I Am Very Grateful to Be Present at This Conference

I am very grateful to be present at this conference, as it has been a year since I was present, not being able to attend the last general conference of the Church. ¶

Just a year ago today (Oct. 8, 1926) I left Salt Lake City, in company with a group of missionaries, one of whom was our eldest son, who is now in Germany. At that time it was my privilege to visit the Northern States mission in company with President John H. Taylor. I enjoyed the spirit of missionary work manifested in the devotion of the young men and women who are in the field. ¶

I was very sympathetic in my feelings when the mission presidents were making their reports, and declaring to us the testimonies and blessings that come to the missionaries and to the presidents of missions because of their faith and humility in the mission field. It is a sacred truth that the happiest time of our lives is while in the mission field, and in the faithful performance of our duty. ¶

It is true, however, that the Lord blesses his servants both in the mission field and at home, for I am a witness of the fact, and I wish to take this opportunity to thank both the Lord and my brothers and sisters for their kindness, for I know that it is through the kindness of the Lord and the faith of members of the Church that I have thus far been so greatly blessed. ¶

I am very grateful that the Lord has extended his mercy to me and given me a testimony of his work. I am very grateful for the privilege of doing what little I can in his service, because I feel that I am one of the weakest of the weak, and that it is an important privilege to labor in his service. I am also very grateful for the privilege of standing here, in the sight of those who are members of the Church, to acknowledge the hand of the Lord in blessing the people, for I have seen his blessings manifest as I administer in the stakes of Zion, and to individuals. I know that the Lord has blessed this Church and the people and that not only has he magnified those who are called into service and leadership, but he has blessed the people in their homes, in their flocks and in their herds. He has blessed us far beyond our gratitude and acknowledgement of his kindness. He has extended his mercy to the sick and afflicted, to those who are tried and those who have been deprived of many of their privileges. ¶

I desire to bring to your attention one of the items that is so interesting in the Book of Mormon. We are told in III Nephi, 17:7-25 (I will not take time to read it. I think I can tell it more briefly), that the Lord, when he visited his people on the American continent, expressed his joy in meeting them and his heart was touched in kindness towards them. He blessed them, and we know that they received his blessings because they gathered around him in the spirit of appreciation and gratitude. After he had taught them pertaining to the Lord's Supper and had given them the emblems of his body and blood, which we call the sacrament, they further desired his blessings, and as they gathered around him they expressed their appreciation in fondness. ¶

He desired to further bless them, and so he said, in words to this effect : Bring your sick and your blind, your lame and those who are afflicted; bring them hither and they, too, shall receive a blessing. And so they did. I imagine I see them now, going from home to home or from place to place, tenderly and lovingly bringing their sick and afflicted, and their blind and those who had caused them great care and anxiety, and there, in the love of the Lord he extended his blessings to them and healed and restored them. Then he further directed them to their little children, that they, too, might receive a blessing. They were brought, and the people saw the angels of the Lord ministering to their children. ¶

This is only one example of how the Lord extended his kindness to, the people that once lived upon this continent. He has been just as kind to us. I have seen the sick healed. I have seen the power and kindness of the Lord made manifest to his people. I have seen his blessings fulfilled upon little children. I have seen little children offer their prayers for the restoration of the sick and afflicted, and I have seen those prayers answered immediately ; so that I know that the Lord still loves us and is still anxious to extend further mercies, if we will only hearken to the teachings and counsels that we have received in this conference, because the Lord in all his kindness, in all his anxiety to bless us, to heal our sick, to restore the blind, to comfort those who are in distress, and to bless those who are healthy and well, is bound by law. It is a wonderful thing for us to have the laws of the gospel, which are the laws of Christ, given to us in our own language and in such plainness. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, let me plead with you as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, accounted to be the most blessed people in all the world because of the wonderful opportunities that have come to us, and because of the fact that we have the gospel, the law of Christ, for we have all the blessings and privileges that the Lord in his kindness has seen fit to grant unto us for our happiness and our progress. Therefore we should express a greater appreciation for our blessings by greater diligence in serving the Lord, and by further preparation for the blessings which are promised unto the faithful. ¶

I see in our midst a number of Lamanites, commonly called Indians. I am very grateful that they have faith as well as we do. They are descendants of Manasseh, and we are of Ephraim. The Lord has blessed the sons of Joseph who were sold into Egypt, and I was much interested when Brother Pratt made his report relative to the great nation of the house of Manasseh, for they truly are the descendants of Joseph, but they are the descendants through Manasseh, while .we are the descendants through Ephraim. Now, there may be others of the house of Israel among us, but the great majority of people ¶

who love and enjoy the blessings of the Lord upon both North and South America, are the people of Joseph, and they are enjoying the blessings which were declared upon the head of Joseph and his sons Ephraim and Manasseh. So I desire to call your attention to the kindness of the Lord in blessing this land and the people who live upon it, both in North and South America. ¶

I pray that the Lord will continue to bless us and further extend his kindness to us, and magnify us in the eyes of all the world, that the purposes of the Lord may be brought about through our efforts to serve him and keep his commandments. I know that it is a good thing to hold up to the world our good deeds and to strive diligently to make our deeds better, and to cause that our light should shine before the world, and to honor the Lord and to glorify him. I therefore, desire to put to the front the best we have, and acknowledge the hand of the Lord for his kindness in blessing us in our homes and in our congregations, in our fields, in our flocks, and in all that we possess. I pray for a continuation of God's blessing upon the land of Joseph and the people who possess it, upon President Grant and all the leaders of the Church, all who bear the priesthood, all who are called to lead and to direct,- that we may further honor the Lord through obeying the teachings which he has given us in such simplicity and plainness, that we may be recipients of his kindness and mercy even unto the end. ¶

I pray for these blessings and leave them with the Church and with this congregation in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. ¶