Gospel Story Finder

The prophet sent me to confer the sacred sealing power on a man in a small city far away. Only the prophet of God has the keys to decide who is to receive the sacred power which was given by the Lord to Peter, the senior Apostle. I had received that same sealing power, but only by direction of the President of the Church could I confer it on another.

So, in a room in a chapel far from Salt Lake, I laid my hands on the head of a man chosen by the prophet to receive the sealing power. His hands showed the signs of a lifetime of tilling the soil for a meager living. His tiny wife sat near him. She also showed signs of years of hard labor alongside her husband.

I spoke the words given by the prophet: “Under delegation of authority and responsibility from,” and then the name of the prophet, “who holds all the keys of the priesthood on earth at this time, I confer the sealing power on,” and I gave the name of the man and then the name of the temple where he would serve as a sealer.

Tears flowed down his cheeks. I saw that his wife was also weeping. I waited for them to compose themselves. She stood up and stepped toward me. She looked up and then said timidly that she was happy but also sad. She said that she had so loved going to the temple with her husband but that now she felt that she should not go with him because God had chosen him for so glorious and sacred a trust. Then she said that her feeling of being inadequate to be his temple companion came because she could neither read nor write.

I assured her that her husband would be honored by her company in the temple because of her great spiritual power. As well as I could with my small grasp of her language, I told her that God had revealed things to her beyond all earthly education.

She knew by the gift of the Spirit that God had given, through His prophet, a supernal trust to the husband she loved. She knew for herself that the keys to give that sealing power were held by a man she had never seen and yet knew for herself was the living prophet of God. She knew, without having to be told by any living witness, that the prophet had prayed over the name of her husband. She knew for herself that God had made the call.

She also knew that the ordinances her husband would perform would bind people for eternity in the celestial kingdom. She had confirmed to her mind and heart that the promise the Lord made to Peter still continued in the Church: “Whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.”5 She knew that for herself, by revelation, from God.

When she was five years old, her whole life had revolved around her stuffed animals. They were real to her, and Rosie was her favorite. Unfortunately Ruff the dog liked Rosie almost as much as Annie did, and between the two of them, most of Rosie’s fur had been rubbed off. So she had patches everywhere. She had one green eye and one blue eye, and a well-worn nose. Her dress had been borrowed from a baby doll and was pinned in the front. Rosie hadn’t seemed to mind her appearance, so neither did Annie.

Annie was a pretty little girl with a pixie face and big dark eyes, but she was shy and very quiet. Rosie Bear was everything that Annie was not. She was the leader of all the stuffed animal adventures. She had all the exciting ideas and knew the best games, and she routinely saved everyone from disasters and villains. Annie loved her teddy bear and took her everywhere.

Because her father took their car to work, Annie and her mother had to rely on the big green city bus for transportation. One day they had several things to get. They went from store to store, then stopped at the sidewalk cafe for lunch. With its colorful red-and-green striped awnings, the cafe reminded Annie of the circus. The air was filled with the delicious smell of hamburgers sizzling on a grill, and her joy knew no bounds as she sipped a lemonade and watched little sparrows picking up crumbs near her feet. When they finally piled back on the bus, Annie leaned against her mother and fell fast asleep.

“Come on, honey,” her mother said, gently jostling her awake. “This is our stop.”

Annie sleepily began to search for her things. “Mama, where’s Rosie?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her for a while.”

Annie was wide awake now! She looked through their packages and under the seat. Rosie was nowhere to be found! She fell to her knees and frantically searched up and down the aisle until the bus driver turned around to ask what was wrong. Her mother apologized and explained the delay as she pulled Annie to her feet. He was understanding and said that if any teddy bears turned up, he’d be sure to let them know. They thanked him, and Annie reluctantly followed her mother off the bus.

“Mama,” Annie quavered as the bus lumbered on down the street, “I must have left Rosie in one of the stores. She’s just lying there somewhere. What if someone else finds her and takes her?” Terrible visions began to crowd into Annie’s mind. “Mama, I have to go back and find her—I can’t leave her there!”

