Today Prisonchaplain will hear President Russell M. Nelson

[prisonchaplain]

He is in Seattle for a stadium-sized meeting, and a staff member invited me to join his family. I figured that, as a chaplain and Mormonhub moderator, I should accept. So, tonight I will join 10s of thousands. Has anyone been to this kind of event? Any thoughts to offer? I'll certainly give my impressions within the next day or two.

[Overwatch]

Congratulations! It should be a good message.

[Overwatch]

I have spoken to President Nelson face to face. He is a warm, fatherly kind of man. Very smart and not at all pretentious with the knowledge he carries in that mind of his. I suggest taking a notebook to take notes on items that stick out to you. Pray ahead of time that the Lord may open your heart and mind to receive the message being conveyed. The message the Lord wants you to receive. I'd go as far as to suggest you fast ahead of time and go in the spirit of fasting, so that may receive a witness that he is a Prophet of God.

[Jane_Doe]

Interesting factoid: my friend actually was in temple endowment with President Nelson this morning, in downtown Salt Lake.

Just in case we doubted that they travel a LOT.

[Midwest LDS]

He is a bold but kind hearted man who has a towering faith in Jesus Christ. The message will be inspirational. He will also make you feel tired, especially when you remember he is 94. I'm 33 and I don't have half the energy he does☺. 

[Vort]

See you there, PC.

[Just_A_Guy]

35 minutes ago, Jane_Doe said:

Interesting factoid: my friend actually was in temple endowment with President Nelson this morning, in downtown Salt Lake.

Just in case we doubted that they travel a LOT.

Was he officiating, or just going through as a patron?  

(I’ve always wondered about whether this happens, since no one I know ever seems to mention seeing GAs in the temple.)

[Jane_Doe]

1 minute ago, Just_A_Guy said:

Was he officiating, or just going through as a patron?  

(I’ve always wondered about whether this happens, since no one I know ever seems to mention seeing GAs in the temple.)

Patron just in a normal session with my friend.

[prisonchaplain]

15 minutes ago, Vort said:

See you there, PC.

I'll be the one with the light yellow dress shirt. My white one doesn't fit anymore, so I suppose I'll stick out like a sore thumb. 👍

[Guest]

1 hour ago, prisonchaplain said:

He is in Seattle for a stadium-sized meeting, and a staff member invited me to join his family. I figured that, as a chaplain and Mormonhub moderator, I should accept. So, tonight I will join 10s of thousands. Has anyone been to this kind of event? Any thoughts to offer? I'll certainly give my impressions within the next day or two.

I was present when Pres. Spencer W. Kimball spoke at the Rose Bowl in So. Cal.  I'd say that was fairly similar.  Here are my thoughts.

It was hot.  I couldn't hear a thing.  Sorry.  But it's true.  I had difficulty hearing some things on the old fashioned PA systems.

Edited September 15, 2018 by Guest

[prisonchaplain]

I suspect Safeco Field will be cooler and with better audio visual equipment. #pacificnorthwestpride  😀

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, prisonchaplain said:

I suspect Safeco Field will be cooler and with better audio visual equipment. #pacificnorthwestpride  😀

Yes, technology has improved somewhat since Pres. Kimball.

[Sunday21]

@prisonchaplain I am envious ! 😇

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

2 hours ago, prisonchaplain said:

I'll be the one with the light yellow dress shirt. My white one doesn't fit anymore, so I suppose I'll stick out like a sore thumb. 👍

I'll look for you then, the yellow shirt  will make it easy. 

Edited September 15, 2018 by LiterateParakeet

[zil]

46 minutes ago, LiterateParakeet said:

I'll look for you then, the yellow shirt  will make it easy. 

We should have a church-wide rule - no members are allowed to wear yellow shirts to mass events like this, so that we can tell our visitors to wear yellow shirts so we can more easily find them (using binoculars to scan the crowd).

[Iggy]

@prisonchaplain I so wanted to be there - but since I have no where to stay, and can't afford a Hotel - sigh - enjoy, listen not only with your ears but with your heart. And please report back to us your thoughts, feelings and what struck a cord [or cords] with you.

 

[prisonchaplain]

So, first I will say I made a wise choice going with the staff member and his family. It was pretty easy to blend in, and being part of a family going made it feel much more natural. There were 49K plus in attendance, and a repeated theme, even by a couple of the speakers, was the unique privilege of being able to see and hear God's prophet in person. Other common themes were the privilege of the restored gospel, the powerful witness the Book of Mormon offers (with reference to the Moroni promise, as well as James admonition to ask the Lord for wisdom), and the power and blessing of temples (with their covenants and sealings, etc.). As for styling, the feel was that of the old church--dress up, piano and organ, and order of worship clearly laid out. President Russell was impressive in his energy, his conviction, and the clarity of his message. There was a good blend of classy, yet comfortable. I may not have a testimony of several of the unique doctrines and claims of the church, but it is now much easier for me to understand why so many find strength and comfort in the church, the community, and from its teachings.

