Gospel Story Finder

Author’s Note: There were many more challenges for Elizabeth on the trek west. Elizabeth’s mother gave birth to a baby boy on the trail, and Elizabeth had to nurse her mother, tend the younger children, and do her mother’s chores as well as her own. Once Elizabeth was out washing when a sandstorm hit. She became lost and wandered for three days before she was found. Finally in October 1863, her family arrived in the Salt Lake Valley with little food or clothing. Later, Elizabeth married and became a mother in Israel as foretold. All the Lord’s promises to her were fulfilled.

Clomp, clomp, clomp! Twenty-one pairs of feet walked across a wooden bridge. Twenty-one Primary children were about to travel back in history to a special place—and leave it better than they found it.
Primary children from the Billerica Ward, Nashua New Hampshire Stake, were having a service activity at the Minute Man National Historic Park in Concord, Massachusetts. The wooden bridge is a replica of the Old North Bridge, where the first battle of the American Revolution took place on April 19, 1775.
The children’s goal was to help clean up the park. Before they got started, a park ranger told them about the park’s history. Then their Primary president, Sister Stephanie Davis, reminded them how the founding of the United States helped prepare the way for the gospel to be restored.
The children knew they were in a place that deserves respect. They had fun without yelling or being rowdy. What does it mean to respect a place? Here’s what the children had to say:
“It means you want to take care of the place so that it’s kept special.” —Abby K., age 8
“It means you leave it looking the same or better than when you got there.” —Dallen H., age 9
“It’s like saying, ‘I appreciate you.’” —Taylor A., age 11
Then they put on rubber gloves and went to work, putting every piece of trash they could find into their garbage bags.
How did the children feel when they were finished? Good, because “this is a place where something really happened,” said Alden D., age 11. All the children agreed that it felt great to show their respect for an important place that’s right in their own backyard.

With help from an inspired group of young women in Oregon, USA, a certain refrigerator box rose to its full potential: it helped bring about an entire season of Christmas miracles.
When the Young Women organization was put in charge of their ward’s Christmas party, they decided early on to have a Light the World theme. The first giving machine in their area had shown up a year earlier. “I thought it was so cool to be able to serve in such a simple and easy way,” says Kisiah H., one of the young women.
So the young women wanted a customized giving machine for their ward and stake. One of them, Rita P., offered to help build it. The machine would contain “service opportunities that anyone could do, no matter their age,” says Rita. They included such services as “Make dinner,” “Pray for someone in need,” or “Go caroling.”
Thanks to a Young Women president who had just purchased a refrigerator, they had a perfect box to wrap in red paper and tape. Then they added stickers with service opportunities and placed small business cards beneath for people to take. Once somebody completed their task, they could hang the little red business card as an ornament on the ward Christmas tree.
“It was really cool to see the tree fill up over time,” says Kisiah.
“Do something small, and it will bring the joy of Christmas.”
After the ward party, people wanted to use the giving machine at a stake Light the World activity. And so the light continued to spread. “Somebody said they wished we could have one of these in every ward in the stake,” says Kisiah.
A small idea, a big box, and some hard work led to a much brighter Christmas for all.

Could I share a story with you? It’s a story about a friend of mine whose home was in the direct path of the Teton Dam flood. I have shared this story before.

My friend’s name was Marion Forsyth. I share this story with you to illustrate just how a man can move to higher ground and come to love God and yield his heart to Him. This was a man that learned to give his agency, so to speak, to our Heavenly Father. He trusted that if he could learn of what God’s will was—and do it, he and his family would be blessed.

Sometime before the Teton Dam broke, President Spencer W. Kimball, who was then the President of the Church, invited all of the members of the Church in a General Conference talk, to fix up their homes, yards, barns, and to take care of all that the Lord had provided for them.

As a prophet of God he explained that those who were not members of the Church would judge the truthfulness of the gospel and the Church by how well we took care of what we had been given.

My friend, Marion Forsyth had chosen to use his agency to be obedient to the living prophet of God. He had a forty-acre farm and, if I remember right, about forty milk cows. Knowing Marion and his wife, they had cows not to make any money, but to help them raise their seven children—to teach them responsibility and how to work. All of us do better in moving to higher ground when we have a responsibility and meaningful work to do.

