Sister Ann Elgaaen in Houston, Texas South: October 7, 2019 A Father's Embrace

At the age of 7 Joseph Smith was experiencing a sharp pain in his shoulder which was guessed to be a Fever Blister or Tie foot fever. The doctors extracted about a pint of puss from Joseph's shoulder but the pain then went straight into his leg.

This sweet little boy was suffering and the doctor suggested amputating Joseph's leg. Instead of just chopping the leg off however, the doctors agreed to perform a surgery where they would cut into his leg to extract the infected pieces of bone.

The doctors brought in ropes to tie little Joseph down, but he refused. Joseph said he was content in his father's arms. The doctors tried to at least give him some form of alcohol to numb the pain, but again Joseph refused.

Joseph, not wanting his mother to see or hear his cries asked her to leave the room while the surgery was being performed. She complied, but despite the distance she still heard Young Joseph when he Screamed out in agony as the doctor made the first cut.

Lucy made her way quickly back to the room. Whatever they were doing to her baby needed to stop! But when she entered the room, Joseph, with what I can only imagine was a tear stained face, told her once again to leave, that he would be ok. WHAT A BRAVE LITTLE BOY!

The surgery turned out a success and Joseph was slowly but surely making his way to recovery.

Fast forward three years, Joseph's family was struggling to get by. Plants weren't growing due to the poor atmosphere from the Tambora volcano that had erupted in 1815. Although Joseph's father didn't want to leave Vermont, he decided to head to New York so he could purchase land to provide for his family. In 1816 Joseph SR. Left for New York.

That following winter Lucy and her 8 children were going to follow in their father's footsteps and meet him in New York to begin their new life. So Joseph and his family packed up all they could carry in a small wagon and prepared for their long journey.

Lucy choose to hire help for her journey, someone to steer the wagon. She found a man named Mr. Howard and paid him to make the trip to New York with their family.

So with their few belongings Lucy and her children began their journey to reunite themselves with their father.

On the road Mr. Howard handled their belongings very roughly and gambled and drank away their money.

Although Joseph struggled with walking due to his surgery about three years prior, Mr. Howard forced poor Joseph to walk.

Eventually Mr. Howard said he would go no further throwing all the Smith's belongings out of the wagon, preparing to take off and return home. They were about 100 miles from Palmyra New York where their father was waiting when this occurred.

You could imagine he stress and anxiety that must have been streaming through Lucy during this moment.

It was winter for heaven sakes!

She picked herself up and found Mr. Howard who was drunk in a nearby bar. She publically announced what Mr. Howard intentions were, and decided then and there that she would still make it to New York even if she had to do it herself.

Eventually Lucy led her family safely to Palmyra.

There was a time on the road to New York however, where Joseph felt be couldn't go on. Each step was excruciatingly painful! Joseph stopped walking and just laid down in the snow.

Maybe there have been times in our lives where we felt we couldn't go on. Even just one step more was too painful.

But Joseph wasn't left behind. Someone picked him up and carried him the rest of the way to New York.

We aren't expected to go through lifes trials alone! When we are down at our lowest, when even the thought of moving on is too painful, that is when the savior will pick us up and carry us safely back to our father in heaven who is anxiously anticipating your return.

Joseph would go on to experience many more challenging times in his life such as mockery, physical and mental abuse, he lost almost every child he tried to have with Emma. He was thrown in jail and eventually shot to death. But through all those challenging moments, it was learning to trust in the Lord from the beginning that kept Joseph going.

Joseph always believed in God. His parents taught him to love God and to follow the commandments. If Joseph wasn't taught that in his early years, I believe that None of the maraculious work he has done would have happened.

Alma 37:35 says:

O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God.

It is critical that we teach our children how much their heavenly father loves them! A child is submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict up on them, even stumbling through the snow with an ingered leg such as Joseph, or losing a job when everything was seeming to go well.

Joseph was the kind of child who was willing to submit to the father even if lifes challenges seem too hard to bear.

Our heavenly father LOVES his children! He especially loves the little ones who are innocent and hopeful.

Joseph wasn't perfect, maybe he tipped over an outhouse, or pushed his brother in the river, but Joseph was pure in heart. Joseph was able and willing to do exactly as the Lord told him, and that is why Joseph was chosen to restore the fullness of the gospel on the earth once again.

We must become as a child! We must submit to our heavenly fathers will even if it is painful. Because he knows what is best for us.

"C. S. Lewis explained God’s transforming power this way: “Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably. … He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of. … You thought you were [being] made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. Which He intends to come and live in Himself.”

I know as we continue trusting in God's plan, enduring all the trials and struggles that come our way, we can be an instrument in God's hand. He can make us into something we couldn't even comprehend.

We may not experience the first vision such as Joseph did, but that doesn't mean God isn't there. I have seen him in everything! He is always there for me and I can't wait for the day when I am able to fall into our Heavenly father's embrace and be reunited with him once again.

I love you all!! The mission is going great! I am almost fully trained haha (not)

Time just seems to be flying!

I love all of you!!!