Last Lectures

A few years ago I received as a gift from one of my children an audio book of The Last Lecture.  Apparently this tradition of asking professors to give what they would teach if the lecture were to be their last has been around for some time.  This morning I listened to a talk given by President N. Elden Tanner in April 1971, designated by him as his "last lecture".  What great and timeless counsel there is in this brief message from one who speaks for God.  I was particularly impressed with his quote from Elder Richard L. Evans: “Our Father in heaven is not an umpire who is trying to count us out. He is not a competitor who is trying to outsmart us. He is not a prosecutor who is trying to convict us. He is a loving Father who wants our happiness and eternal progress, and who will help us all he can if we will but give him in our lives an opportunity to do so.”

We invite all of our friends and family to join with us in attending general conference this weekend, and "Come, listen to a prophet's voice, and hear the word of God."

Easter Message: He Lives

That Easter Morn

By Marion D. Hanks, b. 1921. © 1975 IRI

That Easter morn, a grave that burst
Proclaimed to man that "Last and First"
Had ris'n again
And conquered pain.

This morn renews for us that day
When Jesus cast the bonds away,
Took living breath
And conquered death.

Thus we in gratitude recall
And give our love and pledge our all,
Shed grateful tear
And conquer fear.

The originally stated purpose of this blog is to share our testimony of Jesus Christ.  So in celebration of that purpose, and in view of the season, we share our testimony of the reason we have to celebrate:

  We are all children of a loving Heavenly Father who wants the best for us, indeed wants us to become as He is in order that we may experience a fulness of joy, as He does.  All of His effort is focused on our eternal progression (i.e., happiness), and as part of those efforts, He has provided this mortal experience through which we must pass as a part of our progression.  Part of this progression is to experience spiritual death, separation from Him when we are born into mortality, and physical death, the separation of our spirit from our body as we leave mortality.

  In order to make possible our eternal progression, the Messiah, Jesus Christ, voluntarily and willingly gave himself a sacrifice on our behalf.  He came to mortality and experienced all the pains and suffering attendant to mortality, including all the temptations, but without yielding.  He lived a sinless life, allowing Him to perform the infinite atonement, and after experiencing physical death was resurrected with a glorified body that would never more be separated from His spirit.

  Because of the resurrection of the Redeemer, each of us is also redeemed from physical death, and will be resurrected with an immortal body to match our immortal spirit.  Because of the infinite atonement of the Savior, each of us also has the opportunity to be reconciled to God and again dwell with Him in the kind of life He enjoys.  This blessing may come to all who believe on the name of Christ, submit to holy and authorized ordinances, and endure to the end, striving to be like Jesus, submitting our will to that of the Father in all things.

A couple of photos I took this last week provide a visual reminder

of one of my favorite sermons by the apostle Joseph B. Wirthlin.

The darkness of any "Friday"

Will always be dispelled by the brilliant dawning of "Sunday"

Because it is a part of our Father's plan for our eternal progression, we are assured that in the world we shall have tribulation.  But because of our redemption we are also assured that we can be of good cheer because our Redeemer has overcome the world.  So no matter how dark things may look to us from time to time, we can feel confidently assured that "Sunday will come": that through belief in Christ, following Him with full purpose of heart, we can be healed of all.  With the restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, accompanied by His power and authority, the morning has begun to break.  And one day soon, as promised, the Messiah will return and we shall all see Him together. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain."

"God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son."