Hello, Doer of the word!
Let's dive into the invitations from Elder Peter M. Johnson's October 2025 General Conference address, "The Power of Ministering to the One."
Invitations
1 - "It is my prayer that we will recognize the influence of the Holy Ghost as we become and help one another become truly devoted disciples of Jesus Christ and feel of His joy as we worship in the house of the Lord."
Application Idea: Try praying merely to be able to feel and recognize the Spirit during your next temple service. Consider asking for nothing else so that you go with an open mind to whatever the Spirit will tell you, rather than with a specific need or person in mind. You might be surprised to find the Spirit prompt you to focus on a different priority than what seems most urgent to you.
2 - "So how do we become and help one another become devoted disciples of Jesus Christ? We minister to the one. Ministering in the Savior’s way involves compassion, kindness, patience, and love without judgment. As we minister to the one, we invite the one to come unto Christ and to worship in the house of the Lord to receive of His redeeming power. In other words, we help one another become devoted disciples as we minister to the one in ways that lead to the house of the Lord."
Application Idea: Do a personal inventory of your ministering assignment. If you hardly know the families or individuals, an invitation to join you in the temple is unlikely to be well received. Instead, do something simple this week to get acquainted. On the other hand, if you do know them well, do social things together often, and are certain they have an active temple recommend, consider setting up a group temple visit. Most ministering relationships are somewhere between those two extremes, so we should make sure our ministering efforts are consistent and meaningful while we seek God's inspiration on how to be temple-focused.
3 - "At times we will have unanswered questions and feelings of being unimportant, discouraged, alone, and unseen. However, my friends, we must press forward with faith in Jesus Christ and remember His words: 'Let not your heart be troubled.' 'In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.'"
4 - "[W]hat can we do to ensure our ministering to the one in the Savior’s way is most effective? Living the doctrine of Christ will help us. ... Our ability to live the doctrine of Christ will be enhanced by daily studying the Book of Mormon and weekly partaking of the sacrament."
Application Idea: Daily Book of Mormon study doesn't need to feel overwhelming. If you're already in a good routine, keep going! If starting from zero, begin with the Gospel Library audio version. No matter who you are or how busy you feel, you can listen to a few minutes of scripture each day. If you listen while doing mundane chores or commuting, your study won't add any stress to your schedule. You'll just feel the spirit more during those activities. Multitasking may not be the gold standard of scripture study, but it's a great start while you revise your schedule to make it more of a priority.
5 - "My friends, I promise that as we live the doctrine of Christ and minister to the one in ways that lead to the house of the Lord, we will press forward with faith in Jesus Christ even amid unanswered questions and feelings of being unimportant, alone, discouraged, and unseen. We will invite the one to come unto Jesus Christ and to worship in the house of the Lord to receive of His redeeming power and love. In the house of the Lord, we will 'feel [the Savior’s] mercy. [We] will find answers to [our] most vexing questions. [And we] will better comprehend the joy of His gospel."
Application Idea: General Conference Applied is NOT intended to be unidirectional. Mitch and Clay sincerely want to learn from your experiences and ideas for applying what the Savior and general authorities have taught. We invite you to help us all become "doers of the word" by leaving a comment on one of our social media videos of what's helping you "live the doctrine of Christ" or an idea you're excited to try. If you or someone you know has a personal connection to a conference speaker or a story that fits well with one of the talks, we invite you to take action by emailing us ([email protected]) and we'll see whether it's a good fit for the podcast or can be shared in other ways.
Additional Resources
Download a copy of these invitations: Google Sheets | PDF. If you use these resources as a handout in Church, use the PDF (it prints prettier) and please invite the members of your ward to subscribe to the General Conference Applied newsletter and podcast!
