Gospel Story Finder

It is not difficult to apply these principles in a family setting, especially to our children. Parenting is good training to become good Christians; occasionally children think of their parents in that context. Years ago, Jack Smith told of a poignant story of two young boys at Christmastime.
“I didn’t question Timmy, age nine, or his seven-year-old brother, Billy, about the brown wrapping paper they passed back and forth between them as we visited each store.
“Every year at Christmastime, our Service Club takes the children from poor families in our town on a personally conducted shopping tour. I was assigned Timmy and Billy, whose father was out of work. After giving them the allotted [U.S.] $4.00 each, we began our trip. At different stores I made suggestions, but always their answer was a solemn shake of the head, no. Finally, I asked, ‘Where would you suggest we look?’
“‘Could we go to a shoe store, Sir?’ answered Timmy. ‘We’d like a pair of shoes for our Daddy so he can go to work.’
“In the shoe store the clerk asked what the boys wanted. Out came the brown paper. ‘We want a pair of work shoes to fit this foot,’ they said. Billy explained that it was a pattern of their Daddy’s foot. They had drawn it while he was asleep in a chair.
“The clerk held the paper against a measuring stick, then walked away. Soon, he came with an open box. ‘Will these do?’ he asked. Timmy and Billy handled the shoes with great eagerness. ‘How much do they cost?’ asked Billy. Then Timmy saw the price on the box. ‘They’re $16.95,’ he said in dismay. ‘We only have $8.00.’
“I looked at the clerk and he cleared his throat. ‘That’s the regular price,’ he said, ‘but they’re on sale; $3.98, today only.’ Then, with shoes happily in hand the boys bought gifts for their mother and two little sisters. Not once did they think of themselves.
“The day after Christmas the boys’ father stopped me on the street. The new shoes were on his feet, gratitude was in his eyes. ‘I just thank Jesus for people who care,’ he said. ‘And I thank Jesus for your two sons,’ I replied. ‘They really taught me more about Christmas in one evening than I had learned in a lifetime.’”1

I grew up thinking uncomfortable emotions like sadness and frustration were something to be feared, fought, and avoided. But in truth, all our emotions come as a package deal with our mortal experience. And they’re insightful teachers and great catalysts for helping us grow. Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught, “Mortality presents us with numerous opportunities to become more Christlike: first, by coping successfully with … life’s challenges.”1
For much of my life, I tried to control my feelings, like distracting myself from hard emotions or pushing them away to avoid facing them. Throughout my teenage years I developed negative coping mechanisms like clinging to perfectionism because I thought if I didn’t ever make mistakes, I could avoid being hurt. I also never asked for help out of fear of burdening other people.
But I eventually learned that the habits I engaged in for so long to deal with my stress or anxiety were harming me, not helping me. I realized I needed to learn how to face my challenges and cope with them in healthier ways. It took a lot of self-reflection, research, and practice to unlearn the negative coping strategies I’ve used in the past. I’ve gained a greater understanding of how the Atonement of Jesus Christ can help me change and become “a new creature” (2 Corinthians 5:17) with Christ’s help. I’m now learning to cope with difficult emotions in ways that help me use my challenges to become more Christlike.
Remember you engaged in habits for a reason. You wouldn’t cling to bad habits if they weren’t serving you in some way, even if that “service” is a false sense of joy or security. For example, my perfectionistic tendencies used to help me avoid facing my fears about not meeting others’ expectations. But when I let go of those expectations, I felt so much lighter! When you consciously recognize what problem you’re avoiding with your negative coping mechanisms, you can intentionally make a healthier plan to process your feelings.
Change takes time, and I’m still learning about coping with challenges in a healthy way. Yet through faith, patience, and practice, I have already seen great improvements in the way I handle difficulties. I know that by turning to Christ and believing in your ability to grow, you can build better habits that will help you live a more peaceful and intentional life.

At the community pool I looked in the lost and found for a missing piece to my goggles. I didn’t find the piece, but I saw a mermaid doll. I thought it was mine, so I took it. When I got home I found another mermaid doll in my room. I knew the one I had found at the pool was not mine. I could have kept both, but I wanted the person who had lost the doll to find it. We returned the extra doll to the pool. I know that I chose the right thing to do, and it made me feel happy to help someone else.

