The first time I saw Treasure in Heaven by TC Christensen, I teared up. Treasure in Heaven is the story of John Tanner, one of the early saints who sacrificed all that he had (and he had a lot) to help build up the church. From the moment he heard the gospel, he knew it was true. It’s not just the conversion story that warms the soul–it’s the events that John Tanner lives through and how he responds that really makes you run for the tissues.

I won’t spoil it for you. Treasure in Heaven is another in a line of TC Christensen films that is inspirational. Have you seen The Mouths of Babes? Touch of the Master’s Hand? The Bridge? Most are touching stories to begin with, but TC Christensen has a way to bring out the emotion and the Spirit as you watch.

Sitting in front of my TV, watching Treasure in Heaven, I felt the lump in the back of my throat a couple of times. The example that John Tanner followed was that of Jesus Christ. In giving everything he owned to help the Church, Tanner is a wonderful example of consecration–a word that sometimes makes us cringe out of guilt. But in watching this film, whether consecration is something you’re doing well or something you need to work on, John Tanner (and dare we say TC Christensen as well) urge you to build the kingdom of God through any gift, talent or means you have.

I’m not sure if I like Treasure in Heaven better than The Touch of the Master’s Hand (a personal favorite)–both are wonderful. But the message of Christensen’s latest film is as powerful as they come. I highly recommend it.

These days you watch a movie or the news about the President of the United States and you see the polished secret service men and women who protect our nation’s leader. They wear dark suits and ties with hidden communication devices. Their hair is clean cut and they are in excellent physical shape. That’s not exactly the visual that comes to mind when you think of Joseph Smith’s bodyguard, Porter Rockwell.

A new documentary DVD about Rockwell (Stories from the Life of Porter Rockwell) details some stories about his life. His appearance was that of a wild unkempt man. He kept his hair long and could often be heard to swear. He knew Joseph as boys and he remained loyal to Joseph his whole life. He went on to protect Brigham Young after Joseph’s death.

Though it’s hard to picture him running along side an armored limousine, he was just as fierce a protector of the Prophet as the Secret Service is today of the President. The story goes that he was jailed for killing Governor Boggs and then after suffering in terrible conditions was found innocent and released. While in prison he prayed for Joseph. He was worried about his friend. When he was released he returned to where the saints were and crashed a party at Joseph’s place. At first the prophet didn’t recognize him. But when he did he prophesied that if Porter did not cut his hair no man would be able to kill him. Like Samson of old he was blessed with great strength. He was protected. Word got around about his indestructibility and some men came to try to kill him but none succeeded.

Some called him the “Mormon Destroying Angel.” He himself admitted that he “never killed anyone who didn’t need killin.’” He’s not what you think of when considering a disciple of Christ, and his life was very different from ours today, but we can still learn from his example.

We can learn a couple other lessons as well. First, don’t judge a book by its cover. Porter Rockwell was kind and generous and loyal to those he loved, and at the same time tough and fierce to his enemies. Second, not all heroes are polished Supermen out doing deeds for all to see. Sometimes it’s the small quiet things that are truly heroic. And thirdly, stay true to God and to the Church and you will never need to fear. He stayed loyal at a time when many of the Prophet Joseph’s friends betrayed him and fell away. Have you been somebody’s hero today?

To get your copy of the new DVD, click here.

Recently, a DVD set came out of a tour of the Holy Land guided by Church scholar Truman G. Madsen. Between sessions of the last General Conference there was a short documentary about the process of making these DVDs and about Dr. Madsen. He was ill at the time and wanted to make one last journey to Jerusalem and all the surrounding holy sites. Many Latter-day Saints go on trips, take tours with qualified guides or even attend semesters abroad in the Holy Land. They go to “walk where Jesus walked.”

Watching the documentary reminded me of my experience in the Holy Land and all the wonderful experiences I had. We would read about David and Goliath and then take a trip to the field where it may have happened and using the kind of sling David would have had, we tried to throw stones. (It’s harder than you think!) We went everywhere from a possible location of the stable where the Savior was born to the Garden Tomb where His body was lain after His death. The door is adorned with a wooden sign that says simply “He is Risen.”

While it is great to see the sites whether in person or on DVD, the point of Brother Madsen’s trip was not to promote tourism but rather to share his testimony of Jesus Christ as he visited the sites where the Savior lived. We can walk in the Savior’s footsteps without getting a passport. We can know Him the way all the prophets in the scriptures and Brother Madsen did. How do we do this? First we start by studying the scriptures, particularly the New Testament and the Book of Mormon when He was on the earth. We need to learn about how Jesus lived, what He did. Second, we can attend the temple and we can pray for understanding and to know the Savior lives. Third, we need to follow His example. We need to live our lives the way that Jesus did. This includes treating each other the way He did and would have us do.

