← Don't Miss This Study
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- [00:02]
Dave Butler
Hi, there.
- [00:03]
David Butler
Welcome to Don't Miss this, a scripture study podcast with Dave Butler and Grace Freeman.
- [00:07]
Grace Freeman
Each week we point out things in the scriptures that we love and think you don't want to miss.
- [00:11]
Dave Butler
Thanks for listening. Hi, everyone. I'm Dave Butler.
- [00:21]
Grace Freeman
I'm Grace Freeman.
- [00:22]
Dave Butler
Welcome to Don't Miss this, our weekly.
- [00:23]
Grace Freeman
Scripture study class, y'.
- [00:24]
David Butler
All.
- [00:24]
Dave Butler
Okay, here's a little bit of explanation. Today we're on another field trip. It's sort of a double field trip. Last week was 135 and 136. Right. And we only really focused on 135 because we were at Carthage Jail. We hope you loved, loved that episode and got to think about not just Joseph, but everyone in your life who has taught you something about Jesus and has shown you and given more light and understanding to who he is. Oh, man. I'm just remembering this quote that.
- [00:53]
David Butler
Oh, why I did.
- [00:54]
Dave Butler
Who won church. It was some of. See if I can remember this right where it. Oh, I wonder if I could just pull up the picture where it just said something about teaching your kids about God. It's like that. As parents, we want to teach our kids about who God is so that other people don't teach him who he isn't. And I just feel like there's so many people put in our lives to teach us about who he is. Joseph Smith was one of those.
- [01:19]
Grace Freeman
It was a really great line.
- [01:21]
Dave Butler
Yeah, good, huh? And like. And we all have someone. We all have like a. Like a faith genealogy, right? Who taught me something about who. Who Jesus is. So that was so fantastic. 136, which is really the main focus of today's episode. We go out to Wyoming, Martin's Cove. We talk about some of the stories of the Trek west, particularly that handcart company with other stories mixed in there. It was so windy. It was so cold. I actually believe the stories of Martin's Cove because my experience doing that. But we're going to start with 137, a segment in Nauvoo and talk about the doctrines of 137. And we just want to, before we jump into that, talk about a couple things with 138 also, because that is also one of the assigned topics for today. And I just love how all three of them go together really well because 137 is a view into the next life, and it has to do with the doctrine of those who've passed on. And 138 is one of our richest sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. It's one of the greatest revelations in the restoration because it addresses that same thing that 137 does, which is a question all of us wonder, and we all have skin in the game when it comes to death. I. Not everybody in this lifetime is going to experience divorce, and not everyone in this lifetime is going to experience poverty, and not everyone in this lifetime is going to experience debilitating disease. But there is one thing that's common among us all, and we all will come toe to toe with death and the questions and the griefs that are associated with it. I just got back from a trip to the Holy Land, and we went to the tomb, to the Easter tomb. And it was interesting to stand there and think. And by that point in the trip, it was kind of later in the trip, I had gotten to know a lot of people's stories on the trip and some of the things that they were carrying and thinking about. And I just thought to myself, when we go to that Easter tomb, everyone has skin in the game there. That's. That is something that we all are interested in. In is Jesus's defeat of death, because it's something we all face. We either have or we will at some point. And section 138 is an answer, I think, in its most beautiful form. Yes, it is a prophet receiving a revelation. Joseph F. Smith, the grand. The nephew. Excuse me. I was going to call him the grand nephew, but fine, it sounded fancy.
- [04:08]
Grace Freeman
He is grand.
- [04:09]
Dave Butler
He is grand. Okay. The nephew of the prophet Joseph Smith, the son of Hyrum Smith. Joseph F. Smith was the president of the church when he received this revelation. But I think of it more as a son and a father receiving answers and healing to heartbreaking questions. He had a really, really hard life. I think that's important when you think about how this revelation came about. And we'll talk about that in just a second. But he's asking the questions that all of us do. He's saying that phrase that you've heard a grieving child or parents say, like, I just wish I could have one peek into heaven. I just want to see that they're okay. I just want to know what is happening. I just want. Need some sort of touch point there. And I think this was an answer, and it was an answer to him. And it was an answer to the whole church, and not just the whole church, but to everybody who lives on Earth, because God's commissioned us to take the message of the restoration to the world. Because this is something that everyone is facing, no matter what Their faith, tradition, or belief system is. And there are truths and in 138 that give us some of those answers, that give us some kind of relief and some, like, calm to our hearts and souls. And it's interesting that this is about a vision of the dead, you know, is what some people say. And it's like the whole thing is couched in hope. The whole thing is couched in the love of God and his Son for, For this world. And it just is. It's interesting to take a topic that can be so heartbreaking and turn it into one that is so hopeful in section 138. And I, I, there's just a couple verses that we want to point out that are among so many other great ones. One is 15, right? Verse 15, if you get there. And he sees this vision of people who were waiting because it says, I beheld. They were filled with joy and gladness and rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance were at hand. 16 says they were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God to declare their redemption. And I just, I thought about that verse and I was like, who isn't? Who's not waiting on hope right now? Who's not assembled awaiting for the Son of God to declare their redemption, to finally bring about all the promises? And yes, it was a vision of those waiting, but it's just like, oh, I just thought of all of us experiencing verse 15. One day each of us will be filled with joy and gladness, and we'll rejoice together because the day of our deliverance is at hand. In the meantime, we're. Verse 16, right? We're. We're. We're waiting for that. And I love that 18 says, while this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance, from the chains of death the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives. And I love thinking about 18 and saying, okay, in the meantime, until that day comes when, when we experience redemption in its full fullness and death is reversed, right? Let's converse about it. Let's converse about the promises and converse about the hope that is to come.
- [07:45]
Grace Freeman
My sweet, sweet grandpa. He is the best man I've ever known. And his mission, he just passed away a couple of weeks ago. And one of the missions he served, he served as he worked in the juvenile detention center with my grandma, which.
- [08:04]
Dave Butler
Is where I met him. That makes sense. I meant, like, you should clarify meeting, like, he. I didn't know him very well and they called me and Asked if I'd come help teach seminary lessons.
- [08:16]
Dan Jones
Are you serious?
