Elder G. Homer Durham of the Seventy:
"On January 2, 1891, a 19-year-old Norwegian immigrant sat down in his home in Logan City, Cache Country, Utah Territory, and wrote the following lines on some lined paper:
"As I have come to fully realize; that, I am as weak as all other mortals - perhaps weaker than many; and realizing that happiness in life is only obtained by having a pure heart, a clear conscience; and fearing the Lord and keeping his commandments; also as I realize that happiness in old age consists of reviewing a life devoid from great sins; the gratification of noble desires manfully carried out; and finding that my life up to this time has not been as I should like it to have been: I lay down the following regulations by which I shall try to conduct my life hereafter; to which end may the Lord almighty, my Creator, help me.
"He then spelled out 17 resolutions. Nearly eight months later, on Tuesday, August 25, 1891, he copied them in a hardcover journal. Here he was to record his years of struggle as a stranger-student from Utah Territory at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He began by entering the 17 resolves that were to guide his life.
"Resolved:
"1st. That religion, the science of sciences, be made my chief concernment throughout life.
2nd. That I will daily pray to God in secret.
3rd. That I will daily reflect upon God and his attributes and try to become like Him.
4th. That I will receive Light, Wisdom, or Knowledge, wherever or however it may be offered.
5th. That I never be ashamed to acknowledge my principles, beliefs and religion when I once become fully convinced of their correctness.
6th. That I never lose one moment of time but improve it.
7th. That I maintain strict temperance in eating and drinking.
8th. That I never do anything that I would not do were it the last hour of my life.
9th. That I daily read the word of God, that I may learn his will and that I may be comforted, strengthened and encouraged by so doing.
10th. That in any narrations I speak nothing but the pure and simple verily.
11th. That I always do that which I think is my duty and for the best good for my fellow beings.
12th. That I live with all my might while I do live, that I may not die a living death.
13th. That I never by word or manner try to force my opinion on others but that I simply state them and offer my arguments against others!
14th. That I seek to overcome the habit of being quick tempered, loud speaking, impatient motions and whatever might offend my fellowmen and hurt me.
15th. That I never for a moment forget my duty towards my mother, she who has made me who I am and who will make what I will become, she who has spent the better portion of her life in my behalf and to whom I owe all the honor, respect, and affection that I can give; also that I always remember my duties toward my brother and all my friends and relations.
16th. That I complete every task which I begin; also that I carefully consider my purpose and its results before taking upon me any duty.
17th. That I always remember that the men and women I meet are my brothers and sisters and that I look to the beam in my own eye before attempting to remove the mote in my fellow's eye.
"It would be well if every young man and woman today would similarly evaluate his or her position in life. The young man who wrote these lines was John Andreas Widtsoe. In March 1921 he was called to the apostleship by President Heber J. Grant and continued in that position throughout a long and eventful life."
Friday, January 23, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Popsicle Prayers
The innocent sincerity of a child's faith as he kneels in fervent prayer, pleading with his Heavenly Father to help him find a missing kitten or his favorite toy car has brought to each a tear or a tugged heart string. As wise and experienced adults we know that answers to these simple prayers are small building blocks of faith that will become the foundation to a greater faith. We assume that soon a child's entreaty will give way to more "important" prayers as problems begin to reach beyond the loss of a toy. As adults we pray for help and deliverance through our most challenging times. We plead with our Heavenly Father for comfort after the loss of a loved one. We pour out every fear of failing health, financial crisis, and physical safety. Our prayers remain sincere and necessary, but they lose the innocent faith of childhood.
I recently heard the story of a man who, in the midst of an "adult problem", found himself pleading with his Heavenly Father with the faith and innocence of a child, offering a Popsicle Prayer.
