President Nelson Devotional {Sept 15}

We started to hear buzz about President Nelson visiting Seattle sometime during the summer.  Not only were members of the church pumped that the prophet would visit our neck of the woods, but what made it even more exciting was that Safeco Field (now T-Mobile field) was the venue so over 49,000 of us would be able to hear him in person.  It was the largest gathering of church members to date.

It was, of course, very busy but it was fun to see so many people we knew.

Abigail had a volleyball tournament over an hour away that day.  Justin went to the tournament with her and they ended up needing to skip out on the last game (her coach wasn’t thrilled) and barely made it into Seattle before they stopped letting people in.  All the youth 16 and older were invited to sit on the field with President Nelson so she got to see him up close and personal.

It was a great devotional.  Really an amazing experience to be surrounded by nearly 50,000 people who share our faith and know how special it was to be gathered together to hear from the Prophet of the Lord.  It was the largest non-sporting event ever held in the iconic baseball stadium.  Since it’s been several months since the event I read an article posted on lds.org to refamiliarize myself and thought I’d post some of his thoughts that made an impression on so many of us so the kids can look back on them as well.

President Nelson began his remarks recalling an experience his family had years ago when they took several of their nine daughters on a rafting trip down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. On the second day of the trip, as the family approached Horn Creek Rapid, President Nelson put one arm around his wife and the other around his youngest child. “As it flexed over the brink, that rubber raft became a catapult and shot me like a stone from a slingshot—right over the raft and into the churning waters of the Colorado River,” he said. “I felt like an egg in an eggbeater.”

On the last day of the journey, the family approached the steepest and most dangerous rapid of the journey, Lava Falls. With Horn Creek Rapid fresh in his memory, President Nelson “instructed each family member to hold tightly to the ropes on the raft, knowing that the raft would always come to the top of the water.”

From the experience, President Nelson learned a powerful lesson. “We are all, metaphorically speaking, on a rafting trip through life,” he said. “Usually it is beautiful and peaceful, but at some point we hit mighty rough rapids. … As we face churning challenges in our lives, the greatest and only real safety comes as we hold on to the raft, which is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Clinging to others can help as we minister to each other, but not if it means letting go of the raft, he said. “If I have learned anything in my life, it is that our ultimate security and our only enduring happiness lies in holding on to the iron rod of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, complete with its covenants and ordinances. When we do so, we can safely navigate through rough waters because we have access to God’s power.”

President Henry B. Eyring also spoke as well as Sister Nelson.  Sister Nelson shared her personal witness of her husband’s prophetic calling and some thoughts and experiences she has had regarding his receiving revelation for the church.  A wonderful experience for our family for sure!