Wednesday, July 23, 2014

         Yesterday, Glade went back to the mall where we picked out his ring, finalized the purchase, and wore the new band home.  It looks great to see a wedding ring where it should be; it’s been missing way too long.

         While I was in the baptisry yesterday I met two beautiful young girls who spoke English.  When they addressed me with beautifully familiar words, I felt like a light had been turned on in a dim room!  One of these sweet sisters had just returned from serving a mission in Panama and had only been home for two weeks.  Most of what I know about Panama is that it is extremely hot there!  The other young sister had come to do her own work in the temple for the first time.  She is preparing to leave on a mission to Copan, Guatemala in just a few weeks.  I loved visiting with them and tried to give some reassurance to the younger girl who was nervous about all she had to learn about the temple and had concerns about learning a dialect in her language for her mission that she didn’t understand.  It was a lovely encounter and left me smiling.

         Here is Glade’s next entry:

       A Call to Repentance

The Saints had passed Chimney Rock, approximately half-way from Winter Quarters to Salt Lake Valley. Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball expressed grave concern about the attitude and actions of some of the members. They were profaning, gambling with money, playing cards, and doing parodies and mimics of things which deserved respect. Inspired by the Spirit, they decided to call the encampment to repentance. The next day Brigham Young spoke very clearly to the men.

“Give me a man who prays, give me a man with faith, give me a man who meditates, a prudent man, and I would prefer to go among the savages accompanied by five or eight of them than to entrust in the hands of this encampment with the spirit which now dominates. ..Do we really believe that it is possible to find a place for the Saints, a place of rest, a place of peace where we can build a kingdom and invite the nations to meet with us, while we carry within us a despicable, malicious, dirty, superficial, covetous, and wicked spirit?  It is in vain!  If the brethren are not willing to make a covenant to put away the wickedness and return to the Lord to serve Him, recognize Him and honor His name, I want them to turn around their wagons and go back, because I will not go forward with these conditions. If we don’t repent of our wickedness, we will have more difficulties than we have had up until now and worse storms to confront.”

The next day, Brigham Young convened a meeting with the leaders at the top of a hill where they dressed in temple clothes and formed a prayer circle.  They prayed to God for themselves, for the company of Saints, for the brethren in the army and for their own families.  William Clayton said, “After this a pure atmosphere was prevalent in the encampment. (Taken from The History of the Church in the Fullness of Times, Course Book for Religion 341, 343.)

Tomorrow we arrive in the Salt Lake Valley!

 Good Night, Everyone