1 Nephi 1:6-7

I find the next few verses of 1 Nephi quite interesting. Lehi went forth and “prayed unto the Lord… with all his heart.” And what was the subject of his prayer? “In behalf of his people.”  I think a great lesson is taught here. I have found myself at various times of my life spending a lot of time praying about myself and my family, but until a few years ago, very little praying for “my people.” Who were Lehi’s people and who exactly are my people?

I’ve determined that I have spent a lot of time in my life praying for myself. I’ve justified much of it because I have included “help me to keep the commandments better” and “help me to serve others” and “help me to be a better example;” probably all good things, but none the less selfish. I’ve learned from this scripture that I need to spend more time praying for others.

I am assuming that the state of the Jews in Jerusalem became a real concern to Lehi.  As mentioned in yesterday’s post, several years prior to him departing Jerusalem with his family, a puppet king was into place by Nebuchadnezzar. Jerusalem was already beginning to feel the pains of disobedience to God’s commandments.

What sins were the people guilty of?

¶Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the Lord which he had hallowed in Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles 36:14

7 For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, 8 And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made. 9 And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. 10 And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree: 11 And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the Lord carried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger: 12 For they served idols, whereof the Lord had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing. 13 Yet the Lord testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets. 14 Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the Lord their God. 15 And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them. 16 And they left all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. 17 And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. 2 Kings 17:7-17

In what ways are we as individuals, as couple, as families, as wards and stakes, as nations, and as a church guilty of the same things? Something to ponder! If I am to pray for others, what would I pray for? Should we pray for the church as a whole, and all the way down to our own families that we will keep the covenants we have made, that we will put away our pride and vanity, that we will stop worshiping false gods (money, fame, celebrities, even church leaders, etc.)?  Do I care about others enough to pray with “all my heart” on their behalf?

What are the benefits or result of this type of prayer for others? We find the answer in 1 Nephi 1:6.

“And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.”

Using the footnotes again follow the footnotes to “pillar.” Every time a pillar of fire is used in the scriptures it is the Lord. Did the Lord appear to him here? I think he did.

As he was praying earnestly on behalf of others he received a revelation. Was Lehi a prophet yet? The scriptures give us no indication he was anything other than a normal man. This revelation was intended for nobody other than Lehi and his family.

We learn an important piece from verse 7; “And it came to pass that he returned to his own house at Jerusalem.”

Where did he return from? Where had he been praying? Was it at the temple? Was he on a mountain somewhere? We don’t really know other than it didn’t take place in his own home.

He lies down to rest on his bed, and as he does so a vision opens to him. We will talk about that vision in my next post.

I welcome your comments.

Joseph's Prayer

For those of you who are regular readers of my blog, you know that I have an 18 year old son named Joe. He works two jobs and attends the community college. Due to choices he makes in his life, he lives on his own rather than living here at home. Although difficult for a parent, the things he is learning by being responsible for himself are invaluable. I hope that one day he makes good choices and is able to move home.

About a week ago today I had an incredible experience with him that I would like to share. This story shows how the Lord will help us teach our children if we are willing to listen. I thank God for experiences like this.

Over a several day period, Joe was having trouble with his car starting. It started sometimes, and other times it wouldn’t. At first it seemed to be a problem with the battery, since it would start if we jumped it, but as time went on it became evident that the starter motor was going bad. I encouraged Joe to take it and get it fixed before he got stranded somewhere, but ultimately that is what happened. Last Friday he had to leave it in a parking lot until I had the time to help him.

On Saturday morning we went out early to attempt to get it started. It had snowed several inches overnight to complicate issues a little. At this point we were not quite sure if the problem was with the battery or the starter so we bought a new battery before going. When we arrived at the car we tried multiple things to get it started. We tried jumping it first, then we tried the new battery but nothing seemed to work. It simply wouldn’t start.

After about 30 minutes I asked Joe to come in the car with me so we could say a prayer. We weren’t asking for the car to be miraculously repaired, we were simply asking for it to start one last time so we could take it to be repaired. I offered a simple but heartfelt prayer. Afterward, I felt 100% confident that it would start. I thought to myself what a wonderful experience this would be for Joe if it started. I was full of faith. After the prayer I tried it again and it simply wouldn’t start.

