Pioneer Day

So every year Utah celebrates Pioneer Day on July 24th, which is today. I was asked to give a talk on pioneers in church. So I thought of some African pioneers and spoke of them. Here is my talk:

Pioneers are defined as those who are the first to explore or settle an area or are the first to apply new knowledge. They prepare a way for those who come after them. I think the essential aspect to consider about pioneers is the legacy they leave for those who come after them.

Each of us have pioneers in our ancestry and also we may be pioneers.

For instance, my maternal grandparents joined the church in 1962 and were the first in my family to embrace the gospel. They have thus affected the generations that follow after them. My brother and I are pioneers because we were the first in our family to move to the United States. Similarly, by moving from South Africa we have brought on a change for the generations that follow us.

I want to share two examples of pioneers that I look up to.

[1] Joseph Johnson is an example of an African pioneer. Born in Ghana, from an early age he wondered about which church to join and in the 60s he came across some literature from the Church, including the Book of Mormon. He read it and knew it was true. But the church wasn't officially established there. One morning Joseph heard: "Johnson, Johnson, Johnson. If you will take up my work as I will command you, I will bless you and bless your land." He replied, "Lord, with thy help I will do whatsoever you will command me." From that day onwards he went from door to door sharing the message he knew to be true. In 1964 he had organized a church patterned after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They experienced lots of opposition and persecution from the unbelieving. He wrote to President David O McKay telling him about what he had done and President McKay wrote back that in the Lord's own due time he would send missionaries. Brother Johnson organized several congregations and trained leaders. He continued proselyting and would walk 50 miles a day. There were a lot of struggles. One night he had a dream in which he saw Joseph Smith and Brigham Young and they told him the missionaries would come soon and that he needed to keep reading his scriptures. In 1968 he quit his job and proselyted full time. He farmed for his food and lived on his retirement pension. This proved too tough for his wife so she left him and their children. He felt very sad and one night he had a dream in which he saw his dead brother. His brother asked why he was crying. Brother Johnson said, "My wife left me." His brother said, "Don’t worry. You have chosen the right thing, the true church." He then sang Come, Come, Ye Saints which Joseph had never heard before. His brother then said, "Don’t leave the Church, my brother. Don’t leave the Church! Please see that I am baptized." At that point he didn't know about baptism for the dead. He received many revelations during this time and said about them, The reason we had these revelations was that there were many challenges, and anytime the Lord realized that we were struggling He showed us something to strengthen our faith. He sought to have contact with members of the church and found out there were Latter-day Saints in Libya, 800 miles away. He traveled there and found they were actually from the reorganized church. He asked if he could preach to them and converted many of them. In June 1978 he turned on the radio and he had an impression to listen to a particular station. He then heard the message of President Kimball that all worthy males could receive the Priesthood and he then knew missionaries would be coming soon to Ghana and he could be baptized and receive the priesthood. He was baptized later that year along with about 400 others. Today there are 7 stakes and a temple in Ghana and Joseph Johnson serves as a stake patriarch. (http://lds.org/ensign/1999/12/steadfast-african-pioneer)

What an amazing pioneer! He left an incredible legacy of devotion to the Lord and building the Kingdom.

[2] I have always looked up to and had a deep respect for my grandparents. My grandparents were divorced in 1961 and they were both very unhappy. On Saturday my grandfather came to fetch my mom and her brother and they had yet another argument. He said he would not be bringing the children back. After he left she knelt down to pray and asked God for help. She said she needed help today and not tomorrow. While praying and with tears streaming down her face she heard someone knock on the door. When she went to open the door two missionaries stood there and the one said, We have come with a message from God. My grandmother, filled with faith, said, Yes, I know. They read the scriptures and prayed with her and asked when they could meet with her and my grandfather together. When my grandfather returned with the children she asked him if he could meet with the missionaries with her and he agreed because he felt bad about the way he had treated her. Eventually they were remarried and baptized. Since that time they have filled their lives with service and put the Kingdom of God first. My grandfather is an inventor. In the 1960s his factory burned down twice (on account of arson) and then there were problems with the supplier and with these problems he struggled to keep up with the demand and was forced to go into liquidation. This led to him moving to another city and him being called into the district presidency. He had a significant effect in building the church in that new area. Later after more business struggles he was forced to move to another city and was called to be a bishop. He served diligently and grew the ward so that it split. As a result of more business problems he had to move to Johannesburg and there they were able to spend a lot of time in the temple and even serve a temple mission. They had many amazing experiences in the temple. My grandfather said that his patriarchal blessing states a number of times that it is his mission to build up the Kingdom in South Africa and also that it would be necessary for him to experience opposition. He says this prophecy has been fulfilled many times. Through each business failure the Lord led them to a different part of the country where they were able to build up the kingdom. Without those business failures they probably would not have moved. They never let the opposition get them down, but each time drew closer to the Lord and sought for ways to serve.

