Surprise in Call and Sunday School Leadership

It is a great surprise to me, my brethren and sisters, to be called upon to address this congregation, and I trust you will give me your sympathy and your faith and prayers. I hope that all through my life I shall ever consider the Kingdom of God and His righteousness first, last, and all the time. To me, this is the Kingdom of God or nothing; and the nothing is an impossibility to my mind. I realize with every fibre of my being that God has established in this generation His work, never more to be overthrown. I also understand, perhaps only partially, that great truth which Brother McKay has just endeavored to impress upon us, that we all have an individual responsibility to see that the work is done which God requires at our hands ; that we do it by His help and through His grace to the best of our ability; and that we must not leave to others the work that God has placed upon our shoulders. I believe most thoroughly that a man to be his best, as a father, as a husband, or as a citizen of the nation to which he belongs, must be a man who tries to serve God, who endeavors to keep the law of the Lord, who believes in God and in rewards and punishments, who listens to and cultivates the voice of his conscience, and who seeks with all his powers of heart and mind, body and soul to do that which he believes to be true and righteous. I do not believe for a moment that a man is better prepared to help his fellows who is an unbeliever in God and in our Redeemer, and in the work of the atonement that He accomplished here. In my opinion, he is the highest type of man, the best citizen, the strongest, the bravest and the best in every relationship of life, who is in deed and in truth a Christian, or, as I would rather put it, a Saint, a servant of God. There may sometimes thoughts arise in our minds with regard to policy; time serving ideas that may afflict us for a short time; but I believe the sober, second thought of every man and every woman who has received a portion of the Spirit of God, is that it pays to serve God. It pays to do the best we can, and to learn to do better. It pays to keep our covenants. It pays now, and will pay eternally. God grant that we all may see the truth in this light ; that we may use all the energies and faculties that God has blessed us with to His service. And while I am saying this I am aware of the truth taught by the Prophet Nephi, that it is by grace we are saved, after all that we can do. But grace having performed its work, and we having received the benefits of the atonement of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we should endeavor to do our part by serving God with all the strength we have received from Him. ¶

I want to bear my testimony that I have been acquainted with the Presidents of this Church intimately for many years — with Presidents Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow and Joseph F. Smith; and though in minor particulars and characteristics they differed very materially, yet they were all the men of God's choice, the men for the hour, the men whom God selected as the leaders of His people, and they all did the work that God required at their hands. They were His mouthpieces, and they accomplished that which He placed them in the position to fulfill, every one of them. They were all prepared of God to do the work assigned them, and they all did it, and did it well. Notwithstanding the differences and peculiarities of their minor characteristics, there were some certain things in which they were all alike, namely, their love for the truth, their faith in God, their willingness to listen to His word, their uncompromising devotion and integrity to God and His work, their full belief in the divine calling of the Prophet Joseph. These characterized them all, and God was with them, and He enabled them to accomplish the work which He called them to do. I want to bear this testimony and I do so because I know it is true. I know further, that God will remain with us if we will be true to Him ; and more than this, I know that He is abundantly capable of taking care of His work. At the same time we must do our part ; do it in love, in faith, in zeal, and then the blessing of God will follow and His purposes will be accomplished. We none of us need to be afraid, my brethren and sisters, for God's work will prevail. The truth is mighty, and it will prevail. May we all remember this and act as though we believed it, and conscientiously do our part, bearing the portion of the responsibility that rightly belongs to us, all to the glory of God, as He will have it, for it belongs to Him. This is my prayer, through Jesus our Redeemer. Amen. ¶