Joe got out of his car (where we had prayed) since it was cold and went and sat in mine. I was shocked that the car hadn’t started. I was certain it was going to and yet it didn’t. I silently offered another prayer and reasoned a bit with the Lord. “Heavenly Father, why isn’t it starting? What am I missing?” After asking these questions I sat quietly for a few moments and listened for an answer. The answer came in a very loving manner. “Scott, you already know that I will answer your prayers. Does Joe know that I will answer his?”

I stepped out of Joe’s car and went in mine where Joe was warming up. “Joe, I think you need to pray about this one.” He replied “I don’t want to pray, I don’t even know what to ask.” This response still shocks me; he grew up in a family that prayed nearly every day together. He had heard, and offered thousands of prayers in his lifetime. At this point, however, he didn’t know what to ask for. I asked him “what is it that we want?” He replied “we want the car to start.” “Then that is what you should ask for” I replied.

Joe offered a simple but to the point prayer “Heavenly Father, Please bless my dad and I that the car will start so we can go get it fixed, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.” I then said “Joe, now go start your car.” Joe went to his car, and in a couple of attempts it started.

I got out and unhooked the jumper cables, put the tools away, and closed the hoods of the cars. Joe sat silently in his car. I went and sat next to him. “Joe, you can’t deny this one” I said. “I know” he replied. I then explained to him how I had been prompted to ask him to pray. He sat silently. I said “We owe Heavenly Father a prayer of thanks for this one.” I offered it and went back to my car.

The next couple of minutes I sat in my car and wept. I was so grateful that Heavenly Father would love me so much as to give me such an amazing teaching opportunity for my drifting son. I was overwhelmed with love and appreciation for him. Over and over in my mind went the thoughts “my God is a good God, my God is a powerful God, my God is a great God.” Oh how I love Him.

This important lesson teaches me that Heavenly Father really is in charge. He loves us and will help us in all we do if we will simply turn to him… and listen.

I have a painting hanging in my living room of the Savior calming the sea. It is a painting by Walter Rane titled “Master the Tempest is Raging.” I bought it after a very powerful experience I had in the Salt Lake temple while viewing it there one day.

In the midst of the trouble I was having with my two sons, ad when Matt was in the middle of his treatment at Turnabout, I was in the Salt Lake Temple. In the entrance to the Men’s locker room hangs this wonderful painting. It depicts the small ship being tossed by the sea. Each of the disciples is in various forms of panic. One disciple is clenching tightly to a rope that is tied to the sail. He has his teeth gritted and is pulling with all his might. At the same time, the Savior is standing in the front of the boat very calmly with His hand outstretched.

As I stood in the temple that morning, the eyes of my understanding were opened and I suddenly saw myself in this painting. I was grasping on to the rope (my sons) as tightly as I could. I somehow felt that if I was strong enough, or good enough, or held on tight enough, I could save my two sons, just as this disciple thought he could save the boat. The Savior on the other hand didn’t need to use any physical strength at all; without holding tightly to anything, spoke the words “peace be still” and the elements obeyed. As I stood in the temple that morning, the Spirit whispered to me “Scott, let go of the rope and trust me.” I soon realized that my sons have a Savior… and it isn’t me!

I bought a copy of this painting and display it prominently in my home to remind me to let go and to trust the Savior.

I end this post with the scripture found in Mark 4:

37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

Each of us encounter “great storms” in our lives. How many of us turn to the arm of the flesh to calm the storm? The words found here “Why are ye so fearful? How is it ye have no faith?” give me great comfort at times when I feel afraid. May we all learn to let go of the rope and trust the Lord!

Our Savior's Love

On December 21, 2011 my dear mother passed away. She was truly the most Christ like person I ever knew. She was kind and loving and never said an unkind thing about anyone. She always saw the good in every person and in every situation. She will be missed by all. Thank you to all who expressed their condolences and sympathies. I truly felt the influence of your prayers.

