I suppose that the singing which most of us first remember is the singing of our mothers. I can remember, as a child, my cheeks wet with tears for the sweetness of my mother's singing. Music can be very mechanical or it can stir and feed and satisfy the soul. Of such we have heard here this day, and with you I am grateful for the sweetness of the singing of these mothers here assembled.

There is a sweet presence which I miss here this morning, and did yesterday—that of Sister McKay. I should like her to know that she is much missed at this conference. I have seen her and her beloved husband in their graciousness together in various countries, under many conditions, and when our President spoke of love at home yesterday and of what pertains to the making of a good home, I am sure he was speaking out of the experience of his life and heart, for his courtly graciousness and gentlemanly consideration of Sister McKay on all occasions, under all conditions, and in all places, has been a source of inspiration.

At a time of conference I am always faced with a dilemma—one which stems from the necessity of selecting always two subjects: one for the Sunday morning CBS broadcast and one for the regular conference sessions. It isn't ever easy. Those who work with me at the office know that I seldom select a subject for Sunday before Friday, and my family well know that the agonizing experience between Saturday evening and Sunday morning does not see these short subjects in their final form until a very late hour. That is a dangerous way to live, a hazardous way!

People often ask why I do not work farther ahead. I cannot tell you why. I wish I could prepare in advance, and I have no criticism of those who do—I only envy them. But I have a conviction from experience that there is a kind of contagion in the air, and if one waits to catch it, he will come closer to the spirit of the occasion than if he prepares too far in advance. I have tried it both ways, and those things, even for radio, which I have prepared too far in advance seem to have a sort of pre-prepared flavor.

Fortunately for me today the theme I selected for tomorrow morning has been concurrently in my mind with which I should like to say in just a few words at this session of conference.

It is interesting how, in reading scripture over and over again, one often, after many readings and a long time, quite unexpectedly finds some word or phrase that comes into his consciousness with a new and particular meaning. I have had, within the last few hours, just such an experience.

This scripture, so familiar to you, and which will perhaps be the theme of the broadcast tomorrow morning, is no doubt one of the most quoted in the Church—one which I have read most often and heard most often, even unto thousands of times—that "Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life" (and this is the phrase that struck me anew only yesterday) "through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come," not just a miscellaneous acquisition of knowledge, but knowledge and intelligence, through diligence and obedience (see  D&C 130:18-19

Those words are most meaningful—and I have no fear of learning, of the pursuit of knowledge, for any of our young people, if they will keep in mind diligence and obedience—obedience to the commandments of God, diligence in keeping close to the Church, in keeping active, keeping prayerful, keeping clean, keeping circumspect in their conduct. It isn't learning or the love of learning, or knowledge, or the pursuit of any subject that would take from a man his faith, but it is failure to keep the commandments, the failure of a man to feed all sides of himself, and on this subject I should like to read just a few lines that I discarded from what might be used tomorrow morning, and make them serve now:

"Intelligence would not let a man lose his faith in finding truth. Learning does not lead to loss of faith. False learning might, but not true learning. Lack of learning may. Ignorance may. Failure to keep the commandments may lead to loss of faith. Loss of balance may lead to loss of faith. A man may pursue learning along too narrow lines and forget to feed all sides of himself; he may forget his spirit and starve it, but not learning itself leads to loss of faith, not the search for truth, for truth cannot come in conflict with truth. A man can have the pure love of learning and seek for it insatiably, and still keep a simple faith if he will keep the commandments, if he will feed his spirit, if he will be patient, and sweet in humility, and not commit himself to quick conclusions or tentative theories. If he will really seek for eternal truth, with 'diligence and obedience' he can keep and pursue an insatiable love of learning and still keep his faith, for 'the glory of God is intelligence'"  D&C 93:36

(That isn't too bad for something having been thrown away from what might be used tomorrow morning! Maybe I have been throwing away the wrong stuff! It's a terrible thing to have to put one's own immortal word-children in the wastebasket week after week.)

We are committed to continuous revelation, to an infinite search for truth, and there are some very significant lines accredited to Thomas Edison that I should like to share with you: "We don't know the millionth part of one percent about anything. We don't know what water is. We don't know what electricity is. We don't know what heat is. We have a lot of hypotheses about these things, but that is all; but we do not let our ignorance about these things deprive us of their use."

We don't altogether know what faith is, or prayer, and the ultimate meaning or power of them. We don't altogether understand all the commandments, but the limitations of our knowledge should not keep us from observing them and using them, as we pursue learning and the love of learning, keeping the commandments of God and keeping close to him and his truth, in a well-balanced life, in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and using it as our standard as the measure of all things.

I am not concerned about the unanswered questions. I should like to know all the answers, but those I don't know do not bother me. This I know, and leave it with you as the conviction of my soul—that God lives, that Jesus the Christ, his divine and very Son, lives and stands by his side in the Godhead; that these two did appear to a young man, more than a century ago; that we live; that God made us in his image; that he has unspeakably great eternal blessings in store for us as we will search and seek and keep faith and keep clean, and keep his commandments and live in obedience and keep our lives balanced, and keep close to him.

In the wonderful words of Emerson: "All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen."

God bless you, my brothers and sisters, in all things as you meet the daily decisions of life and move on to those great as yet unseen activities and opportunities of eternity, toward which the ways of all of us move, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.