"At times many of us let that enemy of achievement--even the culprit 'self-defeat'--dwarf our aspirations, smother our dreams, cloud our vision, and impair our lives. The enemy's voice whispers in our ears, 'You can't do it.' 'You're too young.' 'You're too old.' 'You're nobody.' This is when we remember that we are created in the image of God. Reflection on this truth provides a profound sense of strength and power."
--Thomas S Monson, "Choose You This Day," Ensign, November 2004, 68
I visited him in his home from time to time to thank him and to give him priesthood blessings. His health began a slow decline. I can’t remember all the ailments he suffered. He needed surgery. He was in constant pain. Yet every time I visited him to give him comfort, he turned the tables; I always was the one comforted. His back and legs forced him to use a cane to walk. Yet there he was in church, always sitting near the door, where he could greet those arriving early, with a smile.
I will never forget the feeling of wonder and admiration which came over me when I opened the back door at home and saw him coming up our driveway. It was the day we put out our garbage cans to be picked up by city workers. I had put the can out in the morning. But there he was dragging my garbage can up the hill with one hand while he balanced himself with a cane in his other hand. He was giving me the help he thought I needed when he needed it far more than I did. And he was helping with a smile and without being asked.
I visited him when he finally had to be cared for by nurses and doctors. He was lying in a hospital bed, still in pain and still smiling. His wife had called me to say that he was getting weaker. My son and I gave him a priesthood blessing as he lay in the bed with tubes and bottles connected to him. I sealed the blessing with a promise that he would have time and the strength to do all that God had for him to do in this life, to pass every test. He stretched out his hand to grasp mine as I stepped away from his bed to leave. I was surprised at the strength of his grip and the firmness in his voice when he said, “I’m going to make it.”
I left thinking that I would see him again soon. But the phone call came within a day. He was gone to the glorious place where he will see the Savior, who is his perfect judge and will be ours. As I spoke at his funeral, I thought of the words of Paul when he knew that he would go to that place where my neighbor and friend has gone:
“But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
“For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
“Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
I have confidence that my neighbor made it through his trial and will face his judge with a joyous smile.
(For the full talk, click here)
Told he had an ancestor "who founded the state of Utah," Kennedy said his father pulled out a box of old photos and documents the teenager had never seen. As he laid them out, the doorbell rang. "Two young men were standing there with name tags and the first name 'Elder,'" he recalled.
When they were invited inside, "The first thing they saw was a picture of Lucy (Mack Smith) and Emma (Smith). They asked me what I was doing," and when he told them, "they just went nuts," he said, grinning. Meanwhile, missionaries taught a girl named Darcy Dodge, who eventually became Kennedy's wife after both joined the church. At the time, they were the only Latter-day Saints in tiny Tonapah, Nev.
Shortly after high school graduation in 1973, Kennedy was baptized — not because he fully understood or believed what he had been taught, he said, but "so (the missionaries) could feel successful, and so I could go on my way and be happy."
Unbeknownst to him, information about Kennedy's family tree made its way to Salt Lake City. He was summoned by then-LDS Church President Harold B. Lee. "I was pretty scared. I'd only been baptized for 30 days, and the president of the church wanted to see me," he said. Asked what he knew about Joseph Smith, he replied he only knew what was in his history report.
"I told him how Joseph Smith discovered the state of Utah. He excused himself and came back a few minutes later with a new apostle named Bruce R. McConkie," who tutored Kennedy in LDS history. Soon Elder McConkie gave permission for Kennedy to be ordained an elder in the church — something that usually takes at least a year following baptism. During his ordination, "I was told I was the first in Joseph Smith's line to receive the Melchizedek priesthood in fulfillment of prophecy."
After he and Darcy married in the Provo Temple in 1974, Kennedy said he learned quickly to keep the story of his lineage to himself, and he also swore his wife to secrecy. As part of learning about LDS history, the Smiths and Joseph's vision of restoring Christ's original church, the couple spent a semester in Israel with BYU Study Abroad in 1976, taking their young son along. Though he maintained a low public profile, church leaders interacted with and kept track of Kennedy.