Just a short time before the Teton Dam broke, my friend was out in his front yard on a Saturday morning to paint his fence and plant petunias with his wife. He had painted his barn the week before. One of his neighbors pulled up in front of his home. The neighbor lowered his vehicle’s window and asked my friend what he was doing painting his fence and planting those flowers. My friend Marion kindly responded that President Kimball had asked members of the Church to fix up their homes and their yards. He said he wanted to be obedient to the counsel of the prophet.

My friend’s neighbor chided him a bit, saying, “Painting your barn and fence and now planting those flowers—that’s not going to increase your milk production.” My friend Marion simply said something like: “You are probably right, but President Kimball has asked us to do it and I want to do it.”

Within two weeks, the Teton Dam broke and all that water came down the Snake River Valley destroying virtually everything in its path. All of my friend’s milk cows were swept away. His barn was severely damaged. His house was mostly destroyed. The fence in front of his home—the one he had been painting just a short time before—was gone, not to mention the petunias.

A few days after the flood, my friend saw his neighbor again—you remember, the one who chided him a bit for fixing up his place. Only this time his neighbor said, “Aren’t you sorry now Marion, [with a certain spin on the word now] that you took that time to paint your barn, fix your fences, and plant those flowers?” My friend Marion hesitated for just a moment and then simply said, “No, they were ready to be taken.”

