by David E Bay, High Councilor

Would you scrimp and save for over a year to go on a vacation if you were prompted to do so by the Holy Ghost?

I recently met a couple who did exactly that and were blessed because they followed that guidance. I serve as an ordinance worker in the Brigham City Temple. Several weeks ago, I had the privilege of serving in the baptistery when a Ukrainian family came to serve in the temple. I will refer to them as the H Family. The mom and dad and 12-year-old son were there. The temple printed ordinance cards in Ukrainian for their use. Brother H performed the ordinances confidently and smoothly, obviously not for the first time.

Towards the end of 2020 Brother and Sister H were living in Kyiv Ukraine. They had been active members of the Church until it was shut down for COVID-19. They were living in a large city, but most importantly, it was the location of a Holy Temple. They received a prompting that they needed to take a family vacation to Mexico, clear across the world from Kyiv. It was not easy, but they started to make arrangements by saving money and preparing in all ways to be able to go.

Over a year later they took the vacation. When Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the H Family was gone. Their home was destroyed. They were in Mexico and contacted the missionary who helped convert them to the Church. He was attending BYU.

After managing to cross the border into the United States, they requested asylum for their family of five consisting of Brother and Sister H, a 12-year-old son, a seven-year-old daughter, and a two-year-old son. They decided that they had no reason to return to Ukraine. Their returned missionary let them know that his parents were empty-nesters and had room and were agreeable to having the entire H Family move in with them. So that’s where they were living when they came to the Brigham City Temple.

The H Family was preserved from the violence of war because of the promptings of the Holy Ghost that they followed. Just because they are out of Ukraine, does not mean life is easy for them now. They did not know much English before going on vacation, now they need to know English to interact with almost anyone. Ukrainian “friends” and relatives are not happy that they left. They are being called “traitors”. And they have been told “Don’t even think of coming back!” I am sure that rejection of that kind is emotionally very hard to deal with.

Nevertheless, the whole family is together and out of the immediate danger of war. They feel blessed and are seeking to rise to the challenges they are facing.

What has the Spirit prompted you and your family to do to be better prepared? Are you taking steps to follow that direction like the H Family did?