The Monument God

God, before He sent His children to earth, gave each of them a very carefully selected package of problems.
"These," He promised smiling, "are yours alone and no one else, may have the blessings these problems will bring to you.
And only you have the special talents and abilities that will be needed to
make these problems your servants.

"Now go down to your birth and to your forgetfulness.
Know that I love you beyond measures.
These problems that I give you are a symbol of that love.
The monument that you make of your life, with the help
Of these problems, will be a symbol of your love for me,
Your Father."

(Unknown)

What Have I Lost?

"Brother [Thomas B.] Marsh was one of the first modern-day Apostles . . . . He eventually became President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles."While the Saints were in Far West, Missouri, Elizabeth Marsh, Thomas's wife, and her friend Sister Harris decided they would exchange milk in order to make more cheese than they otherwise could. . . . They agreed that they should not save what were called the strippings. . . . Strippings came at the end of the milking and were richer in cream."Sister Harris was faithful to the agreement, but Sister Marsh, desiring to make some especially delicious cheese, saved a pint of strippings from each cow and sent Sister Harris the milk without the strippings. This caused the two women to quarrel. . . . The matter was referred to the home teachers to settle. They found Elizabeth Marsh guilty of failure to keep her agreement. She and her husband were upset with the decision, and the matter was then referred to the bishop for a Church trial. The bishop's court decided that the strippings were wrongfully saved. . . ."Thomas Marsh appealed to the high council, and the men comprising this council confirmed the bishop's decision. He then appealed to the First Presidency of the Church. Joseph Smith and his counselors considered the case and upheld the decision of the high council."Elder Thomas B. Marsh, who sided with his wife through all of this, became angrier with each successive decision—so angry, in fact, that he went before a magistrate and swore that the Mormons were hostile toward the state of Missouri. . . ."After 19 years of rancor and loss, Thomas B. Marsh made his way to the Salt Lake Valley and asked President Brigham Young for forgiveness. . . . Said Brother Marsh: 'The Lord could get along very well without me and He . . . lost nothing by my falling out of the ranks; But O what have I lost?! Riches, greater riches than all this world or many planets like this could afford' (Thomas B. Marsh to Heber C. Kimball, May 5, 1857, Brigham Young Collection, Church History Library)."

Thomas S. Monson, "School Thy Feelings, O My Brother," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 68

Topics: Patience

27 Aug 2010 | 2:00 am

Willing and Obedient Friend

"The vast majority of the Utah pioneers got their first glimpse of the sagebrush, sego lily, salt-flat desert landscape of this Great Salt Lake Valley on foot. Some even arrived barefoot after having suffered extreme hardships in traversing over 1,300 miles of prairie, desert, and mountain wilderness. Before the railroad reached the Utah Territory in 1869, approximately 70,000 pioneers, 9,600 wagons, and 650 handcarts made the trek from Winter Quarters in present-day Iowa and Nebraska to the Salt Lake Valley. Each pioneer who walked from the Mississippi River to the Great Salt Lake took millions of steps to travel that distance. Under favorable circumstances, the trek took a little more than three months. Traveling 15 miles in a day was considered a good day. In total, billions of footsteps of faith were taken by our pioneers."On the trail a loving attachment frequently developed between a pioneer and his ox team. Joseph F. Smith related: 'My team leaders' names were Thom and Joe—we raised them from calves, and they were both white. Thom was trim built, active, young, and more intelligent than many a man. Many times while traveling sandy or rough roads, on long, thirsty drives, my oxen were lowing with the heat and fatigue. I would put my arms around Thom's neck and cry bitter tears! That was all I could do. Thom was my favorite and best and most willing and obedient servant and friend' (holograph quoted in Susan Arrington Madsen, I Walked to Zion [1994], 37)."

M. Russell Ballard, "Faith in Every Footstep, Ensign," Nov. 1996, 23–24

Topics: Faith, Pioneers,

20 Oct 2010 | 2:00 am

Now Let Us Rejoice

"We were singing a great song as the intermediate hymn, 'Now Let Us Rejoice,' written by W. W. Phelps (Hymns, no. 3). That was written following an incident in Independence, Missouri, where Brother Phelps was the editor of a little newspaper. He had a printing press, and the people who were unfriendly towards the Church decided to do away with it, and the mob broke in and burned the building and destroyed the printing press. They burned some 200 homes of the Saints in showing their displeasure over the people following this movement. In that despair W. W. Phelps wrote those words, 'Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation. No longer as strangers on earth need we roam,' bringing hope to the people and encouragement. With hope that those things will happen in our lives, we move on because of the truthfulness of what we are attempting to do."

David B. Haight, "Prophets Are Inspired," Ensign, Nov. 1996, 14

Topics: Courage

22 Oct 2010 | 2:00 am

Ride—I Can't Leave You

"We find one of the most touching stories of sacrifice, faith, and loving charity in the life of Jens Neilson, who was a member of the Willie Handcart Company. . . . Jens wrote, 'Obedience is better than sacrifice.' . . . The Neilsons had consumed their last pound of flour days before, but somehow they made it over the treacherous Rocky Ridge, urged on by their indomitable courage and unconquerable faith. Tragically, 13 of the company died at Rock Creek and were buried in shallow, snow-covered graves—among them, Jens and Elsie's son, Neils. . . ."President Hinckley describes this portion of the trail as 'a trail of tragedy, a trail of faith, a trail of devotion, a trail of consecration, even the consecration of life itself.' "Jens arrived at Rock Creek, 11 miles beyond Rocky Ridge, with both feet frozen. He was unable to walk another step and pleaded with Elsie, 'Leave me by the trail in the snow to die, and you go ahead and try to keep up with the company and save your life.' Elsie, with her unfaltering pioneer courage, replied, 'Ride, I can't leave you, I can pull the cart.' Such was the strength and the faith of many pioneer women on the trail."

M. Russell Ballard, "Faith in Every Footstep," Ensign, Nov. 1996, 24–25

Topics: Example

1 Oct 2010 | 2:00 am

Mature Spiritually

"In the marvelous experience of Brigham Young in February of 1847, when the Prophet Joseph appeared to him in a dream or vision, Brigham pleaded to be united with the Prophet. Brigham Young asked the Prophet if he had a message for the Brethren. The Prophet said:" 'Tell the people to be humble and faithful, and to be sure to keep the spirit of the Lord and it will lead them right. Be careful and not turn away the still small voice; it will teach them what to do and where to go; it will yield the fruits of the kingdom. Tell the Brethren to keep their hearts open to conviction, so that when the Holy Ghost comes to them, their hearts will be ready to receive it.'"The Prophet further directed Brigham Young as follows: 'They can tell the Spirit of the Lord from all other spirits; it will whisper peace and joy to their souls; it will take malice, hatred, strife and all evil from their hearts; and their whole desire will be to do good, bring forth righteousness and build up the kingdom of God.' (Manuscript History of Brigham Young: 1846–47, Historical Dept., The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, pp. 528–31.) . . ."I testify that as we mature spiritually under the guidance of the Holy Ghost, our sense of personal worth, of belonging, and of identity increases. I further testify that I would rather have every person enjoy the Spirit of the Holy Ghost than any other association, for they will be led by that Spirit to light and truth and pure intelligence, which can carry them back into the presence of God."

James E. Faust, "The Gift of the Holy Ghost—A Sure Compass," Ensign, May 1989, 33

Topics: Spirituality, Holy Ghost

13 Sep 2010 | 2:00 am