There’s a story in the New Testament we are all familiar with about the ten lepers who desired, more than anything else, to be healed from the dreaded disease of leprosy, and after being healed, when only one returned, the Savior was left to ask, “Where are the nine?” Where do you think they, the nine, went? What was more important to them, the nine, at that moment of healing than to follow the one who remembered, the only one of the nine, who returned to remember “He” who made it all possible?
What do you think? Did they, the nine, not remember and were they so quick to forget that just a few seconds ago, they were cursed with the dreaded disease of leprosy? Did they not remember the pain of this terrible disease that had cursed their bodies for years? Did they not remember that this awful disease had left them isolated and alone from loved ones and friends every day, every week, every month, and every year? Did they not remember, and were they so quick to forget, the social pain they experienced, that because of leprosy, they were outcasts from society? And then and only then, when a stranger passed by, our loving Savior, upon hearing their plea for help, paused and turned and took the time for them and offered each one His loving gift of healing. Now, they were clean of this painful, dreaded disease. Their prayers were answered! And now, clean because of Him, they are nowhere to be found, leaving the Savior to ask, “Where are they?” Let me ask you this: Do you think they were so caught up in the excitement of this miracle and their new found life that they simply forgot to remember the “One,” Jesus Christ, who made it all possible?
There is a pathetic and sad theme from beginning to end in The Book of Mormon that all of us know all too well, which is this: “Slow to remember, quick to forget.”
Why is it that when things aren’t going so well, there is a greater tendency to remember Him? And why is it that when things are going well, there is a greater tendency to forget Him, even Jesus Christ?
How are we in this area of remembering and forgetting? For example, awakening this morning to another beautiful day in Hawaii, did we take the time to remember Him first, in prayer, before we turned our attention to anything or anyone else? That before going to Facebook or checking our email, Instagram, or Twitter. Did we first remember Him in prayer? Or are we like the nine, who after a blessing is received, like the morning of a new life, and sometimes a long sought for blessing, that once received, we forget Him from whom all blessings flow, leaving the Savior to ask, “Where are they?” Where is she? Where is He? Where are you?
Have you ever been there, feeling sick, feeling lousy, and more than anything in the world you wanted to be healed? Then a prayer was offered, a priesthood blessing given, and then miraculously, you were made well.
You ever been there, where you wanted something so badly that you could touch it, feel it, see it, but you were not quite sure if it was possible to get it? And then, through prayer and fasting, miraculously, what you wanted you got? Do you remember?
Have you ever been there, where you felt your life was upside down, lonely, depressed, and with tears, you offered a prayer and pleaded for help, and then as soon as you said amen, almost at that very moment, the phone rang, and it was just the call you needed? Do you remember? Do you still remember that experience today?
The story of the ten lepers and its conclusion illustrates a very valuable lesson for us all, this very important principle of remembering and forgetting, that after we have knocked and it is opened, after we have asked and it is received, and after we have sought and it is found, did we remember Him? What about months and years later? Do we still remember Him, He who opened, He who gave, and He who found, from whom all blessings flow? Or does He stand alone after the good deed is rendered, because of His endless love for you, asking, “Where are you?”
Luke 17:11-17 reads,
“And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.
And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:
And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,
And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.
And Jesus answering said, were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?”
Does he ask the same thing of us after taking the time to listen and to bless? Are we slow to remember and quick to forget?
Have you ever been like the “nine”? Where God has made Himself known to you through an answered prayer but through all the excitement and jubilation, you forgot Him? Like before you came here to BYU–Hawaii, for example, and you put your application in and prayed to your Father above that you would be accepted. Your thoughts were probably, “I will do anything to be accepted!” This is Hawaii!
Remember? Remember when you met with your bishop to be endorsed as one who is worthy to attend BYU–Hawaii, and you said yes to all the standards, and he signed his name, and you signed yours? And then, your prayer was answered. Do you remember how excited you were when you received your letter of acceptance? And now, you are here at this beautiful school, on this beautiful island among beautiful people with the beauty of the gospel all around you. Now that you are here, do you still remember that day in the bishop’s office? Today, do you still remember the commitment you made that day with your bishop and with He who made this all possible.