I would like to write today on a really wonderful experience that happened the day of her passing. It shows how much our Savior and our Heavenly Father really loves us, and it shows how we can receive some of the greatest blessings of our lives if we give ourselves the time and space to listen to the whisperings of the Spirit.

The night before my mother’s passing, the entire family, siblings and spouses, met at her bedside. The kind people at hospice had told us that the time was very near. The hospice nurse explained to us everything that was happening in her body, and what we could expect during the next few hours until her death. She hadn’t had anything to eat or drink for several days and her face was very frail and thin. Her heart was racing at about 130 beats a minute and she was very warm. Her body was simply shutting down. She was not conscious.

As we gathered together, there was a strong unity between all of us. There were no hard feelings. We were able to whisper things to our mother and tell her good bye. We had a family prayer. Then most of us left. I never expected to see my mother alive again.

The following morning was Wednesday, the day I go to the temple, and I awoke at my normal 4:15 in order to read my scriptures and say my prayers before going to the temple. I thought in my heart that there wasn’t a better place for me to be at my mother’s passing than at the temple. My prayers that morning were particularly earnest and my emotions were near the surface. I had expected a call or text overnight telling me of her passing but had received neither.

As I finished my prayers, and passed through the kitchen to go take a shower, I glanced at a picture of the Savior that hangs in that room. Without much thought I paused on the picture for a moment and said under my breath “please hold her hand today.” As I turned to walk away I felt the sweet promptings of the Spirit say to me “no Scott, you should hold it yourself.” I was a little taken back by the prompting. As I hopped in the shower I continued to ask the Lord if going to be with my mother, or going to the temple where I could pray in peace for my mother was more important. I had the distinct feeling I needed to go to my mother’s side. I dressed quickly and arrived at her side about 5:45 am.

When I arrived at my mother’s home (assisted living), my sister Carolyn was standing at my mother’s door. When I asked her what was wrong, she said that a couple of nurses ad just run by and entered another room. We soon learned that our sweet friend Arva had just passed away.

Arva was another angel. She was only 81 years old and in relatively good health. She had been in a car accident and had a serious brain injury that left her nearly unable to speak. She had, however, a huge heart and treated us, and especially our mother, with great love and respect. In her very labored speech, she always asked about our mother and expressed her concern. Everyone was shocked that she had passed and we were all saddened. I honestly feel however that she passed to help my mother make this important transition.

When entering my mother’s room, I found her nearly in the same state as the previous night. Julie, Carolyn and Lance had spent the night. Lance left just prior to my arrival. I sat next to my sweet mother and held her hand. I kissed her and whispered in her ear how much I loved her and how it was okay to go. There was no response but I know she could hear me.

At about 7 am, Carolyn expressed that she didn’t think that mom would leave while she (Carolyn) was there. She knew how upset Carolyn would be. Carolyn decided to leave.

Within a few minutes my brother Steve arrived. He too had had an impression to come. Over the past few months he had been very sweet and tender with my mother and had really taken care of her.

Soon after Steve came Susan. She was very kind and wonderful. Now it was just the four of us. We each took time holding mom’s hand and talking to her. We talked about the passing of our dad and our various experiences with that occasion. I was living in Maryland when my dad passed and despite my best efforts, was not able to make it before he passed. I was always disappointed I wasn’t there.

About 7:35 my mother threw up. All that came out was the mucus in her throat. As Steve turned to wipe it up she seemed to roll on her back a little and relax. Her breathing changed; she was taking a breath only every 10 or 15 seconds. We all jumped to her side. Susan indicated that this was probably it. We pulled the bed away from the wall so we could stand on both sides and we each held her hand or arm and wept. She took only 10 to 15 of these deep breaths- exhaled a final time- and slipped into eternity.

I will never really be able to express the peace that was in that room. There was a deep love and bond between those of us that were there that morning. It was among the most spiritual events of my life. I was so happy I was there.

I am certain that I could have gone to the temple that morning and had a wonderful experience. Instead, I had a once in a lifetime sacred experience. I am so grateful for a Savior that cares enough about me to whisper a small prompting to choose between two good things. I love Him and honor His Holy Name.

