I can remember vividly a particular summer morning of my youth. The sun had been up just long enough to begin to dry the dew left overnight on the grass; from the sun’s early morning rays you knew it was going to be a hot one. My grandfather or papa as I called him, decided that one of the old bull’s named “Francisco” needed to be moved to a lower pasture, away from the cows.

Usually we would just load the bull in a truck; so I thought this was going to be a great day. As I loved riding in the cattle truck.

I loved being with my grandpa, it was the first thing that I did every summer morning. I would make my way to papa’s house which was about 1 mile away, and this morning was no di erent. Except this morning papa said “Greg; I want you to move Francisco; to the lower pasture by yourself”.

I cannot think of appropriate words that begin to express the absolute terror that came to me as Papa made this assignment. You see I trusted my grandpa with my life; and I felt that if I was left alone with Francisco that it would be the end of my life.

I had seen bulls charge full grown men, I had seen first hand bulls charge horses, I’ve seen bulls run right through fences, they can be very powerful. Now; I was going to be all alone, with a bull on a deserted road, away from any protection. Every fear of what could happen to me passed through my mind. It was just too much - I was in terror overload; I imagined hundreds of ways that I might die today from the long horns of that old bull, and I started to cry.

I began to wonder was papa trying to kill me? Had he suddenly stopped loving me?

He exclaimed; “Greg; you will be alright if you do as I say. Just keep the bull moving forward, stay right behind him and keep pushing him ahead, and don’t let him bull wander into anyone else’s field. Then; when you arrive at the lower pasture turn him into the meadow and lock the gate behind him.”

It seemed from the way he was asking me, that this was not any big deal. To me however; I had convinced myself that this would be the last thing I would do on this earth. Papa said; “Greg; You can do this; I would not ask if I did not know that you could. Just stay close behind the bull, hit him with the whip to keep him going; and do not be afraid to hit him as hard as you can”.

Papa opened the gate to the coral picked up a whip snapped it a couple of times on the back of “Francisco”; which got the old bull headed toward the gate and and then handed me the whip. Papa walked with me down to the end of the long driveway that lead out of the barn yard and got the bull headed down the street and in the right direction.

Papa stopped and said “Keep going and I will come pick you up in an hour or so at the lower pasture”. I don’t remember the words I used as I pleaded with him to not make me do this. He simply said “You go and you will be just fine if you do as I have taught you”.

There I was; all alone with a great big bull. My lean frame reached half way up the side of this 2,000 pound bull. Francisco's horns extended outward a foot on each side of his massive white faced head. His eyes were as large as baseballs.

Fighting the sobbing tears I gathered all of the strength that I could muster and snapped the whip on the back of the bull. I suppose it was more like I tapped the back of the bull; I’ll admit I did not want to make Francisco mad.

Francisco slowed a little and turned his head to look at me, as if to say that he would have his way with me whenever he wanted; and as far as the pop from the whip; nice try kid, my skin is thicker than that, and I am not afraid of you or your little whip.

I quickly looked back to see how far we had traveled; wow we were now ten yards away from the driveway. Ten yards and I was already defeated. How would I ever push this massive beast over a mile down the road.

By now I was crying uncontrollably; fear had overtaken me, I was a complete wreck. The only thing that kept me hitting the bull on the back; and putting one foot in front of the other; was the sure knowledge that you did not to ever turn your back on a bull and run.

You see when you are running from a bull he thinks you are playing, teasing him and that’s the absolute worst thing that you could do; and I knew that. At this point I was too far from home to make it to the safety of the house, and if I took o running and the bull took o after me I might make it 10 to 15 yards but that would be all. Then Francisco would hook me with one of his horns and toss me high into the air, and if the powerful horns did not kill me, the landing surely would.

so I continued to put one foot in front of the other foot, staying close to the backend of the bull as instructed.

I persisted with this same repetitive motion for the first quarter of a mile, while trying to devise a strategy where by I might be able to escape. The mixture of my tears and dust from the dirt road tighten my checks as they dried in the summer sun.

It seemed however; that every strategy for escape that I plotted; when careful considered appeared to be a worse choice than the current situation that I was in. There were no viable options, and so I continued; putting one foot in front of the other foot, staying close to the back of Francisco and pushing him forward with the whip.

As I glanced over my shoulder, I could see papa’s house was a lot farther down the road, and I was getting close to being half way to my final destination.

somewhere around this point my cry’s turned to whimpering. Still scared to death; but half way there; I began to find hope. Hope that I may live to see another day. In addition; I was beginning to recognize that as long as I was following the pattern taught to me by my grandfather; everything was alright.

I received a few angry looks from Francisco every now and then; and each one would send chills of fear down my back. But I was learning to trust the process and in so doing I was slowly overcoming some of my fear.

