Pioneer Day

Our Pioneer Journey to the Promised Land

25 May 2025

Fairmont Branch, Minnesota

 

Since I was a young child I've loved pioneer stories. It didn't matter if they were Mormon Pioneers, or another part of the westward expansion; pilgrims from England, Lehi and his family, or Israelites following Moses. I enjoyed all their stories. I tried to put myself in their place and wondered how I would feel, what I would do, if I were journeying to an unknown land. Many years ago in Washington state we endured a prolonged power outage. When it was over and the power was restored Steve gave me a Pioneerhood Award for Valiant Endurance. In the following years we have had other occasions when my pioneering skills were tested.

 

As I've matured I've realized that my beloved stories are a type, an analogy, a metaphor for my own mortal journey to a promised land. I left my known heavenly home, and am now traveling through the wilderness facing challenges of various kinds, with the goal of reaching the Celestial Kingdom, an eternal Promised Land.

 

What do we learn from these journeys, some of them recorded in scripture?

 

Out of the many, I've chosen four lessons to look at today.

 

Lesson #1 Organization is important.

An old African proverb says, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." We want to go far, all the way to the Celestial Kingdom, it's important to be with the group who is going there.

When Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, arrived on the scene and saw the Israelites lined up day and night to have an audience with the prophet he counseled Moses, "The thing that thou doest is not good. Thou wilt surely wear away. . . . Teach them ordinances and laws, and sh[ow] them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do. . . . Provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. And let them judge the people at all seasons;" (Ex. 18:17-22)

 

Brigham Young acted similarly when organizing the saints for crossing the plains to Utah.

 

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is organized in a similar way today. Can you imagine waiting in line to be interviewed for a temple recommend with Pres. Nelson? Or to ask him for help with a financial problem? Or to request of him a priesthood blessing? It might be years before we could see him.

 

The church is well organized into Areas, Regions, Stakes, Ward or Branches, Quorums and Relief Societies, and ministering assignments. We follow the teachings and counsel of the prophet, and he leads and guides us as a whole, but the day to day journey is handled at a close to the people level.

The Lord said, "Behold, mine house is a house of order, . . . and not a house of confusion." (D&C132:8) By staying close to and within the organization of the church we receive blessings of strength and help for our journey.

 

Lesson #2 We are led by and can trust the prophet.

 

A prophet is a see-er, a watchman on the tower, a man to whom the Lord reveals His secrets. (See Amos 3:7) Sheri Dew wrote a whole book about how prophets "see around corners" and know what's coming. Since our mortal vision is best in hindsight we can look to the past for an example of the vision of prophets. In 1995 when President Gordon B. Hinckley read The Family: A Proclamation to the World, many wondered why it was needed, didn't everyone believe all those common-sense statements? Well, here we are a generation later and common sense seems to be in short supply, Satan seems to be winning, and people are very confused. We don't have to be though, we have the word of the Lord through His prophet, a strong bit of the iron rod to cling to as the mists of darkness swirl around us.

Elder Yoon Hwan Choi of the Seventy said, ". . . let us obey the leaders of the church and be like Adam, who didn't always have to know the reason why, but was just happy to be obedient." (Oct 2009)

We thank thee of God for a Prophet! Take it from an older, experienced pioneer--we can trust the prophet, he knows the way!

Lesson #3 Complaining doesn't do any good and mostly just makes the journey more miserable.

 

Up until they landed in the Promised Land, Laman and Lemuel did everything that was asked of them. They left their home in Jerusalem, they went back to get the plates, they went back to get Ishmael's family, they helped build a ship, they gathered supplies, got on the ship and set sail with the rest of the family. But they whined and complained and made trouble the entire time! They were a weighty drag on the whole expedition. I think when Nephi says, "Oh wretched man that I am, . . . because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me." he just might be thinking of the times he wanted to clobber his own brothers because they were such an impediment to peace. I know that I am often more like Laman and Lemuel than Nephi, which is why I'm so grateful for daily repentance and a patient and merciful Heavenly Father.

 

The Israelites complained and made trouble, and were punished by having to wander for FORTY years in the wilderness, until all the complainers had died, before they could enter the promised land.