Did you remember Him this past Sunday, when your alarm clock went off at 7, to be at sacrament at 8?
Did you remember Him in December with Christmas, shopping, finals, papers to be graded, papers to be read, shopping to be done, a lot going on? Did you remember those families that only you have the responsibility to visit each month as their home teacher or as their visiting teacher? Did you remember?
Did you remember Him last Friday night when you were with that cute girl, a friend, and it was late, after 9:00, when you were about to take that step with her, hand in hand, across Kam highway and on to the beach, into the black dark pit of despair, to be deceived, destroyed, for only a moment? Did you remember?
Did you remember Him as you were searching on the internet doing research, when the temptation to go to a different site of deceptive, disgusting pleasure that would only cheapen your soul and destroy the covenants you made with Him, in regards to the priesthood, the temple, and baptism, appeared? Did you remember?
Did you remember Him the other day when that random person asked for your for help and said that it would only take a few minutes, and you stood there looking at your schedule? Did you remember?
In Alma 5:26, we learn, “If ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?” Do you?
There’s a story of a man who is walking alongside a cliff with his friend Jack when he steps on a loose rock, tumbles to the ground, and falls over the cliff. In great despair, he pleads in mighty prayer that somehow, someway, his life is saved, and as he continues his deathly descent, a branch embedded in the side of the cliff catches his shirt, stops his fall, and miraculously saves his life. With his life spared, he looks upward and shouts, “Hey Jack you see that? OMG. This branch saved my life!”
Why at times do we not realize and continue to remember that because of Him, and His goodness and love for you, that because of Him you received that grade? That raise? That job? That acceptance letter to BYU–Hawaii?
Do you remember? And, do you still remember today? Or, have you forgotten?
Helaman 12:1-5 explains it this way:
“And thus we can behold how false, and also the unsteadiness of the hearts of the children of men; yea, we can see that the Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him.
Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people, ... doing all things for the welfare and happiness of his people; yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget the Lord their God, and do trample under their feet the Holy One—yea, and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity.
And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror, and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember him.
O how foolish, and how vain, and how evil, and devilish, and how quick to do iniquity, and how slow to do good, are the children of men; yea, how quick to hearken unto the words of the evil one, and to set their hearts upon the vain things of the world!
Yea, how quick to be lifted up in pride; yea, how quick to boast, and do all manner of that which is iniquity; and how slow are they to remember the Lord their God, and to give ear unto his counsels, yea, how slow to walk in wisdom’s paths!”
Each Sunday we hear and utter silently these words:
“O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this wine to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them. Ame.” (Moroni 5:2).
In the sacrament prayer is the line: “That they do always remember him.”
What do we learn from this verse? That when we do remember Him, and He is with us, and we with Him, we have His spirit and power! His power to overcome sin. His power to endure! When we forget Him, he is no longer with us, and we become weak, powerless! We are weak, with no power, to resist, to move away, to overcome the things of the world! Therefore, there is power in remembering and tremendous, tremendous weakness when we forget, when we forget Him. As we are reminded by Mormon, “Nevertheless the strength of the Lord was not with us; yea, we were left to ourselves, that the Spirit of the Lord did not abide in us; therefore we had become weak like unto our brethren” (Mormon 2:26).
What do you do to always remember Him that you may always have His Spirit to be with you? May I make a few suggestions?
1. Remember to spend the first hour of your day with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost in companionship, study, and prayer every morning.
Realize, that you can’t microwave spirituality. You can’t read for a few seconds and expect to have a spiritual experience. Or as Bishop Stewart Wolthuis of the LHYSA 1st Stake counsels, “You can’t munch on the scriptures and expect to be full.”
And, you can’t rush your prayers and expect to reach heaven and connect with the Almighty.
Dedicate the first hour of your day and the first thing you do every morning to Him. Give Him the first hour of the day, and He’ll be with you the next 23. Where you will feel His presence, His love for you, and His strength as you move throughout your day, minute by minute and hour by hour. Remember His words, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”
And when we pray, may we remember Enos 1:4:
“And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.”