1 Nephi 11:1

1 Nephi 11:1

I feel a little bit overwhelmed today. I have been very busy at work, for which I am very grateful. At the same time I feel a burning desire to read all that I can. In addition to my study of the Book of Mormon, I am reading “The Mortal Messiah- Book One” (There are 4 volumes). I am also reading Hugh Nibley’s “Approaching Zion”, an amazing work.

I love reading and I want to read all of my spare time, however, of course I have many other responsibilities. I have received a burning testimony of the new Duty to God program. I feel a compelling need to implement it in the life of my two sons. It comes as an answer to many sincere prayers on what I can do to prepare my sons for Priesthood service. Implementing this program takes a lot of time and dedication in the evenings. It has changes how we have family scripture study… a topic for another day.

Now we come to the topic of my blog. I also feel a strong need to write in this blog. The ironic thing is that not that many people read it. Something inside me however is driving me to write about my reading of the Book of Mormon. I have been delaying this day because of the overwhelming topic of Nephi’s interpretation of Lehi’s Dream. This is an important topic that I have spent many hours pondering about. I hope I can do it justice.

Vs 1
“FOR it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot.”

There is nearly an entire sermon taught in this verse alone. Nephi had a desire to know the things his father had seen; and he had faith that the Lord was able to make them known unto him. My immediate thoughts go to Alma’s parable of the seed.

27 “But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.”

Take note of the words “desire to believe.” This is an indication of Nephi’s faith.

Nephi sat pondering. I have learned throughout my life that I need to make time for pondering. I have found that rising early in the morning is the only time that works for me. I awaken every morning between 4:30 and 5:00 am. I spend at least an hour reading, pondering, and journaling on impressions that come to me. Without a doubt this has become the most precious time of my life. This is the time that I really begin to understand the nature of our Heavenly Father.

Additionally I attend the temple every Wednesday morning for the 6:00 am session. I can’t begin to describe the things that I have learned over the last year doing this. The temple is indeed the Lord’s university.

Nephi was “caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, to an exceedingly high mountain.” This has been a topic of many hours of pondering. Where was Nephi when this was happening? Was he in his tent? Was he somewhere in the wilderness praying? If so, why was he carried away to somewhere else? Why didn’t the Lord simply appear to him where he was?

We know from the experience of others, that the Lord appears in “Holy Places”. These have often been mountain tops. It seems that the Lord uses mountain tops when temples aren’t available. If a temple had been available, would this have happened in the temple? Then we come to how this applies to me.

If the Lord, or one of his messengers, were to appear to me, where would this take place? The temple is certainly a likely place… but it isn’t really private there. Is my home a worthy enough place? I try to make it as clean as possible but the fact that we live in the “world” makes it very difficult to keep influences of the world out. Do I need to go to a mountain? If so, which one? Will the Lord carry me away to a mountain as He did Nephi? These and many other things have been the topic of much pondering and prayer.

An Answer to Prayer

Over the past 10 days or so I have been really struggling with an important personal decision in my life. It was a decision I wasn’t sure I had the ability to make due to its difficulty. I haven’t known how to handle a certain situation and I have made it a matter of earnest personal prayer. I want to write how the Lord has answered my prayer… but in a way far different than the way I expected.

For the past few weeks I have been reading “The Promised Messiah” by Elder Bruce R. McConkie. I have discovered that it is a true treasure that we have in our midst and one that I have under appreciated. I encourage all to take the time to read it.

As I have read this book, along with my reading of The Book of Mormon, I have begun to have a greater understanding of, or perhaps a greater desire for the “ministering of angels.” I have learned that we as faithful Latter-day-Saints are entitled to this divine gift, so selfish me wanted this blessing in my life. So as I went to the Lord for help on the important decision spoken of, I wanted it to come in a way that included a divine manifestation.

I have spent long hours on numerous occasions in prayer on this matter. I have wept many tears and really plead. A few nights ago I awoke at 1:00 am and poured my heart out to the Lord for over two hours. I knew He was listening… I had some distinct impressions… but no clear answer, and no divine manifestation.

