In November of 2018, we broadcast this segment on “the latest on Family Search” on KLO AM1430 and featured Gregg Richardson, the “Experience Manager” for Family Search at the high-tech HQ in Lehi. We admit that in the world of technology, 2018 was a long time ago. Nevertheless, Brother Richardson’s enthusiasm and knowledge are infectious, and we are sharing this with you now as another Latter Day Radio “Faith-affirming Podcast.”
When you stop and reflect for a moment on that technology and the growth in interest in genealogy and searching for our ancestors, it really is a fulfillment of prophecy. Consider the very unique position that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints occupies when it comes to this movement–and it IS a movement, not just a hobby or avocation. Dozens of other private organizations and corporations, most notably ancestry.com have sprung up since the invention and adoption of the Internet. Every year, RootsTech gathers people from all over the globe; if you’ve ever attended, you can be blown away by what’s happening everywhere. And, the center of it is right here, at the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
So, before we take all this progress for granted, remember the words of the Angel Moroni to the young prophet Joseph Smith (this is the entire second section of the Doctrine and Covenants):
D&C 2:1 Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of aElijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and bdreadful day of the Lord.
2 And ahe shall plant in the hearts of the children the bpromises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers.
3 If it were not so, the whole aearth would be utterly wasted at his coming.
This are nearly the exact words of Malachi in the last book of the Old Testament. And in no other church in the Judeo-Christian world had there every been any interest shown in these verses until Joseph heard them uttered by an angelic visitor. And do you think the young 24-year old Joseph Smith knew at that time what the angel meant?
Of course not. But, today we know and we are seeing the very fulfillment of prophecy that he received in the upstairs bedroom of a frontier farmhouse in 1823. Without this revealed knowledge and power (temple keys and authority), Christ’s coming would be for naught. And, since it’s coming sooner than we had thought just a few months ago, it gives us even more to be thankful for, don’t you think?
It helps put it all into perspective, doesn’t it?
GM JARRARD
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