A friend of mine recently wrote to me, confiding that he was having a difficult time keeping his testimony strong and vibrant. He asked for counsel.
I wrote back to him and lovingly suggested a few specific things he could do that would align his life more closely with the teachings of the restored gospel. To my surprise, I heard back from him only a week later. The essence of his letter was this: “I tried what you suggested. It didn’t work. What else have you got?”
Brothers and sisters, we have to stay with it. We don’t acquire eternal life in a sprint—this is a race of endurance. We have to apply and reapply the divine gospel principles. Day after day we need to make them part of our normal life.
Too often we approach the gospel like a farmer who places a seed in the ground in the morning and expects corn on the cob by the afternoon. When Alma compared the word of God to a seed, he explained that the seed grows into a fruit-bearing tree gradually, as a result of our “faith, and [our] diligence, and patience, and long-suffering.” It’s true that some blessings come right away: soon after we plant the seed in our hearts, it begins to swell and sprout and grow, and by this we know that the seed is good. From the very moment we set foot upon the pathway of discipleship, seen and unseen blessings from God begin to attend us.
But we cannot receive the fulness of those blessings if we “neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment.”
Knowing that the seed is good is not enough. We must “nourish it with great care, that it may get root.” Only then can we partake of the fruit that is “sweet above all that is sweet, and … pure above all that is pure” and “feast upon this fruit even until [we] are filled, that [we] hunger not, neither shall [we] thirst.”
Discipleship is a journey. We need the refining lessons of the journey to craft our character and purify our hearts. By patiently walking in the path of discipleship, we demonstrate to ourselves the measure of our faith and our willingness to accept God’s will rather than ours.
It is not enough merely to speak of Jesus Christ or proclaim that we are His disciples. It is not enough to surround ourselves with symbols of our religion. Discipleship is not a spectator sport. We cannot expect to experience the blessings of faith by standing inactive on the sidelines any more than we can experience the benefits of health by sitting on a sofa watching sporting events on television and giving advice to the athletes. And yet for some, “spectator discipleship” is a preferred if not a primary way of worshipping.
Ours is not a secondhand religion. We cannot receive the blessings of the gospel merely by observing the good that others do. We need to get off the sidelines and practice what we preach.
The first step on the path of discipleship begins, luckily enough, in the exact place where we stand! We do not have to prequalify to take that first step. It doesn’t matter if we are rich or poor. There is no requirement to be educated, eloquent, or intellectual. We do not have to be perfect or well-spoken or even well-mannered.
You and I can walk in the path of discipleship today. Let us be humble; let us pray to our Father in Heaven with all our heart and express our desire to draw close to Him and learn of Him.
Have faith. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened. Serve the Lord by serving others. Become an active participant in your ward or branch. Strengthen your family by committing to live the principles of the gospel. Be of one heart and of one mind in your marriage and in your family.
Now is the time to adjust your lives to be able to have a temple recommend and use it. Now is the time to have meaningful family home evenings, to read the word of God, and to speak to our Heavenly Father in earnest prayer. Now is the time to fill our hearts with gratitude for the Restoration of His Church, for living prophets, the Book of Mormon, and the priesthood power that blesses our lives. Now is the time to embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, become His disciples, and walk in His way.
There are some who believe that because they have made mistakes, they can no longer fully partake of the blessings of the gospel. How little they understand the purposes of the Lord. One of the great blessings of living the gospel is that it refines us and helps us learn from our mistakes. We “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,” yet the Atonement of Jesus Christ has the power to make us whole when we repent.
Our beloved friend Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin taught us this principle with clarity when he said:
“Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us—even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will.
“We [might] see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. …
“The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and women for the eternities.”
To those who have left the path of discipleship for whatever reason, I invite you to start where you are and come to the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Walk again in the way of the Lord. I testify that the Lord will bless your life, endow you with knowledge and joy beyond comprehension, and distill upon you the supernal gifts of the Spirit. It is always the right time to walk in His way. It is never too late.
To those who feel inadequate because they have not been members of the Church all their lives, to those who feel that they can never make up for the time they have lost, I testify that the Lord needs your specific abilities, talents, and skills. The Church needs you; we need you. It is always the right time to walk in His way. It is never too late.
Let us remember on this Palm Sunday, during this Easter season, and always that the restored gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has the power to fill any emptiness, heal any wound, and bridge any vale of sorrow. It is the way of hope, faith, and trust in the Lord. The gospel of Jesus Christ is taught in its fulness in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This Church is led by a living prophet, authorized by the Lord Jesus Christ to provide direction and guidance to help us face the challenges of our day, as serious as they may be.
I bear my solemn witness that Jesus the Christ lives. He is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He is the promised Messiah. He lived a perfect life and atoned for our sins. He will ever be at our side. He will fight our battles. He is our hope; He is our salvation; He is the way. Of this I testify in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Brother Brown was the custodian in charge of gym lockers at the physical education building at BYU–Provo. He never published in scholarly article. He never spoke in a devotional. He never taught a class. But because the gospel had grown in him, he taught wherever he went, through whatever he was doing.
One day while cleaning out lockers he found a wallet. He opened it to learn whose it was and found a few small pictures cut out of magazines—pictures that were inappropriate for anyone to see. When the owner, a young man, came retrieve it, Brother Brown invited him to sit down for a moment. “Before I return your wallet,” Brother Brown said, “may I show you mine?” The young man nodded. Brother Brown opened his well-worn billfold. “This is a picture of my wife—my beloved companion of many years. This is my temple recommend, which makes it possible for us to be together forever. These are pictures of my children. Here are my grandchildren. My brother, I desire with all my heart that one day, you will be able to open your wallet and see what I see. I invite you to do whatever you need to do so that you can have that blessing.” Tears flowed as the young man opened his wallet, removed the pictures, and left them behind. Whatever your life’s mission may be, and whatever your current role at BYU–Hawaii, you are called “to bring the world His truth.” But Brother Brown could not have done that by merely quoting what he’d heard others say, or what he’d memorized as a full-time missionary. He had to do more than just repeat concepts and historical facts. He had to share the doctrine and principles that had grown within him as he learned and lived the gospel for himself.

Following the spirit of "every member a missionary," a few years ago I started the New Year with the resolution of passing out 365 pass along cards in a year. I thought: giving out one pass along card a day is a very worthwhile goal. However, at the end of January I had already given out about 100 cards. Then I thought: maybe I should increase my goal to distribute 1,000 cards during the year. Then at the end of February I had already passed out about 300 cards. Then in the spirit of prayer I started pondering: what would a realistic goal to accomplish during a year's time? As a response to this desire to be a member missionary the Holy Ghost inspired with this idea. The website of your school receives 200,000 hits a month, why not place a virtual pass along card on the website, so that users can access and leave their name and address, so they can receive a free copy of the Book of Mormon, a DVD on Finding Faith in Christ or the booklet 3 Simple Ways of Having a Happier Family? I thought: wow that is indeed a fantastic idea. We immediately implemented that plan.

Then one more inspiration came: is there anything else we can do spread the message of the Restoration? And the spirit clearly spoke this in my mind. Your school distributes approximately 500,000 books a year to students all over the country. Why not insert a pass along card inside each book? We immediately started doing that. We were authorized to print our own cards. The church office in Brazil gave us an exclusive 1-800 number so that we could measure the number of calls we received through this initiative.

