The Lord

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The Lords Timing

• www.kevinhinckley.com

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Big Lous Pest Control Service
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Canannite Woman

• Then Jesus went thence from Galilee,
  and departed into the coasts of Tyre and
  Sidon.
• And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of
  the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have
  mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David my
  daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
• But he answered her not a word. And his disciples
  came and besought him, saying, Send her away for
  she crieth after us.
• But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto
  the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
• Question
• Why does that matter?

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Elder McConkie

• "...the house of Israel is composed of the
  spirits from preexistence who there developed
  a talent for spirituality, and who are
  therefore entitled to the blessings of heaven
  in this life on a preferential basis.
• All men, in due course, either in his life or in
  the spirit world, will be offered the blessings
  of salvation. But there is an eternal system of
  priorities there is a law of election, a
  doctrine of foreordination and Israel is
  entitled to the blessing of the holy word ahead
  of their Gentile fellows.
• During his lifetime Jesus took the gospel and its
  blessings, with isolated exceptions, to his
  kinsmen in Israel after his resurrection he will
  sent his apostolic witnesses to all men,
  irrespective of creed or race or ancestry.
• The Lord Jehovah--Jesus in the flesh--is simply
  conforming to the eternal law of gospel
  priorities that he and his Father ordained from
  before the foundations of the world, and such a
  limited exception to the eternal provision of the
  eternal law as may properly be made is about to
  be shown forth." (Mortal Messiah, 311-12)

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Question

• Why does timing seem to be so critical with the
  Lord?

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The woman continues
Four Audiences For This Incident
1- The Woman Herself

• Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the
  coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
• And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the
  same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have
  mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David my
  daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
• But he answered her not a word. And his disciples
  came and besought him, saying, Send her away for
  she crieth after us.
• But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto
  the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
• Then came she came and worshipped him, saying,
  Lord, help me.
• But he answered and said, It is not meet to take
  the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
  translation domesticated house dogs
• And she said, Truth, Lord yet the dogs eat of
  the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
• Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman,
  great is thy faith be it unto thee even as thou
  wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that
  very hour.

2- The People of the Town
3- The Disciples
4- Us, the future readers
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Elder Featherstone

• It took much thought and prayer to understand
  this experience. I couldn't imagine the Master
  I worship with all my heart appearing to be so
  harsh.
• Understanding came. Of course he was
  emphasizing the covenant with Israel, that all
  nations were to be blessed through Israel, and
  Israel through the Messiah. In the wisdom of God,
  the gospel would be first taken to the Jews, and
  Jesus' ministry was to be with them.
• Also, he undoubtedly knew the heart of this
  woman and during the moments she pled with him
  and he did not respond, I'm sure he could discern
  her spirit and knew what her responses would be.
• It was a great teaching moment, not only for his
  disciples, but for all generations of man from
  that time forth. The lesson this noble woman
  taught us about humility and trust in absolute
  acceptance of the order of God's kingdom will be
  a blessing to us forever.
• As we read her beautiful, humble response,
  suddenly we have a vision of what true humility
  is and how it must please our Lord. I am so
  grateful that some translator did not leave this
  account out, feeling it was unworthy of Jesus.
  Many of us never would have had one of the
  supreme lessons in humility in all of the
  writings of the Savior. I love him for his love
  and ability to teach with impact. This lesson was
  for Jesus' disciples as well as for the woman and
  the crowd.

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Question

• How does the
  Lords Timing
  inspire true
  humility?
• Dont we become more frustrated and/or
  discouraged as we have to wait?

