Saints

Scott and I were asked to speak in our ward last Sunday on the subject of the Mormon Pioneers. Scott gave an excellent talk about the concept of being a pioneer in our contemporary world, while honoring and exemplifying the spirit of the early Mormon Pioneers. I have never been asked to speak on this topic, and it was a bit of a challenge for me to narrow in on what specifically moved me most about the early Saints of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. What pulled at me the most was gratitude. I read so many historical accounts, and I was drawn into the impossible circumstances the pioneers described. But alongside nearly every description of a challenge, was an expression of gratitude. I was so humbled by that. Scott and I have a newly-born interest in the pioneers after spending some time with their journals. Scott even found a large collection of journal entries from his own pioneer ancestors after asking if he could share stories from mine (he didn't know he had any--he had never looked!). Today is Pioneer Day, and I wanted to share a few of my thoughts on this blog of mine, mostly for my kids someday. Are you reading any of this, kids? Do blogs still exist?

----------------------------------------------------------

The 24^th of July is a significant day for the Latter-day Saints—a day set aside to honor the pioneers in the early history of our church. Preparing for this talk, I have had the opportunity to ponder the unique heritage of the Latter-day Saints. The pioneer spirit is infectious the minute you consider the stories and legacy left by the men, women, and children who crossed the plains to forward the cause of the Gospel.

I am a descendent of a man named Peter Nebeker, who, in 1866, led a company of 400 individuals and 62 wagons from the outfitting post in Nebraska across the country to Salt Lake City. Peter Nebeker is my great-great-great-great grandfather on my mother’s side. Among the travelers in his company, and author of one of trail excerpts from the journey, was a 12-year girl named Emma Matilda Backman. Emma is my great-great-great grandma on my father’s side.

I love that my grandpa on my mom’s side led my grandma on my dad’s side across the plains. What a compelling way for my family to have come together. I love the feelings of pride and heritage I feel when I read about their journey. I am grateful for their perseverance and sacrifice. But whether or not you are a descendant of pioneers, the Mormon pioneer heritage of faith and sacrifice is your heritage. It is the noble heritage of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Taking the time to ponder and connect with brave souls of our past can instill a greater sense of pride and purpose when we consider God’s plan in restoring the gospel and helping it grow through the Saints.

When the Saints settled in the valleys of the mountains, they promptly established a Perpetual Emigration Fund to assist the poor to move from Winter Quarters, and later from the nations of Europe. At least half of those who journeyed to join to Saints could not have come without the help of leaders and members who were determined to include everyone who desired to gather to Zion. Among the movement, there were 10 handcart companies. The first 5 came in 1856: Ellsworth, McArthur, Bunker, Willie, and Martin. The next 5 came over the next three years.

In 1855, the Utah economy experienced a setback due to the grasshopper plague, and the Perpetual Emigration Fund was in serious financial difficulty. The lack of funds, coupled with an unusually large emigration demand (of 10 handcart companies, 5 came that year), resulted in the formulation of the handcart plan. Brigham Young instructed, “We cannot afford to purchase wagons and teams as in times past, I am consequently thrown back on my old plan –to make handcarts, and let the emigration foot it…It was estimated to reduce costs by a third to a half for each person. Consequently, many more of the Saints could come to Zion through the available Perpetual Emigration Funds.”

A few days after the first 3 companies arrived, the Saints prepared for General Conference. Everyone, including Brigham Young, assumed that the arrival of the third handcart company earlier that week ended the immigration for that year. They were shocked when Franklin D. Richard arrived a few days later and announced two more companies were still on the plains and were desperate for supplies. It was well into winter by the time they completed their journey, with many tragedies along the way. 

The story of the Willie and Martin handcart companies, and their rescue, is extraordinary—one of the most compelling in the history of America’s western migration. Through tragic, the stories of these courageous saints inspire those needing hope and strength during adversity, those struggling with personal difficulties, and those striving for greater commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I was moved by the simple story of Emily Hill a 20-year old woman from England who was traveling with her sister Julia. During the most desperate and dismal hour for the Willie Company, Emily received an onion from a brother in an express rescue effort. Rather than eat the onion, Emily held on to it. That night she saw a man near the fire who appeared to be dying. Emily gave him the onion, and he later said that it had saved his life.  Can you imagine? Being so desperate that an onion could make such an impact?

When I was 14 years old, I had the opportunity to embark on a pioneer trek with the youth of my stake, following part of the actual route taken by the Martin and the Willie Handcart Companies. I will never forget seeing actual divots, rust, and wheel marks that had endured along the trail. I remember being discouraged that our food rations for day one were two pieces of beef jerky, hard tack—which was a tasteless cracker, and a small handful of lemon drops I kept in the pocket of my apron. At lunch time, we were given a pickle. At dinner, we ate gruel, a mixture of flour and water. It left an incredible spiritual impression. My short trek experience gave me a microscopic window into the heart of the Saints. The circumstances of their trials of faith were beyond my comprehension.

Pioneer is reverent word. It inspires admiration, attention, and awe. When we describe the pioneers we talk of attributes like: courage, sacrifice, grit, determination, perseverance, spirituality, obedience, unity, commitment, and true to their faith. In preparing this talk, I was most especially touched by an attribute I don’t first think to add to that list, although it may be the driving force behind all of them. The pioneers were grateful.  And they knew to whom they were grateful: they were grateful to God.

In last April’s General Conference, President Uchtdorf said that “Everyone’s situation is different, and the details of each life are unique. Nevertheless, I have learned that there is something that would take away the bitterness that may come into our lives. There is one thing we can do to make life sweeter, more joyful, even glorious. We can be grateful. It might sound contrary to the wisdom of the world to suggest that one who is burdened with sorrow should give thanks to God. But those who set aside the bottle bitterness and lift instead the goblet of gratitude can find a purifying drink of healing, peace, and understanding.”