When the Savior was upon the earth, He taught us how to pray and how to respectfully and lovingly address His Father in prayer, using the words Thee, Thy, Thine, and Thou. Never you, never your, or never yours.
2. Read and complete The Book of Mormon twice a year, January to June, July to December.
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “The Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”
When I was called to this position almost five years ago (March 1 will be five), I wrote Elder Christofferson, who set me apart, an email a few weeks after being called and asked him, “Now that a few weeks have passed, what counsel would you give me and the members of our stake?” He simply wrote back, “Read the Book of Mormon.”
3. Prepare daily to be clean to receive the sacrament.
There are a number of things you can do to prepare worthily to receive the sacrament each week. Here’s an interesting one. I have been to your dorms and your homes and have seen your walls with posters of surfing, basketball, snowboarding, pretty girls, words that say “Rock ‘n Roll,” and occasionally a picture of the Savior! A thought, what if you had on your wall next to that picture of the Savior these bold words: “I am clean! I am clean to partake of the sacrament of my Savior Jesus Christ this coming Sunday. My hands are clean, my eyes are clean, my ears are clean, my heart is clean, and my mind is clean. Today, I am clean! I will remember Him today!”
What if on your screensaver you had your favorite picture of our Savior Jesus Christ and the words “I am clean”? A screen picture of him on your iPad, laptop, iPhone, tablet to remember Him as you search and use your device and travel through the internet. A picture of Him that you can see numerous times throughout the day to remember Him that you may always have His Spirit to be with you.
4. Remember Him and have His Spirit to be with you always by being humble and overcoming the sin of pride.
It is impossible to have pride and always remember Him because with pride your main focus and priority will always be about you. We need to be humble!
In 2 Nephi 9:28-29, it reads, “O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.
But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God."
President Ezra Taft Benson continues with this theme on pride and humility: “Selfishness is one of the more common faces of pride. ‘How everything affects me’ is the center of all that matters” ("Beware of Pride," Ensign, April 1989).
The proud make every man their adversary by pitting their intellects, opinions, works, wealth, talents, or any other worldly measuring device against others. In the words of C. S. Lewis, “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man.”
“What will men think of me?” weighs heavier than “What will God think of me?”
The proud love “the praise of men more than the praise of God” (John 12:42–43).
Pride is a sin that can readily be seen in others but is rarely admitted in ourselves. Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top (see 2 Nephi 9:42). There is, however, a far more common ailment among us and that is pride from the bottom looking up. It is manifest in so many ways, such as faultfinding, gossiping, backbiting, murmuring, living beyond our means, envying, coveting, withholding gratitude and praise that might lift another, and being unforgiving and jealous.
The scriptures testify that the proud are easily offended and hold grudges (see 1 Nephi 16:1–3). The proud do not receive counsel or correction easily (see Proverbs 15:10, Amos 5:10).
The proud depend upon the world to tell them whether they have value or not.
Pride limits or stops progression (see Alma 12:10–11). The proud are not easily taught.
Pride adversely affects all our relationships—our relationship with God and His servants, between husband and wife, parent and child, employer and employee, teacher and student, and all mankind.
Pride fades our feelings of sonship to God and brotherhood to man.
The antidote for pride is humility. As Rudyard Kipling put it so well:
“The tumult and the shouting dies;
The captains and the kings depart.
Still stands thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget, lest we forget.”
Let us choose to be humble.
5. Remember Him and have His Spirit to be with you always by baptizing someone by December 31 every year.
“Feed my sheep” are the words of the Master when the Savior taught, “Lovest thou me? … Feed my sheep” (John 21:17).
Be engaged in “Hastening the Work of Salvation.” Commit that every year by December 31 you will remember by bringing one person unto Him through the waters of baptism. When this is your goal, you will find yourself praying more, fasting more, studying the scriptures more, thinking of others more, thinking of Him more, and thinking less of you a lot more.
