Talks in Church

Yesterday, our little family got to speak in church. Our branch meets in an historic building in the park called the Shrine of the Ages. It's small enough that there isn't a microphone or steps for the kids to use at the removable podium so Ethan, Logan, and Thomas just stood at the front of the room to give their talks. There were four visitors and about twenty members of the branch there yesterday. It's amazing how easy it is to talk in front of such a small group! Since this blog is a family journal of sorts, I thought I'd post the talks everyone gave so we can remember our experience.

Ethan's talk:
Since the days of Joseph Smith
Until this very day
We've had a living prophet
We can do what they say

They tell us to be careful
To always choose the right
To try and live like Jesus
And be His shining light

Heavenly Father chose the Prophet
To lead us here today
So we should always listen
And follow and obey

Logan's talk:
My name is Logan and I am seven years old.

I want to talk about baptism. Jesus was baptized when he lived on earth. He was baptized in the River Jordan to be an example to everyone.

When I am baptized, I will follow the example of Jesus. I know that baptism is important. It is something that we should all do to wash away our sins. I will follow Jesus Christ, and on my next birthday I will be baptized and confirmed. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Thomas' talk:
My name is Thomas. I would like to talk about John Taylor.

Since the time of Adam, Heavenly Father has given instructions and teachings to the people on Earth through his chosen prophets. John Taylor was a friend of Joseph Smith, an Apostle, and the third Prophet of the Church. At the funeral of Brigham Young, President Taylor taught us that “We are not alone! God is with us.”

Brother Taylor was with the Prophet Joseph in Carthage jail when the Prophet and his brother were shot. Brother Taylor was shot also but survived. After he was shot, he went on to serve a second mission to France and Germany. He relied on our Heavenly Father to help him when he was in Carthage Jail, on his missions and when he was President of the Church. He was required to spend the last year of his life in hiding because of government persecution. Through all his trials, he was happy because he knew that his Heavenly Father loved him.

I am thankful for all the prophets and the things they have taught me. I know that Heavenly Father loves me. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Gary's talk:Our little family has been collecting firewood over the past few weeks. This has been a challenge to us on many fronts. As I am new in my position with the Forest Service, I have been spending more than the typical forty hours a week at work. The two oldest boys just started school and Aironn and the little two are trying to figure out nap schedules and make our new house a home. We are also challenged with our workforce. All five of my helpers are willing and desirous to help. Aironn has packed picnic dinners for after work outings, Tom and Logan have lifted and stacked while I have cut. Even Ethan and Dylan have wanted to be in the middle of it all. But as the hot afternoons and heavy logs begin to wear down my eager family, I find myself taking turns with my helpers, cutting smaller pieces and offering more encouragement and trying to carry a larger share of the load. We have only collected half of what I think we will need to keep us warm through the winter, but I find myself pleased with the individual and collective efforts my family has put into the welfare of us all.

I have found myself reflecting that this must be somewhat akin to the pleasure our Heavenly Father finds when we overcome challenges in our own life and as we work together to accomplish the goals he has established to bring us back to him.

In the hymn by Will L. Thompson Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel, we are told of a struggle and the effort it will take to overcome it. “Then don’t stand idly looking on; the fight with sin is real. It will be long but must go on; Put your shoulder to the wheel. Then work and watch and fight and pray. With all your might and zeal. Push every worthy work along; Put your shoulder to the wheel.”

Those are not passive words. Work, watch, fight, and pray. Those take effort. We will only find happiness and rest if we work to obtain it. We must work for ourselves, and we must work for those we love.

In narrating his family’s exodus from Jerusalem, Nephi discusses the challenges as his family prepares to leave the city and venture to lands unknown. After Lehi has his family safely outside the city, he called Nephi and relayed a dream in which the Lord has instructed Nephi and his brothers to return to Jerusalem to get the plates of brass from Laban. Apparently Lehi relayed the news to Lamen and Lemuel because it is recorded that “they murmured, saying it was a hard thing which was required of them”. But Lehi puts it in perspective saying that it is a commandment of the Lord. To Nephi, he teaches us: “Therefore go my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast not murmured.”

“And it came to pass that I, Nephi said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”

This is an oft quoted story, because it demonstrates so well the obedience of a loving son to his father on Earth and his Father in Heaven. But I want to point out that not only did Nephi accept the challenge and complete the task—and those are two separate things. How often have you accepted an assignment or calling and then not completed the task? How often has someone you trusted given their word to you that such and such would be done, only to leave you high and dry at the wrong time?

