There is a message for Latter-day
Saints in a 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” (D&C 117:12).
Oliver Granger was a very
ordinary man. He was mostly blind, having “lost his sight by cold and exposure”
(History of the Church, 4:408). The First Presidency described him as “a man of
the most strict integrity and moral virtue; and in fine, to be a man of God” (History
of the Church, 3:350).
When the Saints were driven from
Kirtland, Ohio, in a scene that would be repeated in Independence, in Far West,
and in 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” (D&C 117:13).
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, much,
perhaps even most, of the honor should go to Lydia Dibble Granger, his wife.
Oliver and Lydia finally left
Kirtland to join the Saints in Far West, Missouri. They had gone but a few
miles from Kirtland when they were turned back by a mob. Only later did they
join the Saints at 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” (D&C 117:13).
. . .
The few in Kirtland are now
millions of ordinary Latter-day Saints across the world. They speak a multitude
of languages but unite in faith and understanding through the language of the
Spirit.
These faithful members make and
keep their covenants and strive to be worthy to enter the temple. They believe
the prophecies and sustain their ward and branch leaders.
Like Oliver, they sustain the
First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and accept what the Lord
said: “If my people will hearken unto my voice, and unto the voice of [these
men] whom I have appointed to lead my people, behold, verily I say unto you,
they shall not be moved out of their place” (D&C 124:45).
. . .
Today we fulfill the prophecy
“that [Oliver Granger’s] name shall be had in sacred remembrance from
generation to generation, forever and ever” (D&C 117:12). He was not a
great man in terms of the world. Nevertheless, the Lord said, “Let no man despise
my servant Oliver Granger, but let the blessings … be on him forever and ever”
(D&C 117:15). (Boyd K. Packer, “The
Least of These,” General Conference, October 2004)
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