Some thoughts about the early history of southern Africa

I read, with interest, a review of the book The Lie of 1652 by Patric Mellet. It is a rather complex review! I grew up with English as first language and was wondering how many people will follow all of the very complicated writing!

I have appealed in March 2020, and again in November 2020, to StatsSA that they add to the next census distinct categories for the San, Khoe, Kalanga and Cape Malay since I cannot see where they would classify themselves - African, Coloured or Indian since I don't think that the Khoisan are likely to classify themselves as White, or the Cape Malays as Coloured or African, or would they simply select the category called Other? We show very little acknowledgement to the Khoisan, the original people of our wonderful country!

I have wondered what South Africa would be like now if the 'Whites' had not come here? What would the numbers of San, Khoe and Kalanga be like now? What would the numbers of Nguni, Sotho-Tswana, Venda and Tsonga people be like? What ages would people typically reach? What would their homes be like? What would their towns, cities, hospitals, universities, roads, technology, infrastructure, transport and so forth be like? Would a farm be feeding tens of people or thousands of people? 

It strikes me that the 'Whites' did not bring the soil, the gold, the diamonds, the wonderful agricultural or natural potential. Without their developing these potentials, what would have been developed by people who had been here for thousands of years and had not done particularly much with the potential?

I appeal to everyone to ask such questions and be honest with themselves before simply accepting the history as it is taught in school now, or fifty years ago, or in books like this one about the inaccuracies of accounts of what occurred in and around 1652. It is good to expand one's vision and not simply keep a narrow view, but please do not let other people tell you what is true - or what is false. Think about it yourself. Do your own research and then accept that, since you and I were not here in 1652, or 180 years before that when D'Almeida was here, 400 years before that when the Nguni peoples first came, or 1500 or perhaps many thousands of years before 1652 when the San people were inhabiting the region that we now describe as the country of South Africa, we will each have our own biases and not one of us can truly say who is right. Let us focus on what is right in the way that we treat each other rather than agonising about who is right about history. Let us rejoice in the strengths of each group and person in our wonderful country and live according to the motto on our Coat of Arms '!ke e:/xarra//ke' which is from the Khoisan language of the /Xam people - let us rejoice in the meaning - "diverse people unite", or "people who are different joining together". Let us build a wonderful united society made up of widely diverse people rather than looking for things that will divide us.

Behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words

These thoughts were triggered by my study of Come, Follow Me this morning. I hope that your heart will be similarly softened.

Perhaps a good example of my heart being softened as mentioned in 1 Nephi 2:16 relates to the 1978 revelation on the priesthood. 

When I was on mission in 1973 I had not been uncomfortable with the teachings that related to why the blessings of the priesthood and the Temple were withheld from people descended from the seed of Cain. That is what was taught, and I saw no real reason to question it. I had inherited the Bible that my brother had used in the first part of his mission in England in 1967-1969 (it had been stolen from his parked bicycle, and then miraculously returned to him), and he had some notes regarding the priesthood and the seed of Cain, and I was interested in what he had written. I also had a few impressions that were part me as a 'European' citizen of  South Africa and I recall feeling support for what the same brother had said 'I believe in the principle of separate development' - allowing the rights and freedoms of indigenous people to study, do business, develop and live in ways that were natural for them without the pressures and expectations of the white ways that might have been burdensome to them. That made sense to me, but the policy referred to as Apartheid was somehow not really compatible with this principle as I understood it, but this was simply not a matter that 'occupied my mind'. 

My mother had taught me to be considerate and respectful - comments like 'Remember - that goat herder on the mountain in Transkei can probably speak more languages than you can.'; 'A gentleman treats even a cowgirl as a lady.'; 'The world needs street sweepers - but more importantly, the world needs excellent street sweepers.' taught me to value and respect each goatherder, cowgirl, streetsweeper and other person. I hope I was reasonably living up to those ideals.

My father started serving as manager of the Presiding Bishopric Regional Office in about 1976 and it was the time when people in Africa were starting to respond to the Gospel message. It was clear that they were not simply 'the seed of Cain' in nature. Whatever may or may not have applied to their ancestors was clearly not applicable in at least some of these good people who desired the blessings of the priesthood and the Temple. Like some Lamanites whose hearts were softened and were more righteous than some Nephites, this was clearly a matter of choice and not biological inheritance. 

