Move Over Joe and Jew, Here Comes Tommy

One highlighted theme from this past General Conference was importance of the living prophet of God. The idea that really stuck out to me from these messages was when President Benson was quoted as saying that “the living prophet is more vital to us than the standard works” (“Obedience”). That’s a pretty profound statement. We are to understand that the Stick of Joseph and the stick of Judah, the Bible and the Book of Mormon are not as important to us as the prophetic word of the living prophet of the our day. Obviously, this importance of following the living prophet does not mean to disregard the Bible and Book of Mormon, but if not for a living prophet of God today, then our church might as well not even have the other books of scripture. We need God's word for us today and God's living prophet is God's mouthpiece to all mankind.

Today, our living prophet is President Thomas S. Monson. He is God’s mouthpiece on earth. Another memorable thought from President Benson’s talk was that the living prophet gives us “Today’s News Today”. The living prophet today is able to look out at our world and show was what path we might take today that would be of most benefit not only to members of Christ’s Church, but for all mankind.

Our last prophet was President Gordon B. Hinckley. When I went out on my mission I used to think that his talks were the most boredom-inducing sermons out there. His topics seemed to be sooo simple and basic. I always loved the other apostles’ talks a lot more because I felt they were of more substance. But, over time I began to realize how doctrinally enriched his talks were. The talk that did it for me was his talk from April 2004 General Conference. He framed the plight of mankind in such an inspired way. After that Conference, as a missionary, I began collecting as many Conference ensigns as I could and pretty much had all the Conferences from 1995 to 2004. I then read through all of President Hinckley’s talks further confirming that not only were his talks not just basic, but that they were really inspiring and so bold too. Of all the aspects of my testimony that grew on my mission, the knowledge that President Hinckley was a prophet of God grew most. This knowledge helped me to further grow in love and appreciation for how much God loves us as well.

And now President Monson is our living prophet. He has been our prophet for just over 3 years now. Each prophet seems to have something that has marked their ministry. President Benson was known for “flooding the earth with the Book of Mormon”, President Kimball was known for “lengthening our stride”, Elder Bateman of the seventy said that we couldn’t really pin down President Hinckley to one topic because the breadth of his ministry was so great. Yet, Elder Quentin L. Cook said that he continually made reference to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. What will President Monson be most remembered for? Though his ministry is hardly concluded, we hope, I think it’d be safe to say that the title of President Monson’s biography succinctly summarizes what he would hope the Saints be anxiously engaged in - To the Rescue.

The Divine Gift of Gratitude

What is it about gratitude that makes a difference for better in our lives? I guess it’s because we’re focusing on what we have rather than what we don’t have. It’s expressing gratitude to God and others for everything that is given us. President Monson, the prophet of God for our time, said this past General Conference that “to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven.” He also said that we usually take for granted and show the least gratitude for those people around us that we love most. So, today I am going to express gratitude for the many blessings in my life. I think of the scripture from Moroni where he exhorts people that they “would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts” (Moroni 10:3). I think each person, even those who go through the hardest of trials in life can still find blessings for which they can be grateful. Here are some of my many blessings:

•Choice - The right, responsibility, and results of choice – there was a lot of talk last Conference about Agency. I’m grateful that no matter what I’ve done in my life, that I can still make choices to better myself and that I can be helped by God to do so.
•Possibilities - I guess associated with choice is that there are endless possibilities in life. We truly can do anything we want in life, if we really put the work forth. That's pretty amazing.
•Family –I’m grateful most especially for Amelia’s patience in me, as I try as Elder Christofferson said, to more convincingly love her throughout time. I’m grateful for how she is not only my wife and is ever there for me, but also for how she mothers Fred. I’m also grateful for my siblings and parents. These who have known me longest, both my strengths and weaknesses, each love me though we might not all be the best at showing it at times as well. As Fred has come into our lives, I’ve been especially grateful for how it has changed both my siblings and especially my parents for the better. They love Fred so much, which makes me feel their love too.
•Friends – I love the many friends I’ve made, both in and out of the Church. I cherish so much friends who would do anything to buoy me up. I consider friends to be one of the great blessings of life. I pray that as time goes on, I will become a better friend to any that I come in contact.
•Priesthood Leaders – I’m grateful for leaders both local and from the headquarters of our Church, who have the faith and strength to lead in righteousness, who do not fold under the pressure of popular criticism, who teach what God would have them teach no matter the consequence, who love all and show it by their example. I'm also grateful for the past prophets who have preceded these men(all the way back to Father Adam).
• God and Jesus Christ - I’m grateful for Our Heavenly Father’s constant concern for us His children. I’m grateful that He created a plan whereby all could do whatever they want, that we have that freedom. I’m grateful too though that He always reaches out to us, if we would only reach out to Him. He has especially reached out to us through His Son Jesus Christ. I know that I can never show enough gratitude for Jesus Christ and for how “the chastisement of our peace was upon him” (Isaiah 53). I want to ever and ever strive to show more gratitude for His atonement and love, as He always so patiently strives to show us a better way in life. I’m grateful for the Holy Spirit who testifies of the living reality of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ and they truly live today. I’m grateful for their love that I feel as I strive to do Their will.

I was there when...

Have you ever wondered about being at a famous event in history? Have you ever imagined what it would be like to be there, at that time? Don’t we all? I think it’d be nice to be able to ‘look’ in on any event that we’re told of in history and be able to judge for ourselves whether this or that happened. History, as we’re told, is told by the winners. I’m reading this graphic novel right now that paints a pretty sordid picture of the 500 year resistance that has been waged by the Indigenous peoples against the ‘White Man’. I’ve never heard anyone dog Christopher Columbus before and say that he was a slaver who enabled the killing/raping of many people. It’s interesting cause in our doctrine, the LDS think of him as being inspired to find the Americas. In Nephi’s Vision, he said, “And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land” (1 Nephi 13:12). We interpret that “man among the Gentiles” to have been Columbus. And yet, it is generally understood that Columbus thought that the Americas was India.


There are a few different instances of misinterpreted history even within the Book of Mormon. Ammoron, a king of the Lamanites, accuses the Nephite people of forcing Zoram to come into their caravan. And yet, we know that Zoram loved Nephi and followed him willingly. We also know that after the Nephi/Laman split, that generations after the Lamanites believed the tradition that their Father Laman had been wronged by Nephi. This tradition of lies that was passed down to the Lamanites is why when Ammon and his crew taught the Nephites that it was important for them to help them “to the knowledge of the truth, to the knowledge of the baseness of the traditions of their fathers, which were not correct” (Alma 17:9).

The same occurs today. What is history? As church members we understand the history of the world so differently than most of the world. We believe that the history of mankind has been its acceptance and rejection of God. We believe that these are the last days as we prepare for the Second Coming of Christ. We believe that not only did Jesus live, but that He died for all mankind and was also resurrected. He lives. Elder Christofferson said this last General Conference:

"The scriptures enlarge our memory by helping us always to remember the Lord and our relationship to Him and the Father. They remind us of what we knew in our pre-mortal life. And they expand our memory in another sense by teaching us about epochs, people, and events that we did not experience personally. None of us was present to see the Red Sea part and cross with Moses between walls of water to the other side. We were not there to hear the Sermon on the Mount, to see Lazarus raised from the dead, to see the suffering Savior in Gethsemane and on the cross, and we did not, with Mary, hear the two angels testify at the empty tomb that Jesus was risen from the dead. You and I did not go forward one by one with the multitude in the land Bountiful at the resurrected Savior’s invitation to feel the prints of the nails and bathe His feet with our tears. We did not kneel beside Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove and gaze there upon the Father and the Son. Yet we know all these things and much, much more because we have the scriptural record to enlarge our memory, to teach us what we did not know. And as these things penetrate our minds and hearts, our faith in God and His Beloved Son takes root.”

One day we will have the truth of history. And Satan’s attempts at changing history to a myriad of untruths will be replaced with the eternal truth that God is over all. The history that God has told, as told by past and living prophets, is the truth. Though many may oppose the truth of history, the “truth will endure to the last, /And its firm-rooted bulwarks outstand the rude blast / And the wreck of the fell tyrant’s hopes.”