- [08:16]
Dave Butler
Yeah. I didn't know that I taught with your grandparents.
- [08:19]
Grace Freeman
Wait, that's really cute. Okay. Because they taught Sunday school and, like, Thanksgiving, I remember year after year.
- [08:24]
Dave Butler
Yeah. No, because when I saw your grandma at the viewing, like, you choose, you know, like, I walked up, and I think she was a little confused at first, but then pulled me a little bit closer, and she was like, oh, I sure remember you. And then she said, I don't think Ralph ever stopped talking about just the days you had together in the detention center. So they really were sweet memories. But, sorry, go ahead. This was so sweet.
- [08:51]
Grace Freeman
Like, that is evidence. Like, that story is evidence of. Like, that was one of his greatest works. And one of the things that he was the most proud of is the days that he spent serving there. And those boys loved him, and he loved those boys. And at the funeral, my dad shared part of that verse declaring liberty to the captives. And this one's obviously talking about Jesus declaring liberty to the captives on the other side. But what my dad said was that there's nothing that my grandpa loved more in this life than declaring liberty unto the captives. And he said, how great is it to know that God called him to that on this earth so that he wouldn't have to stop doing that for the rest of eternity. And I think that there's something really beautiful in realizing, like, that verse, like, has changed my. Like, I, like, can't get that verse out of my mind the past couple weeks, obviously, because it's really tender to me, which I think is like, a side note about the. This entire section is that as you read it, there will be people that come specifically to your mind, people that have passed and people that you have loved. And you will get a glimpse of them in this section, and you will get a glimpse of heaven and a glimpse of their life there, and a glimpse of really what eternity is and what the plan of happiness really is. And that was the verse that did it for me, for my grandpa. And what's so tender to me is thinking about how earth is preparing us for heaven. And the best things in this life will be the best things there as well. And whatever we love to do here, I think this is maybe just a grace thought, but I think those are gifts to us from God saying, oh, just you wait, because you are going to love eternity. And it's gonna be like that. That's like, my. Like, that verse has just become really tender to me.
- [10:42]
David Butler
Yeah.
- [10:42]
Dave Butler
And I think about him and others in verse 30, where it says, when Jesus got there, he said, for behold from among the righteous. He organized his forces, and he appointed messengers, and he clothed them with power and authority, and he commissioned them go forth and carry the light of the Gospel to all them that are in darkness, to all the spirits of men. And thus was the gospel preached. And the chosen messengers went forth to declare the acceptable day of the Lord, to proclaim liberty to the captives who were bound. And thus the Gospel was preached. It says unto all those who died. And. And then it talks about some of the things that were taught. And then in 35, and says, and so it was made known among the dead, both small and great, that redemption had been wrought through the sacrifice of the Son of God upon the cross. And I love 35 as a reminder that says, none of your people have been forgotten. Small and great God has organized his forces on this side of the veil and on the other side of the veil to make sure all people, small and great, get to hear this great grand message of hope. And that is what 138 does for us, man. It just gives us purpose. And I want to say verse 53 is one of my favorites. In there, too, is one last thought, because he talks about all the people that he sees in heaven. But then 53 had to be the most tender. He said, I saw the prophet Joseph Smith, which was his uncle, and I saw my dad, Hiram Smith, and I saw Brigham Young, who took care of me after my dad died. And to just bring this back to man, this is not just this revelation from a prophet, which it is, but it's a revelation of a grieving son and of a grieving father. And there's something about this section that just reminds us and says.
- [12:34]
David Butler
That.
- [12:36]
Dave Butler
God's ready and willing to heal our hearts. And that revelation comes out of our sadness. Right? I had somebody ask a question the other day about tragedy in their family. It's like, is it okay to cry? Does that still mean I have hope? And I'd say, oh, my gosh. Section138 came in response to tears. This is actually October of 1918 is close to, if not the most, most deaths recorded in a single month in the history of the United States still to this day. So worldwide, we've just been done. We're just finishing up World War I, the Spanish flu that took 50 million people. And then President Joseph F. Smith's own son has just died of an appendix that has burst when he was three years old, is when his father died. And He's a teenager when his mother dies. I mean, he just is and loses so many children also. This was a time and a man just acquainted really well with loss and with death. And I love that this is the Lord's response to it, is this. And one of the word of the week, by the way, everybody is atonement. Because it starts off almost with this invitation, I feel like, to all of us, because it explains in here. He says, as I was reflecting on the great atoning sacrifice made by the Son of God for the redemption of the world and the great and wonderful love made manifest by the Father and the Son, that's when the vision opened up to him. And I kind of feel like this is an invitation to grieving children and grieving parents and grieving grandchildren. And he says, contemplate on the love of the Father and the Son. Contemplate on this great act of redemption. Because I think in moments of that pondering and contemplation, our consolation, our comfort can come more easily from heaven that we can receive our own witnesses of the great good God is doing with those that we love. And so this is a really, really special section, and it fits well with 136 because of all the loss and 137 and all those things that we're going to go into. I just. I think it's really important that we see that God cares about our loss and our sorrows and gives us that promise that earth has no sorrow, that heaven cannot heal. And sometimes it's through visions and answers like this that healing can. Can start to come and hope can start to grow. So, okay, now go enjoy the double field trip in Nauvoo first and then up to Wyoming to talk about some of those awesome stories there. And we will see you next week.
- [15:29]
David Butler
Hi, everyone. I'm David Butler.
- [15:30]
Emily Freeman
I'm Emily Freeman.
- [15:31]
David Butler
This is. Don't miss this again on field trip mode. And this really is our last spot in Nauvoo. You forgot, but it really is this one. Now we're in the backyard of a family called the Browning Family, and we want to go into sections 137 and138 together here to start.
- [15:51]
Dan Jones
So we're going to start in 137.
- [15:54]
Emily Freeman
You'll see that this is actually a revelation that came to the prophet at the temple in Kirtland, Ohio, which we love, that this is temple revelation and would be particularly meaningful to this family.
- [16:07]
Dan Jones
Which is why we chose this backyard to teach this lesson from.
- [16:11]
Emily Freeman
You'll find in verse 10 of 137.
- [16:15]
Dan Jones
A verse that says, and I also beheld that all children who die before.
