SURMISINGS

Many years ago, at a family campout, I gazed up at the sunset and wondered, as we all do, at the purpose of it all. Were we here on earth just by chance? What is up there, beyond those stars? Is that why science fiction novels are so appealing? What possibilities await us after death? Is it something to be feared or is death just the end of it all? Do we disappear into nothingness, with the billions who have gone before us? Someone once said, to the uninspired, trying to figure out life is like trying to find the plot while reading the phone book.

Life just seemed too organized, too orchestrated, to ever happen by chance. There must be some creator, some master mind behind it all. Later, with these confused thoughts buzzing through my brain, I grew sleepy and had the following dream:

I was walking down a long path on an outdoor trail. For some reason I felt impelled to stay on the path so that I might get to my destination, wherever that was. By and by, various strangers would appear on the path in front of me and try to entice me from the trail. Some held money, others, opportunities for worldly position, and power; still others offered passion and lust.

Despite all these, I remained on the path and presently was met by messenger who told me I would be rewarded for staying on the trail. The demeanor of the messenger was so startling and his voice so strong, that I immediately awoke and tried to discover what this dream meant. I have my own guesses as to how this inner movie could be interpreted, but since then I have attempted to stay on the path, trying to avoid side trips.

Stealing yet another’s comparison, to say our lives all came about by chance is like saying a dictionary resulted from an explosion in a printing factory. Coincidence can only go so far. These feelings I have shared are not new. All of us have wondered about purpose in our beginnings, our present and our future. I got my answer here: http://www.mormon.org/

GUNS

I’ve never been much for guns. After Vietnam, they seemed such a waste. I guess they have their place in war, or perhaps in shooting animals that you want to consume, but if I owned my own personal weapon, I’d probably wind up accidentally shooting myself. The following story is by another, related to me by the written word. I’ve left out the minor details to preserve this person’s privacy.

“We lived in a big U.S. city and like any large town there were communities that you just stayed away from, especially at night. One particular evening a female friend of my wife, asked for a ride home. She lived in one of these ‘bad neighborhoods’ and my wife and I decided we would help her out. By the time we got to her home it was very dark, so I left my SUV locked and running, with my wife in the passenger seat and walked our friend to the front door of her home and made sure she got in safely. I had parked under a street light and was heading back toward it when I saw two young men, talking loudly and walking past on the sidewalk.

I remained in the shadows till they had gone by and then headed for our vehicle. Somehow, they managed to see me and came back to where I was. One of them, with rancid breath and bloodshot eyes spun me around, stuck a gun in my side and said, ‘Give me your wallet!’ I could see under the glow of that streetlight, that he was young and visibly shaking. I was taller and bigger than he was and the guy with him looked scared and nervous.

Perhaps it was just because of this or perhaps it was because it had been a long, frustrating day, but I answered him with a firm, ‘No!’ Was I really ready to take a chance on dying or being seriously injured for this? Maybe, the gun wasn’t even loaded, I thought. He repeated himself, trying to sound braver this time but failing to convince me. He stared at me for awhile and then told me to unlock the car door. My wife was inside, viewing this whole episode and I thought, if she unlocks the door from inside, we are in trouble.

He screamed at me this time to unlock the door, shoved to gun farther into my ribs for emphasis and used profanity to make sure I understood his message. I again refused and then had the strangest feeling. I was prompted in my mind to not try to get the gun from him. If I did; I saw myself overpowering him and getting control of the gun and then saw the gun firing and killing him. Just as this was happening, a city bus pulled up to a stop, very near to where we were standing. The bus driver and passengers all stared at us and the two youths fled. I got into our SUV and we quickly headed for home, shaken but secure.

I have often wondered how my life would have been affected had I overpowered that youth and the gun discharged into his body. I am grateful for what I believe was a Godly insight, for surely my life would have taken a totally different direction, had I not been warned to make no offensive move.”

MEMORABLE CONVERSIONS

The following info was related to me by a friend and I will paraphrase his words as if they were my own:

“While on my mission, my companion and I met a Catholic priest who would quote from the Book of Mormon when he gave his sermons. He was assigned to a beautiful cathedral, very ornate and finely appointed. We asked him how it was possible for him to quote from a book not approved by his church. He indicated that most people in his congregation knew little of the scriptures, so that it was not a problem. This priest liked Alma chapter five and thirty-four, among others, and would say, ‘according to the Holy Scriptures,’ when quoting and would not give the specific reference. We asked him why he just didn’t join the Mormon Church and he said that he was only two years away from retirement to receive his pension and then he would join. True to his pledge, this is what happened.

Later we moved to a new area and we, as young missionaries, would often run into a Baptist preacher who had a great gift of enthusiastic oratory. He could spout scripture and quote chapter and verse from the Bible. He had his own successful radio broadcast but over the years became intrigued by the Book of Mormon because it testified that the Bible was true and also included additional scripture. An older man and wife missionary couple came to the area and soon the friendship ties grew between them and the preacher, probably because he related more to them than to us. Finally the older couple was scheduled to return home and visited him to say their goodbyes. They found the preacher sitting on his rocking swing with his wife, on the front porch. He was reading the Book of Mormon and smoking his pipe.

They visited for awhile and then the older couple mentioned that this was probably to be the last time they ever saw each other and that the preacher needed to be baptized into the Mormon Faith and put it off no longer. He thanked them for their invitation but declined. They left and he continued to read when suddenly he threw his pipe down and said to his wife, ‘You know what this means don’t you? Now we’ll have to change our life completely and be baptized Mormons!’ She remarked, ‘I’m surprised it took you so long to make up your mind!’

The next time he went on the air with his radio program, he announced to his shocked listeners that he was joining the Mormon Church and invited them to do likewise. The producers of his program promptly fired him and he could not get a job doing anything in that town. Eventually he was hired as a custodian of a local Mormon Chapel and later became the ward Bishop.

But the story doesn’t end there. On a certain Saturday, about 25 converts who had received the missionary discussions were scheduled to be baptized in the Stake Center baptismal font. This new bishop was conducting the meeting. He got so excited about these baptisms that he gave another enthusiastic call for baptism to the friends that these new converts had brought with them. We were all surprised and embarrassed when he called for something more common in other faiths than in the Mormon Church. He encouraged what is known as an ‘altar rush’ and several more committed to baptism. This had to be organized properly so that these newer converts could receive the missionary discussions first before being baptized. Thus the Church continues its amazing growth.”