The Fire of the Covenant

I just finished rereading "The Fire of the Covenant" by Gerald N. Lund. It is a very moving book that I would recommend to everyone. It tells the story of the pioneers who emigrated from Europe with the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies in 1856. As most of you know, these two companies were very late in the season and were caught in very severe snowstorms with barely any food or clothing. About 1/5 of the people in these two companies did not survive. I have ancestors that were in the Martin company, and as I read of the hardships they endured, I marveled at their great faith.

To leave their homes and families behind and never see them again,
To use up all their savings praying that the Lord would provide a way for them to make a new life in Utah,
To sail across the Atlantic Ocean to a foreign country, and then travel in overcrowded trains to the very edge of that country,
To be insulted and persecuted by the Americans as they passed through Iowa,
To limit their earthly possessions to 17 pounds,
To pull a handcart through 1300 miles of scorching sun and freezing snow,
The constant anxiety about when and if the supplies from Salt Lake would reach them,
To see men, women, and children suffer these things and die when they were so close to Valley,
To endure all this, and be able to sincerely sing "All is Well" at the end of the day -

That is incredible faith.

Brigham Young once counseled the Saints, "Now is the time for our labor. Let the fire of the covenant, which you made in the house of the Lord, burn in your heart like flame unquenchable!"

I truly believe that those faithful Saints not only survived but grew from it because of the "fire of the covenant" that roared in their hearts. I honor them and love them for their trust in the Lord and willingness to suffer all of these hardships without doubting. I am truly grateful for the example these Saints have set for me, and the strength that example is to me.

Their example gives me greater faith to endure the challenges I am pioneering through -

Choosing to stand apart from the world to be closer to my God,
Being persecuted for what I believe in,
Overcoming the subtle evil of accepting mediocrity,
Living in a world where lust is taught to be love,
Worrying about how to teach my children to be meek and Christlike in a society where vulgarity is the norm,
Learning to get outside of myself and serve,
Shunning the evils of pornography like the plague,
Fighting to not become addicted to electronics and entertainment,
Worrying about the world's economic and political state,
Trying to keep the Spirit while dealing with screaming toddlers,
Learning to let go of my blessings and give of my wealth to those who need it so much more,
and most of all,
letting my best friend and hero go to serve a mission for two whole years.

But I know that just as my Father sustained those remarkable pioneer Saints, He will sustain me. Nothing can stop me from fulfilling the mission the Lord has for me, because I too have "the fire of the covenant" burning inside of me.

Some try to blame Brigham Young or the other church leaders of the day for the tragic suffering that the Willie and Martin Handcart companies endured. But I know that this was part of Heavenly Father's plan. He could have altered the circumstances - but He did not. Maybe it was so that those Saints could learn something about faith.

Maybe it was also so that a lowly 19 year old girl 200 years later could learn something about faith.

Let us here observe, that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has the power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto lie and salvation....When a man has offered in sacrifice all that he has for the truth's sake, not even withholding his life, and believing before God that he has been called to make this sacrifice because he seeks to do his will, he does know, most assuredly, that God does and will accept his sacrifice and offering, and that he has not, nor will not seek his face in vain. Under these circumstances, then, he can obtain the faith necessary for him to lay hold on eternal life. - Joseph Smith, Lectures of Faith, December 1834


Thank you, my pioneer fore bearers, for exhibiting this kind of faith and inspiring me to do the same. I am eternally grateful. Maybe now you can understand why the Lord let you have this experience.

Family History, I am doing it!

I had the best Valentine's day ever. I felt went to the temple with Brian, and it was so wonderful! When we were walking there it was snowing harder than I've ever seen before, but it worked out well because it took us only 1 1/2 hours instead of the usual 3 hours it is on Saturdays. And when we were done, the sun was out! Brian said that Satan must have been trying to stop us from getting to the temple, but once we got inside he just gave up. hah :]

But the really awesome part was that Brian was baptized and confirmed for his great-grandfather. I'm not related to John Adolf Anderson, but I felt the Spirit so powerfully and peacefully as Brian did his work. There was also a sweet, humble Mexican couple ahead of us doing baptisms for his grandparents. There was just so much love in there - perfect for Valentine's day! What better way to show love for our ancestors and our Heavenly Father than to serve in the Holy Temple?

Brian is such an example to me. He decided this week that he was wasting too much time on things that don't matter, and that now he's going to give those things up for things that are productive. So Friday afternoon I was hanging out in their apartment, and while Brian's roommates were playing games on facebook, Brian found 4 generations of his ancestors online! And let me tell you, Brian had a lot more joy than his roommates did! I'm going to try to do the same thing. As a ward family history consultant, I am developing a deep love for genealogy and hope to be able to do much good. I'm still learning the ropes, but that's what eternity is for, right? I've found 7 names on my dad's side and hope to do the baptisms for them this week. Next, I want to work on my mom's side, especially the ancestors from Lithuania. There is a lot of work to be done with them. Oh, how the Spirit of Elijah is burning inside me!

What's new in life?

Hello to anyone that reads this, or just to the void.

Life is officially getting busy. I've been doing schoolwork, working extra hours, going to the temple once a week, and I got a new calling! I'm a family history consultant for my ward! I am team teaching a FH class and am just supposed to help whoever needs it. I taught the first lesson today and it went pretty well...other than running out of material 20 minutes before church let out. Oops! It went well though, and lots of people came to the class, which made really pleased. I have such good and supportive friends.

We are continuing to practice for our stake performance "From Cumorah's Hill" which will be put on on Feb 22. It is awesome material, and it will be fantastic! I love the songs and getting to sing with others in my stake.

So I put that picture up there on my blog because 1. It's beautiful and I love it and 2. I wanted to brag about how awesome my best friend is. I've been freaking out this week with all the stuff I've had to do, and Brian is always there to bring peace back into my life. It is such a blessing to have him to remind me of the eternal perspective, but also for me to be able to help him when he needs it. I will miss him when he goes on his mission in the summer, but I am mostly excited because he's gonna be the best missionary EVER!!!

Well, as they say in You've Got Mail, "Goodnight, dear void."