- [16:19]
Emily Freeman
They arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven. We love that verse for the fact.
- [16:26]
Dan Jones
That right where the camera is, so.
- [16:28]
Emily Freeman
Right where you are standing is the back door of the Browning home. And I can imagine that it's a door that a mom and a dad stood at several times over the course of the time that they lived here for the view of two things that.
- [16:44]
Dan Jones
They would have seen.
- [16:45]
Emily Freeman
And one would be the grave of Lizzie, their little tiny daughter who died while they were here in Nauvoo. And the other would be the temple which hinted towards the promise of these blessings that they had learned about in Kirtland.
- [17:02]
Dan Jones
And.
- [17:03]
Emily Freeman
And I think to myself how this Revelation 1:37 and how that temple would have given them so much hope, particularly as we end this time in Nauvoo. And they are going to have to leave both that temple and that baby. And the only thing they will be able to carry with them on that trek west is the promise that came in the Kirtland temple and the promise they learned about in the Nauvoo temple and the promises that would continue to come.
- [17:35]
David Butler
Yeah, and it almost seems like that's the only thing that will get them right through that trek. I mean, how do you bury a child and then move on the next day? It is hope and promises that are there. And what's powerful is many, many years later, 50 plus years later, the revelations of hope and. And promises to come keep coming. This one through the prophet Joseph F. Smith in section 138, who interestingly drove his wagon across the plains with his widowed mother. You remember he's the son of Hyrum Smith and was just a little boy when his father was martyred. The first time he met his dad was down in the dungeon of Liberty Jail. You remember when he held this little baby down in there and drove this wagon with his widowed mother across the plains. And as president of the church is contemplating a really hard time in his own personal history and the history of the United states, World War I just ending the Spanish flu. His own son had died from appendicitis. And it's in, like, those kind of dark hours, like pondering all of that, that he gets this marvelous revelation in 138. And two of the things we love from this are this one at the very beginning, it says, reflecting upon the great atoning sacrifice of the Son of God and the great and wonderful love of The Father and the Son, this vision came forward. And I think that is a powerful principle that reflecting on the great love of the Father and the Son brought these additional truths, this vision of the spirit world. But just listen to the wording of this, of these people in the spirit world and connect them to the people of Nauvoo. When it says all these who had departed firm in the hope of a glorious resurrection through the grace of God the Father and his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, gathered together to wait. And we get another promise of those who've passed on beyond the veil. How the story isn't over for anyone. So it's so awesome to think that in Kirtland and then again in Nauvoo and then again with prophets and temples in the Salt Lake Valley and beyond, there are still promises and principles and hope that people get a chance to hold on to, to move them through the rough times in their lives.
- [20:07]
Emily Freeman
A lot of people will talk about in those final days at Nauvoo, there were two things that were happening. And one was everyone standing in line.
- [20:16]
Dan Jones
In order to get the blessings that were promised there. And a lot of people talked about.
- [20:20]
Emily Freeman
It was the strength that came from those promises that probably got them over the plains and to where they would be going next.
- [20:29]
Dave Butler
And day and night, yes, they never closed.
- [20:32]
Emily Freeman
It was day and night.
- [20:32]
Dan Jones
All through the night, people were standing.
- [20:34]
Emily Freeman
In line to do that with Brigham.
- [20:37]
David Butler
Getting four hours of sleep per day, but not at the same time. He would steal little catnaps throughout, but just administering those promised blessings and the ordinances there.
- [20:49]
Dan Jones
And you love ordinances, what was happening.
- [20:51]
Emily Freeman
That would connect families together and give people the strength they needed to be able to do what they had to do. And so on one hand, we love that in those final moments, we want you to remember this little grave and that temple as part of those parting moments of Nauvoo. But we also want to take you to the blacksmith shop on Parley street where they were preparing wagons and preparing families and preparing temporally also for that trek that they would be taking across the plain. So we're going to take you down to Parley street right now to that blacksmith shop and then down to the river where they would have taken off from. And then we're about to go to Martin's Cove, so we will. We'll see you there.
- [21:36]
David Butler
We are in Wyoming now at Martin's Cove. We came here a lot faster than the rest of the people who did. But we want to talk about in this video with just Little stories and songs about that. Just like our history as a people of them leaving Nauvoo and following a prophet and coming to their promised land in the Salt Lake Valley. And this place here, Martin's Cove, is like just an iconic spot to represent their journey, all their journeys put together.
- [22:07]
Dan Jones
And all those journeys were so different for so many people. I have a grandpa who came across with the pioneers, and he wrote in his journal one line about his pioneer journey. He says, I left the Mississippi and reached the Salt Lake Valley without seeing one particle of rain or snow.
- [22:25]
David Butler
And everybody here would have loved that experience.
- [22:28]
Dan Jones
I just imagine him laying out under stars and it was warm, and they probably swam in the rivers, and that was his journey. And then we're going to talk a lot today about the Martin and Willie handcart companies who came through here in October. And we actually chose to come in October, too, which we're a little bit regretting because it is freezing, you guys. Some of these videos, you're going to see us with gloves and parkins and it.
- [22:53]
David Butler
And if you see snot, I'm so sorry, too.
- [22:55]
Dan Jones
It is so cold. But we wanted to come at this time because we just wanted to experience what that might have been like. And I love that it's true for all of us. Sometimes our journey is that we just travel and there's not one particle of rain or snow. And sometimes our journey proves us, and it's the journey that lets us become acquainted with God. And that's where we want to start today, and that's what we want to talk about here. Where we are at Martin's Cove is where they camped for a while when those storms came in in the middle of October, where they stopped and waited because they weren't sure how they were going to make it the rest of the way. And we're going to introduce you to a lot of saints who were here. And some of the stories are hard and sad, and you just love the courage that they had while they were here. One of our favorite people who was here is a woman by the name of Amy Loder. She was a mom who had all of her kids here, and they were trying to get across the plains with everyone else who was there. And on one particularly cold night when it had stormed, she woke up the next day. And the people talk about it was really hard to get up and get going. In fact, lots of journal accounts say it was actually easier to die than it was to just keep moving along the trail. And part of what they had to do was keep getting each other going and motivating people to go. And Amy woke up and her girls were laying down. And she said, come up. She said to Patience, you get up and start the fire. And Patience said, I can't, I'm too cold, and I'm not getting out of bed today. And so then she told her daughter, Tamar, you get up and start the fire. And she said, I can't, I'm too cold. And she asked her daughter Maria to get up. And she was like, I can't get up and anymore. And the thought of this mom just looking at her kids and thinking, how am I going to get them to go? And you love this part of the story. So she goes over to where the fire is, and this cute mom, after this whole entire trek, starts dancing. And she dances and dances until she falls down. And as soon as she falls down, the three daughters jump up and they run over to see if she's okay. And then she just starts laughing. And she says to them, I knew if I did that mom tricks, you would get up. And I just love that mom just giving her girls life and encouragement and helping them to continue on, on that journey. And that is what they needed was encouragers and people just to keep them going.
