Diane and I are thrilled to be in Rexburg and to be edified by the spirit of BYU–Idaho. Thank you for your kindness and gracious hospitality and for what you will teach us during our brief time with you.
I was born in Hawaii when it was a territory of the United States, ten years before statehood. Raised in the islands in a multi-cultural environment, I left for higher education on the U.S. mainland and a mission to England, and after marriage to a Canadian girl, returned to Hawaii to raise our family.
My father first went to Hawaii in 1940 as a young missionary for the Church. He personally witnessed the events of December 7, 1941 when the U.S. was violently drawn into war by the attack on Pearl Harbor. He served three years as a missionary, went home to Salt Lake City, and joined the Army. After boot camp and Officer Candidate School, he was stationed back in Hawaii. I assume his knowledge of the islands and his fluent Hawaiian language skills influenced that decision. On leave the next year, 1944, he went back to Salt Lake and married my mother whom he knew from his university days prior to his mission. They spent the remainder of the war on Oahu. In 1945, they returned to Salt Lake City, stayed nine months, and returned to Hawaii to live. My mother has passed away, but my father still lives there, now nearly 65 years since he first arrived. We love the uniqueness, the diversity, and the culture of the islands. In Hawaii, everyone is a minority.
Five years ago, after receiving a call to my current position, we were assigned to the Asia North Area, supervising the Church in Japan and South Korea, and doing humanitarian work in North Korea for three years. After two years at Church headquarters, we will leave this summer to serve in another international assignment involving 23 different countries.
With this growing perspective, heightened by the purpose of my ecclesiastical responsibilities, I have spent much time pondering how the gospel is established in an individual life, in a family, in a country, and indeed throughout the world. The words of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith often come to my mind. “Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.”[1]
The Lord, of course, understands the process of developing a testimony, and of the combined force of sincere and righteous people necessary to build His Church in any area of the world.
There are two ways the Church grows: (1) by converts, of which there are hundreds of thousands each year; and (2) multi-generationally, with children following the example of member parents. Both are essential to the future of the Lord’s kingdom and complement one another, as the conversion of today is the multi-generational growth of tomorrow.
In this audience, we have first generation members of the Church; also, second generation, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and even those who represent the seventh generation of Church membership in this dispensation. For each of you first generation members there is a unique and significant story of how you came to your current place of spiritual understanding and commitment. For the rest of us, we have been blessed by the courage and humility of righteous ancestors who established a pattern for us to follow.
To amplify the doctrine that “. . . out of small things proceedeth that which is great”[2] I tell you the story of Masako Kato. In 1951, when Masako was in her early twenties, she met the missionaries in her hometown of Yokohama, Japan when she attended an English conversation class being taught by them. When the missionaries began to speak of spiritual things, she felt something and allowed them to begin teaching her about the Church and the restored gospel. During this time, both Masako’s older sister and her mother died, within 30 days of each another. She was emotionally devastated, but still attended the little branch of our Church in the area; even the week after her mother passed away. When the opening hymn was sung, the power of the Spirit brought her to tears and she understood for the first time the eternal nature of life.
Masako wanted to be baptized, but her father would not give his permission. Although she was of legal age, her respect for her father caused her to not proceed. However, she continued to attend Church and participate like a member.
The missionaries suggested it would be good for her to share the glorious message she had come to know. Seemingly unafraid, even though the Church had little presence in Japan in 1951, she invited co-workers and even bosses at her company to come to Church with her. A few came to some social activities; but one, Shozo Suzuki, a very new employee of the company, came to Sunday meetings. He had a good feeling about what he heard and consented after a time to receive the missionary discussions. Masako also joined in for her second time through the lessons. After several months, Shozo accepted the challenge to be baptized. Masako again went to her father to seek permission, which he then gave because of the devotion he witnessed in her. On August 4, 1952, Shozo and Masako were baptized in the same service.
One day, a few months later, a young missionary approached Shozo and Masako and suggested they think about marriage—to each other! This surprised them, especially Shozo as he had a non-member girlfriend. However, it prompted him to think about Masako, the person who introduced him to the gospel, in a different way than ever before. On April 29, 1953, they were married in a civil hall in Tokyo by the mission president. In 1965, they came to the Hawaii Temple to be sealed as there was no temple in Japan until 1980.
