Elder Taylor G. Godoy of the Seventy spoke in the Saturday afternoon session of general conference, March 31, 2018 of valuing our time here and using that time to good advantage for ourself and the Lord. He said,
“A few years ago, my friends had a beautiful baby named Brigham. After his birth, Brigham was diagnosed with a rare condition called Hunter syndrome, which sadly meant that Brigham would have a short life. One day while Brigham and his family were visiting the temple grounds, Brigham pronounced a particular phrase; twice he said, “One more day.” The very next day, Brigham passed away.
I have visited Brigham’s grave a few times, and every time I do, I contemplate the phrase “one more day.” I wonder what it would mean, what effect it would have in my life to know that I had only one more day to live. How would I treat my wife, my children, and others? How patient and polite would I be? How would I take care of my body? How fervently would I pray and search the scriptures? I think that, in one way or another, we all at some point will have a “one more day” realization—a realization that we must use wisely the time we have.
…. Regardless of the time the Lord, in His wisdom, determines to grant each of us, of one thing we can be sure: we all have a “today” to live, and the key to making our day successful is to be willing to sacrifice.
The Lord said, “Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice” (D&C 64:23; emphasis added). The word sacrifice comes from the Latin words sacer, which means “sacred,” and facere, which means “to make”—in other words, to make things sacred, to bring honor to them. “Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven” (“Praise to the Man,” Hymns, no. 27). In what ways will sacrifice make our days meaningful and blessed?
First, personal sacrifice strengthens us and gives value to the things we sacrifice for…. Some years ago on fast Sunday, an elderly sister came to the pulpit to share her testimony. She lived in the city called Iquitos, which is in the Peruvian Amazon. She told us that from the time of her baptism, she had always had the goal of receiving the ordinances of the temple in Lima, Peru. She faithfully paid a full tithe and saved her meager income for years.
Her joy upon going to the temple and receiving the sacred ordinances therein was expressed in these words: “Today I can say that I finally feel ready to go through the veil. I am the happiest woman in the world; I have saved money, you have no idea for how long, to visit the temple, and after seven days on the river and 18 hours by bus, I was finally in the house of the Lord. When leaving that holy place, I said to myself, after all the sacrifice that has been required for me to come to the temple, I will not let anything make me take lightly every covenant I made; it would be a waste. This is a very serious commitment!”
I learned from this sweet sister that personal sacrifice is an invaluable force that drives our decisions and our determinations. Personal sacrifice drives our actions, our commitments, and our covenants and gives sacred things meaning.
‘Second, sacrifices we make for others, and that others make for us, result in blessings for all.’ (Elder Godoy spoke of his mother’s sacrifice of a precious heirloom given her by her father so that he could attend dental school. Economic circumstances in the country had devalued his savings to nothing.)
He said, “We went downtown where there were many places that buy and sell jewelry. When we arrived at one store, my mother took out of her purse a small blue velvet bag containing a beautiful gold bracelet with an inscription that read, “To my dear daughter from your father.” It was a bracelet that my grandfather had given her on one of her birthdays. Then, before my eyes, she sold it.
When she received the money, she told me, “If there is one thing I am sure of, it is that you are going to be a dentist. Go and buy all the equipment you need.” Now, can you imagine what kind of student I became from that moment on? I wanted to be the best and finish my studies soon because I knew the high cost of the sacrifice she was making. I learned that the sacrifices our loved ones make for us refresh us like cool water in the middle of the desert. Such sacrifice brings hope and motivation.
Third, any sacrifice we make is small compared to the sacrifice of the Son of God. How can we honor that infinite sacrifice? Each day we can remember that we have one more day to live and be faithful. Amulek taught, “Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you” (Alma 34:31). In other words, if we will offer to the Lord the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit, immediately the blessings of the great plan of happiness are manifest in our lives.
Then, like Enos after receiving the forgiveness of his sins, we will feel the desire ourselves to sacrifice and to seek the well-being of our brothers and sisters (see Enos 1:9). And we will be more willing every “one more day” to follow the invitation that President Howard W. Hunter extended to us when he said: “Mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. … Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. … Speak your love and then speak it again” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Howard W.Hunter [2015], 32; adapted from “What We Think Christmas Is,” McCall’s, Dec. 1959, 82–83).
For Elder Godoy’s complete talk, click ‘One More Day’ , also accessible in the May 2018 Ensign, p34
see also… ‘seeking Christ’s influence’, ‘The Sabbath is a Delight”