- [25:27]
David Butler
And what's interesting is, like, every single journey provides opportunities, right? Had it not been so cold and not been so hard, she wouldn't have had the opportunity to be an encourager and to be a hope giver. So you look at those journeys and they. And they give those moments to be acquainted with God, like you were saying, and you can go one way or the other, right? Some people lost their faith on this trip, and some people gained faith on this trip. One of the people that gained faith is a man by the name of Francis Webster and his wife Betsy, who immigrated from England. And when they immigrated over to the United States, they brought a lot of money to be able to outfit just the fanciest wagon. And Betsy was pregnant, and they had the plan, let's get there, build a house, put our furniture in, have the baby, start our life. And then they found out that so many people didn't have the money to make it. And so they answered the call and they sacrificed their money to outfit nine other people.
- [26:26]
Emily Freeman
They sold their wagon.
- [26:27]
David Butler
Yeah, they had this super Cadillac wagon to ride across in comfort. And they sold it so that nine other people would be able to all come in handcarts. And when they got to Iowa City, the handcarts weren't ready. And they started to Ask, can anybody, like, share handcarts? Because we got to go or we're never going to make it. And they were one of the first ones to volunteer and said, we'll share with another family. We can do that. So just you see the sacrifice all along the way. One story in their journey that I love so much is they're traveling one day and their friend, whose name is James Blake, has just stopped because he said, I can't go anymore. He was too sick and too tired to go. A father of four, and as a father of young kids, to imagine him being so weary that he felt like he was going to send them on alone is heartbreaking, you know, to me. And Francis and Betsy said, no way. Hop in the wagon. And so they put him in their own handcart and they pulled him for 17 miles into the next resting spot. That story, by the way, is particularly special to Jenny and I because that's Jenny's great, great grandfather, James Blake, the man who was carried. But they get to this spot, and you were going to talk about her having her baby here.
- [27:40]
Dan Jones
Interesting, because you think about on September 27, she has that baby, Betsy has.
- [27:45]
David Butler
The baby instead of in the valley, which they planned, right?
- [27:49]
Dan Jones
Yes, if they had gone in the wagon. But now they're in this handcart company. And three weeks after she has that baby is when the first storms come. On October 19, those storms start coming in. The rescuers don't come until October 31st is when they get here. And Frances and Betsy and their new baby, Amy, will not get into the Valley until November 3rd 30th. And I just think about those. That mom and that tiny baby and her going through this whole thing with that happening as they go across. And you. You just think about, I mean, the people who are sick, the people who are dying. And I love the story that we hear about Francis Webster in that Sunday school class all those years later.
- [28:32]
David Butler
So when he grows up, he's in Cedar City, an old man now, and people are criticizing, well, the Martin and Willie Handcart Company shouldn't have come. That was dumb on their part. They should have done it like this and done it like that. And he stands up in the back of the class, and this is what he's recorded as saying. He says, I ask you to stop this criticism. You're discussing a matter you know nothing about. Cold, historic facts mean nothing here, for they give you no proper interpretations of the questions involved. I've pulled my handcart when I was so weak and weary from Illness and lack of food. I could hardly put one foot in front of the other. I looked ahead and saw a patch of sand or a hill or a slope. And I've said, I can only go that far, and there I must give up, for I cannot pull the load through it. I've gone on to that sand, and when I reached it, the cart began pushing me. I've looked back many times to see who was pushing, but my eyes saw no one. I knew then that the angels of God were there. Was I sorry that I chose to come by handcart?
- [29:30]
Dave Butler
No.
- [29:31]
David Butler
Neither then, nor. Nor any minute of my life, since. The price we paid to become acquainted with God was a privilege to pay. And I'm thankful that I was privileged to come in the Martin Handcard Company. And that is like the heart and soul of this is that journey that was so difficult and filled with moments of rescue and sacrifice actually became opportunities and chances to become acquainted with angels and with God. And people like Francis and Betsy and others took that opportunity to become acquainted with God.
- [30:06]
Dan Jones
It's so interesting because I was here many years ago, standing almost in the same place, and I was looking out at this cove and thinking about the pioneers. And I was standing next to a woman who was here as well. I was dressed in all pioneer clothes because I was on a trek, but she was just in normal clothes. And as we stood there next to each other, it was random that we were even by each other. But she looked at me and she was like, it's remarkable, isn't it? And I said to her, it really is. And then as I sat there thinking about it, I was like, I know why I think it's remarkable because this is the place where so many people were protected from that storm. But I wondered why she thought it was remarkable. And so I said to her, well, tell me what you're thinking. And she said, well, I'm not a member of your faith. I am actually a geologist. I am here to study the land. And I came because this is one of three places in the entire world where thousands of years ago, the way that this cove is created, a sandbar grew up in the midst of it from the wind. And it's. It's that sandbar. And then the way the COVID is, makes this wind break right here for storms. And I came to study the sandbar. And then she walked away. And I sat there for a minute, and I started thinking to myself, it's so interesting that God would have created the land just the way he did, that there Would have been a cove right here in the middle of Wyoming, One of three places in the whole world where a sandbar would have formed thousands of years before. Martin even stood. Started thinking about having a handcart company so that on that October week when they got here and they were in desperate need of deliverance and shelter and rescue, there was a place that had already been formed with that in mind. And it makes me think to myself, what has God already planned for you in your life? Where is your cove? Where is the place that he has prepared for your deliverance and for your rescue and for your safe keeping? Because he will do that for all of us. I love when we read about Albert, this cute man named Albert Jones, who was also here, and he talks about that storm on October 19th.