Then, one day we heard on TV that was now part of South African life, that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was going to extend the blessings of the Priesthood and the Temple to all, regardless of race. I thought - I am comfortable with the proposal, but I'll not accept it as truth until I receive it directly from Church channels. But now the thought 'occupied my mind' and in the hours between hearing the announcement and receiving the official communication from the Church I knew in my heart that it was right, and that this was essential for us to be able to fulfill the mandate of the Lord Himself in Matthew 28:19-20. 'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.' 

I later came to know in my heart that, whatever judgement the Lord might, or might not, have had on the seed of Cain, He would now judge anyone who now rejects the seed of Cain. Whether or not they had been under His condemnation, I would now be under His condemnation if I held on to previous prejudice. I am the one being judged now. 

Then, as we approached 1994 in South Africa, my heart was softened regarding the integration of all races in our own nation. I recall thinking that my heart had been changed before the stroke of the pen of the State President made integration official. The law now required me to open my heart, but the Spirit had already opened my heart. The stroke of the pen could not do it. It had to come from within. I could relate to Boyd K Packer's explanation that 'True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior.' He said this in October 1986 and often expanded on it. I was changed - my heart had changed - before the law required my attitudes and behaviour to change. My heart had been softened by the Lord through the working of the Spirit. 

I am saddened that this revelation on the priesthood that was a special part of my heart being softened was something that precipitated the hardening of the hearts of some of my dear brothers and sisters. It is sad that they no longer walk with us in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I look forward to the time when their hearts will be softened again.

Remember what you know before just believing what others tell you ...

I was given a lot to think about when my brother Tim posted something on Facebook on 12 Nov 2018.

 

I see the image may not display because it contained text. It was the great pyramid with its geographical coordinates. I am trying again, this time with a cropped picture as well...

It gives:
Speed of light: 299 792 458 m/2
Coordinates of the Great Pyramid of Giza 29.9792458°N
COINCIDENCE?
His comment was 'Not in billions of years is this by chance........'

I posted the comment:

That depends... The pyramid spans about 29.97817°N to 29.98019°N, One of about 20200 points with 7 decimal place, each about 7 mm apart, along the approximately 150 m stretch from the northern to southern edges of the pyramid is indeed 29.9792458°N. That point is about 10758 out of about 20200, so reasonably close to the middle of the pyramid. It is TRULY REMARKABLE, but you have to have real faith in the precision of the surveyors of about 4578 years ago to think that they calculated the speed of light and plonked the pyramid on the ground at precisely that point to match that great number :-). This requires just about the same amount of faith as those have who believe that the millions of species in the world are the result of natural selection and the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life rather than the work of an intelligent God :-). But thanks for giving me something to think about :-)

I thought a lot about that.

The pyramid was built around 2580 to 2560 BC.

The speed of light was first considered about 1676 AD, and postulated by Albert Einstein in 1905 AD.

One has to ask why it was decided that a circle can be divided into 360 degrees, and that the Earth must span from 90°S to 90°N rather than any other number of degrees.

Then - the second is based on 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, and 24 hours in a day - instead of some other numbers for seconds, minutes and hours.

The length of a metre is defined based on the length of a path traveled by light in a vacuum - instead of some other number like foot or yard or mile or something else.

These decisions and postulations put the pyramid close to 29.97817°N.

When I teach the process of georeferencing, or assigning geographical coordinates to record where museum or herbarium specimens were collected, I teach that one should not use more than 5 decimal places, nor less, because 5 decimal places puts one appropriately within 1 metre of the determined place, and using more decimal places adds false precision. So, I would have georeferenced a specimen of a bird or lizard with 'the Great Pyramid of Giza' as its location at about 31.13425°N, 29.97925°E, with a confidence of about 150 m representing the radius of a circle surrounding and including all four corners of the pyramid. If it had been a plant, then I would have given it within about 300 m or even 1000 m from the centre of the pyramid. Something like a bird or lizard can be 1000 m from the pyramid and can feasibly move onto the centre of the pyramid, whereas a plant is pretty much stuck in one place from the time of germination to its death, and is not likely to have been growing on the pyramid itself, and looking at aerial photography or satellite imagery shows the nearest visible vegetation at about 300 m from the pyramid.

My GPS is good to about 5 m - and I have benefited from that precision by locating a small plant ten days after recording its locality with my simple GPS, so I know. To get less than 1 cm precision in 2018 requires using a Differential GPS, costing many thousands of Rands or hundreds of Dollars.

What prompted the pyramid consulting engineers to place their pyramid precisely there? Perhaps an all-wise, loving, gracious and merciful God prompted them about 4600 years ago so that this picture would be posted on Facebook in November 2018 so that I would think about the question and saying to me 'It's OK, Les. I am here' :-).

Hopefully my comments will prompt you to search your thoughts and remember what you know.

So - think.... remember.... ponder.... dare I say pray?....

Most people, left to themselves, are happy and content

I gained an interesting insight one day driving slowly in peak hour traffic on the N1. There was a team of men working on the side of the road. I believe that is was when they were erecting street lights in about 2014, and one big, hulking man in his work overall was skipping merrily along.    

   

I realised that most people, left to themselves, are happy and content.    

   

It is very easy to persuade one that he is unfortunate because he lacks something that another has - that will always be the case. Or that he is entitled to something. Or that he has rights that others should ensure.    

   

It is not easy to persuade one, though, that he must meet the needs of others, or ensure those same rights for others, or share what he has with others.    

   

This entitlement is one of the biggest maladies that we face in the world, and South Africa is an excellent example of the malady. Donald Trump elected US president, Jacob Zuma giving State of the Nation address in South Africa, BREXIT in Britain, and so forth. 2016 and 2017 are proving to be remarkable years.

Coincidentally, I wrote this on Friday morning 11 Feb 2017, and on Friday evening I heard an interesting quote on a business radio programme. 'Comparison is the thief of joy'.

The Hundred - Thirteen test

I have been at a low spiritual ebb all too often. That may surprise some, but it's true. 

I find the Hundred – Thirteen test helps me.

The Hundred part is inspired by something my older brother Tim shared with me years ago when he heard I was considering being an airline pilot. He came to me while I was doing my homework one evening and discussed implications of what I was considering (the fact that I wore spectacles, my lack of knowledge of geography, being away from home a whole lot, etc.). He suggested that I list the pros and cons of each alternative in the choice. My adaptation is to take a piece of note paper and prepare three columns: one for a scripture reference; one for the question like 'Become an airline pilot', 'Pack up and move to Nelspruit', 'Move to Cape Town to marry Sally', or 'The church is true as it claims' and one for the alternative 'Not become an airline pilot', 'Stay in Cape Town and look for work here', 'Stay in my parents' home and not go to marry Sally', or 'The church is a hoax'. Then randomly and prayerfully read 100 scriptures and after each one, write the scripture reference, and put a mark or cross under the appropriate column. I have to be honest in letting the Spirit guide me in the process. Should you take this test, you can decide if 'a scripture' is one verse; one chapter; 10 minutes; reading sequentially from the beginning of the book, e.g. Genesis 1:1 or Matthew 1:1, or whatever you feel appropriate. The important thing is to read the scriptures so that Heavenly Father can communicate with you through His Word. In research, one has to do sufficient testing to be confident in drawing a conclusion – a small sample size is not defensible. One hundred is a pretty reasonable sample size in some studies. Tens of thousands can be an appropriate sample size in very large populations. With more than 31000 verses in the Bible, even 100 is a small sample size, but it is a good start.

Another analysis that may help with some tough choices is the SWAT analysis (examining Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). The object of either exercise is ‘studying it out in my mind’ (See D&C 9:8).

The Thirteen part is to write down my own personal thirteen Articles of Faith. I read each that Joseph Smith wrote, and then write down my own. This is based on my mother's conversion story and the role that a challenge issued by an Anglican minister played. You can read her story in my blog http://personaltouchworks.blogspot.co.za/

When I’ve done this, I enter my Garden of Gethsemane and pray to my Heavenly Father and listen, hopefully being prepared to submit my will to His.

I believe it was one of my fellow missionaries Mike McLean who, in Port Elizabeth in 1973, shared a comparison with mathematics and receiving answers to prayer. A teacher will teach a mathematical principle and then give homework to be solved. The student then goes and applies the method to the problem in question. He returns to the teacher with the homework and the teacher either approves of the answer, or sends the student away to try again. If the student is still unable to solve the problem, the teacher might show the working out to get the solution, and then give the student a similar problem to go and solve. This continues until the student masters the principle in question. We similarly need to apply principles to solve problems in our lives, and go to our loving Heavenly Father and ask if we have reached the correct solution? We read that He will tell us in our minds and in our hearts when we have come to the correct conclusion. He will cause that 'your bosom shall burn within you' or, as I feel it, an incredible peace and feeling of completeness and clarity with no confusion as opposed to a stupor of thought or confusion when I need to go and give more thought to the problem.