Integrity, honor and duty all require us to complete that which we have agreed to do; Both in a temporal sense and an eternal sense. But it is important to note that Nephi hadn’t murmured at all. Some times I find myself complaining about a task that needs to be done. I complain when I know its coming, I complain when I get the assignment and sometimes I complain while I am completing it. Unfortunately, most of us are guilty of murmuring. But Nephi hadn’t complained. He was in tune with his role in the plan of his Heavenly Father and he was willing to endure hardships, inconveniences and periods of uncomfortableness. Nephi was a great leader and prophet, and a great example to us. Not just in accepting and completing the task, but the humble nature in which he accepted his assignment.

In the November, 1984 Ensign, Elder Bruce McConkie penned this poem: “The church is like a great caravan—Organized, prepared, following an appointed course. With its captains of tens and captains of hundreds all in place.

What does it matter that a few barking dogs snap at the heels of the weary travelers? Or that predators claim the few who fall by the way? The caravan moves on.

Is there a ravine to cross, a miry mud hole to pull through, a steep grade to climb? So be it. The oxen are strong and the teamsters wise. The caravan moves on.

Are there storms that rage along the way, floods that wash away the bridges, deserts to cross, rivers to ford? Such is life on this fallen sphere. The caravan moves on.

Ahead is the celestial city, the eternal Zion of our God, Where all who maintain their position in the caravan shall find food and drink and rest. Thank God that the Caravan moves on!”

This is one of my favorite poems. It describes the challenges that we all face. Sometimes we feel like the weary traveler. We know loved ones that have been claimed by predators when they have fallen by the way. It is a hard path we have chosen. There is no easy route back to our Heavenly Father. We are challenged in our homes, at school and work. We are challenged when we are with friends and family.

Aironn and I fasted and prayed about the opportunity to move here to the Grand Canyon. We felt like we had received a positive answer to our prayers, so we followed the promptings. This move has not been without its challenges. But it had also had its rewards. And we look forward to the continued blessing as we follow the promptings of the spirit. The comfort that Aironn and I find is that we are not alone.

During his conference address in October 1972, President Lee said, “There has come to me in these last few days a deepening and reassuring faith. I can’t leave this conference without saying to you that I have a conviction that the master hasn’t been absent from us on these occasions. This is His church. Where else would he rather be that right here at the headquarters of His church? He isn’t an absentee master; he is concerned about us. He wants us to follow where he leads.” These are reassuring words from a prophet of God!

As we put our shoulder to the wheel, and as we work and watch and fight and pray to push along, we will become stronger. We will find our reliance on the Lord becoming greater. We will find our faith in Him growing and we will find it becomes easier to push along.

President Eyring gave a talk in the last General Conference in April entitled “Man Down”. President Eyring taught the principle that those around us have challenges and we can be an instrument in the hands of the Lord to aid and assist them. He said, “You will need bravery and you will need boldness because you are enlisted in the Lords army. This is not a time of peace. That has been so since Satan arrayed his forces against our Heavenly Father in the premortal existence. We have seen it intensify. The scriptures suggest that the war will become more violent and the spiritual casualties on the Lords side will mount.

“Almost all of us have seen a battlefield portrayed in a film or read the description in a story. Over the din of explosions and the shouts of soldiers there comes a cry, “Man Down!”

When that cry sounds, faithful fellow soldiers will move toward the sound. Another soldier or medic will ignore danger and move to the injured comrade. And the man down will know that help will come. Whatever the risk, someone will run low or crawl to get there in time to give aid. That is true of every band of men joined in a difficult and dangerous mission which they are determined to fulfill at any sacrifice. The histories of such groups are full of stories of those loyal men who were determined that no man would be left behind.

“Such a feeling of responsibility for others is at the heart of faithful priesthood service. Our comrades are being wounded in the spiritual conflict around us. So are the people we are called to serve and protect from harm. Spiritual wounds are not easily visible, except with inspired eyes.”

I think this is where President Eyring’s message is directed specifically at us in the Grand Canyon Branch. We are a small band of brothers and sisters. We are fighting a battle. At times we feel we are isolated or alone. We have spiritual wounds. We have social and emotional wounds that need the love and care of inspired and called Disciples of Christ. Collectively, we are those disciples!

