Brothers and sisters, aloha and good morning.
Before speaking to you today, I want to first publicly express my love and appreciation to Pam for her introduction and more importantly for her love and devotion to me and our family for nearly 47 years. She is the real reason I am with you today. She is the wind beneath my wings. She is the sunshine of my life.
I also want to take a moment to express appreciation to President and Sister Wheelwright for their kindness and hospitality and many years of friendship. I believe I have known President Wheelwright longer than anyone here today, including Margaret. He and I first met in the eighth grade in junior high school. In ninth grade we both attended an early morning seminary class where we gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon. That experience has anchored our friendship these many years.
There are many stories I could tell you about our high school experiences together, some would be better told in another setting. What I want you to know is that he has always been a worthy priesthood bearer, a competitive athlete – he led our high school swim team to a regional championship – and a brilliant student and academician.
His only weakness, that I am aware of, is that he thinks for some reason that the England London Mission is the best in all the church, when he really knows that the very best mission is the England London South Mission. Despite that, I am just very proud to be able to call him my lifelong friend.
I appreciate the opportunity to speak to you today.
I recognize by your presence that you represent what was foreseen centuries ago by Nephi when he said:
“And it came to pass that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few ... ; nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God, were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small. ...
“And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory” (1 Nephi 14:12,14).
In a very real way all of you assembled here today represent some of what Nephi saw in his revelation. Here in this devotional, over 70 different nations are represented by covenant people of the Lord who possess the power of God. What a privilege it is for me to be here with all of you.
Of the many important events that occurred during the restoration, none are greater than the restoration of the power, keys and authority of the priesthood.
Without presuming to be an authority on the priesthood, I have spent many years, along with all of you, considering its purpose and power. I am a witness of the reality of the restoration of this magnificent power and many of its attendant blessings.
The next few weeks are very important to us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ.
On May 15, we commemorate the restoration of the Aaronic Priesthood at the hands of John the Baptist and a few weeks later, in June, we will remember the restoration of the Melchizedek Priesthood by Peter, James and John.
We recently celebrated Easter. As members of the restored church, we also remember that it was on Easter Sunday in 1836, when the Savior Jesus Christ, Moses, Elias and Elijah appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple. They conferred the keys of their respective dispensations and Elijah conferred the sealing power which binds our families together throughout eternity.
Today I am going to share two experiences that have happened in our family recently that testify of the reality of the restoration and magnificent power of the priesthood. They are still very tender to me so I hope I can tell you without too much emotion.
Just over one year ago, I was serving as the president of the Pioneer YSA stake in Salt Lake City. On April 15 last year, I was released as the stake president. At the time of my release, I came down with a very bad cold. This was the only time I had been really sick during my five years of service. Within a few days of my release I had lost my voice and was unable to speak above a whisper. This lasted for many days and I finally went to my doctor. He felt it was likely a complication of the recent cold and told me to gargle regularly, steam frequently and rest my voice as much as possible. Pam was grateful for that prescription.
Another couple of weeks pass and I still am unable to speak above a whisper. Finally, I went to see a specialist. He quickly diagnosed my problem as a paralyzed vocal cord. Then he ordered a series of tests to rule out the possibility of cancer or other complications. Fortunately, these tests were all negative and the doctor determined the cause of my paralysis was simply unknown – but possibly caused by a virus.
Several more weeks passed by with no improvement. Plans were made for me to have the first of several possible surgical procedures performed in an attempt to restore some of my voice.
I was scheduled to have this surgery on Tuesday, August 21. On Sunday, August 19, I asked my son and sons-in-law to administer to me. (Having spent most of my professional career working with hospitals and having a father-in-law who was an anesthesiologist I knew that anytime you need a general anesthetic, there are serious risks and I was worried.)
The next morning as I got up, I found for the first time in 127 days that I was able to speak. Not with a completely normal voice, but with significant improvement. I called my doctor and told him that I felt it best to postpone the surgery. What I concluded was that the Lord did not want me to have surgery at this time.
Over the next few weeks my voice grew stronger and today I am able to speak without difficulty.
Truly this to me was an answer to my prayers and fasting and another personal experience with the power of the priesthood, which was restored to this earth by the prophet Joseph Smith. (I should add, while my voice has been healed, I still wasn’t invited to sing in the ward choir Easter program – maybe that’s a different problem.)
The second experience I would like to share involved our daughter Kelly.
Last June, our daughter Kelly was asked to help with the girls camp in her stake. She is a busy mother of four. With her husband serving in the bishopric, she wasn’t too anxious to go but she decided to accept the call because it was the first camp for her oldest daughter.
A couple of weeks prior to the camp, the stake YW president and the camp director had gone to check out the camp site. They wanted to be sure they had everything they needed. They happened to run into a park ranger who told them among other things that their cell phones would not work there and they needed a satellite phone to communicate. He also gave them a number to call if they needed assistance from nearby help. Before the camp they acquired a satellite phone.
The day of camp arrived, June 26. A brother, who I will call Brother Dan, was recruited in a neighboring ward to help his wife bring all the equipment for their ward. I’m going to quote a lot from Dan’s own words as I share her experience. He was kind enough to write it up and share it.