I read through dozens of accounts of men and women who crossed the plains. I was so caught up in the devastation of burying children. I held my breath for the women who gave birth on the journey. I whined on behalf of the women who sent their husbands off on missions or to the war effort with an unknown date of return. I read about their generosity to the their fellow Saints, and how many were stricken with poverty and illness. I thought about how many pairs of shoes I have in my closet as I read about children walking barefoot, wrapping cloth around their feet, and leaving blood stains from their feet along the trail.

“Happy day! All is well!” This is the song and the sentiment we sing when we honor the pioneers in “Come, Come Ye Saints.” I read through some of the accounts of my great-great-great-great grandpa and his fellow company leaders as they made their journey. These were telegrams to Brigham Young informing him of their progress on the trail:

Fort Laramie, June 3, 1866

I passed here to day, all well and in good spirits. Cattle doing well.

PETER NEBEKER

South Pass, 1.

Passed here this morning. All well.

W. H. CHIPMAN

Laramie, 2.

We passed here today; getting along well; all in good spirits. The health of the passengers as well as could be expected.

P[ETER]. NEBEKER. 

Ft. Casper

Pass here with train. All in good spirits. We need salt.

P[eter]. Nebeker

Horse Shoe, 3.

My company is all well. Traveling fine.

J[OSEPH]. S. RAWLINGS

Sandy, 3.

We passed here today, all right. 

W[ILLIAM]. H[ENRY]. CHIPMAN

Three Crossings, 18.

We passed here all in good spirits; going along well; a good deal of sickness among the passengers; cattle doing well.

P[ETER]. NEBEKER.

Deer Creek, 14.

I pass here today all well.

H[Orton]. D. HAIGHT.

Despite the hunger and illness. Despite the discomforts. Despite death. All was well. They were grateful to be led by God.

As Disciples of Christ, we are commanded to thank the Lord God in all things, to sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving, and to let our heart be full of thanks unto God.

President Uchtdorf suggests that we see gratitude as a disposition, a way of life that stands independent of our current situation. “This type of gratitude transcends whatever is happening around us. It surpasses disappointment, discouragement, and despair. It blooms just as beautifully in the icy landscape of winter as it does in the pleasant warmth of summer.

This is not merely gratitude of the lips but of the soul."

Ann Rowley, a widow who had eight children to feed, felt a mother’s pain in their hunger. “It hurt me to see my children go hungry,” she wrote. “I watched as they cut the loose rawhide from the cart wheels, roasted off the hair, and chewed the hide.” One evening she felt the providence of God in helping feed her children: “Night was coming and there was no food for the evening meal. I asked God’s help as I always did. I got on my knees, remembering two hard sea biscuits that…had been left over from the sea voyage. They were not large, and were so hard they couldn’t be broken. Surely, that was not enough to feed 8 people But 5 loaves and 2 fishes were not enough to feed 5,000 people either, but through a miracle, Jesus had done it. So, with God’s help, nothing is impossible. I found the biscuits and put them in a dutch oven and covered them with water and asked for God’s blessing. Then I put the lid on the pan and set in on the coals. When I took off the lid a little later, I found the pan filled with food. I kneeled with my family and thanked God for his goodness. That night my family had sufficient food.”

The accounts of the Mormon Pioneers are replete with expressions of gratitude toward God.  They chose to see miracles and blessings rather than dwell on their difficult circumstances. “We can choose to be like the Mormon pioneers,” says President Uchtdorf, “Who maintained a spirit of gratitude during their slow and painful trek toward the Great Salt Lake, even singing and dancing and glorying in the goodness of God. Many of us would have been inclined to withdraw, complain, and agonize about the difficulty of the journey.”

I haven’t often been found singing and dancing in the midst of my trials. But I testify that gratitude brings perspective and helps us endure. Scott and I have been tested in very real ways. 2 ½ years ago we experienced complications from the birth of our son that left me fighting for my life. It also left us re-planning our future in how our family would grow. In the midst of such overwhelming circumstances, we found ourselves genuinely grateful. We very tangibly felt the unfailing love of the Lord. We had faith in His plan and timing. We cannot count the miracles we experienced. They far outweigh the challenges. The faith that propelled us through that challenge carried us through our daughter’s adoption with undeniable confidence in our Heavenly Father’s bigger picture.

Sometimes I find myself caught up in more trivial trials. Moving to Minnesota… or sometimes just trying to get through the day with my kids! I am embarrassed at how easily I lose perspective in every-day challenges. I can be quick to identify specifics in my circumstances that I want to be different. It is tempting to complain and murmur when life is challenging and things don’t appear to be working out as we wish. We learn from Nephi in his great afflictions on his journey: “I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions” (1 Nephi 18:16). The people of Ammon “praised God even in the very act of perishing under the sword” (Alma 24:23). The act of thanking and praising has great power to help us endure and is one of the surest methods for increasing happiness. It is also a way to define our relationship with God, from whom all blessings flow.

In D&C 78:19, we are promised that those “who receive all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.”

As a Latter-Day Saint, I am humbled to follow in the legacy of such grateful and faithful pioneers. Scott and I both became so distracted while preparing our talks because we couldn’t stop pouring over the stories we were finding. I kept thinking of the hymn that states, “I believe in Christ; so come what may.” These stories enrich my soul and deepen my commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Despite such severe differences in our circumstances, I feel connected with these Saints and unite with them in my gratitude for God and the gospel of Jesus Christ.