Gospel Story Finder

Aside from providing a meetingplace for the little group of Saints, the new chapel has brought other blessings. Leonor Machua heard of the new meetinghouse just before leaving on a brief trip to Guayaquil, Ecuador. While in Ecuador she asked someone about the new building and the religion it represented. The stranger answered her questions and suggested she meet with missionaries once she returned home. A few days later she saw the missionaries on a street corner and accepted the invitation to be taught. Sister Machua was baptized immediately after the Saturday afternoon session of general conference in October 2009, the first person to be baptized in the new meetinghouse’s baptismal font.

Cameron got braces during summer vacation. When he came back to school, some of his friends starting picking on him and calling him names behind his back.
What would you do if you were Cameron? What if you were his friend?
STOP IT!
Try This One of Cameron’s friends told the young men to stop making fun of Cameron and then told Cameron that the others weren’t being very nice. Cameron confronted the young men and told them he didn’t think it was funny. They had thought it was a joke, but when they realized it hurt Cameron’s feelings, they stopped.

When 118 youth from Auckland, New Zealand, and their leaders planned a four-day temple conference to the Hamilton New Zealand Temple, they had a simple but impressive goal: to perform as many baptisms for the dead as possible during their stay.
They began preparing for the trip many months in advance. As part of the preparation, young men and young women researched names from their family histories that they could bring with them to the temple.
All their preparation paid off in a big way. The youth and their leaders had a spiritual feast from the moment they arrived to when they set their sights back home four days later—not to mention all the blessings that came before and after the event because of their devotion to family history and temple worthiness.
In order to spend as much time at the temple as they could, they wanted to stay near the temple instead of making the two-hour drive each direction every day. So for the whole temple conference, youth and leaders stayed in dorm rooms near the temple.
It wasn’t practical to have 62 young men and 56 young women all doing baptisms at once, so they decided instead to go to the temple in shifts. The youth were divided into five groups, and each group attended at least two shifts at the temple during the four days.
From the beginning, their goal was to complete as many baptisms as possible to help their ancestors. They succeeded rather spectacularly. The 118 youth performed baptisms and confirmations for 3,542 people, many of whom were their ancestors.

This is illustrated by a news commentary, the author of which is Michael Josephson. Mr. Josephson said:
Though I get special pleasure out of hosting Thanksgiving dinner for my large extended family, the real burden of the holiday falls on the lovely shoulders of my wife, Anne. She's the one who deals with tenting the yard and organizing the feast including three turkeys and a symphony of side dishes. And she does all this while juggling our four young children, a big dog and two new puppies. So you can understand if her enthusiasm for the holiday is more muted.
There was a time when I thought she was going to resign. It was a week after she planned and hosted a business reception at our home for nearly 100 people and she was weary. She told me how she had come to dread the pressure and work of Thanksgiving. Then, just as I was bracing myself to hear her renounce the job, she completely surprised me by changing direction. 'This year,' she said, 'I have a whole new feeling toward the holiday. I've been thinking about it a lot and I've decided to be grateful rather than resentful.' Then she told me how lucky we are to have such a large and close family and the space and resources to provide Thanksgivings that our children will always remember.
Can you see why I love her so much? She has taught me that gratitude is not always a spontaneous emotion; often, it's a matter of choice. It's a perspective of appreciation that doesn't necessarily make life easier, but it always makes it better.

Some years ago there was a news story about a man who believed that if he rubbed lemon juice on his face, it would make him invisible to cameras. So he put lemon juice all over his face, went out, and robbed two banks. Not much later he was arrested when his image was broadcast over the evening news. When police showed the man the videos of himself from the security cameras, he couldn’t believe his eyes. “But I had lemon juice on my face!” he protested.3

When a scientist at Cornell University heard about this story, he was intrigued that a man could be so painfully unaware of his own incompetence. To determine whether this was a general problem, two researchers invited college students to participate in a series of tests on various life skills and then asked them to rate how they did. The students who performed poorly were the least accurate at evaluating their own performance—some of them estimating their scores to be five times higher than they actually were.4

This study has been replicated in numerous ways, confirming over and over again the same conclusion: many of us have a difficult time seeing ourselves as we truly are, and even successful people overestimate their own contribution and underestimate the contributions that others make.5

