President Mckay President Richards President Clark My...

President McKay, President Richards, President Clark, my dear brothers and sisters: One cannot help feeling humble whenever he is occupying this position. I think it is the best lesson we have in bringing one to true humility, and I humbly pray the Lord will sustain me today as I occupy this position. ¶

We come to these conferences happy, cheerful, full of love, with tolerance and kindness to mankind, and with gratitude in our hearts to God, our Heavenly Father. Truly, it is always good to meet in the conferences of the Church. There is always a beautiful spirit here, one of thanksgiving, one of friendliness, one of brotherhood, and one of appreciation for each other, and particularly to our Heavenly Father for the blessings that he has bestowed upon us individually and as a people, as a Church, and as a nation. It is always good to feel the wonderful spirit that is here, to shake hands with friends and old acquaintances, leaders of wards and stakes, and to feel truly the inspiration of the Lord that is always here in these sessions. I think everyone who attends a general conference of the Church always feels that there is an unusually rich spirit here not enjoyed any other place. ¶

A man called me yesterday who had not attended a session of the conference. I think he had never before in his life attended. Sometime ago I urged him to come to one of these conferences, and then he could express himself and pass judgment. He called me later and said, "I attended a session of the conference, and I have never felt like that before. I did not realize how wonderful it was. Truly, the Spirit of the Lord is here in these conference sessions." ¶

If I may, I would like to say a word or two about the dedication of the London Temple and our trip to London and return. My wife and I had the pleasure of taking a plane from Salt Lake to New York, and then to London, in company with Elder and Sister Richard L. Evans. It was wonderful to be with them. Truly, they are very choice and wonderful people. ¶

As one flies the big blue Atlantic Ocean, no matter how many times he may have flown it before and even though the plane seems safe and smooth, nevertheless, there is a little tension. When you look down and you see the blue water below, you realize that you are just above the ocean, and then you look up and see the stars in the heaven, and you really feel and know that God is at the helm, and it is a comforting feeling. Then to have people with you like Brother and Sister Evans is always very comforting indeed, and it was to us. We shall always be grateful for their association, for the companionship and friendship that we enjoyed with Brother and Sister Evans on that great trip. ¶

There were so many beautiful experiences and incidents that happened in connection with the dedication of the London Temple that perhaps one does not truly sense an experience like this unless he is actually in attendance, and it was a beautiful occasion. A rich outpouring of the Spirit of the Lord was present, and the spirituality of every session was outstanding. There was a spirit of love, a spirit of thanksgiving, a spirit of friendship, a spirit of brotherhood, and a true spirit of worship present. Many of the Saints had made great sacrifices and effort to be in attendance for the dedication of this temple. I wonder if we can realize that many of them had never before seen the prophet of the Lord, the President of the Church. They were deeply touched as were we all. ¶

In my visits to the islands of the Pacific, I had always thought that our Hawaiian friends in the islands were the only ones who could sing, smile, and cry at the same time, but at the dedication sessions of the London Temple, I saw others who would smile, sing, and cry at the same time, and in nearly every session, we experienced that same observation. It was because they were deeply touched, humble, and grateful. ¶

We heard many stories there regarding the sacrifices that were made by many individuals in order to attend the dedication. One man had saved all he could for over two years in very small amounts, and in our figures equivalent to 5c, 10c, 15c, etc. in order to have enough money to attend the dedication when that time came. He was so anxious to save up enough money so he could attend the dedication, but when the time came for him to go to the temple, he discovered that he lacked about $30.00 in having enough money for him to attend. To some of us, that would not seem very much, but to him, it was the difference between his being able to go and not going. Someone learned that he needed an additional $30.00 and saw to it that $30.00 was furnished to him so that he could go and not be denied this great ambition and dream. Then this good man said, "I appreciate this $30.00, but I want to pay it back. However, it may take me a year to do it." You see, some of these choice people have difficulty financially, and they do not have the means. ¶

I wonder if we realize the difficulty that many of our Saints have in different parts of the world and the problems they encounter in these far-off lands so far from the headquarters of the Church. ¶

Another good man who had waited and dreamed for this occasion was a faithful member of the Church, and he, too, had tried to save all he could, hoping that he would have enough money saved up so that when the time came for the temple dedication, he could attend. Just shortly before the time of the dedication, he became ill, and his doctors told him that it would not be wise for him to go because of a very serious illness that had come to him and perhaps an illness from which he could not recover. This good man said, "Then the money I have saved for this occasion must be used by someone else so that he can go and receive the blessings that I had hoped to receive." He had never been in the temple in his life. He had hoped and planned to go, and now he was denied that blessing, but he was willing and anxious that someone else should have that blessing. It made nearly all of us ashamed to live so close to the temples and rarely attend and then to realize the great effort that our brothers and sisters have been putting forth in far-off countries in order to go to the temple. ¶

We were grateful to hear the prayers of the prophet, President David O. ¶

McKay. As one of the brethren said this morning, when the young people there (the missionaries) watched President McKay speak and heard his prayer, they did not need to be told that he was the prophet. Everyone could feel it. It was a great, personal, spiritual strength to all who attended. Because of the power that was given to them by the President in his talk and in his prayer, we felt that every person left there with a firm resolve to rededicate his life to the Lord. The occasion there was heavenly. It was uplifting. ¶

