You know I'm tempted, and I think I will share a little story before I get started, and you know, I only have two hours so I've got to hurry. The story goes:
Several years ago when we were living in California, our two oldest sons, ages 6 and 7, took one of their friends with them to church one Sunday. When we got there, it happened Fast and Testimony day. And so, of course this young friend watched everybody jump up and go to the stand and he soon got the Spirit and we saw him get up and go to the stand.
When his turn came, he stood and said a few things; we forget totally what he said, except when he finished, he had forgotten to listen carefully to learn how to finish his testimony. He paused there for a moment and stood at the pulpit and smiled brightly, our hearts were pounding for this little 7-year-old boy. And finally he put a big grin on his face and he said, "Holy Moses, Amen."
Whenever I get in a situation like this, of any kind, I think of this story because it reflects how I feel about standing here. This really is a "Holy Moses" situation, and I appreciate the chance to stand here.
You'll notice that the teleprompters aren't here. Elder Haight is in charge of my life in many ways, and one of the counsels he gave me was to avoid writing talks, and I've lived with that all my life. Occasionally the Spirit has not been with me, and so I hope this is not one of those times. But I do hope and pray that I can say some things today that will be important.
I appreciate the great music this campus produces. I've never heard a time when the music people haven't outperformed anything I would imagine, and today was no exception. I love my wife. What a great trooper she has been, and what a great mother and grandmother she has been. If any of our children or grandchildren wanted to spend time alone with anyone, they would always choose their mother and grandmother, because she is their best friend.
Brother Checketts, today, warned me that the only time he remembered talks of old was when their was a promise attached, usually given by Satan.
That was a joke.
He's really holding his breathe, waiting to find out if I'm going to live up to that or another guarantee, as I've put on the description of my talk a guarantee. Well, I hope I can align his fears with this guarantee. I'm going to give you the guarantee first.
"Beginning with the end in mind" is a famous quote of someone I like. With that in mind, I'm going to give you the guarantee first and then I'm going to give you the formula that will get you that guarantee, and then hopefully tell you a few stories that might pertain to the success of that formula.
I really want you to know that I believe that the formula will work. I think it will have a dramatic impact on your life if you will memorize it today and internalize it. Some of you have heard it before, but I don't think it will hurt to hear it again.
But first, the guarantee. The reason I feel good about he guarantee is that it comes from two men that I really love and admire, one being King Benjamin and one being Joseph Smith. I think we can rely on both of them, Brother Checketts.
King Benjamin's address is kind of unique to me because his address is one of those that every priesthood leader wishes he could give. He wishes this because it worked; it empowered his people. Mosiah chapters 2 thru 5 is one of the most incredible stake conference addresses in the history of mankind, because we discover in the end that those people made a covenant, and all those who were old enough to understand seemed to have lived up to that covenant to the very end, they endured to the end. They made it.
Because of that, King Benjamin is a hero of mine. My bishop is sitting right here in front, and his goal would be to do the same thing for his congregation that King Benjamin did for his. In the middle of that, he gave us the guarantee. This is what he said in Mosiah 2:41. Now, listen carefully because there are no better-recorded words I have ever read that tell this story better.
"And moreover, I would desire that you should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God." So, if we keep the commandments, my young friends, we can expect to be kept in a blessed and happy state. And it gets better as it goes on.
"For behold, they are blessed in ALL things, both temporal and spiritual." The things of the world, your worldly opportunities, and the things of the spirit, are guaranteed by King Benjamin that we will be happy if we will keep the commandments. There is one more part:
"If they hold out faithful to the end, they are received into heaven that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never ending happiness." My friends, there is no better promise nor guarantee, that only if we will keep the commandments and endure to the end will we not only be blessed temporally but also spiritually and also have a blessed state in this life and a never ending happiness in the next. What more could be better than that?
And if we want to go on, we can go to Doctrine and Covenants section 130, where He promises there is a law, everlasting from the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated. And when we obey that law we will be blessed.
Another promise from Joseph Smith comes from D&C 82:10. Every missionary has this one memorized: "I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say." If you do what He says, He is bound to give you everlasting happiness, endless happiness and temporal and spiritual success in this life and, of course, the next.
I think that's an adequate guarantee for me to give to you. If I can give you a formula, based upon the commandment that comes from these scriptures, a way to live those commandments a little better and easier.
First of all, I will give you two formulas, with three parts each, and then we are going to combine them and you are going to memorize them for a quiz, they will be on the final exam. The quiz will give you these six steps for this formula.
Number one comes from James Paul Getty. J. Paul Getty was an oil tycoon. None of you young people know his name, nor should you. But if you become a billionaire you can write your own story, and J. Paul Getty did that. In that biography, he gave his secrets of success, one of which is "Get up early."
