Dual Ponderings

Cedar City Temple

At October General Conference 1986 M. Russell Ballard said:

“Shortly after the death of Sister LeGrand Richards, I was assigned to be Elder Richards’ junior companion to assist him in creating the Atlanta Georgia Stake. As we were flying toward his beloved Southern States Mission, he said to me, “Brother Ballard, I am not afraid to die; the only thing I worry about is, will I be able to find Mommy over there.”

I was impressed to say to Elder Richards that in his case that could be a real problem. Immediately, I had his full attention. He looked me directly in the eye and said, “What do you mean by that?”

With my emotions near the surface, I answered this great missionary, “Elder Richards, when you die, so many people there will be anxious to greet you because you introduced the gospel to them that you might have difficulty finding Mommy in the crowd.” His response was, “Oh, you don’t mean that.”

We all might ask ourselves the question, who will be there to greet us?”

Next, on a different topic:

WORDS OF NOTE PART TWO (Taken the writings of Joseph Fielding McConkie and his book, 50 Truths The Devil Doesn’t Want You to Know)

18. From page 20:  “As members of the Church, when other members are presented to us to serve as leaders, we are invited to raise our right hand in covenant to sustain them.  In some instances pigeons may be called to preside over eagles.  The issue is not who can fly the highest, or the fastest or see the furthest; it is a matter of being able to fly in formation.  We do not nominate those who will serve.  The authority to do so rests with God…

We have no doctrines that have the right to bully others doctrines.  Our doctrines, like our leaders, labor in harmony side by side.  Force or manipulation has no part of leadership nor can it be part of any of our doctrines.

20. From page 23:  “As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we hold to the doctrine that we are members of the only true and living church on the face of the whole earth.’  (D&C 1:30)

If this is not the case, Joseph and Hyrum Smith sealed their testimony in the Carthage Jail for no better reason than we have a wonderful choir, good youth programs and the welfare system.  These are not the things for which thousands upon thousands of people the world over gave up all they had to gather to Zion.  These things are not the reason so many have been disowned by their families for joining the Church.  They are not the reason we pay an honest tithe or respond to the call to serve whatever the cost in time or energy may be.”

21. From page 24:  “Can we serve a God of truth in error and ignorance?  Is it reasonable to suppose the time will come when those who seek after the truth will not draw the wrath of the prince of darkness?  Why is it that God, who we are told does not care what we believe, becomes so concerned when the Latter-day Saints are involved?

In a discussion of religious issues, few questions are more emotionally charged than that of whether there is only one true church.

The announcement that only one church can be true, with its attendant implication that all others are false, gives immediate offense to many who suppose that such a conclusion excludes great hosts of wonderful people from the love of God and the blessings of heaven.  It is thought to be incompatible with the idea of a loving God and often is labeled as intolerant and unchristian.

 

Thus we ask why such a question is so threatening?  Does it not follow that if there are false teachers, false doctrines, false ordinances, false prophets and even false Christ’s that there could be false churches?   Is there not some significance in the fact that Christ did not affiliate himself with one of the various sects of the day?  Is it not of importance that he organized but one Church, not a host of competing sects?

Surely no real blessings can accrue from falsehoods. 

To mistakenly swallow poison makes it no less harmful than to take it by design.  Surely there are ideas that are harmful to the soul as there are practices that are harmful to the mortal body.”

Obedience

Pres. Ezra Taft Benson’s Mission Trial (Taken from a small part of a message in Apr. 1985 Gen. Conference)

"In 1923 I was serving a mission in Great Britain. At that time there was great opposition to the Church. It began with the ministers and then spread through the press. Many anti-Mormon articles appeared in the daily press. A number of anti-Mormon movies were shown and derogatory plays were produced on the stage. 

The general theme was the same—that Mormon missionaries were in England to lure away British girls and make slaves of them on Utah farms. Today that seems fantastic, but in those days it was very real. In some places we even had to stop tracting because of such misunderstandings.

One time we received a letter from mission headquarters instructing us that we should discontinue all street meetings. At that time I was serving as the conference president, and my companion was the conference clerk. When this instruction arrived, we already had a meeting scheduled for the following Sunday night. So we reasoned that we would hold that meeting and then discontinue street meetings thereafter. That’s where we made our mistake!

The next Sunday evening we held our street meeting down near the railway station as scheduled. The crowd was large and unruly. In our efforts to preach to them, my companion and I stood back to back. He spoke in one direction, and I faced the other half of the crowd.

When the saloons closed, the rougher, coarser element came out on the streets, many under the influence of liquor. The crowd became noisy, and those on the outside were not able to hear too well.

Some yelled, “What’s the excitement?”

Others yelled back, “It’s those dreadful Mormons.”

To this, others responded, “Let’s get them and throw them in the river.”

Soon an attempt was made to trample us under their feet. But since we were taller than the average man there, we put our hands on their shoulders and prevented them from getting us under their feet.

During the excitement, my companion and I became separated. They took him down the far side of the railway station and me down the near side. Things began to look pretty bad.

Then a big husky fellow came up to me as some of the others formed a circle around me about ten feet in diameter. The man looked me straight in the eye and said, “Young man, I believe every word you said tonight!”

By this time a British policeman had worked his way through the crowd. He took me by the arm and said, “Young man, you come with me. You’re lucky to be alive in this crowd.” He led me several blocks and then ordered, “Now you get to your lodge and don’t come out anymore tonight.”

When I arrived at the lodge, I found that my companion was not yet there. I worried and then prayed and waited. I became so concerned about him that I decided to disguise my appearance by putting on an old American cap and taking off my topcoat. Then I went out to try to find him.

As I neared the place of the meeting, a man recognized me and asked, “Have you seen your companion?”

I said, “No. Where is he?”

He responded, “He’s down on the other side of the railway station with one side of his head mashed in.”

This frightened me greatly, and I sprinted to the site as fast as I could. Before I reached the railway station, however, I met the same policeman again. He said, “I thought I told you to stay in and not come out on the street again tonight.”

I replied, “You did, officer. But I’m concerned about my companion. Do you know where he is?”

He replied, “Yes, he got a nasty blow on the side of his head, but he’s gone to the lodge now. I walked partway with him as I did earlier with you. Now you get back there and don’t come out anymore tonight.”

So I went back to the lodge and found my companion disguising himself in order to go out and look for me. We threw our arms around each other and knelt together in prayer. From that experience I learned always to follow counsel, and that lesson has followed me all the days of my life."