The beginning of this year was filled with thoughts of Brother Moyle. Sacrifice. Consecration. Holiness to the Lord. Step by step we grew to understand the meaning behind the phrase “John would go.” Now that simple phrase has become part of who we are.
The latter part of the year is now upon us. My mind is filled with thoughts of Francis Webster. Service. Rescue. The price some pay to become acquainted with God. Step by step I want to come to understand the meaning behind the phrase “Francis would rescue.” I want that phrase to become part of who I am.
And so we are extending another invitation. This invitation includes a kick off event. 12 weeks of preparation. A 17-mile walk. (Yes…just 17 miles this time. Easy.) What is it in honor of? You will ask. Francis Webster, and a 17-mile journey he took on September 15, 1856.
You might know Francis Webster better than you think. He is the man from the Willie Martin handcart company who stood at the back of a Sunday School room and bore testimony that the price he paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay.
But there is a testimony within that testimony that you might not know about…
“Although Webster’s statement is well known, the real story behind the words he spoke that Sunday long ago is generally unknown. In its place has arisen a common perception that the price he paid to gain his powerful testimony simply involved pulling a handcart and enduring the hardships of an early winter. The lesson at the heart of his statement, however, goes beyond having to endure the cold and snow that all in the company experienced. This lesson involves his willingness to travel a harder path than simply pulling a handcart. It speaks to the fact that at several points along the journey that took him from England to Utah he made choices that led him onto the road less traveled. His testimony is evidence that, in the final analysis, these choices indeed made a great difference in his life. (Chad Orton)
We invite you to journey with us on this road less traveled. To travel a harder path. To come to understand the lesson at the heart of Francis Webster’s statement. This lesson will include service, and rescue, and will lead you to prepare your heart for the October General Conference in a way you might not have before.
We have come to love Brother Moyle. Now we invite you to prepare your heart to come to love Francis Webster. “The life of Francis Webster was so full of useful and unselfish effort, and the scope of his endeavors was so wide and diversified that it is difficult to boil his life story down... Man of superlative faith, man of action, man of sterling dependability his place is secure among the honored pioneers of Southern Utah.” (Palmer)
This will be a year many of us will never forget. We have made memories and learned life lessons that will be forever imprinted on our minds and hearts. This year we have followed the counsel of one of our great prophets… “Stories of the beleaguered Saints and of their suffering and death will be repeated again and again. … Stories of their rescue need to be repeated again and again. They speak of the very essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ…I will never get over being thankful to them; I hope you never get over being thankful to them. I hope that we will always remember them. … Let us read again and again, and read to our children or our children’s children, the accounts of those who suffered so much” (Gordon B. Hinckley)
Mark Your Calendar: September 24, 2011 A Journey Celebrating the Life of Francis Webster. Story and training schedule are below - More details to follow…
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