Erik Gray's journals
#journalgems
Written by Erik, March 2013
Stake
Conference talk- March 17, 2013- Blessings of holding to the rod
INTRO:
·
Joke about being on TV
·
Tell my story, update on how I’m doing, etc.
WHAT
IS THE ROD?
·
Story of the tree of life
·
What it represents, the tree and fruit is eternal life, great and
spacious building is the pride of the world, river is depths of hell, and the
iron rod is the word of god
·
The Iron Rod, Hymns no. 274
3 And
when temptation’s pow’r is nigh,
Our pathway clouded o’er
Upon the rod we can rely,
And heaven’s aid implore
4 And,
hand o’er hand, the rod along,
Through each succeeding
day
With earnest prayer and
hopeful song,
We’ll still pursue our
way
5 Afar we see the golden
rest
To
which the rod will guide
Where,
with the angels bright and blest,
Forever
we’ll abide.
CHORUS Hold to the rod, the iron rod;
‘Tis strong, and bright,
and true.
The iron rod is the word
of God;
‘Twill safely guide us
through.
·
Personal experience about how the rod has blessed my life- reading the
scriptures daily
HOW
DO WE FOLLOW IT?
·
Praying
·
Reading scriptures
·
Paying attention in church
·
YSA Stake Theme: Galations 6:7-9
BLESSINGS
THAT COME
·
“If you hold
to the rod, you can feel your way forward with the
gift of the Holy Ghost. … Grasp the iron rod, and do not let go. Through the
power of the Holy Ghost, you can feel your way
through life.” –Boyd K. Packer
·
You will gain
the right perspective that your life needs to have-
personal story
·
Holding to the
rod, especially during trials, will not define you, but refine you
·
Look up!
·
Progression-
I have felt progression in my life, especially through these last surgeries
·
Blessings of:
o Temple
o Priesthood
o Family
o Friends
o Mission
§ At
18 yrs old, Sid Going was a rugby player, and a shoe-in for New Zealand’s
national rugby team. However, he decided to serve a mission before playing
rugby.
§ When
he came home, he became one of the greatest halfbacks in the All-Blacks league
§ Training
and games would be scheduled around Sunday so that Sid could play
§ The
Queen of England even recognized him
§ “The
blessing of bringing others into the gospel far outweighs anything you will
ever sacrifice.”
o Having
the spirit to be with us
·
We are never alone:
o Cancer
diagnosis- life was going good last fall
o Feeling
of peace during the half marathon
o Read Footprints in the sand POEM
