Possible Table of Contents for the November 2019 Ensign

Hello again, everyone! As many of you may be aware, the Church News has a time-honored tradition of publishing summaries of each General Conference talk ASAP after they are given. Those summaries include tentative titles for each address which, if later corrected when the actual transcripts are made available a few days following each General Conference, are not too far off from the actual titles of those addresses. As a result of the publication of those summaries online, and due to the fact that the video version of each talk is now available online, I have taken the liberty, based on the length of each such address and the aforementioned tentative titles for each talk, to put together an early draft of what the table of contents for the November 2019 Ensign may wind up looking like.

How I crafted these estimates was approximately estimating that every four minutes of any given address would be the equivalent of roughly one page of content inj the Ensign. Based on the resulting estimates, I have been able to configure what I hope wind up being slightly more accurate page estimates than I have offered in the possible table of content for previous General Conference editions of the Ensign.

It is also worth mentioning that for most of these addresses, the estimates resulted in an average 3 pages for each talk. And I anticipate that, due to the fact that this latest General Conference saw quite a few more developments before and during that weekend, I am fully anticipating that the General Conference Ensign this go-round will feature 144 pages of content. With that introduction out of the way, the mock-up of the potential table of contents follows below.

In order to not disturb the flow of that information, I will end here as I always do: That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Possible Table of Contents for the November 2019 Ensign (Text in parentheses denotes a correction.)

Session	Page	Title	Speaker
	2	Conference Summary for the 189th Semiannual General Conference
	4	Highlights from the 189th Semiannual General Conference
SAM	6	The Message, the Meaning, and the Multitude	Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
	10	True Disciples of the Savior	Elder Terence M. Vinson
	13	Be Faithful, Not Faithless	Stephen W. Owen
	16	The Joy of the Saints	Elder D. Todd Christofferson
	20	Spiritual Capacity	Michelle D. Craig
	23	Unwavering Commitment to Jesus Christ	Elder Dale G. Renlund
	26	Trust in the Lord	President Dallin H. Oaks
SAA	30	The Sustaining of Church Officers	President Henry B. Eyring
	32	Watchful Unto Prayer Continually	Elder David A. Bednar
	36	Found Through the Power of the Book of Mormon	Elder Ruben V. Alliaud
	38	Witnesses, Aaronic Priesthood, and Young Women Classes	President Russell M. Nelson
	39	Adjustments to Strengthen Children and Youth	Elder Quentin L. Cook
	43	Come Follow Me---the Lord’s Counter-Strategy and Proactive Plan	Mark L. Pace
	45	Consistent and Resilient Trust	Elder L. Todd Budge
	48	After the Trial of Our Faith	Elder Jorge M. Alvarado
	50	Standing by Our Promises and Covenants	Elder Ronald A. Rasband
GW	54	Thru Cloud and Sunshine, Lord, Abide with Me!	Silvia H. Allred
	57	Honoring His Name	Lisa L. Harkness
	59	Beloved Daughters	Bonnie H. Cordon
	62	Covenant Women in Partnership with God	President Henry B. Eyring
	65	Two Great Commandments	President Dallin H. Oaks
	68	Spiritual Treasures	President Russell M. Nelson
SUM	77	Covenant Belonging	Elder Gerrit W. Gong
	81	Finding Joy in Sharing the Gospel	Cristina B. Franco
	84	Your Great Adventure	Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
	88	The Savior’s Truth	Elder Walter F. Gonzalez
	91	Deceive Me Not	Elder Gary E. Stevenson
	95	The Second Great Commandment	President Russell M. Nelson
SUA	100	Holiness and the Plan of Happiness	President Henry B. Eyring
	104	Loving and Growing	Elder Hans T. Boom
	106	Giving Our Spirit Control Over Our Bodies	President M. Russell Ballard
	110	Power to Overcome the Adversary	Elder Peter M. Johnson
	113	Take Up Our Cross	Elder Ulisses Soares
	117	Fruit	Elder Neil L. Andersen
	121	Closing Remarks	President Russell M. Nelson
	72	List of General Authorities and General Officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
	125	Conference Story Index
	127	News of the Church
	135	Come Follow Me--For Priesthood and Relief Society
	144	Last page of Conference Ensign

October 2019 General Conference—Lengths of Talks Given by the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Hello again, everyone! While I am not quite ready to analyze and score the results of my October 2019 General Conference predictions, I thought it would be a good idea to now publish the record I have assembled of the lengths of each of the talks given by each member of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.  As a result of some unexpected developments (including President Nelson's short address in the Saturday Afternoon Session to introduce the youth-related changes, and his subsequent address duringh the Sunday Afteroon Session of General Conference being 2-3 times longer than his addresses closing prior General Conferences have traditionally been), that information this go-round is markedly different.