Brother and Sister Suzuki were blessed with nine children, six daughters and three sons. Seven of their children served full-time missions for the Church. Of the nine, eight married, all in the temple, and seven of their spouses served full-time missions. The Suzukis have 35 grandchildren, with all, eight years of age or older, having been baptized members of the Church. Brother Suzuki has served as a branch president, district president, mission president, Japan Missionary Training Center president, regional representative, and a patriarch in three stakes. With the singular beginning of diminutive Masako (shown in the center of the photograph), and now 54 righteous members of the Suzuki family, indeed “. . . out of small things proceedeth that which is great.”[3]
This same miracle is found everywhere in the world where the Church is established. It has happened, or will happen, in your own family.
How does it happen? That question is answered in a companion verse to the one previously read. “Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these the last days.”[4]
This doctrine is powerfully affirmed in the experience of Jesus with the Pharisitical lawyer who asked him:
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.[5]
So, from these and other prophetic words we understand that both the heart and the mind must be fully engaged in this holy process. The conversion of our soul and the ongoing refinement of our life, as we adopt the attributes of Godliness, is our earthly mission and is rewarded with “. . . eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God.”[6]
The heart is symbolic of love and commitment. Love is the most powerful motivator of all. We will make sacrifices and bear burdens for those we love that we would not endure for any other reason; not for money, not for recognition, not for power. If love does not exist, our commitment will surely wane.
If we love the Lord with all our heart, we are willing to give Him everything we possess. Elder Neal A. Maxwell said:
The submission of one’s will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God’s altar . . . The many other things we give to God, however nice that may be of us, are actually things He has already given us, and He has loaned them to us. But when we begin to submit ourselves by letting our wills be swallowed up in God’s will, then we are really giving something to Him . . . There is a part of us that is ultimately sovereign, the mind and heart, where we really do decide which way to go and what to do. And when we submit to His will, then we’ve really given Him the one final thing He asks of us.[7]
Having a “willing mind” connotes giving our best effort, our finest thinking, and seeking God’s wisdom. It suggests that our most devoted lifetime study should be of things which are eternal in nature. It says to me that there must be an inextricable relationship between hearing the word of God and obeying it.
The first word in the Doctrine and Covenants is “hearken”. It appears repeatedly in this book of scripture, which is a compilation of the “. . . doctrines, covenants, and commandments given in this dispensation.”[8] The meaning of the word is even explicitly given in Section 42. “Again I say unto you, hearken and hear and obey the law which I shall give unto you.”[9]
The Apostle James said in the same chapter as the sacred verse which was a catalyst to the boy Joseph Smith before his profound experience in the Sacred Grove, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”[10]
Some of us “hear” selectively, and “do” when it is convenient. One whose “heart” and “mind” are given to the Lord is consistent; whether the burden is light or heavy makes no difference.
As a part of one of my assignments at Church headquarters, I have been directly involved in the making of a film honoring the life of Joseph Smith. This major production, to be shown in the Legacy Theater of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, is anticipated to be completed by the end of this year—by the December 23rd anniversary of the Prophet’s birth. Recently, I was at the Church’s Motion Picture Studio in Provo observing the filming of scenes portraying the imprisonment of Joseph, his brother Hyrum, and others in the Liberty Jail.
Envision the setting—several innocent men incarcerated for months in the cramped, cold, filthy, foul confines of this dungeon. More over his concern for the suffering Saints than for his own safety and comfort, Joseph pleads with the Lord:
O God, where are thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?
How long shall thy hand be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrong of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?
Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?
O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devil . . . stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.[11]
And then, the powerful, comforting words of the Lord:
My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high.[12]
In an epistle to the Saints written a few years later, it is clear Joseph has come to fully accept God’s will for him:
And as for the perils which I am called to pass through, they seem but a small thing to me, as the envy and wrath of man have been my common lot all the days of my life . . . God knoweth all these things, whether it be good or bad. But nevertheless, deep water is what I am wont to swim in. It all has become second nature to me; and I feel, like Paul, to glory in tribulation; for to this day has the God of my fathers delivered me out of them all, and will deliver me from henceforth.[13]
A consecrated heart and mind is demonstrated by consistency in following God’s commandments no matter how difficult our earthly circumstances. President Gordon B. Hinckley told the following story in 1982 in a general conference of the Church:
Later this month we shall dedicate a beautiful new building on the Brigham Young University campus to the memory of a woman, Caroline Hemenway Harman . . . At the age of twenty-two Caroline married George Harman. They had seven children, one of whom died in infancy. Then, at the age of thirty-nine, her husband passed away and she was left a widow.