As a result today we receive approximately 2,000 phone calls and/or contacts a month from people requesting some church literature. We have many mathematicians and statisticians in this audience. You know that when you have 2,000 people requesting Church literature every month, you will have a percentage of these people that will end up receiving the discussions from the missionaries, reading the Book of Mormon, attending the meetings, and finally becoming members of the Church.

What do we learn from this experience?
1. Every member is indeed a missionary.
2. The Lord does answer our prayers according to our desires.
3. The Lord does expand our vision.
What started out as a New Year's resolution of passing out one card a day, turned to be an inspired missionary effort of bringing 2,000 referrals a month for the Church.

A few months later, I got a job. Once we bore our first son, whom we named Powell Blamo Nepay, going to the temple became even more important. We have been planning and pondering on visiting the house of the Lord to be sealed for time and all eternity.
I work for one of the biggest GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) companies in Liberia as a customer value management coordinator. Part of my many duties is to raise revenue for the company as I stimulate inactive, active, and new customers to either increase their recharge and/or purchasing power. Each time we planned to go to the temple, my bosses always rejected my leave plan and asked that I continue the job since there is more work to do.
In 2023, I relocated from the New Kru Town 1st Ward to the Caldwell New Georgia Ward where my family and I now live. With the assistance of the priesthood leaders in the Caldwell Liberia Stake, I again started planning and vowed that this year we would go to the temple and that there is nothing that will stand in my way again.
We were scheduled to attend the Ghana Accra Temple in February 2023, and it was the same month that Elder. D. Todd Christopherson was due to come to Liberia. In addition to going to the temple, I was praying to be taught by an Apostle of the Lord. In Liberia, we have witnessed the visit of three Apostles since the Church was established here. I just couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity as I can’t wait for about five or six more years before seeing an Apostle in my land.
Fortunately, the Lord answered my prayer as the temple trip was postponed to April 10–13, 2023. What a great moment it was for my wife, and beautiful kids as we finally made the trip to Ghana. Our dream has finally come true! My lovely wife wept and said to me, “I am grateful that we are sealing today. This is a miracle all by itself as your boss finally accepted your impromptu leave plan.” Indeed, the Lord answers prayers. Apparently, the Lord wanted our four-year-old and one-year-old daughters to join their brother as we were sealed for this life and for the life to come.

Really for us? I honestly thought that President Hinckley must be talking to those who weren’t reading. After all, we had nightly scripture study, family home evening, and family councils; we prayed together. We thought we would just continue reading a few verses a night.It was a few days later that it hit me: a prophet of the Lord asked us to read the Book of Mormon by the end of the year, and I’m going to ignore it? That night we met as a family, and I was astonished at the resounding “Yes” I received as a commitment to meeting the goal. I told the kids that we would have to read on vacations, birthdays, nights when we were tired. “No problem” was the response.It didn’t take long for the spirit of that great book to take over. We started to understand gospel principles, to communicate more as a family. My wife and I felt our testimonies were strengthened, and I heard the kids explaining scripture stories as if they had served missions and taught the gospel for years! Taking this challenge has changed our lives forever. Shawn O’Leary, Poulsbo, Washington, USA

Quade waved to his friends as he walked home from school. “See you later!”
“We’re riding our bikes to the park next week. Are you going too?” James asked.
Quade’s face suddenly felt hot.
“Maybe,” he said. “I don’t know yet.”
Quade hurried home. He pulled his green bike out of the garage and dusted off the seat. The tires were flat. But that didn’t matter. He didn’t even know how to ride it!
“Is everything OK?” Dad asked as he came outside.
“My friends want to ride bikes next week,” Quade said. “But I don’t know how. I’m afraid they’ll make fun of me.”
“You have a whole week to learn,” Dad said. “Do you want to start right now?”
Quade nodded.
Dad helped Quade fill his bike tires with air. Then Quade got on the bike. He gripped the handlebars so hard that his knuckles turned white.
“OK, I’ll hold you steady. You start pedaling,” said Dad.
Quade pedaled forward. But when the bike started moving, he got worried.
“This is too scary!” he said. He hopped off the bike. He took a few deep breaths. Then he got back on and tried again. But the bike felt so wobbly!
“I don’t think I can do this,” he said. “Can we ask Heavenly Father for help?”
Dad nodded. Quade folded his arms and closed his eyes.
“Dear Heavenly Father, please help me learn to ride a bike. Please help me to not be so scared. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” When Quade finished his prayer, he felt calm. He hugged Dad.
“Ready to try again?” Dad asked.
“Yeah.”
Dad helped Quade get back on his bike. Quade put his feet on the pedals. He held the handles and looked forward. Then he started to pedal.
For the first few tries, Quade couldn’t keep the bike up. But he kept trying. Finally he made it all the way to the end of the block without falling. He smiled and pumped his fist. He could ride without Dad’s help!
“I did it!” Quade said. “This is fun.”
“Awesome!” said Dad.
Quade practiced riding each day. The next week, his friends came to his house. They were all on their bikes.
“Hey, Quade,” James said. “Want to ride to the park with us?”
Quade put on his helmet. “Yeah! Thanks for inviting me!”
Quade hopped on his bike. With help from Dad and Heavenly Father, he was ready to ride!
This story took place in the USA.

