Aloha! I want to thank President Wheelwright for the invitation to address you this morning in your devotional. Here at BYU Hawaii you have been blessed with a diversity of cultures. This has enabled you to express appreciation, respect, and understanding of cultures not your own. With this diversity of cultures and as members of the Lord's Church you have the overall shared focus of the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Elder Richard G. Scott stated in the April 1998 General Conference, "Appreciation for ethnic, cultural, or national heritage can be very wholesome and beneficial, but it can also perpetuate patterns of life that should be set aside by a devoted Latter-day Saint" (Elder Richard G. Scott, GC April 1998, Ensign May 1998). The standard of measure, then, whether or not a cultural practice is appropriate is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Elder Scott further said, "Where traditions and customs are in harmony with his [Jesus Christ's] teachings, they should be cherished and followed to preserve your culture and heritage,"(IBID).
You have had, do have, and will yet have many opportunities to share the Gospel with those who are not members of the Church. In order to do so most effectively, you need to always keep a true focus. Many years ago while serving as a branch president in Fiji, I took Mickey, my wife, with me in visiting less active members of the Church in our branch. In searching out one less active sister, we came across a young lady, Ateca. As we were visiting with her, an almost audible voice kept telling me to invite her to receive the missionaries and be taught the missionary lessons along with Inoke, her boyfriend, who was not present at the time. We had just met her so at first I was reluctant to do so. My heart was literally pounding and the voice kept repeating itself urging me to ask her. I then extended the invitation for Ateca and her companion, Inoke, to receive the missionaries. They did and as a branch president I had the marvelous blessing of performing their civil marriage. Then they were baptized and shortly thereafter became the young men and young women presidents in our branch. The next blessing was to witness their sealing in the Laie HI Temple as a together forever family. They, Inoke and Ateca Suguturaga, have remained dear friends over these many years. We gave to our son Aaron the middle name Inoke and their daughter Siki's middle name is Michele after Sister Bauer. There is indeed no greater joy than to see those who embrace the Gospel, enter the waters of baptism, receive the crowning ordinance of sealing in the Temple and then stay committed to the Lord throughout their lives. Inoke now is the Fiji Islands Manager at the Polynesian Cultural Center and Ateca works as the senior accountant for Hawaii Reserve Incorporated both here in Laie.
In regards to focus and goals, I have heard this couplet oftentimes, "As you ramble on through your life, whatever be your goal, learn to keep your eye upon the donut and not upon the hole." That means to me that our focus needs to always be on that which has real substance as opposed to something of no worth or of little worth. Even good things need to be evaluated if they are replacing better things we could be doing. Elder Dallin H. Oaks states it succinctly when he said, "As we consider various choices, we should remember that it is not enough that something is good. Other choices are better, and still others are best," Elder Dallin H. Oaks, GC October 2007).
When Mickey and I were in the Missionary Training Center in Provo with other mission presidents and wives; President James E. Faust, then a counselor in The First Presidency, spoke to us. He related how on a visit to Canada he was very impressed with their mission motto which was "Faith is the Power; Obedience is the Price; Love is the Motive; The Spirit is the Key; and, Christ is the Reason." Mickey and I were so impressed with this motto that we adopted it for the Fiji Suva Mission and Mickey wrote a mission song with the words. If you know any missionaries who served in the Fiji Suva Mission from 1999-2002, you can ask them to sing it for you or have Sister Bauer sing it for you afterwards.
An overall foundational scripture for our mission motto and song is found in Helaman 5:12. As Helaman addresses his two sons, Nephi and Lehi, stating, "And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, The Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." How important is it for us to remember that Christ is indeed our sure foundation?-well enough to have the word "remember" repeated twelve times in verses 6, 9, 10, and 12 of Helaman Chapter 5 in relation to their remembering their righteous ancestors and that Christ is the only way to withstand the storms of the adversary that are all around us.
"Faith Is The Power" refers to faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Galatians 3:26 states, "For ye are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Oh, that we could help all to see out there in the world that indeed they are children of God taking those words of the famous primary song, "I Am A Child Of God" into their hearts.