Shortly after returning from his trip, Brother Madsen’s illness became worse and eventually he passed away. But like many great men before him, he left us a great resource to learn more about the Savior and to strengthen our testimonies of Him. He shared his last testimony with any who want to listen. The final step is to share our testimonies with others. We can walk each day where Jesus walked in everything we do and like Brother Madsen, perhaps others can come to know the Savior through us.

This past Sunday, CBS aired the newest Hallmark Hall of Fame movie.  It was about Bill and Lois Wilson, a couple who co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon.  These are support groups for recovering alcoholics and their loved ones. As I watched this touching film, it struck me how much support helps us get through whatever trials we may face in life.

These days there are support groups for just about everything, but what if you’re not struggling with something that comes with an official group?  I have formed my own support group of friends and we get together once a month and just talk, catch up on each other’s lives and share our burdens. We come from all different situations and stages of life and yet it doesn’t matter.  In those few hours each month we gain strength and support from each other and our burdens seem just a little lighter.  It also helps put our troubles in perspective and gives us a chance to forget ourselves and help each other.

We, as members of the Church, also have another support system.  We have our ward families.  There are Home and Visiting Teachers, Church Leaders and just other members who offer support and assistance. There is also one more source of support.  We have Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father.  Sometimes They are the only ones who understand what we are going through.  Alma 7:11-12 tells us that Jesus took upon Him pains and suffering of all kinds so that He might succor His people.  He took all our hurts upon Himself, so He could truly understand how we feel.

The Lord never intended for us to walk the road of life alone. We just have to know where help and support is and then reach out for it. We also need to be available to give help and support to others, whether it’s through Visiting or Home Teaching (it’s the end of the month, have you done yours?) or more informally reaching out to someone in need.  Some of us struggle with either giving or receiving help. We need to be open to both, to do as the Savior would do.  Even He received strength and support from an angel in the Garden of Gethsemane. And of course He gave constantly. Let us follow in His footsteps on both sides of the support equation.

As springy weather returns we are reminded that Easter is on its way.  And as with most holidays there is a very commercial side to Easter.  I wondered if perhaps the commercial elements of the holiday had any religious symbolism.   After doing a little research I have found that they do.  The Bunny or hare is a symbol of fertility – new life.  The same holds true for the yellow chick that we see usually made of marshmallow fluff.  Easter is celebrated in the Spring, the season of renewal.  After the long winter, signs of new life are emerging at this time of year.  But the most symbolic is the Easter egg.  The hard shell is symbolic of death and the tomb and then when it is cracked open we have new life in the birth of a baby chicken.

Jesus Christ atoned for all of our sins and was crucified in the spring.  But more importantly he was resurrected three days later.  He made new life and eternal life possible for everyone and that is the real crux of the Easter Holiday.  It is that sacrifice that we should keep in mind as we are munching on chocolates and jelly beans.  And perhaps we should renew our commitment to living a Christ-like life as well.

I once read the story of a teacher and the assignment that reminded her of Easter’s real meaning. She gave each of her students an empty plastic Easter egg and told them to bring it back filled with something that symbolized new life.  The next day the students piled their eggs on her desk and one by one she opened them to reveal all kinds of things.  Then she open one egg and there was nothing in it.  It was from a little boy who had several disabilities, both mental and physical.  The teacher thought he hadn’t understood the assignment and tried to gloss it over.  But he stopped her and said that his egg was empty like Jesus’ tomb and that meant new life for everyone.

As I think of this Easter season I am reminded of the great plan of salvation.  How grateful I am that God thought of everything and that His son, Jesus Christ, was willing to atone for our sins and make it possible for all of us to be together again with each other and with our Father in Heaven.  Happy Easter!

It’s Conference time again and I’m looking forward to it. General Conference was held long before it was broadcast all over the world. The Book of Mormon tells us of one such conference in the book of Mosiah. King Benjamin wanted to address all his people. He called them all together at the temple. But the crowds were so big that they built a tower where he could stand and speak so that all could hear. But even that wasn’t enough, so he had people write down his words as he spoke and run it to those farther away so that they too could hear his words. I guess you could say it was the first Conference edition of the Ensign.

The prophet’s words back then were so important that King Benjamin went to all the trouble he did for the people to hear him. In our day and age, the Prophet’s words are no less important. With all the things happening today, we need to hear the word of the Lord more than ever. In conferences not too long passed we have heard the Brethren admonish us to get out of debt. This was long before our present economic conditions existed. These men are prophets, seers and revelators. They counsel us on how to prepare. And we have every opportunity to hear their words in far more comfortable surroundings than did Benjamin’s people. In some cases, the Saints can go to air conditioned or heated chapels and sit on soft seats (if you get there early enough). And those of us in Utah can even sit at home and watch from the comfort of our couches in our pajamas. Still others can log on to the Church website and watch there.

