Podcast appearances and mentions of Mack Wilberg

If Thou Endure Well by Neal A. Maxwell and Song- It is Well With My Soul.  ACU Sunday Series. None of us can or will be immune from the trials of life. However, if we learn to endure our struggles well, they will be turned into blessings in eternity. If Thou Endure Well. Neal A. Maxwell.  1984 Watch this video at-   https://youtu.be/t023RmGUF6Y?si=hZpDhGPIurrmjwqv BYU Speeches 228K subscribers 753,022 views Aug 25, 2020 Introduction: 0:00 Enduring Well: 0:50 The Savior Endured: 2:26 The Role of Faith: 3:42 Endurance is for Everyone: 4:49 A Scripture About Endurance: 6:42 Disappointing Ourselves: 7:31 Life is not Linear: 8:33 Enduring Temptation: 9:17 Be Steady: 10:29 Intellectual and Behavioral Endurance: 11:35 The Gospel Feast: 13:17 Don't Give Up: 14:55 Conversion Process: 18:33 Enduring Uncertainty: 20:05 A Schooling Process: 26:01 Gethsemane: 31:09 Lightening Our Loads: 37:10 Cares of the World: 42:24 The Business of Living: 49:12 Conclusion: 50:44 This speech was given December 4, 1984. Listen to the speech here: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/neal-a... Read more about Neal A. Maxwell here: https://speeches.byu.edu/speakers/nea... Subscribe to BYU Speeches for the latest videos:     / byuspeeches   Read and listen to more BYU Speeches here: https://speeches.byu.edu/ Follow BYU Speeches: Podcasts: https://speeches.byu.edu/podcasts/ Facebook:    / byuspeeches   Twitter:    / byuspeeches   Instagram:    / byuspeeches   Pinterest:    / byuspeeches     It Is Well with My Soul (arr. Mack Wilberg). The Tabernacle Choir Life can be so unpredictable—joys and sorrows, beautiful blessings and distressing difficulties, can come unexpectedly. Our life's dreams and plans can change in an instant. We all know this to be true. So how can we find peace amid such turbulence? Horatio Spafford knew something about life's unexpected challenges. He was a successful attorney and real estate investor who lost a fortune in the great Chicago fire of 1871. Around the same time, his beloved four-year-old son died of scarlet fever. Thinking a vacation would do his family some good, he sent his wife and four daughters on a ship to England, planning to join them after he finished some pressing business at home. However, while crossing the Atlantic Ocean, the ship was involved in a terrible collision and sunk. More than 200 people lost their lives, including all four of Horatio Spafford's precious daughters. His wife, Anna, survived the tragedy. Upon arriving in England, she sent a telegram to her husband that began: “Saved alone. What shall I do?” Horatio immediately set sail for England. At one point during his voyage, the captain of the ship, aware of the tragedy that had struck the Spafford family, summoned Horatio to tell him that they were now passing over the spot where the shipwreck had occurred. As Horatio thought about his daughters, words of comfort and hope filled his heart and mind. He wrote them down, and they have since become a well-beloved hymn: When peace like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll— Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to know It is well, it is well with my soul. Perhaps we cannot always say that everything is well in all aspects of our lives. There will always be storms to face, and sometimes there will be tragedies. But with faith in a loving God and with trust in His divine help, we can confidently say, “It is well, it is well with my soul.”   Watch this video with subtitles at-  https://youtu.be/Eg5O2y1UXw4?si=JvgZ32hBe4iqMK3J   The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square 891K subscribers 5,209,607 views Aug 2, 2017 For the story behind this song:     • It Is Well with My Soul - The Spoken ...   The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square perform Mack Wilberg's arrangement of "It Is Well with My Soul," by Philip P. Bliss. Follow The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square Instagram:    / thetabernaclechoir   Facebook:    / thetabernaclechoir   Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2ZOowwN   Lyrics to "It is Well with My Soul"   When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.   Refrain: It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.   Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul.   My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!— My sin, not in part but the whole, Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!   For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live: If Jordan above me shall roll, No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.   But, Lord, 'tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait, The sky, not the grave, is our goal; Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord! Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!   And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll; The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, Even so, it is well with my soul   Aired June 25, 2017.   General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ 586K subscribers 12,448 views Feb 12, 2015 https://www.lds.org/general-conferenc... For Come Follow Me lesson manual and materials visit- Come, Follow Me For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/manual/come-follow-me/2023?lang=eng   For a list of 100+ episodes of ACU Sunday Series visit- https://www.podbean.com/site/search/index?kdsowie31j4k1jlf913=85cb8104bdb182c048b714ad4385f9e82a3aeb49&v=ACU+Sunday+Series+ Note- Click on “100 Episodes Found” in upper right corner.   For many different Podcasts based on the ‘Come Follow Me' program visit- https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=come+follow+me+   Subscribe to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for the latest videos: http://bit.ly/1M0iPwY Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/churchofjesu... Twitter: @Ch_JesusChrist Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ChurchOfJes... Website: ChurchOfJesusChrist.org The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints   BYUEducationWeek Get a Free Book of Mormon | ComeUntoChrist Church of Jesus Christ https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org › requests › free-...   The Book of Mormon brings you closer to Jesus. Click to download a free digital copy of the Book of Mormon and learn about it with online missionaries.   -------------------------------------------------------------------------- For the Strength of Youth To help you find the Way and to help you make Christ's doctrine the guiding influence in your life, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has prepared a new resource, a revised version of For the Strength of Youth.   For over 50 years, For the Strength of Youth has been a guide for generations of Latter-day Saint youth. I always keep a copy in my pocket, and I share it with people who are curious about our standards. It has been updated and refreshed to better cope with the challenges and temptations of our day. The new version of For the Strength of Youth is available online in 50 different languages and will also be available in print. It will be a significant help for making choices in your life. Please embrace it as your own and share it with your friends. This new version of For the Strength of Youth is subtitled A Guide for Making Choices. To be very clear, the best guide you can possibly have for making choices is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the strength of youth. So the purpose of For the Strength of Youth is to point you to Him. It teaches you eternal truths of His restored gospel—truths about who you are, who He is, and what you can accomplish with His strength. It teaches you how to make righteous choices based on those eternal truths.13 It's also important to know what For the Strength of Youth does not do. It doesn't make decisions for you. It doesn't give you a “yes” or “no” about every choice you might ever face. For the Strength of Youth focuses on the foundation for your choices. It focuses on values, principles, and doctrine instead of every specific behavior. The Lord, through His prophets, has always been guiding us in that direction. He is pleading with us to “increase [our] spiritual capacity to receive revelation.”14 He is inviting us to “hear Him.”15 He is calling us to follow Him in higher and holier ways.16 And we are learning in a similar way every week in Come, Follow Me.   American Conservative University Podcast (ACU) is not an official representative for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. All opinions, selections and commentary are solely those of ACU.  We post a variety of selections from various Christian denominations.   ACU Endorsed Charities -------------------------------------------------------- Pre-Born! Saving babies and Souls. https://preborn.org/ OUR MISSION To glorify Jesus Christ by leading and equipping pregnancy clinics to save more babies and souls. WHAT WE DO Pre-Born! partners with life-affirming pregnancy clinics all across the nation. We are designed to strategically impact the abortion industry through the following initiatives:… -------------------------------------------------------- Help CSI Stamp Out Slavery In Sudan Join us in our effort to free over 350 slaves. Listeners to the Eric Metaxas Show will remember our annual effort to free Christians who have been enslaved for simply acknowledging Jesus Christ as their Savior. As we celebrate the birth of Christ this Christmas, join us in giving new life to brothers and sisters in Sudan who have enslaved as a result of their faith. https://csi-usa.org/metaxas   https://csi-usa.org/slavery/   Typical Aid for the Enslaved A ration of sorghum, a local nutrient-rich staple food A dairy goat A “Sack of Hope,” a survival kit containing essential items such as tarp for shelter, a cooking pan, a water canister, a mosquito net, a blanket, a handheld sickle, and fishing hooks. Release celebrations include prayer and gathering for a meal, and medical care for those in need. The CSI team provides comfort, encouragement, and a shoulder to lean on while they tell their stories and begin their new lives. Thank you for your compassion  Giving the Gift of Freedom and Hope to the Enslaved South Sudanese -------------------------------------------------------- Food For The Poor https://foodforthepoor.org/ Help us serve the poorest of the poor Food For The Poor began in 1982 in Jamaica. Today, our interdenominational Christian ministry serves the poor in primarily 17 countries throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. Thanks to our faithful donors, we are able to provide food, housing, healthcare, education, fresh water, emergency relief, micro-enterprise solutions and much more. We are proud to have fed millions of people and provided more than 15.7 billion dollars in aid. Our faith inspires us to be an organization built on compassion, and motivated by love. Our mission is to bring relief to the poorest of the poor in the countries where we serve. We strive to reflect God's unconditional love. It's a sacrificial love that embraces all people regardless of race or religion. We believe that we can show His love by serving the “least of these” on this earth as Christ challenged us to do in Matthew 25. We pray that by God's grace, and with your support, we can continue to bring relief to the suffering and hope to the hopeless. --------------------------------------------------------