"Obedience Is the Price" means not just being obedient when someone is watching to see if you will be obedient. With our missionaries, not just being obedient when a district leader, zone leader, assistant to the president, or mission president was present; but at all times, under all circumstances, and in all places. We had missionaries serving within the Fiji Suva Mission in seven nations and one territory; speaking ten languages. One of those areas was the island of Rotuma in the Fiji Islands. Rotuma is a Polynesian Island in the Melanesian Nation of Fiji. We were able to send missionaries to Rotuma after a long absence. As a mission president, I tried a couple of times to visit Rotuma without success. One time I was about to go and received a phone call that they did not have sufficient barrels of fuel on Rotuma for the small plane to make the return trip. The missionary companionship on Rotuma needed to be very trustworthy missionaries, to say the least. John 14:15 contains a simple statement by the Savior; "If ye love me, keep my commandments." King Saul was directed by the Lord in conquering the Amalekites to smite and destroy them and all that they had. Saul, however, feared the people more and spared the king of the Amalekites as well as the best of the animals. Saul then told Samuel the Prophet that he did all that the Lord asked. The Prophet Samuel then said to Saul, "What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?" (Samuel 15:4). Then Saul retorted saying he had kept the best animals to sacrifice unto the Lord, (1 Samuel 15:21). Then the great scriptural verse on obedience found in 1 Samuel 15:22, "And Samuel said, hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." The word "Hearken" is a very significant word. It is also the first word in the Doctrine and Covenants. It means to "listen and obey."
"Love Is The Motive." The two great commandments are found in Matthew 22:37-39 when Jesus responds to the lawyer, "Jesus said unto him, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." An application of this is found in Matthew 5: verse 44 and verse 46 where Jesus states, "But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you . . . for if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?" It is easy to love those who love us, but what about loving those who do not love us. This is the real test for us in our lives to truly love and pray for those who, for whatever reason, do not love us and yes, we may even say, hate us. Challenging, Yes, Impossible, No! Luke 1:37, "For with God nothing shall be impossible." Doctrine answers the question "Why?" Why do we share the Gospel?; Why do we do our home and visiting teaching?; Why do we invite less-actives to come back?; Why do we work in the Temple for our ancestors and others who have passed on? Doctrine and Covenants 18:10 answers the why, "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God." John 13:34-35 states, "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." The word "disciple" means follower. As true followers of Christ, we need to have unconditional love for one another.
As the headmaster of then Moroni Community School in Kiribati, I was at a business establishment conducting business for the school when the school's business manager came up to me on his motorbike and told me that our four-year old son Jacob had been hit by a motorcycle and was at the hospital. I went immediately to the hospital and found our four year-old son in a crumpled mass with two broken legs, a severe head wound, and with scrapes and bruises all over his body. Jacob and his friends were playing around the school since our home was on campus and his friends had crossed the main road in front of the school where a van bus had stopped for them to pass. Jacob was the last to cross and a motorcycle driver behind the van bus thinking all was clear came around the van the same time Jacob was crossing the road and hit him square on. We did not know if Jacob would survive or not. However, after an Elder from a missionary couple and I gave Jacob a blessing at the hospital, we knew that Jacob would live. He went in for a three hour operation with a doctor that was oftentimes in an inebriated state but all went well in the operation. Jacob was in traction with his broken legs for a month in the hospital. At the hospital following Jacob's accident, I came face to face with the sorrowful motorcycle driver who hit Jacob. There was no anger against this man but only a peace and calm with this man who accidentally hit our son Jacob with his motorcycle. Christ-like love gives us that calm and peace not only in accidental situations, but also in those times when others on purpose do ill things toward us or our loved ones.
"The Spirit Is the Key": We need to keep our lives in tune with the Spirit of the Lord. As members of the Church, we have the opportunity to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. However, the Spirit will only strive with us as we are worthy to receive it. The basics of sincere heartfelt daily personal prayers and daily scripture study will help us in our sensitivity to the promptings of the Spirit. As a mission president, I would counsel the missionaries to always act on those promptings that they received. For example, the Spirit may prompt them to approach and speak to someone about the Gospel that they would not normally speak to on their own. It is so important that we do not ignore those promptings or out of fear, do not act on the promptings that we receive. If we ignore or reject those promptings for whatever reason, we may very well find that those promptings will not come as frequently in our lives or may even cease altogether. In a manifestation to Brigham Young after the Prophet's death, Joseph Smith instructed Brigham Young and said, "Tell the people to be humble and faithful, and be sure to keep the Spirit of the Lord and it will lead them right. Be careful and not turn away the small still voice; it will teach them what to do and where to go . . . they can tell the Spirit of the Lord from all other spirits; it will whisper peace and joy to their souls; it will take malice, hatred, strife and evil from their hearts; and their whole desire will be to do good, bring forth righteousness and build up the kingdom of God . . ."(Manuscript History of Brigham Young, February 23, 1847). The Spirit can guide us when after all our efforts we still do not know what we should do. In 1 Nephi Chapter 4 Verse 6, Nephi after not knowing what they could do to get the brass plates from Laban stated, "And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." You are blessed here at BYU Hawaii to be able to feel the Spirit just as much in your business, mathematics, and science classes as in your religion classes; for this is one of the Lord's universities. Moroni 6:9 makes reference to meetings in the Church being conducted after the manner of the workings of the Spirit. I feel this can and should apply also to your university classes and activities.