President Eyring continues: “There are countless examples of priesthood holders who shouldered that grave responsibility as you and I must. This is how Jacob in the Book of Mormon described his sacred trust when he moved in difficult circumstances to give aid: “Now my beloved brethren, I, Jacob, according to the responsibility which I am under to God, to magnify mine office with soberness, and that I might rid my garments of your sins, I come up to the temple this day that I might declare unto you the word of God.”

“Now, you might object that Jacob was a prophet and you are not. But your calling, what ever it is, brings with it an obligation to “Lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees” of those around you. You are the Lords servant, covenanted to do for others, as best you can what He would do.

“You’re great opportunity and your responsibility are described in Ecclesiastes: “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to lift him up.

“From that, you will understand the true and sobering words of Joseph Smith: “None but fools will trifle with the souls of men.” As Jacob believed, the woe of any fallen man or woman he could have helped and did not would become his own sorrow. Your happiness and that of those you are called to serve are bound together.

In discussing the young mans role in home teaching, president Eyring teaches us all a lesson in actions and blessings. He says: “Your contribution during a visit may seem small to you, but it can be more powerful than you think possible. You will show by your face and manner that you care for the people. They will see that your love for them and the Lords makes you unafraid. And you will be bold enough to bear testimony of the truth. Your humble, simple and perhaps brief testimony may touch the heart of a person more easily that that of a more experienced companion.

“Whatever part you play in that visit, your desire to go to the people for the Lord to help them will bring at least two blessings. First, you will feel the love of God for the people you visit. And, second, you will feel the Saviors gratitude for your desire to give the help the Savior knew they needed.

“He sent you to them because He trusted that you would go feeling responsible to urge them toward Him and toward happiness.”

And like my little family gathering firewood. We will find success. We will keep cutting and splitting and stacking until we have what we need. I think our Heavenly Father finds himself cutting smaller pieces and shouldering more of our load. He knows us. He knows our abilities and gives us tasks to help us learn and grow. He has organized us with captains of tens and captains of hundreds. Is there a ravine to cross, a miry mud hole to pull through, a steep grade to climb? So be it. The oxen are strong and the teamsters wise. For us, our branch is the oxen. We can and must pull together to ensure that our little caravan moves on.

Are there storms that rage along the way, floods that wash away the bridges, deserts to cross, rivers to ford? As Elder McConkie reminded us, Such is life on this fallen sphere. The caravan moves on.”

Let us accept his challenges with an open heart and without murmuring. He will bless us in ways we have not even imagined. Is my testimony, in the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Aironn's talk:
I thought I’d start today first by telling my boys how proud I am of them for giving their talks and also, by introducing our family. Gary and I met almost twenty years ago in high school but had some living to do before we got together. He went to Utah State University before serving a mission in Edinburgh, Scotland and then returned to finish his schooling in Forestry at USU. I also attended Utah State before serving a mission in Copenhagen, Denmark. After finishing my mission, I returned to Utah State where Gary and I began dating and later married in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. After finishing my degree in Technical Writing and Gary’s degree in Forestry, Gary and I moved to Layton, Utah where we lived and worked for several years. Tom and Logan joined our family while we were living in Layton. A great job opportunity with the Forest Service in fire management presented itself in Pocatello, Idaho and we moved north. While in Pocatello, Ethan and Dylan were born. We were in Pocatello for about seven years before moving South and joining the Grand Canyon Branch.

Gary is currently the Fire Management Officer for the Forest Service on the Tusayan Ranger District and I get to stay home with our great kids. Thomas is nine years old, Logan, is seven, Ethan is four, and Dylan is two. They are all loving life here and are constantly bruised, scraped, or covered in band-aids. This is the perfect place for four boys to grow up and is one of the reasons we were attracted to this job.

As I was reading the Conference Ensign in preparation for this talk, I was struggling to find the topic that I needed to talk about until I read in Michael A. Neider’s talk, Revealed Quorum Principles, a quote by President Thomas S. Monson. He said, “teaching fundamentals is urgent.” I would like to base my talk today on this quote and focus on some of the basics we have been commanded to do.

President Faust, in an address in the Priesthood session of the October, 2001 General Conference said, “The work of the Church depends upon basics such as paying tithes; taking care of family and priesthood duties; caring for the poor and needy; having daily prayer, scripture study, and family home evening; home teaching; participation in quorum activity; and attending the temple. If called upon by the President of the Church, we would be ready, able, and willing to do “some great thing,” such as working on the Nauvoo temple, but many are not quite so anxious to do some of these basics.”