In February 2024, The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square continued its "Hope" world tour with concerts and events in the Philippines. This second stop on the multiyear, multination tour is the first for “Asia's Pearl." This episode of the Church News podcast explores this musical expedition with choir leaders and members, special guest performers and leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — including Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, choir President Michael O. Leavitt, choir musical director Mack Wilberg, and guest Filipina singer Lea Salonga.  The Church News Podcast is a weekly podcast that invites listeners to make a journey of connection with members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints across the globe. Host Sarah Jane Weaver, reporter and executive editor for The Church News for a quarter-century, shares a unique view of the stories, events, and most important people who form this international faith. With each episode, listeners are asked to embark on a journey to learn from one another and ponder, “What do I know now?” because of the experience. Produced by KellieAnn Halvorsen.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ and Song, Alleluia. ACU Sunday Series. Watch the video at- https://youtu.be/OlQcl_CWops?si=yPEAHeiCWXYaxzdJ General Conference 505K subscribers 20,875 views Apr 6, 2014 Todd Christofferson - Jesus of Nazareth is the resurrected Redeemer, and I testify of all that follows from the fact of His Resurrection. - April 2014 General Conference https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/s... Key moments Ministry of the Risen Lord 4:58 Significance of the Resurrection 9:08 Did the Lord in Reality Die and Rise Again 13:18 Text of speech: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ By Elder D. Todd Christofferson Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Jesus of Nazareth is the resurrected Redeemer, and I testify of all that follows from the fact of His Resurrection. A crushing sense of defeat and despair enveloped His disciples as Jesus suffered and died on the cross and His body was placed lifeless in the tomb. Despite what the Savior had repeatedly said of His death and subsequent rising again, they had not understood. The dark afternoon of His Crucifixion, however, was soon followed by the joyous morning of His Resurrection. But that joy came only as the disciples became eyewitnesses of the Resurrection, for even the declaration of angels that He had risen was at first incomprehensible—it was something so totally unprecedented. Mary Magdalene and a few other faithful women came early to the Savior's tomb that Sunday morning, bringing spices and ointments to complete the anointing begun when the Lord's body was hastily laid in the sepulchre before the approaching Sabbath. On this morning of mornings, they were greeted by an open sepulchre, the covering stone having been rolled away, and two angels who declared: “Why seek ye the living among the dead? “He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, “Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.”1 “Come, see the place where the Lord lay. “And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead.”2 As bidden by the angels, Mary Magdalene looked into the tomb, but it seems that all that registered in her mind was that the body of the Lord was gone. She hurried to report to the Apostles and, finding Peter and John, said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.”3 Peter and John ran to the place and verified that indeed the tomb was empty, seeing “the linen clothes lying … and the napkin, that was about his head, … wrapped together in a place by itself.”4 John apparently was the first to comprehend the magnificent message of resurrection. He writes that “he saw, and believed,” whereas the others to that point “knew not the scripture, that [Jesus] must rise again from the dead.”5 Peter and John left, but Mary remained behind, still in mourning. In the meantime the angels had returned and tenderly asked her, “Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.”6 At that moment the resurrected Savior, now standing behind her, spoke, “Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.”7 Elder James E. Talmage wrote: “It was Jesus to whom she spake, her beloved Lord, though she knew it not. One word from His living lips changed her agonized grief into ecstatic joy. ‘Jesus saith unto her, Mary.' The voice, the tone, the tender accent she had heard and loved in the earlier days lifted her from the despairing depths into which she had sunk. She turned, and saw the Lord. In a transport of joy she reached out her arms to embrace Him, uttering only the endearing and worshipful word, ‘Rabboni,' meaning My beloved Master.”8 And so this blessed woman became the first mortal to see and speak to the resurrected Christ. Later that same day He appeared to Peter in or near Jerusalem;9 to two disciples on the road to Emmaus;10 and in the evening to 10 of the Apostles and others, appearing suddenly in their midst, saying, “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.”11 Then to further convince them “while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered,”12 He ate broiled fish and honeycomb before them.13 Later He instructed them, “Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”14 Beyond these confirmed witnesses in Jerusalem, we have the incomparable ministry of the risen Lord to ancient inhabitants of the Western Hemisphere. In the land Bountiful, He descended from heaven and invited the assembled throng, some 2,500, to come forward one by one until they had all gone forth, thrusting their hands into His side and feeling the prints of the nails in His hands and in His feet.15 “And when they had all gone forth and had witnessed for themselves, they did cry out with one accord, saying: “Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the Most High God! And they did fall down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him.”16 Christ's Resurrection shows that His existence is independent and everlasting. “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.”17 Jesus said: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. “No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.”18 The Savior is not dependent on food or water or oxygen or any other substance or power or person for life. Both as Jehovah and Messiah, He is the great I Am, the self-existing God.19 He simply is and ever will be. By His Atonement and Resurrection, Jesus Christ has overcome all aspects of the Fall. Physical death will be temporary, and even spiritual death has an end, in that all come back into the presence of God, at least temporarily, to be judged. We can have ultimate trust and confidence in His power to overcome all else and grant us everlasting life. “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”20 In the words of Elder Neal A. Maxwell: “Christ's victory over death ended the human predicament. Now there are only personal predicaments, and from these too we may be rescued by following the teachings of him who rescued us from general extinction.”21 Having satisfied the demands of justice, Christ now steps into the place of justice; or we might say He is justice, just as He is love.22 Likewise, besides being a “perfect, just God,” He is a perfect, merciful God.23 Thus, the Savior makes all things right. No injustice in mortality is permanent, even death, for He restores life again. No injury, disability, betrayal, or abuse goes uncompensated in the end because of His ultimate justice and mercy. By the same token, we are all accountable to Him for our lives, our choices, and our actions, even our thoughts. Because He redeemed us from the Fall, our lives are in reality His. He declared: “Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me. “And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works.”24 Consider for a moment the significance of the Resurrection in resolving once and for all the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth and the great philosophical contests and questions of life. If Jesus was in fact literally resurrected, it necessarily follows that He is a divine being. No mere mortal has the power in himself to come to life again after dying. Because He was resurrected, Jesus cannot have been only a carpenter, a teacher, a rabbi, or a prophet. Because He was resurrected, Jesus had to have been a God, even the Only Begotten Son of the Father. Therefore, what He taught is true; God cannot lie.25 Therefore, He was the Creator of the earth, as He said.26 Therefore, heaven and hell are real, as He taught.27 Therefore, there is a world of spirits, which He visited after His death.28 Therefore, He will come again, as the angels said,29 and “reign personally upon the earth.”30 Therefore, there is a resurrection and a final judgment for all.31 Given the reality of the Resurrection of Christ, doubts about the omnipotence, omniscience, and benevolence of God the Father—who gave His Only Begotten Son for the redemption of the world—are groundless. Doubts about the meaning and purpose of life are unfounded. Jesus Christ is in fact the only name or way by which salvation can come to mankind. The grace of Christ is real, affording both forgiveness and cleansing to the repentant sinner. Faith truly is more than imagination or psychological invention. There is ultimate and universal truth, and there are objective and unchanging moral standards, as taught by Him. Given the reality of the Resurrection of Christ, repentance of any violation of His law and commandments is both possible and urgent. The Savior's miracles were real, as is His promise to His disciples that they might do the same and even greater works.32 His priesthood is necessarily a real power that “administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God. Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.”33 Given the reality of the Resurrection of Christ, death is not our end, and though “skin worms destroy [our bodies], yet in [our] flesh shall [we] see God.”34 President Thomas S. Monson tells of a Robert Blatchford who, 100 years ago “in his book God and My Neighbor, attacked with vigor accepted Christian beliefs, such as God, Christ, prayer, and immortality. He boldly asserted, ‘I claim to have proved everything I set out to prove so fully and decisively that no Christian, however great or able he may be, can answer my arguments or shake my case.' He surrounded himself with a wall of skepticism. Then a surprising thing happened. His wall suddenly crumbled to dust. … Slowly he began to feel his way back to the faith he had scorned and ridiculed. What had caused this profound change in his outlook? His wife [had] died. With a broken heart, he went into the room where lay all that was mortal of her. He looked again at the face he loved so well. Coming out, he said to a friend: ‘It is she, and yet it is not she. Everything is changed. Something that was there before is taken away. She is not the same. What can be gone if it be not the soul?'”35 Did the Lord in reality die and rise again? Yes. “The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”36 As the prophesied birth of Jesus drew near, there were those among the ancient Nephite and Lamanite peoples who believed, though most doubted. In due course, the sign of His birth arrived—a day and a night and a day without darkness—and all knew.37 Even so today, some believe in the literal Resurrection of Christ, and many doubt or disbelieve. But some know. In due course, all will see and all will know; indeed, “every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess before him.”38 Until then, I believe the many witnesses of the Savior's Resurrection whose experiences and testimonies are found in the New Testament—Peter and his companions of the Twelve and dear, pure Mary of Magdala, among others. I believe the testimonies found in the Book of Mormon—of Nephi the Apostle with the unnamed multitude in the land Bountiful, among others. And I believe the testimony of Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon who, after many other testimonies, proclaimed the great witness of this last dispensation “that he lives! For we saw him.”39 Under the glance of His all-seeing eye, I stand myself as a witness that Jesus of Nazareth is the resurrected Redeemer, and I testify of all that follows from the fact of His Resurrection. May you receive the conviction and comfort of that same witness, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.   Alleluia. The Tabernacle Choir Watch this beautiful video at- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWZ6VfLwbiQ The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square 791K subscribers 841,369 views Mar 19, 2013 Purchase "Alleluia" from the album "Men of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir": Amazon: http://amzn.to/RMCcdl iTunes: http://bit.ly/QJzncQ Deseret Book: http://bit.ly/SWATeq LDS Store: http://bit.ly/T5LmpR The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square perform Mack Wilberg's arrangement of "Alleluia" by Guilio Caccini. Episode 4351. Aired February 3, 2013 The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square 791K subscribers   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------    For Come Follow Me lesson manual and materials visit- Come, Follow Me For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/manual/come-follow-me/2023?lang=eng     For a list of 100+ episodes of ACU Sunday Series visit- https://www.podbean.com/site/search/index?kdsowie31j4k1jlf913=85cb8104bdb182c048b714ad4385f9e82a3aeb49&v=ACU+Sunday+Series+ Note- Click on “100 Episodes Found” in upper right corner.   For many different Podcasts based on the ‘Come Follow Me' program visit- https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=come+follow+me+   Subscribe to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for the latest videos: http://bit.ly/1M0iPwY Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/churchofjesu... Twitter: @Ch_JesusChrist Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ChurchOfJes... Website: ChurchOfJesusChrist.org The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints   BYUEducationWeek   Get a Free Book of Mormon | ComeUntoChrist Church of Jesus Christ https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org › requests › free-...   The Book of Mormon brings you closer to Jesus. Click to download a free digital copy of the Book of Mormon and learn about it with online missionaries.   -------------------------------------------------------------------------- For the Strength of Youth To help you find the Way and to help you make Christ's doctrine the guiding influence in your life, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has prepared a new resource, a revised version of For the Strength of Youth.   For over 50 years, For the Strength of Youth has been a guide for generations of Latter-day Saint youth. I always keep a copy in my pocket, and I share it with people who are curious about our standards. It has been updated and refreshed to better cope with the challenges and temptations of our day. The new version of For the Strength of Youth is available online in 50 different languages and will also be available in print. It will be a significant help for making choices in your life. Please embrace it as your own and share it with your friends. This new version of For the Strength of Youth is subtitled A Guide for Making Choices. To be very clear, the best guide you can possibly have for making choices is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the strength of youth. So the purpose of For the Strength of Youth is to point you to Him. It teaches you eternal truths of His restored gospel—truths about who you are, who He is, and what you can accomplish with His strength. It teaches you how to make righteous choices based on those eternal truths.13 It's also important to know what For the Strength of Youth does not do. It doesn't make decisions for you. It doesn't give you a “yes” or “no” about every choice you might ever face. For the Strength of Youth focuses on the foundation for your choices. It focuses on values, principles, and doctrine instead of every specific behavior. The Lord, through His prophets, has always been guiding us in that direction. He is pleading with us to “increase [our] spiritual capacity to receive revelation.”14 He is inviting us to “hear Him.”15 He is calling us to follow Him in higher and holier ways.16 And we are learning in a similar way every week in Come, Follow Me.     ACU Endorsed Charities -------------------------------------------------------- Pre-Born! Saving babies and Souls. https://preborn.org/ OUR MISSION To glorify Jesus Christ by leading and equipping pregnancy clinics to save more babies and souls. WHAT WE DO Pre-Born! partners with life-affirming pregnancy clinics all across the nation. We are designed to strategically impact the abortion industry through the following initiatives:… -------------------------------------------------------- Help CSI Stamp Out Slavery In Sudan Join us in our effort to free over 350 slaves. Listeners to the Eric Metaxas Show will remember our annual effort to free Christians who have been enslaved for simply acknowledging Jesus Christ as their Savior. As we celebrate the birth of Christ this Christmas, join us in giving new life to brothers and sisters in Sudan who have enslaved as a result of their faith. https://csi-usa.org/metaxas   https://csi-usa.org/slavery/   Typical Aid for the Enslaved A ration of sorghum, a local nutrient-rich staple food A dairy goat A “Sack of Hope,” a survival kit containing essential items such as tarp for shelter, a cooking pan, a water canister, a mosquito net, a blanket, a handheld sickle, and fishing hooks. Release celebrations include prayer and gathering for a meal, and medical care for those in need. The CSI team provides comfort, encouragement, and a shoulder to lean on while they tell their stories and begin their new lives. Thank you for your compassion  Giving the Gift of Freedom and Hope to the Enslaved South Sudanese -------------------------------------------------------- Food For The Poor https://foodforthepoor.org/ Help us serve the poorest of the poor Food For The Poor began in 1982 in Jamaica. Today, our interdenominational Christian ministry serves the poor in primarily 17 countries throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. Thanks to our faithful donors, we are able to provide food, housing, healthcare, education, fresh water, emergency relief, micro-enterprise solutions and much more. We are proud to have fed millions of people and provided more than 15.7 billion dollars in aid. Our faith inspires us to be an organization built on compassion, and motivated by love. Our mission is to bring relief to the poorest of the poor in the countries where we serve. We strive to reflect God's unconditional love. It's a sacrificial love that embraces all people regardless of race or religion. We believe that we can show His love by serving the “least of these” on this earth as Christ challenged us to do in Matthew 25. We pray that by God's grace, and with your support, we can continue to bring relief to the suffering and hope to the hopeless. --------------------------------------------------------