A wonderful sister who performed an Elias-like mission to her people in Ghana was Priscilla Sampson-Davis. She obtained a Book of Mormon in 1963, then studied, prepared, and waited for 15 years. Soon after her baptism she had a vision that she described as follows:

I wasn’t asleep. I saw myself at a sacrament meeting and we were singing when I saw a personage in very bright apparel standing in front of the congregation. The Personage called me by name and requested that I come and stand by Him. . . . He then asked me why some were not singing with the others. I told him that they could not read English. . . . He asked me if I wouldn’t like to help my sisters and brothers sing praises to our Heavenly Father. I said that I would do my best. Then the vision passed away.
Immediately I . . . started translating the hymn Redeemer of Israel into Fanti [the major dialect in Ghana]. [From interview with Priscilla Sampson-Davis by E. Dale LeBaron in Cape Coast, Ghana, 19 May 1988; see also LeBaron, “All Are Alike,” pp. 48–50]

Sister Sampson-Davis translated the hymns, the missionary pamphlets, and Gospel Principles. Then, under assignment, she translated the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price into Fanti. She said, “It was the Lord Himself who commissioned me to do the translation. . . . By translating these things, my brothers and sisters who can’t understand English will be able to see and read the true gospel for themselves” (LeBaron, “All Are Alike,” pp. 49–50).

There was a time in my life when I strayed far from the principles I knew to be true. Because of this, I felt terribly unhappy. Although I believed that the Atonement worked for other people, in my mind I was too far gone for it to apply to me. I thought I wasn’t worth saving.
One Sunday morning I heard the bells of a nearby Christian church sounding the hymn “Did You Think to Pray?” (Hymns, no. 140). The music struck me, and for the first time in many months, I felt the Spirit. I cried as I realized Heavenly Father was using this hymn to let me feel His love and know that He would help me.
The repentance process was not easy, and many times I felt discouraged. But the feelings I felt that Sunday morning stayed with me, and after a time I returned to full activity and received my endowment in the Dallas Texas Temple.
Now when I hear that hymn, I am reminded of that tender moment when the One I thought had forgotten me showed His love in a way He knew I would receive it.
Jessica Blakely, New Mexico, USA