Several nights later I drove up Millcreek Canyon and hiked up Rattlesnake Gulch in the dark! I found a spot to pray and spent another couple of hours pouring my heart out to the Lord. Still no answer. I hiked back to my car and read from the Book of Mormon. I prayed as I read. Still no answer. When I started my car to drive home, my car audio system began to play our latest General Conference. Right at the time I needed it, Elder Richard G. Scott spoke these words: “What can you do to enhance your capacity to be led to correct decisions in your life? What are the principles upon which spiritual communication depends? What are the potential barriers to such communication that you need to avoid?

President John Taylor wrote: “Joseph Smith, upwards of forty years ago, said to me: ‘Brother Taylor, you have received the Holy Ghost. Now follow the influence of that Spirit, and it will lead you into all truth, until by and by, it will become in you a principle of revelation.’ Then he told me never to arise in the morning without bowing before the Lord, and dedicating myself to him during that day.”

Father in Heaven knew that you would face challenges and be required to make some decisions that would be beyond your own ability to decide correctly. In His plan of happiness, He included a provision for you to receive help with such challenges and decisions during your mortal life. That assistance will come to you through the Holy Ghost as spiritual guidance. It is a power, beyond your own capability, that a loving Heavenly Father wants you to use consistently for your peace and happiness.

I am convinced that there is no simple formula or technique that would immediately allow you to master the ability to be guided by the voice of the Spirit. Our Father expects you to learn how to obtain that divine help by exercising faith in Him and His Holy Son, Jesus Christ. Were you to receive inspired guidance just for the asking, you would become weak and ever more dependent on Them. They know that essential personal growth will come as you struggle to learn how to be led by the Spirit.

What may appear initially to be a daunting task will be much easier to manage over time as you consistently strive to recognize and follow feelings prompted by the Spirit. Your confidence in the direction you receive from the Holy Ghost will also become stronger. I witness that as you gain experience and success in being guided by the Spirit, your confidence in the impressions you feel can become more certain than your dependence on what you see or hear.

Spirituality yields two fruits. The first is inspiration to know what to do. The second is power, or the capacity to do it. These two capacities come together. That’s why Nephi could say, “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded.” He knew the spiritual laws upon which inspiration and power are based. Yes, God answers prayer and gives us spiritual direction when we live obediently and exercise the required faith in Him.”

This message was directed perfectly to me. I am certain that had an angel appeared to me, he would have given me the exact same counsel. The whole thing was as if the Lord was speaking directly to me but I was particularly touched by the words “I witness that as you gain experience and success in being guided by the Spirit, your confidence in the impressions you feel can become more certain than your dependence on what you see or hear.” I learned I don’t need an angel to appear to receive the counsel I need!

Elder Scott said that spirituality yields two fruits: The first is inspiration to know what to do. The second is the power or capacity to do it. Very clearly the answer came to me of what to do. In fact I knew exactly what to do! The second part however was the more difficult part… the part that required faith: I had to do what the Lord wanted me to do and it required me to go against what I believed to be the truth. I felt like Nephi when told to kill Laban. “And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.
And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property.
And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands;”

Doing what I needed to do was going to require me to swallow my pride. Like Nephi I said (with a little grumbling) I will go and do the thing which the Lord has commanded. I know it is the right thing and I know I will be blessed for it.

This experience has taught me once again that the Lord loves us and He answers our prayers. He does allow us to have difficulties in our lives to help us grow. I am grateful for my knowledge of His love for me. I am grateful for inspired leaders like Elder Scott that can follow the promptings of the spirit to help those in need. I know he wrote that talk for me and others with similar struggles.

A Life Experience

For a little over two years now I have been keeping a journal that records how I have felt the Hand of the Lord in my life. I haven't written anywhere near daily... but have done so regularly. For Christmas this year I gave a copy of this journal to each of my children. Following is a true story written in that journal. It happened years earlier but I hadn't yet recorded it. It is quite long... but one that has had a profound influence on my life. I hope you enjoy it.

On Christmas of 1998, I received the biography of President Gordon B. Hinkley. It was a new book at the time and was popular in LDS circles. Since I had some time during the Christmas break, and we had just finished another successful business season, I devoted some time to reading it.

