It takes courage to have faith in Jesus Christ

Dear Elders and Sisters

We think about talks from conference, and we listened to Elder Anderson talking about Courage born of our faith in Jesus Christ. The courage that you have to serve a mission, to teach, and to bear witness, even sometimes to people who are disbelievers, is born of your faith in Jesus Christ. Sometimes the sheep hear and know the voice of their shepherd. Some take a long time, it can be harder still, as the time goes by. Sis Chibota joined as a 17 year old, and her parents were influenced slowly by her example and joined 19 years later.

When I was young we went on at least one occasion to the mission home in Houghton, Johannesburg to listen to General Conference on Voice of America via shortwave radio. Otherwise, we could only read the sessions in Church magazines weeks later. Years later, we received 16mm films of the sessions months after the conference. Years after that we more quickly received video tapes, then DVDs. Now we can watch sessions as they occur in Salt Lake City. The work of spreading the Gospel is indeed increasing in pace.

    

Magazines, short wave radio, 16mm film, VHS tape, DVD, Internet

We are blessed to have the word that the Lord gave thousands and hundreds of years ago in the scriptures, and we are blessed to have His word through living prophets, seers and revelators who speak to our needs in 2026. We are not left guessing about whether space travel, air travel, heart transplants, blood transfusions, motorised transport, and so many innovations of men are appropriate or not. I appreciate hearing how prophets lead us in times of turmoil such as after the 9/11 attacks in New York City. Love, and not hate, were what was shared. Unity, not divisiveness, helping to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, provide health care for the sick, uplifting, enlightening and inspiring those around us, are what we are taught. Jesus was born in troubled times when Romans were colonisers in Israel and most of the world, and He taught to be respectful and loving to the Romans. There is much hate spat out against so many people in our time, but the prophets encourage us to love our enemies, to pray for those that despitefully use us or persecute us.

I am grateful that we can hear such guidance on the very day that it is given. I am conscious that a time may come when the Internet may fail, or power to enable us to charge devices may fail, and we will then need to rely on hardcopy resources, or delayed sources of information, but we need to fill our oil reserves so that we have sufficient oil for our lamps when the Bridegroom returns. We need to be prepared for days when what is normal for us may no longer be normal. We need to live in faith and not in fear. We have a prophet of the Living God who guides us to stand and be counted when the going gets tough and we need to be the tough that get going.

Blessings on you as you share the Living Word of the Living God. That god envisioned by so many that enabled millions of species to 'evolve' disappeared long, long ago and all that we see now is extinctions by the thousands in our lifetimes. But that Creator has not left us alone. He has called a prophet who guides us today. He keeps on winding the Celestial Clock, filling the gas bottles of the lights in the skies, maintaining balances in nature when we make mistakes in our replenishing, subduing, and having dominion over His Creation.

Sister Powrie and I share our testimonies that God does lead His only true and living Church. Other religions have wonderful truth, but God leads the only true and living church on the face of the Earth with which He is well pleased. He knows what we need, and He guides us in this time of need. Blessings on you as you share His love with those new and returning members that you teach, helping them to get firmly on the covenant path, progressing towards the Temple and making and keeping covenants, repenting of their errors as they make them, striving to become one with Heavenly Father. We share this witness in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Your brother and sister in Christ

Les and Sally Powrie