooms or running water.

This reminded me of another teaching from the April 2026 general conference. This one from the Church’s Primary General President Susan H. Porter. President Porter has traveled the world helping parents and teachers as they help raise the youngest of God’s children on the earth today. In her conference message, she outlined part of Heavenly Father’s plan for each of us.

“As part of His plan, we would need to come to earth, gain a body and choose to live His loving commandments,” she said. “Then we could return to live with Him and our families in joy and peace.”

I know she has seen families of all types as she has ministered in diverse locations. I know she has heard heartbreaking stories. I know she has also heard about miracles.

To see what she has seen and to still testify of this truth is enough to bring a tear to my eye. She knows, challenges and trials notwithstanding, that every family has a chance to live joyfully and peacefully with God.

As we seek to live with an extra measure of holiness in our homes and with our families, we become “more fit for the kingdom,” as the hymn “More Holiness Give Me” (“Hymns,” No. 131) by Philip Paul Bliss reads.

In his concluding address from April’s general conference, President Oaks again issued an invitation to show more love in our families.

“May we all demonstrate the pure love of Christ in our families, in our communities and in all of our interactions with God’s children,” he said.

Having seen the legacy of President Oaks’ own ancestors, I know that love can endure across generational lines as we serve in and spend quality time with our families.

— Jon Ryan Jensen is editor of the Church News.

Central role of marriage and families in God’s plan a theme during April 2026 general conference

Families are ‘where we can experience the greatest joy,’ says BYU–Pathway president

On this episode of the Church News podcast, hosted by Church News editor Ryan Jensen, these newly called Church leaders share their testimonies of Jesus Christ, His restored Church and the blessings that come from obedience to His word.

Listen to this episode of the Church News podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, bookshelf PLUS, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.

Transcript:

Jon Ryan Jensen: Eight new General Authority Seventies and a new Primary general presidency were sustained at the 196th Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Saturday, April 4, 2026. President D. Todd Christofferson, second counselor in the First Presidency, announced the callings in the Saturday afternoon session of the two-day conference.

I’m Ryan Jensen, editor of the Church News. And in this special edition of the Church News podcast, we hear testimonies of these 11 newly called Church leaders as recorded on the Monday following general conference.

0:40

Elder James O. Fantone: Hello, my name is James Fantone from the Philippines, and I am newly called as a General Authority Seventy. And I would like to bear my testimony of the living Christ. I know that our Savior, Jesus Christ, lives, and He did what He did for all of us because He loves us. Our Savior atoned for my sins and for your sins. I know that He loves us and He knows us, each and every one of us.

I would also like to bear my testimony of the Book of Mormon. As a young man, I started reading the Book of Mormon, and I have never stopped reading the Book of Mormon. It is indeed another testament of Jesus Christ. Every day, I get the chance to know my Savior even more as I open the Book of Mormon and read it.

I would also like to bear my testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that he was the Prophet of the Restoration and that he loves the work of the Lord and that he sacrificed his life so that we can enjoy the gospel even today.

Once again, I would like to bear my testimony that my Savior lives. He lives. He loves each and every one of us. He sacrificed His life, and He taught us how to go back to the presence of our Heavenly Father. Our Heavenly Father has a great plan, and it is called the plan of salvation. It’s a plan of joy. It’s a plan of happiness so that all of us can one day live with Them and experience the life that They truly want all of us to experience, even eternal life.

Once again, I know that God lives, and I share this testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

How Elder James O. Fantone, new General Authority Seventy, has seen the Lord guiding his life

2:24

President Rosemary K. Chibota: My name is Rosemary Khwimani Chibota, and I’ve just been called as the Primary general president. So, the principle of the gospel that has come to the forefront of my mind in the last few weeks since I received this call is the principle of obedience and humility, being teachable. Heavenly Father has taught us in 3 Nephi that we need to become like little children (see 3 Nephi 11:37-38). He actually said that a couple of times, showing the importance to become teachable, just like a little child.

And the other things that have been coming and pressed upon my mind is to build a youth that is firm in the faith and of strong minds, just like the army of Helaman was. And I just am so excited to be able to teach these principles to the children of the Church, both young and old. And I just want to share my testimony. I know that Jesus Christ is my personal Savior. I know that He lives. And I’m so grateful for the events of Easter that we’re celebrating at this time.