Every evening after the last verses are sung loud and long about kookaburra birds sitting in old gum trees and Eddie Cootchie, Catchie Camma, and all the rest of his names, the girls at camp from Green Bay, Wisconsin, gather into a circle.
To get everyone into one large circle, the group has to spread out against the walls of the lodge. There is some last-minute shuffling and shifting. Someone scoots over to let another girl into the formation. The circle includes everyone at camp that night, girls and leaders and parents, arms around each other, and they begin to sing softly. The song they choose to sing every night before they go to bed is a tradition at this stake girls’ camp. At first, the words seem strange to the nine nonmembers who have come with their friends. But after a few days they too can sing the song as well as anyone. “I am a child of God. …”
The Young Women of the Green Bay Wisconsin Stake drove up into the “thumb” of Wisconsin in Door County near Lake Michigan. The camp was hidden in a broadleaf and pine forest in rolling hills among picture perfect farms and herds of grazing milk cows. What the leaders and the girls hoped would happen at their girls’ camp didn’t have a whole lot to do with learning a new way to build a fire or lashing a three-legged wash stand, although they did learn those things. They wanted to learn to love each other and to grow closer to their Savior. And it happened.
Jenny Rowley, a junior counselor, was able to talk about the spiritual feelings she had at camp. “Learning to listen to the promptings that the Lord gives you is so important. We’ve had a chance to hear those promptings this week.”
And the girls heard that their friends and leaders love them. One girl yelled down the trail to her leader. “I love you, Kim.” Kim in turn yelled back, “I love you, too.” Besides the loving feeling at camp, the girls just plain had a lot of fun. Each evening there were game competitions. In the improvised basketball game, with human basketball standards at each end of the field, the teams remained intact but the ball got the stuffing beat out of it. The “ball” for this evening’s game was a round stuffed animal.
It may sound impossible to have a ski slalom competition with no snow and no hill, but these girls did. The custom-made cardboard skis, affixed to feet with regulation bindings of strapping tape, were all that was needed. The ski gates, spaced across an open grassy field, were held by volunteers, and the only rule was that the skis could not leave the ground. Each team chose an entrant and two raced side by side through matching sets of gates. The winner shuffled through several heats to victory.
One of the great joys of camp in Wisconsin is swimming in Lake Michigan. Every day, the girls escaped the heat of camp by taking a dip in the lake. With a sand beach and breakers that resemble the ocean, the fresh-water lake offered a cool break.
Sue Hennig, the camp director, even found ways to make the most despised chores bearable. Instead of dragging out the cleaning of the latrines over protests and complaints, the crews were well armed with brushes and disinfectant. Then they competed against the clock. What could have been a job that dragged on for hours was over in seven minutes or under with everyone working together.
As in most girls’ camps, the highlight of the week was the testimony meeting. When questioned about their favorite experiences at camp, the girl who spoke first was non-LDS and had attended camp for several years. “The testimonies are my favorite part,” she said.
Her LDS friend turned and said, only half teasing, “You ought to be a Mormon.” The girl answered without hesitation, “I know.”
Missionary work was also the emphasis in camp. Chris Johnson had been instrumental in introducing the gospel to her best friend and her friend’s family. Chris had yearned for her friend to grow in the gospel until she could bear her testimony to a group. In a small testimony meeting with the Adventurers, Chris said, “I do have a strong testimony. I love the Book of Mormon with all my heart. Missionary work strengthens you so much. “Then Chris heard her friend bear her testimony for the first time. “She told me that she loved me, and she trusted me. She said she knew she is a child of God. I’ve waited so long to hear that.”
When testimony night for the whole camp came, the girls had some loving things to say, not only to their real sisters but to their sisters in the gospel. Dione DeFerrari, with complete sincerity, said, “Sisters are the most important friends you have in life, except brothers.”
Dione’s sister, Paige, had to work and couldn’t come to camp for the whole week. She made a special effort to come join the Adventurers for the last two days. Paige said, “This is the only place I know that when you walk down the path you can hug anyone you meet, and they won’t think you are weird.”
Ann Peregoi expressed the feeling many of the girls in camp had. “I never knew I had so many best friends who showed me they loved me.”
On the last night of camp, after all the tears had been shed in testimony meeting, the girls gathered in their circle one last time for that year’s camp. And it was a circle that drew everyone in.

Alecia Rosenbrook is a Laurel from, well, lots of places. Since her dad runs a business taking small groups fishing and big game hunting, Alecia calls many locations, including Alaska and Africa, home. Her unique lifestyle has provided her with opportunities to learn more about the world around her and to share the gospel.
“When we go out on trips, it’s just our family, the guests, and the crew. That’s about 14 or 15 people, at the most. We’re together for a week to 10 days, and don’t have contact with anyone else. It’s just simple things we do to share the gospel, like praying at mealtimes and gathering on Sundays for church.”
Alecia’s travels also provide an interesting backdrop for personal gospel study.
“Seminary has been with me all over the place,” she says of her home-study seminary program. “It puts everything into perspective so that I can understand everything better. Also, sometimes when I’m out in the bush and close to nature, I can really see Heavenly Father’s hand in all things.”