During a 1984 interview with President Gordon B. Hinckley, then a counselor in the church's First Presidency, Kennedy was charged with building a family organization for the descendants of Joseph and Emma Smith. By 1985, he had the organization in place and was working with church officials, archivists and another Smith descendant — Gracia Jones — to find and document the Smith family tree.
To date, he said they have documented roughly 1,900 descendants — far fewer than they had expected to find, based on the number of children born to Joseph and Emma's surviving children. (Several had died as infants.)
"Their descendants had an extremely high mortality rate," Kennedy said, with deaths attributed to "everything from suicides to broken marriages to people who just didn't want to have children."
After more than two decades of contacting family members — about one-third of them live in Australia — Kennedy said he believes that after Joseph Smith was martyred by a mob in 1844, "Satan turned the revenge (for Joseph Smith's founding of the LDS Church) on his family. We ended up with much more than just two religious groups (the LDS Church and the Reorganized Church, started by Joseph and Emma Smith's sons) disagreeing here."
Even so, a 17-foot-long family tree detailing the couple's progeny now adorns a wall in the church's Family History Library. It shows Kennedy's family as descendants of the Smiths' son Alexander. Kennedy said he and Jones have found almost 1,500 living descendants. Of those, 130 to 140 are Latter-day Saints with various degrees of church activity.
Baptisms, endowments and sealing ordinances were performed by proxy in LDS temples for the documented descendants who are deceased, he said.
Kennedy recently returned from Independence, Mo., where he visited the family of Joseph Smith III, who founded the Reorganized Church after his father's death. He, his mother, Emma, and the Smiths' other children remained in Nauvoo, Ill., following the exodus of Latter-day Saints, led by Brigham Young, to the Salt Lake Valley.
Kennedy said he and a descendant of Joseph Smith III plan a yearlong project to identify the descendants in that line and invite them to join the Joseph Smith Jr. Family Organization. The group — many of whom gathered in Nauvoo this summer for a second non-denominational family reunion — continues to grow, Kennedy said, providing information and outreach to family members who have never heard of Smith or the faith traditions that ultimately grew out of his experience.
A Web site — www.josephsmithjr.com — explains the history to those interested and seeks their participation. Another Web site — www.josephsmithjr.org — will be established in mid-November as the home page for the Joseph Smith Jr. and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society. Images of Smith family documents and artifacts will be made available to the public on the Web site, Kennedy said.
While the LDS Church and the Community of Christ archives house documents about Joseph Smith and the early years of LDS history, many descendants also have original copies unavailable elsewhere, he said. An effort is under way to obtain copies of those documents for Brigham Young University's Lee Library collection.
Kennedy recently learned of one document, in Smith's handwriting, that explains the "celestial marriage covenant," and is now held by a woman living in the Midwest. Another person in Utah has documents relating to a story Emma Smith told her son David, who became an artist, about temple ordinances first performed in Nauvoo in the red brick store.
While neither the LDS Church nor the Community of Christ are formally involved in the Smith family organization, both have provided assistance with research and resources, and advised Kennedy on where to find information. While some Smith descendants are still part of the Community of Christ, those numbers are shrinking, he said, estimating that "less than 5 percent" of descendants are now part of that faith.
First and foremost, Kennedy wants all descendants to have the chance to connect with family — and that's how he approaches those he has the chance to contact. Though both churches have their histories and the documentation to support them, "We're painting a larger picture of what happened to the family itself."
In 1844 Sam Chambers was a 13-year-old slave living in Mississippi, and upon hearing the message of the Mormon missionaries, he was baptized late one night in secrecy.
Unable to move West with the first migrations of saints, Sam was forced to wait until 1870 when, as a free man, he and his wife Amanda began their journey towards the Salt Lake Valley.
Upon arrival in Utah, Sam quickly became a wealthy farmer of currant berries, and as a member of the Eighth Ward, was an example of service and testimony.
A New Era article by Bill Hartley, a BYU history professor who Young relied on for research, included a piece of Sam’s recorded testimony.