At this point, my attitude started to change. I suppose I started to gain a little confidence, for the first time I thought I might be able to finish the assignment. Those parting words from papa continued to go through my mind. “Stay close to the bull, don’t be afraid to hit him on the back with the whip to keep him moving forward, If you do as I say everything will be alright”. And so far it was, papa was right.

The dust and tears smeared across my face made me look like I had been playing in a mud pit. They too were part of the process; there was nothing wrong with my tears; there was nothing wrong with my fear. The fear that I had for bulls was a good thing; my fear was well founded. The fear that I had was there to help protect me from doing really stupid things when bulls were around.

Like the day I tied a rope to myself; and caught a cow. I had tried to catch a cow before; and when I did the cow got spooked and took of, and the rope would just slip right out of my hands. One day I fixed that; I tied the rope around my waist so when I managed to rope a cow she would not just get away. It worked; well at least the part of the rope not slipping through my hands. I roped a cow, she got scared and took o through the field with me dragging behind her. That’s a story for another day; but the point is that some fear is good.

Just as I started to think I had this all figured out. The bull wandered over to the side of the road, stopped and started to eat some young grass. I knew the bull would find the grass sweet. Especially when compared to dried hay he was accustomed too. It was like candy and once he got started it would be hard to get the bull to move.

I was right the bull was content not to move another inch. He was where he wanted to be and was done walking for the day. Now every time I hit the bull with the whip he would only just look at me as if to say “This grass is far better than the pop from your little whip”.

so I hit the bull harder and harder with my whip, and all I got from Francisco was the same response - “a little glancing look as if to say - don’t bother me; I am eating”. I was stranded. No matter how hard I hit the bull I could not make him move. After some time sitting there, and not going anywhere; I knew I needed to do something; but what?

Learning from previous incidents with cattle I knew that their nose was a tender spot. I decided I would use that to my advantage. I don’t know if you are aware; but bulls are not too fond of any one upsetting their plans. However; as the bull reached down for another bite of grass; pop! I cracked the whip across it’s tender nose.

The bull jumped; kicked his back right leg; I felt the rush of air as the leg of Francisco barely missing my head. Then Francisco took o trotting down the road. Trotting for Francisco equated to me running as fast as I could to just keep up.

Now I had new problems; How long could I keep up with the old bull? Would the bull get to the point where I needed to turn him into the pasture before I could get there? Then what would I do? I prayed again for help - not knowing what I should do I needed help - the situation was out of my control. There was no way I could out run the bull and I was not going get in front of the bull. Again I was without hope; but old bulls like old men usually don’t run too far, and so to my relief Francisco started walking again. Whew!

Our journey ended a short while later, upon approached the gate to the pasture I walked to the side of Francisco and snapped the whip at his head nudging the Francisco toward the pasture.

Upon seeing the beautiful pasture full of green grass Francisco took o into the pasture as if to escape. He looked back at me one last time, dropped one horn toward the ground in a gesture, snorted as if to say “Thanks!”, and then pulled several large clumps of grass into his mouth.

Now that the experience with “Francisco” is over, I can look back and see what I learned.

1. 1)  Before I left the barnyard my grandfather gave me specific instructions on what I needed to do in order to remain safe, and to get to my final destination.

2. 2)  While I thought I was alone; and although I certainly felt all alone; my grandfather was never far away. Papa shadowed and was watching me along the way. Carefully observing from a distance, ensuring that things went according to plan. He was there; in a position unbeknown to me; but close enough to observe; and I suppose intervene if needed.

3. 3)  I learned that this and other similar growing experiences for me were not easy on him either. However; he knew that they were what I needed for my individual growth.

4. 4)  That my experiences for growth were di erent from others in my family.

5. 5)  I discovered that papa had tenderly placed me in an environment which was not as

   bad as it appeared to me. He understood a lot of things about life, and bulls that I did not know. so much so that I was not in as much danger as I had feared. I know now that I can look back that Francisco was an old bull; and not as capable of doing as much damage as I had perceived. There is a big di erence between old bulls and young bulls.

6. 6)  My grandpa knew that I needed to learn on my own to over come my fears. He gave me these experiences to teach me. That I had to prove to myself; not to him or anyone else. That I had to overcome in order to understand; that I held the power to conquer; that I had to learn on my own and for myself that I was stronger than I ever thought I was.

7. 7)  Papa also knew that if I was obedient; that the bull would act in a very predicable way. That if I continued to follow the pattern he provided for me that everything would be fine.

8. 8)  My grandfather was more interested in my progress, the direction that I was headed more than how much I cried, or how hard it was for me to get there. He was not there to criticize me, but rather left me to figure it out on my own. If I made mistakes; oh well. I would need to learn from them and move on. You see he knew that the mistakes that I might make with that old bull could be corrected. That with

his help he knew that we would eventually get the old bull into the pasture where he belonged.

