From lds.org:
“Beloved Church President Gordon B. Hinckley, who led The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through 12 years of global expansion, has died at the age of 97. President Hinckley was the 15th president in the 177-year history of the Church and had served as its president since March 12, 1995. For more information, visit the Newsroom.”
I remember when President Hinckley was sustained as president of the church. I was not quite twenty at the time and just starting out my adult life. Now I am 32, married and a mother. The past 13 years have been a time of great transition. I have changed. The world has changed. But President Hinckley has remained constant as a source of truth, leadership and direction.
In October of 1995, just seven months after his sustaining, President Hinckley, along with the other members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, issued “The Family: A Proclamation to the World”.
Two months later I married and five years after that, after much heartache and trial, my husband and I had the joy of welcoming our daughter into our family. Through the years, the words of this great document have inspired and taught me in my developing roles as a wife and a mother. Take, for example, these passages:
“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children.”
“Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.”
The application of these words have brought much peace and joy into my life and strength to my family. And I know they will continue to do so as I strive to better live the values taught.
On September 11, 2001 the world changed. I was a young mother looking forward to Hannah’s first birthday. My cares and concerns to that point were largely for family matters. Turning on the tv to the earth shattering violence that fall morning brought home greater fears. My personal prayers brought a semblance of peace, but I had another source of comfort, a refuge in the storm.
Less than a month after the attacks the leaders of the church convened for our semi-annual conference and President Hinckley spoke these words of encouragement and direction:
“Now, brothers and sisters, we must do our duty, whatever that duty might be. Peace may be denied for a season. Some of our liberties may be curtailed. We may be inconvenienced. We may even be called on to suffer in one way or another. But God our Eternal Father will watch over this nation and all of the civilized world who look to Him. He has declared, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Ps. 33:12). Our safety lies in repentance. Our strength comes of obedience to the commandments of God.
Let us be prayerful. Let us pray for righteousness. Let us pray for the forces of good. Let us reach out to help men and women of goodwill, whatever their religious persuasion and wherever they live. Let us stand firm against evil, both at home and abroad. Let us live worthy of the blessings of heaven, reforming our lives where necessary and looking to Him, the Father of us all. He has said, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10).
Are these perilous times? They are. But there is no need to fear. We can have peace in our hearts and peace in our homes. We can be an influence for good in this world, every one of us.”
I think his words are just as appropriate today as they were seven years ago.
Gordon B. Hinckley will always be remembered for his warm hearted wit, the tender love he showed for his sweet wife and his sorrow at her passing, and his encouragements and exhortation to just try a little harder. I am a better person because of him.
I could go on and on about his teachings and accomplishments, but I will leave it here. Though I will support and love the new president completely, President Gordon B. Hinckley will always have a special place in my heart.
I miss him already.