- [32:31]
David Butler
Yeah, he says, we woke up in the morning and found some 6 inches of snow on the ground. From this date commenced a struggle, the details of which will never be told. Suffice it to say that at that first fall of snow, a great gloom was upon the entire camp.
- [32:49]
Dan Jones
It's so interesting because years later, he also talks to a group of people 50 years after that time happened. And he says this. Our hearts are lifted up in praise to God for all his blessings we now enjoy. And though the handcart episode is one of the unpleasant experiences of our lives, the schooling that it gave tended to make our faith in our religion stronger. And then I love this line and our appreciation of God's own hand dealing with us as a people more easily discerned. And when you think about those two lines, Francis Webster saying, this is the place where we became acquainted with God. And when Albert says it was this experience that helped us to better recognize God's own hand in dealing with this. And I love when he says it made it more easily discerned. I think each of us can look back at our lives and see those times when we became acquainted with God and those tutoring experiences that schooled us to know how to discern when his hand is working in our life. And that's the first lesson we want you to remember from this area where we are. We're going to take you to a lot of places in this country, but from Martin's Cove, if you can just think to yourself, where is your cove? Where is the place where you became acquainted with God? And how were you schooled to more easily discern his hand working in your life?
- [34:21]
David Butler
Okay, here we are at Fort Seminole. This is a spot that we'll tell you a lot of stories about, but One of the things that we want to start with is that call that came in the October 1856 General Conference. Remember when Brigham Young. You've heard this story before, when he heard that there were still immigrants out on the plains. And the entire message of that conference was, go out on the plains and go bring them in. And it was a call that people said he had a spirit of urgency, that there was no delay, that he started listing out what people would need. And there was a man that you may have heard of before. His name is Dan Jones. Not the Dan Jones from jail. Yeah, I preach my gospel. But another, if you want a good kid, you should name them Dan Jones, because every Dan Jones we've ever met in our life is so good to the core. In fact, when the conference was over, there were several people that approached Dan Jones and said to him, we want you to come. Or another says, you look like someone I want on this. And I think there's something telling about his heart and his character that so many people. Right. When Brigham Young gave that call to rescue immediately, several people thought of Dan Jones as a rescuer.
- [35:39]
Dan Jones
You just love, too, that he was all in from, like, as soon as he said he was going to go, he was all in. He talks about being at the front first of the group. He talks about there were no heroes in the group, but that everybody just gave everything they had to this rescue mission. And we love the idea about that. He talks about when they rode up and found the Willie Company and they saw them all sitting there, and just the hunger and the fatigue and the exhaustion, it just how much it hurt their hearts to see what the conditions were, and that they felt a need to go further and find the Martin Company. So they told that group, there's a wagon coming right behind us, and you're going to be fine. And they set off, and they travel for two weeks. And he writes in his journal, we traveled hard. We didn't even stop to eat. And he said, we. The longer we traveled, the more anxiety we felt, because we were strong men and we had provisions and things to keep us warm. And we were struggling. And we worried so much for them, for what we were going to find. And after two weeks, they. They couldn't find anything.
- [36:51]
Dave Butler
And you just.
- [36:51]
David Butler
I mean, again, you see evidence of. I mean, that is the Jesus's leave the 99 principle, like, painted out in action, that he could have easily said, well, we found the Willie Company. Like, I mean, what else could we do? But that for every night he thought, I've got to go harder. I mean, just imagine him thinking that, like, I've got to find them.
- [37:13]
Dan Jones
And it's so interesting when he writes in his journal, we found the night severe as they were traveling. And then what happens is they see a footprint in the snow, and that's what alerts them to the direction they need to go to be able to find the Martin Company. And I love is just that one tiny footprint that they're like, this is where we have to go and this is who we have to help now. And they go in and they bring that rescue and they're there for that time. And then they start talking about, we're not going to be able to bring all this stuff with us back to the valley. We're not going to be able to bring all of the stuff in the handcarts. We're just going to save the people and someone has to stay. And when they asked if anyone could stay to guard the stuff, you love that Dan Jones says, any of us would do it. There's any of us. And I think, honestly, if you looked around the group of men, that probably wasn't true. But he had been so quick to be. Of course any of us would do it. And so they actually come to him and say, will you stay and find two men that you want to stay with you? And he writes in his journal, I have left home for a few days, not prepared to remain. But I could not back out from that because I had said any of us would do it. And so I did. And it's crazy because how long do they stay?
- [38:41]
David Butler
They stay from. They're here from November. When or right that time period when they leave, they get into the Salt Lake Valley in November all the way until the next summer, until June. They are.
- [38:51]
Dan Jones
When they start, they have 20 days of rations. That's all they have when they begin is 20 days of rations.
- [38:57]
David Butler
And these wood walls behind us look really warm, but they are not blocking.
- [39:04]
Dave Butler
Anything for the record.
- [39:05]
Dan Jones
So they stay this whole time with 20 days of rations and they just have to live on what they can find out here. And he writes two other things in his journal that I love. He says this. We asked the Lord to direct us and we felt to trust God. And then he says one more thing in his journal. And as we think about rescuing, about being the rescuers, there's so many lessons we can learn from Dan Jones. I love when he says this. I went out after night and asked the Lord to help me out. I told him I desired to do exactly what was best, but didn't know a thing about it. And how many times has that been you as you look at a rescue situation? I want to do exactly what is best, but I don't know a thing about it. And as we think about the lesson from this rescuer friend, Dan Jones, there's two things that we love.
- [39:59]
Dave Butler
Yeah.
- [39:59]
David Butler
And the first one is to look for footprints in the snow, evidence of people in need of rescue. That if you're watching for that deliberately and looking for it, you will see signs of the people that God is leading you to rescue.
- [40:15]
Dan Jones
And the second thing is rescuing is hard, and we may not always feel like we're cut out for the task at hand. We may feel like we haven't prepared for what we're walking into, and we may not feel like we have all the knowledge we need to be able to do it. And I love the lesson. He says, just approach the Lord and say, I want to do what is best, but I don't know a thing about it. And then trust the Lord will tell you how to participate in that rescue. And we're going to see from all these stories that miracles will come.