I don't know of anyone in my life that was a great success that aren't early risers. You missionaries learn that for two years, and shame on you if you have now forgotten that habit. If you have somehow discovered you think you are a night person, you need to repent. I have this on my side: the Lord has said, "early to rise and early to bed," and he means that. I want to emphasize that it is still a commandment. Your mission was not for two years for not.
Number two, Getty said, after get up early, was "work hard." Again, its very easy to do and a must learn formula.
Number three, he said, "Find oil." That is supposed to be funny initially. I used to tell that as a joke, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it really is true. There is more than one kind of oil. Everyone has to find their own oil. They have to find something they are good at, that they can do or produce that is of economic value to the world.
Now, that's J. Paul Getty. The second part of that comes from an even more reliable source: my mission president David B. Haight. David B. Haight, besides my mother and father, was certainly my greatest mentor. We had a close relationship for many years and he changed my life. He impacted my behavior, everything he said I listened to, wrote down and memorized because I knew he would never lead me astray.
Just about two weeks before my mission ended, we were on a riverboat cruise with the members of the Church and the missionaries and he stood by my side on the edge of a rail of that ship and he gave me this counsel: "Jim, you are going to go home in a few days. Number one, when you get home, get your education. Get all the training you can get. Number two, with that education, make your mark. Be successful. Do something of which you can be proud, which can make a contribution to society and your life. And number three," he said by far the most important thing he said, which ties this all together, and for which this whole formula would be given. Not because of the first five steps, but because of number six and the third part of Elder Haight's formula, because this is the part that should impact your life, and should be the behavior change in your life if necessary when you hear this. He said, "get prepared to be used."
My friends, that dug deep into my heart, because he was telling me the secret of all successful people in the Kingdom. We have been given Patriarchal Blessings, we've been given promises and we've been given blessings before we left on missions and when we came home, before we went to school. In those blessings and in those promises we were given directions because we are the generation that will finish the job of having this earth prepared for the Savior's return. This Gospel must go to every nation, kindred, tongue and people.
Joseph Smith said it wouldn't happen until the Savior comes and says "The work is done!" Well, the work isn't done, and it won't be done until he does come and he announces that great word. And it will happen because the work will be pushed forward in all of our 26 target areas. When and if we understand that formula when we understand that it's upon the 2,400 students that have the privilege of being here at this school. You are an honored group of people, sitting in very expensive seats. The tithing funds of the Church are spent, a lot, every year to keep you sitting there, and if you waste one of those seats, shame on you.
Every convert we ever had in Africa or all over the world, all of our young people would kill to have an opportunity to be here. Not really, don't take that literally, but they would do anything to have to opportunity to take one of your positions. And for you to be here, one of the privileged of a handful of people, it is a great responsibility because you have to make the most of your education. And with it, you must make your mark. And you better be able to use that education in real life because the Lord is counting on you in all those target countries we represent, to be able to make a difference, to be the leaders, and to be used to build the Kingdom and usher in the latter-day reign of our Savior himself.
Let's put it all together now:
1) Get up early. It starts tomorrow morning at 5:30a.m.
2) Work hard.
3) Get your education. Get your education so that in the middle of that education you will be trying to...
4) Find your oil. You have to find something that you are passionate about, that you can really find you have a niche in, something you can become the best in the world at, or one of the best. You have to find your oil. Because with your oil, you are going to be expected to...
5) Make your mark. You have to be successful at it. Why? Because in the end you are going to be allowed to, to be asked to...
6) Use it to build the Kingdom. Be of service.
Brothers and sisters that is the formula. I promise it works. Recognize what you are doing at step four. It's not to be rich; it's not to be wealthy. Wealth has nothing to do with independence or with being successful or making your mark in life. It's a measurement only, which gives you adequacy to be able to serve better, to serve well. And so the formula really works.
Let me share some stories with you. I just got back from two trips, one to the Philippines and one to Japan, where we had some competitions. I was introduced and found some interesting people, and I want to tell you a couple of neat stories.
One of the stories I want to share is about a man who is one of the great, maybe one of the greatest benefactors this school has ever had financially. This man of Japanese descent, was born in Idaho, went on a mission to Japan and then discovered he wanted to do business in Japan. He couldn't get a license to do business for three years. He was written of by his company but stayed working anyways. He slept on and under his desk for nearly three years because he had no money to operate his business with. But, he had faith he could get a license.
Finally, after everyone else gave up on him, he found himself with a license and went to work in Japan and build an empire, build a business that is just incredible. It is still today one of the great success stories of an American and Japanese business venture. He has given his money away in great generosities. He's a man who has worked hard, got up early and worked hard, educated himself, found his oil, made his mark, and now he is being used to use his great financial resources to benefit others.