All the participants, including a few men who had been asked to help set up the camp, met with their ward members early that day and left for the camp site. The camp was about an hour and a half away.
After Dan and his wife arrived with all of their ward’s equipment and they had finished their lunch, he was asked by one of the stake YW leaders to come and give a young sister a blessing. He was told at the time that he was the only man and priesthood holder in the entire camp. The other men who had been there earlier, had already left. He said he was somewhat nervous about giving this priesthood blessing alone with so little time to adequately prepare. He only had a few minutes to walk from his camp to where this young sister was located.
After he had given the young sister a blessing he returned to their camp area. The stake YW president came by to thank him and he says “perhaps she was inspired at that time to tell me... You can’t leave camp you’re the only Priesthood holder we have in the whole camp.” He hadn’t planned to stay but he had brought extra equipment and decided he could stay until other men arrived.
After our daughter arrived, she was helping to put up a large tarp or plastic cover, to provide shade over an eating area. She had been climbing trees to attach the cover. On the fourth corner she was about 10 feet up in a tree when the dried branches of the tree gave way and she suddenly fell, hit a table with her back and was thrown head first onto the asphalt paved eating area.
I’m now going to share in Dan’s words what happened next.
A few hours after Dan had given the blessing to the young Sister, he wrote:
“In our own camp, we had just started a fire we would use to cook our dinners. Sister Harris, one of the stake leaders, came to the edge of our camp and quietly got my attention. She told me that someone had fallen out of a tree and also needed a blessing. Again, my heart began to race a little. As we walked she gave me scattered bits of what had apparently happened. It was clear that she was agitated. Her pace quickened. A moment later she sped up even faster. We were now running up the trail, past the stake camp and around a bend. There lying on the asphalt was one of the Young Women’s leaders. Other leaders were kneeling and standing at her side. Again I was not prepared for what I had been summoned to do. Not like earlier, this was different.
“I was expecting that someone might need a cast for a broken arm or maybe even a leg. No, that clearly was not the case. The condition of this young mother and the gravity of the situation hit me and I was afraid.
“I knelt on the ground above her head. Trying to process what I was seeing and all that was being explained by the others as to what had happened. It was immediately evident that she was in very serious condition. Her arms and shoulders were shaking violently. She was kicking her legs in the bushes to the side of the trail. We tried to isolate her head and movements so that she didn’t do herself further damage.
“The stake YW’S president was in the background, on a satellite phone talking to the 911 Operator. She relayed questions and answers and gave us instructions on what we needed to do to care for her as we waited for help to arrive. They told us that paramedics were on their way but It would be more than half an hour before they would arrive.
“The back of her head was a mass of bloody hair. Someone brought a bag of ice. We also put a cold compress on her forehead.
“Those at her side kept talking to her, each holding a separate hand. We had been instructed to keep this up and not let her lose consciousness. A nurse who was also there, kept checking her pupils, which were fixed and dilated. She was not able to speak even with the constant dialog aimed at her. She just continued to kick and shake violently. All this time I sat there trying to summon inspiration and direction as to what I could possible say in a blessing.
“Judging from her condition, it appeared to me that someone’s life was in my hands. Thinking to myself, this is surely a job for someone else. There should be someone far better to carry this heavy burden. ‘Isn’t there another brother who could assist me,’ I asked? The question was met with empty, blank faced stares. One of the sisters asked, ‘Do you not want to give her a blessing?’ That wasn’t it. I explained that I can do it alone, but it would be nice to have someone by my side. I was still not ready to proceed. My mind was racing. In my heart of hearts I was still at a loss as to what I could and should say, what could I promise? Was I up to this? There was no one else.
“It took a few more minutes before I realized what I should have known all along. I did have someone by my side... He’s always by my side.
“I now resolutely said, ‘Let’s give her a blessing.’ I was still holding the cold compress on her forehead. I addressed her by name and then paused as the Spirit came into my heart. I knew that with the next six, seemingly simple words, that came out of my mouth I was stepping over a threshold into another realm. I would then be speaking the mind and will of the Lord. I proceeded, ‘In the name of Jesus Christ.’ I then declared the Priesthood authority by which I spoke in His name. Continuing, as the impressions came into my heart and mind, I blessed her with a peace and a comfort to come over her. Also, that the Lord was mindful of her and grateful for her service. I promised her that help was on the way.
“Almost unknowingly, I then commanded the elements of heaven and earth. The next impression came into my mind, and a split second later, came out of my mouth. ‘I bless you that you will recover from this accident.’ Nothing I had been seeing for the past twenty minutes or so suggested that this was a logical conclusion that I could make. The combination of those two phrases I had just pronounced, were so profound and out of character for me, I was struggling a bit with what I had just said. No simple man, of his own power, can make those commands. There was no denying the strong promptings as the Lord directed me. The blessing closed with the sealing of those blessings on her head, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Dan continued: “A collective, ‘Amen’ was pronounced by all those who were at Kelly’s side. Sister Witt, who was holding her right hand, immediately said, ‘Kelly it’s a miracle.’ She was looking at her face and was able to see that her pupils were no longer dilated and rolled back unresponsive. Sister Witt, once more, as she had been doing for nearly thirty minutes now, carrying on a one-way conversation with her friend, said ‘Kelly do you feel it? Do you feel the miracle that happened just as soon as he sealed those blessings on your head?’ Remarkably to us all, this time there was an answer. Kelly spoke. She answered ‘yes.’ This was the first sound she had made since I had arrived. She was no longer shaking violently or kicking her legs. The first portion of the blessing had come to pass just as soon as I closed.