- [40:49]
David Butler
Okay. We want to keep talking about the rescuer story because it really is kind of the. I guess the heartbeat of this place is the story of rescue. And we talked about Brigham Young sending those people out and Dan Jones and the great lessons we learned there. Right now, we're really close to the banks of the Sweetwater river, where we've. A lot of us have heard those stories of the rescuers who carried people across the frozen water. And we just want to keep talking about that idea and the lessons about rescue.
- [41:19]
Dan Jones
So one of our favorites is probably one of your favorites, too, Ephraim Hanks. And one of the things we love is he's a lot like Dan Jones. The night before that conference that Brigham Young talked at, he had a dream. And in the dream, he was told to prepare to go help and get the people out on the plains. And. And he had the dream the first time and went back to sleep. And then he woke up, and the dream came again, and he went back to sleep. And then a third time, the dream came again and said, the handcart people are in trouble, and you are wanted. Will you go help them? What's so interesting, because he actually prepared and he went to the conference on Saturday and Sunday morning, is when Brigham Young gave that call where he said, we're going to put aside every other talk that we had prepared, prepared for today, and the Sermon is go out and rescue the people on the plains. And the men said they needed several days to get ready. And you love when Ephraim Hanks says, I am ready now. That's such a great principle for a rescuer to just be prepared for the rescue. I love when he talks about how desperate the people were for the rescue. Dan Jones talked about it and Ephraim Hanks talks about it also. And Ephraim says this, which I really love. After he gets there, he's the one who brings that buffalo. He comes in, he gives a lot of blessings to people who are sick and dying at that time. And then he says this at the end of his experience here. I am a firm believer in the efficacy of prayer. And then he says this quote, which is so good. The Lord does do strange things, but I notice he always counts on human folk to help him out. And that really is what is going to happen here. Even though the Lord provided that cove and that little haven and that respite from that five day blizzard that was going to come, he also had prepared people to enter into that story. And you love that. One of the people who was there had a dream and he knew rescuers were going to come and they were going to help him. And he has this dream that night before that two men will come in blue coats and they will bring a wagon of provisions to help them. And they wake up the next morning and the snow is 18 inches deep. And he talks about how weary and worn the people were, that they didn't even want to get going. But he goes at the very front of the wagon train because he is so sure that rescue is going to come. And then it's so fun when he describes what that was like.
- [43:44]
David Butler
Yeah. One of the rescuers is Joseph Young. It's actually Brigham's son, and he's part of that first company also that says, I'll go, I'll go rescue. And as he comes in, they say he was riding a white mule and a blue overcoat. So because the white mule kind of blended in to the rest of the snow and his coat kind of like flared in the wind, like everybody looked at him and they thought they called him the blue Angel. And these angels that came almost as they were flying in. And this is what a 16 year old, Albert Jones, we talked about him earlier, this is what he said when he rode in. He says the scene that presented itself himself on his arrival, I will never forget. Women and men surrounded him, weeping and crying aloud on their knees, holding to the Skirts of his coat, as though they were afraid he would escape from their grasp and fly away. Joseph stood up in their midst, drawn up to his full height, and gazed upon their upturned faces, his eyes full of tears. I, boy, as I was, prayed, God bless him, and I love that. Thought of he hadn't said a word or given them food or done anything, but just his presence, just him showing up, was exactly what they needed.
- [45:01]
Dan Jones
We're going to move over now to the river crossing, to the place where a lot of those stories are told about the Sweetwater on this trek and finish the rest of what we want to teach you about this rescue over there.
- [45:14]
David Butler
All right, Here we are just on the banks of the Sweetwater River. And as much as we love Joseph Young, just three days home from his mission, coming to, like, help out in the rescue efforts, we know that there's stories of several other people who were just around that age, the boys of the valley who came to help in that rescue effort. And even though we, like, talked about up, you know, up there a little bit, that sometimes just showing up is what people need. When they started to go to the Salt Lake Valley, they got to this spot or somewhere nearby and got to a river. And it might not look very wide or deep right here, but where we are, it's pretty windy, and if you could imagine, snow on the ground, and it just, for days, just had, like, no energy and no food. The very thought of trying to cross this river just exhausted everybody. And they collapsed, and these boys took the people in their arms and they carried them across the river, back and forth, back and forth, several of them, until the entire company was across the river and on their journey. And that, I mean, that is the scene. To think of that and to think of the sacrifice that they were willing to do to help rescue these people is so touching. As we stand here on the banks.
- [46:32]
Dan Jones
Of this river, I love the thought that we hear from another one of the people who was in the party that was being rescued. His name was Joseph Elder. And he talks about seeing that those rescuers come from the valley and coming to where they are. And he said he was in a wagon train when they saw them come. And just the shouts of those people as they shouted out. And he said it was a shout you had never heard before. And he thought to himself, why? Why did we shout? We had seen so many other wagons come by, and we hadn't shouted for any of those wagons. And then he says this. It came from the hearts of faithful saints who felt Their lives were in the hands of God. What made them shout is the spirit of the Lord bearing testimony that these wagons were saviors coming to our relief. And I just love the thought of that. These saviors who, who left their homes and their. What was comfortable for them and they decided to just show up in the lives of someone else and became for them saviors. They became deliverers and rescuers and exactly what they needed in that moment. And, and that's one of the best parts of the rescue. It's human folk who just show up.
- [47:51]
David Butler
Which is probably why there's so much Jesus in places like this. There's so much of his spirit here because that's his ministry and mission.
- [48:00]
Dan Jones
Yep. So good.
- [48:03]
David Butler
Where we are right now is at a base of the part of the trail called Rocky Ridge. This will actually be the most trying part of the trail for the Willie Company at least. And most of the tragedy that happens that you hear of is with them. Remember, we were about 15 miles behind us is where we were at the willows. And they would have gotten here in the early morning and had a 700 foot ascent over a couple of miles and then another 12, 15 miles to go.