One young husband decided to find out for himself if the Church were true. He had observed the uplifting changes brought into the lives of his wife and children, who had joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints six years previously. He obtained a copy of the Book of Mormon and began reading. At first he felt nothing, but he continued to read. He remembered that he should pray as he read—that was the counsel the missionaries had given. For the next six evenings he continued to read and to pray. He continued to plead with the Lord to let him know the truths contained in these scriptures.
Two more evenings he continued, and then a deeply spiritual experience began to unfold. He found himself listening as he read. It was as though he were hearing the characters in the story speak rather than verbalizing the printed word himself. He continued to pray and to study. At the close of the tenth evening, he stated that he was now hearing the voices of the characters and feeling the spirit of their messages.
His continued effort brought him near to the Lord in his search for truth; he then received a testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.

In 1996, August 13, I’m working in our store at the ZCMI center and one of our little desk girls came up and said, “Mac, Elder Haight’s secretary is on the phone and she wants to talk to you at once.” I said, “Fine.” I knew Elder Haight well. He started at ZCMI a long, long time ago, and then I had later on, and we used to share war stories. We used to go over and take a break and we’d talk about things that had happened and things we thought should happen. I knew him well. Sweet, kind senior apostle. So I went over and answered the phone, and his secretary said, “Elder Haight wants to talk to you at once.” And I said, “Fine.” Elder Haight got on the phone and said, “Mac, how are you?” And I said, “Elder Haight, I’m just fine,” and I was at that time. And he said, “I’d like you to bring your wife and come over tomorrow at 11:00. Can you kids do that?” And I said, “Okay.” He said, “Then I’d like to take you two to lunch. Could you have lunch with me?” And I said fine, and then I thought he was going to hang up, but then he said, “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow at 11:00. By the way, we’re calling you two to be the directors of the Washington Temple Visitor’s center,” and then, Click, he hung up on me. True story.

Sister Christensen just happened that day to be working in the Relief Society Building as a hostess, and I’d only been over there, I think once, so I thought I better go over there and tell her. So I walked across the street to the Relief Society Building, and I walked in and she looked up and it frightened her. She thought something had happened to the children. She said, “What’s wrong?” And I lied to her and said nothing. Then I told her, and then she went white, and we spent an interesting day thinking about that. The next day at 11:00 we went over to Elder Haight’s office, and it happened to be that after the 13th of August comes the 14th of August and that was and still is Sister Christensen’s birthday. And we didn’t tell Elder Haight that, but we went over and he told us about the Washington Temple Visitor’s Center. Fifty-seven magnificent acres, spiritual acres, right next to the temple. The beltway comes around you can see the temple. You’ll have people from all over the world and just how magnificent it was and how much he loved that area. And then he took us down to the lunchroom where the General Authorities have their lunch, and I’d been there once or twice before, and people look at you, the other General Authorities, and wonder if you’re in trouble or why you’re there. Some know. But he wanted to pay for us, so we went through the line and he pays, takes us over to a table, and we sit down and immediately Elder Holland came over. Now, we had lived in Elder Holland’s ward and knew him well. He used to come over to my home and three or four of us would work out in the mornings. So we knew Elder Holland and then Elder Hales came over. I knew Elder Hales quite well because when he couldn’t find someone to play golf with on a Friday or Saturday, he knew that I could always get him on a golf course. He’d call and say, “Can we go look at land?” So, I knew them, but here is this senior apostle with two junior apostles - this was fun. And Elder Holland started in on Elder Haight - did you tell them this, did you tell them this, did you tell them this - a little from Elder Hales, but really Elder Holland. Finally, Elder Haight said to the two junior apostles (he called them boys), “Boys, I’ve been doing this for a long, long time. Now the first thing you do is you get them to say yes, and then you talk about those things.”

We went back to Washington, D.C. and we were frightened. We were really frightened. You’re open 365 days a year, you have people from all over. At Christmas time for about 40 days you have the festival of lights and you have about 400,000 lights out around the temple grounds, and people come clear from New York, Boston and they come to see the lights. Then we have concerts inside and we are getting referrals. It’s an extremely busy time. And you might have thirty buses to park and no where to park them, and if the temple president should say that if they got on his part of the area and take the patrons’ [parking], we were in trouble. It was a busy time. We learned a lot. We had a lot of things going on. We found that you had to have people in the visitors center, and our responsibility was to make friends, to give everyone who came there a spiritual experience, to get a referral and to send them out with something in their hand. We have the greatest sister missionaries in the world.