Additionally, I was pleasntly surprised this go-round by something else related to these addresses. Within the last decade or so, it has traditionally been the case that there is a somewhat significant lag between when each apostle spoke and how soon after the video versions thereof are published. Particularly, with the Saturday and Sunday sessions, it has not been uncommon for there to be as much of a one-day lag between when at least one apostle spoke and when the video version of their talks are up. In previous years, that fact has resulted in my somehow omitting the information for at least one of those talks.

But for the first time this weekend, I kept a careful watch, and waited until now to post this information so that I could be sure I hadn't overlooked anything. Between our 15 apostles, 21 General Conference addresses were given this go-round. Without further ado, that information follows below. In the meantime, I do continue to monitor all Church news and temple updates and will do my level best to bring word of those to you all here as I receive it.

That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Lengths of Talks Given by First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles During the October
2019 General Conference

18:56—President Henry B. Eyring (SUA)

18:27—President Russell M. Nelson (SUM)

18:17—President Russell M. Nelson (GW)

17:58—Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf

15:59—Elder David A. Bednar

15:36—President M. Russell Ballard

15:14—Elders Gary E. Stevenson and Gerrit W. Gong

14:47—President Dallin H. Oaks (SAM) & Elder Ulisses Soares

14:46—Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

14:39—Elder Ronald A. Rasband

14:32—Elder D. Todd Christofferson

13:52—Elder Dale G. Renlund

13:28—Elder Neil L. Andersen

12:47—President Dallin H. Oaks (GW)

12:29—Elder Quentin L. Cook

12:17—President Henry B. Eyring (GW)

11:44—President Russell M. Nelson (SUA)

7:10—President Henry B. Eyring (SAA; Sustaining of Church Officers)

4:02—President Russell M. Nelson (SAA; Youth Announcement)

BREAKING NEWS: President Nelson Announces Changes In Temple Recommend Interview Questions; Designates 2020 as a Bicentennial Celebration Year for the Church

Hello again, everyone! The October 2019 General Conference has just wrapped up, and more breaking news has been reported. First, President Nelson highlighted upcoming temple open houses, dedications, and rededications, urging the Church to use those as opportunities to teach our friends of other faiths about the importance of the work done in temples. He went on to further announce updates and revisions to the standard temple recommend questions, which clarify what is required to worthily enter the temple.

Above and beyond that, however, he noted that next year would be designated a bicentennial celebration year to mark the anniversaries of important milestones in the restoration of the Savior's Church. Among those milestones he mentioned that would be a focus are the First Vision, the restoration of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods, the publication of the Book of Mormon, and the reestablishment of the Church. He went on to note that the April 2020 General Conference would be unlike any other the Church has ever seen before in its' history. So between these developments, there is a lot to which we as members of the Church can look forward.

While I don't know exactly what might make the April 2020 General Conference so unique, I have a few thoughts, which I will want to mull over before I share anything solid. There are, however, two things I can say with absolute certainty: first, per a letter from the Church Communication Department (which had been sent out on September 13 of this year), the April 2020 General Conference will convene on Saturday and Sunday April 4 and 5, 2020, and that I will be making the April 2020 General Conference predictions unique as a result of the anticipated uniqueness of that Conference to which President Nelson referred.

In fact, I already have more than a few ideas in that respect. But I will be taking my time putting those together. Meanwhile, I will also be monitoring all Church news and temple updates. I am anticipating that at least 3 items of temple news will be coming down the pike over the next several weeks, given what President Nelson noted during his concluding remarks about temple construction, open houses, dedications, and renovations. Stay tuned for more on those developments as well as I learn more about them.