From this past October General Conference, Elder Ballard said, “If every member, young and old, will reach out to just ‘one’ between now and Christmas, millions will feel the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. And what a wonderful gift to the Savior” ("Put Your Trust in the Lord," Ensign, October 2013).
As the prophet Joseph Smith declared, “After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the Gospel.”
D&C 18:10 states, “Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.”
A few weeks ago as a Stake, we were trained by Elder Auna of the Seventy and President Warner of the Honolulu, Hawaii Mission on “Hastening the Work of Salvation.” During the training, Elder Auna gave this advice on how he approaches others about the Church. He will meet someone for the first time, begin a conversation, and then ask them where they are from. When they say where they are from, he then says, “Oh, we have a church there.” Then, inevitably, they will ask, “Oh, what church is that?” Then the discussion begins and an invitation is extended.
Well Dave Fullmer, 1st Counselor in the Sunset Beach Branch, attended that training and decided to put Elder Auna’s advice to the test and follow the promptings of the Spirit.
While driving on the North Shore a few weeks ago, Dave picked up a couple of hitchhikers. They began with small talk until Dave asked, “Where are you from?” One of the two answered, “We’re from Honolulu.” Dave then said, “Oh, we have a church there.” Then according to Dave, there was uncomfortable silence for about 30 seconds. Then one of them asked, “What church is that?” From the discussion that then followed, it was learned that the young man who asked the question was baptized years ago and was lost, and he was now found by Brother Fullmer.
6. Remember Him and always have His Spirit to be with you as you “Look” to God and live.
In Matthew 5:27-28, it reads, “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.”
2 Samuel 11:2 says, “And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.”
In D&C 84:43, we are cautioned “beware concerning yourselves,” and may I add this: Brethren of the priesthood, beware at how you look at women. Remember your priesthood, and do not forget the oath and covenant you made with him.
I’m going to say that you can’t look at a woman after viewing pornography and look at her the way God would have you look at her, to be looked at as a daughter of God.
We took a group of priests on a surf trip, and while at the beach, there were girls in bathing attire. The bishop said with loving caution to our young priests, as they piled out of the van and onto the beach, “Young men, if you don’t look once you’re not a man! However, if you look twice, you are not a missionary!”
I was having lunch with a client and friend one afternoon. He is married with a beautiful wife and three beautiful children. I noticed that every time a woman would enter the restaurant, he would look over at her and continue looking until she took her seat. Then, this one woman in particular entered, and he looked as she entered and continued to look even after she had sat down. As we talked, he continued to look over at her for seconds at a time, which became very annoying to me, and he sensed my annoyance. He said to me, “Art, don’t tell me you don’t look?” I said, “I do, but I don’t look like that!”
Then he said, “Art, don’t tell me that women don’t come on to you?” I said, “Al, I’ve been married for more than 20 years, and no woman has ever come on to me!” Then he said, “Well women come on to me,” and I said, “Really?” Then he said, with a tone of boastfulness, “Yes! All the time!”
As I drove away after our lunch, I thought about what he said about women coming on to him all of the time, and he had me feeling like I had just been to a dance and no one wanted to dance with me. In fact, I think I even grabbed my rear view mirror and started checking myself out and comparing myself to him, but that was only for a selfish moment, when this thought came to me: “I don’t look for it! I don’t look at women the way he does! I don’t look at women like that.” I have always worked with women my whole career and traveled with women as well. Not once has any woman ever come on to me. I have always let them know from day one that I am Mormon, married, and totally in love with my wife, and we have a thousand kids! Knowing that, I believe they look at me and I them in a very respectful and very professional way. Remember, they are daughters of God. That is the only way to look at them. Remember, if you look at the daughters of God any other way, with impure disgusting thoughts, remember, who their Father is! And remember, God will not be mocked!
I remember another time, while living in California, I was in my office at work and the office manager, very attractive at 30, came into my office, shut the door, sat in front of me, and with tears began to complain to me about her husband. As she cried and complained, I grabbed the phone book and searched for the phone number to the mission office in L.A. I then shared my testimony and put her in touch with the missionaries.