In April 1973, my parents and I traveled from our native Argentina to be sealed in the temple. Since there were no temples in all of Latin America at the time, we flew more than 6,000 miles (9,700 km) each way to be sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. Although I was just two years of age at the time and do not recall the entirety of that special experience, three very distinct images from that trip were fixed in my mind and have remained ever since.

First, I recall being placed close to the airplane’s window and seeing the white clouds below.

Those beautiful, bright clouds endure in my mind as if they had been gigantic cotton balls.

Another image that has remained in my mind is that of a few funny-looking characters at an amusement park in the Los Angeles area. Those characters are hard to forget.

But of much greater importance is this brilliant and unforgettable image:

I clearly remember being in a sacred room of the Salt Lake Temple where sealings of couples and of families are performed for time and for all eternity. I remember the beautiful altar of the temple and recall the bright sunlight shining through the room’s exterior window. I felt then, and have continued to feel since, the warmth, safety, and solace of the gospel light of truth and love.

Similar feelings were reaffirmed in my heart 20 years later, when I entered the temple to be sealed once again—this time as my fiancée and I were sealed for time and for all eternity. However, on this occasion, we did not need to travel thousands of miles because the Buenos Aires Argentina Temple had since been built and dedicated, and it was just a short drive from our home.

Twenty-two years after our wedding and sealing, we had the blessing of returning to the same temple, but this time with our beautiful daughter, and we were sealed as a family for time and for all eternity.

As I’ve reflected upon these very sacred moments of my life, I have been overwhelmed with profound, enduring joy. I have felt and continue to feel the love of a compassionate Father in Heaven, who knows our individual needs and our heartfelt desires.

Illustration by Katy Dockrill
Growing up, I never really doubted the truthfulness of the gospel. As I reached my teenage years, however, I questioned whether I truly had a testimony or simply accepted what my parents and friends believed. I prayed that I might know that the gospel is true.
Despite my struggles, a young woman I met at my community college told me she sensed that I understood my purpose and direction in life.
“Do you believe in God?” she asked me.
I told her I did and that my church teaches our relationship with God and the purpose of life. I also told her about the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Restoration. She listened carefully.
The next Sunday at church, I picked up pamphlets about Joseph Smith and the plan of salvation for my friend. After she read them and began reading the Book of Mormon, I took her to church.
Later she told me she had been very close to her older brother. He had been a stunt pilot who performed in local air shows. Sadly, the summer before we met, he had been killed while flying in a show. She was devastated by his death and was concerned about him because he professed to be agnostic. She had been praying to know what his state and standing were before God.
As she shared her concerns, a sudden rush of understanding came over me. It was a sensation of pure truth and light. I understood that our meeting had not happened by chance. Rather, God had heard and responded to the sincere prayer of this brokenhearted young woman.
I was humbled to know that Heavenly Father was aware of me and would consider me worthy to be a tool in His hands in answering her prayer. I understood His great wisdom in using this experience to also answer my prayer to know that the gospel is true.
After preparing, I packed my bags for the best two years of my life. Meanwhile, my friend took the missionary lessons with her sister. Both of them joined the Church and subsequently served missions. After my mission, my friend asked me to perform temple ordinances for her brother.
I know that God hears and answers sincere prayers, though sometimes in a manner or time frame we do not expect.

I cannot think about joy without picturing my youngest daughter, Rose, who has been full of joy since she came to our home at two months old. In a rather protracted foster case, we eventually adopted her and were sealed in the Provo City Center Temple in September 2023. Quick pro tip: When you are sealed to adopted children, the rest of your children are eligible to attend the sealing, even if they are too young to be baptized or endowed. There is no sweeter experience than being united with your spouse and children in the temple.
Rose was thirty months old by then, though she wasn’t speaking much—maybe a dozen words. Just a few weeks after the sealing, we had another temple opportunity as we visited the Orem Utah Temple open house as a family. I carried Rose throughout the tour, and near the conclusion, as we exited the celestial room and stood at the top of the beautiful staircase, Rose distinctly declared, “Happy”—a word I had never heard her say before. And for emphasis, with a hand on my cheek, she repeated it two more times.
With Rose, I testify that this is the plan of happiness. Even without a memory of the Grand Council, we can feel in our souls the Spirit of God confirming that this is right.