General Conference Applied S6 E71. Wrestling With Tough Questions & Ministering to the One—Elder Peter M. Johnson - Amazon Music | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube. See also Running Toward the Light for the amazing story of Elder Johnson, the church's first African-American general authority. Mitch and Clay were joined by Kyler Hamilton, a University of Utah Institute of Religion teacher and host of the "We Talk Of" podcast aimed at improving gospel teaching in the home. Kyler shares how his own story growing up as one of only few African-American families in Provo, UT aligns with Elder Johnson's experience on his mission, and how we can minister to anyone feeling unimportant, alone, discouraged, or unseen. This episode touches on faith, family, service, love, race and the priesthood, testimony despite having unanswered questions, and much more!
External Resources Shared In This Episode:
Elder Peter M. Johnson, Applying the Doctrine of Jesus Christ into Our Lives, BYU-Idaho Devotional: March 14, 2023
Elder Peter M. Johnson, Christ’s Atonement, Invitations to Act, and Promised Blessings, BYU Devotional: November 15, 2022
Peter M. Johnson, Faith, Family, and Friendship, BYU Devotional: February 6, 2007
Peter M. Johnson, Peter Johnson Devotional, BYU-Hawaii Devotional: October 17, 1996
GCA S6 E53 – Sunday, February 8, 2026 – Teaching in the Savior's Way—Chad H Webb "That All May Be Edified" – Amazon Music | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube
Elder Peter M. Johnson, Power to Overcome the Adversary, October 2019 General Conference
Sister Susan H. Porter, God's Love: The Most Joyous to the Soul, October 2021 General Conference: "Five years ago, I observed an example of divine love while attending Primary in Russia. I saw a faithful sister kneel in front of two children and testify to them that even if they were the only ones living on earth, Jesus would have suffered and died just for them."
Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Judge Not and Judging, BYU Devotional: March 1, 1998
Elder Clement M. Matswagothata, Anchored in Christ, BYU-Idaho Devotional: March 10, 2026
Elder David S. Baxter, Shield of David Offers Guidelines for Disciples, Ensign College Devotional: February 11, 2014: "President Gordon B. Hinckley related the story of a conversation with a new convert, a handsome, accomplished young man, who tearfully described how he had lost everything when he joined the Church: position, status, employment, family and friends. Elder Hinckley, as he then was, asked why he remained in the Church if he had lost so much. The young man said, 'Well, it's true, isn't it?' Elder Hinckley responded, 'Yes, it's true,' to which the young man replied, 'Then, what else matters?'"
In the Lord's Due Time by Joseph Freeman
President Dallin H. Oaks, Opening Remarks, Be One - A Celebration of the Revelation on the Priesthood
GCA S6 E66 – Tuesday, March 10, 2026 – Iranian In-laws, Deep Prayer, & Being Children of God—Elder Brik V. Eyre, "Know Who You Really Are" – Amazon Music | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube
Let's Talk about Race and Priesthood by W. Paul Reeve
In the Hands of the Lord: The Life of Dallin H. Oaks by Richard E. Turley Jr.
President Dallin H. Oaks, Where Will This Lead?, April 2019 General Conference
Elder Dallin H. Oaks, The Challenge to Become, October 2000 General Conference
Take Action
Clay's Application: Take my daughter at least once a month to the temple and before returning home, help her learn to recognize the Spirit she can feel in the House of the Lord.
Mitch's Application: In our previous podcast episode (Elder Matthew S. Holland), I committed to intentionally find ways to testify of Jesus Christ when responding to antagonistic social media comments. But Elder Johnson's invitation goes a step further - "[ministering] to the one in ways that lead to the house of the Lord." I'll ponder and ask Heavenly Father in prayer how I can practically do this, then write the spiritual impressions that come in my journal.
Reply to this email and tell us how you'll take action on one of these invitations and whether we can share your response in our newsletter, podcast, and/or on social media.
Get Involved
If you’d like to volunteer in helping us encourage more people to take action on inspired invitations from prophets and apostles, please reply to this email.
Do you or someone you know have a story related to a conference talk or connection to the speaker? Reply and let's talk! We need all the help we can get to find podcast guests. We all have stories. Even if you don't think you're anyone special, your story may be exactly what another listener needs to hear!
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