As I read the pages of this book, with its many remarkable stories, I began to be impressed how many programs in the church, as we currently know them, were the result of the efforts of this one remarkable man. Each time I would finish a reading session, I would put the book down and think to myself “one man really can make a difference!”

As I began pondering on my own life, I began to wonder what I should do to contribute more to the Kingdom of God. Many thoughts ran through my mind. Dominating my mind was the feeling that I should devote some time to teaching in the Church Education System.

As a college student at Utah /State University, I had taken all the necessary training courses to be a CES teacher but had never followed through with the student teaching portion. It was something I always had in the back of my mind. Perhaps the time was right.

Not knowing how to proceed, I decided to call my friend Jon Stevenson, the CES director in the Washington DC area. I asked how one goes about being a CES teacher. He explained that most teachers are hired after training at one of the Utah Institutes. The training I had years before was no longer valid. He asked “Why don’t you think of being a volunteer in your area?

Our area already had Seminary teachers so my only option was teaching an Institute class. I asked Jon how I should proceed. He informed me that he had a colleague in his same position in the Baltimore area, Brother Earl DeChamps: He suggested I give him a call. I asked if it were strange to call and essentially volunteer? He said “if someone in my area did that, I would fall off my chair.”

Ironically I had a related thought just a couple of weeks prior to this. In Sacrament meeting, a young returned missionary in my ward, Jared Muccaroni, had been called as the Young Single Adult representative for our ward. I thought to myself at that time “what a joke, what young single adults do we have?”

I called Bro. DeChamps on the phone and introduced myself. I explained to him what I wanted to do. He was happy to meet with me a few days later. In our meeting he explained to me that one of the biggest jobs of teaching Institute was recruiting. I then asked him what his expectations were. He replied “If you start out the semester with two students, and end the semester with four, I will consider you very successful”.

I followed all the necessary steps and got a call officially from the Ward. Soon afterward I began to make the class known among all the YSA in the ward.
This included both active and in-active members. I wrote individual letters and made phone calls and visits. Most of the contacts I made seemed to be excited.

I don’t remember how many showed up the first week, but I do remember that before long, we had 12 to 18 attending regularly. This gave me a great deal of satisfaction. More than anything, I was excited for the kids. Many hadn’t been to church in years. Others were looking for an excuse to come back. Anyway, the group became very strong, very quickly. Soon they were spending a lot of time together outside of Institute. It was a wonderful experience for all involved.

I continued recruiting throughout the Stake and made visits to neighboring Wards. Also the kids invited their member and non-member friends. Our class continued to grow. I remember one time having 29 kids in attendance!

Needless to say, Bro. DeChamps was impressed. At some point in the year he explained to me that he would soon be retiring and he felt it would be appropriate for me to take over his position. This seemed to be exactly what I was looking for. He explained that he had forwarded our success to his superiors and that they were interested in talking further. He then explained however that I need to go to Salt Lake for training if I really wanted a shot at it.

After discussing the possibilities with Ann and my children, we made arrangements to let someone live in our house, while we moved temporarily to Utah. The CES people in Utah were very accommodating. I learned that I was going to be able to take both training courses simultaneously. Normally they were taken two semesters in a row. In addition, I was given the opportunity to do my student teach at a local High School at the same time. This seemed to work out perfectly for us.

I really began to feel that everything was lining up perfectly for this position. To top it all off, the house we rented in Holladay was directly across the street from one of the 5 World Zone Leaders in the CES program. He was impressed by my willingness and by the many sacrifices I and my family were willing to make. In January of 1999, my family and I rented a U-Haul trailer and moved to Utah for the duration of six months.

While in Utah, we had many wonderful experiences. We had a fabulous ward and had many friends in it. My children were able to attend a private school based on LDS values. We were able to live near grandparents and others that we hadn’t had the privilege of previously. We really enjoyed ourselves. However, it was our hope that I would still be able to go back to Maryland to take over the CES Director position in my area.

I wish to relate a couple of very personal experiences I had during this time.