“Leave her where, honey? We don’t know where she is, and it took us all day to go to those stores.” Her mother glanced at her watch. “We can’t get back on the bus and go look for her now. I’m sorry, Annie,” her mother added quietly.

Annie knew her mother was right, but as she trudged home, she grew more and more upset. Her best friend was lying patiently on a shelf in one of those stores, waiting for Annie to come and get her. She’d lie there hour after hour, and pretty soon she’d realize that no one was coming and she’d start to cry . …

Annie ran the rest of the way home with tears streaming down her face. She burst into her room and threw herself sobbing onto the bed. She needed her daddy. He always understood and made her feel better.

Annie cried herself to sleep. When she woke up, she heard silverware being set on the table for dinner. But she didn’t hear a newspaper rattling. Daddy worked hard loading and unloading heavy boxes from his big truck all day. He always hurried home to be with his family. He’d take a shower, then sit contentedly in his chair and read the paper while dinner cooked. He was never late.

But tonight, when Annie needed him most, he wasn’t there. Annie decided to sit in his chair and wait for him. Finally she heard the car pull up outside. When he walked through the door and held out his arms for a hug, Annie ran into his arms and poured out the terrible story of how she’d left her best friend to perish.

He looked at her solemnly. “That’s a pretty sad story,” he said. “Do you think that if you had another chance, you’d take better care of Rosie?”

“Oh yes, Daddy! I’d never let her out of my sight again. I’d make sure she was tucked into bed every night so Ruff wouldn’t chew her. I’d even make her some new clothes that fit.”

Her father looked lovingly at her tear-streaked face. He nodded. Then with a grin he reached deep into the pocket of his big coat and pulled out a small, ragged, brown bear.

Rosie! How could this be? Annie had left Rosie in a store downtown. Her father had been at work. It just didn’t make sense.

“I guess Rosie got tired of lying on the shelf with the dolls,” Daddy told her. “She must have walked over to where I work and hopped into my pocket so that she could come home.”

Of course! she thought. Rosie wouldn’t just lie there and cry. She would hurry to ask Daddy to take her home. Annie was so happy that she danced around the house all that evening.

A sharp knock on the bedroom door shook her from her reverie. “Annie, are you in there?”

“Come in, Mom.” She grinned at her mother’s happy reaction to her tidy room. “I just felt like cleaning.” She held up her beloved teddy bear. “Mom, do you remember a long time ago when I lost Rosie, and Daddy came home from work with her in his pocket?”

Mom nodded.

“How did he end up with her? I mean, I know now, of course, that she didn’t really get up off the shelf and go jump into his pocket.”

“Well, you’re right about that,” Mom said as she sat down on the bed beside Annie. “I felt terrible when I realized just how upset you were about losing Rosie that day. I called your father at work and told him the whole story. Do you know,” she said, laughing softly, “that he went to five different stores that night before he finally found that bear! He loves you, Annie. He’d do just about anything to make you happy.”

The story of how Joseph Smith prayed to know the truth and was visited by the Father and the Son is JoAnnie’s favorite scripture. Not long ago, when Jorge was visiting his parents’ home, he asked her, “How do you feel about Jesus Christ?”
She said, “I know that He lives. I know that my family has taught me this.” She also told him that a few months earlier, she asked Heavenly Father if the Church was true. As she knelt down to pray, she knew again that it was true.