It is not a quick fix – anything worthwhile is not a quick fix – but it is wonderful to receive personal revelation through the word already revealed to prophets. Talks in General Conference and other words of latter-day prophets and apostles also provide valuable insight as I ponder them. I do a great deal of pondering! I can recall one of my first experiences of pondering when I was probably about 16 years old. I received what Andre Naude would describe as 'a light bulb switching on in his brain'. I realized ‘Of course I must have a mother in Heaven because I cannot get to the Celestial Kindgdom without being sealed to a wife, so Heavenly Father must be sealed to a wife’. Yep, I was about 16 years old at the time! I know I must have been pondering because otherwise I would surely not have received such a prompting ‘out of the blue’. I don’t for one moment think I am on a par with Saul of Tarsus who was such a ‘chosen vessel’ that an angel would be sent to me to stop me on my road to mischief and cause me to have a few days of being without sight as I became cleansed and ready for someone like Ananias to come and restore my sight. I am just an ordinary person, but I have nonetheless had the Spirit speak to me through the scriptures, especially as I have pondered them. I have often said that some of my best scripture study time has been without a book in my hands, but while I am mowing the lawn, weeding the garden, or something like that and I am pondering the scriptures as I work

Perhaps another thing to contemplate is how I reflect each year at this season how interesting it is that when the temperature is 18°C (64.4°F) I am comfortably dressed in the kind of clothing that I would be wearing only at 27°C (81°F) three months previously. But at 18°C (64.4°F) three months ago I would be wearing polar neck sweater and jacket and still feeling chilly. I reckon the difference is not so much in the temperature as it is in my body becoming tolerant of the temperature. This reminds me of the story of a frog being placed inboiling water or being slowly brought to the boil, I become tolerant of lower temperatures, and if I do not check myself, I will be all too comfortable in the lower spiritual temperatures so that I don’t keep myself spiritually warmed. It is up to me to keep myself spiritually fed and nourished so that I can be more likely to be in tune with the Spirit and notice that the ambient temperature has dropped and I am becoming accustomed to it. I love the way Dieter F.Uchtdorf said it ‘first doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith’

I have often questioned my faith, sometimes doubted, but I have taken to heart the advice to write what I do believe, and to know that although I do not know everything, I do know enough to declare confidently that God does live, He is my Father in Heaven, Jesus Christ is my Messiah, and I have enough experience with the Holy Ghost to confidently promise you that you, too, can know the truth of all things by the power of the Holy Ghost if you read, ponder and pray with a sincere heart, with real intent, and having faith in Christ (see Moroni 10:3-5).

My parents' stories of their conversion to the Gospel of Jesus Christ

My father Charles Kenneth Powrie 

Born 5 November, 1921 in Lydenburg, Transvaal (Mpumalanga), South Africa

New horizons were there to conquer a year later in the form of an offer of a job by a former shipmate who asked me to move to Johannesburg to join the firm of Stanley Motors, Limited. This I accepted and -in 1946 we moved to Krugersdorp and here we found happiness and joy in building a home and in rearing our two children. Timothy was born here in 1947.

This was a strange, quiet life which seemed to be the calm before the storm. Finally in May, 1950 the change came, quietly and determinedly, when two young Americans knocked on our door with the offer of a message of great importance. My wife, Philippa, as though moved by some unforeseen force, invited these young Elders from Utah and Idaho to come inside whilst the week's wash-for a growing family became of secondary importance.

Mother led the way in this new intellectual exercise, whilst father tagged along in somewhat polite boredom, bred of post experiences which had resulted in such religious excursions. They had provided nothing more than a temporary distraction ending in on obscure wilderness. This time, however, it seemed different, as mother's arguments (given to her so strongly by her mother) appeared to be losing ground in the face of truth which was irrefutable. This resulted in talk of baptism and then why not both of us taking the step? On the 10th of September, 1950 we entered the waters of baptism at old Ramah to join what we now know to be the only true Church and Kingdom of God here upon the earth. We shall always remember with affection the four missionaries who spent time and effort in our conversion, Elders E. Mauary Payne, Parry D. Harrison, Farrell J. Roberts and Dean D. Baxter. Thus started the new life in a Church which, in its temporal appointments, showed very little sign of being the one and only Church of Jesus Christ, for we met in dingy halls and other humble surroundings in limited numbers and with very inadequate facilities. However, the true sweet spirit was there to guide us as we, like infants, crawled, then toddled, then stood upright and walked with our heads high yet humbled by the testimonies which we felt growing within our hearts.