I know that Joseph Smith is a true Prophet and that he saw God the Eternal Father and Jesus Christ. And I also have a testimony that today we do have a living prophet on the earth, who’s President Dallin H. Oaks, and also that we do have other men that work with him who are His Apostles and that receive revelation from our Father in Heaven on how to conduct the affairs of the Church.

I am so grateful for prayer. I do have a testimony that Heavenly Father hears all the prayers that we say, and that He speaks to us through prayer and also through the words of our living apostles and prophets and through the scriptures. I have a deep love for the scriptures. And Heavenly Father continues to talk to me and instruct me through His word that was written thousands of years ago. And I am so grateful to live at a time where we do continue to receive revelation. And I share this testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Why President Rosemary K. Chibota, new Primary general president, knows the formula for receiving answers

4:35

Elder Kevin J. Hathaway: My name’s Kevin Hathaway. I’m from Idaho Falls, Idaho. I was born and raised in that area. And from the earliest that I can remember, I’ve always had a love for my Savior, Jesus Christ. And I testify that He lives. He’s my Redeemer. That testimony comes from a lot of very small, tender mercies that I’ve experienced in many different experiences throughout my life.

I have a witness of the Book of Mormon, that it’s true. It’s changed my life. It’s brought a lot of joy and happiness into my life. I also have a testimony of living prophets, from Joseph Smith all the way to Dallin H. Oaks. I know that these men speak for our Heavenly Father, and I love them. And I testify of those things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Elder Kevin J. Hathaway on trusting and serving the Lord

5:17

Sister Nina M. Garfield: My name is Nina Garfield, and I have most recently been called to be the first counselor in the general Primary presidency. I was born in Tokyo, Japan, but was there for just a short period of just a few months before I moved to the U.S. with my parents. I mostly was raised in Colorado, and then Minnesota we lived, with my husband, and then on to San Francisco. And now I reside in Orem, Utah.

I am so excited for this new calling. I’m so excited to work with the Primary and to visit Primary children and visit with teachers and also with parents of Primary-age children. One of my goals is to try to help parents and Primary organizations learn to teach children more about Jesus Christ and His life and the love that He has for them and that He is there for them.

I want children and parents and teachers to know about the love of Heavenly Father. I want children to know that they are children of our Heavenly Father and He loves them and is aware of them and is there for them and to guide them. I know these things to be true.

I’m grateful for Heavenly Father. I’m grateful for Jesus Christ. I’m grateful for the restored gospel and for the blessings that it has brought into my life. I am a convert to the Church, and I didn’t attend Primary, so this is a great blessing for me to be a part of the Primary now so I can experience being with children and teaching. It’s such a wonderful blessing in my life.

Again, I’m grateful for this wonderful opportunity to work with such fine women and to work in the Primary organization. And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

‘God grants us miracles’: How Sister Nina M. Garfield found the gospel as a young woman

7:33

Elder Hutch U. Fale: My name is Hutch ‘Unga Papalangi Fale. I am from Muʻa, Tongatapu, Tonga. I was born in Provo but moved back there when I was 5 years old. I attended Tonga Side School and Tonga High School before BYU–Hawaii, and then the J. Reuben Clark Law School and the Romney Institute of Public Administration.

I am so grateful for this opportunity to bear my witness of the reality of the resurrected Christ. Recently, while sharing my testimony, Someone kind of interrupted and said, “You know, or do you believe?” And I said, “I meant what I said.” I know that Jesus lives. I know that my Heavenly Father loves me and all of His children. And I also know that They speak through Their living prophets on the earth today.

I know that there is safety in remembering who we are and who our true identities are. I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God who conversed with God the Father and Jesus Christ and that through him, the gospel and the priesthood keys necessary to bind families together forever were restored to the earth.

I know He loves me. I know He loves you. And it’s my hope and prayer that we will never forget that. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

How Elder Hutch U. Fale, new General Authority Seventy, feels blessed and mentored from opposite sides of the globe

9:12

Sister Theresa A. Collins: My name is Theresa Collins, and I’m humbled to have just accepted the responsibility of Primary general presidency second counselor. We live in Draper, Utah. For the last five years, we have been teaching the missionary purpose, both as mission leaders and as mission prep teachers. What a sacred privilege to be doing this with our missionaries as they go to the world.