I have wanted to serve a mission since I was 8 years old. I am now 15 years old, and I want to serve the Lord. When I read “The Hope of a Missionary” in the July 2005 Liahona, I was inspired to begin preparing to serve. The young man in the story made many sacrifices to be able to serve, and I can do the same.
I want to express my gratitude for those who are involved in distributing the good news of the Liahona all over the world. It inspires us and can help us obtain great blessings.Julius J. Andrada Jr., Philippines

Annelise is a third-generation Church member. Her grandma and grandpa were baptized many years ago, her dad grew up in the Church and married a member, and Annelise is a lifelong member. She is now a member of the Frederiksberg Ward, and Annelise, a Beehive, is, along with Pia, one of the few young women in the ward.
The ward currently meets in a rented building. The elevator in the building is pretty slow, so Annelise takes the stairs. Three flights of stairs get her to the top floor, where she enters the chapel. The building is clean and nice, but Annelise says there is a temporary feeling about where the Frederiksberg Ward meets. She looks out the window of the chapel and points.
“That’s our old chapel right there,” she says. She’s looking at a beautiful brick building one block away, one of the first the Church built in this country. And it sits empty—for good reason.
“That is where our temple is going to be,” Annelise explains.
The temple in Copenhagen will serve the members in Denmark and other parts of Scandinavia. Having a temple 10 minutes from her house instead of the 12 hours it takes to get to the Stockholm Sweden Temple is a real blessing. Annelise knows it is worth the sacrifice.
But there is still the issue of a new meetinghouse. The lease on the temporary building will expire soon. So this Sunday, the Frederiksberg Ward is holding a fast, praying that the city will give the Church approval to build on property it has purchased.* Annelise is joining other ward members in fasting and praying for this special purpose.
This morning Annelise admits she’s hungry. “But when I fast I feel close to God and I feel more humble,” she says. “I don’t feel fasting is that much of a sacrifice, and I believe if everybody in this ward prays for the same thing, then our Heavenly Father will help us.”
After sacrament meeting, with her fast almost complete, Annelise doesn’t dash home to eat. Instead, she walks out the door holding the arm of Christel Petersen, a 96-year-old ward member. Sister Petersen joined the Church in 1958 and taught Annelise’s father in Sunday School. Each month Annelise gets to know her better by taking some time to visit with her.
“Sister Petersen is nice to talk with. I think she is a strong woman because she is the only member of the Church in her family. Her husband never joined, and her children were already grown when she was baptized,” Annelise explains. “She is 96 years old, and she still comes to church each Sunday.
“I admire people like Sister Petersen who are close to Heavenly Father,” Annelise adds. “And when I do things like fasting, it brings me closer to Him too.”
* A few months after Annelise and others fasted, the Church received a permit to construct a new building for the Frederiksberg Ward.

Meilian, a Laurel, was having a hard time thinking of projects, so Rasha invited her over to cook meals and desserts every Saturday for a month. “I did it for my Knowledge project,” Meilian says. “I learned to make food for my family. And now when I go to college I’ll be able to cook for myself. That helps me be self-reliant, because take-outs get expensive.”

“One morning … I received an e-mail from a college friend. She wrote, ‘Ray died this morning.’ And then she said, ‘Visiting teaching works. It really works.’ … Here was my dear friend bearing testimony to me that what we call visiting teaching is really so much more than a visit or a thought. It’s how we connect with one another. …
“Mourn, comfort, stand as witnesses. All of those promises came together for my friend. … [The Lord] had sent her two sisters who had entered into a covenant with Him. … They were sisters in the gospel who understood their charge to do this work with heart and soul. … That’s the essence of visiting teaching.”

When Katrin Schulze of Germany went to college far away from home, she was suddenly tested in her resolve to keep the Sabbath day holy. “My parents had taught me and my siblings about the importance of keeping the Sabbath day holy,” she said. “For us, that meant no working, shopping, or playing sports on Sunday. I cannot remember any exceptions.
“My college required that I participate in a seminar that always occupied a full weekend—both Saturday and Sunday. I had a terrible dilemma—unless I participated, I could not graduate; on the other hand, I wanted to keep all the Lord’s commandments. As I studied the situation, I realized this wasn’t a problem I could solve on my own. I pleaded with the Lord and asked Him to show me the way to be obedient and complete my studies. I felt peace inside after that prayer.
“As the date of the seminar grew closer, I felt nervous but remained confident that He could prepare a way. One day I stood at the board where the seminar schedules were listed. Most were over the weekend, but there was one section scheduled over three days, not including a Sunday. I realized the Lord was helping me keep the Sabbath day holy. Never before and never again has there been that seminar on any day but Sunday, but the year I needed it so badly, the Lord made it possible for me. I am so grateful the Lord provided a way to help me keep His commandments.”