The wisdom of the Lord in prompting growth and testimony through activity soon became manifest in my being called to one assignment after another - branch clerk, branch teacher, counsellor in the Krugersdorp Branch Presidency and then, after having been a member of the Church for just over seven years, the staggering and humbling call to serve as the Transvaal District President. This call in itself was one of the highlights of my life. The day as Transvaal District Conference, 13th April, 1958. We had returned home between sessions and, during that time, received a call from the District President, Brother I.C. Louw, requesting that we come in early. We duly arrived and were ushered into the presence of the Mission President Glen G. Fisher and President Louw, who dropped what I described in my diary as “the bombshell”. I had anticipated some call or another but certainly did not think of a position as the District President! Philippa and I looked at one another in astonishment, but the spirit whispered to us that we could do nothing but accept this high and wonderful calling. We appreciated the sobering honour and I was set apart by President Fisher that he admonished me to recall the promise given to Nephi of old that the Lord would not do anything save he would open the way for them to accomplish that which they had been commanded to do. This had the effect of helping me to recognize the promptings of the spirit in this calling and has been a blessing and a testimony. I have felt my inadequacy fall away in the face of the strength and guidance of the spirit which has helped me to do many things beyond myself and has indeed brought the treasures of Heaven into my life in this great service to the Lord.

The years have rolled by and our family has been increased in that three other precious souls have been brought to us namely, Jane in 1950, Leslie in 1954 and Ronald in 1959. These three children, sent to us during the course of membership in the Church, have all by strange coincidence been born on the 23^rd of their respective months - an honour we felt indeed to be thus matched in some small way with our prophet Joseph Smith, born 23^rd December.

The Church is our life. We have found the answers to every problem in service and in this association with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Recently we celebrated our twenty-fifth anniversary of our wedding day, and Philippa and I are able to bear witness to the fact that the sweeter years are here with us now because of the fact that we have attempted to mould our rebellious, stubborn lives, and the lives of our children, to the restored Gospel. We know without any doubt whatsoever, that these Gospel principles hold the key to that happiness and joy which is the heritage of children of men here upon the earth.

We hope and pray that we may continue to serve in this Kingdom and that-we shall be able to enjoy such precious experiences as we have in the more recent years, in having our eldest daughter, Judy, serve an honourable mission in South Africa. Currently our son, Timothy, is serving a mission in the British South Mission, thus bringing the Gospel to others as we had it brought to us.

Our next goal in life is to visit the House of the Lord as a family, to be sealed thus for time and all eternity. With the blessing of the Lord and with our ability to work in this direction also, we hope to achieve this in July, 1969. We pray that this will lead us to be able to serve better in the future and thus repay our Father in Heaven in some small measure for the great and glorious blessings which he has showered upon us over the years.

My mother Beatrice Philippa Dryden Dymond Powrie

Born 26th September, 1917, Mossel Bay,  Cape Province (Western Cape), South Africa

When Judy was nineteen months old, we moved to Krugersdorp, Transvaal, and Timothy was born there on the 2^nd August, 1947 and we decided that our family was complete!

In May 1950 a friend of mine asked me “Have the Mormon Missionaries called on you yet?” I replied that they had not.

“Well, when they do, you must ask them in just to listen to their lovely accents - you don't have to listen to what they say!”

Meanwhile the Church of England Padre had called on me just a short while before that and during our, discussion I had said “But I don't believe that,” or “I don't believe that either”. He challenged me to do the thing which prepared me to receive and accept the gospel when the missionaries presented it to me. He said “Forget what you don't believe and read the Bible to find out what you do believe. Write out a list of the things that you do believe.” I did just this, reading the New Testament, and my list started with 1. I do believe there is a God. 2. I do believe that Jesus is the Christ. 3. I do believe the Bible to be the Word of God.

This surprised me because my mother had studied and passed on to me Theosophy, Yogi-ism, School of Truth, Unity Church of Christianity, etc. She believed that every time the earth needed a Saviour, one would be supplied and that Jesus Christ was only one of many. Also, she far from accepted the Bible to be special word of God, although she quoted from it so often.

The spiritual climate created by my reading the Bible and writing the list of beliefs – I regret that space does not permit me to tell of some of the fancy and very interesting ideas that came into my mind on, the subject! – was just the perfect one for the reception of the message brought by the Missionaries. When they knocked on our door I said “Oh yes, I've heard about you, come right in.”