Prior to moving, I was in the habit of listening to talk radio while in my car and while working outside. I enjoyed the many topics that were discussed by the various hosts. One of these discussions was on the topic of lawn mower accidents. I remember the guest on the radio, who was a podiatrist, telling of the many series injuries he had personally treated due to young children operating lawn mowers. He stated that he would “never let anyone under the age of 13 operate a mower”.

I took this to heart and I mowed my own lawn. Since most of our furnishings in our rented home were borrowed, we had an old beat-up lawn mower. Week after week my daughter Krista, then about 11, would beg to mow the lawn. After prolonged begging, I consented. I allowed her to mow under strict supervision.

Before long, Krista became quite good at mowing and I began to give her more freedom to mow on her own. One day I remember getting her started in the back yard of the home we were renting, and I went around the front to pull weeds. I remember cutting through the house to the front yard. As I approached the front door I head a blood curdling scream. I dashed for the back yard.

It appeared that due to the age of the mower, the vibration of the engine caused the muffler to fall off. Not knowing what it was, Krista picked it up, instantly burning her hand and fingers. I remember rushing her into the house to run her hand under cold water. She was screaming hysterically. I could see that the heat had literally melted part of her skin on her fingers and that it was blistered and swollen. I recall that the skin was even broken in one area.

As I began running cold water over her hand, the Spirit told me very strongly to give her a blessing. I seemed to reply in my mind, “I will, but first I need to give her first aid”. A second time much more forcefully the Spirit said “Scott, I am teaching Krista a lesson here… not you; now , give her a blessing”. This time I obeyed! I proceeded to give her a blessing by first anointing her with oil, and then sealing the anointing with a blessing. The spirit commanded me to tell her to be made whole. At the close of the blessing, I testify that Krista was made whole. The skin was restored and she was pain free. The following day there was very little sign of the injury.

Since no one was around to witness this miracle, it was unknown to other members of our family. In Family Home Evening the following Monday, Krista and I told of the events of that day. I distinctly remember my older daughter Melissa saying afterwards “Cool stuff like that never happens to me”. Little did I know how those words would be remembered.

Early in the spring or summer of that year, Melissa and Krista were invited by their best friends from school, to accompany their family to Lake Powell where they owned a house boat. The girls’ names were Sage and Shanna Gardner. Sage was Melissa’s age and Shanna was Krista’s age.

For some reason I felt very uneasy about letting Melissa go on this trip but I kept assuring myself that it was all in my mind. However, I continued to have very disturbing feelings about letting her go. I went to the Lord about it and felt assured that I should let her go.

As the day arrived for her to leave, I took her to the place where we agreed to meet them. As I loaded her gear into the back of the Gardner’s truck, I had a sick feeling that I would lever see Melissa alive again. I continued to pray in my heart however and felt assured I should let her go. I just hugged her and told her to be careful. Sterling Gardner assured me she would be well taken care of. I let her go.

That evening, we had been invited to a party at some friends. Around 9 pm that evening I got a call on my cell phone (I don’t even remember who had called me), informing me that Melissa had been involved in a serious Jet Ski accident and needed to go to a hospital with a plastic surgeon. We had the choice of Life Flighting her to Salt Lake City, or having her driven by the Gardners to Saint George. I asked the Gardner’s which choice they would make under the circumstances? We agreed on having them drive her to Saint George.

We were told that she had had an accident with a ski rope and that she had a cut on her cheek and a pretty serious rope burn. Ann and I left immediately for Saint George. We were very worried and drove as quickly as possible. As we drove, I prayed and pondered a lot. As I did, I convinced myself that the injuries were not very serious. This was still in the early days of cellular service and phones only worked in more populated areas. I had to stop regularly to phone the hospital to see if she had arrived. As we came into Cedar City we learned that she had arrived but they couldn’t begin treating her until we gave our consent.

When we arrived at the Hospital, I can’t describe the great trepidation I felt to enter. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw when I entered the emergency room. The injury was much worse than I had ever expected. She had a very deep rope burn completely around her face; across the back of her neck, and onto her chest. The rope had also cut deep into her left cheek.