“[The gospel] is not only to the Gentiles but also to the Africans, for I am one of that race. The knowledge I received is from my God. It is a high and holy calling. Without the testimony of God we are nothing,” said Sam, in his testimony.
(For the full article, click here)
In the Times and Seasons issue dated March 1, 1842, the Prophet published what has come to be known as the Wentworth Letter. Describing his reasons for producing this document, the Prophet explained: “At the request of Mr. John Wentworth, Editor and Proprietor of the Chicago Democrat, I have written the following sketch of the rise, progress, persecution, and faith of the Latter-day Saints, of which I have the honor, under God, of being the founder. Mr. Wentworth says that he wishes to furnish Mr. [George] Barstow, a friend of his, who is writing the history of New Hampshire, with this document. As Mr. Barstow has taken the proper steps to obtain correct information, all that I shall ask at his hands, is, that he publish the account entire, ungarnished, and without misrepresentation.”
George Barstow ultimately did not include the Prophet’s account in his history because he decided to cover events only through the year 1819 in his book. But the Wentworth Letter has immense value to Latter-day Saints. It is an original account by Joseph Smith testifying of his sacred call from God, his visions, and his ministry and teachings. It recounts the rise and growth of the Church and the persecutions of the Saints. It contains a prophetic declaration of the Church’s future success in the earth under the protective hand of the Great Jehovah. It also contains several important details not found elsewhere in the Prophet’s teachings, including a description of the gold plates and a sketch of the contents of the Book of Mormon. Significantly, it is the first time that Joseph Smith himself published an account of his First Vision.
Concluding with the 13 declarations of Church doctrine now called the Articles of Faith, it stands as a powerful witness of the divine calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith.
(For the full lesson, click here)
How’s the branch? We miss it, but are enjoying visiting in my sister’s ward. The first Sunday I got to substitute for the Sunbeams! (Their teacher had to take a sick child home). We are so close to the chapel that we can walk to church!
Mark went to choir practice last Sunday (our 2nd Sunday). It’s a nice ward. I do hope Mark can find a job so we can stay here.
Tell everyone I said, hello, especially my visiting teaching sisters. Tell Elejer keep up the great work – she’s a GREAT visiting teacher!
Here’s our family blog: http://thejungletimes.
Tracy
My parents are Catholic, thus I was born a Catholic. So, I went to Catechism (Catholic Sunday School) all throughout my primary school years. However, I grew up with my grandpa in Melaka and not my parents, who were working in KL. I remember when I was 8 or 9 years old, I would ask questions like, “Why are we here on earth? What is the purpose of life?” Well, I asked those questions, because I hated doing homework ALL the time! ^_^
Nonetheless, my questions were answered when I was 16 years old. The answers came through a series of events. I didn’t know then, that they would lead to my baptism in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Looking back, I never regretted the path I chose.
My baptism was a member missionary effort. My aunt Lillian shared the gospel with her sister, Susan and Susan’s husband, Michael. During that time, Michael and Susan were also living under the same roof as my grandpa and I. The missionaries started coming over to teach the discussions to Michael and Susan. Subsequently, they would also go to the missionary couple’s home for the new member discussions, watch church videos and also hold family home evenings. Of course, I would always tag along.
In the beginning, I would just tag along for fun. When new missionaries came, I would be the “investigator” for them to practice teaching the discussions. All these happened around the time when I was 15 and 16 years old. Not long after that, I started skipping Catechism to go to “their” Sacrament meetings. My parents were not happy about it. However, I felt that the Plan of Salvation the missionaries had been sharing made sense. It’s very logical. So, I wanted to learn more. I also started praying to know the truthfulness of the gospel.
Wanting to learn more meant spending more time in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints with the Saints and mostly missionaries at that time (as it was still a very small branch). Thus, I gradually removed myself from the Catholic Church. There was one particular Sunday (I don’t remember the date) I went to my usual Catholic Mass in the morning. I sat on the aisle seat looking at the people seated in the cathedral. During that time, females were assigned to sit on the left side of the cathedral and the males were on the right side. I remembered thinking to myself, “What if ALL the males in this cathedral hold the priesthood of God?” That would be A LOT of members in Melaka!
