All you need is love

Every six months leaders of my church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) hold a two day conference and speak to the members. It is held the first weekend of October and April and since we live in Utah it is broadcast on tv. I like to call it pajama church because we get to hang out in pajamas all day. My family and I have a tradition of getting together for the Sunday broadcast and enjoying a delicious breakfast. I make sticky ring and quiche and it is amazing! I am a firm believer in good food.

Yummy sticky ring

This conference I was particularly moved by President Uchtdorf's talk Saturday morning. I would like to share some of what he said and my thoughts about it. I added emphasis on some of the words that stood out most to me.

Deiter F. Uchtdorf
photo from newsroom.lds.org

"Sometimes well meaning amplifications of divine principles, many coming from uninspired sources, complicate matters further, diluting the purity of divine truth with man-made addenda. One person's good idea, something that may work for him or her, takes root and becomes an expectation, and gradually eternal principles can get lost within the labyrinth of good ideas. This was one of the Savior's criticisms of the religious experts of his day whom he chastised for attending to the hundreds of minor details of the law while neglecting the weightier matters."

This is so true! Regardless of what religion we practice, we often get caught up in the "minor details" and neglect the "weightier matters". For example, I have heard members of my church say that you have to use your right hand to take the sacrament (our version of Eucharist) but does it matter which hand I use if I am not living worthy of forgiveness?

Anyway, we are all guilty. We all stress ourselves out on the details. I am working really hard on behaving in a Christlike manner. I don't always get it right, but I am trying and I am working on not being so hard on myself when I fail at the small stuff.


"Because love is the great commandment it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, our church callings, and our livelihood. Love is the healing balm that repairs rifts in personal and family relationships, it is the bond that unites families, communities, and nations. Love is the power that initiates friendship, tolerance, civility, and respect. It is the source that overcomes divisiveness and hate. Love is the fire that warms our lives with unparalleled joy and divine hope. Love should be our walk and our talk. When we truly understand what it means to love as Jesus Christ loves us, the confusion clears and our priorities align."

Love. It sounds so simple right? And yet we are so mean to each other all the time. We fight with a neighbor about a tree, we argue over political differences, we yell at a store clerk for not moving fast enough; the list goes on. I know we all make mistakes, lose our cool, or say stupid things, but we can all try harder to speak with love. I think it's also important to remember that we can disagree with someone but still respect their opinion. All over the world people fight to the death because they insist that their way is the only right way. If we could just be more loving, we could make such a difference.

All you need is love...
...and sticky ring

Sticky Ring (from Nicole)
24 Rhodes dinner rolls cut in half (let them thaw a bit first)
1 small box Butterscotch cook-n-serve pudding
3/4 c. brown sugar
1t. cinnamon
1 cube melted butter

Mix the dry pudding mix, sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside. Spray a bundt pan lightly with cooking spray and place the cut rolls in the pan. Sprinkle sugar mixture over the rolls then pour melted butter on top. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake at 375º for 15-20 minutes or until rolls are golden brown. Try not to die because they are so delicious!