Insight from the Letters

Written by Matthew Roberts, Digital Historian

As President of the Church, Wilford Woodruff called upon members to serve as missionaries in the United States and throughout the world, and he then received individual responses to these callings. Unlike current missionaries, these early Saints could be called at any age and situation. For some it meant leaving behind wives, children, businesses or  farms. Because of these various circumstances, through reading the letters of acceptance we can see the incredible sacrifice and faith of these early Saints.

David Spilsbury of Toquerville in southern Utah sent one such letter. After he was called to serve in the Eastern States mission in 1898, accepting that mission call meant leaving behind his wife, three small children, and their farm. In his letter, Spilsbury detailed the various tasks around the house and farm that he needed to complete so that his family would be “comfortable” before leaving. Spilsbury explained how he was initially going to ask for more time before leaving on his mission, but after some reflection he concluded that he would go at the appointed time because, as he wrote, “I have learned that the path of duty is the path of safety.” 

Reading that phrase reminded me of a recent talk by Elder David A. Bednar in the recent October 2023 General Conference. He shared how members are in the “path of their duty” when they fulfill the seemingly mundane or overlooked tasks requisite to being a disciple of Jesus Christ and living His gospel. Of this path of duty, Spilsbury wrote that walking in the path of duty provides safety. For Spilsbury and his young family living in a small town in the harsh Utah desert, walking that path required a tremendous amount of faith. His story is an inspiration to strive to act and walk the path of our duty with a renewed faith and trust in our Heavenly Father.

Insight from the Journals

Written by Megan Hutchings, Assistant Editor

On January 1, 1877, Wilford Woodruff, Erastus Snow, and Brigham Young Jr. gathered with the Saints to dedicate portions of the St. George Utah Temple. This dedication took place before construction on the rest of the temple was complete so the Saints could begin performing saving ordinances for their deceased relatives as soon as possible. Wilford Woodruff, like many of the early Saints, understood the importance of these ordinances and worked tirelessly to make them available to as many of his deceased relatives as possible. In his dedicatory prayer that day, Wilford expressed gratitude for the temple and the saving ordinances that would take place therein. He prayed, 

O God our Heavenly Father, the father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, thou who hast created the heavens, the earth, the seas, and the fountains of living waters, and all things that dwell therein, accept of the gratitude of our hearts and the thanksgiving of thy people that thou hast preserved the lives of thy people to again enter into another temple which hath been built by thy Saints in these valleys of the mountains in which to organize the Holy Priesthood and to administer the ordinances of the gospel of the Son of God both for the living and the dead.

Then, 146 years later, after undergoing renovation, the St. George Utah Temple was again dedicated on December 10, 2023. As I watched the rededication services, I couldn’t help but think how happy Wilford Woodruff must be that those saving ordinances still continue in the St. George Utag Temple today. I am so grateful for the many sacrifices the Saints made so this temple is available to us today and we have the opportunity to follow in their footsteps and carry on the work that they started.

Insight from the Discourses

Written by Josie Manwill, Historian

In his first general conference talk as President of the Church, President Russell M. Nelson taught, “In coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” This plea from President Nelson to the Saints to increase our capacity to receive revelation follows a pattern of prophetic counsel. Wilford Woodruff frequently spoke of the importance of receiving revelation. 

A discourse given by President Woodruff in 1882 highlighted this pattern. He taught: “There is one thing we need . . . and that is the Holy Spirit. While in Winter Quarters, President Young had a dream in which the Prophet Joseph Smith appeared to him and said: ‘Brother Young, you exhort this people to obtain the Holy Spirit; with it they can do anything that is necessary; without it they cannot build up the kingdom of God.’ ” Wilford then shared that he had received the same admonition from President Young, who said, “I want you to teach the Latter-day Saints to labor to obtain the Holy Spirit. It is one of the most important gifts that the Saints of God can possess.” 

If anyone understood the vital nature of listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost, it was Wilford Woodruff. He, on countless occasions, escaped death by listening to revelation he received. Near the end of his life, he recounted one such experience: 

When I moved the last company of Saints from the East . . . we arrived at Pittsburg one day at sundown. We did not want to stay there, so I went to the first steamboat that was going to leave. I saw the captain and engaged passage for us on that steamer. I had only just done so when the Spirit said to me . . . “Don't go aboard that steamer, nor your company.” Of course, I went and spoke to the captain and told him I had made up my mind to wait. Well, it started and had only got five miles down the river when it took fire and three hundred persons were burned to death or drowned. If I had not obeyed that Spirit and had gone on that steamer with the rest of the company, you can see what the result would have been.

