President Russell M. Nelson’s 2023 general conference address struck a chord with listeners. After the announcement that President Nelson would not be attending the conference due to a recent injury, many Latter-day Saints were delighted when he was announced as the final speaker. And his message to “think celestial!” was a powerful way to end the conference.
President Nelson shared portions of his talk on social media soon after his address. The flood of responses from members of the Church was inspiring. Many have already found ways to apply the prophet’s words. Here are a few of our favorite reactions.
Excitement among Children and Youth
“Love this! When our son was practicing his lines for an audition tomorrow morning, he got a little stressed. Then he took a deep breath and said, ‘Think Celestial!’” —Ashley Moutsos Bell
“My kids (ages seven and nine) already made a jingle of it, and it’s stuck in all of our heads. ‘Think celestial, think- think celestial.’ I’m glad they got something out of conference.” —Angie Peters
“President Nelson, you had four of my boys ranging from ages eleven to five saying ‘Think Celestial’ throughout your whole talk. Thank you for engraining that into their minds.” —Erica Daley McMillan
“We love you, President Nelson! My teenage son said he felt like he got so much out of this conference and he really felt inspired by your talk. Thank you for your faith, example, humility, and love for our Savior!” —Kylene Carpenter Kelly
Inspiration to Choose Faith
“Thank you, President Nelson, for your beautiful message to #thinkcelestial We love you and we are praying for you to recover quickly. I know that your comforting message to think celestial will help our family have faith in the Lord through this difficult time with a current health challenge of our oldest daughter who is 30 weeks pregnant with her first baby and is a cardiomyopathy heart patient at the UofU hospital at this time. I know that she and her baby are in the Lord’s hands. I know her marriage covenant binds her to our Savior Jesus Christ and her husband eternally. We will choose to think celestial.” —Christina Workman
“I add my gratitude for your service and for this wonderful message. Prayers for your continued healing. I cried with joy when the Mongolia temple was announced—my parents were the first missionaries to serve there years ago.” —Tami Thornton
“Thank you! As a convert, I can see this message in my change one day at a time. My heart is changing. I look back to where I was a year ago about ready to be baptized, and the changes in my life are significantly substantial! Those 365 days changed my heart so much—imagine what the rest of my life will look like. God bless you and your family.” —Ellen Gomez
“Probably the most powerful talk I’ve ever heard in my lifetime. Thank you!!!!” —Darcy Spencer Ure
“This year I’ve been overcoming food addiction. It’s been freeing and wonderful to have my food chatter almost disappear! I don’t know why I didn’t understand that we would inherit different ‘bodies of glory’ in the next life. It just was an ‘aha’ moment listening to this talk. What would I put in a ‘celestial body’? A ‘celestial mind’? A ‘celestial heart’? This gave me food for thought! I’m grateful to have a blessed guide to strengthen me. —Angela Morris Adair
“I love this guy. He helps me understand the complexities of life and refocus to make it simpler.” —Jeremy Baird
“I really needed to hear this right with everything going on in life right now. You have inspired me to be the best version of myself I can be.” —Bethany Eggett
Joy in the Prophet’s Presence
“When it was announced that you would be the closing speaker, I cried tears of joy! So grateful you are following doctor’s orders and healing. I love you.” —Ginger Faulk
“Thank you so much, President Nelson. I read the other day that you were going to try to record your message, but all weekend there was no mention that you would be heard. So when you were announced to be the final speaker, my heart literally leaped with excitement! Thank you so much for always giving us the fatherly advice we all need. I love you!” —Luella B Pinelli
“I prayed for you to be healed and be brought to us! I thought to myself, ‘Any minute now, he’ll walk on the platform and sit by President Eyring.’ As I waited, Elder Rasband spoke in his address about prayers being answered in the way that was BEST for others. I was quickly humbled and reminded that my will was not His in this thing.
“Then as you spoke from the recording about my hometown of Vancouver, Washington, being gifted a temple from God, I knew He heard me! Just last Monday on my birthday I stood on the sidewalk in Salt Lake City where one can look down from the sidewalk into the construction site—I was in awe of the project. I wondered if my hometown of Vancouver, Washington, would ever see a temple. You can imagine my joy now. Thank you for 100 years of being the person you are and for the messages you bring from God to us, whether sitting or standing, live, or prerecorded.” —Bekah Axtell Dayley
“All through conference I kept thinking, ‘I miss President Nelson!’ It was the best surprise to see and hear our beloved prophet at the close of conference! And a new temple in my hometown of Colorado Springs!!! My family is so excited!” —Celia Kelepolo
“That was my very favorite talk I’ve ever heard from you. (Not that all the others weren’t great but this one just hit me.) Thanks for taking the time and putting in the effort to still speak to us. I hope you feel better soon. We love you!” —Bonnie Sharp
“No words can express how grateful I am for listening to these great messages, it reminds me to refocus my priorities in life and think more of eternities to come.” —Veronica Balagot Nisperos
▶ You may also like: How heeding prophets’ counsel changed President Russell M. Nelson’s life
President Nelson's new book: “Heart of the Matter”
It is a rare opportunity to learn from the wisdom of one who has witnessed a century of life, including all of its joys, sorrows, changes, and unchanging truths. It is even rarer to have such a witness from a prophet of God. Having been first called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1984, President Russell M. Nelson has viewed much of the world’s modern history through the lens of a special witness of Christ. Living through technological innovation from radio to rocket ships, wars and resolutions, cultural shifts and progress, President Nelson has seen the workings of the Almighty in all aspects of life. In Heart of the Matter, he reflects back on his one hundred years of living and the lessons he’s learned over the past century, including the core truths he has come to know matter most for this life and the next. Available at Deseret Book and deseretbook.com.