Excuses. Billy Graham Classic Sermon and Song: O Divine Redeemer. ACU Sunday Series. https://youtu.be/vhTs8OgNuVU?si=5EdLATY1hFE6KA5n Billy Graham Evangelistic Association 874K subscribers 236,912 views Premiered Feb 14, 2022 #MondayNightClassics Will you miss out on eternity because you made excuses? In this 1986 message from Tallahassee, Florida, Billy Graham talks about the danger of waiting to make a decision for Christ. Watch more #MondayNightClassics every Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern. Do you want Christ to be your friend? Visit https://bit.ly/StepsToPeaceWithGod CONNECT with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association: on Facebook:   / billygrahamevangelisticassociation   on Instagram:   / bgea   on Twitter:   / bgea   on Pinterest:   / bgea   on YouTube:    / billygraham   on TikTok:   / bgeaofficial     O Divine Redeemer (2017) | The Tabernacle Choir Watch this video at: https://youtu.be/bkVAPm5x2tM?si=j8wv3zBePOp0GNWg The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square 788K subscribers 63,017 views Aug 30, 2021 The Tabernacle Choir, with conductor Mack Wilberg, and organist Andrew Unsworth, perform "O Divine Redeemer" by Charles Gounod. Lyrics: Ah! turn me not away, receive me tho' unworthy; Hear Thou my cry, hear Thou my cry, behold, Lord, my distress.   Answer me from Thy throne. Haste Thee, Lord to mine aid. Thy pity shew in my deep anguish Let not the sword of vengeance smite me, Though righteous Thine anger, O Lord. Shield me in danger! O regard me, on Thee, Lord alone will I call.   O Divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, and remember not my sins Forgive me O Divine Redeemer!   Night gathers round my soul. Fearful I cry, to Thee! Come to my aid, O Lord! Haste Thee, Lord, haste to help me. Hear my cry, Save me, Lord in Thy mercy Come and save me, O Lord!   O Divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, and remember not, remember not, O Lord, my sins.   Save in the day of retribution; from Death shield Thou me, O my God! O Divine Redeemer! have mercy help me, my Savior. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   HELP ACU SPREAD THE WORD!  Please go to Apple Podcasts and give ACU a 5 star rating. Apple canceled us and now we are clawing our way back to the top. Don't let the Leftist win. Do it now! Thanks. Also Rate us on any platform you follow us on. It helps a lot. Forward this show to friends. Ways to subscribe to the American Conservative University Podcast Click here to subscribe via Apple Podcasts Click here to subscribe via RSS You can also subscribe via Stitcher FM Player Podcast Addict Tune-in Podcasts Pandora Look us up on Amazon Prime …And Many Other Podcast Aggregators and sites ACU on Twitter- https://twitter.com/AmerConU . Warning- Explicit and Violent video content.   Please help ACU by submitting your Show ideas. Email us at americanconservativeuniversity@americanconservativeuniversity.com   Endorsed Charities -------------------------------------------------------- Pre-Born! Saving babies and Souls. https://preborn.org/ OUR MISSION To glorify Jesus Christ by leading and equipping pregnancy clinics to save more babies and souls. WHAT WE DO Pre-Born! partners with life-affirming pregnancy clinics all across the nation. We are designed to strategically impact the abortion industry through the following initiatives:… -------------------------------------------------------- Help CSI Stamp Out Slavery In Sudan Join us in our effort to free over 350 slaves. Listeners to the Eric Metaxas Show will remember our annual effort to free Christians who have been enslaved for simply acknowledging Jesus Christ as their Savior. As we celebrate the birth of Christ this Christmas, join us in giving new life to brothers and sisters in Sudan who have enslaved as a result of their faith. https://csi-usa.org/metaxas   https://csi-usa.org/slavery/   Typical Aid for the Enslaved A ration of sorghum, a local nutrient-rich staple food A dairy goat A “Sack of Hope,” a survival kit containing essential items such as tarp for shelter, a cooking pan, a water canister, a mosquito net, a blanket, a handheld sickle, and fishing hooks. Release celebrations include prayer and gathering for a meal, and medical care for those in need. The CSI team provides comfort, encouragement, and a shoulder to lean on while they tell their stories and begin their new lives. Thank you for your compassion  Giving the Gift of Freedom and Hope to the Enslaved South Sudanese -------------------------------------------------------- Food For the Poor https://foodforthepoor.org/ Help us serve the poorest of the poor Food For The Poor began in 1982 in Jamaica. Today, our interdenominational Christian ministry serves the poor in primarily 17 countries throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. Thanks to our faithful donors, we are able to provide food, housing, healthcare, education, fresh water, emergency relief, micro-enterprise solutions and much more. We are proud to have fed millions of people and provided more than 15.7 billion dollars in aid. Our faith inspires us to be an organization built on compassion, and motivated by love. Our mission is to bring relief to the poorest of the poor in the countries where we serve. We strive to reflect God's unconditional love. It's a sacrificial love that embraces all people regardless of race or religion. We believe that we can show His love by serving the “least of these” on this earth as Christ challenged us to do in Matthew 25. We pray that by God's grace, and with your support, we can continue to bring relief to the suffering and hope to the hopeless.   Report on Food For the Poor by Charity Navigator https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/592174510   -------------------------------------------------------- Disclaimer from ACU. We try to bring to our students and alumni the World's best Conservative thinkers. All views expressed belong solely to the author and not necessarily to ACU. In all issues and relations, we hope to follow the admonitions of Jesus Christ. While striving to expose, warn and contend with evil, we extend the love of God to all of his children. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  American Conservative University A short survey to get to know our listeners! Thank you for listening :D https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfvB348iC85ZcAQCzgL8TX-5yf-o4IIT8e5thqRh1qZKVIkrg/viewform  

All files are found here, nothing not found. Usually, a 404 error indicates that the file is not found, but it is. We'll play new and old material alike. Hope you enjoy the show. Set 1: BDQ Records You Need Lovin Vocal 04:05 The Piano Guys Do You Hear What I Hear? 03:20 Tim Neumark Relax: E Major 04:20 Tim Neumark Relax: B-Flat Major 03:06 Tim Neumark Relax: F Major 04:06 Set 2: Aeoliah Devotion 20:55 Ashana Gloriosa 07:26 Brian Crain Two Dancers and a Song 03:17 Edward Simon Slippin' & Slidin' 08:44 BunnDebrett Quintet Solid State 06:06 Christian Doil Cumulonimbus 07:22 Set 3: iceman bob all of that 07:15 iceman bob salvacion 07:17 iceman bob touching clouds 06:26 The Piano Guys & The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square The Mission / How Great Thou Art 03:22 The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, The Piano Guys, Mack Wilberg & Orchestra at Temple Square Wayfaring Stranger (Arr. Mack Wilberg) 03:53 Acappella Series Goin' Home 04:27 Chill Phil Another Day in Paradise 04:06 EABS Ain't No Mercy 02:39 Christopher Galovan Dependent 03:13 El Dragon Criollo Sentencia 03:21 Emily Reo Counterspell 01:57 Er Go Through The Fog 07:33 Set 4: Keith Lancaster Everybody Needs Jesus 03:40 Keith Lancaster What Will He Say? 03:32 Keith Lancaster Amen 03:08 Set 5: Kx5 & deadmau5 Avalanche (feat. James French) [Extended Mix] 05:44 This will complete the program. Thanks so much for listening!

a new season. a wonderful song the text https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/music/library/hymns/oh-what-songs-of-the-heart?lang=eng the Mack Wilberg version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_NCGrwn4o8

Doug and Steve take a look at the big movie of the week-- No Hard Feelings. Ron Gunner Assistant to the President of the Tabernacle Choir, and Mack Wilberg, music director of the TheTabernacle Choir at Temple Square join the show for an exciting announcement for their summer concert. D is back with her quirky picks!   The Movie Show with Doug Wright and Steve Salles. Listen Fridays 9 am to noon at 1160 AM & 102.7 FM, kslnewsradio.com, or on the App. Follow us on Facebook at @TheMovieShow. Join The Movie Show Club for exclusive perks! Text "Movie" to 57500. The Movie Show podcast is sponsored by Megaplex Theatres, Utah's premiere movie entertainment company. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“Still, Still, Still” arranged by Mack Wilberg. Presented by the First UMC Chancel Choir and accompanied by Gavan Mcvey and Marlene Udell on piano.

Our guests are Mack Wilberg, Guest Narrator for the Tabernacle Choir, and Larry Smith, Director of the Snow College Planetarium. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The big movie of the week is Black Adam and DC Comix expert Don Brinkerhoff joined the review.Our guest are Mack Wilberg and Ron Gunnell with The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, and they join Doug to announce the Christmas concert special guest.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“My Shepherd Will Supply My Need” arranged by Mack Wilberg. Presented by the First UMC Chancel Choir and accompanied by Lynn Sandefur-Gardner on piano, John Bevis on clarinet, and Bonney Haugin on flute.