I sat there weighing heavily on the pros and cons of staying until the Mass was over and most importantly if I should leave the Catholic Church for good. I believe I was only about 16 going on 17 at that time, nonetheless I decided there and then to get up and leave the Cathedral and subsequently the Catholic faith. I still remember vividly the moment I walked out of the Cathedral, telling myself, “There’s nothing here for me anymore.” I didn’t feel a loss, I felt at peace.
This bold decision that I made was aided by a few incidences which happened as answers to my prayers. I shall share one. As I’ve mentioned before, I’d already been praying to find out whether the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. There was one time I had a religious discussion with my English teacher in school. I brought up the topic of ‘Mormonism’ and my teacher went on to share what she knew about the ‘Mormons”. I started to correct her and defending the church. The moment I realized what I was doing, it dawned on me that I already knew this church to be true.
As a Catholic, I’d already been taught to pray to our Heavenly Father. However, the most crucial part of prayer that I’ve learned in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that He answers our prayers. He truly does! I found out for myself through prayer that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true and that the prophet Joseph Smith Jr. was called to restore the gospel of Jesus Christ here on earth. I also know the Book of Mormon is written by ancient prophets for the people in our day.
I was finally baptized when I was 18 against my parents’ wishes. Nonetheless, I had support from my aunts and uncle. My grandpa also joined the church after I did. He was 71 when he joined. ^_^ I was privileged to be able to serve a mission in the Kaohsiung, Taiwan mission. After that, I was blessed to attend BYU Hawaii and the University of Hawaii. All these came to pass, because of the gospel in my life.
I testify that when we stay faithful, doing and giving our best to build His kingdom here on earth, we will be guided by the Spirit to do whatever that is right and necessary for us to go back to our Heavenly Father. Through that, we are able to help our brothers and sisters as well.
Heavenly Father has been very kind and generous to me. The atonement of Jesus Christ has enabled me to repent of my sins and get back on track every time I fall short. I truly am an unprofitable servant. That’s when I learned that when much is given, much is required. This life is for us to prepare to meet God. We will have to learn to endure to the end and endure it well, work together with our families and our loved ones and bring them to the knowledge of the gospel. With Christ as our Savior, we can and will make it when we do our part.
On August 15, 2007, Peru suffered a massive earthquake that all but destroyed the coastal cities of Pisco and Chincha. Like many other Church leaders and members, Wenceslao Conde, the president of the Balconcito Branch of the Church in Chincha, immediately set about helping others whose homes were damaged.
Four days after the earthquake, Elder Marcus B. Nash of the Seventy was in Chincha helping to coordinate the Church's relief efforts there and met President Conde. As they talked about the destruction that had occurred and what was being done to help the victims, President Conde's wife, Pamela, approached carrying one of her small children. Elder Nash asked Sister Conde how her children were. With a smile, she replied that through the goodness of God they were all safe and well. He asked about the Condes' home.
"It's gone," she said simply.
"What about your belongings?" he inquired.
"Everything was buried in the rubble of our home," Sister Conde replied.
"And yet," Elder Nash noted, "you are smiling as we talk."
"Yes," she said, "I have prayed and I am at peace. We have all we need. We have each other, we have our children, we are sealed in the temple, we have this marvelous Church, and we have the Lord. We can build again with the Lord's help."
--D Todd Christofferson
(For the full talk, click here)
"We need strength beyond ourselves to keep the commandments in whatever circumstance life brings to us. For some it may be poverty, but for others it may be prosperity. It may be the ravages of age or the exuberance of youth. The combination of trials and their duration are as varied as are the children of our Heavenly Father. No two are alike. But what is being tested is the same, at all times in our lives and for every person: will we do whatsoever the Lord our God will command us?"
--Henry B Eyring, "In the Strength of the Lord," Ensign, May 2004, 17