It had been an unusually warm day in Lüneburg, Germany, and Elder Kevin Pepper and I were tired. Our last appointment ended at 9:00 P.M., and we had a half hour more to work before returning to our apartment. It was too late for knocking on doors, so we got on our bikes and rode to Lüneburg’s central shopping district. Most of the shops had closed three hours earlier, and the busy daytime crowds were gone—leaving only a few window-shoppers enjoying the evening, in no hurry to get anywhere.
We pushed our bikes slowly, stopping now and then to ask fellow pedestrians if they would like to know something about the restored gospel. No one was interested. And this was typical. Germany was considered a “hard mission.” Few baptisms. Lots of knocking on doors and stopping pedestrians. People were usually polite, but they were cautious about anything new, for the most part unwilling to consider a change in religions.
We reached the far end of the street at about 9:25. Time to head for our apartment. But there in the evening shadows, leaning against a wall, was a man with thinning hair and a somewhat straggly beard. I looked at Elder Pepper; he looked at me. We were tired, we’d had no success that day, and I could tell we were thinking the same thought. One of us may have even spoken it aloud: “He’s probably just like the rest of the people we’ve talked to today. Let’s go home.” But something inside me said, “Go talk to him.”
We approached the man and asked if he knew anything about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He didn’t. Would he like to learn something about it? Yes, he said, and he gave us his address.
When we visited Alfred Kliche later that week, we discovered he was markedly different from most of the people we talked with. He was more reserved, more serious than most, but also more open-minded. He was searching for something. As he later put it, “I was considering becoming acquainted with other people who, like me, had not yet lost their faith in God.” He showed us a book he was reading, a book from an Eastern religion. We taught him about Joseph Smith and gave him a book of our own. He accepted it with reserved curiosity and said he’d read it.
We left after that first discussion not knowing quite what to think about Herr Kliche. Personally, I doubted he’d read the book. The first year of my mission—a year with no baptisms and plenty of disappointments—had left its mark on me. I’d seen enough “reality” to dilute my hopes with a fair dose of skepticism. But Herr Kliche invited us back, and when we came to teach him again, he told us he had read a good deal in the Book of Mormon. He said he particularly enjoyed the Isaiah chapters in 2 Nephi. During my 10 months in Germany, no one had ever made that claim before. In fact, I don’t recall having heard it in the 23 years since.
We taught Herr Kliche all through an unusually hot July and into August. He made slow, steady progress but seemed in no hurry to make any permanent changes in his life. Elder Pepper and I didn’t really know what was going on inside him. He was as indecipherable as the Eastern religious book he had shown us.
Then one day in early August a letter came from the mission office. I was being transferred. Elder Pepper and I had a few good investigators by this time, and it was hard to leave them. I wondered what would happen. But immersing myself in a new area and in the lives of a new group of investigators and members took all my attention and left me little time to worry about Lüneburg.
One day several weeks after the transfer, however, I received a phone call from Elder Pepper. He told me Herr Kliche was getting baptized on 16 October, and he wanted me to be there. Since my transfer had been merely to the other side of the Hamburg stake, our mission president gave me permission to attend.
Elder Pepper told me over the phone that Herr Kliche had made slow, steady progress for the most part, but in the end he completely surprised them. The missionaries had given him a baptismal challenge on 21 September, and he had accepted. But on 28 September he was concerned. He believed he had received a witness but wanted to be sure. Then, a few days later, everything seemed to fall apart. Herr Kliche informed them he wasn’t interested in meeting with them anymore. Elder Pepper and Elder Hardy were devastated. Where had they gone wrong? What could they do?
But on 3 October something unexpected happened. Elder Pepper recorded in his journal: “Herr Kliche came to church this morning. … The Spirit was so strong that everyone in the tiny chapel could feel it, especially Herr Kliche. He sat in the second row to the left all by himself. … With tears in his eyes he stood and bore his testimony. The sun shone through the large windows, and a beam of light appeared to shine directly on him as he bore a simple and beautiful testimony. It was so sincere. He said he felt fulfilled in this Church and hoped to become a member soon. Just seven weeks or so ago he was ready to give up his search for the truth; he didn’t see any reason why he should change churches, because they were all about the same. And now the Spirit of Truth has helped him see the difference, and he wants to be a member. I was so thrilled I could hardly keep the joy I felt inside. Today will always be a cherished memory.”
Ironically, four days later Elder Pepper was transferred to Kiel and was unable to attend the baptism. But on 16 October 1976, my companion and I took the subway into Hamburg, walked to the stake center, and there witnessed the baptism of Alfred Kliche, a rare and gratifying event in the course of a difficult mission. I have kept in touch with Bruder Kliche over the years. Indeed, his conversion, because it was complete and enduring, has brought me much joy.
The little Lüneburg Branch was dissolved a few years after Bruder Kliche’s baptism, and the members were absorbed into a Hamburg ward. Bruder Kliche, always solid in the gospel, has served in the bishopric and on the stake high council. He also married a fine Latter-day Saint, and after several years they served a temple mission together. “I am here to serve the Lord,” he wrote me recently, “and to make progress. We are very thankful for our time in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
As I look back to that summer evening in 1976, I am glad Elder Pepper and I were not too tired to talk to just one more son of our Heavenly Father. We almost didn’t, and it has been a lesson to me ever since. Had we quit a few minutes early, what a loss it would have been—for us, for the Church, and, most of all, for Bruder Kliche.