The Lord commands us to "be of good cheer, for I will lead you along." (D&C 78:18)  Joseph Smith wrote the saints from Liberty Jail, ". . . let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power, and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance to see the salvation of God and for his arm to be revealed." (D&C 123:17)

We sing Come, Come Ye Saints, and Count Your Blessings. We can surely help each other with grace and humor to keep progressing forward.

 

Lesson #4 Never Give Up!

 

Can you picture yourself part of a handcart company, walking day after day, sunshine or rain, cold or heat? It's tiresome but we're moving forward toward Zion. Then an accident or an illness occurs and a loved one dies; we bury that person beside the trail, and then what? What are the options? We can keep going, on to Zion, or we can sit down and give up. A brief pause is all we get on the journey before the company leaves us behind. Remember we want to go far so we need to go together.

 

No analogy is perfect, but I can testify that whatever challenge we face we must keep pressing forward. We cannot sit down and wait until we aren't facing any challenges. Life doesn't work that way. We have to keep going to reach our Promised Land. We must endure faithfully and obediently to the end.

Two years ago, I had just conducted the first Stake Choir rehearsal the day before we found out James had taken his life. At the time I was asked if I wanted to cancel the choir. For me this was a Rocky Ridge moment. The terrain was steep, and I was weary, but I felt I had to keep going no matter what.

One of the hymns we sang was God So Loved the World. I considered that an offering of my testimony of the tender mercy of Our Father in Heaven to send His Beloved Son to rescue us from despair and death. It was a sacred, spiritual experience to lead that choir during that challenging time.

 

Brothers and Sisters, we are organized so we can keep track of and help each other on our journey. We are led by and can trust our prophet. We must be cheerful and not complain, doing all in our power to keep moving forward. And we must never give up!  

 

I know God lives, because I have come to know Him in my extremities. I know Jesus Christ is my Savior because I have felt Him lift me up when I most needed saving. I know Russell M. Nelson is the chief apostle and prophet of God today because I have studied his talks and felt the witness of the Spirit that he is the Lord's anointed servant. May we be faithful pioneers and help each other along our life's journey until we are all reunited in the Promised Land of the Celestial Kingdom.

 

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Words to Live By

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Saturday afternoon session of the April 2003 conference.

Every talk in this session was, of course, wonderful. But I want to focus on two topics.

From Elder James M. Dunn of the Seventy,

We live in a world marked by great diversity: different lands, cultures, races, and languages. To some degree, at least, one must believe that this is the way God intended it to be. The gospel teaches us that, notwithstanding these differences, we are all children of the same Heavenly Father. The human race is one family, and we are all, therefore, brothers and sisters.

To remember that we all are brothers and sisters is thinking celestially. How we treat each other will be a reflection of our thinking. He explains,

As the result of . . . erroneous thinking, the world is filled with lurid and lascivious attractions. We see young men refusing to marry; young women foolishly surrendering their virtue in pursuit of lustful relationships; couples who purposefully refuse to have children or who opt for a "trophy child" because a family would interfere with plans for adventure, leisure, or maximum financial gain.

 

Elder Dunn explained that, "Successfully working our way through life, while keeping our eye on life's true purposes, blesses us both here and hereafter." 

Later in the session, Elder L. Tom Perry said, quoting Brigham Young, ". . . our families are not yet ours. The Lord has committed them to us to see how we will treat them. Only if we are faithful will they be given to us forever. What we do on earth determines whether or not we will be worthy to become heavenly parents."

Isn't it sad that so many don't quite understand the consequences of their choices, which are eternal in nature. This week I was thinking about how everything is spiritual to God; every commandment, etc., and the thought came to me that, of course, everything is spiritual to Him because He lives in a spiritual realm where time is not measured, and He can see the end from the beginning and understands all things. We live in a finite, mortal world, where sometimes we can't see past the end of our nose. We have to learn to trust Him, His sight and wisdom, and simply obey, even when we don't understand why. That is what becoming like a child means. (See Matthew 18:1-3, and Mosiah 3:19) I hope that I'm doing better the older I get.

Recently I've been thinking about missionary work. I would love to serve another mission. (I served in Florida Tallahassee Mission, 1979-1980, under LeGrand R. Curtis) I have been pondering how I can help build our small branch here in Minnesota as well. Elder Henry B. Eyring and Elder M. Russell Ballard gave great talks on missionary work, especially as done by ordinary members. 