Former president of BYU–Hawaii Eric Shumway shared this story when I was a student here back in 1980, a story about Marion G. Romney that I have always remembered.
“Each morning Elder Romney would drive out of his neighborhood on his way to the Church Office Building and would stop at a stop sign where across the street was a bus stop. And each morning, there at the bus stop was Elder Romney’s secretary, waiting for the bus to take her to the same place as Elder Romney, the Church Office Building. As he would stop at the stop sign, they would look at each other and simply wave, and then he would drive on. No matter the weather, he would simply wave and drive on.”
Brethren be wise! Don’t be deceived, and don’t be foolish!
When we were growing up as boys, my mother would always say to me and my brothers, “Manatua Lou Priestua,” which means, “Remember your priesthood!”
Brethren, always remember the oath and covenant of the priesthood you made with God the Almighty. Do not forget! Remember, God will not be mocked! I have had sisters come to me for advice regarding young men they have become interested in. My advice is simple: “Ask him to tell you about the oath and covenant of the priesthood and where the oath and covenant of the priesthood is found, and if he doesn’t know, walk away!”
D&C 84:33-44 states, “For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;
For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.
But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of sins in this world nor in the world to come.
And wo unto all those who come not unto this priesthood which ye have received, which I now confirm upon you who are present this day, by mine own voice out of the heavens; and even I have given the heavenly hosts and mine angels charge concerning you.
And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life.
For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God.”
Look to God and live. And remember, He is looking too.
I was interviewing a young man and asked him if he lived the law of chastity. He said yes. I then asked, “Would God, who knows all and sees all, say the same thing?” Humbly, he put his head down, and with tears, he shook his head no.
Brethren, remember the oath and covenant of the priesthood you made with your loving Father above. He knows you and loves you!
I am grateful for you good, powerful young men and the power and authority of the priesthood you hold with respect and honor. I am grateful for your example in living it! We are moved as we see you perform your priesthood assignments, as He would. Once, I went ministering to the home of a young sister and before leaving asked her if she would like a blessing. She kindly said no thank you. “My home teachers,” she said, “were just here and gave me one.”
Sisters, you too have a responsibility to the oath and covenant of the priesthood as well. Your responsibility is to keep your relationship clean. Do not do anything, sisters, in way of dress, speech, or behavior that would have him, he holds the priesthood of God, bring disrespect and shame to the oath and covenant of the priesthood he made with God or that would bring disrespect and shame to you. Don’t you do it! Remember, to look to God and live! And in the heat of the moment, look to God, and do not look away, and walk away! It’s not worth it! Never is and never will be!
My young brothers and sisters, when looking to God, you have the wonderful blessing of looking into the future and seeing your eternal family, your beautiful children who will look to you as their father and mother and an honorable priesthood holder or a daughter of God who looks to you as his or her eternal loving companion.
7. Remind others to remember Him.
We each have a responsibility to remind those who have forgotten Him to remember Him! Be your brother’s keeper. Keep him or her safe from the things of the world. If you see something inappropriate or out of standard in his or her dorm or room, say something. To say nothing is wrong!
Young sisters, if a young man is about to take advantage of you, remind him of his priesthood and remind him of his testimony of Jesus Christ.
I had a sister, new from the mainland and very innocent, who shared with me this story. She had just gotten off work at 9:00 at night when she ran into a young man who she knew and trusted. He invited her for a walk and to show her this really cool place, according to him. When they got to this really cool place, and of course it was dark, he began to take advantage of her, holding her inappropriately. She cried out and said, “Remember the Savior, Jesus Christ, is watching us.” Upon hearing the name Jesus, she said, he stopped instantly, backed away from her, and cried, asking for her forgiveness. She reminded him to remember Him, and he did!
For those who need to be reminded, lovingly and kindly help remind them to remember Him! Do not forget! Remember, you have a responsibility to those who have forgotten Him to help them remember Him, Jesus Christ, so that they may always have His Spirit to be with them.
God bless us as we do so, to always remember Him, that we may always have His Spirit to be with us. May we learn from those in The Book of Mormon that it may be said of us that we always remembered Him. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.