I attended the young single adult summit in Kumasi, Ghana, not because I needed a girlfriend—I was already engaged—but because I felt that I needed more motivation and that the summit would be the right place to find it. Indeed, my prayers were answered at the summit after Sister Call, a senior missionary assigned to work with young single adults, spoke about the importance of temple marriage.
Toward the end of the discussion, her countenance suddenly changed and she said, “You do not need money to get married—all you need is faith.” I felt like she was talking to me directly, but I didn’t think it could really apply to me because we had to purchase several items in preparation for the wedding. I said to myself, “How can I not need money but only faith?”
I thought about this over and over again throughout the week. In the process I asked myself, “Is God limited in what He can do?” At first, I thought no, but on second thought I thought yes. But then came a follow-up question, “How can He be limited if He is all-powerful?” The Spirit taught me the answer: God’s blessings are dependent upon our obedience to Him. He is not limited in His ability to bless us, but we must invite those blessings by exercising faith to do what He would have us do.
Later, I called my fiancée, Priscilla, to discuss our proposed marriage plans. Despite our lack of money, we decided to choose a date for our wedding, but we could not decide on a particular date. We agreed that she should ask her bishop which dates were open on the ward and stake calendars. Out of the two dates he offered, we chose September 27, 2014—which meant that we had barely seven weeks to the day of the wedding!
Priscilla asked, “Obim [meaning “my heart” in the Igbo language], do you have some money? The time is short.”
I replied, “No, but I do have some faith.”
She laughed and said, “It’s OK. Let’s fast and pray.” Paraphrasing 1 Nephi 3:7, she continued, “The Lord will open a way for us because He has commanded us to get married.”
Within that week I was paid for a job I had done months previously. Then Priscilla told me that she wanted to start a business to raise more funds. With the money I had made, she bought used women’s handbags and resold them. After buying some of the items on her list of things required, she still had more than double the money I gave her.
During this time, there were no jobs coming my way. Every promised job fell through. We had two weeks remaining and there were still things we needed to buy. My fiancée suggested that the date be moved back. All I said was, “A miracle is on the way.”
Just two days before our wedding day, the miracle happened: I was paid for a job I had done over two weeks before. I was also learning that with faith and hard work, the Lord would bless us to accomplish our righteous goals.
We went to the bank to cash the check and from there to the market to purchase the remainder of what was required amidst heavy rain, which we saw as heaven’s approval of our act of faith.
Less than 24 hours later, we were married. When we were asked to exchange vows, the feeling was unlike anything I had ever felt in my life. I felt so accomplished that I believed I could do all things through faith from that point on. We were later sealed in the Accra Ghana Temple.
Though you may need some money to prepare for marriage, the most important thing you need is faith.

On the Sunday before Christmas, we came home from church and one of the dogs in our neighborhood was ripping up our neighbor’s trash bags and chewing on the trash. My sister Emily and I scared the dog away, and then we cleaned up the trash without being asked. We were glad we cleaned up the trash because it would have been everywhere in the wind! We both felt good inside afterward because we did the right thing and served our neighbors.

“We have faith, we live by faith; we came to these mountains by faith” (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young, Melchizedek Priesthood and Relief Society course of study, 1997, 106).
Brigham Young spoke these words shortly after entering the Salt Lake Valley in July 1847, 154 years ago. The valley was barren, but Brigham Young and his company believed their vision of the desert blossoming as a rose could be made real through their faith and hard work.
Brigham Young said, “We had not the least encouragement—from natural reasoning and all that we could learn of this country—of its sterility, its cold and frost, to believe that we could ever raise anything. … We had faith that we could raise grain; was there any harm in this? Not at all. If we had not had faith, what would have become of us? We would have gone down in unbelief … and should never have raised anything” (Brigham Young, 104–5).
But the Saints did have faith. They escaped the persecution of the mobs and were greatly blessed in Utah. “There never has been a land, from the days of Adam until now, that has been blessed more than this land has been blessed by our Father in Heaven; and it will still be blessed more, if we are faithful and humble, and thankful to God” (Brigham Young, 106).

Further along in the book under the heading of “Prophets” is another statement: “With all their inspiration and greatness, prophets are yet mortal men with imperfections common to mankind in general. They have their opinions and prejudices and are left to work out their problems without inspiration in many instances. Joseph Smith recorded that he ‘visited with a brother and sister from Michigan, who thought that “a prophet is always a prophet”; but I told them that a prophet was a prophet only when he was acting as such.’” (Ibid., p. 608.)

Decide now how you will act when peer pressure and temptation arise. At about age 12, I made a personal decision to always keep the Word of Wisdom. Over the years, there were invitations to break that commandment, but the answer “No!” was always kind, quick, and effective. Because I had determined beforehand how I would react when invited, I never felt threatened with the possibility of a bad decision under pressure from my friends.

