Gospel Story Finder

I remember a special event that occurred in Idaho. It was early spring. The stake president called and said, “I think you had better look things over up here.” So I drove to southern Idaho. He took me to a reservoir several miles above some little towns. The water was almost ready to lap over the edge of the dam. He said, “Most people don’t realize that we are going to have a flood this year. They are relaxed down there in the valley. Most do not understand what is going to happen if a canal is not built to contain the excess water and take it away from the reservoir.”
He told me that as a young man he had walked those hills but had never seen so much snow left that late or so much water in the reservoir that time of year. Here was a man who knew what he was doing. The only thing I could say to him was, “Do what’s right. Do what you must.”
I went back a few weeks later and saw huge earth-moving equipment going back and forth, almost as if by some predetermined melody, digging a channel. Men and boys worked with shovels; people worked together. A miracle was being performed as a canal was dug twenty-three miles long in a matter of several days. The communities were saved. Yes, some of the farms were injured, but a whole area was now safe. How? Why? Because of the unity of courageous people doing what needed to be done together. No one person could have done it. No small group of men or women could have accomplished the task. But with the unity which that stake president helped to create, we saw the National Guard, construction companies (not knowing if or when they would be paid), and men from near and far loaning their valuable equipment so that a valley could be rescued. It was a latter-day miracle brought about by unity.

W. Mark Bassett
(52) As a boy, W. Mark Bassett and his brother try to pry metal bands off the sealed portion of a model of the golden plates.

My best friend hit me yesterday.
I didn’t know what to do.
My daddy tells me not to hit—
But boy, I wanted to!
I stood there with a bright red face.
My fists were clenched real tight.
Anger welled within my heart—
My best friend shook with fright.
I could have punched him out right then—
I really wanted to—
But in my head a soft voice said,
“Now, what would Jesus do?”
I prayed a silent prayer for help,
Then looked into his face.
The anger quickly left my heart.
Love came and took its place.
I told my friend it wasn’t nice
To hit or start a fight.
I told of Heavenly Father’s love;
I taught him what was right.
Now he and I are better friends
Than we were yesterday.
And we will do as Jesus says:
We’ll listen and obey.
THE END

Some are overcome by major problems; others let small matters become big. Symonds Ryder was a Campbellite leader who heard about the Church and had a meeting with Joseph Smith. Moved by this experience, he joined the Church in June 1831. Immediately thereafter, he was ordained an elder and called to serve a mission. However, in his call letter from the First Presidency and on his official commission to preach, his name was misspelled—by one letter. His last name showed as R-i-d-e-r, not the correct R-y-d-e-r. This caused him to question his call and those from whom it came. He chose not to go on the mission and fell away, which soon led to hatred and intense opposition toward Joseph and the Church. In March 1832, when Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon were ripped from home during the night by an angry mob and tarred and feathered, a voice was heard to shout, “Simonds, Simonds [sic], where’s the tar bucket?” (History of the Church, 1:262–63). In less than 10 months, Symonds Ryder went from an eager convert to a mob leader, his spiritual decline starting with the offense taken over the misspelling of his name—by one letter. No matter the size of the issue, how we respond can reset the course of our life.

When I read “The Swing” by Sharon Bradley in your February 1986 issue, I felt the Spirit. Even though it was fiction, I understand what Kari was going through. No, I don’t have cancer, but like her I have often felt “Why me?” I’d just like to thank you and Sister Bradley for the touching story.
Chantie GloverIvins, Utah

I was a missionary in London in 1934, 60 years ago, and I vividly recall the advertisements of one of the popular newspapers that Dickens’s The Life of Our Lord would be published serially. I paid little attention to it. Following serialization, it was published as a book. There was a surge of interest, and then it seemed to fade.
Years later Sister Hinckley found a copy of the book and read it to our children. While there are some doctrinal matters in it with which we would disagree, it is a wonderful story, told in language beautiful and easily understood. At this Christmas season, may I share a few lines with you? I give them just as Dickens wrote them, without editing.

When I was at Farragut, Idaho, a year or so ago, right in the middle of our giant priesthood meeting, among about 5,500 Scouts and their leaders, a Scoutmaster, deacons quorum adviser, stood up, and then 12 boys stood up with him, and they trailed across that mighty congregation of men and left. I wonder what he felt the next time he raised his arm to the square and said, “On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.” (The Scout Oath.) And yet the oath we take in the priesthood is many times more serious to us.

And what a valuable thing a covenant in our lives can be, if we will let it guide us.

Now, many years later, I begin to see more and more the wisdom of his counsel. People do easily misunderstand, like the sweet old sister I met in the ZCMI shopping mall the other day.
“Aren’t you that Dutchman who spoke in general conference a while ago?” I said, “Yes, ma’am.” Then she continued, “Oh, I loved your Holland story about the boy with his finger in the dike.” I remarked, “Well, sister, that was not exactly the subject of my talk; I was talking about saving souls.” But she went on to say, “You know, I heard that story for the first time when I was still in school, and I am so pleased you told it again.”
Brothers and sisters, I have learned not to argue, especially with sisters. So I left this sister with a smile and went on my way, a sadder but wiser man. I had apparently failed to teach so that no one misunderstood.
Therefore, my challenge today is to do better.