It was all I could do to hold her hand and tell her she was going to be fine and that it wasn’t that bad. I wanted to be upbeat around her and make her feel safe. After a couple of minutes however, I excused myself to the restroom where I wept uncontrollably for at least ten minutes.

The story was told to me that she and Sage hopped on the Jet Skis shortly after arriving at the lake. It was late in the afternoon and the sun was low on the horizon. As a result, the sun reflected off the lake, and Melissa couldn’t see what was in front of her. Each on separate watercrafts, Melissa and Sage headed directly into the sun. Melissa didn’t see a boat, towing a water skier, directly in front of her. She went directly between the boat and the skier and hit the rope. The skier saw her and tried to lift the rope to allow her to slip underneath: She took a direct hit in her open mouth. The force pulled the rope out of the skier’s hands and the rope proceeded to wrap itself completely around her head. With the boat and the Jet Ski still moving, the force broke the handle off the rope but then pulled off in a whipping action that caused the frayed end to whip across her chest and cut deep burns into her face.

The plastic surgeon told us that the rope burns were third degree burns. The burns were very deep and went from the corners of her mouth, across her cheeks, directly under both ear lobes, and behind her neck. The back of her neck was raw flesh. The swelling was terrible: Her head seemed to be twice the size of normal. She looked awful.

The surgeon proceeded to sew up the cut into her cheek. It was a cut that went essentially an inch into her cheek; thus making her mouth an inch wider. The surgeon told us he didn’t have a treatment for the burns. He proceeded to tell us that there was no way of knowing how these burns would heal. We simply needed to give it time. He said it could very well heal with little scarring, or could heal with the large thick skin that is more often associated with third degree burns. We were instructed to take her to the Primary Children’s burn clinic when we got back to Salt Lake.

She was released from the Hospital that morning early. We went to my brother Jim’s Saint George house for what was the rest of the night. When we got there, I proceeded to give Melissa a Priesthood blessing. Then I went to be alone to pray. The next several hours were filled with countless pleadings and countless tears: Over and over again I asked myself why I had let her go? More importantly I wanted to know why the Lord had assured me it was okay to let her go.

Sometime over the next few hours or days, as my prayers were sent out on behalf of my beautiful little daughter, the Spirit of the Lord came over me in a very calming assurance. “Scott, I too know the pain of allowing one of my children to go into certain harm… and sending them anyway. This lesson is for you.” In a very real sense, I had a small understanding of how hard it was for Heavenly Father to send his Son to die when he knew what would happen to him.

The blessing I gave Melissa that night assured me that she would be healed without scars. To this day, Melissa has very faint lines of where this accident took place. If someone didn’t know about the accident, they would never notice the scars. Their faint remainder are a reminder to me of the scars my Savior still bears as a witness of the love of God for me.

As a result of this accident, I have become a different parent. I have learned to trust God much more. I have come to the realization that I am not in charge and that I have no control over serious events happening in my life, or the life of those I love. All I have, and all safety and protection lies in the hands of the Lord. I have learned that I need to trust him to protect me and my children. If he doesn’t, there is a reason for it—that I am certain of.

As the school year drew to an end that year, and as I continued teaching seminary, things seemed to be going extremely well. My students liked me and it appeared that those in influential places did as well. I was evaluated and interviewed by all the necessary people. When it was all said and done—I wasn’t hired by the church. I was very hurt.

Looking back on this seminary teaching experience, I know that the Lord’s hand was in the decision. I am certain it wasn’t the right thing for me. However, it was very difficult for me. Brother Iba, the CES Zone Leader that lived across the street from me was very apologetic. He gave me a big hug of thanks when we returned to Maryland.

I didn’t know how much this rejection affected me at the time, but again in hind-sight I see that I turned a little bitter for the next couple of years. I found myself suffering spiritually due to a feeling of “what’s the use”? I found myself more susceptible to temptation as a result and made some poor decisions. It seemed I was doing all the right things for all the right reasons. I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t hired.

With several years between then and now, I have a real perspective of the many lessons I learned from this experience. I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without these experiences. I can honestly say now that I am grateful for the Lord having a better understanding of the “big picture”. I have a greater understanding of the gospel and of the Atonement.