This young family of five found themselves blindsided by the failing health of their oldest daughter. At the age of 10, this young girl's liver had begun to metastasize. Without a transplant the failure of this vital organ would eventually lead to an early death. While awaiting a miracle, this girl and her family braved numerous surgeries and medical treatments to stem the liver failure and deal with it's symptoms. One such treatment was particularly painful and included the use of numerous IV lines. At this point in her treatments, the young girl had been poked with hundreds of needles, but she was still afraid of the pointed metal and struggled against receiving an IV. Her father watched helplessly, with a prayer of increased urgency in his heart, as his young daughter pleaded for the IVs to stop and underwent the painful treatment.
After the treatment, the young girl awoke with one simple request: a Popsicle. Her father would have done anything to give his daughter a Popsicle but more blood tests were to follow and doctors forbade the cold treat. Even after bravely fighting through hours of IVs and treatments, his daughter couldn't eat a Popsicle. After hours of hearing her simple plea for a Popsicle, this man knelt in the corner of his daughter's hospital room and plead with his Heavenly Father not for his daughter's health or life but simply for a Popsicle. He recalls that the countless hours his family spent on their knees praying for strength, peace, and health all paled in fervency to this one simple prayer. Rising from his knees, the man saw the doctors returning with the test results and great news: his daughter could have a Popsicle.
Months after the Popsicle, and with the prayers of hundred's, this little girl received a liver transplant. She and her family are eternally grateful for her young life, medical technologies, and enduring faith, but, as the man explains, they are most grateful for the tender mercies in their lives, for every Popsicle.
Undoubtedly our Heavenly Father wants us to pray for every need we have, most of which are a little bigger than a Popsicle, however no prayer is insignificant or unworthy in the sight of He who created and loves each of us. He admonishes each of us to become "as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him" (Mosiah 3:19). So, pray to find your lost keys, pray for the strength to understand that math problem, or pray that your hands will stop shaking next time you give a talk. With the innocence of a child, with complete faith that Heavenly Father will hear and answer, perhaps, like this faithful man, we must all offer a few more Popsicle Prayers.
I recently heard the story of a man who, in the midst of an "adult problem", found himself pleading with his Heavenly Father with the faith and innocence of a child, offering a Popsicle Prayer.
This young family of five found themselves blindsided by the failing health of their oldest daughter. At the age of 10, this young girl's liver had begun to metastasize. Without a transplant the failure of this vital organ would eventually lead to an early death. While awaiting a miracle, this girl and her family braved numerous surgeries and medical treatments to stem the liver failure and deal with it's symptoms. One such treatment was particularly painful and included the use of numerous IV lines. At this point in her treatments, the young girl had been poked with hundreds of needles, but she was still afraid of the pointed metal and struggled against receiving an IV. Her father watched helplessly, with a prayer of increased urgency in his heart, as his young daughter pleaded for the IVs to stop and underwent the painful treatment.
After the treatment, the young girl awoke with one simple request: a Popsicle. Her father would have done anything to give his daughter a Popsicle but more blood tests were to follow and doctors forbade the cold treat. Even after bravely fighting through hours of IVs and treatments, his daughter couldn't eat a Popsicle. After hours of hearing her simple plea for a Popsicle, this man knelt in the corner of his daughter's hospital room and plead with his Heavenly Father not for his daughter's health or life but simply for a Popsicle. He recalls that the countless hours his family spent on their knees praying for strength, peace, and health all paled in fervency to this one simple prayer. Rising from his knees, the man saw the doctors returning with the test results and great news: his daughter could have a Popsicle.
Months after the Popsicle, and with the prayers of hundred's, this little girl received a liver transplant. She and her family are eternally grateful for her young life, medical technologies, and enduring faith, but, as the man explains, they are most grateful for the tender mercies in their lives, for every Popsicle.
Undoubtedly our Heavenly Father wants us to pray for every need we have, most of which are a little bigger than a Popsicle, however no prayer is insignificant or unworthy in the sight of He who created and loves each of us. He admonishes each of us to become "as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him" (Mosiah 3:19). So, pray to find your lost keys, pray for the strength to understand that math problem, or pray that your hands will stop shaking next time you give a talk. With the innocence of a child, with complete faith that Heavenly Father will hear and answer, perhaps, like this faithful man, we must all offer a few more Popsicle Prayers.
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