Both Joseph Johnson and my grandparents are pioneers because they were the first in their families or countries who consecrated their lives to the Lord and the building of the Kingdom. No opposition was too much to deter them from this. The legacy they leave is profound.

President Wilford Woodruff (JD 23:327) said: “And while we sometimes feel and have felt in days that are past and gone, to complain because we meet with oppression, persecution and affliction, yet I wish to say to my brethren and sisters that these things are the heritage of the Saints of God. Any people whom God calls will meet with opposition.... This has been the legacy of the Saints of God in every age from Father Adam down to our own day. Those that live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution. I believe myself, from the reading of the revelations of God, that it is necessary for a people who are destined to inherit the celestial kingdom to be a tried people.”

While some let opposition and affliction lead them away from the Lord, others use it to make themselves ready for the celestial kingdom. In each case, the generations that follow are impacted in eternal ways.

President Hinckley: “To you I say with all of the energy of which I am capable, do not become a weak link in the chain of your generations. You come to the world with a marvelous inheritance. You come of great men and women. … Never let them down. Never do anything which would weaken the chain of which you are a fundamental part.” (Scroll, 14 Sept. 1999, 20)

Each of us can be pioneers in the way we commit to live the Gospel, thus providing a significant legacy for those who follow.

My grandparents and Joseph Johnson left a legacy of (1) consecrating their lives to serving the Lord regardless of what happens to them; and (2) committing to building the kingdom of God no matter what.

Each of us can do better in consecrating our lives to the Lord. I like to think of everything we have as a stewardship given to us by the Lord, which we will one day have to account for: our use of time (including recreational time), our callings and other church assignments, our money (and not just the 10% we pay in tithing), even our desires, and so on. Everything should be used with the end purpose of building the Kingdom.

Brigham Young said, “We are here for the purpose of establishing the Kingdom of God on the earth.” (DBY, 121)

Consider, for instance, how you use your time. How much time is wasted each day? Can you use your time more wisely so that in some way you are building the kingdom all the time whether through developing a new skill or knowledge or helping others or studying the Gospel? Elder Maxwell stated “Ironically, inordinate attention, even to good things, can diminish our devotion to God.” (http://lds.org/general-conference/2002/04/consecrate-thy-performance) When deciding how to spend our time we need to consider what activities will best enable us to serve the Lord and build the Kingdom. We are given a stewardship over our time and how we use it and one day will have to account for the time we have used incorrectly.

Now consider the Sabbath day. Are we using that day to draw closer to God? This day is necessary for us to prepare ourselves to build the Kingdom of God. Each activity we choose to do on the Sabbath should enable us to draw closer to Heavenly Father. If it does not help us draw closer to Heavenly Father, it might not be appropriate for the Sabbath.

There are so many things in which we can improve so that we are consecrating our lives to the Lord and building the Kingdom.

Brigham Young also said, “My heart has been set in me to do the will of God, to build up his Kingdom on the earth, to establish Zion and its laws, and to save the people; .... All that I have had in my mind has been that it was my duty to do the will of God, and to labor to establish his Kingdom on the earth...” (DBY, 452)

I know that as we consecrate everything--our time, our desires, our whole lives--to the Lord we will leave a rich legacy to our children and the generations that follow. We will be pioneers in the way we are living the Gospel and prepare them for the lives of service that they too are to lead.

I love what Brigham Young said, “We should never have but one desire, but one determination; our will should be perfectly cent[e]red upon the one object, viz., to find out the will of God, and do it.” (JD 2:131)

I know that each of us can do more in consecrating our lives to the Lord. We can find out through the Spirit what He needs us to do. I pray that we will do this and teach our children to do the same.