As mission president, I attended a mission Relief Society conference. Our mission Relief Society president, a relatively recent convert, announced something of a course correction. Some local societies had strayed, and she invited them to conform more closely to the direction set by the general presidency of the Relief Society.
One sister in the congregation stood and defiantly told her that they were not willing to follow her counsel, saying they were an exception. A bit flustered, she turned to me for help. I didn’t know what to do. I was not interested in facing a fierce woman. So I motioned for her to proceed. Then came the revelation!
This lovely Relief Society president, small and somewhat handicapped physically, said with gentle firmness: “Dear sister, we’d like not to take care of the exception first. We will take care of the rule first, and then we will see to the exceptions.” The course correction was accepted.

Heavenly Father certainly sends us things when we need them most! I’ve just said good-bye to my boyfriend prior to his departure on a mission, and I was missing him very much and writing him very miserable letters. Then the December New Era arrived with “The Way to a Missionary’s Mailbox,” which uplifted me so much, and I’m sure that his mission will now be much more successful because of it. My nonmember family also realizes this.
Susan AyerChristchurch, New Zealand

I hope that you young people recognize the strength and the power of your testimonies. Several years ago I was in the nation of Czechoslovakia. There, in an inspiring meeting held in Prague under dangerous circumstances and when freedom was curtailed, I met a young woman whose name is Olga. She was about 25 years of age at the time and had, in the previous two years, brought to membership in the Church 16 young men and young women her own age. As I met with them, I knew they were truly converted to the gospel. I felt they would be the foundation of the Church in Czechoslovakia. They learned the truth of the gospel and felt the strength of testimony—all from Olga. When I complimented Olga and thanked her for having a testimony she is willing to share, she said, “Oh, Brother Monson, I have 14 others with whom I am working!” Later I learned that almost all of those 14 became members of the Church. The light of Christ shone in Olga’s eyes as she encouraged others to “come unto him.”

Sixteen-year-old Steven D. McKell of Salt Lake City, who was kidnapped at gunpoint but was able to free himself, received Scouting’s Medal of Merit for his bravery.
The FBI report of the incident reads:
“While alone at his home, Steven was confronted by a person who represented himself as a deliveryman. The man at the door had a truck-type dolly with a large cardboard box on it.
“The man indicated he had a document that Steven should sign as a receipt for the package. As the youth started to do this, the deliveryman pulled out a handgun, held it against Steven’s cheek, and forced him into the house.
“The man placed leg irons and handcuffs on Steven and forced him to lie on the floor. Steven’s mouth was then stuffed with a bandanna, and the bandanna was taped in place. Pads of cotton were placed over his eyes and taped closed. A nylon stocking was pulled over his head to keep the bandanna and pads in place.”
Steven was told to get inside the carton, which was then hauled out of the house on the dolly and lifted into the van, which was driven to a location about 10 minutes away.
The boy was led into an old rabbit hutch where boards were nailed over him. He was told by his captor not to try to escape since someone would be watching him.
“I didn’t believe him,” said Steven, “so when I heard him drive away, I began kicking my feet until I could get out of the frame. In my efforts to get free, I felt a nail against my nose and used that to pull the blindfold off.”
Steven was still gagged and cuffed hand and foot, but he could see and move. He made short jumps toward the road and attracted the attention of a jogger, who removed his gag and carried him over his shoulder to a nearby home. From there, Steven called his father, allowing enough time for the local police and the FBI to set a trap for the kidnapper, who was caught, convicted, and imprisoned.
Steven received the national Scouting office medal at a court of honor. He is a member of the Butler 12th Ward, Salt Lake Butler Stake.