Edited September 16, 2018 by prisonchaplain

[classylady]

35 minutes ago, prisonchaplain said:

So, first I will say I made a wise choice going with the staff member and his family. It was pretty easy to blend in, and being part of a family going made it feel much more natural. There were 49K plus in attendance, and a repeated theme, even by a couple of the speaker, was the unique privilege of being able to see and hear God's prophet in person. Other common themes were the privilege of the restored gospel, the powerful witness the Book of Mormon offers (with reference to the Moroni promise, as well as James admission to ask the Lord for wisdom), and the power and blessing of temples (with their covenants and sealings, etc.). As for styling, the feel was that of the old church--dress up, piano and organ, and order of worship clearly laid out. President Russell was impressive in his energy, his conviction, and the clarity of his message. There was a good blend of classy, yet comfortable. I may not have a testimony of several of the unique doctrines and claims of the church, but it is now much easier for me to understand why so many find strength and comfort in the church, the community, and from its teachings.

I wish I could have been there.  Thank you for sharing.

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

According to KSL.com it was the largest crowd that Pres. Nelson has ever spoken to in person.  Wow!  49,088!  
https://www.ksl.com/article/46391707/church-of-jesus-christ-pres-russell-m-nelson-speaks-to-latter-day-saints-in-seattle

I loved when President Eyring reminded us to pray and get confirmation of the things our leaders say.  He quoted the Brigham Young quote that I believe you are all familiar with.  I liked that because it felt like he was saying, "Don't take our word for it.  Pray and get confirmation from the same source we got this information from."  

Hearing Sis. Nelson was really cool!  I don't recall hearing a prophet's wife speak before.  She talked about being married to the prophet....how he sometimes gets up in the middle of the night to jot down notes, or might jump up from the middle of doing something.  She said often when he returns home at the end of the day he is not the same man she kissed goodbye in the morning because he is growing so much, and becoming his true self as he fulfills his pre-ordained role.  

Pres. Nelson was awesome as always.  I can't believe his energy for 94!  A recap of his remarks is here:
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900032130/seattle-crowd-of-nearly-50000-hear-president-nelson-call-today-the-most-crucial-era-in-the-history-of-the-world.html

[Iggy]

Here is another link ~ https://www.ldschurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2018-09-16/president-nelson-shares-5-lessons-life-has-taught-me-with-49000-in-safeco-field-47997

 

[Fether]

Are there any plans for the full video to be posted online?

[wenglund]

This video clip and news story linked on the church's website: https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/president-nelson-shares-life-lessons-pacific-northwest

My sisteer and brother-in-law were in attendance. They are serving a mission at one of 6 church-owned camps in Washington state: https://www.lds.org/locations/camping/sites/387610?lang=eng. Here is a picture they took inside the stadium: 

Thanks, -Wade Englund-

[Vort]

Getting in was amateur hour in action, requiring us to wait in a half-mile line for an hour beforehand. Either the Safeco Field system is unbelievably inefficient and stupid, or whoever in the Church was in charge of admissions really dropped the ball. Looking down from my lofty perch in the top tier (behind the podium), I could see dozens of empty seats right in the best seating areas in the stands nearest the field, just behind where my daughter and the other Laurels and priests were seated on the field itself. (It's off to the left of the pic above, where you can't really see it.) The inefficiency and perceived favoritism were frustrating.

When the meeting began, the spirit of frustration melted away. It was a beautiful meeting. The sound system was one step above awful; I missed most of President Eyring's remarks, and caught something over half of what Sister Nelson had to say. But President Nelson's remarks were mostly understandable. Whether it was the pitch of his voice or some sort of divine miracle, I understood most of his talk. He repeated a story he told a couple of eight years ago in General Conference about lending a Book of Mormon to a couple (doctor and wife) who returned it unread. He sternly told them that they needed to read it first, then he would accept his book back. Nothing particularly new, but I found it very inspirational. I am hoping my daughter did, as well. My oldest son texted me right after it started; I had invited him and his wife to come with us, but they turned us down. They were actually there, front and center, five rows from the field. So that was a wonderful thing. I was very happy to be sitting in back in the nosebleeds if some of my children were able to sit close and listen well.

Edited September 17, 2018 by Vort

[prisonchaplain]

I had a better seat than @Vort did, I had a better seat than @Vort did!

Apparently a better listening position, too. :-)

Edited September 17, 2018 by prisonchaplain