But it occurs to me that it is very similar to that which we are being asked to do here now as Primary representatives. In the beautiful song, Primary song, “Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, help me find the way.” Are those same words mirrored? “Teach me [what] I must do to live with Him someday.”

I love that “help” and “receive” end up both in the same message. We have the responsibility, the sacred responsibility — as parents, as teachers, as leaders, as mentors, those who have been entrusted with Heavenly Father’s children, the care of them — to teach them, to lead them, to guide them and to help them to receive their Savior, Jesus Christ.

Our children will be introduced to their Savior and be prepared to make covenants with Him. The most important one that will occur during Primary is that of baptism. And that will be the first gateway opportunity for them to partner with Him. It’s my strong testimony that as we do so, He enters into our life and walks with us every single day.

I know the power that children have to receive Him. I myself have had many opportunities to learn, to see, to feel the Spirit of my Father in Heaven from a very young age. I knew that He knew me and that He was aware of me, and the power that that gave me to make good decisions throughout my life and to partner with Him later as I made more sacred covenants with Him.

I know the capacity that children have to feel Him and to know Him. And I’m so thrilled to help guide them in this journey that we’ll partner with Him. I bear my witness that He knows every one of His children — not just the young ones but each one of them — and that He will help us as we walk with Him daily. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

How Sister Theresa Ann Collins knows that ‘God is aware of every single one of His children’

11:40

Elder Christian C. Chigbundu: My name is Elder Christian C. Chigbundu. I am from Nigeria. And I’m humbled and delighted to be a member of the Seventy, having been called and sustained yesterday in the general conference.

To me, it’s an opportunity to continue to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord, even to hasten His work in these latter days. I know with all my heart that our Savior, Jesus Christ, lives. He is the head of His kingdom, and I know with all my heart He loves each and every one of us, notwithstanding our challenges and circumstances. I have felt it in my life. I have seen it. And I want to testify that I also know with all my heart that He atoned for our sins, even the cross of Calvary. He took away our sins, our sorrow, our pains. He knows who we are. He knows us by our names.

I testify with all my heart today that no matter whatever each of us are passing through, look up to the Savior. Trust Him. Believe in Him. He knows you. He will hear you. I know today we are blessed with prophets, seers and revelators. As we hearken to their counsel, they will never, never lead us astray.

I know with all my heart that we are in the right place. This is the restored Church on earth today. I know with all my heart that this gospel brings peace, joy and happiness in each and every one of us that will continue to make covenants and remain in that covenant you have made. In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.

The Lord ‘owns the work,’ says Elder Chigbundu, new General Authority Seventy from Nigeria

13:45

Elder Jeremiah J. Morgan: Dear brothers and sisters, my name is Jeremiah Morgan. I am a new General Authority Seventy. And I come from Liberty, Missouri, the same Liberty, Missouri, you think of when you think of the Liberty Jail. And I’ve lived in Missouri essentially my entire life, in all of those Church history sites. So, grateful for the opportunity to be here and to receive this calling.

My testimony is of many things, but I’ll just focus on a few for today. One, I have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. I read — or I should say my mother read to me — the Book of Mormon when I was a young boy, and I gained a testimony right then and right there. And I’ve had it ever since. It is a great, great foundation for me and for my testimony of Jesus Christ.

I also have a testimony of Joseph Smith, the Prophet. My middle name is Joseph after the Prophet Joseph Smith. And I’ve always looked up to him and his teachings, his experiences, what he did, his vision, his energy. All of that was unbelievable. And I know that he was a Prophet of God to lead this dispensation.

I also, of course, have a testimony of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Redeemer. It is a testimony that I began with as a young boy but I have cultivated my entire life, and it continues to grow and grow. The changes that it effects in my life, the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the blessings that come from it, and from the gospel of Jesus Christ, is remarkable.

I leave with you, my friends, my brothers and sisters, my testimony that this is the Church of Jesus Christ upon the earth today. And I leave that with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Why Elder Jeremiah J. Morgan can say, ‘I strive to be a relentless disciple of Jesus Christ’

15:30

Elder Paul H. Sinclair: So, I’m Elder Paul Sinclair. I am a General Authority Seventy. I was born and raised in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and we currently live in London, England.