“Several years ago, Sister Pearson and I were called to preside over the Washington Tacoma Mission. The call was a complete surprise. With some trepidation I met with the chairman and the CEO of the company where I was employed and informed them of my mission call. They were visibly upset with my decision to leave the firm. ‘When did you make this decision, and why didn’t you discuss it with us earlier?’ they demanded.
“In a moment of clarity, a profound answer came into my mind. I said, ‘I made this decision as a 19-year-old boy, when I made sacred covenants with God in the temple to follow the Savior. I’ve built my entire life on those covenants, and I fully intend to keep them now.’”
Elder Kevin W. Pearson of the Seventy

With sorrow we have read of young men and those not so young who bravely die, who give their lives upon the altar of freedom. In a hurried moment, one such took in hand a pencil and a scrap of paper and wrote to a worried loved one: “Soon we go into battle. The enemy is well fortified; loss of life will be great. Mom, I hope I live, but I’m not afraid to die, for I’m right with God.”

His mother received the precious note. On the same day another message arrived; “We regret to inform you that your son has been killed in action.”

Friends visited, loved ones comforted, but peace came only from him who called Nazareth his home.

I was a little apprehensive and nervous when I moved into a new apartment. Of the girls in the apartment, two were sisters and the others were already good friends. I worried about fitting in. To complicate matters, their interests and strengths were my weaknesses: they could make bread from scratch, bake pies, and run a household. Their uniforms for these activities were their well-worn aprons, which hung prominently on the kitchen wall. Then, as I was moving in, I noticed a sewing machine on the kitchen table. I was shocked. They even did their own sewing!
Well, they must have read me very easily because I was soon presented with my very own apron that they had sewn just for me. It didn’t seem like ministering, but that blue apron symbolized their extended friendship, and it made me feel welcome. They helped me gain confidence in the kitchen—but, more lasting, they helped me through their examples. They included me in their circle as they gave of themselves. I still have and use that blue apron in my kitchen as I try to open my home and heart to others around me.

Sister Shumway experienced a similar “nevertheless” moment before coming to BYU–Hawaii. Her life dream was to open a music studio in the Philippines, and so she had no desire to come to school in America. Church leaders, seminary teachers, and especially her parents strongly encouraged her to apply, but she still refused. You can imagine her surprise one day when she received a letter from the school saying “congratulations, you’ve been accepted!” It turns out her father had submitted the application without her knowing!

The next and more difficult stage of the process was obtaining a visa to come to the United States. Her parents traveled with her to the U.S. consulate in Cebu, and after a short interview, the staff member stamped her application “DENIED.” She looked at her parents and said, “See, I told you, I’m not supposed to go.” “Let’s try again at a different consulate,” they said. So they traveled to Manila and waited in a long line to see the embassy worker. The man looked over her application and picked up his stamp. “DENIED.” “See, I told you, this is a sign; I’m not supposed to go,” she insisted. In her mind, she was thinking, “Why do you want to send me away? Did I do something wrong?”

That night her father pulled her aside and said, “May, you have to want this. You have to pray about this and accept what the Lord wants for you.” Up to that point, she had not prayed about coming here because she didn’t want the answer to be yes. So she humbled herself, fasted, and prayed, “Father, I don’t want to go to BYU–Hawaii; nevertheless, if it’s your will that I go, I will go.” This time she went by herself to the Cebu consulate. As she was waiting in line, she saw the same guy who had rejected her application just a few days earlier in Manila. She prayed that she wouldn’t be sent to his window. Luckily, she wasn’t.

Her interview was shorter than the two previous ones, so she thought “another denial.” The worker reached for his stamp. “APPROVED”! She could hardly believe it. Her small act of faith and her willingness to follow the counsel of Church leaders and her parents had eternal consequences for her, me, and our entire family.