We all get busy in our daily lives and sometimes, our family included, some of these basics slide through the cracks. President Faust hit the nail on the head when he said we would jump if the Prophet asked us to do something great. The Prophet has and each Prophet before him has. They have all emphasized the need to focus on the basics.

I have chosen four of the fundamentals listed by President Faust to address today, namely: Family Home Evening, scripture study, prayer, and temple and church attendance.

I would like to start with Family Home Evening. Family Home Evening has been around since Adam and Eve began having children. They brought their children around them and taught them the gospel. Nephi, in the Book of Mormon, begins his account by saying he was born of goodly parents who taught him. Enos begins his book in the Book of Mormon by telling us he was also taught by his father.

In 1975, President Benson outlined what a Family Home Evening should contain when he said, “Prayer is offered, hymns and other songs are sung, scriptures are read, family topics are discussed, talent is displayed, principles of the gospel are taught, and often games are played and homemade refreshments served.”

He continues by telling us the blessings that are promised when we hold regular Family Home Evening. “Now, here are the blessings promised by a prophet of God for those who will hold weekly [family] home evenings: ‘If the Saints obey this counsel, we promise that great blessings will result. Love at home and obedience to parents will increase. Faith will be developed in the hearts of the youth of Israel, and they will gain power to combat the evil influences and temptations which beset them.”

L. Tom Perry has said, “Family home evenings are for everyone, whether it be in a two-parent home, a single-parent home, or in a single-member family unit.”

In our family, we seem to go in spurts. For a while, we are terrific at holding weekly Family Home Evening and then we allow something to get in the way and we get out of the habit. We have started to hold them once again in our home and in the last month, I have noticed a difference in our children. There is more obedience, more love, more playing happily with each other, and less overall contention. I have to admit, we are not the most on-key, musically gifted family so I am usually hopeful that we don’t have neighbors walking by when we are doing the singing portion of the meeting. I’m not sure how well that would help our missionary work!
Elder Perry continues with a promise that helps me to be more committed to holding weekly Family Home Evening. “We encourage each of you to follow the counsel of our prophet. In all the family units throughout the Church, evaluate again the progress you are making in holding regular family home evenings. The application of this program will be a shield and a protection to you against the evils of our time and will bring you, individually and collectively, greater and abundant joy now and in the eternities hereafter.”
Next, I would like to talk about scripture study. This is also something we have been terrific at for a while and then, for some reason, we stop for a while. When Tom and Logan were quite small, we began reading the Book of Mormon to them each night. They were young enough that they couldn’t read yet and we often wondered if we would make it through that verse for the night or that page or that chapter. The “love” in our home wasn’t always as present as we wished because we were constantly telling them to sit down and listen! We were doing this for them and they weren’t even getting anything out of it. Gary had the inspiration to involve them more in the reading process. Even though they couldn’t read, every time the phrase, “and it came to pass” would come up, he would point to either Tom or Logan and they would say it. They were involved and began to pay more attention because they never knew when their next turn would come up.

I still wondered if they were actually understanding or retaining anything though. There were two experiences that put those doubts to rest. The first was at the playground when Tom or Logan had climbed to the top of the slide and, holding both sides while standing tall, shouted, “For behold! And it came to pass!” At least he was getting that much out of reading! He was getting familiar with the language of the scriptures and that would help him to understand more and be able to read more easily when he began opening the scriptures for himself.

The second experience happened while on a drive from Idaho through Utah. As we passed Lehi, Utah, they started asking why the city had the same name as the prophet in the Book of Mormon which led to a discussion about other cities with names from the Book of Mormon and why Utah had so many. Gospel discussions coming from reading the Book of Mormon with our small children shouldn’t have been a surprise, but it was.

We have been taught by every prophet the importance of scripture study. President Monson, during the last General Conference said of scripture study, “Crash courses are not nearly so effective as the day-to-day reading and application of the scriptures in our lives. Become acquainted with the lessons the scriptures teach. Learn the back-ground and setting of the Master’s parables and the prophets’ admonitions. Study them as though they were speaking to you, for such is the truth.”