It was spiritual. ¶

May I be permitted to quote one or two thoughts from that beautiful appropriate, spiritual dedicatory prayer, and since it has now been published, may I plead with you to please read it. ¶

When you read it, try if you can to imagine that you are sitting in the temple in London hearing the prophet of the Lord pronounce that prayer. ¶

Then you, too, will be greatly strengthened. May I quote one or two thoughts: ¶

"May we first express overwhelming gratitude just to be alive in this great age of the world. We pause this morning to open our hearts to thee for this special privilege. No other time in world history has been so wonderful — no other age wherein thy secret powers have been more within human control; in no other era hath thy purposes been nearer human comprehension. Help us, O Lord, truly to live!" ¶

One more thought: "But thy mercy, thy wisdom, thy love are infinite; and in dispensations past thou hast pleaded, as thou dost now plead, through chosen and authoritatively appointed servants, for thy erring children to heed the gospel message and come to thee." ¶

If the world would read that prayer and accept it, it would not be where it is today. ¶

I truthfully believe that there are one million members of this Church — at least those who are old enough and who realize the value of prayer — who are praying each day for the President of the Church, the prophet of the Lord, and for the General Authorities of the Church. We are so profoundly grateful to you for your prayers and your faith. ¶

Yes, this is a great age in which to be alive, but we also have some fears. ¶

Peace or war? What price for peace? ¶

We hear so much about war and different weapons of war that sometimes we are concerned. There are factions at work to divide this nation. There is developing, sad as it may seem, a feeling of bitterness between groups within our nation. The monster of inflation is eating away. The nation and the American public are in the greatest debt they have ever been in. The debt now has reached an all-time high — a good reason for concern. The world has not followed the counsel of the Church. ¶

What price for peace? There are many who say now that bombs are being made to destroy civilization. What of our wives and mothers, our babies and children, and our grandchildren? ¶

Probably the greatest problem today facing this world is how to get peace. ¶

A great scientist has said that it is possible for certain individuals who have the controls of war to lose their balance of faculties in anger and have bombs dropped, and in so doing, destroy mothers, wives, children, and innocent people by the millions. One bomb, it is said, dropped in the city of the Los Angeles area could destroy every living creature and cause every building to fall in ashes between Santa Monica on the west, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Pasadena, and San Bernardino on the east. ¶

What price for peace? There are some scientists who predict that we are headed for very serious trouble from spawning radiation. There is perhaps an answer to it all. Power? Power is not the answer. Faith is the answer. Would the people of this nation be willing to live in accordance with the teachings of God in order to guarantee peace? In recorded history, we have recognized that in times past, because of the righteousness of the people, the Lord has seen fit to protect a nation and stay the hands of those who would destroy civilization. ¶

Prayer is that weapon. Prayer is a force as real as gravity. True prayer and worship have always been an acknowledged necessity of all mankind. ¶

One poet has called prayer "the bridge which reaches from earth to heaven, and the one pathway from despair." I wonder if we are on speaking terms with the Lord. Do we have companionship with him? Can he reach us if he wishes to? ¶

The other day in a meeting in the temple, President Clark was offering the prayer. It was so sacred and so beautiful that one hesitates to mention it. He prayed for the membership of the Church, pleading with us to make sure that we are living so that God can speak to us if he so wishes. I wonder if this nation and the nations of the world would listen if God spoke to them. ¶

Someone has said there are too many people trying to get along without God, and too many nations have turned from Christ. Religion is considered by those who know the meaning of it as the greatest blessing that can come to man. ¶

There is no place in the world that does not contain some trace of God. He has left his sacred marks everywhere, and they need only to be found to be realized. ¶

"Religion is the bond that binds man to God. It is the golden arch that leads to happiness; destroy it and chaos will result." ¶

Religion is playing a great part in the lives of men today, and if men would accept the true religion, there would be no war because in the gospel of Jesus Christ, one finds peace, not turmoil; love, not hatred; and the answer to the turmoil in the world and the threat of war is the acceptance of Christ and his teachings, for Jesus is the Son of God, the Savior of the world. ¶

The gospel of Jesus Christ will play the most important part in any man's life. "The only man who can be triumphantly hopeful in these days is the man whose heart is knit to the coming of the kingdom of God." ¶

What price for peace? Power? "Power is never good except he be good that has it." The key to all our problems, to life itself, is God our Father. He is every man's first need. One writer has said: "Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown," and one replied, "Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God — that shall be better than a light and safer than a known way." ¶

And this might help: "Oh, God, as I begin this day and this new way of life, I put my hand in thine. May I not miss a step with thee today; may I be controlled by thy love. May my strong urges be taken hold by thy love and turned toward thy kingdom." ¶

What we find in life depends upon what we give life. The same skies are dull and leaden to one, but glorious with their own blue to another. So often we leave beauties and experiences of worth unappreciated and untouched, even unseen. I wonder if we could not change our lives a little and say, "Let us all be kind to one another, for most of us are fighting a hard battle anyway." ¶

I want to bear testimony that God lives and that Jesus Christ is his Son. I know as I know that I live that there are prophets in the earth today, the same as the prophets of old. May God bless the membership of this Church and the youth of this Church particularly. Let's take care of them, because in not too many years, this building will be filled with those who are young today. ¶

May God bless us I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