Uchtdorf - Fourth Floor, Last Door - October 2016

President Uchtdorf speaks to the women of the church during the General Women's Session of General Conference.  He speaks of the great women who have influenced his life and how he recognizes that all over the world, women of great faith are influencing others.  He praises them for their commitment to the Savior and to raise righteous families.

• Some of you might not feel worthy of such high praise. You might think you are too insignificant to have a meaningful influence on others. Perhaps you don’t even consider yourself a “woman of faith” because you sometimes struggle with doubt or fear. Today, I wish to speak to anyone who has ever felt this way—and that probably includes all of us at one time or another. I wish to speak of faith—what it is, what it can and cannot do, and what we must do to activate the power of faith in our lives.
  

Concerning what faith is, he shares:

• Faith is a strong conviction about something we believe—a conviction so strong that it moves us to do things that we otherwise might not do. “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
  

He shares a story of a young girl walking with her grandmother when she stopped and heard the birds singing.  He asked her grandmother if she heard the birds singing and she said she could not.  The little girls took her grandmothers face in her hands and said "Grandma, listen harder!"

• There are more ways to see than with our eyes, more ways to feel than with our hands, more ways to hear than with our ears.
  
• Just because we can’t hear something doesn’t mean there is nothing to hear. Two people can listen to the same message or read the same scripture, and one might feel the witness of the Spirit while the other doesn’t.
• In our efforts to help our loved ones experience the voice of the Spirit and the vast, eternal, and profound beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ, telling them to “listen harder” may not be the most helpful way.
  

He shares two powerful things to remember about faith.

• Faith is powerful, and often it does result in miracles. But no matter how much faith we have, there are two things faith cannot do. For one, it cannot violate another person’s agency.
  • As painful as it might be for our Father in Heaven, He will not force anyone to choose the path of righteousness.
    
  • God will invite, persuade. God will reach out tirelessly with love and inspiration and encouragement. But God will never compel—that would undermine His great plan for our eternal growth.
• The second thing faith cannot do is force our will upon God. We cannot force God to comply with our desires—no matter how right we think we are or how sincerely we pray.
  • The purpose of faith is not to change God’s will but to empower us to act on God’s will. Faith is trust—trust that God sees what we cannot and that He knows what we do not. Sometimes, trusting our own vision and judgment is not enough.
    

We need to remember that God loves us and wants what is best for us.  He wants to see us succeed and he wants to grant us His love, grace, and mercy.

• We can be certain that answers will come, and we may be confident that we will not only be content with the answers but we will also be overwhelmed by the grace, mercy, generosity, and love of our Heavenly Father for us, His children.
  
• Until then, we walk by whatever faith we have, seeking always to increase our faith. Sometimes this is not an easy quest. Those who are impatient, uncommitted, or careless may find faith to be elusive. Those who are easily discouraged or distracted may hardly experience it. Faith comes to the humble, the diligent, the enduring. It comes to those who pay the price of faithfulness.
  

He shares a great story about some hardworking, diligent missionaries who were visiting an apartment building.  He speaks about not giving up and shares that the fourth floor of this building at the last door in the hallway was the place that his future wife and mother-in-law lived.  He expressed his gratitude that those missionaries didn't stop on the second floor, didn't get discouraged by the negative response along the way, and endured until they finished their goal to knock on each door.  That decision to keep going lead to the conversion of his wife's family and countless blessings in his life.

• God “rewards those who earnestly seek him,” but that reward is not usually behind the first door. So we need to keep knocking. Sisters, don’t give up. Seek God with all your heart. Exercise faith. Walk in righteousness.

Finally he shares his testimony of the God.

• God is real. He lives. He loves you. He knows you. He understands you. He knows the silent pleadings of your heart. He has not abandoned you. He will not forsake you.
  

I love the story of the missionaries not giving up.  How grateful he is that they keep pushing, kept with their goal to knock on each door, and endure through the negative things in life.  Life is not easy.  It can be challenging in many ways.  But we need to remember that God is on our side.  He wants to help us, and we can rely on His influence in our lives as we live the right way.  Our faith in God is essential to our happiness and our discipleship of following the Savior.