My experience with Francisco the old bull is not much di erent from mortal life.

Among the similarities are that we lived with our Father in Heaven before we came to this earth. That while there he taught us and loved us; with more love than you or I can imagine. I testify that he still loves each of you today, no matter what you may think about yourself.

I know that at times many of you too feel all alone, I too have been there. However; I know that as my grandfather was not far away, neither is our Father in Heaven. That like my grandfather; our Heavenly Father is there watching us from a distance, making sure that everything goes according to plan. Like my grandfather, we cannot see him; but that does not mean that he is not there.

From life I have come to learn how a parent feels. It is hard to watch as someone you love - your son or daughter get their knees skinned from crashing on their bike, the heartbreak they have as they get pulled out of an important game because they made a stupid mistake, or watching your child go through the emotional devastation of a painful break up with a girl friend.

Can you imagine the pain in the heart of out Father in heaven as he heard the Savior plead “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me”. We talk about how hard it was for the Savior; but I will let you in on a secret it was hard for our Father in Heaven as well. However; there was a higher purpose in the su ering of both the son and the Father. Our loving Father knew what was needed and he allowed it to happen.

I know that my grandfather who loved me; tenderly placed me in an environment with Francisco; a controlled environment where I was in not as much danger as I had imagined, and so it is with each of you, that which you fear, that which holds you back from moving forward in life may not be as bad as you otherwise have imagined.

Now a little bit about who you really are. If you think that you are here just by chance; then you are very lucky indeed. Your chance of living on the earth today with the fullness of the gospel is around 1 in 109 billion. Your chance to be living in America today 2 thousandths of a percent (.002%); and the chance that you have the gospel in your life 1 ten thousandths of a percent (.0001%).

Do not think for a moment that our Father in heaven did not tenderly place you in an environment that gave you the best possible chance to fulfill your divine destiny, to become who and what you really are to be.

The time has come for each us to step up; the Lord expects much from you and I and just as he commanded the saints in Far West the call still sounds forward. “Arise and shine forth”, we might well ask ourselves; if not now then when?

We have been taught “We will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them.” (Abr 3 :24 - 25)

That is your challenge is to prove to yourself that you can overcome your fears; that you too are much stronger than you think. If you will trust in the power of prayer; have faith in the plan and believe in who you are it will work out ok for you as well.

A careful review shows that though obedience to what my wise grandpa had asked me to do I was able to overcome both my fears and complete the task. As I continued to stay behind the bull; and repetitively hit the bull with the whip, I could push the bull forward. These simple instructions provided a pattern for me to follow. They acted as a template of how my grandfather would act. He knew that if he gave me some simple instructions to follow; and I followed them that I would learn how to manage a bull. He knew how bulls acted and that if I followed his pattern replicating what he had learned in working with bulls; that it would work the same way for me.

Like my wise grandpa, our Father in Heaven too has provided us with a set of patterns, templates or commandments that we can replicate. So that as we follow them; we too

learn to make decisions the same way that our Father in Heaven would; if we do the result is predictable. He has taught us how he would act and as we emulate the patterns that he has given us; we slowly become like him - there is no miracle in believing that. From the words of our cherished hymn “God Loved Us, So He Sent His son” were hear:

In word and deed he doth require My will to his, like son to sire,
Be made to bend, and I, as son, Learn conduct from the Holy One.

We are also taught that: “Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he su ered; (Heb. 5:8–9.)

It is interesting to note that he learned obedience through his su ering, or to put it another way; he was obedient when and while he was su ering, when he was doing hard things. Such as when he was alone in the garden, in the silence of the night; he leaves Peter, James and John outside the wall; his heart is heavy.

We learn from Matthew that he went into the garden, and fell on his face, so great was the burden placed upon him that he lay prostrate upon the ground. and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou fwilt.

If I could leave you with a single profound principle this day it would from the words of the Savior “nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt”. The power in those words are thus; if the son of God had to completely submit his will to the will of the Father; then why should you or I be so di erent?

The son taught us “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the son likewise”. ( John 5:19 )

If the son gained great power through submission; then why should we be any di erent? If the son became like the Father through submission to the Fathers will; then why would we not become like our Heavenly Father through submission to Heavenly Father's will as well?

The world try's to teach that the laws of God are foolish; that they take away our freedom, however; it is when we see the laws of God as patterns, templates for us to become like him. No matter what our fear, no matter what our challenge we can overcome with peace and confidence if we will truly submit to his will. Thus is the reason for the laws of God. To provide a pattern on how he would act; of what he expects, and it is through our diligent obedience to his laws that our confidence begins to wax strong in his presence. I so testify...