The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square are featured in this merry episode about Christmas in our own backyard. We are local to Salt Lake City and enjoy a wide variety of Christmas culture. This includes the magnificent downtown venue of Temple Square, home to the Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Temple Square is famously decorated for Christmas and features one of the largest Christmas light displays in the world. It also has stunning Nativity displays and art. The several buildings house crowds of all sizes to accommodate performances from local artists and groups. The most famous of these groups is the Tabernacle Choir, who has called Temple Square home since the 1860s. They first performed in the still-standing Tabernacle, for which the Choir is named. In their history of touring and regular concerts no other activity by the Choir is as well known as their annual Christmas concert, which is featured on PBS in a nationally aired broadcast every holiday season. The Christmas concerts by the Tabernacle Choir feature the Orchestra at Temple Square, a hand bell choir, dancers and actors from local companies. Nearly all local performers are volunteers. It is a Choir custom to invite renown guest artists to perform each year. Past performers include Broadway stars Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Angela Lansbury, Kelli O'Hara, Santino Fontana and Laura Osnes; R&B singer Gladys Knight; the late jazz singer Natalie Cole; pop singer David Archuleta; legendary newscasters Walter Cronkite and Tom Brokaw; historian David McCullough; the Muppets from “Sesame Street”; actors Jane Seymour, Hugh Bonneville, Richard Thomas, the late Ed Herrmann, John Rhys-Davies, Roma Downey, the late Peter Graves, Claire Bloom, Michael York and Martin Jarvis; opera stars Renée Fleming, Deborah Voigt, Frederica von Stade, Bryn Terfel, Nathan Gunn, Alfie Boe, Sissel, Rolando Villazón and four Metropolitan Opera soloists and the London-based a cappella group, The King's Singers. Collectively, the featured guests have garnered 34 Grammy Awards, 19 Tony Awards, 14 Emmy Awards, 10 Golden Globe Awards, three BAFTA Awards, one Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Olivier Award. These concerts are a massive effort. In this merry episode we speak with Scott Barrick of the Tabernacle Choir about everything that goes into getting these concerts produced. This episode features a healthy dose of Tabernacle Choir music and information about a new two-hour holiday special airing on PBS before Christmas. But that's not all. In this episode we also hear from two other artists performing on Temple Square - Allie Gardner, who with Wade Farr performs a haunting version of O Come O Come Emmanuel. That song is the oldest Christmas carol on record and we tell its fascinating backstory. We also share the incredible version of The First Noel performed last Christmas by Bryson and Tierra Jones, a must-hear tear-jerking arrangement of the classic Christmas song by Jared Pierce. We invite you to see more images and videos of the Tabernacle Choir and Christmas on Temple Square on our website at MyMerryChristmas.com Notes: Tabernacle Choir DVD - 20 Years with the Tabernacle Choir CD - Christmas Best - #1 on Billboard Book - Keepsake Christmas Stories: Holiday Stories as Performed with the Tabernacle Choir

In this interview Mack Wilberg, associate music director of the (Mormon) Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, speaks about the intrinsic power of music and human beings draw to it — no matter the genre. The Religica Theolab is now at home at The Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement at Seattle UniversityMore from The Religica Theolab at religica.orgMore from The Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement at Seattle University at www.seattleu.edu/thecenter/Facebook: www.facebook.com/Religica.org/Twitter: twitter.com/religicaYouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCPuwufds6gAu2u6xmm8SBuwSoundcloud: @user-religicaSpotify: open.spotify.com/show/3CZwIO4uGP1…mwTkuTQC2rgdGObQApple Podcasts: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/relig…d1448005061?mt=2The Religica Theolab is a comprehensive online platform at the axis of religion and society that provides non-sectarian, coherent, integrated and accessible awareness about the role of religion in society, with a focus on strengthening local communities.

Leading Saints started in 2010 when Kurt Francom had an idea. He had served as an elders quorum president, in a bishopric, and then as a high priest group leader, but he felt like he had not met his own expectations as a leader. In this podcast, Kurt shares his journey founding the platform that has grown into a 501c(3) nonprofit organization sharing leadership principles to support lay leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He also shares seven misconceptions that members have about church leadership, learned over the course of those ten years. Highlights 5:00 Kurt’s experiences that led up to starting what has become Leading Saints, and how it went from there to what it is now 10:20 Blogging at LeadingLDS 14:50 Started podcasting in 2014, founded the nonprofit in 2016 16:50 Frequently asked questions Memorable moments or bloopers: Mack Wilberg episode that didn’t happen, emails from random leaders who have benefitted from what we are doing 20:00 Favorite episode: interview with his second counselor, Heath 21:40 Has the Church ever approached you about leadership training? It’s not in the mission of the Church to produce more effective leaders, but there is a place for third-party organizations like Leading Saints to support the members and the mission 28:00 Where do you see Leading Saints in ten years? Producing an annual conference 30:30 Seven misconceptions members have about Church leadership 31:40 Misconception 1: Revelation comes through feelings 37:40 Misconception 2: Scriptures and handbooks are all we need to lead 40:45 Misconception 3: Meetings lead to progress 47:25 Misconception 4: Your ward wants solutions, not problems 50:30 Misconception 5: Leaders are spiritual parole officers 53:05 Misconception 6: Leaders receive promptings of their call before they are called 1:00:00 Misconception 7: Your authority, calling, or title allows you to lead 1:05:45 The final question: How has being a leader made you a better disciple of Jesus Christ? Links 7 Self-Sabotaging Habits of Latter-day Saint Lay Leaders (and What to Do About Them) What I Learned About Leadership When My 2nd Counselor Left the Church Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, by Daniel Pink 7 Unbreakable Rules of Church Meetings Articulating Problems Will Motivate Solutions | “Come Down” And Lead Pride and the Priesthood, by Dieter F. Uchtdorf lifestar.leadingsaints.org Become a Core Leader

The Tabernacle Choir’s Mack Wilberg and Scott Barrick join Inside Sources to give us a look at the choir's special this weekend "Music for a Summer Evening: Celebrating 90 Years of Broadcasting." They also give us a peek behind-the-curtains of the world-renowned choir and into the international success of their latest album.   ‘Inside Sources with Boyd Matheson,’ Opinion Editor at Deseret News, takes you inside the latest political news and current events, providing higher ground for today's discussions. Listen live Monday through Thursday from 11 am to noon at 1160 AM and 102.7 FM, online at KSLNewsradio.com, or on the app. Listen on-demand as a podcast on your favorite platform or web browser. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.  Want more Boyd? Don’t forget to listen to his Deseret News podcast ‘Therefore, What?,’ sign up for his weekly newsletter, and follow him on Twitter. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

The Tabernacle Choir has a new album releasing tomorrow, “When You Believe: A Night at the Movies.”  Boyd is joined by choir music director Mack Wilberg and general manager Scott Barrick to talk about the album which includes five inspirational music selections drawn from award-winning movies that audiences love like “I’ll Fly Away” from O Brother, Where Art Thou?, “When You Believe” from The Prince of Egypt, and more. ‘Inside Sources with Boyd Matheson,’ Opinion Editor at Deseret News, takes you inside the latest political news and current events, providing higher ground for today's discussions. Listen live Monday through Thursday from 11 am to noon at 1160 AM and 102.7 FM, online at KSLNewsradio.com, or on the app. Listen on-demand as a podcast on your favorite platform or web browser. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.  Want more Boyd? Don’t forget to listen to his Deseret News podcast ‘Therefore, What?,’ sign up for his weekly newsletter, and follow him on Twitter.

In this May 20 edition of Hymn-a-Day May with Peggy Graff and Friends, the FUMCFW Choral Union performs My Song in the Night, arranged by Mack Wilberg. This hauntingly beautiful southern folk hymn's melody is supported by rich and flowing harmonies. Reflection on the words from the hymn text, "Oh Jesus, my Savior...my comfort by day and my song in the night" lend additional dimension to the beauty of this melody, making its use appropriate throughout the year. —Choristers Guild O Jesus, my Savior, my song in the night, Come to us with Thy tender love, my soul's delight. Unto Thee, O Lord, in affliction I call, My comfort by day and my song in the night. O why should I wander an alien from Thee, Or cry in the desert Thy face to see. My comfort and joy, my soul's delight. O Jesus, my Savior, my song in the night. My comfort and joy, my soul's delight. O Jesus, my Savior, my song in the night. In the night, In the night, In the night. Source: Musixmatch Songwriters: Mack Wilberg / Arr. / American Folk Hymn Hymn-a-Day May premiers Monday - Friday throughout the month of May with personal hymn selection by Peggy Graff and her invited guests to provide a variety of hymns to fill your mind and heart with a brief escape from what concerns you. Let yourself absorb these words and melodies that can bring us together like nothing else — even when we’re apart. We hope you’ll take this moment each day to enjoy these specially selected hymns on our home page, or hear the collection as it builds via playlists here on YouTube, on Facebook, and via our FUMCFW SoundCloud podcast channels. "May God bless you and keep you until we meet again!" With Love, Peggy Graff

The Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill preaches a sermon entitled "Angel Voice". The Marsh Chapel Choir sings “Schlafendes Jesukind" by Hugo Wolf and "Ding dong! merrily on high" arr. by Mack Wilberg along with service music and hymns.

The Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill preaches a sermon entitled "Angel Voice". The Marsh Chapel Choir sings “Schlafendes Jesukind" by Hugo Wolf and "Ding dong! merrily on high" arr. by Mack Wilberg along with service music and hymns.