As a physician, I have been with many patients who were close to death. But few of these experiences have touched my heart the way my experience with Cal and Lola Hamilton did.
At age sixty-two, Lola had been ill for years. Nearly blind from diabetes, she had severe arthritis and chronic heart and lung disease. She seemed weary, worn, and older than her years.
But her husband, Cal, did not think of Lola’s ill health as a burden. Cal was healthy and strong. He looked ten years younger than he was, and he still managed an active farming business. Yet in the two hears I had known them, his foremost concern was always his wife’s comfort and well-being.
Caring for Lola was practically a full-time nursing job. Yet Cal did most of it himself, always cheerfully and enthusiastically. Their children, all married now, also helped. The care Lola received at home was often better than she could get in a hospital.
In two years, Lola was hospitalized four times—each for a long period of time. Cal stayed with her constantly, sleeping in a chair at her side or on a little cot. He left long enough to eat a meal only if one of the children was there. Never through all those days did I hear a critical word about a nurse, a hospital worker, or anyone else. Instead, Cal praised and thanked us.
When Lola finally had a massive stroke, Cal was devastated. He never left her side. As she lay unconscious, Lola received a priesthood blessing, surprisingly promising that her full functional capacity would be restored. Because of that blessing we did everything we could to prolong her life.
The days passed and Lola remained unconscious. Cal never left the hospital, but day after day the strain and agony on his face increased and discouragement showed. He looked so thin and tired that I wondered if he had stopped eating. He caught only a few minutes of uninterrupted sleep her and there. Each time Lola’s noisy breathing caught or changed a little, he jumped up to check on her.
Such stress often brings out the worst in a person’s character. But Cal continued to be courteous. This gentle man showed dignity in his grief.
One Saturday after leaving Cal and Lola, I went back to the doctors’ lounge and slumped down on chair. Tears came to my eyes as I thought about Cal’s pain and grief.
Once again, I bowed my head to ask my Heavenly Father if there was something, as Lola’s doctor, that I could do to help. Was there something that I had left undone? I asked about Lola’s priesthood blessing. Why would anyone make such a statement? Was the priesthood holder truly inspired to say what he did?
At that moment, a thought came forcefully into my mind. The only way Lola could be restored to her full capacity was to move on to the next life. I had had this thought before, and I had even mentioned it to Cal. But this time it was accompanied by a feeling of great joy. In my mind, I could see Lola, sweet and attractive, with all her functions restored.
My grief was gone. I felt the unmistakable joy and peace that only the Holy Ghost can bring.
I left the doctors’ lounge with peace in my heart. A few hours later Lola died quietly and peacefully, and Cal finally went home.
I am grateful to Cal, who, by his example, taught me the meaning of love and sacrifice. I am also deeply grateful to the Lord for the miracle of personal revelation that turned a distressing, faith-shaking experience into a sweet, faith-building one.

In 2002 a consortium of companies including General Motors, EDS, Unigraphics, and SUN made a software donation to BYU that amounted to over $300 million (Partners for the Advancement of Computer-Aided Design/Manufacturing/Engineering Education [PACE]). This donation was provided, we were told, to acknowledge the accomplishments of the students and faculty and to help them with their academic programs. We scheduled a time for the presentation that allowed us to focus on this generous gift. I am grateful to all of those students who came and supported us in such grand fashion. The PACE group was all abuzz about their visit and the celebration. Everything about that day was perfect.

Then PACE decided to make a similar donation to BYU—Idaho. This donation was somewhat smaller and amounted to about $60 million in software. Unlike BYU, BYU—Idaho had scheduled their announcement to coincide with their weekly devotional. Just prior to the time of the devotional, President Bednar had a reception for the PACE team. During that time he talked about BYU—Idaho, their unique approach to sports, and the devotional that they held regularly. He explained that it was a custom at BYU—Idaho for all of the students to hold up their scriptures at the beginning of the devotional. Then he presented a copy of the scriptures to the PACE team leader so that he wouldn’t be embarrassed when the students all had their scriptures in their hands and raised them high. During the devotional President Bednar called upon the team leader to say a few words, which he gave most appropriately.

Last year this same PACE team leader asked me to attend an annual conference in New York. There I made a presentation to the other deans in attendance concerning what BYU had done with our PACE gift. After I finished, the PACE team leader related to the entire group of deans that he had a copy of the scriptures that he had received from BYU—Idaho. He told them how he valued these and recounted his wonderful experience there. Remembering who we are can have a lasting effect for good.