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Part of a letter from Grandpa Neal A. Maxwell

• Dear Emily
• When you and I ask "why" questions of the Lord it
  is helpful to remember that the prophets
  themselves have asked "why" questions. Enoch
  asked the Lord, in view of His omnipotence and
  omniscience, why He wept (see Moses 728-29, 31).
  Joseph Smith asked a "why" question in the form
  of "how long"how long would the Lord stay His
  hand from protecting His people (see DC
  1211-3)
• Therefore, given our "why" questions and those
  which even prophets ask, how vital it is that we
  personally do all we can to understand God's
  overall plans and purposes! How important, too,
  that we make allowance for His timing and
  likewise for His capacity to work purposefully
  with us and through useven in the midst of our
  inadequacies and in-complete understanding!
• Your loving Grandfather

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Africa, 1950s

• 30 years before the revelation, Church leaders
  became aware of other Africans who were
  interested in the Church. By the 1950s, many
  letters were sent to Church headquarters from the
  West African nations of Nigeria and Ghana
  requesting literature and membership in the
  Church. The letters were written by devout
  Christians who had gained a testimony from the
  Book of Mormon or other Church literature.
• What began as a comparative trickle of requests
  in the early 1950s became a flood by the 1960s.
  More letters requesting literature were received
  from Nigeria and Ghana than from all the rest of
  the world combined However, since there were no
  priesthood holders to preside and provide
  priesthood ordinances, those asking for baptism
  were told, "The time is not yet. You must wait."
• As they waited, they shared their knowledge and
  testimony of the gospel with others and organized
  congregations. It was reported that in the 1960s
  there were more than 60 congregations in Nigeria
  and Ghana, with more than 16,000
  participants--none of whom were baptized.
• letters received President McKay's attention and
  concern not only because of their fervent plea
  but also because of their letterhead, which read,
  "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
  Nigeria Branch." The prophet did not know that
  there were "branches" of the Church in Nigeria.
• In 1961 President McKay assigned LaMar Williams,
  secretary to the Church Missionary Department, to
  go to Nigeria on a month-long fact-finding
  mission Although Brother Williams had been
  responding to the flood of letters from Africa,
  he was not prepared for what he found there. He
  was met at the airport in Lagos, Nigeria, by 10
  pastors with whom he had been corresponding. He,
  too, was treated like royalty but was surprised
  to discover that not only did each pastor operate
  independently, they had not even been aware of
  each other.

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October 22, 1961

• The first official Church meeting in black Africa
  was held on October 22, 1961, in a small mud hut
  in Opobo District, Nigeria, where Brother
  Williams met with a pastor and 110 followers. No
  one came by car. Many, including eight mothers
  with small children, had begun their day before
  400 a.m. and walked 25 miles or more to be
  there. After teaching them for two hours, Brother
  Williams prepared to end the meeting. He
  recorded
• It was hot as blazes. . . . My suit was wringing
  wet. . . . When I turned the meeting back to the
  pastor, I heard a murmur all through the
  congregation . . . and the pastor said to me,
  "They don't want to go home. They have something
  to say."
• Then for three hours . . . these people were
  standing up bearing testimony to the truthfulness
  of the Church and how they believed in the
  prophets. I could not believe what I was hearing.
  Williams interview, pp. 1012
• One elderly gentleman said I keep hearing you
  say, "if we are sincere." Elder Williams, I want
  you to know that I am sincere. I am an old man .
  . . I am sick. But when I heard you were going to
  be here, I walked 16 miles this morning to see
  you and to hear what you have to say. I still
  have to walk 16 miles to get back home, and I am
  not well. I want you to know that I am sincere or
  I would not be here. I have not seen President
  McKay. I have not seen God. But I have seen you.
  And I will hold you personally accountable to
  tell President McKay that I am sincere.

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Finally

• The significance of this unique chapter of Church
  history was summed up by Brother Jude Inmpey from
  Nigeria. At a social gathering with mission
  couples, the mission president called on him to
  share his feelings about the gospel coming to his
  people.
• He related a dream that he had not understood
  until that moment. He had dreamed that he was in
  a gathering where an organ was playing background
  music. It sounded terrible, and people were
  complaining. They discovered that the organist
  was playing only on the white keys.
• Brother Inmpey then observed, "For many, many
  years the Church has been playing only the white
  keys, but now we are playing on the white and the
  black keys, and the music is much, much sweeter"
  (in LeBaron, All Are Alike unto God, p. 123).