Stories in this episode: Encouraging words at a low point in Matt’s mission show how missionary work can be done beyond the veil. Melissa finally finds a way to share her testimony with her extended family after an unusual prompting. Amidst her son's battle with cancer, Cheryl finds angels sometimes come in the form of a kind neighbor with a red wagon. Brooke learns how angels can help us in ways we don’t always anticipate after the unexpected passing of her mother. This Episode of This Is The Gospel is sponsored by LIGHT THE WORLD. Join us as we #LightTheWorld this Christmas and sign up to get daily service prompts through text message or email. Text the word “LIGHT” to the number: 71234 or visit LighttheWorld.org. That's also where you'll find "The Christ Child", a brand new short film that New Testament scholars are calling the most historically accurate depiction of the Nativity ever filmed.  SHOW NOTES: To see pictures, and find links to things mentioned in this episode, go here. To find out more about the themes we're developing for upcoming episodes, follow us @thisisthegospel_podcast on Instagram and Facebook :) TRANSCRIPT: KaRyn Lay Welcome to This Is the Gospel, an LDS Living podcast where we feature real stories from real people who are practicing and living their faith every day. I'm your host, KaRyn Lay.  Last year right around this time, I was lucky enough to attend the Tabernacle Choir's Christmas concert featuring Kristin Chenoweth. And even though our seats were far from fancy, my friend and I were literally going to sit in the nosebleed section of the conference center, you know those seats up at the very top that makes you feel just a little bit dizzy if you look down too quickly? I didn't even care. I am such a huge musical theater nerd that the thought of watching Glinda from Wicked singing with Mack Wilberg, it totally had me fangirling.  But then, just moments before we made it into the Conference Center to find our seats, I got a phone call from my mom telling me that my grandma, my nanny, was not doing well and was not expected to live through the night. And even though I knew this might be coming, I found myself unable to keep my emotions at bay. I cried all the way to my nosebleed seat. I wept through the first half of the concert. I ran out of tissues by intermission. And I really thought that the tears were not going to stop.  But as I sat there listening to that beautiful music, suddenly they did stop. Somehow, in the midst of my feelings of deep loss and sorrow, something else came over me. And I don't really know what else to call it, but it was a wave of comfort, of sweetness. It washed over me, and I was finally able to breathe again. The theme of that concert was "Angels among Us" and many of the songs were pointedly dedicated to the angels, both earthly and beyond, who point us towards the Christ child. It might seem strange to say this, but as the choir and sweet Sister Chenoweth, as I like to call her, sang about the work of angels to herald the birth of Jesus, it's like I could feel the angels there with me too, reminding me that heaven and earth are not that far removed from one another. And that I can take comfort in the birth and the life of One who restores the distance that does exist.  My nanny surprisingly rallied. And, in fact, she's still with us today. But I knew when we were thinking of story themes for this season, that I wanted to honor that moment in the conference center with stories about angels. About the angels in our lives, both earthly and heavenly, who continue the work of drawing us towards the Christ child. And today, we've got four stories that do just that.  Our first storyteller is Matt, who didn't realize he needed the help of angels until it was already in progress. Here's Matt. Matt (2:47) I was the first person in my family to be called on a mission that required the learning of the language. I had been called to serve in Nicaragua, Spanish speaking, and I didn't get any insight or counsel from my brother, for example, or my dad because they didn't know what it was like to learn a language.  I was naive at the time and for whatever reason, I thought that the gift of tongues was something that came more immediate. I was four days into my stay at the MTC, and I was thinking to myself, "Gosh, this is just not coming to me." With hindsight and perspective now, it's funny as I look back on that. That I would have thought that somehow four days in I'd be learning and understanding and being able to speak the language.  I was in a meeting one day and I had my head down, and I was discouraged. I was really discouraged. I was missing my, my house, my family, and having a difficult time with what I perceived to be the inability to learn Spanish. While in that frame of mind, and with my head down, I began to wonder, "Can I even do this? Is this worth it?" And I had a very clear message come into my mind. It was the voice of a man, nonaudible but almost felt audible. And he said, "Elder Hill, pick up your head. I need you to find my family." And I thought, "Wow." I knew it wasn't me because it wouldn't have been a thought that I would have had at the time. My thoughts were far distant from that thought. My thoughts were, "How do I get out of this? How do I go home?"  I wrote in my journal that night and thought nothing of it. I actually didn't even mention it that night. It wasn't until the next day it, almost as an afterthought, I wrote in parentheses, almost as like a P.S., "Oh yeah, by the way, while in a meeting the other day, I heard the voice of a man tell me to pick up my head because he was counting on me and needed me to find his family." And then I wrote, "I guess he's dead. I guess we'll have to see if I can find his family." And that was it.  You know, I didn't think much on this experience the rest of my stay there. I didn't even share the experience with anybody. Nobody in my district there at the MTC, I didn't write about it in any letters, it was something that just had taken place that day. And I thought, "Well, I guess I'll write a little bit about it. And we'll see at some point if that ever really translates to anything."  I know it sounds funny that I put this thought in parentheses almost as like a P.S. at the end of my journal entry, but there's a reason for that. I had an experience prior to my mission in a similar nature came while in the Logan temple one day. I had just received my mission call and I was going into be confirmed for the dead. And I close my eyes and out of nowhere, I felt the presence of my grandpa, who I have never met. My grandpa passed away when my dad was nearly turning 12 and so I've never met him. And so for me to have an experience where he's there, it seems like this would be something kind of out of that world, but it just felt so natural. I knew that it was my grandpa. And I'm not sure how I knew that. I could see him in my mind's eye. And I absolutely felt that it was him. I knew it was him. As I think back and reflect upon that, that experience, it seems odd, even to my mind, to consider and to think on that. How did I know it was him? I instantly knew. There wasn't a second guess. I close my eyes and there was my grandpa.  In fact, the very second I perceived his presence I said, "Hey gramps, how are you?" And his response to me was, "So Nicaragua, huh?" And he expressed how proud he was for my decision that I had made to go and to serve a mission. And I got the chills. And I immediately was just so, it was like a longing, like a, "I haven't seen you forever," kind of a feel. And that's the way it felt is, "Grandpa, how are you?" And I missed him, and I knew I had missed him. And I guess it was my spirit who knew him and who missed him. Because like I said, I had never met him before. So the idea of that sounds very strange that I may have known him. And he told me that he had come to tell me he was going down to prepare the hearts of people that I would come in contact with and to give me a bit of advice, and he gave me some advice. He told me that, "While on your mission, I want you to make sure that you are obedient to the mission rules." Because I will find protection and safety through my obedience. And then he said, "I want you to go home and I want you to tell your mother that you will be protected on your mission. She is worried about you, where you've been called to serve."  And I went home and I told my mom the experience and she broke down, and she had hid it really well. My mom had hid it, I had no idea that she was concerned and that she was worried about where I was going. She'd been looking up all about it that they had recently had a war not long prior, a civil war in the country. And I was pretty clueless. I was just excited to go. I had prepared for it and was excited and had no idea that my mom was beat up inside about this. And so I look back on that experience with my grandpa in the temple that day, I think in part it was maybe for me. But I think the bigger reason, I should say, for the experience was more for my mom to give her some peace of mind. Three months later, I was walking out of a pueblo one day with my trainer, that the pueblo was Sunny Isidro. And as we were walking out of the pueblo, I looked over to the right at the very last house in this little pueblo. And I saw two little kids playing out front in the dirt. I kind of looked at him and then continued to walk forward. And I had an impression that we should go talk to that family. So I turned to my trainer and said, "Hey, do you mind if we go introduce yourself to them real fast?" He said, "Okay, yeah, let's do it." So we get into the house and my campaign starts to talk with the mom and she was knitting a little piece of clothing at the time and sitting in a rocking chair. And I, as I mentioned, I didn't speak very much Spanish. I had kind of suggested we'd come introduce ourselves here.  And, and one thing my dad, one bit of counsel he gave me before I serve my mission, he said, "You know, when you go into these homes, look at the walls and look at things that are on the walls. Typically, those are things that have meaning to people and comment on them." So, I made that a practice of mine and I noticed a picture on the wall of a police force. I walked over to the picture, and I looked at it, there was about 15 or 20 policemen in this picture. And as I was looking at the picture, there was a man who jumped out at me, and I didn't know why. With my limited abilities in Spanish, I said, "Quien es el?" Which meant, "Who is he?" And I pointed at him. And the mom as she was knitting, she put her head down, and she began to cry. She said, "He was my husband. And he was shot and killed this last year."  I immediately had the chills overtake my body and the hairs on my arms stood up. And I was so excited because I knew this, the Holy Ghost had confirmed to me this is that man's house. And I knew I had found the family. And so my reaction, I know that the normal, typical reaction in a scenario such as this would be to say, "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for your loss." But inside what I was feeling is just complete joy and excitement and I wanted to scream out, "Your husband is alive and he cares about you. And he wants you to be happy. And he spoke to me." I had no words, I couldn't speak Spanish. I knew I had no chance at articulating that thought, and I knew the moment wasn't right to express joy and to be excited. And so what I did is I said, "I'm sorry." But inside, if she could have seen my true emotions, my emotions were jumping for joy. And that's how I felt. I had forgotten about the words that I had come into my mind in the MTC, I'd forgotten all about it. It had been months and there I was, standing in that home and connection was very vivid and clear. This is my family. We left that home. And I said to my campaign, my trainer, I said, "Elder, they're going to join the Church. They're going to accept the gospel. And he looked at me and he kind of chuckled, he says, "You know, I felt the same way. You know, when I was new, I felt the same way about everybody I came in contact with." And I left it at that. He was, he was getting close to going home and I didn't feel like the moment was right to share the experience I had had.  So a couple of weeks later, my trainer went home, and I was sent a new campaign. His name was Elder Wilson. Elder Wilson only had himself maybe three or four months out in the field as well. And so he came and said, "Hey, tell me about who we are teaching in the area." And I said, "Elder, I want to share an experience I had in the MTC a few months back." And he looked at me and he said, "Elder Hill, if we do nothing more together with the time that we have then help this family by giving them every opportunity to join the gospel, I believe our time together will have been a success. And I thanked him for that. And I said, "I agree." And he said, "We cannot and we will not give up on that family." And, oddly enough, I started to laugh and he looked at me, he said, "What are you laughing about?" And I said, "I'm laughing because of the idea and thought of you and I going out and trying to teach this gospel because you don't speak much Spanish and I speak far less." And we both just started to laugh as we envision what it might be like to receive the gospel in that way. And we realized that in there, it wasn't going to be much what we did. It was really going to come down to the Spirit testifying that whatever we were trying to say, was true. And we relied heavily upon the Spirit more so during that phase of my mission than any other just simply because of the fact we didn't have the benefit of our words to help express what we were trying to convey.  We didn't give up on that family. And a couple of months later, I was in the baptismal font watching as the mother entered the waters of baptism with tears coming down her face. And I was in a similar emotional state at the time and I was crying as well and we embraced. And again, I wanted so badly to tell her so much about her husband and how excited and happy he would be because I knew it. But, again, I didn't have the words in Spanish to express and convey that message.  The next day she received the gift of the Holy Ghost, her and her daughters. And it was fast Sunday and she bore her testimony. And in her testimony, she said, "Ever since my husband passed away, I have felt the yearning to come to this church. And I haven't known why. Now I know why." She said that this gospel, with the limited time she has spent in it and learned about it, has brought her so much peace and joy. And she is convinced that her husband is super happy with her and her daughters' decision. Having the perspective of being a father myself, there isn't anything that I wouldn't do for my children. It connects me with the father who spoke with me in the MTC in a very real way now because I have the perspective that he has. I understand the, the longing that must be present there as he watches his family live their lives in his absence. It helps me to know that I would do the very same thing. That I would do anything in my power to help my family in any way possible. I didn't have the ability to ever have a full conversation with that family, to express to them what had happened to me and what their dad had come and told me. And I look back on that and maybe I'm grateful that I didn't have the words to express that, because maybe they joined the gospel more free willing of their own accord rather than feeling like they were doing it for their dad.  I don't think there's anything special about me, per se. The times where these experiences have happened. It has always been for the benefit of somebody else. And why I've been having the ability to have that happen or to be able to perceive those words and those thoughts, I don't know. But I do believe that our Heavenly Father does know how to reach us. And oftentimes I think the way He chooses to do that is different for all of us. The gospel of Jesus Christ is very important to those that are living and those that have passed on. I've learned that our Father allows those on the other side to be very much a part of the work that we are doing here. He allows my grandpa, as an example, to go and to go in advance of me and help prepare people for people I would meet. And every time I had somebody accept the gospel, I would always think back on my grandpa, and I would think, "Man, I'm grateful to have a grandpa that cares enough to be out here. And that cares to help me find these people." KaRyn (19:59) That was Matt.  Matt first shared his story with us on the pitch line and when we contacted him to develop it for the episode he, like so many others, wondered if this experience was too sacred to share. I get that. Telling our stories is a sacred business because our stories are powerful. And because of that, we have a duty and an obligation to seek counsel with the Lord about how we share our stories and when we share them.  I'm always humbled when the right place and time to share the story is on our podcast and even more humbled when someone realizes that the time is not right. I honor that. Ultimately, the choice to share a personal witness of a sacred experience is between the storyteller and the Spirit. In his own process of determining the timing to tell this story, Matt found this beautiful quote from Elder Holland's message entitled "For a Wise Purpose" from the January 1996 Ensign. In that message, Elder Holland said, quote:    "I believe we need to speak of and believe in and bear testimony of the ministry of angels more than we sometimes do. They constitute one of God's great methods of witnessing through the veil, and no document in all this world teaches that principle so clearly and so powerfully as does the Book of Mormon," end quote. I really believe that our stories, when used for a wise purpose or gift to one another, testify of Jesus Christ and His power and His glory.  Our next story bearing witness of the ministry of angels comes from Melissa, who believed she was alone in her new faith until a unique heavenly message helped her see that she was anything but alone. Here's Melissa. Melissa (21:41) I grew up with the memory of my cousin. She was nine months old when she passed away. She actually passed away before I was even born. But I was named after her, my middle name was after her, and I missed her. And I couldn't figure out why, I didn't understand why I missed her so much. But I knew that I wish that she could be here.  That was until I learned about the plan of salvation. And I learned about how we live before we were born. I learned about how we had relationships, and we chose to come to this earth to be able to progress. It made sense that we had relationships because I felt this bond that I probably was best friends with my cousin. And she's probably been rooting for me this whole time. So I knew I had to be a part of that kind of truth.  But joining the Church wasn't really the easiest thing in the world. My mom wasn't very excited about it. Neither my mom or dad were excited about it. I think it was because I was 18 years old. I was just graduating from high school about to move away to a new world, a new life away from them. I was the oldest too so it's the first time any of us are going through it. So not only my throwing in moving away and experiencing life but also I threw in a new religion and a new way of life. And I think my mom at one time told me she just couldn't go with me. She couldn't follow where I was going. And it really broke her heart. And it was hard for me because I felt like I was going to truth and I was going closer to my Savior, and if anything, I was doing things so that way my family could be together forever. So going to Church was a little bit tough. As much as it's so exciting, and I felt so whole and connected to my Heavenly Father, my Savior, it was very lonely going to church.  I would walk into church and you see all these families, regardless of probably how hard it was to keep everybody reverent during sacrament, you can feel and tell the love that just embodied everybody and their families. And it was, I was so jealous to see that and be able to have those families sit together and be able to share these experiences together.  And don't get me wrong, I was pretty popular. Everybody wanted me to sit with them. They always wanted me to make sure I felt welcome and loved. And so definitely was not a lack of support from anybody. But it was hard when you go with friends when they go through the temple of the first time and you see this crowd of family at the luncheon afterwards. And you just see this, people from so many different sources, whether aunts, uncles, cousins, grandmas, all there to support you in your decision and your journey spiritually. So I always felt super lonely and just really sad and longed for the day that I could be able to be sealed to somebody and be able to have family that I was able to share the gospel with. Luckily, my husband took me on, and we have four beautiful children. And we've been sharing testimonies and stories and it's wonderful to have that. But again, it's so, it's just saddened because I wish that I can share it with my family, too.  About a couple years ago, I started hearing this voice in my head, "Ugh, aye mi hija!" And my grandmother has passed away 10 years ago. When I was a kid growing up, I did a lot, a lot of dumb things. And whenever she'd catch me doing something she'd be like, "Aye, mi hija!" And she was so disappointed in me for being, making just dumb choices. And I was hearing that sound, "Aye, mi hija!" And I knew what it was. "Aye, mi hija!" It was my grandmother. "Aye, mi hija!" Why have you done my work yet? Why have you not gotten me sealed to your grandfather yet? "Aye, mi hija!" So I knew I had to get her work done. Because I was not gonna be here that was the rest of my life. So I start, I started working hard getting all of her work done. Through my grandparents, who had passed away, I was able to get all of their parents' work done and sealed. And so we got this nice lot of work done now for my family. And it was super exciting to be able to get all that stuff done.  Well, a couple of months ago, I was training for a marathon and I was on a 20-mile run that day. I had to leave at four in the morning. I was 10 miles into my run, and it was just a beautiful, was a beautiful day. The sun hadn't come out yet and the stars were shining. The area that I happened to be in was a gated community so there wasn't any streetlights. So the stars were able to even shine brighter, and it was a completely clear sky. So I looked up to the sky and it was just gorgeous. And I couldn't help but admire how beautiful this creation that God had given me, this earth that just naturally brings beauty. And then as I was running, I felt somebody running beside me. And I knew it was my grandmother. She started running beside me. And then, then someone became beside her. And on the other side, there was someone else that came beside, and all of a sudden I had a row of angels running beside me. And I knew It wasn't just angels. It was my family. It was my grandfathers, it was my cousin, it was my great-grandparents.  And they ran with me for a little bit. And so I started bearing my testimony, my soul, sharing up all the wonderful things that I have found by coming to know of the truth of the gospel, that I was able to share my testimony and able to share my experiences with my family.  Because of that experience, I have felt them so much more lately in my life. I even felt them actually on my marathon. I was running, and I was only at mile seven, and I felt them coming down and I was like, "Wait on guys, hold on, hold on. Appreciate you coming down. But I'm going to need your help around mile 18. Mile seven, I'm good, keeping good pace." And they did come at mile 18 and had to stay with me the whole entire time because I barely made it till mile 26.  