I Rejoice With You My Brothers And...

I rejoice with you, my brothers and sisters, in the privilege of attending this wonderful conference and listening to the testimonies of the servants of the Lord, including the great witness borne to us this morning by President McKay. ¶

I thank the Lord for my testimony that I know this work is true, and I know the power of God is in it; that this Church is built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, and that Christ our Lord is truly the head of his Church today, as he has always been. ¶

I have just had the privilege, with my wife, by appointment of President McKay, of touring five of the missions of Europe — the Danish, the Swedish, the Norwegian, the Finnish, and the Netherlands Missions — and Sister Richards and I appreciate that opportunity very, very much. I love missionary work. I love the spirit of missionary work. I know the Spirit of the Lord is in the missionary work. ¶

When Jesus was resurrected and sent his disciples into all the world to preach the gospel to every creature, he said, "And, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world," (Matthew 28:20), indicating that when his kingdom should be set up in the latter days that he would be with his servants until the end of the world. And I know that the Spirit of the Lord is in this great missionary movement. ¶

It was our privilege to visit and hear the testimonies of over five hundred missionaries, and each one I interviewed personally; and if you parents could have heard the testimonies of those missionaries, you would have been proud, and you would have felt compensated for the sacrifices you are making to keep them in the mission field. Many of them bore testimony of their gratitude to their parents for the privilege of being in the mission field. Some told of the financial struggles their parents had had. One boy said that his father was out of work when he was called to go, but he would not stand in the way of that son of his being an ambassador of eternal truth, and many of them testified that their parents had prospered financially as never before while their sons were in the mission field. ¶

Another thing that thrilled me in their testimonies: Many of them testified that their parents and the members of their families had become more interested and active in the Church while their sons were in the mission field, so that this great missionary program in a way is like a two-edged sword. It does a marvelous work in the mission field, and it does a marvelous work here at home. ¶

One missionary whom I interviewed in Denmark said, "I almost worship President Petersen, my mission president. It was he who brought the gospel to my father in this land, and there are now fifty-seven of us in the Church by virtue of that one conversion." ¶

Another young man who was a counselor in the mission presidency in that mission was the seventh son of a convert from that mission to go back into the mission field — a wonderful young man — and he said, "Brother Richards, couldn't I stay another six months?" ¶

I said, "No, you had better go home. ¶

You have your military work to get back of you and your schooling, and then you ought to get married, and then you can raise your boys as your father did and send them back on missions, and they will do the rest of your missionary work for you." ¶

It was a wonderful thing to be with those missionaries and feel their spirit, and I thank the Lord for the experiences that have been mine. They say the proof of the pudding is in the eating of it, and I nave had the privilege of filling four missions and presiding over two, and touring many of the missions, and I would not want to raise a boy in this day and generation and not have him go on a mission for his good and, because I think we owe so much to the world, to share with them the wonderful truths of the gospel. ¶

If you parents could have seen the glow in their faces when the missionaries would bring their investigators up to shake our hands, you would not figure that there was anything in this world that could compensate and take the place of the experiences that were theirs. ¶

The missionaries fast for their investigators. Two of the missionaries fasted all day that their investigator would not disappoint them when they had a baptismal service arranged for her that night up in Trondheim, in the northern part of Norway. We went out to the bank of a fjord after ten o'clock at night, the sun still shining, and what a marvelous sight to see the missionaries and the sister dressed in white! The missionary led her out into the waters of baptism, and when she came back, my wife said, through the interpreter, "Was it cold?" She said, "It's deilig." That means, it's beautiful. I do not know whether any of you Scandinavians will recognize that or not, but that was her way of saying it was wonderful. ¶

It was wonderful. It was a wonderful thing to witness that baptism. We stood there watching it, and many of the tourists or the vacationers were watching it and a little sailboat that sailed up the fjord because this was out in the open. We have no baptismal fonts there yet. However, they are building a beautiful new chapel and had the foundation in when we were there. As I looked and watched that beautiful sight, I thought of the account in the Bible where John led the Redeemer of the world down into the waters of baptism. He did not take a little water and sprinkle upon the head of the Savior. He led him down into the water, and we read that when he was baptized they came up out of the water, and I wondered how Christians could satisfy themselves having a little water sprinkled upon their heads instead of really being baptized as the Redeemer of the world was baptized, especially when they read so many predictions of the prophets and apostles that the day would come when men would "transgress the laws and change the ordinances." ¶

I visited with quite a number of people who had been to the temple. ¶

They had just had a tour from each of those Scandinavian missions and from up in Finland to the temple. ¶

