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Monday, October 7, 2019

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)


Sunday, October 6, 2019

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.