I was reading in the Doctrine and Covenants when the Kirtland Temple was being dedicated. And it talks about how to leave this temple with angels having charge over us. It made me really connect that to my family, that the angels being charged over me are not just any random angels, they're my family. That loneliness has been able to to go away because I do have those family members that are part of the gospel. That were most likely there when I got sealed to my wonderful husband. That had been there when my sons have gotten baptized. That will continue to be there as we go through these great moments. I am so grateful to have that knowledge, to have those angels with me as I go forth. KaRyn (30:24) That was Melissa.  I love the image of her ancestors coming to run next to her. Every time I think about it, it reminds me of some kind of scene from the end of a movie. It's like, after the montage and there's this amazing music playing and then all of a sudden the heroine looks to her left and looks to her right and realizes that she is not alone. And honestly, couldn't we all use a little shove in the middle of a marathon from those who've already finished the race? I know I could.  Our next story is a short and sweet one from Cheryl whose angel came right to the front door.  Here's Cheryl. Cheryl (30:56) My son Lincoln was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, which is the cancer of the blood when he was 2-and-a-half years old. We also had a 1-year-old, Sawyer. So our hands were pretty full, and it was pretty devastating to get that diagnosis.  About six months later, we moved to Greenville, North Carolina, so my husband could do his residency program. Shortly after we moved to North Carolina, things got really hard for me. Lincoln was in a phase of his chemotherapy treatment that was really intense. And he was on these medications that made him super cranky and really agitated, particularly the steroids that were bad. They caused him to want to eat constantly. He ate so much, he retained so much water that he had what the doctors called moon face because his face got so big and round that it looked like the shape of a moon. On top of all that, I was pregnant and in my first trimester. I just remember being so nauseous and waking up with Lincoln, sometimes multiple times a night, to spoon-feed him chicken broccoli casserole and Pasta Roni, those are the two things he always wanted because he was so hungry. And it broke my heart to see him so uncomfortable and so miserable.  Meanwhile, Sawyer, his little brother, was almost two and I felt so guilty for the life that he'd been experiencing for the past several months. I felt so bad for him being stuck inside all the time with a sick brother and a sick mom day after day, and I did, I just didn't have the energy and I couldn't do much about it. I couldn't take him out and play with him and go to the park, anything like that. And we just moved to the area so I didn't know anybody so I didn't feel like I had friends or support to draw on at the time. And I remember one day, I just hit an all-time low and had a bad night hadn't slept. And I just I picked up my phone, and I text my three sisters who live all across the country. And my text said something like, "This is awful. I can't do this anymore. Help." And I'm a very dramatic person so I knew that text would be alarming to them. But I was just so desperate.  Right after I send the text, my sister Wendy called, but I was busy and I couldn't answer the phone. So then about five minutes later, she called back again and that time I, I did answer. About a minute into our conversation, the doorbell rang. And I told my sister and she said, "Well, go answer the door." and I said, "I'm not answering the door. I am not expecting anyone. I don't know anyone here. My house is a mess. I look horrific. I'm not answering the door." And then she told me that for the past five minutes since she received my text, she'd been on her knees praying that someone would come help me because she couldn't. So I swallow my pride going out to the door, and standing there was my neighbor who lived down the street. And I had only met her once before that, maybe twice, just in passing. And she was there with her daughter who was in a red wagon. Carolyn told me she felt like she should just come see how I was doing and she wanted to know if Sawyer, my son who had been feeling particularly bad about neglecting, if he might want to go on a wagon ride with her daughter around the neighborhood.  It was such a simple act, such a simple gesture, but it meant the world to me. I started crying and I told her that I felt like she was an angel and that God had sent her and she was an answer to prayer. And I'm sure she thought I was a little bit crazy but in that moment, I was just so grateful. And I really, truly felt like she was an angel that had been sent. I knew my Heavenly Father was aware of me and I felt His love so strongly. It just washed over me. I knew He'd heard my sister's prayer, and I felt His love and His awareness so strongly that I just, I couldn't deny it, and I still can't deny it today.  Though nothing really changed drastically after that day, Lincoln and I continued to feel sick and struggle together. But I had received a witness that God was aware of me in my darkest hour, and He sent my neighbor who I barely knew as a ministering angel to offer the perfect act of service. And that was just enough to keep me going.  Lincoln continued to have chemo treatments for another three years but he made it through and he's cured. He's in remission now and he's been cancer-free for the past four years. And I'm just so grateful.  I often look back on that experience with Carolyn and it just reminds me that we can get through hard times. And we can be angels for other people just like she was for me. So we can lift each other, and we can be the hands of heaven here on earth. KaRyn (36:52) That was Cheryl.  Do you ever worry that what you're offering is weird or wrong or might offend somebody? I know I do. And I think that sometimes that stops me from showing up for people in their time of need. But Cheryl's story is exactly what I needed this week to kick my shame to the curb. Ministering is all about trusting that who you are and how you move in the world is already enough for the people you've been paired with or prompted toward. And that God will transform your offer of a red wagon ride into exactly what your neighbor needs. I also think it helps me to remember that the work of heaven and angels is not limited to those and other realms. We get to be a part of that work, too. And what a privilege that is.  Our final story today comes from Brooke and if you've been silently listening to today's stories, wondering where your angels are, well, this one's for you. Here's Brooke. Brooke (37:46) I was on a conference call with Whitney and Soni, the two girls that I sing with. And we were discussing our upcoming tours and I got a phone call from my mom. My mom was diagnosed with the flu the day before, so I thought, "Oh, she's just calling to tell me how she's feeling." And she kept calling. She'd call hang-up, call hang-up, which is normal for my mom. That's, that's what my mom does until you answer the phone. So I finally texted her and just said, "Hey, I am on a conference call, I'll call you back as soon as I'm done." And I sent this text and as soon as I sent the text, she called again. And I thought, "Okay, that, that's not like my mom." It was my dad calling from my mom's phone and told me that my mom had stopped breathing and the ambulance was on their way and to just hang tight until they got to a hospital. And then he would call us from there. But I live fairly close to my dad so I told him I would just jump in the car and just run over and just be with him until they get that figured out. And I remember driving and just praying, "Just let her be okay." I just assumed she'd be okay. It's the flu, right? It's 2018, it's not 1740, so I felt okay about it but obviously a little nervous.  When I got there, there was two or three ambulances there and a police car and they were rolling out a stretcher, the stretcher was empty. And I thought, "Oh, maybe she's okay." So I asked them quickly, "What happened? Where's my mom?" They said, "Well, are you Brooke? Just go inside." And my dad was standing there with the most blank look and said, "There's nothing they can do. They couldn't do anything." And I just froze. I couldn't believe this was actually happening. And I even remember kind of yelling at the, yelling at the EMTs saying, "How long did you try? You didn't try long enough." They just kind of stared at me. And I just I couldn't believe that I had lost my mom to the flu. You know, she'd been at my house three days before just loving on my kids and she was, she was gone. My mom was very full of life. I know that sounds cliche, but I don't know how else to describe her. Everything she did was so big: her actions were big her, her voice was loud, just her hair was big. She even would had this whistle. And, you know, it was interesting no matter where you were, what event you were at, what school play you were at, you knew where my mom was sitting because of this whistle that would just kill everybody's ears. That was her signature thing.  She was the person that would walk up to strangers, even like homeless people, and hug them and talk to them. Sometimes the, the stranger's face would have a look of confusion like, "Who is this lady touching me and why is she touching me?" But a lot of times you'd almost see their faces just kind of melt just, "I just I really needed that." Even though she's a stranger, you know.  We found out all these really great stories about her after. She would visit her Young Women with flowers when their sister moved away to college because she knew that this little girl was struggling with her sister leaving. Or, she'd show up at lacrosse games or she did tea parties for my kids. She was a grandma that came to things and showed up. I think we definitely took it for granted. I don't know if you're ever really done grieving. I think the first year was fog and a lot of drowning. And I think that's typical. Second year, maybe it's a little bit easier. That first year was horrible. I still have a lot of triggers. It sounds so funny, but she loved "Downton Abbey." She thought she was British. We always laugh like, "You're not British, Mom." But she thought she was British so she loved "Downton Abbey." It was her ringtone on my phone. And after she passed away, you know, the show is not on anymore and I was sitting in the movie theater just a couple months ago and the preview for the new movie coming out came up. The second I heard the music, it was just, just waterworks. You know, I don't expect to be sitting in a movie theater crying about a song that represents my mom. There's triggers everywhere and I just, all the firsts you expect, but the little things are hard. I don't even know how to tell somebody how to get through this other than I just know you become a part of this crazy club of people grieving lost ones. And so there are days where you feel really alone and days that you know you're not. One of the things that comforted me after I lost her was that I knew angels existed and I knew that they were very present in our lives. I have had experiences with that before. I have felt my great-grandmother with me through really hard times. My great-grandmother was a singer and there was no other singers in my family. And so I've always felt connected to her. I've never met her, but I felt her presence. I don't know how to explain the feeling. I don't see her or hear her. I just know she's there. Even times before I'm going to go on stage and I'm nervous I felt my great-grandma with me. You know, she's a singer so she knows what it's like to to step on a stage and be nervous.  During the birth of my last baby, it was a really traumatic experience where we almost lost her, and it was bad enough that even my life was in danger. I was, I had to be sedated for that one. Waking up and kind of slowly opening my eyes, I could see my husband and I could see my mom in the room, but the room felt full of people. And I just kind of sat there thinking, "Who else is here?" And the room was just filled with love, a bigger love than can be contained in just the two people that were there. And, even from that moment, I've always felt like my youngest, Claire, belongs to a collective group of people. I just get to be her, her mom here.  Having had those experiences, I had an expectation that I would have the same experiences with my mom. And my patriarchal blessing even talks about angels and that the presence of my loved ones will be very important to me in my life. I expected my mom to come and visit me just the way I had been visited in the past. I thought that she won't feel very far away. She'll always feel close. What added to that belief was that a couple years before my mom passed away, I had a very strong impression to study angels, not just because they were mentioned in my patriarchal blessing, but I was really intrigued with the idea of them. So I studied scriptures and talks and books and I went to the temple, they're talked about all over in the temple. I would read experiences that people have had, and I just really gained a huge testimony in their existence and in their roles in our lives. All of these things led me to believe and to expect that my mom would come to me in certain ways, and I will feel her presence on a regular basis. But I haven't. I haven't felt my mom since she's passed. It's been a year and a half, and I had all these expectations. Maybe when I was, after the year when I could see more clearly or I wasn't in this fog or during some big life thing that would happen: my daughter's baptism, during my dad getting remarried. Would I feel her that week? And I haven't, I haven't felt her. That's been difficult. It's been hard because I have expectations. And I know what it feels like and I know it's possible. So why, why not my mom? Why my great-grandma, why people that I don't know? Why can I feel angels but not my mom? Why does it talk about my patriarchal blessing how important they'll be in my life, but the one who's the most important feels silent? So the questioning did come to a point where I, I was angry. And it's interesting because, throughout the entire process, I never felt angry at God. I know death is a part of this experience. I saw His hand in all the service and all the love that we were given. I even looked back and saw all the ways He actually prepared us for her passing. I was never mad at God. I really wasn't, until one night I really wanted to talk to my mom, and I don't even remember, honestly, what it was about. And I remember praying out loud and I was in the car driving and I was praying out loud. And I asked him, "Why? Why have you let me have all these experiences and gained such a testimony of angels and their existence and their involvement, how close they are. And I've been led to so much study and pondering and praying about the subject of angels. Why have you not let me feel my mom?" And it was a really clear moment, a really clear answer that came to me and it's, I don't have a lot of those in my life. I have seen the Lord's hand and the Spirit has spoken to me, but this is one of those clear like, "I hear the words. I'm sitting on your shoulder in your ear." And He said, "I had to come to that knowledge, I had to study all of this so that you would know she was there even when you don't feel her."  Everything kind of turned at that point, my vision shifted a little bit. I started to look for my mom in different ways. It's interesting because I still, still haven't felt my mom the way I felt my great-grandma. But I see my mom through the actions of other people. Right when she died, a sweet friend did a painting for me. And she said, "I felt like somebody took my hand and the paintbrush and painted this," and had a painting out in 10 minutes. I wish like everybody can see this painting. It's a painting of an angel, which she didn't know that that's my love. You know, I have an angel wall in my office and the colors that she used were all the same colors on my wall and the angel looked just like my mom. Big hair, you know, and she's never met my mom.  It was just really interesting that I thought, "Oh, that's my mom. She knows I love angels, of course." In fact, even at Christmas time, this gal in my neighborhood, she had a very strong impression for two weeks, "You need to buy Brooke an angel." And she kept saying, "Why? I don't even know Brooke that well. That's gonna look so weird." And so she's like, "I'll just buy her a candle or something like that." She bought something else. But it kept coming, "No, buy her an angel. Buy her an angel." So she's like, "I finally just bought you an angel. I'm so, I don't even know why." She doesn't know that I have this love of angels.  You know, I got a letter, this beautiful letter from a friend that said, "Was listening to your song and your mom was there with me and this is what she told me and this is what she wants me to tell you." And it was a really beautiful moment for my friend that became a really beautiful moment for me. We were both blessed from this, you know, and that's how my mom operates. That's what she, that totally sounds like my mom. My mom works in heaven the same way she works on Earth. She works with other people a lot and I, it's interesting because I think she'll do something to bless somebody who will then turn and tell me so that we kind of both get blessed. So it's like a two birds with one stone kind of a thing you know, she just, she knows she can bless two people with one action. So that's what she's gonna do. And it makes sense to me that she's going to do the same things in heaven that she did here on Earth. They don't change, you know. I still want to feel her all the time. I think I'll always miss her and there will always be moments where I'm just kind of, maybe angry is not the right word, but sad. Sad she's not here with me. It's been interesting to see the compassion that's grown and how much I've learned to lean on Heavenly Father instead. Like, I had an experience one night. I was praying and telling Heavenly Father I was frustrated I couldn't talk to my mom about my, my mothering. My mom was really good at telling me I was doing a good job. I can't talk to my friends about that because we're all, everybody's in the trenches together. We all think we're a horrible mom. All of us think we're ruining our kids. But my mom was out of the trenches and could tell me from a different perspective I was doing okay. And I remember praying and saying, "I miss my mom being here to tell me I'm doing a good job. And the Spirit said, "Well, I can tell you you're doing a good job." I thought, "Oh, of course, why don't I just go to Christ? Why don't I tell Him everything?" And honestly, it's been interesting because I've never before relied so much on Him, even as being a connection to my mom. I can't tell you how often I've said in a prayer, "Will you please tell my mom I love her?" And how often the Spirit has said to me, "She knows." So even though I can't feel my mom, or even sometimes I don't know if she hears what I was saying, He does. Christ knows how I feel. He knows what I'm saying. He hears my thoughts. And if there's something that my mom needs to know, He'll make sure it happens. And I trust that. KaRyn (52:36) That was Brooke. Brooke Stone is one-third of the music group Mercy River, and she first shared part of this story at Time Out for Women where I heard it and realized that it had to be a part of this episode.  We celebrate heavenly visitation when it happens because in these latter days, we do believe in angels. We believe in a realm beyond this one, but we also believe as with any friends form of divine communication, that heavenly visitation is only one way that God reaches us in our need. And just like Brooke said, how we receive that revelation is no indication of our goodness or lack of goodness. We may long for and work for and study and seek for angels only to find that God needs us to hear His message a different way at a different time.  Like Brooke, I don't understand the whys of revelation. I don't understand why one time it's an angel and the next time it's a feeling and the next time it's silence. But I do know that someday it's going to all make sense. And I hold onto that day with hope that I'll rejoice in my heavenly, "Aha," moment.  One thing that is clear from our stories today is that the work of angels is always beautifully related to the work of discipleship. As I was sitting in the Conference Center listening to what felt like a choir of angels heralding the birth of the Savior with those tears for my grandma falling freely, I heard the lyrics from the chorus of the song "Angels among Us," and I felt something shifted in me. I felt a new understanding beginning. Here's a little piece of that song for you.   Oh, I believe there are Angels Among Us, Sent down to us from somewhere up above.  They come to you and me in our darkest hours To show us how to live To teach us how to give   To guide us with a light of love.     That guiding light of love that the song speaks about? Well, that light was the guiding force for Matt and the families he taught as a missionary. It was the homing beacon for Melissa as she found her place in the family of Christ. It was the knock at the door for Cheryl who just needed to know that she was known. And it was the gentle reminder for Brooke that even in her grief and her loss and her longing for comfort, He can be the one to tell her she's getting it right, that she's not alone, and that she's got back up. Our angels, whether we feel them or not, will always show up. And they will always point us towards the true light of all love, our Savior, Jesus Christ. So as we feel inspired to, as Elder Holland suggested speak of and believe in and bear testimony of the ministry of angels more than we sometimes do, we can trust that those inspired expressions will also bear witness of Him and His holy life and His holy work. That's it for this episode of This Is the Gospel. Thanks for joining us today. And thank you to Matt, Melissa, Cheryl, and Brooke for allowing us to help tell their stories of divine communication.  We'll have so many good things in the show notes for this episode, you guys, so many good things. You really, really want to go there. We're going to have a transcript of the episode along with some pictures and we will have a link to the Tabernacle Choir's Angels among Us album, which is so beautiful and it has that song that we played from Kristin Chenoweth and the choir.  You can also follow us at @thisisthegospel_podcast on Instagram and Facebook to get more about the podcasts and about this episode. All of our stories on the podcast are true and accurate as affirmed by our storytellers. If you have a great story about your experience living the gospel of Jesus Christ, well guess what? we have a pitch line and we want to hear from you. Leave us a short three-minute story pitch at 515-519-6179. We're still looking for some stories for season two, so don't hesitate to call and leave that message. You can find out what themes we're working on right now by following us on Instagram and Facebook @thisisthegospel_podcast.  Don't forget to tell us about your experience with this podcast. Take the time to leave a review on the Apple podcast app or on Bookshelf PLUS+ app from Deseret Book. We really do appreciate it. We love to hear your thoughts about the episodes, about the podcast as a whole, and it really does help more people to find our stories.  This episode was produced by me, KaRyn Lay, with story producing and editing by Katie Lambert and Kelly Campbell. It was scored, mixed, and mastered by Mix at 6 Studios, and our executive producer is Erin Hallstrom. You can find past episodes of this podcast and other LDS Living podcasts at ldsliving.com/podcasts. Have a beautiful week.

