My dear brothers and sisters, it is a privilege for me to join you today for this devotional. President and Sister Kusch live across the street from me, and Sister Kusch and I are ministering partners in our ward. I have the highest regard for them and often hear about what is happening at Ensign College while standing in my front yard visiting with them.
You can never go wrong following their inspired leadership. This was the first conference that we all sat in our living rooms stunned that the quickly moving pandemic had just closed borders around the world and brought many things, including attending conference in person, to a screeching halt. I believe the pandemic and the uncertainty of what was emerging around me, made me listen even more intently. During this talk, President Nelson invited each of us to improve our ability to hear the voice of the Lord, declaring that the Lord has much to teach us in our own individual lives.
Interestingly, President Nelson has returned to this counsel in each succeeding conference, and I will refer to some of what he has said in my comments today. Brothers and sisters, I am hard of hearing. As I frequently asked him to turn up the volume of the television, I would tease him that he should join a K-9 emergency rescue team because his hearing is so phenomenal.
I would always tell him that he had puppy dog ears. But as time went on, I began to realize that I just might need to check my hearing. So, believing my hearing was just fine, I went to an audiologist. The audiologist had me sit in a soundproof booth as he adjusted a large set of headphones over my ears. His instructions were simple. I was to repeat back each word that I heard. I listened carefully and the words were all short and easy. I repeated everything that I heard and was certain that I completely passed the test, but the audiologist knew better.
With a great deal of kindness, he told me that I was hard of hearing and needed hearing aids. He told me that I was not clearly hearing any of the hard consonant sounds.