When King Benjamin’s people came to hear him speak, many had to journey from far away. They prepared for the journey and for the conference they were to hear. We should prepare as well and in doing so, I think we can have an even more meaningful experience. One of the things I do is to pray for all those who will speak a couple weeks ahead of time. I pray that they might be inspired to say the things the Lord would have them say and that we the listeners might have open hearts and ears to hear it. As you sit down to watch Conference, be sure your environment, be it a church pew, comfy sofa or in front of your computer, is free from distractions. Some like to have a notebook or a laptop or other digital device handy to take notes. I once heard a man say that he took note of how he was feeling and impressions he received rather than taking notes on what the speakers were saying. And pay attention to all the parts of conference, not just the talks. You never know when someone you know will be called as a General Authority. It’s happened to me twice. Once was while on my mission and it was my mission president who received the calling!

Get the whole family involved. When I was younger, my dad would ask each of us kids to pick a talk or two to report on in family home evening. We all wanted Pres. Monson because he told all those great stories. I even saw a General Conference Bingo game to help kids pay attention – i.e when a speaker says ‘temple,’ mark that square. Others make the whole weekend into a real event, a special affair by having a special meal between sessions, gathering all the male relatives to attend Priesthood Session, and going out for the obligatory ice cream afterward. I’ve heard of families who use conference weekend as a time to rotate the food in their 72 hour kits. And lastly, after conference is over, take the time to reflect on what you’ve heard and then apply it to your life.

It was March 17, 1842 in Nauvoo, Illinois and the time had come to organize the women of the church. Twenty women met that first day. The Prophet Joseph Smith called the organization “a select Society separate from all the evils of the world, choice, virtuous, and holy.” The women met together often and looked for opportunities to help and serve others. They fed, clothed, and housed the needy. They collected donations, took care of the temple workers, etc. In short, they truly lived the Relief Society motto. “Charity Never Faileth.”

I try to imagine what that day must have been like. Sitting in the room waiting for the meeting to begin, wearing long skirts in the humidity of that swampy area. I can hear flies and sisters buzzing with excitement. Then Brother Joseph steps to the front of the room and begins to speak. There are many times in my lifetime so far that I remember modern prophets stepping up to the pulpit with some exciting announcement and many times it is given to the women of the church first. I was watching the General Women’s Broadcast in the Marriott Center at BYU when President Hinckley first read The Family: A Proclamation to the World. It was no less exciting and important then when Joseph Smith founded an organization of sisterhood.

Like that beginning, sisters go about today, quietly serving and helping those around us–giving relief to those who need it, saying hi to one another and promoting a system of support and friendship.

So, Happy Birthday, Relief Society!

As I watched the Olympics these past couple of weeks, I found myself cheering for different athletes and not all of them from my country.  I was watching long track speed skating and there was an athlete from a country where speed skating is as huge there as baseball and football are here.  He was under tremendous pressure to win.  In fact the power company was offering a certain amount of discount for every gold medal he won to the people back home.  I cheered harder for him than the US athletes and was thrilled when he won.  Many times during the games, tears came to my eyes as athletes’ dreams were realized.  It didn’t matter what athletes and where they were from.  I was reminded of the Book of Mormon scripture found in 4^th Nephi 1:17.

“There were no robbers, nor murderers, neither were there Lamanites, nor any manner of -ites; but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God.”

In the past they have always asked that the nations of the world observe an Olympic truce – having no wars or the like during the time of the games. It is a time where we can get a peek at what a Zion people could be.  In Gospel Doctrine this year we are studying the Old Testament.  Recently we had a lesson on the City of Enoch.  It’s the same idea.  They were so righteous and had no class system between them.  Everyone shared and no one was put down or elevated.

Yes, in the games there are winners of the various medals.  But to me, it was just as impressive to see an athlete finish a race or even just to get to the Olympics in the first place as it was to celebrate those who made it to the medal podium.  Sometimes I found the stories the media put together about the athletes’ lives far more interesting and enjoyable than the actual competition. It helped me to relate to the person competing and made the victory mean more.

Are there things we can do in our daily lives to maintain that unified, no-ites feeling in between Olympic Games?  I think so. It’s all about keeping an eternal perspective and remembering that everyone is our brother or sister, and then treating each other accordingly.  If we could do that, there would be less road rage. Crime rates would go down.  Maybe even the number of people who take their own lives would lessen.  People would feel loved and appreciated and of worth.  In the eyes of Heavenly Father, we are all Gold Medalists and the great thing is we don’t have to compete with anyone else to win.  So, let’s treat everyone we meet as though they’ve won Gold, not necessarily with the parade many returning athletes will get, but with simple kindness and courtesy.