Lately our Church leaders have been stressing the importance of hallowing the Sabbath Day. This spring I spent some time looking up information about how people have felt protected during catastrophes, especially on the Sabbath Day. I thought you'd be interested:
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Did you know that no church members were harmed in the Nepal earthquakes? I didn't. I also didn't realize that it hit on their Sabbath, during sacrament. Did you know that the Thailand tsunami (2004) also hit on the Sabbath? Natives and visitors who sought church services to be a part of were on higher ground that day. Do you remember that when the typhoon hit the Philippines (2013), all who heeded the priesthood leaders' call to gather were kept safe?
Article on Nepal earthquakes:
https://www.lds.org/church/news/relief-efforts-continue-in-nepal?cid=HP_WE_5-20-2015_dPAD_fCNWS_xLIDyL2-2_&lang=eng
World Report video about the Phillipines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPpQ0_5Dx20&feature=youtu.be
Church News Archives are an incredible resource. This is a Church News Archive article about obedience:
http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/64504/Obedience.html
If you have time for only one read, make it this one:
http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/47316/Elder-Henry-B-Eyring-BYU-Idaho-Devotional.html
When I shared this information on FaceBook, my friend, Cathy, mentioned her home town in Illinois, which was hit by a tornado a few years ago. All who went to church that day (any denomination) were not hurt. Thousands of homes were completely leveled within seconds, and tornados came close enough to the churches to rattle windows and nerves. I got the chills as she told me the details--miraculous protection is all I can say.
Another friend, Mindy, commented about the tsunami in Japan: "I love these stories! I also heard first hand from a missionary who was in Japan during the 2011 tsunami that there was a special mission conference that was called, and no missionaries were home or in the tsunami area at the time that it hit. Some of the missionaries would have been working right in that area had they not been at the mission conference."
I have one last comment about spiritual and physical protection for obeying the Sabbath. Sabbath observance is an outward evidence of an inward commitment to Christ. On the Sabbath, we partake of the sacrament (read: our Passover). We will be protected as we keep that ordinance sacred in our lives, and try to remain worthy of the blessings of that ordinance daily (read: repentance). The direct blessing of renewing our covenants with God each week is the companionship of the Holy Ghost--to guide us, comfort us, and protect us, among other things.
My friend Rebecca had a profound experience with the Holy Ghost in a time of extreme danger. On 9-11-01 Rebecca was visiting New York and stayed at the Marriott on Ground Zero, between the two towers. I heard her give her account of how her normal habits were just a little different that day--wearing pants instead of a skirt; running shoes instead of sandals--and how after the first tower was hit she could hear the Spirit direct her: "go there . . . stand and wait . . . run NOW . . . talk to that man . . . " and she was safe amid the chaos. The man she talked to gave got her to safety and gave her lodging for some time. It is an amazing story that fills my heart with hope for safety and peace amid troubled times. This article was published in the Church News 9-15-01, just a few days later: http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/40492/We-are-doing-much-better-than-anyone-would-have-supposed.html
I'm sure we all can relate an experience of feeling promptings from the Holy Ghost. Amid the conflicts of our day, true peace will come from hearing and heeding those divine promptings more readily.
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Did you know that no church members were harmed in the Nepal earthquakes? I didn't. I also didn't realize that it hit on their Sabbath, during sacrament. Did you know that the Thailand tsunami (2004) also hit on the Sabbath? Natives and visitors who sought church services to be a part of were on higher ground that day. Do you remember that when the typhoon hit the Philippines (2013), all who heeded the priesthood leaders' call to gather were kept safe?
Article on Nepal earthquakes:
https://www.lds.org/church/news/relief-efforts-continue-in-nepal?cid=HP_WE_5-20-2015_dPAD_fCNWS_xLIDyL2-2_&lang=eng
World Report video about the Phillipines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPpQ0_5Dx20&feature=youtu.be
Church News Archives are an incredible resource. This is a Church News Archive article about obedience:
http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/64504/Obedience.html
If you have time for only one read, make it this one:
http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/47316/Elder-Henry-B-Eyring-BYU-Idaho-Devotional.html
When I shared this information on FaceBook, my friend, Cathy, mentioned her home town in Illinois, which was hit by a tornado a few years ago. All who went to church that day (any denomination) were not hurt. Thousands of homes were completely leveled within seconds, and tornados came close enough to the churches to rattle windows and nerves. I got the chills as she told me the details--miraculous protection is all I can say.
Another friend, Mindy, commented about the tsunami in Japan: "I love these stories! I also heard first hand from a missionary who was in Japan during the 2011 tsunami that there was a special mission conference that was called, and no missionaries were home or in the tsunami area at the time that it hit. Some of the missionaries would have been working right in that area had they not been at the mission conference."
I have one last comment about spiritual and physical protection for obeying the Sabbath. Sabbath observance is an outward evidence of an inward commitment to Christ. On the Sabbath, we partake of the sacrament (read: our Passover). We will be protected as we keep that ordinance sacred in our lives, and try to remain worthy of the blessings of that ordinance daily (read: repentance). The direct blessing of renewing our covenants with God each week is the companionship of the Holy Ghost--to guide us, comfort us, and protect us, among other things.
My friend Rebecca had a profound experience with the Holy Ghost in a time of extreme danger. On 9-11-01 Rebecca was visiting New York and stayed at the Marriott on Ground Zero, between the two towers. I heard her give her account of how her normal habits were just a little different that day--wearing pants instead of a skirt; running shoes instead of sandals--and how after the first tower was hit she could hear the Spirit direct her: "go there . . . stand and wait . . . run NOW . . . talk to that man . . . " and she was safe amid the chaos. The man she talked to gave got her to safety and gave her lodging for some time. It is an amazing story that fills my heart with hope for safety and peace amid troubled times. This article was published in the Church News 9-15-01, just a few days later: http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/40492/We-are-doing-much-better-than-anyone-would-have-supposed.html
I'm sure we all can relate an experience of feeling promptings from the Holy Ghost. Amid the conflicts of our day, true peace will come from hearing and heeding those divine promptings more readily.
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