I love the fact that section 1 of the Doctrine and Covenants describes the Church as a “true and living church” (verse 30), because what it says to me is that when we have a living church, it’s based on the fact that we’ve got a living Savior. We’ve got living scriptures. We’ve got living prophets that walk the earth. And all of that becomes part of my testimony that it’s not just globally true but it’s personally true. Those things are alive in my life as well as being true for everyone on the earth. So the fact that we’ve got a living church and living prophets and living scriptures and a living Savior is my testimony.

I don’t know if there’s any special talent or gift or anything like that. But I do know this from my own experience, that whatever situation we find ourselves in — whether it’s of our own making or circumstances beyond our control — that the Lord can take that, He can lay His hands upon it, and He can turn it into something beautiful. So no matter what some situation has had, what impact it has had, on your life in some way, that the Lord can take that and He can make it a beautiful thing.

Isaiah 61:3 is real doctrine, that He can bring beauty from any kind of ashes, that as they’re presented to Him, He puts His hands on it, and He makes it beautiful. And I leave this with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

How the desire for spiritual experiences led Elder Paul H. Sinclair to the Church as a teenager

17:06

Elder Matthew J. Eyring: My name is Matthew Eyring, Matthew J. Eyring. I am from Salt Lake City, Utah. I’m a General Authority Seventy in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I’d just like to bear witness of the Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His pivotal role in God’s plan of happiness. Because of Him, we are able to overcome temporal death and spiritual death. We are able to rise from the grave but also rise individually, each one of us personally, because the Savior suffered for our sins, for my sins, and took upon Himself my burdens, in an unselfish way, that I may be able to become more like my Heavenly Father, become more like the Savior, and I can be able to come back to live with Them again together with my family.

I am so grateful for the Father’s plan and for our Savior, Jesus Christ, and for the sacrifice He has made for me and for every one of us that we might find eternal happiness. And I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Elder Matthew J. Eyring, new General Authority Seventy, has been blessed by righteous mentors

18:25

Elder Thabo Lebethoa: My name is Thabo Kula James Lebethoa. I’ve just been called as a General Authority Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I’m from Johannesburg, South Africa.

I would like to bear my testimony that I know that God is our Father in Heaven, that He truly cares for us, that He’s given us His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, that through Him we can be able to return and live with Him in the celestial kingdom. I am grateful for the Savior. I know that He is my Redeemer.

I have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. I know that it truly is another testament of Jesus Christ. I also have a testimony of the Holy Ghost. I know that He is a personage of Spirit, a member of the Godhead, who testifies of the Father and of the Son. And I share this thought and testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

‘We need to trust Him’: Elder Thabo Lebethoa’s journey from convert to General Authority Seventy

19:25

Jon Ryan Jensen: Thank you for listening to the Church News podcast. I’m your host, Church News editor Jon Ryan Jensen. I hope you learned something today about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had your faith in the Savior increase by looking through the Church News window as a living record of the Restoration. Please subscribe, rate and review this podcast so it can be accessible to more people. And if you enjoyed the messages we shared today, please share the podcast with others. Thanks to our guests; to my producer, KellieAnn Halvorsen; and to others who make this podcast possible. Join us every week for a new episode. Find us on your favorite podcasting channels or with other news and updates about the Church on TheChurchNews.com or on the Church News app.

April 2026 general conference: Announcements, talk summaries, photos, session highlights

Learn more about the incoming Primary general presidency

Find out more about the Church’s 8 new General Authority Seventies

Listen to more episodes of the Church News podcast

“The doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints centers on the family,” he said. Later in the same message, he continued: “The Church of Jesus Christ is sometimes known as a family-centered church. It is!”

On Saturday, July 4, President Oaks and his wife, Sister Kristen M. Oaks, visited with many members of their family in a remote part of Central Utah known as Joe’s Valley. For 85 years and with only a few exceptions, President Oaks has attended the biennial Abinadi and Hannah Seely Olsen family reunion. This was the first time he did so as Prophet and President of the Church.

While there, he reiterated his teachings about the family from last October’s general conference.

“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a family-oriented church, and that doesn’t just mean that we pull together as a family in our life on earth, but we began as a family — spirit children of heavenly parents,” he said. “And the world was created for the benefit of the children of heavenly parents, and that’s everyone who’s born on this earth.”

Part of that “benefit” the world was created for involves the ability to choose right from wrong and to become more like Heavenly Father, President Oaks said. Growing as a family and spending time together with extended family helps fulfill that purpose, he said.