Most of you who go on internships will be benefactors of his blessings and generosity. I'm not going to tell his name because he wouldn't share his own name. He is a very shy, reserved man, but a very generous one.
Another story out of the Philippines that follows the formula is of a young man with a young family who were starving to death. They had nothing. He finally decided he had to leave the little area where he was and go to the city to try and make a living for his wife and his children. He finally arrived in Manila with 200 pesos. For those of us ignorant in money changing, that's four dollars. He had four dollars to his name. He began to fast to see what he could do with four dollars to save his family's financial life. He fasted for three days. He was tempted to use some of his four dollars to eat, but he knew if he did he would have nothing to start with. So he didn't eat any of his ta, but he finally had this vision come that said, "your family has this famous recipe, a barbeque recipe." He went and spent a few of his pesos on ingredients for this barbeque sauce and spent the rest on some chicken. He borrowed a grill from a friend and then stood on the edge of the street in Manila and put his four dollars worth of chicken and barbeque sauce on display as he cooked it. And as the people came by, and one person bought a piece of chicken, and then a second person, until finally he sold out.
At the end of the day, he had eight dollars. He had doubled his net worth with this borrowed grill. He spent one of those dollars to eat his first meal, and now he has seven dollars left to spend on the next days' supplies. He went out and bought more chicken and more ingredients for the barbeque sauce, and the second day he doubled his money again, and third day he doubled it again, and continued to double it. Finally he started sending money home go his wife and children. And then he had enough to buy his own grill so he didn't have to borrow one anymore.
And then he was enough ahead that his neighbor had been watching him and said, "I'd like to do that too." So he said, "I'll tell you what, I'll set you up with a cart and a grill and give you enough money to buy chicken and you meet me here at eight o'clock tomorrow night and we'll take the money out that you need to buy the chicken for the next day, and then we'll split the money 50/50, half for me for the cart and grill and half for you."
He did that over and over again, until today, and this may be an old story, but somehow, after a year or two or three of that hard work, this man became a very prosperous man with over a hundred carts to his ownership of which he had 50/50 partners all over the Philippines operating his carts and famous formula. He became a very famous and well to do, successful man.
There's a man that lived the formula. There's a benefactor of this school that lived this formula. This room, this building is filled with people who lived this particular formula. I have a list, and the whole bottom half of this list is people from right here.
Starting with the President, an East High kid, about my same age, who is kind of a student-type. I won't say nerd; I think he said that, but kind of a student-type who swam on the side. He was just one of those guys who discovered the formula. I know he got up early, I know he worked hard; I know he got an education, a lot of it. And look what's happened to him with all that effort and all those things, having served a mission and everything.
All of the men sitting behind me have all lived the formula. These people don't have names like Huntsman or Smith, but are all men that have worked their way up in life. This school is filled with missionaries. I could go on and on, the Messengers, the Blacks, the Richins and the Hogges. All of them have lived their lives and are now giving back to build the Kingdom.
Brothers and sister the Gospel is true. The formula works. The formula really works, I promise, and it will work for you. It begins tomorrow morning at 5:30am, 5:30am to 6am, somewhere in that half-an-hour block you need to be on your knees asking Heavenly Father to help you live it, because someday the 2,500 of you are going to be asked to fill some important roles. You have no idea what is to become.
It's a great story of how my stuttering got solved, it happened miraculously. If you could hear how many things had to happen to put Terri Walch in my zone, who had the only opportunity to go anywhere in Scotland to speak on invitation. All the rest of the missionaries had to stay in their own zone but Terri Walch. And Teri Walch didn't know me from Adam. I was a one-week missionary, one week out in the mission field. He chose me to go out with him for six months in a row.
Every Sunday I had to get up and give a five-minute talk. The first three months they were terrible, terrible talks. Then he stood up and gave his powerful 30-minute dissertation and people would line up to get baptized every time he spoke.
Because of that experience I was his traveling companion and eventually I conquered a problem. Now that had to be set up in some eons of time ago. My mission president didn't know I had a problem, Terri Walch didn't know I had a problem. Nobody but my mother and best friend knew I had a problem. And yet, somehow, the Lord put me together with Terri Walch in Dumbarton, Scotland, for six long months, forcing me to stand at a pulpit until one day I finally gave a talk that somebody understood. I'm telling you, my friends, that that didn't happen by accident.
I want you to know that the Church is true. God runs this Church. It is the Savior's church. It is His name on it and He runs it. When He wants a Terri Walch to be by your side, at some pulpit in some lowly village in Scotland, He'll find a way to do that. If He'll do that for a chicken farmer's son, who limps when he walks and stutters when he talks, if He'll do that for me, what will he do for you?
What mission, what great store has He got in mind for you, when that great day comes when you end up in your private land and you are getting ready to be used by the Lord to build His church? I promise you that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.