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Transcript

There's a message for Latter-day Saints in the seldom-quoted revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1838. "I remember my servant Oliver Granger; behold, verily I say unto him that his name shall be had in sacred remembrance from generation to generation, forever and ever, saith the Lord." Oliver Granger was a very ordinary man. He was mostly blind, having "lost his sight by cold and exposure." The First Presidency described him as "a man of ... most strict integrity and moral virtue; and in fine, to be a man of God." When the Saints were driven from Kirtland, Ohio, in a scene that would be repeated in Independence and Far West and Nauvoo, Oliver was left behind to sell their properties for what little he could. There was not much chance that he could succeed. And really, he did not succeed! But the Lord said, "Let him contend earnestly for the redemption of the First Presidency of my Church, saith the Lord; and when he falls he shall rise again, for his sacrifice shall be more sacred unto me than his increase, saith the Lord." What did Oliver Granger do that his name should be held in sacred remembrance? Nothing much, really. It was not so much what he did as what he was. When we honor Oliver, we honor as much, perhaps more, his wife, Lydia Dibble Granger. Oliver and Lydia finally left Kirtland to join the Saints in Far West. They had not gone but a few miles from Kirtland when they were turned back by a mob. Only later did they join the Saints in Nauvoo. Oliver died at age 47, leaving Lydia to look after their children. The Lord did not expect Oliver to be perfect, perhaps not even to succeed. "When he falls he shall rise again, for his sacrifice shall be more sacred unto me than his increase, saith the Lord." We cannot always expect to succeed. But we should try the best we can.

"When He Falls He Shall Rise Again"

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(D&C 117:12-15) President Packer teaches about the Lord's counsel to Oliver Granger.
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