Week 36

I hope you all have been happy and well this week. I continue to carry on carrying on as I'm sure you all are trying to do too! 

I came across a wonderful family as I was doing the Church census indexing this week. See the picture I attached of the record. Most of you will be too young to remember Elder Hugh B. Brown, but I do! I grew up loving his messages in General Conference. 

You may remember this retelling by Elder Christopherson of his experience. There's a wonderful little video in the Gospel Media called "The Will of God" if you want to search for it. Here's the story which I think applies to our day where the world is being chastened a little bit. ❤

God uses another form of chastening or correction to guide us to a future we do not or cannot now envision but which He knows is the better way for us. President Hugh B. Brown, formerly a member of the Twelve and a counselor in the First Presidency, provided a personal experience. He told of purchasing a rundown farm in Canada many years ago. As he went about cleaning up and repairing his property, he came across a currant bush that had grown over six feet high and was yielding no berries, so he pruned it back drastically, leaving only small stumps. Then he saw a drop like a tear on the top of each of these little stumps, as if the currant bush were crying, and thought he heard it say: “How could you do this to me? I was making such wonderful growth. … And now you have cut me down. Every plant in the garden will look down on me. … How could you do this to me? I thought you were the gardener here.”

President Brown replied, “Look, little currant bush, I am the gardener here, and I know what I want you to be. I didn’t intend you to be a fruit tree or a shade tree. I want you to be a currant bush, and someday, little currant bush, when you are laden with fruit, you are going to say, ‘Thank you, Mr. Gardener, for loving me enough to cut me down.’”

Years later, President Brown was a field officer in the Canadian Army serving in England. When a superior officer became a battle casualty, President Brown was in line to be promoted to general, and he was summoned to London. But even though he was fully qualified for the promotion, it was denied him because he was a Mormon. The commanding general said in essence, “You deserve the appointment, but I cannot give it to you.” What President Brown had spent 10 years hoping, praying, and preparing for slipped through his fingers in that moment because of blatant discrimination. Continuing his story, President Brown remembered:

“I got on the train and started back … with a broken heart, with bitterness in my soul. … When I got to my tent, … I threw my cap on the cot. I clenched my fists, and I shook them at heaven. I said, ‘How could you do this to me, God? I have done everything I could do to measure up. There is nothing that I could have done—that I should have done—that I haven’t done. How could you do this to me?’ I was as bitter as gall.

“And then I heard a voice, and I recognized the tone of this voice. It was my own voice, and the voice said, ‘I am the gardener here. I know what I want you to do.’ The bitterness went out of my soul, and I fell on my knees by the cot to ask forgiveness for my ungratefulness. …

“… And now, almost 50 years later, I look up to [God] and say, ‘Thank you, Mr. Gardener, for cutting me down, for loving me enough to hurt me.’”

God knew what Hugh B. Brown was to become and what was needed for that to happen, and He redirected his course to prepare him for the holy apostleship. If we sincerely desire and strive to measure up to the high expectations of our Heavenly Father, He will ensure that we receive all the help we need, whether it be comforting, strengthening, or chastening.

A global pandemic is certainly a way for the Lord to chasten His people! I'm grateful as I see the small and sometimes wonderful blessings in this whole experience. I believe the world - and our family - has become more connected as we experience new and wonderful ways to remain connected. I believe we're having to call upon and rely upon Heavenly Father much more to get us through these days of quarantine and social distancing. 

Thanks for all your calls and texts and messages which continue to strengthen me. I'm grateful that Lori came to visit with Annabelle - it lifted my spirits and brightened my day! I'm grateful for Zoom - which I didn't even know was a thing just a few weeks ago - because it helps me stay connected with my mission and my family. You're all such a blessing to me!