- [48:35]
Dan Jones
They sleep overnight. They wake up that morning and they're going to start this journey and they're going to take their handcarts and they go up about five miles is that 700 foot ascent and then they'll walk across the ridge until they get to Rock Creek hollow. It's a 15 mile journey and it takes them 20 hours. They don't arrive at Rock Creek Hollow until 5:30am the next morning. And by the time they get there, they've lost people along the way. But even people that will die through the remainder of that night when they get there. It just, it was a hard part of the trip for this group.
- [49:11]
David Butler
And you just have to imagine this is after everything they did at the beginning after camping out, waiting for the rescuers. The whole thing happens in knee deep 18 inches of snow and ice as they are moving up and they are out of supplies and out of energy.
- [49:27]
Dan Jones
And it's October 23rd and the night of a blizzard that hits. And they talk about, when you read the journal accounts, just this gale force winds that they are walking into as they are trying to go up this mountain. We're going to actually let you walk up that mountain with us. We want to show you some parts of this trail because if you can't describe it as well as you can experience it, but as we're walking up this Trail we want you to be thinking about all of these people that are just worn and weary. They have been through it by the time they get here. And you're going to have widows that are trying to get up this mountain with their little children that are trying to come up. You have brothers looking after brothers and sisters, siblings that are trying to watch out for each other when they get up to the top. It talks about mothers trying to reclaim all their children and people looking for each other. It's hard enough that every man is for himself trying to get up this trail.
- [50:28]
David Butler
Yeah. And I just think you think about that whole ascent up there and just the collapse when they finally meet the end. And the only way they could have made it is one, with miraculous power and strength from God and two, that they had each other to do the trail with. And you think about this spot and you were like, this is a. This is a picture of what the two great commandments look like. To love God and to look forward to his promises, but also to love each other and look out for each other. And they never could have made it had they not done it together.
- [51:02]
Dan Jones
I think it's so interesting to be at this part because it's not often you get to do a whole trek in one day or to do as we've just done a whole trek in one hour. And this is David's first time here. This is actually my ninth time coming through Martin's Cove and the area here. And it is a place that just. It draws me, it calls to me, it's such a sacred place to me. But I'm so interested to think of you from 8 o' clock this morning when you knew nothing about this place to now. What stands out to you about your experience today?
- [51:37]
David Butler
I think just this idea of somebody sacrificing for a God that they love, that has been my recurring thought and it was really strong when we were at the Willows. And that's just been my continuing thought. Even here, where it's just like, what is it that can motivate a person to keep on going? And I. And I really think it's like love of God and love of others. I mean that when I said that a second ago, it's because that's like what has been just swirling in my heart the whole time over thinking about it.
- [52:06]
Dan Jones
Rocky Ridge is one of my favorite places in this country that you come to. And it's not very often you get to come here. It's actually hard to get a reservation, to be able to walk up this trail and so you'll be happy to be able to watch it on this video. But one of the reasons why I like it so much is because so many of us come to Rocky Ridge moments in our life. So many of us come to the bottom of a trail that when we look at what's ahead of us, we think to ourself. I don't know if I can make it to the top of this that's in front of me. I don't know if I have the energy. I don't know if I have the faith. I don't know if I have the endurance to face what is ahead for me here. And I love this quote from a woman who talks about this day, this moment and she says, I was grateful for, for my faith in God. For it was only through this faith that I was able to carry on at all. I confess it seemed at times that the Lord had deserted us. However, the Lord had not deserted us. And I think to myself, we're all going to have these Rocky Ridge moments. We are all going to have moments in our life where we are faced with something that seems we may not be able to, to overcome it, we might not be able to press through it, that it would be easier for us to sit down and, and stop than try and surmount the trial at hand. And I love when I walk up this trail thinking of all of those people who went, the moms by themselves that were watching for those kids, the siblings that were watching over little brothers and little sisters and help each of them helped get each other through this. What would have been insurmountable in any other occasion because of a God who was watching over them and because of their faith that what was ahead of them was worth walking toward. And that is true for all of us. The Lord will be with us in our Rocky Ridge moments. And there are blessings waiting on the other side. One of my favorite parts about finishing a trek at Martin's Cove is when you come to this bridge and the lesson that you learn from this bridge. This bridge is called the Bell Crossing. And you love when you come here and you get here all in your pioneer clothes and you get your handcarts. If you're here for a several day trek, you come and you cross this bridge and you are going to talk about the rescue that happened in 1856. You enter that whole place and you hear those stories that we've been talking about Ephraim Hanks and Dan Jones and the rescuers and everything that happened. And we learn all of those things. And then when you come back, when your trek is over, you actually come back across the same bridge. And there is a stone monument on the other side. This is called the First Rescue. On this monument on the other side, it says the Second Rescue. And as you cross that bridge and you get ready to enter back into regular life, there's a little moment where you just pause and think about, what have I learned? What are the stories that I'm going to take back into my life with me that I learned from this experience at Martin's Cove. And we're hoping that over the course of this past hour, maybe there are some lessons you want to take back into life with you. And we thought we would close today with just two of our favorite stories.
- [55:34]
David Butler
Yeah. And the first one is of one of the boys who was rescued. His name is Andrew Jones. And when he talks about being rescued the night he was rescued, he said, I made a vow. Standing beside a log is what he says. And then later on in his life, it's 1862. So what's the math? Six years later, 1850, it doesn't matter. You do the math. Six years later, there's another group of people who are out, an immigrating group of saints who need a rescue. And the bishop of his ward down in Provo calls for rescuers. And he says, this now came the opportunity to fill a vow that I made on the Plains in 1856 when standing by the campfire made by the mountain boys who came to assist us handcart people, which was to the effect, should an opportunity arise in my life when I could be of service in aiding people to cross the plains, as I and mine had been helped, I would surely engage in that duty. And it is so neat to think about. I've received love, I've received rescue. And now to make a promise. If that opportunity ever comes in my life, I want to make sure I do that again, to just show people. I think one of the neat things about those people who were rescued is not only that they got rescued, like, yay, now we have food. And. But the thought that, like, wow, I was worth being rescued, that's so good, you know, that all of that. All of that pulled together for the small group of people and then the effect it had on him. And he said, I want to live my life like that as a rescuer from now on.