From the Prophets Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, Wilford Woodruff, and down to Russell M. Nelson, God has established a pattern of teaching His children how and why we need to receive revelation. Additionally, as Wilford Woodruff taught and President Nelson has reiterated, “There is not a man, woman or child who has received the gospel, but has the right to receive revelation for himself or herself.” Thanks to the records of Wilford Woodruff, we as Saints can trace patterns of prophetic counsel and learn how to better listen to the Holy Ghost in our lives.

Insight from the Additional Documents 

Written by Christian Decker, Archivist

As we continue finding new documents related to Wilford Woodruff’s life, we gain a greater understanding of what he and his contemporaries desired in their mortal journeys upon this earth. This past year we published a hymnbook from 1835 that Wilford kept. It contains many hymns we would not recognize today, largely written by early Saints like Parley P. Pratt and William W. Phelps. Yet, just as the Lord told Emma Smith that righteous songs can represent a form of prayer, we can examine these hymns to understand what Wilford and many early Saints desired in their hearts as they worshipped Heavenly Father.

The first and most obvious theme that emerges from this collection is that Jesus Christ is our Savior. “Communion Song” and “The Lord’s Supper” both detail the personal relationship we build with the Lord when we partake of the sacrament. “Do this he cried till time shall end / In memory of your dying friend / Meet at my table and record / The love of your departed Lord” (page 8). “Following Christ” exhorts Latter-day Saints to stand valiantly in the testimony of Christ’s resurrection: “Come ye children of the kingdom / Follow him beneath the wave / Rise and show his resurrection / And proclaim his power to save” (page 10).

This theme of rising to meet challenges and the final triumph of the Saints represents another significant theme in this early hymnbook. “The Fall of Babylon,” “Fall of Priestcraft,” “The Millennium”—all of these hymns speak to a faith and assurance of the eventual destiny of this world. These and other hymns found in the book demonstrate that Wilford Woodruff and the early Saints looked forward to the future with eager faith. Reading these hymns causes me to examine my own faith in the future, and pushes me to grow so that I one day may sing, “But truth cuts its way and love will melt down its foes / The pure love of God will conquer all who oppose / The church stands in purity in peace & in love / The sight of her enemies she rises above” (page 18).

Insight from People & Places Research

Written by Rosalie Bowen, Research and Editorial Specialist

Our choices set the direction for our lives and determine our final destination. In my research, I came across the history of a Church member living near Parowan, Utah, at the time of the Mountain Meadows Massacre in 1857. He was disappointed in the way Church leadership handled the whole affair. In fact, he said he was “disgusted to be part of such an organization” and left the Church, leaving behind his testimony and temple ordinances, and, unless he changed the direction of his life again, he was choosing to leave behind his eternal salvation.

In contrast, consider a letter from Andrew Jenson written to President Wilford Woodruff in 1897. His commitment to follow the prophet and the leaders of the Church was not shaken despite a request that was objectionable to him and would cost him a great deal of money.

Brother Jenson received “a special and direct message from you [Wilford Woodruff] to the effect that you desired me to give to S. P. Neve a deed to some property which I own in Mill Creek, and which said Neve has been suing me for in court. Immediately upon receiving your message, I went to my attorney, Bro. Franklin D. Richards and instructed him to hand over the deed . . . Of course everything I have is on the altar, according to covenants which I have made; and I feel to bow in obedience to your request, though I must confess that under existing circumstances, I cannot think of a person that I would not rather give my property to than S. P. Neve.”

The prophet, bishop, or other leaders may be inspired to ask things of us that are difficult, time consuming, or even costly, but if we have made a covenant, a sacred promise to our Heavenly Father, how can we consider breaking that covenant? Our willingness to trust and follow the inspired counsel of the prophet and keep our covenants can and will affect how we live our lives, the direction of our lives, and our final destination, as well as the joy and peace we find along the way.

Insight from Content 

Written by Shauna Horne, Content Team Lead

In a discourse Wilford Woodruff gave on July 19, 1868, he said, “Go before the Lord in your closets, and open your hearts to Him in faith and he will answer your prayers. The time will come when you will require faith to command the elements, and they will obey.” When I read this, I remembered an experience that happened to my husband and me. Our daughter wanted to go to a conference sponsored through her school that promoted values that did not align with ours. Although we did not want her to go, my husband felt strongly that we should not forbid her to go, so he signed the permission slip and she planned to attend. In the meantime we prayed desperately for the Lord to intervene so she would not attend the conference. 

We went to bed the night before the conference with heavy hearts. In the middle of the night we woke to an incredible storm. We listened to the commotion for a bit then fell back to sleep. The next morning my husband woke me and said, “You are not going to believe this.” He had received an email that the location where the conference was to be held had lost electricity; the conference was canceled and would be rescheduled. We knew immediately that the Lord was in the storm that night. I am so grateful for a Lord who knows and loves our daughter even more than we do and who answers the prayers of desperate parents even in the wind and storm! And by the way—the conference was never rescheduled. God heard our prayers and the elements obeyed.