They Would

To my son,

                When Abinadi spoke to King Noah and his wicked priests, he warned them of what would happen to those who rejected the Savior. He said they would be “delivered up to the devil, who hath subjected them, which is damnation—Having gone according to their own carnal wills and desires; having never called upon the Lord while the arms of mercy were extended towards them; for the arms of mercy were extended towards them, and they would not; they being warned of their iniquities and yet they would not depart from them; and they were commanded to repent and yet they would not repent” (Mosiah 16:12). What strikes me in this scripture is the emphasis on agency­—those who reject the Lord and His mercy and who continue in iniquity do so by choice. We have the power to choose good or evil, light or darkness, and ultimately whether or not we want to return to our Father in Heaven to be with Him and our families eternally. I hope that it will be said of you and me at the end of our lives, “For the arms of mercy were extended towards them, and they would; they being warned of their iniquities and they would depart from them; and they were commanded to repent and they would repent.” Let us choose always to receive His mercy and to repent. Unfortunately, of Abinadi’s audience only Alma chose to accept the Lord and His mercy.

                A story from the Global Histories on the Church website highlights how one couple chose to follow the Savior and persevered in that choice despite very challenging obstacles. In 1957 Donald and Margaret Cummings in Australia “set a goal to attend the Hamilton New Zealand Temple’s dedication the next year. They knew it would be a challenge; travel for their family of five from their home near Perth would take six weeks and cost 600 pounds, a year’s salary for the average Australian at the time.” That surely seemed like an impossible task to come up with enough money to make that trip in just a year. The article continues, “With only one week before their scheduled departure, however, the Cummingses were still 200 pounds short, left only to pray that the Lord would provide a way. Then, while walking in Perth, Donald ran into his father, whom he’d seen only rarely since his parents’ divorce several years earlier. Donald’s father visited with him, then offered a check for 100 pounds, expressing regret for not helping more over the years. A day before the looming departure, Margaret’s parents also visited. Though not members of the Church, they had saved a little each week to help and gave Donald and Margaret the last 100 pounds.” Miraculously, they obtained just enough money right before the voyage, and they were able to make the trip. But they had one more major problem: Donald was denied the six weeks off of work that he had requested. So what did he do? “He decided to quit his job to make the journey. At the dedication, President David O. McKay promised Donald that ‘he would never want for anything because of sacrificing to go to the temple.’ The Cummingses became one of the first families sealed in the new temple. Soon after they returned to Perth—with five pounds left—Donald found a new position with a higher salary at his old employer.” What incredible faith they had! He was willing to leave even his job in order to obtain the promises of the temple and make covenants with Jesus Christ, and their family was blessed because of it. Unlike King Noah and his priests, they chose to receive the mercy and blessings of following the Savior, and they stuck to that choice no matter what happened. Theirs is a powerful example for all of us: even when it is hard or we can’t see how things will work out, we can choose Him and things will always work out. 

Love,

Dad