“We are here to further our growth toward eternal beings as children of eternal heavenly parents. And so, our Church doctrine is rooted in the concept of family. What we do in a family reunion is to further our belief in God and His eternal plan of salvation,” said President Oaks.

Earthly relationships develop into heavenly relationships

As families gather together for a meal, a birthday party or a family reunion, they are developing relationships that can carry on after this mortal life, President Oaks said. And that doesn’t mean that each member of the family has to be in the same place on the covenant path when they join together.

Explained Sister Oaks: “There’s a wide variety of people with different places on the path. Because it is rooted in a belief of Jesus Christ, people don’t even realize why they’re drawn here. ... They know they feel love. They know they feel accepted.”

Tiffany Bratt, a granddaughter of President Oaks, said gathering together doesn’t require formal activities to build family relationships. By simply being together, they find activities to do together.

“Coming up here, we get to spend a lot of time with family,” she said. “Building a dam to make a swimming hole, walking through the river with cousins, fishing, fishing with Grandpa, sitting around the campfire and telling stories.”

Elder Ryan K. Olsen, a General Authority Seventy and second counselor in the Church’s Central America Area presidency, is also a descendant of Hannah and Abinadi Olsen and attended this year’s reunion. He said he loves attending his family’s gathering every other year, and he said others can start their own similar traditions if they don’t already have them. “I would say this to the Saints in Central America or throughout the world: Find any place to gather. It could be at a park. It could be at one of your family members’ homes. It could even be at a church,” he said.

“But if you find someplace that you consistently go to every year or every other year, that will become a tradition. And it’s really not about the place, … but it’s the people as they gather.”

Traditions old and new

The Olsen family reunion has taken place every other year for more than 100 years. It happens on the same weekend. It happens in the same place, at the Olsen Ranch that Abinadi Olsen homesteaded many years ago. The biggest difference from one year’s reunion to the next might be the size.

Abinadi and Hannah Seely Olsen married on Feb. 21, 1887. Eight years later, Abinadi Olsen was called to serve a mission in Samoa. He and his wife had started their family and had three children when he accepted that call. Their shared commitment to the Lord made the decision easy to make, even though it posed challenges to the young family.

Knowing nothing about the Pacific island nation, his mother gave her son multiple pairs of wool socks to take with him on the mission. He served for three and a half years before returning home to his family.

In all, the Olsens welcomed five girls and six boys into their family. One daughter, Jenny, lived only 11 days after being born prematurely with her twin brother, DeLon. The remaining 10 children of Abinadi and Hannah Olsen each had their own families.

More than 600 of their descendants — spanning seven generations — gathered for this year’s Olsen family reunion.

“As I approach my 94th birthday, I suppose I am the oldest of the living descendants of Abinadi Olsen,” President Oaks said. “My grandmother, Chasty Olsen, was the oldest of Abinadi’s children, and my mother was the oldest of Chasty’s. I am the oldest of my mother’s, and we have the oldest of the oldest of the oldest for seven generations.”

Today, the family’s reunion includes a family auction, a dance party, family history activities and painting activities. Different families are responsible for organizing the reunion each time it is held.

As part of this year’s Olsen family reunion, attendees could choose to participate in a scavenger hunt around the ranch. At each stop, they learned something about the family and its history. At one stop, Abinadi Olsen’s final letter to his family was posted. In it, he gave his final counsel to future generations.

“Do not be easily offended at one another. Remember that each of you has a cross to carry, that one is not in a position to judge the other. ... Finally, farewell, not goodbye. We shall soon meet again,” he wrote.

Shared principles of the gospel and patriotism

On Saturday, July 4, the United States of America celebrated its 250^th anniversary as a country. Throughout the reunion, members of the family displayed flags, sang hymns and patriotic songs, and otherwise celebrated the country’s Independence Day.

Members of the Olsen family have a legacy of serving in branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. President Oaks said that the commitment of serving one’s country runs parallel in many ways to the commitment of serving as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“And the spirit of all of those relationships is that we help each other, and we’re not just in it for what we get out of it. We’re in for what we contribute to it,” President Oaks said.

Testimony of a Prophet

President Oaks told his family at a devotional during the reunion that he is close to turning 94 years old. As such, he said his emotions are closer to the surface than ever before.

