Monday, March 1, 1999 | 8:39 a.m.
Addressing the crowds during two services at a regional conference at the Thomas & Mack Center, President Thomas S. Monson stressed basic tenets of the church's doctrine and the importance of learning from and teaching its younger members.
If a child is taught well, he said, parents need not fear what will happen to them as they grow.
"They need not be (trouble) if we teach of the spirit when the time is right," said Monson, who is the first counselor in the First Presidency of the church and a senior member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. As first counselor to President Gordon B. Hinckley, Monson is in line to succeed Hinckley as leader of the church.
"I am so glad to see so many children here," said Monson. "For here is where they will begin their understanding."
Preparation is an integral part of the church, and Monson intertwined talk of the coming end of the millennium with preparedness.
"We've been telling people to prepare for the last 10 years," Monson said. "Get your house in order; be prepared."
He closed by imploring the thousands attending to open their hearts to Jesus.
"Open the door and the spirit of the Lord will be with you."
William Stoddard, Las Vegas spokesman for the church, said the church is growing at the rate of roughly 500 to 600 people per month, and now boasts about 75,000 members in Las Vegas.
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