Episode No. 73 Saturday, November 16, 2019 Dr. Mack Wilberg, Conductor, Composer, Arranger, Educator and the Music Director for the...

The world-class singer Sissel joins the show with Ron Jarett, Mack Wilberg & Ron Gunnell, of The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, to talk about their upcoming Pioneer Day concerts. Sissel, known for her ethereal arias in the film Titanic, will be the featured guest at the event. The concert will be live streamed on thetabernaclechoir.org at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 20. You will not want to miss this amazing singer! The Movie Show with Doug Wright and Steve Salles. Listen Fridays 9 am to noon at 1160 AM & 102.7 FM, online, or on the app. https://kslnewsradio.com/

Music is a universal language which transcends culture and nationality. For more than a century, the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square has used that language to influence millions around the world. The 360 voices, the orchestra, under the influence of two dynamic directors, demonstrate how a volunteer organization can achieve the extraordinary. Music director Mac Wilberg and associate music director Ryan Murphy join us for a unique conversation about leadership, inspiration and the transformational power of music on this episode of "Therefore, What?" Sign up to get each episode of this weekly podcast delivered to your inbox at: http://www.deseretnews.com/tw

In this interview we meet Mack Wilberg and Ryan Murphy, the two Music Directors for The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square. Find out how the Tabernacle Choir is a Missionary Organization, and get the inside scoop about their latest album!

