From a book by Hilary M. Hendricks, “Live without Regret,” an interview with Elder Richard C. Hinckley, (Friend, February 2007.)
“When I was a boy, my father (Gordon B. Hinckley) often would use an interesting phrase when he was offering the family prayer, “Heavenly Father, please bless us that we may live without regret.” I did not understand what the phrase meant for many years. Then when I was about ten, I had an experience that helped me understand it better.
One night, after dark, one of my friends suggested we explore the new homes under construction on the other side of the hollow. In the corner of one of the houses we found a pile of wood—perfect for building huts. The wood had been used for pouring concrete for the home’s foundation. We convinced ourselves the workers would throw it away. My friends and I grabbed the wood and dragged it to the hollow, talking all the way about what sort of hut we would build with it.
[At] the end of the week . . . we met at the hollow and went to work on our new hut. But I think we all felt embarrassed about what we had done.
That Saturday my father went to his office to catch up on some work. As he often did on Saturday, he invited me to come along. He was then an employee of the Church. The office of President David O. McKay was down the hall.
[On] that Saturday [as] . . . we were leaving the building President McKay stopped us in the hallway. I couldn’t look at him. As I reached up to shake his hand, I felt as if his eyes were reading the words “wood thief” on the top of my head. How I regretted taking that wood! My father’s prayers finally made sense! I knew that when my time came to stand before the Lord, I wanted to feel worthy. (from Hilary M. Hendricks, “Live without Regret,” from an interview with Elder Richard C. Hinckley, Friend, February 2007.
Quoted here from the book ‘The Divine Gift of Forgiveness’ (pg.75-76) by Neil L. Anderson.