That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING NEWS: President Nelson Announces 8 New Temples

Hello again, everyone! The breaking news continues from General Conference. This time, in an unusually-timed announcement, as he concluded his remarks in the Women's Session of General Conference, President Nelson announced 8 new temples. The temples will be built in Freetown, Sierra Leone; Orem Utah; Bentonville Arkansas; Bacolod Philippines; Taylorsville Utah;  Coban Guatemala; McAllen Texas; and Port Moresby Papua New Guinea. Additional information is available on the official release from the Newsroom.

It is good to have learned about this. I had the exact location correct for 5 of these 8 temples, but had Fort Worth instead of McAllen, and was caught off-guard by the announcement of temples for both Taylorsville and Orem, though I anticipated at least one new one for Utah this go-round. I look forward to seeing more information released on these temples as plans are developed. With that noted, unless he intends to announce other temples at some other time, I have no idea what, if any, other announcements may be made this weekend. But I will do my level best to stay on top of any other developments and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all as I receive it.

In the meantime, I also continue to monitor all Church news and temple updates and will do my level best to pass word of those along to you all as I become aware of it. That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING NEWS: Adjustments Announced to Youth Programs

Hello again, everyone! During the Saturday Afternoon Session of General Conference, Church President Russell M. Nelson announced infrastructural changes to Aaronic Priesthood Quorums and young women groups. As subsequently outlined by Elder Cook, young men presidencies at the ward level will be released effective immediately. Bishops will take oversight to lead and mentor the Priests' Quorum, as specified in scripture, and his two counselors will oversee the work of the Teachers' and Deacons' Quorums respectively. To assist the ward bishopric, adult advisers to the young men will continue to be called and serve.


In the meantime, the young women president in each ward will now report directly to the bishop. And young women presidents will take a greater role in counseling with the young women with whom they serve. Young men presidencies will continue to serve on the stake and general levels, but the Stake Young Men's President will now be one of the stake high councilmen. Additionally, another member of the stake high council will now serve as the Stake Sunday School President.

The traditional Bishopric's Youth Committee will be discontinued and replaced by a Ward Youth Council. Weekly activities for young men and young women will continue, but the descriptive phrase "Mutual" will now be retired, with the activities being called "Aaronic Priesthood", "young women" or "youth" activities. The ward budget for youth will be equitably divided between young men and young women, with an additional budget allotment to be made available for Primary activities.

Additionally, at all levels, the usage of the word "auxiliary" will be replaced. Those serving on a general level in the Relief Society, Sunday School, Young Men, Young Women, and Primary General Presidencies will now be known as "General Officers",  while those leading on the ward and stake level will be called ward or stake officers.  The details specific to organizational changes in the young women will be outlined more completely by Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, Young Women General President, tonight during the Women's Session of General Conference.

I know that I, as recently as this week, had noted my feeling that the infrastructure of wards and stakes would not be changed as far as the Sunday School, Young Men, Young Women, or Primary was concerned, but as soon as these adjustments were announced, I received instantaneous confirmation that they were in harmony with the Lord's will for His Church at this time. Clearly President Nelson, his counselors, and the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are very concerned about the youth and children of the Church, and are making these adjustments to enable the youth to reach their fullest potential, and to bring all organizations of the Church into harmony with the revelations by which they were originally governed. And that is wonderful to see occurring.

I will have further analysis on this tonight. In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.




(Added at 6:31 PM): Tonight during the Women's Session, Sister Bonnie H. Cordon presented changes to the Young Women theme to a more individual basis, and announced a new flexibility with the organization of the Young Women classes according to local circumstances, and at the discretion of the ward Young Women president, with the approval of the bishop. Class presidencies will continue to serve, but the names of the groups as they previously existed (Beehive, Mia Maid, and Laurel) are discontinued and retired, effective immediately.

Each young women group will have a class presidency, which will be mentored by ward and stake young women presidencies and those called as advisers. As soon as these changes were announced, I felt the Spirit testify to me that they are in harmony with the Lord's will for young women at this time. And I cannot wait to see how these changes impact the faith and strength of youth groups going forward. It is also worth noting that the originally-cited source from the Newsroom has now been updated to reflect this information as well. Aside from these developments, I anticipate that, at least, there will be new temples announced at some point tomorrow, but I don't know when that might occur or if there will be anything else announced.

But I continue to monitor all such developments, along with other Church news and temple updates, and will bring word of those to you all here as I become aware of such things. That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.