The power of these talks is so amazing as the Spirit bears witness of the truths spoken and also we recognize the men speaking and it is wonderful to see/hear them! We have enjoyed hearing how changes were made and the effort it took to put those things into place and then a few years later those things were replaced with another set of new changes. From well stocked libraries becoming simplified and now the Internet!! The Church is always pulling into modern ideas and always upgrading and improving. so much fun to hear about what was new and current back 45 years ago!
One of the most powerful Conferences was the October 1972. President Lee had just been sustained at a Solemn Assembly and those Friday talks were dynamite!!! and Saturday and on and on!! Amazing talks!!!
so our current tally, minus 2014, stands at the two of us together enjoying 326 CR talks plus we listened to 11 Women Conference talks. Well, that did add up! Soon we will be in April Conference. I am already antsy about it!! can hardly wait.
******************************
I know I blogged that I was going to read the Book of Mormon and not read chapter headings/make no notes etc. except for drawing a small heart if heart was mentioned. True, I did it twice before and it was enjoyable but that was years ago. It just didn't work this time. I was constantly thinking...that relates to such and such. do I have that marked? I decided to stop when I found myself reading in 1 Nephi 15:3 and realized that I liked my marked scriptures. That verse is key to 6-11 and I loved the explanation...they had been previously told to ask and they did not and Nephi was reminding them to ask. I've always loved that sequence and knew it was marked, so I just decided to plow ahead with what is normal for me and relax and enjoy.
************************
Last Friday I was anticipating watching the live streaming of the CES talk by Elder Ballard. True, I don't teach Seminary anymore but also true that I feel the training from all things CES, is incredible information and cutting edge, on what is in store for all teachers. Plus I teach the Laurels and I wanted to see if there were teaching techniques, or counsel, that would be of value to me. IT WAS!!! I've never heard any talk like this. I listened to it twice and still want to again. Today it came out so at least part of it is available in print. here
I was surprised when he said...
“As Church education moves forward in the 21st century, each of you needs to consider any changes you should make in the way you prepare to teach, how you teach and what you teach if you are to build unwavering faith in the lives of our precious youth,” Elder Ballard said. “Gone are the days when a student asked an honest question and a teacher responded, ‘Don’t worry about it!’ Gone are the days when a student raised a sincere concern and a teacher bore his or her testimony as a response intended to avoid the issue. Gone are the days when students were protected from people who attacked the Church.”
***********
He then challenged teachers to increase their testimonies by study and also faith. Most surprising to me was his mention of 11 Gospel Topics essays and challenged everyone to KNOW the content-- like you know the back of your hand! I went there and we are talking lots of info!
“Church leaders today are fully conscious of the unlimited access to information and we are making extraordinary efforts to provide accurate context and understanding of the teachings of the Restoration,” he said.
Using the eleven Gospel Topics essays available on lds.org as an example, Elder Ballard said it is crucial that teachers “know the content in these essays like you know the back of your hand.”
“As you teachers pay the price to better understand our history, doctrine and practices — better than you do now — you will be prepared to provide thoughtful, careful and inspired answers to your students’ questions,” Elder Ballard said.
******************************
I really enjoyed when he said...
“Today, what they see on their mobile devices is likely to be faith-challenging as much as faith-promoting,” Elder Ballard said. “Many of our young people are more familiar with Google than with the gospel, more attuned to the Internet than to inspiration and more involved with Facebook than with faith.”
*************************
My all time favorite quote -it will surely end up a Meme!!! is...
“Teach them about the challenges they face when relying upon the Internet to answer questions of eternal significance,” he said. “Remind them that James did not say, ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him Google!'”
**************
my Gift to you...the 11 Gospel Topics! you don't have to go looking! I did that for you!
Good luck to all of us as we learn the content of these essays like the back of our hands!!!
Study group anyone???
Gospel Topics Essays here
No comments:
Post a Comment