Now it is sometimes a common practice for a young man to go up to a young woman and say something like this, "The Spirit has revealed to me that you are to be my wife." Young women, "Beware, Beware, Beware of such tactics." The Lord will never take away your agency in such an eternally important decision. If you are to marry that young man, you will receive a confirmation of the Spirit for you to do so. If you do not, my advice is for you to gracefully exit the relationship. President Boyd K. Packer, currently President of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has stated, "It is difficult to separate from the confusion of life that quiet voice of inspiration. Unless you attune yourself, you will miss it . . . You can train yourself to hear what you want to hear, to see and feel what you desire, but it takes some conditioning . . . I have come to know that inspiration comes more as a feeling than as a sound. The Lord has a way of pouring pure intelligence into our minds to prompt us, to guide us, to teach us, to warn us. You can know the things you need to know instantly! Learn to receive inspiration . . . some answers will come from reading the scriptures; some from hearing speakers . . . carry a prayer in your heart always. Keep the Word of Wisdom. Read the scriptures. Stay away from places and things that common sense tells you will interfere with inspiration. Develop your spiritual capacities. Learn to tune out the static and the interference. Avoid the substitutes and the counterfeits! Learn to be inspired and directed by the Holy Ghost," (Elder Boyd K. Packer, GC October 1979, pgs. 27-30; Ensign, November 1979, pgs. 19-21). Great counsel from one of the Lord's chosen apostles. Sometimes emotion is mistaken for the promptings of the Spirit. The difference I have found over the years is that the effect of the true promptings of the Spirit and acting upon those true promptings is lasting while the effects of emotion are temporary. Doctrine and Covenants Section 84 Verse 88 states, "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up." Each and every one of you can and should be receiving personal revelation. A quiet place is an important prerequisite in receiving revelation. We need to be somewhere where the noise and distractions of the world are absent. The Temple is such a place where you can receive that sacred direction in your life. As you are in the shadows of a very special House of the Lord here in Laie, I would invite you to go there often for that spiritual guidance. Doctrine and Covenants Section 11 Verses 12-13 read, "And now, verily, verily, I say unto thee, put your trust in that Spirit which leadeth to do good:yea, to do justly, to walk humbly, to judge righteously; and this is my Spirit...which shall enlighten your mind, which shall fill your soul with joy . . ."
As a non-member in high school, I remember admiring my member friends, knowing that they had something that was missing in my life. As a non-member, I went to Utah State University for my freshman year. There I had a member roommate who invited me to an institute dance. I was very impressed with the wholesome atmosphere of the dance. You could actually see around the dance floor. They had all the young ladies in an inner circle with all the young men in an outer circle and when the music stopped the person whom you were across from was the one with whom you danced. When the music stopped, I was across from the homecoming queen for Utah State University. I had a great time! But even though that activity was fantastic, my member roommate did something much more significant. He gave me a Book of Mormon, however it wasn't until three and a half years later when I was at the University of California at Davis that I took that Book of Mormon down off the shelf and started to read, study, and ponder about its truthfulness. After reading the first 75 pages, I received a witness of the Spirit that the Book of Mormon was true. I was at the time contemplating what I should do after graduating with my undergraduate degree from UC Davis. I was seriously looking at continuing on into graduate school and becoming a research scientist. I was concerned because the research scientists that I knew at UC Davis were spending, a lot of times, 16 hours a day in their research labs to the neglect of their families. I felt a real void in my life searching for the meaning of life. Then on page 75 of the Book of Mormon I came across these two verses in 2 Nephi Chapter 9, Verses 28 and 29, "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." And then verse 29, "But to be learned is good if (italics added) they hearken unto the counsels of God." That is the key-to hearken (listen and obey) unto the counsels of God.