Her sister, Grace, had married her husband’s brother, David. In 1919, during the terrible influenza epidemic, David was seriously stricken, and then his wife, Grace, became ill. Caroline cared for them and their children as well as her own. In the midst of these afflictions, Grace gave birth to a son, and then she died within a few hours. Caroline took the tiny infant to her own home and there nurtured it and saved the child’s life. Three weeks later her own daughter, Annie passed away.
By now Caroline had lost two of her own children, her husband, and her sister. The strain was too much. She collapsed. She came out of that collapse with a serious case of diabetes. But she did not slow down. She continued to care for her sister’s baby; and her brother-in-law, the child’s father, came each day to see the little boy. David Harman and Caroline were later married, and there were now thirteen children in their home.
Then five years later David suffered a catastrophe that tried to the very depths those who agonized with him. On one occasion he used a strong disinfectant in preparing seed for planting. This got on his body, and the effects were disastrous. The skin and flesh sloughed off his bones. His tongue and teeth dropped out. The caustic solution literally ate him alive.
Caroline nursed him in this terrible illness, and when he died she was left with five of her own and eight of her sister’s children, and a farm of 280 acres where she and the children plowed, sowed, irrigated, and harvested in preparing to bring in enough to provide for their needs. At this time she was also Relief Society president, a position she held for eighteen years.
While caring for her large family and in extending the hand of charity to others, she would bake eight loaves of bread a day and wash forty loads of clothes a week. She canned fruits and vegetables by the ton, and cared for a thousand laying hens to provide a little cash. Self-reliance was her standard. Idleness she regarded as sin. She cared for her own and reached out to others in a spirit of kindness that would permit no one of whom she was aware to go hungry, unclothed, or cold.
She later married Eugene Robison, who, not long afterward, suffered a stroke. For five years until his death she nursed him and cared for him in all his needs.
Finally, exhausted, her body racked by the effects of diabetes, she passed away at the age of sixty-seven. The habits of industry and hard work which she instilled in her children rewarded their efforts through the years. Her sister’s tiny baby, whom she nurtured from the hour of his birth, together with his brothers and sisters, all acting out of a sense of love and gratitude, have given the university a substantial bequest to make possible the beautiful building which will carry her name.[14]
I wish to suggest five essential ways one can genuinely seek to give their heart and mind to the Lord:
Gain and Constantly Nurture Your Own Testimony
A Latter-day Saint’s testimony should include a knowledge of, and love for, God the Father, the Only Begotten Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. It would know of the glorious gospel plan and the centrality of the Savior and His atonement. It would understand the “marvelous work and the wonder”[15] of the restoration of the Lord’s Church in this last dispensation and the role of apostles and prophets, from Joseph Smith to Gordon B. Hinckley.
If you do not feel the power and security that this knowledge brings, I ask you to study the exhortation of Moroni, often quoted by the full-time missionaries of the Church, but not always followed by investigators. We read:
And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth unto of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.[16]
Take note that there are three essential requirements: Faith in Christ; a sincere heart; and real intent. Perhaps the least understood of these is “real intent”. In concert with the other conditions to receiving an answer, real intent means you are willing to do as directed. Consequently, if you are praying without a firm commitment to follow, it is unlikely that direction will come.
Honor Priesthood Ordinances and Covenants
To help us progress, God asks us to perform priesthood ordinances. Ordinances are sacred ceremonies in which we make commitments to Him, and He confers upon us the potential to receive the blessings of eternity. As covenant-children we have all that is required for eternal success if we are true to our promises. Prepare for the ordinances yet to be performed in your life and be guided in your life decisions by the covenants you have made. When you are evaluating alternatives, ask yourself “Is this choice consistent with my covenants?”
Elder D. Todd Christofferson recently said:
The importance of having a sense of the sacred is simply this—if one does not appreciate holy things, he will lose them. Absent a feeling of reverence, he will grow increasingly casual in attitude and lax in conduct. He will drift from the moorings that his covenants with God could provide. His feeling of accountability to God will diminish and then be forgotten. Thereafter, he will care only about his own comfort and satisfying his uncontrolled appetites. Finally, he will come to despise sacred things, even God, and then he will despise himself.[17]
Follow the rallying cry of the early pioneers as they were organizing themselves for the treacherous journey westward. “And this shall be our covenant—that we will walk in all the ordinances of the Lord.”[18]
When we live by covenant and not convenience, our lives are directed toward our Heavenly home.