I lost my schoolbook and prayed to Heavenly Father to help me. I found it hidden under my clothes right in front of me. It helped me understand how important prayer is.
Minh P., age 11, Hanoi Province, Vietnam

I learned this for myself when my oldest son received his first cell phone. With great excitement, he began entering the names of his family and friends into his contacts. One day I noticed his mom was calling. On the screen appeared the name “Mother.” That was a sensible and dignified choice—and, I’ll admit, a sign of respect for the better parent in our home. Naturally, I got curious. What name had he given me?
I scrolled through his contacts, assuming that if Wendi was “Mother,” I must be “Father.” Not there. I searched for “Dad.” Still nothing. My curiosity turned into mild concern. “Does he call me ‘Corey’?” No. In a last-ditch effort, I thought, “We’re soccer players—maybe he calls me ‘Pelé.’” Wishful thinking. Finally, I called his number myself, and two words popped up on his screen: “Not Mother”!

Heather and Christopher take their cue from their father, Tom Drummond, who, when he got custody of his two children over 12 years ago, decided he would be the best parent he could be, with or without the support of a wife. And later, when he was introduced to the Church, he decided to take on the challenges and blessings of membership and hopefully share them with his children.

The endowment is a sacred opportunity given to all worthy and prepared members of the church who are at least 18 years old and who are ready for it. It’s important to be worthy, it’s important to be ready, it’s important to be prepared. I remember what I did to be worthy, ready, and prepared for this sacred ordinance: striving to keep the commandments, daily repentance, daily prayers, daily scripture study, relying fully on the Atonement, attending temple preparation class, and studying talks about the temple.
A few months before going to serve my mission, my family and I had a double blessing of being sealed in the temple and receiving our endowments on the same day. That memory will forever remain dear to my heart. When I finally entered the temple, joyfully holding my temple recommend, knowing I was recommended to the Lord, there was sunshine in my soul!

1994: President Hunter asks all members to be worthy to hold a temple recommend.

When Heber J. Grant was a young man, he worked for an insurance agent, Mr. H. R. Mann. He treated Heber like a son.
Mr. Mann: Heber, why don’t you go to the baseball game this afternoon and then come tell me about it during supper?
Heber: Thanks, Mr. Mann!
Besides working for Mr. Mann, Heber earned money writing greeting cards and wedding invitations. He stayed at the office late into the evening, spreading his greeting cards on his large office desk to let the ink dry.
On New Year’s Eve, Mr. Mann’s partner, Mr. Wadsworth, found Heber still busy at the office writing greeting cards.
Mr. Wadsworth: Heber, what on earth are you doing?
Heber: Getting my cards ready to sell tomorrow.
Mr. Wadsworth: You are the only one I’m going to give a New Year’s present to. You seem to enjoy work while most of the other boys watch the clock to see how soon they can leave.
Heber: Wow! A hundred dollars?
Heber later said that knowing he had earned the confidence of his employer meant much more to him than the money. It inspired him to succeed in business and in the community.
As prophet, he taught young people to be hard workers, too.
Heber: Be inspired with a desire to labor and learn, and you will achieve success in the battle of life.

This last issue makes a final question most significant. What was the home environment produced by Joseph and Lucy Mack Smith? Obviously the moral training of the Prophet came in the home of his parents, and his own integrity must be assessed in the light of his response to their early teachings. Reliable children generally come from homes of healthy love without weak permissiveness. Unquestionably the love of family ran deep in Joseph Smith, Sr. A simple illustration of him as “a tender husband and father.”13 Yet there was the discipline of hard work in the home combined with personal respect for differences. Joseph Smith’s brother William gave solid insights into the religious leadership of Joseph Smith, Sr.: “We always had family prayer since I can remember.” He described his father’s reaching for his glasses as the signal for prayer: “And if we did not notice it, mother would say, ‘William,’ or whoever was the negligent one, ‘get ready for prayer.’”14 The father led out in daily devotions, and the mother actively supported him. Joseph Smith, Sr., exercised quiet but firm initiative as the head of his household. The home of such parents is a valuable tool in assessing the sincerity of the young prophet who saw visions. It was the unpublicized integrity of Joseph Smith, Sr., that greatly influenced the career of Joseph Smith, Jr. No one can rightly deny that his family sought righteousness and the will of God. Through Joseph Smith, Jr., such a birthright has come to be a blessing far beyond his family.

The best thing to do is to stay true to your standards and stand up for what you believe in. Explain to your peers that you can’t tolerate that sort of language. I did something similar with my friends, and they stopped the language. They respect me more for standing up for what I believe.
Thomas L., 19, Colchester, England

Thank you for including “Why Do We Baptize for the Dead?” in the March 2009 New Era. I recently turned 12, and the article helped me understand the important ordinance I could participate in. I appreciate and enjoy having such a helpful, uplifting magazine in my home.
Cassie H., South Carolina

Elder Richard G. Scott
(29) A full-time missionary wants to pattern his future family after his mission president’s family.

Encouraged by his teachers, Joseph went to work at age fifteen for an Ogden lumber company. (He was paid $15 a month, which amount he paid for room and meals.) Despite his youth, he mastered the difficult Pitman shorthand, a method of speed writing involving shaded lines and geometric figures. The development of this skill was crucial to his self-confidence, and he resolved to be the best “shorthand writer” possible.

Jordan is two. Melodee is four.
One day little Jordan ran into the door.
Ouch!
It is OK, Jordan. You don’t need to cry.
Sit here in my lap, and I will wipe your eyes.
Sob.
You should now go rest, after that big smack.
You’re too upset to walk? Then, climb onto my back.
Wow, you are heavy. But I don’t even mind.
I’ll sing “I’m Trying to Be Like Jesus,” and so I will be kind.