by David E Bay, High Councilor

Last week I spent time with some of my family in a place where my ancestors lived their lives. In the high Utah deserts just north of Bryce Canyon, I was reminded of how blessed we are. The Piute Reservoir, which for the last three years has been primarily empty and has appeared more like a mud puddle than a lake, was entirely filled with water sparkling in the sun. At church, members there expressed their gratitude for the abundant water and also for the miracle of not having the snow melt so quickly that it flooded. We have also been recipients of these blessings here in Brigham City. I am reminded of the words of King Benjamin when he taught the people that we are totally reliant on God for every everything including each breath we take. (Mosiah 2:21-25)

I am thinking about my grandparents who were raising my parents, both my Father and my Mother, during the depression in the small town of Junction. Even though they grew almost everything they ate, it was a major effort to find employment and earn enough money to provide the cash needs for their growing families. My Grandpa Bay traveled all over the state of Utah and into Nevada in order to find jobs and adequate income to provide for his wife and children. Not only that, but every family in the town was just about in the same type of circumstances. They were all poor, but they were all poor together.

Although we may feel deprived, we live in a day of abundance compared to that of our ancestors. Comparing them with us in our times today, most of us have adequate resources to provide food, clothing, and shelter for our families. We also have many items that would be considered luxuries by our ancestors. We have washing machines and dryers. We can cook food, have hot water and warm houses in winter without the effort of chopping wood. We can travel very quickly and cover in a couple of days what would be a several months long journey for our pioneer ancestors. There are microwave ovens, screens for entertainment, and computers to link us to the world. We even have devices we put in our pockets that will connect us with people around the world and even bring us the words of a living prophet, all with a series of touches.

President Nelson has told us that the very greatest work that we can be doing is helping to gather Israel. As we look at the blessings of our modern conveniences, we can see that the Lord has prepared us to be able to cover the basics of living in less time than our ancestors. So, we should be able to accomplish more than our predecessors.

In our day, when we are so blessed with things that can save us time and energy, we sometimes forget to “be still and know that I am God”. We are all very dependent on God for every breath that we take, as well as all the food that we eat, and for our very lives.

My garden reminds me of the law of the harvest. I plant the seed. I water it and take care of it by removing the weeds and giving it fertilizer if necessary. I do not make it grow. God does that. I can plant the seed and do all kinds of things for it; but it is God who makes it grow that allows the conditions for it to thrive.

Many of us today earn our living making technological things as well as digital products. We don’t take time to feel our bare feet in soft rich earth, or to feel the cool breeze blowing by us, or to listen to the birds as they make music of their own kind.

Taking time with family, or getting away in nature, or working in my garden helps me to reset my priorities from worldly to eternal. Hopefully, I remember those things that are truly important in life, my family, the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the gathering of Israel.

Are we preparing for our role in gathering Israel and preparing for the second coming of our Savior? President Nelson told us, “my dear brothers and sisters, so many wonderful things are ahead. In coming days, we will see the greatest manifestations of the Savior’s power that the world has ever seen. Between now and the time He returns “with power and great glory,” He will bestow countless privileges, blessings, and miracles upon the faithful.” We are told that if we are prepared, we will not fear.

Are we taking action to prepare? We have great resources to help us in that preparation. What is the next thing for you and your family to accomplish? Sometimes, we get overwhelmed and end up not doing anything rather than just choosing some little thing that we can accomplish.

Our own Stake President, President Kim Merritt, has explained that gathering Israel can be simple. He has given us easy steps that we can do to help gather Israel. (see Every Stake Member Can) It is doing something that will help someone else make progress.

Our preparations can fit into that same pattern of taking one step at a time. Step-by-step we can accomplish all that Heavenly Father asks us to do. We don’t need to be overwhelmed nor feel guilt for what we have not done in the past. But we can start now and take a step at a time.