This story took place in Australia.
Noah helped his sister Claire hang a fuzzy blanket over the chairs.
“Should we put this one here?” he asked. He held up the blue blanket with the whales on it.
“Yeah! And we can use this as the door.” Claire pointed to one side of the fort.
“Time for school!” Mom called.
Noah looked at his sister. “Maybe we can finish our fort after school?”
“And we can ask Mom and Dad if we can play games inside it,” Claire said.
Noah smiled and nodded. He was glad he could build forts and play with his big sister!
That day at recess, Noah played with his friends Ty and Mark.
“Let’s hop on one foot,” Ty said.
“OK,” said Noah. “Let’s see who can hop the longest!”
The boys started hopping. Noah laughed when he crashed into Mark.
Just then, Claire walked by with some girls from her class.
“Hi,” Claire said, waving.
“Oh no. Girls are coming! We don’t want to play with them,” Ty said. Then he called Claire and her friends a mean name.
Noah didn’t like how the words made him feel. It wasn’t nice to call people mean names.
He watched Claire and her friends ignore Ty and walk away.
Noah thought he should stand up for Claire, even if she didn’t really need him to. She was his sister, and he loved her.
Noah took a deep breath. “Hey, don’t say that, please,” he told Ty. “She doesn’t like it when you say that. And I don’t either.”
“OK. Fine,” Ty said with a shrug.
Noah sighed. He felt a lot better now.
That night, Noah and Claire played games in their fort with Mom and Dad.
“How was school today?” Dad asked as he put a card on the pile.
“Today during recess, Ty called Claire a mean name,” Noah said. “I told him to stop.”
Claire looked up from her cards. “You did?” she asked.
Noah nodded. “Yeah. I knew what he said wasn’t kind or true.”
Mom, Dad, and Claire smiled.
“Thanks,” Claire said.
“I’m glad you showed respect for your sister,” said Mom.
“Yeah, that was very brave,” Dad said. “It’s important to show respect for each other. Even if we have to stand up to our friends.”
Noah smiled back. He felt good knowing he had done the right thing.
Act out the story! What would you say if a friend called someone a mean name?
Illustrations by Violet Lemay

When Spencer was about a year old, his parents encouraged him to draw during sacrament meeting so he would not make a fuss. Then, when he was 4 or 5 years old, his parents put paper on some of the walls in their home for him to draw on, since he drew all the time.

Mom, look!
“You’re invited to Dante’s birthday party!”
Can we go get Dante’s present now?
OK. But we don’t have much money for gifts.
Can we get this?
I’m sorry. We don’t have enough.
How about this?
Well, Dante does like candy bars …
Besides, your friendship is the best gift you can give.
Is a candy bar enough? Maybe it would be better if I didn’t go.
At the party …
Cool! Thanks, Hannah!
I LOVE these! Thank you, Ben!
Really?
Yeah, they’re my favorite!
Thanks for coming to my party! I’m glad we’re friends.
Mom was right! Friendship is the best gift of all.

I left my quiet harbor
In favor of another—I know not where.
But first,
there are seas to cross
and storms to brave.
How could I prefer the foreign deep
to the encircling arms of my bay?
Because some things
can only be learned
at sea.
Yes, my craft is watertight.
I can navigate the unknown,
And O, the wind that fills my sails
blows from home.

President J. Scott Dorius of the Peru Lima West Mission told me their story. He said:
“Becky and I were married for 25 years without being able to have [or adopt] children. We moved several times. Introducing ourselves in each new setting was awkward and sometimes painful. Ward members wondered why we [didn’t have] children. They weren’t the only ones wondering.
“When I was called as a bishop, ward members [expressed] concern that I did not have any experience with children and teenagers. I thanked them for their sustaining vote and asked them to allow me to practice my child-raising skills on their children. They lovingly obliged.
“We waited, gained perspective, and learned patience. After 25 years of marriage, a miracle baby came into our lives. We adopted two-year-old Nicole and then newborn Nikolai. Strangers now compliment us on our beautiful grandchildren. We laugh and say, ‘They are our children. We have lived our lives backwards.’”

In the spring of 1951 President and Sister McKay left Salt Lake City for a much needed vacation. However, on their first night away, President McKay awoke with a distinct impression that they should return to Church headquarters, which they did the next morning. Within a few weeks President Smith suffered a stroke and passed away.16

Before the two were married, they lived 100 miles (161 km) apart while he studied in Tijuana, and she studied in Mexicali. In the months before their marriage, they prayed and fasted to know where to live and start their family. Elder Casillas remembers the feeling he had from the Holy Ghost.
“I remember while we were fasting, hearing the Lord say, ‘If your mountain is La Rumorosa [a large mountain located between the two cities], I will take it away,’” Elder Casillas said.
He said the Lord cleared the path for the couple to be in Mexicali when the university there unexpectedly accepted him as a transfer student.
In Mexicali, “we met people we needed to meet. And we served in callings where we needed to serve,” he said.
This experience set a pattern for their life together. “When we put God first, all other things find their place,” Elder Casillas said. “It requires a little bit of faith and a little bit of action, and then the Lord extends His hand to bless us.”