About one hundred went in each group. ¶

And I want to pay tribute here to you members of these foreign-speaking groups. I have something to do with your work. But you have sent money to these mission presidents to help some of these underprivileged members to go to the temple. You should see the joy that it brings into their lives! Those temples have literally changed the attitude of the Saints in many respects. ¶

I was visiting with one young man and his wife who had three children. ¶

They had just returned from the temple in Switzerland, and she said this: ¶

"Brother Richards, we have been members of the Church for only six years, and we figure we are only six years old. ¶

We did not know how to live, and what to live for, until we found the Church." ¶

When you stop to think in those lands, according to reports, there are only about five percent (I think it was three, but to be safe I will say five percent) of the people of those lands who attend church at all of any kind, and then you know how little there can be in their lives really to live for. Sometimes I thought as we went through those missions that about all they live for was their vacation, because they are great people to have a vacation every summer. I will not take time to go into detail about that. But they did not seem to be looking to eternal life or eternal exaltation or eternal companionship with those whom they love. ¶

They did not know anything about things like that. The newspapers even write articles discussing the fact that there is no God. ¶

I was told that many of the ministers will openly admit to their members that they do not know whether there is a God or not. So, you see, they need the missionaries. They need this wonderful message that we have. ¶

Speaking of the temples, I remind you of when Nicodemus came to Jesus by night and said: ¶

"Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. ¶

"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." ¶

And Nicodemus, you will remember, could not understand that, so he said, "How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?" ¶

And Jesus said: ¶

". . . Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." ¶

And Nicodemus could not understand and Jesus said, "Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? ¶

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. ¶

"If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?" (John 3:2-5, 10-12.) And I have always thought that the heavenly things that Jesus spoke of were these wonderful blessings that we receive in the temples of the Lord, and I thank the Lord that temples are reaching out to our people in these far-off lands. ¶

In 1906 I heard President Joseph F. ¶

Smith make this statement in Rotterdam, Holland: "The day will come when temples of the Lord will dot this whole land of Europe," and I have lived long enough to see two of them there, and I tell you it is changing the feeling of our people toward the Church to know that these glorious blessings are coming within their reach. ¶

As we went to leave the London Temple to come home, one good brother, who must have been in his sixties, said, "Brother Richards, why couldn't I have known this thirty years ago? Why couldn't I have had the joy all these years of helping to build the kingdom?" ¶

That is the spirit of this work. There is not much time left, but I would just like to reminisce a moment. When I went on my first mission as a young man of nineteen, we were instructed by President Anthon H. Lund before we left for our missions. Among other things he said, "Brethren, the people will love you. Now don't get lifted up in the pride of your hearts and think that they love you because you are better than other people. They will love you because of your calling and the Spirit of the Lord that you take with you and the priesthood that you bear." ¶

I didn't understand too much what that meant as a boy, but after I filled my first mission there in Holland, I wept more tears a hundred times over as I took the train from Amsterdam to Rotterdam than I shed when I said farewell to my loved ones to go to that land. ¶

I went into one home where I had the privilege of bringing the gospel, and the little woman, a mother of about eight children, looked up into my eyes, and the tears rolled down her cheeks, clear down the front of her dress, and she said, "Brother Richards, it was hard to see my daughter leave for Zion a few weeks ago, but it is a lot harder to see you go," and then I knew what Brother Lund meant when he said, "They will love you. They will love you because of the message that you bring to them." ¶

Then I went to say good-bye to a man who was in the government service. He stood erect in uniform. He was old enough to be my father. He got down on his knees, took my hand in his, and hugged it and kissed it and bathed it with his tears, and then I understood what Brother Lund meant when he said, "They will love you." ¶

I tell you, brothers and sisters, we should be grateful for this great missionary system that is bringing so much joy, happiness, and peace into the lives of our people. That little family who did not know how to live until they had found the Church, and then just think of the revelation to them of the marvelous truths of the gospel, eternal duration of the marriage covenant — they will have their children in the eternal world — and that they can be exalted in the presence of God, the Eternal Father, and his Son, Jesus Christ! Compare that to what they have in a nation where the people have almost deserted their faith in God. ¶

I pray God to bless us all and help us to be worthy of our heritage and to give freely, and I do want to commend others who have sent money into those missions to help the local young people to fill missions, for they are doing a great work. And if any of the rest of you are financially able and you would like to lay up a few more treasures in heaven, I invite you to do the same. ¶

I leave you my blessings and pray God to be with you all, and bear witness of his truth in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