When a teacher gave Brooklyn M., 18, of Utah, USA, an invitation during a Sunday class, it made a big difference. “A teacher asked us to tell ourselves each day that we’re beautiful daughters of God,” she says. “Now I’m happier, and it’s great to know that Heavenly Father loves us.”

I used to skip to the Extra Smile to read the cartoons when the New Era came. As I stopped to read some of the stories, I knew I got something even better than just funny LDS cartoons in the mail. I got inspirational messages, including some from teenagers like me that I can relate to. I especially like it when conference messages are included in the magazine. I love to refresh my memory of the rousing messages shared by the leaders of our Church.
Benjamin D., Idaho

I felt very proud as I read “Into the Wild Blue Yonder” in the June 1982 issue of the New Era. I believe I know what those cadets are going through. I’ve been in the air force for over 18 months. I also have a desire to fulfill a mission after my enlistment is over. Thank you for helping me to find and realize my own goals and desires in life.
Kent T. EgelundCheyenne, Wyoming

I remember as a teenager reflecting on the sacrifices of the American people as I rode on my bicycle through the cemeteries not far from my home and looked silently at the thousands of white crosses in orderly lines, marking the graves of those who gave their lives so that I could live in freedom. I remember as a student learning how our countries of Europe kept their economical freedom thanks to General Marshall’s plan; how our countries kept their independence; how so many countries in the world, struck by natural disasters, were rescued and helped.

Nathan started saving when he was even younger than Adam. When he was 10, he began delivering papers, shoveling snow, and mowing lawns. Now that he’s 15, he’s what he likes to call a “Babysitter Extraordinaire” for some of the families in his ward. He loves spending time with children, so it’s a great job for him. After paying tithing, he puts away 10 percent of each paycheck for his mission.
He’s had the desire to serve since Primary when he sang “I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” (Children’s Songbook, 169). “And when my brother went,” he says, “that made me want to go even more. It made a big difference for me. He set the example. He really changed his attitude toward life because of his mission.”
Going on a mission is really important to Nathan, not only because his dad thinks it’s really important or because his older brother set the example. He says, “It’s a commandment. I really need to go on a mission. It’s an important thing.”

Early last year, Elder Allistair B. Odgers asked stake presidents to set a goal for the number of full-time teaching missionaries we would have serving in December 2022.
After much prayer and fasting, I set a goal that would stretch us as a stake; a goal that would require great faith and bring spiritual experiences and miracles to members’ lives. I knew the number of currently serving missionaries, and the prospective missionaries we were working with, would guarantee 10-12 missionaries serving in December. I felt inspired to offer 25 as our stake goal.
Immediately I began meeting with our bishops, branch presidents, high council and stake council members. We invited all to unite and find those additional 10-15 missionaries we were not currently working with. Shortly afterwards, during April general conference, President Russell M. Nelson again invited all young men, and young women who desired, to serve a full-time mission. President Nelson encouraged all to seek and expect miracles as we increase our spiritual momentum.1
Elder Odgers asked the stake presidents in our coordinating council, to invite bishops and branch presidents to invite two young men to serve a mission every week. Believing in miracles, I encouraged our leaders again to renew efforts to find missionaries, emphasizing we would have spiritual experiences and miracles as we sought inspiration and guidance about whom to invite.

Before I was baptized in 2006, I had been participating in another church that my family belonged to. Initially I was afraid to talk about the Church to my family because I feared rejection. But when I began to place the Posters from the Liahona in a few places in our house, family members began to ask, “What is this picture about? What does it mean?” These questions made it easier to talk about what the Church offers to families. Through this means, my youngest sister was baptized, and now, while I’m on my mission, my father and mother write me saying how they love going to church.
Elder Almeida, 20, Brazil São Paulo East Mission