The ability to study the scriptures is the reason Nephi, Sam, Laman and Lemuel risked their lives to go back to Jerusalem, twice. That instance alone should reinforce the importance of studying the scriptures for us. Saints across the globe hunger for the scriptures. Even with the translation department working feverishly, there are some versions of the Book of Mormon that only contain a portion of the entire book. When I served my mission in Denmark, the saints there still spoke with gratitude of the completed translation of the Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price. It wasn’t too many years earlier that they had to rely on their knowledge of the English language to learn from those books of scripture. Are we grateful that we have at our fingertips the complete standard works? Do we take advantage of having these sacred pages in our homes daily or do they sit on a shelf and collect dust until Sunday rolls around again? I personally want to teach my children to love the standard works, not just tolerate them. I also need to do a better job of personally reading from the pages and learning the lessons the Lord has in store for me within each of the books.

Third, I’d like to talk briefly about prayer. We all know that prayer is our communication with our Father in Heaven. I’d like to talk to you about my own father. Some, my husband included, would say that my Dad and I are cut from a similar mold. The good and the bad. When I was younger, we didn’t always agree and would often butt heads. These days, we have a different relationship. I know I can call my Dad and get advice on anything I need and he will give me the advice I need, not necessarily the advice I want. When we decided to move here and I called to let him know, he was incredibly supportive. I don’t often get to see my Dad because, when we lived in Pocatello, he was four hours away but it was only three hours to my Mom’s house and almost all of Gary’s family in the other direction. Family events took us the other direction more often than not and there wasn’t much time left over to travel to my Dad’s farm. Although I know that he would love to have us come and visit more often, I have never had my Dad complain. Now that we are even further away, I know that we will probably see each other even less. We talk on the phone every few weeks and catch right back up where we left off, though. Even though he is incredibly busy and often traveling, he always answers or calls me right back. I know I can reach him whenever and where ever I am.

To me, this is similar to our Heavenly Father. He would love to have us closer to him but he knows that we need this experience. We have a direct line to Him any time we want to talk and he will pick up on the first ring. It is up to us to make the phone call and ask our Heavenly Father for advice. He, like my own Dad, will give us the advice we need, not necessarily the advice we want. We just need to listen. It is easy to be the hard-headed teenager that doesn’t want to listen. It is then that we need His guidance the most. When we feel the least like praying, we need to be praying more. He is just waiting to bless us if we will only come to him in prayer.

When Jesus visited the Nephites after his resurrection, he commanded them to pray. In 3 Nephi 18:21 it says: “Pray in your families unto the Father; always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.”

Finally, I’d like to address church and temple attendance. Why do we come to church each Sunday and why do we strive to attend the temple regularly? As Gary said, “Because it’s a commandment!”

In Alma chapter six, the Church in Zarahemla was cleansed of the wickedness that had entered into it. Alma then told the church in verse six, “Nevertheless, the children of God were commanded that they should gather themselves together oft, and join in fasting and mighty prayer in behalf of the welfare of the souls of those who knew not God.”

In our day, the Lord gave us instructions in Doctrine and Covenants 101:27 when he said, “Behold, it is my will, that all they who call on my name, and worship me according to mine everlasting gospel, should gather together, and stand in holy places.”

Not only do we strengthen each other when we meet together through our sharing of testimonies, but we come to church for a sacred purpose, to partake of the sacrament and renew our covenants with our Heavenly Father. It’s easier for me to live according to the commandments during the week, if I have been to church the previous Sunday. If I miss a week, it gets a bit harder. Two weeks, and it’s even harder to keep the Sabbath day holy. We need to meet weekly to help us hold tight to the Iron Rod.

Temple worship is just as important. We enter the temple, first to make our own sacred covenants and then, to help those who have gone on before us. When I lived in Sweden, we would take youth temple trips to Stockholm to the temple. It was about eight hours on the bus but no one complained. The trips were carefully scheduled with the temple because several weeks during the year were set aside for the Russian Saints. Church members from Russia didn’t have a temple closer than Sweden at that time. They would travel great distances, at great cost, to attend the temple. The temple workers would tell stories of these Saints packing their temple garments in a separate suitcase because they were so sacred to them. Do we take temple attendance as seriously? We live three hours from the temple but do we make the time to attend regularly? Regularly may mean different things at different stages of life. For me, when I was attending Utah State University after my mission, it was realistic to attend weekly. When I began having children, it would vary from monthly to several times in a year depending on the ages of our children and the child care that was available. What regularly means in your life is between you and the Lord. We have been promised blessings with our regular temple attendance and I have seen these blessings in my own life.

In closing, I would like to challenge each of us to recommit to the basics of the gospel. Read, pray, attend our meetings and the temple, and have a meaningful Family Home Evening. I know we will each see the blessings the Lord has promised as we do what He has asked.