Friday, February 8, 2013
Listen
Try to see the similarities between Peter and Cornelius and this story:
The setting is Nazi Germany in 1939. Adolf Hitler’s forces were about to take full control of that country, and the missionaries who were then serving in Germany were instructed by Elder Joseph Fielding Smith to leave immediately. In those days, missionaries were not always assigned to a specific city and were often not in contact with mission headquarters on a regular basis. So when the instructions were given for all missionaries to leave, several could not be contacted because their exact whereabouts were not known. And herein lies one of the most inspiring stories of World War II. President Douglas Wood called a tall, 200-pound missionary from Idaho into his office and said, ‘Elder, we have 31 missionaries lost somewhere between here and the Dutch border. It will be your mission to find them and see that they get out.’ The young elder set out with 500 marks and some tickets for Denmark and London, and was told to follow his impressions entirely. He boarded a train and headed westward, not knowing where to go. Cologne was not his destination, but he felt impressed to get off the train there. The large station was filled with thousands of people. How was he to find the missionaries? He began to whistle ‘Do What is Right,’ and in a corner of the station an elder and a married missionary couple heard the call and quickly received their tickets for Denmark. The tall elder again boarded the train and continued his mission, getting off at border stations at town after town only when he felt inspired to do so. Led by inspiration, he found 17 missionaries, who were able to flee Germany that night. Shortly thereafter a report reached mission headquarters that all missionaries were safely out of Germany. Nine days later the War broke out.” (Richard O. Cowan and Wilson K. Andersen, The Living Church, p. 314 or 1984 Seminary Teacher’s Manual, pp. 265-66.)
What might have happened to the missionaries if this elder had not been in tune with the Spirit and followed its promptings? What might have happened if Cornelius and Peter had they not followed the promptings from the Lord? Both these stories show how the Spirit can direct a person to give or receive assistance.
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