We joined the church three months later; I, because I knew that it was true, and therefore was duty-bound to support it, and Ken, so he says, to keep me company. Elder Payne, in his last two Months of mission said that he had never lost his temper with any other investigator, but he used to get really mad with me for arguing in favour of reincarnation. In the end he said, “Pray about it,” and I did, because I knew I was right and I wanted to prove him wrong! The answer came to me one morning in a vivid flash of light inside my brain, “either you must believe in reincarnation or you must believe in resurrection – you cannot believe in both.” I investigated the two ideas and decided that I believed the Bible, so I accepted resurrection, and joined the church.

My mother taught me the Law of Tithing, in principle, although as far as I know she never paid tithing herself. A month before we were baptized, when the Missionaries, who were staying with us paid their first month's rent, I said to my husband, “Now can we start paying tithing?” I believed that tithing was the Lord's due, although it still did not seem to matter to me which church we paid it through, so we have been paying tithing ever since, for one month longer than our membership.

We also decided to have a larger family – Elder Harrison said I was still young enough to have four more, but that fourth one has never come. Eleven months later Jane was born on 23^rd August, 1951. Leslie followed on 23^rd February 1954 and Ronald on 23^rd January, 1959 - we began to wonder if the “23^rd” has any special significance for us!

Citation:

Extracted from their autobiograhical entries in a collection of Autobiograhical Sketches.

Wright, Evan P (Editor). 1969. Autobiograhical Sketches - South African Mission - 1969. South African Mission, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Johannesburg, South Africa

Does this scenario describe you?

Imagine you are at home on a Sunday afternoon - a typical Sunday. The time is about 3 pm. Which of the following would you most likely be doing?

• Sleeping
• Reading a novel
• Reading a magazine like a TV guide
• Reading the newspaper
• Watching sport or something like that on TV
• Listening to loud music
• TV is on for the children to watch whatever is being broadcast
• Vacuuming the house
• Washing the dishes
• Preparing a meal
• Reading the Ensign, New Era, Friend or Liahona
• Reading the material for priesthood, Relief Society, Sunday School or other participation in Church
• Doing family history or FamilySearch Indexing
• Reading the scriptures
• Watching Mormon Messages, Bible Videos or something from LDS.org
• Pondering and praying what you are studying

What is your normal kind of activity on a Sunday?

What is the spirit like in your home? Is it the kind of spirit described by the statement 'Only the home can compare with the temple in sacredness.'? Would an angel want to linger in your home if he or she stopped by?

Now imagine that there is a knock at the door. You are not expecting anyone. Who could it be?

Who would you most dearly like to have standing at your door? Who would you feel the most blessed or honoured to have visit with you on this Sunday afternoon?

• Your grade 7 teacher
• Your last school principal
• The mayor of your city
• The president of your national parliament
• A childhood friend
• The one relative of yours that you most dearly love - mother, father, husband or wife (who may have left the house without keys and so is locked out), child, grandparent, or whoever is most dear to you
• Your home teachers or visiting teachers
• Your bishop
• Your Stake president
• Your Area president
• An Apostle of the Lord
• The president of the Church
• An angel from Heaven
• The Lord Jesus Christ, or God, the Eternal Father

Peeping through the peep hole of your front door, and seeing that it is the Lord Jesus Christ, do you throw open the door and welcome Him with open arms and invite Him into your lounge?

I was thinking this morning about the scriptures and one that I often ponder and wonder how well I live it is Doctrine and Covenants 20:68-69 about the duty of members after they are baptised. Does my home have the kind of spirit that a home does where there is a 'godly walk and conversation, ...works and faith agreeable to the holy scriptures—walking in holiness before the Lord.'? Am I doing my duty? How well am I doing in it?

The Sabbath is the Lord's day, not mine. Am I honouring it and living it as he would have me live it?

In thinking about how I would receive Him if He knocked at the door, remembering what He said as John recorded in Revelation 3:20 'Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.' Are we eager to have Him enter our homes on a Sunday afternoon, or at any time?

My thoughts also turned to Doctrine and Covenants 84: 35-38 where we read:

 35 And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;
 36 For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
 37 And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
 38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.

If it is a visiting teacher, home teacher, bishop or any other servant - do we receive him or her with open arms and treat him or her with equal honour and respect as we would the Lord Himself? Are we ready to receive the Father as we receive His servants?

I hope and pray that when representatives of the Lord visit, that our members could have the spirit in their homes so that the home feels like a Temple when we enter. I hope that someone who enters my home, even if it could be just one person, might just feel that it is a holy place. I hope that I am ready to open the door to the Saviour when he knocks, and welcome Him in to sup with me, and I with Him.