Bluffdale Utah Stake Conference | March 2026
A Message for the Bluffdale Utah Stake
President Derek Taylor, President of the Bluffdale Stake
I feel to emphasize the warning President Russell M. Nelson issued us: that “in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” Our current prophet, President Dallin H. Oaks, in his first public address as president of the Church added, “One of the many reasons you will need the constant influence of the Holy Ghost is that you live in a season in which the adversary has become so effective at disguising truth that if you don’t have the Holy Ghost, you will be deceived.”
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is “… the only true and living Church on the face of the whole earth… “(Doctrine and Covenants 1:30) and it is the attendance and guidance of the Holy Ghost to members and leaders that make this a living Church. Having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost is a privilege to every baptized member of the Church. As taught by former Relief Society General President Julie Beck, “the ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life.”
Acting on personal revelation has contributed to the surge in missionaries serving from our stake. We have 104 proselyting, senior, and service missionaries serving from the Bluffdale Utah Stake right now with another 47 that have either calls or opened their missionary applications. Twenty-seven of them are young women who are taking advantage of the opportunity to begin serving at age 18. There is a Brazilian saying, “a sua missão é o dizimo de sua vida (Your mission is the tithing of your life) and that is what I have seen from their brothers and sisters over the past three years.
The Lord teaches that revelation or messages from Heavenly Father come to us in many ways (visions, dreams, visitations), but in its most familiar form, revelation comes through the Holy Ghost as thoughts to our minds and feelings to our hearts. Elder David A. Bednar taught, “Because the Holy Ghost typically uses our minds and our hearts to convey spiritual messages, it can sometimes be difficult to discern the difference between our own thoughts and feelings and those communicated from our Heavenly Father. He suggests four principles that can help us receive, recognize, and respond to the Holy Ghost in our daily lives:
- We must desire the companionship of the Holy Ghost
- We must invite the companionship of the Holy Ghost by how we live, spend our time, act, make and keep sacred covenants, and avoid casualness about our covenants and temple attendance.
- We must heed simple promptings so that our capacity to recognize and respond to the Holy Ghost increases.
- We must act on promptings quickly. Acting quickly and even writing down spiritual promptings increases our capabilities to have the Holy Ghost more in our lives.
The more we follow this pattern, the more we will have Heavenly Father in your life guiding, directing, and providing comfort in our lives. And when we have this in our lives, we will not be deceived.
If we put our faith and trust in our loving Heavenly Father, the Lord’s hand can guide us even through the tough times. Elder Rasband said: “By divine design, He is in the small details of our lives and as well as the major ones…”
I don’t know all things, but I do know without hesitation that God loves His children. As members of His Church, we have incredible advantages available to us. Learning to receive, recognize, and respond to promptings of the Holy Ghost will enable us to become one with God and become like His son.
Pointing our Souls to Him: Gathering Israel on Both Sides of the Veil
President Ryan Bevan, Second Counselor in the Bluffdale Utah Stake Presidency
During ward conferences recently, I had the privilege of spending time with the great youth of our stake. We have discussed the scripture in Malachi 4, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers….”
Gathering Israel is a great commission of the Lord and referenced throughout all scriptures at least eight times. When the Lord repeats something, He means it. President Russell M. Nelson also declared that the gathering of Israel “is the most important work taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude. Nothing else compares in importance.” Our youth are great examples of participating in the gathering.
Seth Christiansen, a senior at Riverton High School, shared how he listened to the spirit to reach out to the one, and usually to those who weren’t seen. Carlos Boscan, a young man and recent covert from the 11th Ward, joined the Church after the Larsen family in our area acted on the impressions to “love, share, and invite” others to come unto Jesus Christ. And our full-time missionary, Sister Ruthie Bevan serving in the Canada Montreal Mission always reminds our family to share our miracle for the week and the “love, share, and invite.”
I was reminded of a personal connection to the gathering the other day as I sat in a meeting at work. I manage construction for a regional real estate development firm, and as is common for me, I was in on an online meeting. Normally, it’s a Zoom or Teams meeting, but this was a Google meet. I share that because that type of meeting ties to my personal Gmail account, not my work email, and my name pops up as “John Ryan Bevan”. The other interesting thing that happened is that I logged on early to the meeting, and generally I am NOT early to meetings, because I am usually running from a prior meeting.
A man on the call named David Alter asked me if I knew a John Bevan that served a mission in Billings, Montana in the 1970s. John is my father. David proceeded to pull out of his wallet and a pass along card from 50 years ago. On it was an image of the Salt Lake Temple, along with the contact information of Elder Bevan and his companion. He had kept that picture with him as a sacred symbol of his conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Since that time David has said in rough number those that have served missions from our family’s conversion, if I only include my siblings and our kids, there are eight of us. If we include those who we baptized and their descendants, there could be a lot more. Then if we include our grandkids who will eventually serve, well, you can see how it can really grow from there! The Lord has uniquely prepared you to connect with someone that maybe nobody else can.
President Nelson said, “In coming days, we will see the greatest manifestations of the Savior’s power that the world has ever seen. Between now and the time he returns ‘with power and great glory,’ he will bestow countless privileges, blessings and miracles upon the faithful.”
When I think of the “greatest manifestations of the Savior” I think about missionary work here on earth and in heaven. That is what makes family history and temple work so important.
When Sarah and I were first married, we tried to attend the temple weekly, our favorite ordinance to do naturally were sealings. Now Sarah and I have had to adapt our temple work and worship. This season of life may necessitate going at different times as your spouse. The important thing is to go and to help bring more souls unto Christ through ordinances on behalf of our ancestors.
As the prophet Joseph Smith said, “The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”
Ministering Like the Savior
President Christopher Swank, First Counselor in the Bluffdale Utah Stake
President Cindy Strong, Stake Relief Society President
During the Stake Leadership training for youth and adult leaders in the area, leaders spoke about ministering like the Savior. It is connected to the Utah Area Presidency’s vision for members in the areas. The vision they have for us is, “As disciples of Jesus Christ we are joyfully gathering Israel one by one in Christ.”
‘Gathering Israel’ can be manifested in many ways, and by many different people. President Henry B. Eyring has taught, that the effort to gather is for EVERYONE. But how do we become an active part of the gathering?
Focus on “searching after the one, while ministering faithfully to the ninety-nine”. This speaks largely of what ministering is all about. President D. Todd Christofferson described what searching and reaching might look like.
President Christofferson pointed out some of the ways the Savior ministered one person at a time by inviting, helping, blessing, healing, teaching, baptizing, serving, and fellowshipping one by one. As we follow His example, we will find more success in ministering to the brothers and sisters in our area in need of God’s love and blessings.