How did you come into the Church? Was it a chance discovery or a final stopping point after a period of soul searching?
My road to the Church was a long one. For a long time I had been searching for peace for my soul. I became interested in yoga and practiced it. I did find some peace of mind. But later my anxiety renewed, and I felt a desire to join a church. I began to have the same question as did Joseph Smith. Which church? I tried many different churches but felt no particular sympathies toward any of them. I didn’t know then about the existence of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In the depths of my soul I heard an answer, “You must visit a church with representatives from America.” I was very surprised by this; nevertheless, I felt reassured. In the spring I bought a ticket to a concert by the Young Ambassadors from Brigham Young University. After the concert I met missionaries who invited me to church. Elder Wood taught me the six discussions. From the very start of the discussions, I felt that this was the very church for which I had been searching.
I am grateful to the Lord that he led me to his church. I was baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. My life greatly changed. I have gained joy, happiness, and peace. I have found the very life for which I was searching.

By Ana Rodriguez Ramirez, Spain

One day on my mission, my companion and I were prompted to visit a sister in the ward. We cut out paper hearts and wrote loving messages on them to remind her of her worth.

We arrived at her house, thinking she wouldn’t be home. As we were setting up the paper hearts, her car pulled right up to the house. My companion and I tried to hide to keep up the friendly surprise, but to no avail. She saw us.

The sister got out of her car with tears on her face. She hugged us and said, “You two are my angels. You’re always there when I need you most. Thank you.”

She invited us in and told us of the long day she had dealing with a serious family situation. We just listened to her. We shared how much God loves her and that He didn’t forget about what she was going through. We read scriptures with her, and her home was filled with the Holy Ghost when we left.

Disciples of Jesus Christ are “willing to … comfort those that stand in need of comfort” (Mosiah 18:9). He trusts us to be part of His great work—higher and holier ministering. When we take the time to get to know people and listen to them, we are more equipped to be God’s earthly angels.

When Bill and I decided we would like to go to college, we found it would take almost all we had saved since graduation from high school to pay the modest tuition required at the state university located about one hundred miles from our home. On a visit to the campus we did locate a place where we could get board and room for 20 dollars a month apiece but, to our dismay, found that even part-time jobs at less than 25 cents an hour had many takers. The fact that Bill and I had graduated at the top of our high school classes apparently did not qualify us for the few scholarships available; our mother was undergoing expensive medical treatment (she would die within the year), and our father’s small coal mine, still under development, could not be counted on for consistent support. Our determination to attend college seemed hopelessly blocked.
Then Boyd, who was still in high school and a truly extraordinary student, came home to announce that a local transfer company had offered him a job as bookkeeper for their entire operation at a salary of 40 dollars a month. He would have to work long hours after school and all day Saturday, but I can still hear the delight in his voice as he said, “Now Bill and Bob can go to school.”
How our parents and brother managed to send us the 40 dollars we needed each month I still can’t figure out; but, obviously, most of it came from Boyd. My guess is that he spent almost nothing on himself to be sure we had what we needed. Happily, over the years, Bill and I have had a chance to help Boyd, but the very essence of total sharing is that there is no attempt to balance the books. Gifts of pure love are never a sacrifice, and losing one’s life completely in the service of others is to find it completely. Now, after all these years, I understand the deeper meaning of what Mother was trying to instill in us: Unconditional love within the family can prepare us to appreciate the Savior’s gift of eternal life, for he is our brother.

In 1993 Larry R. White was serving as president of the Thailand Bangkok Mission when he heard a favorable report about religious progress in Cambodia. He, along with Elder John K. Carmack of the Seventy and Brother Vichit Ith, a member living in Bangkok, traveled to Cambodia to ask government representatives about the possibility of beginning missionary work and humanitarian aid projects. The request to begin humanitarian aid projects was granted.

They’ve been running together since they were eight years old. At first, Nachelle and Natalie Stewart would run around the neighborhood together. Today, they run in state and national track championships—and win. They helped the Spanish Fork High School track team become state champions three times, and in 2008 they were invited to compete in the exclusive Nike Outdoor Nationals, where Nachelle took home the bronze in the 800m and Natalie took home the silver in the 400m. Although they often compete against each other in the same events and each tries her best to come out on top—often breaking the other’s record—Nachelle and Natalie remain best friends and are happy to see each other succeed.