Brother Dan concludes: “It is my most humble testimony that yes, a handful of people in a distant corner of Gods creations, were privileged that day to witness, and be a part of a miracle.”
Our daughter was taken by ambulance to the Park City Hospital and then transferred to the trauma intensive care unit at the Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City.
She had a large skull fracture and two places where her brain was bleeding. Other tender mercies were granted to her as she was treated in the trauma unit. She was released after a week in the hospital to go home to recuperate. Her brain bleeds and resulting hematoma did not require surgery. Over time she has recovered as promised with only a few issues still remaining. (No paralysis, no permanent brain damage.) Today she is a busy active mother and wife caring for her family.
There are so many lessons to be learned from these experiences.
We are so grateful for the power, blessings and authority that were exercised by a worthy stake YW leader, who through her preparations was guided and directed by the Lord in such a way that her leaders and the young women she presided over were blessed. She followed the counsel of a Park Service employee to get a satellite phone because he knew regular cell phones would not work in this area.
(It’s interesting to note that even with the satellite phone, she was only able to complete two calls on that phone – the first to the 911 operator and the second to her stake president. Then the phone lost service.)
I have no doubt, that the faith and prayers of many wonderful young women leaders were recognized in a blessing from the Lord because they had accepted the call from their priesthood leaders to serve.
I’m thankful for Brother Dan who magnifies his priesthood.
As Kelly’s husband said later to him, “We are so grateful to you for being ready, willing and worthy to administer to her in her time of need.” This has also been a life changing experience for Dan.
I am thankful for worthy sons who through their faith and the power of the priesthood were able to invoke a blessing upon me at a time of need.
I want you to know that I am a witness of many such miracles that have resulted when the priesthood is used by righteous men and women to call down the blessings of heaven. I have been a participant in many of them. I am alive today because of a blessing I received as a young missionary on March 3, 1963, now over 50 years ago, by Elder Mark E. Petersen of the Quorum of The Twelve.
Brethren I want you to know that this priesthood you are honored to bear is real. You are numbered among those who Nephi saw, who are now armed with righteousness and the power of God. You are able to use this power any time, at any place, to bless the lives of those who are in need of blessings. I have shared these experiences and my testimony with you today because I want you to be ready to use it.
The Lord has placed great trust in you to live so that you will be ready and able to use it whenever you are called upon to do so. He has added this instruction about it’s use.
“The rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and ... the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness” (D&C 121:36).
I would simply ask you, are you ready, willing and able to respond to an urgent, even a life saving request for you to use your priesthood to bless someone in time of need?
If for any reason you answer no, then I encourage you to get an appointment to see your bishop. He will help you resolve any problem you may be having. If needed, he will help you to repent so that you will be able to respond when the Lord needs you to help Him.
Sisters you are entitled to the blessings of our Father in Heaven as you serve him. This was demonstrated in so many ways with Kelly’s experience. I plead with you to live so that you will always be able to respond to every call that is extended to you. I urge you to live so that you will be a powerful force to encourage these brethren to always honor their priesthood.
Live so that you will be worthy of the constant companionship of the Holy ghost. He will watch over you and teach you all you must know. As members of the Lord’s church it is your blessing to never be alone. Live worthy of it. The day will come when you will share in all of the blessings of the priesthood as you are sealed to your husband for time and all eternity.
As Elder John A. Widtsoe long ago explained: “Men have no greater claim than women upon the blessings that issue from the Priesthood and accompany its possession. ...”
“The man holds the Priesthood, performs the priestly duties of the Church, but his wife enjoys with him every other privilege derived from the possession of the Priesthood” (Priesthood and Church Government [1965], 83).
These two experiences also demonstrate a principle that was taught many years ago by Elder Bruce R. McConkie. He said: “Faith and priesthood go hand in hand. Faith is power and power is priesthood. After we gain faith, we receive the priesthood. Then through the priesthood, we grow in faith until, having all power, we become like our Lord” (General Conference 1982).
I add my personal witness and testimony that the power of God, the holy priesthood has been restored to this earth in our day by the prophet Joseph Smith.
All of the keys, power and authority are held today by our living prophet, Thomas S. Monson. The power of the priesthood is being manifest throughout the world today by all who have been ordained by proper authority and who faithfully bear it. You are numbered among those ‘who are armed with righteousness and the power of God.’
May God bless you to always live so that you will be ready to use this wonderful gift to bless the lives of others and to be worthy to received His blessings in your times of need, until we become like Him.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen