Doctrine & Covenants 98:16

 Throughout my life I have found that often times the most memorable revelation from God comes during the most trying times. The three months marking the turn of the year 2020 to 2021 were certainly such a time for me, and likely everyone in the world. The United States of America particularly was in the midst of multiple memorable difficulties. The COVID-19 pandemic, and all of its associated social and political chaos, was at a rising height throughout November, December, and January. The presidential election had resulted in so much contention and misinformation from both sides that it was nearly impossible to discern the truth of the matter. Despite the prophetic call for greater unity and cooperation in October 2020, divisions only deepened in almost every possible way throughout society. And mobs had ransacked entire cities earlier in the summer, and the U.S. capitol building at the beginning of January.

It did not take much thinking to know that all of these were paths towards regretful outcomes. But how could I, an individual living in New Haven, Connecticut and confined to home amidst social distancing regulations, do anything to help avoid the tragedies that lay ahead? I could not simply "pick sides" as I knew ignorance and guilt lay in both. Fortunately, as in times past, I knew that the answer to such a difficult question was contained somewhere within the Lord's instruction manual: the holy scriptures.

How did those from the past deal with these exact same difficulties? Perhaps the counsel they received from God was exactly the counsel I needed. Pondering upon where in the scriptures the answer was, my mind was drawn to section 98 of the Doctrine & Covenants, the Lord's revelations given near the beginning of this the final dispensation. This particular revelation was given at a time of great difficulties that matched the circumstances of 2020 so well that it could simply not be ignored. 

Early members of The Church has settled in Missouri and had recently started experiencing major political resentment from their neighboring residents. Cultural differences had escalated into deep life-threatening divisions. And mobs had begun the work of destruction upon the church members. Were not the events I was witnessing clear modern-day replicates of all this? Upon this realization, I earnestly read through the revelation given to Joseph Smith as a response. And before long I encountered a succinct form of counsel that had never previously intrigued me as much as now.

"Therefore, renounce war and proclaim peace, and seek diligently to turn the hearts of the children to their fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to the children;"      ~ D&C 98:16

Three forms of counsel that struck me as all things I was in the place to do. First, I had an undeniable testimony, learned through difficult but unforgettable experiences on my mission, of how one central purpose of the Lord's doctrine is to eliminate contentions (3 Nephi 11:29-30). Certainly, I could renounce both the verbal wars on Facebook and the physical wars and riots taking place across the country. Second, I could proclaim peace. To do so, I was inspired to create a calendar of scripture-inspired action items based on how the savior Jesus Christ taught to attain peace. This calendar covered the full month of January and I invited all friends to join in with me.

And third, I was supposed to seek diligently to turn the hearts of the children to their fathers. With the responsibility of leading the family history effort in the New Haven congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, this came as the most specific-to-me counsel. And it made complete sense! I knew how much strength and unity could be brought about by earnestly searching out the stories of ancestors. But I sadly knew that very few of the friends and associates I had in the area had such a testimony. But now was the time for me to put every effort towards helping others to learn the value and empowerment of family history. Therefore, I set to work and encouraged as many as I could to participate in the study of their ancestry.

While the difficulties did not immediately begin to subside throughout the world as I followed the Lord's counsel found in the scriptures, my heart was much less troubled and optimism for my future was restored. How grateful I was, and still am, that the answer that could not have been found through a Zoom call, a Facebook scroll, nor a news outlet came my way through the Lord's instruction manual.