Ordained to Write

After Nephi described some of the vision he had received of the last days, he wrote this: “And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld a man, and he was dressed in a white robe. And the angel said unto me: Behold one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. Behold, he shall see and write the remainder of these things; yea, and also many things which have been. And he shall also write concerning the end of the world…. And behold, the things which this apostle of the Lamb shall write are many things which thou hast seen; and behold, the remainder shalt thou see. But the things which thou shalt see hereafter thou shalt not write; for the Lord God hath ordained the apostle of the Lamb of God that he should write them” (1 Nephi 14:18-25). I think there is an important lesson in these words of the angel to Nephi. John was ordained to write certain things, and he wrote them. Though Nephi was not meant to write this particular vision, he also was ordained to write the words he did in the Book of Mormon as the Lord commanded him. And we are blessed by both the words of Nephi and John. In our dispensation, another John was given the responsibility to write: “Behold, it is expedient in me that my servant John should write and keep a regular history, and assist you, my servant Joseph, in transcribing all things which shall be given you, until he is called to further duties” (Doctrine and Covenants 47:1). John Whitmer was called to write the history of the Church. Countless other prophets have been commanded to write the words of the Lord to them. For example, the Lord said to Habakkuk: “Write the vision” (Habakkuk 2:2). He said to Moses, “Thou shalt write the things which I shall speak” (Moses 1:40). He said to the brother of Jared to “write the things which he had seen” (Ether 4:1). When Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon had their great vision, Joseph related, “And while we were yet in the Spirit, the Lord commanded us that we should write the vision” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:28). These scriptures and many others invite us to ask ourselves the question, “What was I ordained to write?” We may not be called to write for the Church, but surely there are things we need to leave for our families and posterity in writing.

            The famous African author Amadou Hampâté Bâ wrote, « En Afrique, quand un vieillard meurt, c'est une bibliothèque qui brûle. » (“In Africa, when an elderly person dies, a library burns.”) In other words, those with life experiences have important stories and knowledge and experiences to pass on, and if those are not preserved then it is as if the books never written have been burned. President Eyring invited us to preserve our experiences when he said this: “My point is to urge you to find ways to recognize and remember God’s kindness. It will build our testimonies. You may not keep a journal. You may not share whatever record you keep with those you love and serve. But you and they will be blessed as you remember what the Lord has done…. Tonight, and tomorrow night, you might pray and ponder, asking the questions: Did God send a message that was just for me? Did I see His hand in my life or the lives of my children? I will do that. And then I will find a way to preserve that memory for the day that I, and those that I love, will need to remember how much God loves us and how much we need Him.” My children love to listen to my wife read her journal from her youth that describe her experiences as a child and teenager, both comical and spiritual. They have been blessed because she chose to record those things. Many times I have looked at pictures of some of my ancestors on Family Tree and wished I could have something written down by them to know more about their lives. Often all I have is a picture and some dates of important events. Surely that had great things they could have related to us, but either they never wrote them down or those words did not get preserved. Either way, it is as if a library has burned for each of them. In whatever way works for us, we should each strive to write so that our posterity may be blessed. Like Nephi we should do it so “that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins” (2 Nephi 25:26).