Elder Brian Carroll and Elder Westley Burrell
On Christmas Eve we joined the rest of our zone and went to a local convalescent hospital. We read the Christmas story from the Bible and sang carols to the beautiful people there. We ended our night by telling each other of our love for the Savior. We arose the next morning and sang some Spanish Christmas songs and read the Bible together. This Christmas meant so much to me because I had all my thoughts upon the Savior, Jesus Christ. That is the way it should be as a missionary.

In your quest to define yourselves, do not get caught up in comparisons with role models or body types that may seem to be macho or chic but in reality are not becoming to you as sons and daughters of our loving Heavenly Father. One 17-year-old girl became so obsessed about her figure that she began to skip meals and ended up with an eating disorder. When it became apparent to her father, he insisted that she eat a substantial meal. This confrontation ultimately brought her to her senses, and she wrote:
“All my life I had done things for everyone else. The grades, the manners, the awards—everything for them, nothing for me. This eating thing, this losing weight had become mine. It represented me and my choices, and now my dad was trying to take that away from me, too!
“As I lay in bed that night crying and feeling fat, I knew I needed help. I knew I was hurting people I loved.
“After staying up all night, I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t my dad I hated. I hated ME! I realized that I wasn’t in control. For the first time in my life, I understood that this was my problem. I needed to take control of my life—not let the disease control it.
“Things didn’t change overnight. In fact, it was one long road to recovery. But slowly, with the help of friends and family, I began to heal. Now that I’m at my ideal weight, I have stopped weighing myself altogether. I no longer peruse fashion magazines, either—I may not be ‘in style,’ but I feel just right!”3

When I think about light and the many different meanings it has, I reflect on an experience I had last June.

For several years I have had the opportunity to participate in a team race that takes runners through some of the most beautiful scenery in the state. The event starts in Logan and winds through the Wasatch Back to finish in Park City. It is called the Ragnar Relay Series, and each team consists of two vans, with six people packed into each van. Each team spends more than thirty hours together with no sleep, not much food, and few rest spots. Each team member runs three different routes, and the whole team runs a total of more than 180 miles. What an adventure!

Last year I wasn’t quite as prepared as usual after badly spraining my foot a few months before. Just so you know, I was the oldest on the team and by far the slowest runner. Everyone else on my team was really fast. After my first run of nearly six miles, I was okay, but it had been really hard and I had gone pretty slow.

Soon after, our van was starting to get ready for our second leg of runs when my friend Greg mentioned that maybe I should run a shorter leg that was half the length of what I was supposed to run. At first I thought, “Oh, that’s thoughtful of him—he’s concerned about my foot.” But I soon realized that he just didn’t want me to slow down the team.

So I took the shorter run. However, it put me on an unfamiliar course. It was one of the few runs that took place on a trail in the middle of nowhere at 2:00 a.m. There was no lighted path, and there were no signs or obvious markers. I wore a headlamp and a blinking red reflector. My headlamp was the only source of light through the two and a half miles of switchback trails. As you can imagine, it was a bit disconcerting, and it was very challenging to stay on the path. I had to stop a few times to shine my headlamp around for fear that I was off of the course. During the entire run I was scanning for any sign of a light, a marker, or even a blinking reflector from someone. Occasionally I would see in the distance a small red light with an arrow and run in that direction. Once I had passed the arrow, I would scan again, trying to find another red light.

Finally, toward the end of my run, I saw a few runners ahead and followed their lights to the finish. Soon after, a couple of runners came in behind me and thanked me for leading them to the end. Evidently they had been following my light all the way in.

It started in August 2006, when a little boy drowned during a family trip. After losing their son Ryan, Craig and Alisha Adams wanted to build a swing or maybe a seesaw, something for their other children to remember him by. Within a few weeks, the project grew into a full-fledged memorial park, complete with a rocket ship playground and a dragon slide. It became a community effort to build a monument to all children.
Volunteers from across Cache Valley (in northern Utah) donated time and money to design and build Ryan’s Place Park, but first someone needed to dig the foundations for the playground supports. That’s where the Providence stake youth came in.
The park looks a lot different now that it’s finished. The playground echoes with children’s laughter. In addition, there is a cobblestone path that bears the names of children who left this life all too soon. The bittersweet contrast reminds grieving families that they will be with their loved ones again.
“This park is a fun, happy place to remember our family,” Craig Adams says. “One of these days we’re all going to be reunited, and it’ll be such a happy day. When that day comes, all of our suffering will be worth it because we’ll be with Ryan again.”