Wilford Woodruff, Fourth President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints: History of His Life and Labors, as Recorded in His Daily JournalsWoodruff, Wilford
Religion
Wilford Woodruff, Fourth President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints: History of His Life and Labors, as Recorded in His Daily Journals
Woodruff, Wilford
Woodruff, Wilford, 1807-1898
"Elder Pulsipher opened with prayer. He knelt down and asked the Lord
in the name of Jesus Christ for what he wanted. His manner of prayer
and the influence which went with it impressed me greatly. The spirit
of the Lord rested upon me and bore witness that he was a servant
of God. After singing, he preached to the people for an hour and a
half. The spirit of God rested mightily upon him and he bore a strong
testimony of the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon and of the
mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I believed all that he said. The
spirit bore witness of its truth. Elder Cheney then arose and added his
testimony to the truth of the words of Elder Pulsipher.
"Liberty was then given by the elders to any one in the congregation
to arise and speak for or against what they had heard as they might
choose. Almost instantly I found myself upon my feet. The spirit of the
Lord urged me to bear testimony to the truth of the message delivered
by these elders. I exhorted my neighbors and friends not to oppose
these men; for they were the true servants of God. They had preached
to us that night the pure gospel of Jesus Christ. When I sat down, my
brother Azmon arose and bore a similar testimony. He was followed by
several others."
No more beautiful illustration of the manner in which this new message
found its way into the homes of thousands of people could be given than
that taken from the quotations herein given. The power of an elder's
testimony has borne down upon {34} the souls of men and women until
like the Saints of old they have exclaimed: "Men and brethren, what
shall we do." The spirit of this meeting was not only convincing, but
controlling in its power. No man arose to say nay. If there were present
in that meeting a spirit of dissent, opposition, or hatred, it was
quelled and silenced by the power of God manifested in the testimonies
of those humble men.
The Woodruff brothers were aroused to a spirit of investigation. They
were full of hope and of grand expectations. They wanted to harmonize
the new message with the word of God as pronounced in Holy Writ. They
had rested heretofore their faith upon its teachings. In all matters
religious, it had been their supreme guide. They were anxious to know
more, and therefore took the elders with them to their home and sat up
late that night conversing upon the principles of the gospel.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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