But exercising patience can help improve relationships, not only with family, but with friends, community members and God.

This Friday, the Jehovah’s Witnesses will be gathering at the Dee Events Center for the faith’s 40th annual three-day convention in Ogden. The theme this year is “Exercise Patience.”

“I think it’s fair to say that as a society we are less patient than ever,” said Michael Overholt, an elder in the West Jordan congregation and spokesman for the convention. “That impatience has led to stress, strained relationships and, in some cases, tragedy. Our creator has (been) and is being patient with us and he would like us to be patient with others. He knows that doing so will add to our quality of life.”

Overholt said as life becomes more challenging, qualities like love and patience are more relevant than ever. These are also qualities that not only draw one closer to God, he said, but also increase peace, joy and quality of life.

Photo supplied, Jehovah's Witnesses

Shammah Cline, an elder in the Delta congregation, will speak at the convention Saturday afternoon. The title of his talk is “Why beware of instant gratification.”

“I really enjoy the theme I have been asked to present because it will discuss how our patience can be tested when we do not agree with the decisions of others,” Cline said. “Impatience can have a high cost. It has led to stress, strained relationships and even tragedy.”

Cline also said when someone feels their prayers do not get answered, it takes patience to examine the Bible for an explanation.

“Faithful men like David and Job felt the same, and God had their expressions saved in the Bible,” he said. “This subject will be addressed in a special discourse on Sunday at 11:15 (a.m.) entitled ‘Will God act on your behalf?’ We encourage the public to come attend this talk.”

Overholt said the church is expecting over 4,500 attendees from Utah, Idaho and Wyoming at this year’s convention. The public is invited at no cost. Parking is also free.

Photo supplied, Jehovah's Witnesses

“Jehovah’s Witnesses throughout the community have been knocking on doors for the past few weeks trying to personally invite everyone to attend,” he said. “The doors will be open by 8:30 each morning where you will be greeted by smiling faces and you can choose the seat of your choice.”

One of the highlights of the convention, Overholt said, are the baptisms that are performed on Saturday at noon. In addition, throughout the convention, there will be 70 video presentations, many of them dramatizations of situations people face on a daily basis.

“Whether we are husbands, wives, parents, children, dealing with health or economic issues, what are the pros and cons of dealing with those situations patiently?” Overholt said. “By examining Bible examples, it becomes clear that exercising patience will improve our quality of life and in some cases may save our life. While losing patience can have a high cost, learning patience can improve nearly every aspect of our lives.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Overholt said Jehovah’s Witnesses had to “exercise patience” while the convention was presented virtually. Now, he said, the church is excited to return in person.

“We missed the interaction of the thousands of friends we enjoy at our in-person conventions,” he said. “When the pandemic was declared in 2020, all our in-person conventions were canceled and a virtual convention was presented online in over 500 languages. We did this again in 2021 and 2022.”

Photo supplied, Jehovah's Witnesses

There are currently around 6,200 Jehovah’s Witnesses in Utah with 66 congregations, some in five different languages including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Swahili and American Sign Language. Overholt said additional meetings are also offered in Chinese, Russian and French.

For more information and a schedule of the program, go to JW.org.

IF YOU GO

What: Jehovah’s Witnesses 40th annual conference

When: Friday through Sunday. Doors open at 8:30 a.m.

Where: Dee Events Center, 4444 Events Center Drive, Ogden