Root-out Duplicity
Duplicity is acting one way in public and another way in private. The purpose of our deception is to hide our sins; but, as Jonah learned when he fled to Joppa, you cannot hide from God. Even to others, our deceit will be found out in time and the damage caused to those closest to us may be irreversible.
One way to test whether we have “an eye single to the glory of God”[19] or a secondary eye to the evil of the world is to evaluate how we act when we are alone. What sites do we visit on the Internet? What television programs or videos do we watch? What kind of books and magazines do we read? Would we be comfortable in the same activities if others were watching?
James taught, “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.”[20] Our deceit will affect every facet of our life, impairing our ability to progress in earthly and eternal relationships.
Continually Study the Doctrine
President Boyd K. Packer has said, “The study of doctrine will change behavior more than the study of behavior will change behavior.” When we know the commandments of God from the writings of the prophets and “liken all scripture unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning”[21] it will change the way we think and act.
Studying and following the counsel of living prophets is vital. Having prophets of God on earth has become so commonplace for us in this Church that their profound importance and role is often woefully under appreciated.
Elder Henry B. Eyring stated:
Looking for the path to safety in the counsel of prophets makes sense to those with strong faith. When a prophet speaks, those with little faith may think that they hear only a wise man giving good advice. Then if his counsel seems comfortable and reasonable, squaring with what they want to do, they take it. If it does not, they consider it either faulty advice or they see their circumstances as justifying their being an exception to the counsel.
Another fallacy is to believe that the choice to accept or not accept the counsel of prophets is no more than deciding whether to accept good advice and gain its benefits or to stay where we are. But the choice not to take prophetic counsel changes the very ground upon which we stand. It becomes more dangerous.[22]
Establish a Life of Service
The Lord simply stated “If thou lovest me, thou shalt serve me . . .” [23] Still in my twenties, I was called to be the bishop of an 850-member ward. Two weeks prior, I, with a partner, founded a company that had just hired and was responsible for several new employees. At the time, my wife and I had three active children ages one to seven. The daunting responsibilities to properly care for my young family, the Saints entrusted to my stewardship, and to create a viable business, seemed impossible.
As I now reflect on the events of the ensuing years, I am convinced that service to others, most importantly to my family, has been one of the great blessings of my life. Without the continual humility and life perspective that service engenders, the allure of the world could easily have entrapped me.
Serving others emulates the ultimate act of service offered to each of us by the Redeemer of the world. It is a way for us to make partial payment for the opportunity of salvation which comes only through Jesus Christ.
Submitting our will—completely giving our heart and minds to God—is not easy. Is there another way?
Several years ago, I was looking for a property in a valley above the city of Honolulu. I stopped to look at a map and then glanced up to read the street sign. There it was; I found what many spend their entire lives searching for. “Easy Street!” Right before me, the green and white sign was enticing me to turn and follow. As I was musing on the moment, I looked at the pole upon which the sign was mounted, and half way down a big yellow sign clearly announced “Dead End.”
There is not another way. I would not want another way. I am comfortable with, and comforted by, the “great plan of happiness.”[24] I testify of He who’s plan it is, God the Eternal Father; and He who is central to the plan, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer. I witness of apostles and prophets whose counsel I gladly follow. With all my heart and all my mind I witness of these truths. They have made all the difference in my life.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Doctrine and Covenants 64:33
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Matthew 22:36-38
[6] Doctrine and Covenants 14:7
[7] BYU January 12, 1999
[8] Preface to Doctrine and Covenants 1
[9] Doctrine and Covenants 42:2
[10] James 1:22
[11] Doctrine and Covenants 121:1-4
[12] Doctrine and Covenants 121:7-8
[13] Doctrine and Covenants 127:2
[14] Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference, April 14, 1982
[15] 2 Nephi 27:26
[16] Moroni 10:4
[17] CES Fireside for Young Adults, November 7, 2004, BYU
[18] Doctrine and Cevenants 136:4
[19] Doctrine and Covenants 4:5
[20] James 1:8
[21] 1 Nephi 19:23
[22] General Conference, April 1997
[23] Doctrine and Covenants 42:29
[24] Alma 42:8