Elder Eyring posed the question we might ask, "How could I become better at sharing my faith with those who do not yet feel what I feel?" He said, "There is no single pattern in what they do. [From the stories of people who have shared the gospel.] There is no common technique. . . . Each has prayed to know what to do. They each seem to get a different answer, suited especially to them and to the people they meet." 

One of the challenges I face is that I'm simply at home most of the time. I don't go outside to work; I'm not part of any school parent's group; I haven't taken any classes, or joined a group of any kind. I go to church, I go out for errands, (bank, post office, shopping, etc.) and that's it. Plus the fact that we live 45 minutes from the church is another detriment. (Not to mention that our branch seldom has any social activities to invite anyone to.) So opportunities for missionary moments are rare. But Elder Eyring advises,

Pray for the chance to encounter people who sense there could be something better in their lives. Pray to know what you should do to help them. Your prayers will be answered. You will meet people prepared by the Lord. You will find yourself feeling and saying things beyond your past experience. And then in time you will feel yourself drawing closer to your Heavenly Father, and you will feel the cleansing and the forgiveness the Savior promises His faithful witnesses. And you will feel His approval, knowing you have done what He asked of you, because He love you and trusts you.

 

Elder M. Russell Ballard, after speaking of raising the bar for full-time missionaries, said, ". . . we must also raise the level of expectation for the performance of all the members of the church in fulfilling our missionary duties." 

 

Remember, brothers and sisters, we're not marketing a product. We're not selling anything. We're not trying to impress anyone with our numbers or our growth. We are members of the restored Church of Jesus Christ, empowered and sent forth by the Lord Himself to find, nourish, and bring safely into His Church those who are seeking to know the truth.

Elder Ballard quotes President Hinckley from 1999, "I would like to suggest that every bishop in the Church give as a motto to his people, 'Let's all work to grow the ward.'" It boggles my mind when I hear people in our branch say they don't want it to grow, they enjoy the smallness and intimacy of the branch. I'm rather tired of that smallness, and the sameness, and the lack of training and vision, and the lack of sociality. Distances are great, and most everyone is too busy with worldly pursuits to want to add any church activities to the mix. So different from when I grew up, when the church was the social center of our lives. (I miss the olden days!)     

Again from Elder Ballard, 

Happiness comes from understanding God and knowing that He has a plan for our eternal joy and peace. Happiness comes from knowing and loving the Savior and living our lives in accordance with His teachings. Happiness comes from strong family and Church relationships based on gospel values.

How can we not want to help others enjoy what we have? How can we not want our units to grow with families who will bring fresh devotion and energy? 

I remember the joy of sharing the gospel as a missionary. I want to feel that again! 

P.S. One of my favorite movies to watch on Halloween is "Coco", which is also one of the best movies to inspire us to pursue Family History.

 

Threads Woven Together

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Sunday afternoon session of the April 2002 conference.

Then Elder Russell M. Nelson: A firm foundation is necessary for any building, institution, or individual to endure. . . .Even firm foundations cannot prevent life's problems. Wayward children cause parents to grieve. Some broken families don't get fixed. Gender disorientation is poorly understood. Married couples, for whatever reason, may not be blessed with children. Even in our day, 'the guilty and the wicked go unpunished because of their money.' Some things just don't seem fair.

Elder John H. Madsen: Simply stated, eternal life is to live forever as families in the presence of God.

Elder Gene R. Cook: Repent. Remove any worldliness from your life, including anger. Receive a continual remission of your sins, and you will bridle all your passions, and be filled with love.

Elder Gerald N. Lund: As Elder Maxwell said yesterday, only when we truly yield our hearts to God can He begin to accelerate the purification and the sanctification and the perfecting process.

Elder M. Russell Ballard: We sometimes fail to understand that the everlasting peace Jesus promises is an inner peace, born in faith, anchored by testimony, nurtured with love, and expressed through continual obedience and repentance. . . . One cannot be at peace if one is living a life out of harmony with revealed truth. 

President Gordon B. Hinckley: I know that it is the work of the Almighty 'to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man'. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, the great Prophet of this dispensation through whom these truths have come.

It is my testimony that the ills of the world could be cured by living according to the Gospel and teachings of Jesus Christ, and His latter-day prophets.

Just a little reminder that the heat of the summer isn't permanent; and neither is the cold of the winter.