Born to Andrew H. and Lola Heaton Gibbons on July 30, 1942, in Logan, Utah, USA, Elder Gibbons has had myriad opportunities to develop that philosophy. He served a mission in the Netherlands, one of the greatest periods of growth in his life. While he was away, his father died, and he had to choose between a local university near home to help his mother and the away-from-home challenges of Stanford University. At his family’s urging, he returned to Stanford, where he studied history. He chose to be a physician, earning his medical degree from the University of Utah and a master of public health degree from Harvard University.

This story happened in South Korea.
Jayne took one last bite of her noodles. Mmmm. Delicious!
“Let’s play Yut Nori!” Uncle Ji-Ho said.
It was that time of year again! Her family was celebrating Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving. Today Jayne’s family had gathered to eat lots of food and play Yut Nori together. Yut Nori was Jayne’s favorite game.
Everyone sat in a circle on the floor. Jayne looked around. What team did she want to be on? She scooted over to sit next to Uncle Ji-Ho. “I want to be on your team!” she said. “We’re going to be the big winners!”
Uncle Ji-Ho laughed. “With you on our team, we sure have a good chance!”
Jayne’s mom set the game board in the middle of the circle. Jayne helped her set out the pieces. They passed the four sticks to the team that would go first.
Jayne’s cousin Ana took the first turn. She threw the sticks into the air. The way the sticks landed showed how many spaces that team could move on the game board. All four sticks were facing down, which meant that Ana got a Yut! She got to move her team’s piece forward four spaces and got an extra turn.
But Ana was not on Jayne’s team.
Jayne folded her arms and frowned. “I was hoping she wouldn’t have a good throw,” she whispered to Uncle Ji-Ho.
“Cheer up!” Uncle Ji-Ho said. “The game just started.” He gave her an encouraging smile.
After Ana’s second turn, Jayne’s team threw the sticks. But they didn’t get to move their pieces as far as Ana’s team did.
With every turn, Jayne’s family members cheered and laughed. Jayne watched the game pieces move around the board. Everyone was having fun.
Everyone but Jayne. Her team was still losing.
Finally it was Jayne’s turn. She threw the sticks in the air, but only one landed face down. Her team’s piece moved forward only one space.
Jayne folded her arms. “I quit!” she yelled. “I wanted us to win.”
Suddenly, everyone was quiet. When she looked up, her family was staring at her. They seemed surprised that she was so angry.
Jayne’s face felt hot. She felt bad that she wasn’t happy for her family. She didn’t usually get so mad. She stood up to leave the circle.
Uncle Ji-Ho put a hand out. “You don’t have to leave,” he said. “Winning isn’t everything. Just try to have fun.”
“OK.” Jayne sat back down. She wanted to have fun like everyone else. She took a deep breath and watched her cousin Ben toss the sticks.
“Nice turn, Ben!” Uncle Ji-Ho said. He sounded happy.
Jayne looked at Uncle Ji-Ho with wide eyes. He was cheering for the other team! Maybe that was why he was having so much fun.
As the next turn began, Jayne decided to cheer for everyone on both teams. Uncle Ji-Ho was right. Winning wasn’t everything. Jesus could help her be happy for her family members even if she lost.
When it was Ana’s turn again, Jayne smiled at her. “Good luck! You’ve got this.”
From across the circle, Ana smiled back. Jayne felt warm inside. She was having more fun already!

(127) The four-year-old son of Quentin L. Cook “can do everything now.”

As I was reading the September 1986 issue of the New Era I noticed the editor’s note about the Mormonad posters. I had never really paid much attention to the ads. So I took out all of the New Eras I had (which was about 40) and looked through each one to see if there was a Mormonad. Then I noticed the Mormonisms, and I read them all. Next I saw the Feedback department and read the letters to the editor also. It’s so neat to read how other people feel. Most of the time I feel the same.
I never used to read the New Era. It wasn’t until I was 14 that I started to read it. I only read the fiction—especially the stories by Jack Weyland and Alma Yates (two of my favorite writers). Now I can’t wait till the New Era comes. Thanks, New Era, for publishing the best super fantastic magazine in the world. I love you, New Era.
Jane BlackmunLos Alamitos, California

Another big eater is the elephant that must also consume great quantities of food. Its trunk is used like a hand to grasp food that’s stuffed into its mouth, but how messy that is! An elephant blows food, throws it, and stomps on it until the jungle is a shambles.
Elephants can shake down the nuts from a coconut tree by wrapping their trunks around the tree’s trunk and then giving it a good shake. When the nuts fall on the ground, the elephants crack them open with their front feet.
One of the elephants’ favorite tricks is to pull up bunches of grass with their trunks and remove the dirt clinging to the roots by beating each clump against their front legs.