He is Risen

This is part of an Easter sermon that Joseph B Wirthlin gave in October of 2006. It is one of my very favorite talks on Easter. Its worth reading the entire thing, to do so, click here "Sunday Will Come

"When Christ rose from the grave, becoming the firstfruits of the Resurrection, He made that gift available to all... I think of how dark that Friday was when Christ was lifted up on the cross. On that terrible Friday the earth shook and grew dark. Frightful storms lashed at the earth. Those evil men who sought His life rejoiced. On that day the veil of the temple was rent in twain... On that Friday the Apostles were devastated. Jesus, their Savior—the man who had walked on water and raised the dead—was Himself at the mercy of wicked men... On that Friday the Savior of mankind was humiliated and bruised, abused and reviled. It was a Friday filled with devastating, consuming sorrow that gnawed at the souls of those who loved and honored the Son of God. I think that of all the days since the beginning of this world’s history, that Friday was the darkest. But the doom of that day did not endure. The despair did not linger because on Sunday, the resurrected Lord burst the bonds of death. He ascended from the grave and appeared gloriously triumphant as the Savior of all mankind.And in an instant the eyes that had been filled with ever-flowing tears dried. The lips that had whispered prayers of distress and grief now filled the air with wondrous praise, for Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God, stood before them as the firstfruits of the Resurrection, the proof that death is merely the beginning of a new and wondrous existence... I testify to you that the Resurrection is not a fable... Thousands in the Old and New Worlds witnessed the risen Savior. They felt the wounds in His hands, feet, and side. They shed tears of unrestrained joy as they embraced Him... That we may always know that no matter how dark our Friday, Sunday will come is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

Gordon B Hinckley states "These simple words—“He is not here, but is risen”—have become the most profound in all literature." President Monson calls it the Clarion Call of Christendom.  I echo them with my testimony that the Lord lives, that that Easter Sunday we celebrate really did happen, in Jesus Christ's name, amen.   

Wading Through Winter

I have lived in Arizona of my life.  In Arizona (at least the desert parts) we don't really have a real winter season.  Sure it exists from December 21 to March 21, but really, its just a break from the hot weather.  Back home the winter averages about 52° and often consists of shorts and t-shirts.  Its far different from a winter in Upstate New York. 
I spent the last winter in Rochester and now I know what a real winter is like.  I went 19 years without having to deal with snow and plows and sliding off the road and ice and blizzards, (127" this last year).  But since I have experienced a true winter, I can now really appreciate the spring.  Now, I am so grateful for the spring; for the traction on the road, for the green grass, for the "lack of 5 month old snow banks".  Only after I have suffered through a winter do I know how great the spring is.  A scripture that illustrates this point is in 2 Nephi 2:11 "For it must needs be that there is an opposition in all things."  If there is no happiness, then there is no misery.  If you've never been sad, then you don't know what it is like to have joy.  If you've never been sick, than you can't fully appreciate the blessing of health.  If you don't know the winter, than you can't really know the spring. 
So when people ask "why life has to be so hard?" or "why bad things happen to good people?", the answer is "so that you can know the spring".  I have never enjoyed springtime so much and it was only after working and wading through wearisome winter that I came to know the splendor spry of spring.  Likewise, its often that only after the trial and hardship, or the pain and the suffering, that we really come to know the spring in our lives.  Alma 7:12 reads "And he will take upon him death that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."
Christ suffered through the worst of all winters so that he would know how to help us through ours.  He wants to help us, so when we meet rough winters, turn to Christ because he knows how to best endure it.  After all, he is pretty good at enduring. I end with the promise that no matter how cold, dismal, dark and dead the winter is, spring does inevitably come. Because of the winters in our lives, we will come to better know the spring.

Gratitude

I love this video.  Every time I watch it, it makes me think about my life.  I think about how often I am the boy that wants to pull the prank, or if I'm the one that looks for opportunities to serve.  I think about whether or not I'm the one who helps initiate the miracle, or am I the one who stands idle and watches it happen.  Am I a catalyst or a hindrance in blessing the lives of others? Sure its not bad to have fun, but its also important that we don't get so caught up in it that we miss the chance to help others.  Another lesson that I think this video teaches us is that of gratitude.  When the man finds the two silver dollars in his shoes, the very first thing that he does is pray and offer his gratitude for his blessings.  I can only imagine how much better the world would be if we not only learned to give meaningful, sometimes random acts of service, but also to give thanks for what we receive.  The scriptures say in Doctrine and Covenants 59:7 "Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things."  I think that is something that everyone can work on, that of thanking the Lord for what we have, because we truly are so blessed.  The scripture says to give thanks for all things, and I take that to mean just that, all things.  Thank him for the big blessings, the small things, and even for the hard timesand trials that we have here.  The man's heartfelt prayer in this video is an awesome example for us.  Lets learn to give service to everybody, whether or not we know them, and learn to better give thanks for all that we have and I know that we'll be blessed because of it.  
_Elder Halbert

Trees

So, Elder Lachaga and I were out walking around one day with an investigator named Frank.  We wandered into a swampy kind of area when Frank pointed out that a bunch of the trees in that area were fallen and he explained why.  He said that the soil that had previously been a stable foundation, had become water-logged, and the roots that had before been adequate were not sunk deep enough to provide the support needed.  The once solid ground no longer provided ample footing for the roots of the trees and when any kind of storm came, it took almost nothing to knock them down.   

As members of the church, we have roots.  We have ancestral roots, genetic roots, and spiritual roots.  The question that comes to me is "How well rooted are we in the Gospel of Jesus Christ?"  Some people try to live their lives relying on the same size root that they had when they were children and inevitably, the tree falls.  Unless we sink our roots deep into the gospel, we too put ourselves in jeopardy of toppling over.   Are we too setting ourselves up for failure by trying to grow tall and be firm in swampy marshy ground?  What is the best way that we can firmly root ourselves in the gospel of Jesus Christ so that when the storm comes we too will not be numbered among the fallen? The answer is simple. Its the seminary answers; reading your scriptures, attending church, keeping the commandments, repenting daily. 

Unlike the trees at High Acres, when we fall, its not the end.  There is life after mistakes.  Jesus Christ set up the way to stand us up again.  He payed the price for our sins so that he can raise us up again, to get us back on track and moving in the right direction again.  Alma 41:7 says "These are they that are redeemed of the Lord; yea, these are they that are taken out, that are delivered from that endless night of darkness; and thus they stand or fall; for behold, they are their own judges, whether to do good or do evil.

Let us root ourselves deep in the gospel of Jesus Christ so that we can be those who the scripture says "stand and do good" instead of those that "fall and do evil".   And when we do fall, as it inevitably happens to each of us, let us look to Christ to stand us up again.  He knows the way, He is the way, through Him alone can we stand up again when fallen, and  through Him alone can we find the strength to stand the trials of this life.

_Elder Halbert