He expressed his gratitude for his ancestors setting powerful examples for him and his “Joe’s Valley cousins” to follow.

“It’s important that we pay tribute,” he said. Specifically, he thanked the descendants of a son of Abinadi and Hannah Olsen, DeLon. When DeLon was a young adult, an economic depression hit the area. Many other properties went into foreclosure or were lost by their original homesteaders.

“[DeLon] devoted his salary to paying the taxes so that this ranch would not be lost,” President Oaks noted with gratitude.

As part of his devotional with the family, President Oaks shared three points about the restored Church as “the only true Church on the face of the earth.”

“First, we have the fullness of the doctrine of Jesus Christ, including the purpose of life on earth,” he said.

Second, the Church has priesthood authority. “Priesthood authority is essential to the work of Jesus Christ,” President Oaks said.

Third among President Oaks’ points is the restored knowledge of the true natures of Heavenly Father and the Savior. “The Atonement of Jesus Christ assures us that we will have the opportunity to qualify for eternal life, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God.”

Before leaving the reunion after the devotional’s conclusion, President Oaks shared part of his testimony with Church News.

“When I say that I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is true, I’m talking about something I know as well as I know that I live, breathe and think and enjoy the blessings of God and the knowledge of His plan for His children. And making all that possible is our Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer,” President Oaks said.

President Dallin H. Oaks: ‘The Family-Centered Gospel of Jesus Christ’

Church News podcast, Episode 259: Church leaders on ‘The Family Proclamation,’ Part 1: Eternal truths strengthen families

Church News podcast, Episode 262: Church leaders on ‘The Family Proclamation,’ Part 2: All are part of God’s family

I had a stack of sticky notes next to my computer keyboard. Every time I was told something new I needed to remember, I would write it down and stick the note on the edge of my computer monitor.

Soon, coworkers began to give me a hard time for the rainbow of colored notes that I had hanging from every possible part of my monitor — some stuck to each other in a chain of new information I wanted to remember.

Was it the best way to retain all the new information coming at me? I don’t know. But the notes seemed to be a good way to take an immediate action in order to help me remember something I thought I needed and shouldn’t forget. For me, it worked.

The memory of that time and experience came back to me on Monday, June 8, after attending the funeral of Sharon Cox, the mother of Sister Tracy Y. Browning, second counselor in the Primary general presidency.

Sister Browning shared beautiful and tender memories of her mother. Among them, she shared a habit that her mother had developed over many years. When someone she knew needed heaven’s help, she wrote a brief prayer for that individual, by name, on a sticky note.

After Cox died, Sister Browning found those sticky notes in various places around her mother’s home, she said. Sister Browning held some of them in her hand as she spoke.

She told those attending the funeral that if they had ever let her mom know that they were struggling, her mom had probably put their name on one of those sticky notes as a type of what she called a “single-serving prayer.”

“My mother believed in prayer in a remarkable way,” Sister Browning said. “And she lived her life pleading with the Lord.”

Those pleas lived on after Cox’s mortal life in a way that reminded her loved ones how much she loved them and prayed for them.

“What I learned is, if you ever talked to my mom, shared a challenge, shared a hope, shared a need, … she would come home and write a prayer for you,” Sister Browning said.

I loved the sweetness of this effort. She could have offered a silent prayer of the heart. I’m sure God would answer those prayers just the same. But the fact that Cox took the time to write down her prayerful thoughts, and the fact that they were here after her passing, made me think about the lasting effect of prayer.

How humbled would we each be if we could see the prayers offered on our behalf represented by a stack of sticky notes? How grateful would we feel? How supported would we feel?

“How humbled would we each be if we could see the prayers offered on our behalf represented by a stack of sticky notes?”

Primary General President Susan H. Porter, with whom Sister Browning has served for the last four years, said in her April 2024 general conference address that individuals can feel Heavenly Father’s love and support when they pray.

“Because Heavenly Father has all power and knows all things, He can see all His children and can hear and answer every prayer. You can come to know for yourself that He is there and that He loves you,” she said.

As Sister Browning shared the story of her mother’s single-serving prayers, it was as if those in attendance retroactively felt seen and loved.

The prayers of the past had likely found their resolution. The needs that necessitated those prayers may have gone away years ago.

The feelings that her loved ones felt when they heard of those written prayers, however, brought newfound appreciation for Cox’s kindness on their behalf.