What would you ask the directors of the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square if you could sit with them in the basement of the historic Salt Lake Tabernacle? We put a call out on Twitter for questions and Mack Wilberg and Ryan Murphy set out to answer them (and a few of our own) on this week’s episode of "All In." 

CHORAL ANTHEM presented after the scripture and sermon "Where Can I Turn for Peace?" ~ arr. Mack Wilberg ......... Matthew 12:34-40 (NRSV) 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgement you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.’ 38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, ‘Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.’ 39 But he answered them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For just as Jonah was for three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth.

Classicos IPB. Hoje destacando o CD "Tree of Life, do compositor, arranjador e maestro americano, Mack Wilberg. Orquestra, Temple Square. Coral Tabernacle Choir. Regencia, Mack Wilberg. Apresentação, Natsan Matias. Produção, Artur Mendes / APECOM. ​

The Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill, Dean preaches a sermon entitled "Christmas Nuptials". The Marsh Chapel Choir sings "Ding dong! merrily on high" arr. by Mack Wilberg, and "Nativity Carol" by John Rutter along with service music and hymns.

The Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill, Dean preaches a sermon entitled "Christmas Nuptials". The Marsh Chapel Choir sings "Ding dong! merrily on high" arr. by Mack Wilberg, and "Nativity Carol" by John Rutter along with service music and hymns.

Classicos IPB. Hoje destacando o CD de natal "O Come Little Children", do coral americano, Tabernacle Choir. Orchestra, Temple Square Orchestra. Arranjos, Sam Cardon. Regencia, Mack Wilberg e Ryan Murphy. Um programa APECOM / Radio IPB.

Season 2, Ep. 5 – Music Director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Mack Wilberg talks about collaborating with the Utah Symphony on the new album, Mahler Symphony No. 8.

Church musicians, this is the episode you have been waiting for. One of the most respected directors in the field, Terry Price talks with Ryan about the unique challenges of directing a church choir. This episode is packed with wisdom and actionable advice, but the one about the label maker...we’ll just say that if you don’t already keep one in your choir room, you’ll run out to buy one as soon as this episode is over. Listen Highlight to Tweet:         “Church music is a functional art. It has a purpose” - Terry Price “If you want quality singers, you need to do quality music.” - Terry Price Show Notes: Mr. Price has spent some time as a public school choir teacher, some time with the Dallas Symphony Chorus, but most of his career has been spent as a choir director in a christian church. What’s special about church choirs... Church choirs are unique because they are primarily amateur sings; they are there out of love. They want to be better singers. Terry’s job is to find creative ways to help them to be better. Church music has a purpose; it is not music for music’s sake. A church choir allows us to gather weekly with people we care about and read and sing sacred poetry and scripture; this uniquely beautiful opportunity is not common for non-choir members. Church choirs perform most often, with the least rehearsal time. And there’s a Sunday every week! At the times we need our best singers the most (Christmas and Easter), they are most likely to be absent. Churches are about the business of serving people in a lot of different ways. A great music program can bring people into the life of the church, strengthening it in many ways. Keep in mind... Programming a variety of quality music will be satisfying to your singers and congregation. But both are important: quality, and variety. If you are doing contemporary music in a worship service, make sure you are doing it very, very well, otherwise it won’t compare favorably to the music people normally consume throughout their week. In rehearsal… Warm ups are important! Listen to John Yarrington’s episodes. Make warm ups specific to the music you will be working on in rehearsal. Talk less, sing more Don’t assume people know what you are talking about, especially when using music terms. Be encouraging. You don’t know what kind of day your singers had when they came into rehearsal. When you are learning, learn...when you are practicing, practice...and when you are performing, perform. Keep things moving, and keep things light. Write down jokes if you can’t remember them...it gives singers a momentary mental break and helps them refocus. Always have new music in your folder. Again...variety is key! Start rehearsal with an easy win, so they can begin with a success. Don’t tailor your rehearsal to the weakest singer. You don’t want them to determine your rehearsal techniques. But you do want to bring them along with you. Find a great singer who can sit near and mentor them. There is no need to embarrass someone by calling them out individually; address sections together. Choir members do not get to correct each other. That is the director’s job alone. Planned social events and parties are important. Let them know they are valued… Terry made sure there were always a few extra folders prepared each week. If someone new came to rehearsal, a volunteer would use the label maker so they could hand them a folder with their name already on it, telling them they were already a welcomed choir member before they even sang a note. A “choir buddy” sits with them during rehearsal. Specific gifts to choir members for every 5 years of service. There needs to be a specific dream ahead of you at all times. The choir should always be working towards some goal, milestone, or achievement for inspiration. Bio: Terry Price has served at some of the largest mainline churches in the US. Each of the choirs experienced considerable growth under his leadership while he instilled musical excellence among the singers. He directed the Christmas Eve celebrations in Bethlehem and has conducted at major church music festivals in the Vatican and across the UK and Europe. He has worked closely with such conductors as John Rutter, Sir David Willcocks, Bob Chilcott, Paul Leddington Wright, Mack Wilberg and Ryan Murphy. He served as Conductor of the Dallas Symphony Chorus ad interim for 2 years. He was awarded the Texas ChoirMaster Award by the Texas Choral Directors Association, and was the first church musician to be so honored. He was involved in 4 recording projects that were nominated for Grammy Awards. Resources/links Mentioned: John Yarrington on Choir Ninja: Leave My Christmas Carols Alone Vocal Athletes, Start Your Engines Business Article link Contact Terry Price through email Choir Nation group on Facebook Email Patreon - Support the podcast! Sponsored by: Sight Reading Factory (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!) My Music Folders (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for “last column” or best pricing - usually reserved for bulk purchases only!)

Some inmates at the Utah State Prison are getting a new kind of direction, from Mack Wilberg, Conductor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He volunteers to work with prisoners in his free time, helping put together musical training for vocalists and other musicians including piano, strings and other instruments. KSL Newsradio's Paul Nelson reports. 

Mormon Tabernacle Choir music director Mack Wilberg joins Nancy to discuss the musical institution, its intricacies and audition process, and new album Mormon Tabernacle Choir & Friends. Read more in Nancy’s online column Showbiz Analysis for Parade Magazine.

Reid meets Dr. Mack Wilberg in his dressing room before a rehearsal. Enjoy his childhood memory of first hearing the world reknown choir and learning what he sang to his own children. Reid was mesmerized. www.mormontabernaclechoir.org "Talk Time with Reid Moriarty" is a series of 7-9 minute interviews with people Reid finds interesting, and you might too! www.reidmoriarty.com

This new album features masterworks, sacred anthems, a folk hymn, a song from the Broadway stage, and selections from some of the most eminent film composers of our day. Included are jubilant renditions of “Ode to Joy” from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Ennio Morricone's “Nella Fantasia” from The Mission, and one of the choir's most frequently requested anthems, “The Holy City.”In this audio interview director Mack Wilberg tells about the music choices, Tenor soloist Stanford Olsen, relates the most humbling aspect of working with the choir, and describes the joy of performing and recording some of the world's most enduring (and difficult!) works for choir and orchestra.That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull.

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square combine their talents to create this one-of-a-kind collection of exquisite music that bears witness of the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Choir director Dr. Mack Wilberg gives us an audio tour of the new album, featuring songs never before recorded by the Choir, as well as familiar favorites.  From start to finish, this inspiring and contemplative album is completely focused on the love of our Savior and his role as our Redeemer.That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

While it might seem strange that cutting the Tabernacle Choir in half would result in a number-one album on the Billboard Classical charts in its first week of release, that's exactly what happened.In this audio tour of the album, you'll hear the choir's director, Dr. Mack Wilberg, talk about the decision to make the album, the rich tradition of men's choral music, and why they chose this particular balance of classical and contemporary songs, which has struck a chord with so many listeners.That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...Playlist:1.   Brethren, We Have Met to Worship2.   Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy3.   The Morning Trumpet4.   Fight the Good Fight with All Thy Might5.   Evening (Aftonen)6.   Land-Sighting (Landkjenning)7.   Dance a Cachuca, Fandango, Bolero (Finale from The Gondoliers)8.   Alleluia9.   Pilgrim's Chorus from Tannhäuser10. Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)11. Hush, Little Baby12. You Raise Me Up13. Beautiful Savior14. There Is a Balm in Gilead15. He's Got the Whole World in His Hands

  The Buffalo News review says, "Anyone in need of a breather might like to give this a try. It's the real deal." Heavensong features beloved classical selections that will lift and transport you through a journey of light and hope. From new Mack Wilberg compositions to familiar melodies to “The Prayer,” this music is perfect for quiet contemplation. In this edition, choir director Mack Wilberg takes us on an audio tour of these peaceful classics, along with several new choir favorites, shares the story behind recording "The Prayer" with David Foster, and much more. That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...    

From the opening shout of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on "Saints Bound for Heaven" you can hear the millennial fervor and frontier optimism of 19th century America leaping right out of this marvelous collection of time-tested hymns, as well as the hopeful harmony of the spirituals which comforted a people waiting for deliverance— including the heartbreaking beautiful "I Want Jesus to Walk With Me," featuring soloist Alex Boyé.Sharing highlights from a pipe-and-drums "Amazing Grace" to the new signature tune in their repertoire, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," Tabernacle Choir Music Director Dr. Mack Wilberg, talks about what defines a folk hymn, choosing these particular pieces, and why they resonate with us still today.That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

From the joyful opening strains of "The Morning Breaks, the Shadows Flee," to its more somber conclusion, this new release from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Orchestra at Temple Square commemorates the life and mission of Joseph Smith, called the prophet of the Restoration by Latter-day Saints everywhere.  The release date of December 23rd also marks the Prophet's birthday in 1805 in Sharon, Vermont.For those not familiar with the theology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often called “Mormons” or “Latter-day Saints,” the role of a Prophet is very important—like Moses to the Israelites, or Peter and Paul to the early Saints. The first of these, the one called by God to Restore the ancient church in the latter days, was Joseph Smith, Jr.Besides the cover painting by David Lindsley, the CD booklet is beautifully illustrated inside with 9 full-color paintings by Jon McNaughton and includes a short history of the life and times of Joseph Smith.Music Director and Arranger Dr. Mack Wilberg talks about the song choices and the arrangements in this album of LDS classic hymns such as "Joseph Smith's First Prayer," "An Angel From on High," and the title hymn, "Praise to the Man."  Also included are two children's songs, as well as the millennial hymn "Adam-ondi-Ahman," and of course "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief."That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull.

Combining a world-famous choir and orchestra with the world-renowned King's Singers was both a joy and a challenge for Tabernacle Choir director Dr. Mack Wilberg. Besides waving the baton and keeping everyone together, he also did the bulk of the beautiful arrangements on this new holiday release (also available on DVD).Dr. Wilberg shares his approach to arranging for the choir, points out a few musical highlights from this new production, and talks about the privilege of doing the work he does.That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...