Well, I then proceeded to go back to my hometown in California and on Sunday drove to the local LDS Meetinghouse; walked in, asked to be introduced to the missionaries; and was baptized six weeks later at the age of 22. I had the opportunity to go on a mission to the Fiji Suva Mission at the age of 24 after receiving my Master's Degree. I thought for a long time I was too old to serve a mission but while pursuing a Master's Degree at the University of Arkansas, I had the opportunity to receive my patriarchal blessing which specifically addressed my serving a mission for the Lord. When I received my mission call, I had no idea where the Cook Islands were located, where I was specifically assigned to serve, or the Fiji Islands. I got out the National Geographic Magazines (This was way before Google Search) and excitedly found their locations and read as much as I could about the islands. As my mission came to a conclusion, the Church Educational System man in Fiji approached me about the possibility of coming back to Fiji and teaching in our Church High School that was yet to be built there. I put in my application at his urging and did not think much more about it until approached by CES some three years later having in the meantime been sealed to Sister Bauer in the Oakland California Temple and our having a fifteen month old daughter. We were blessed to go back to Fiji and teach in our Church High School there, The Fiji LDS Technical College; then, some years later, serve as the headmaster of our Church School in Kiribati, Moroni Community School (Now Moroni High School), live in Guam and coordinate seminaries and institutes of religion in Micronesia, live here in Kailua for four years teaching at the Honolulu HI Institute and coordinating seminaries here, and then go over to Hilo and be there for the past 21 and a half years as the Hilo HI Institute Director and coordinating seminaries and institutes of religion for the neighbor islands in the State of Hawaii. During this time we had two of our five children born in Fiji, one while we were in Kiribati, and one in Guam. We have been truly blessed as a family to live in the Pacific Islands among the great people of the islands. Some eighteen plus years ago I had the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree in higher education administration through the University of Hawaii at Manoa. My dissertation was "Factors Affecting the Academic Success of Pacific Island International Students" with BYU Hawaii Pacific Island International Students as my study group. There were a number of factors that I looked at including English language proficiency, socioeconomic status, college credits completed, area of origin, gender, marital status, and type of secondary education (American, British, or French). The study concluded that none of these factors were significant in determining the academic success of the students. The three significant factors were autonomy, self-confidence, and attitude combined with effort. Another way of stating these three significant factors is to say those students who were able to focus on what they needed to do, had confidence they could do it, and had a positive attitude and put forth the required effort were most successful with none of the other factors making a significant difference. An example would be a student who is able to focus on his or her studies and not be distracted by TV, activities, or the like taking them away from their studies. They are putting their academic studies as a focus over the distractions of the world or even those things that are good and better, as Elder Oaks stated, but not best for their academic success.
Now we come to the last statement in our Fiji Suva Mission Motto, "Christ Is the Reason." As Ephesians Chapter 2, Verse 20 states, Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone and he must be the chief cornerstone in our lives. Our foundation, going back to Helaman 5:12, is our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer Jesus Christ. If he is not, we will be easily distracted with all the multitude of distractions out there in today's world. We will lose our main focus. Ephesians 4:14 states, "That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of man, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." A solid foundation in Christ will filter out the deceptions of the world and leave us with the purity of the doctrines and principles of the Gospel. Many years ago the Church Research Department conducted research into what helped youth stay active and strong in the Gospel throughout their lives. They found three significant factors. These three factors were daily personal prayer, daily personal scripture study, and giving service to others (Church Research: "Key to Strong Young Men: Strong Homes," Ensign, December 1984, pgs. 66-70). These three will help us immensely in keeping our focus on Christ. At this time we have put on the screen an image. You will notice four vertical black dots in the center of the image. I invite you to focus completely on those four vertical dots for the next minute when I say "Go." Are you ready? "Go." (After one minute). Now focus on the blank screen. What do you see? As you continue to focus on the blank screen, you will notice the image of the Savior coming in and fading out a number of times. As you depart today, you will be given a business size card for your purse or wallet of this reverse image to remind you how important it is to always keep Christ as our focus for indeed, "Christ Is the Reason." We are who we are, and do all that we do for ourselves, our families, and others because "Christ Is the Reason." Our ultimate destination is being together forever with our families in the presence of our Savior Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father.
I testify to you wonderful young people that "Faith Is The Power, Obedience Is The Price, Love Is The Motive, The Spirit Is The Key, and Christ Is The Reason. Jesus Christ is the head of the Church: His birth, life, Atonement, and Resurrection we should commemorate daily in our hearts and in our lives. The Book of Mormon is another testament of why "Christ Is the Reason." We have on earth today a living prophet in President Thomas S. Monson who receives revelation from our Lord Jesus Christ for the world. We will be blessed as we follow our Prophet and in turn will better be able to bless others through our service. I testify of these truths in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.