Parents pray for their children. Members of the Church pray for President Dallin H. Oaks and other leaders of the Church. Family of missionaries pray for them as they serve.

As we express gratitude for answered prayers that come from a loving Heavenly Father, may we also take time to thank those who pray for us in our moments of need.

Even though I never met Sharon Cox, I’m grateful for her example of pleading to the Lord on behalf of those she loved and loves.

— Jon Ryan Jensen is editor of the Church News.

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When the Salt Lake Temple closed its collective doors on Dec. 29, 2019, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began a multiyear renovation and restoration project that is scheduled to culminate with a celebration and public open house that will be held April 5 through Oct. 1, 2027.

Three months after the temple closed, its iconic doors were removed from the building for their own renovation.

On Tuesday, June 23, the refurbished doors were once again hung on the east side of the Salt Lake Temple.

Jacob W. Olmstead, a manager in the Historic Sites Division in the Church History Department, talked about those temple doors and the overall meaning of the temple as workers carefully placed the newly finished doors in place.

“The Salt Lake Temple is such an amazing emblem of the faith of Latter-day Saints, not only here in Utah but across the globe,” he said. “I think at its core, it is a symbol of a global faith.”

Olmstead said he sees the temple as a fulfillment of the prophecies of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah.

“We know from the prophet Isaiah that the mountain of the Lord’s house will be established in the tops of the mountains, and all nations shall flow unto it. So, this building has a millennial future,” he said.

Richard Sutton, a senior director in the Temple Department, has been helping the Church to prepare for the influx of those visitors from around the world.

“We expect millions of people to come through the Salt Lake Temple,” he said. “But we expect millions more to come to Temple Square in addition to that and enjoy all of the offerings and experiences that will be on Temple Square.”

Sutton said that even with millions of visitors expected to come when the temple opens to the public, Church leaders know that not everyone who wants to come will have that opportunity.

“The Church has invested a lot of resources into virtual components of the open house and the celebration. The temple tour itself will be virtually available online. There will be other virtual offerings and videos created, so we can take Temple Square and the Salt Lake Temple to the world.”

More information about how to participate either in person or virtually can be found at TempleSquare.org. Applications are also being accepted on that same site through July 15, 2026, to volunteer in one of hundreds of ways at the Salt Lake Temple Celebration.

Those who have worked on different aspects of the renovations of the Salt Lake Temple each have had their own personal experiences — professionally and spiritually.

Dusty Roe, renovation senior superintendent for Jacobsen Construction, said he is grateful for this “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” that has provided many learning experiences for his life.

“Building temples is a little bit like life. Life’s not easy. Sometimes building temples is not easy. It takes a lot of focus sometimes and discipline,” Roe said.

He said the restoration process of the temple has resulted in various hurdles and that those challenges have all been resolved with help from Heavenly Father.

“A solution will present itself. There hasn’t been anything — regardless how difficult it’s been — that we haven’t been able to find a solution to. From a testimony standpoint, to try and reconcile that with life, hopefully we’ll all be able to find the solutions in life to get through.”

Josh Fajardo, a superintendent with Jacobsen Construction, said working on the Salt Lake Temple has been special for him and many others because they were married and sealed to their spouse there.

“Myself and my wife, we have a picture in front of these doors. So being able to put this piece of history back into place is — I’m sure that people that walk these Temple Square grounds are going to appreciate it,” he said.

Olmstead said he enjoys considering the Salt Lake Temple’s doors and also its spires for the symbolism both can provide.

“I think they provide a nice juxtaposition,” he said. “[Visitors] look at those spires, and their eyes are drawn upward. You look at those doors, and you understand you are on the threshold of the house of the Lord. You are at the dividing point between the sacred ordinances that take place on the inside that connect Latter-day Saints to Heavenly Father and their Savior, Jesus Christ, and the world outside.”

Tom Lindhardt is a senior project manager with the Church’s Special Projects Department. He said he has been impressed with the lengths the Church has gone to for the Salt Lake Temple to truly be the house of the Lord.

“Seeing the resources and the efforts and the work by so many that are going in to preserve this building and improve it for future use, it helps us focus on what is the purpose of the temple,” he said. “It’s truly the pearl inside the pearl box is what’s important. And getting this temple open back up for the members to go in and participate in the ordinances of the temple is what I’m so excited for.”

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