Discourse 1880-10-06
testimony.
Elder WILFORD WOODRUFF bore
testimony to the remarks already
made. The Lord raised up this work,
through the Prophet Joseph Smith,
who labored for its establishment
and predicted many things, all of
which thus far have been fulfilled,
and there is no doubting the fact
that all that remains will be in due
time. I have witnessed the progress
of this work for many years, and
have gone through the trials and ex-
periences of early times, and when
I see this people to-day numbering a
hundred and fifty thousand, I see
the hand of God among them, I
feel interested in the youth, because
I look to them to bear off this work
in triumph. Many of the older au-
thorities have passed away. Joseph
is gone, Brigham is gone, and others
are following. When I think of the
hardships they and many of us have
passed through, traveling without
purse of scrip—shouldering our
knapsacks, leaving families and
friends for the truth's sake, I some-
times am led to exclaim, Where
oh God, are the children of the pro-
phets, who have the stamina to
shoulder the responsibility of the
kingdom, and bear it off as their
fathers have done. Yet they are
here, before and around me in the
rising generation. To them it will
be given and God will preserve among
them those that will sustain his work.
I want to see the young men and
women instructed aright. We are
responsible for this, and should do
all in our power to train them in the
principles of righteousness. I would
like to see the name of every young
man in Israel enrolled in the Young
Men's Associations, and every young
lady a member of their Associations,
that they may all be gaining intelli-
gence and learning of the things of
God. I hope they will heed the
counsels of their elders and avoid
temptation. This people were or-
dained before they were born to
come forth in this generation and do
the work they are doing. I would
rather not live another hour than to
live so long that I should lose the
fellowship of the Saints of God, or
be estranged from the spirit of our
religion. I have an anxiety about
these associations. They are doing
a good work in preparing young men
for the field that is before them. I
was never called to perform a mis-
sion in my life but what I was glad
of it, after I got through, no matter
what the circumstances were before
going or while I was away. We
have adopted some general instruc-
tions to the Associations, which
Brother Junius F. Wells will now
read.