- [57:10]
Dan Jones
Oh, I love that so much. I love the story of a woman whose name was Susanna Stone Lloyd. She was 25 when she came on the Pioneer Trek. And she talks about how hard it was. I love that. In one of her journal accounts, she talks about sitting under a covered wagon in the middle of a blizzard and singing Come, Come, Ye Saints while she sat there. And as she did that whole journey, there came a time where people would start trading everything they had in order to get buffalo meat or anything they could from the Indians. And she says she had traded her mirror, her looking glass, she calls it, with an Indian. And she had traveled the rest that way and got into the Salt Lake Valley, and she had the opportunity to see herself in a mirror and talked about. She couldn't even recognize herself. She had changed so much from the journey. Several years later, Mary Ellen Smoot talked about Susanna Stone, and she said it was interesting because that journey had changed her on the inside and the outside. And I love the thought of that, of being so changed by an experience that you're changed both on the inside of inside and the outside. And every time I walk across that bridge, I think to myself about Susanna Stone and the. How this experience, this experience of becoming acquainted with God changed her both on the inside and out. And I think to myself, I want to be like that. I want what we have just learned from Martin's Cove to change me both on the inside and the outside. I want to remember what we've learned about rest and to look for the footprints and to see those boys from the valley who carried people across the stream, and Ephraim who said, I am ready now, and the Lord will use his own folks to help and sacrifice.
- [58:58]
David Butler
And the good God is.
- [59:01]
Dan Jones
And the children, the children who climbed so many mountains. Those are the things I want to remember. And I want to be changed, and I want to be a better rescuer.
- [59:11]
David Butler
Yeah. And hope that we just ask ourselves that question, not on the end of, like, this trek experience, but like just the whole Doctrine Covenants now leaving this year. What am I going to take with me, and how am I going to use that to become who I want to be?
- [59:27]
Dan Jones
Yeah. Okay. We thought we would end kind of in the same place that we started in with the thought that there were so many people who crossed the plains. And we've spent a lot of time talking today about the Willy and Martin Handgart companies that came in that winter storm that was a blizzard. But it's important to remember that some of the people really just packed up their stuff and came in three months in the summer, and they really did just sleep under the stars, and they played in the rivers and they sat around Campfires and they sang songs. And that was also part of the pioneer journey. We're at six crossings now over by Willy's Meadow and everything that happened there. And this is such a fun place when you come for trek because it is all of that happy. Just what you imagine the pioneer life would have been like. And we wanted to go to 136, since we snuck this chapter in with this week, and talk a little bit about what it was like to get ready to go on that big pioneer trek when people left. And I love when it starts out.
- [60:28]
David Butler
First we have to say, this is my birthday. Revelation, January 14th.
- [60:32]
Dan Jones
Oh, happy birthday.
- [60:33]
Dave Butler
Thanks.
- [60:33]
David Butler
That's when this was given at winter quarters.
- [60:35]
Dan Jones
Yes. Right. When they were about Brigham Young.
- [60:37]
Dave Butler
Yeah.
- [60:38]
David Butler
So it's a unique section in the Doctrine Covenants because it was a revelation to Brigham Young. For this is how we're going to cross.
- [60:44]
Dan Jones
And I love when it says this. This is the word and the will of the Lord concerning the camp of Israel in their journeyings to the west. And I love when you think about, like, as soon as you read it, it just makes me think, is that the same way he started out with Moses?
- [60:58]
Emily Freeman
This is.
- [60:59]
Dan Jones
This is my will. When you take the children of Israel across that wilderness for those 40 years, it's almost as if that same thing is happening again. And I love when he says, and.
- [61:10]
David Butler
How neat it is to like, for them to recognize and be identified with. Yes, we're a modern house of Israel. That's who we are, right?
- [61:17]
Dan Jones
Yep. I love that part. And he says, you're going to be organized. You're going to walk in all the ordinances of the Lord and it's going to be part of your covenant as you go across. And then he tells them, I want you to organize in companies. And they're going to have captains of 10 and captains of 50 and they're going to be watched over, everybody watched over. And I love when he tells them, go to with your might, that they're just going to dive into this thing and they're all in together as they're going across the plains.
- [61:46]
David Butler
And then this section is just full. You'll see of a lot of different, like, very specific instruction to this modern camp of Israel. And I like if you Skip down to 28, down towards 28, I mean, there's so much you're going to find in here. This is just some of our favorites. If you're merry, praise the Lord with singing and music and dancing and praise and thanksgiving. If you're sorrowful Then call upon the Lord your God with supplications for your soul. Fear not your enemies. Be a good steward. You're going to be tried in all things. And it's just interesting, I think, to think about two things. One, these are very specific instructions for a time period. Like, none of this revelation came when they were in Nauvoo or in Missouri or anything like that. But at the same time, it's the same God and it's the same covenant people. And so it's neat that it's like different revelation is going to come at different times for the need for our need. But it's the same God with the same purposes in mind.
- [62:43]
Dan Jones
And you totally see that in verse 21 when he says, I am the Lord your God, even the God of your father fathers, the God of Abraham and the Isaac and the God of Isaac and of Jacob. I am he who led the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt. And my arm is stretched out in the last days to save my people, Israel. And I just love that. It's like he's saying, I know what to do. I know how to do this. I've done it before. I moved a group of people and brought them into their own promised land. And I did it then and I can do it again now. And we just love the thought of that. We thought it'd be so fun to just end with a song that is a little bit more upbeat. And just the thought of them packing up and organizing their companies and getting ready to go to Utah, a land of promise for them, of peace, it tells us in here, just a place where they can finally move forward.
- [63:33]
David Butler
And then. Yeah, and then whatever your journey is, that you can expect that God knows what to do and he will guide you as he did the people of the past. So we hope you enjoyed our journey here out on the plains of Wyoming. And we'll see you next week in the warm, happy basement.
- [63:51]
Dan Jones
We're so happy.
- [63:54]
David Butler
Bye, everyone. If you want to follow along in everything we're doing, you can find us on Instagram at don't miss this study, at this week's Grace and at MrDave Butler.
- [64:03]
Grace Freeman
And if you want to subscribe to the app or get our weekly newsletter letter, all of the information can be found@don'tmissthestudy.com See you next week.