Here’s a riddle: What do Boy Scouts pledge to do, prophets counsel Saints to do, and weathermen warn people from Portland, Oregon, to do?
The answer? Be prepared. For Scouts it’s a motto, for Saints it’s a commandment, and for Portlanders it’s a necessity. Anytime they plan something, they need to be prepared, because at least a few sprinkles of rain, affectionately known as “Oregon sunshine,” are bound to fall.
But rain isn’t the only thing the youth in the Portland region are preparing for. They are also preparing to stay close to their Heavenly Father and meet life’s challenges with his help. And at a recent youth conference, teenagers learned a lot about preparation—from the first planning stages of the conference to the lessons they had learned when it was all over.
It started months before the event. Painting posters, writing songs, planning decorations, and organizing workshops took the time of all the members of the conference committee. They knew that a successful conference depended on careful preparation.
Matt Baldwin, of the Cedar Mill Oregon Stake, was the chairman of the conference committee. “We talked about everything,” he said. “Should the kids bring a change of clothes for the games? How many workshops should we offer?” These and other questions guided the committee until they ultimately determined what their goal for the conference was: “for each youth to go home feeling a little bit closer to our Heavenly Father,” said Matt.
“It was fun to work on the committee,” said Amber Ganir, a committee member from the Oregon City Stake. “We’d worked on it for so long, I couldn’t believe it when the day finally came.”
All of that preparation paid off for the committee, though, and for the youth who attended the conference. They spent two days getting to know each other, talking about things they needed to prepare for, and checking the sky for rain.
The clouds threatened, but the spirits of the teenagers couldn’t be dampened. They divided into 23 teams and competed in a mock Olympics in events such as Radical Relays, People Processor, and Be-Boppin’ Balloons. The teams, even though they were made up of teens who had never met each other, worked well together, and cheers could be heard throughout the field. “That was our objective in organizing games,” said Amber. “We wanted to get everyone motivated and excited—to get to know each other and make new friends.”
The rain that had threatened all day started to fall as the games ended, but no one seemed to care. They were prepared for the change in weather and trooped inside for dinner and an early evening dance in their socks while high tops, sandals, and worn tennis shoes lined the walls to dry.
It was still drizzling on Saturday morning when the youth reunited to attend workshop sessions. They hurried to the classes they’d chosen, hoping they would hear something to help them prepare for their individual challenges. Classes offered a variety of topics—with something worthwhile and helpful in each—from “the last days” to dating.
Brett Gassaway said he was going to attend a session called “Choosing to Serve a Mission” because he planned to leave on a mission soon. Brett is taking every opportunity he has to learn about missions so he will be prepared when he leaves.
“I signed up for a wide variety of classes—things I have problems in, or things that are interesting,” said Crista Cowan. The preparation of the youth conference committee made it possible for Crista to take advantage of many classes. And when the youth were ready to listen and learn, it was possible for them to become more prepared, too.
After lunch and more workshop sessions, everyone assembled in the gym for “The Main Event.” The things they had learned and the spirit they had felt in the workshops set the tone for the meeting, and they listened to Brother David Thomas talk to them. He reminded them how much they needed a close relationship with Heavenly Father, and how they should avoid all things that would jeopardize that relationship. He said he hoped they would remember the things they had heard and felt during the past two days, and the audience seemed to nod in agreement, as if to assure him they would not forget the preparation they had received.
Listening to Brother Thomas, Matt Baldwin knew that the months of preparation were coming to fruition as the youth of the Portland area were touched by the Spirit. To close the conference, they were divided into groups of 30 for testimony meetings.
That was Heatherly Humphrey’s favorite part. “The Spirit was so strong in the testimony meetings,” she said. “Many people said they were trying to cultivate a better testimony, that they were reading and praying to do it. Others said they had been in that stage too—of wanting a testimony and working for it. Several of them said attending seminary and reading the Book of Mormon had made their testimonies twice as strong. It was clear it takes work to develop and keep a testimony.”
Yes, it definitely takes work to keep something so precious, even more work than it takes to plan a spectacular youth conference. But because of the preparation before this event ever began, by both the youth and the conference committee, it was a great event for learning and growing. And the people who participated in this youth conference left more prepared to capture the most precious thing of all—a strong testimony of the gospel.
By the time the dance ended on Saturday night, the rain was no longer just a drizzle. It was falling steadily, but it didn’t seem to matter. Umbrellas were raised and heads were covered, and the young people went out into the night—more prepared to face both the weather and the challenges of life than they were when they had come.