[MUSIC PLAYING]
In 1930, during the time
of the Great Depression, as a young stake
president, Harold B. Lee had been successful
in implementing programs that blessed the
needy Saints of his stake.
Five years later, he was
called by the First Presidency to help establish a
Church-wide welfare program to turn the
membership of the Church away from government relief
and put the Church in a place where it could care
for its own needy. Shortly after this call,
Brother Lee took a solitary walk in a secluded park. And there all by
myself, I kneeled down in one of the most
humble prayers. Here I was, just a young
man in my early 30s. My experience had been limited. I was born in a little
country town in Idaho. I had hardly been
outside of the boundaries of the state of Utah and Idaho. And now to put me
in a position where I was to reach out to the
entire membership of the Church worldwide was one of the most
staggering contemplations that I could imagine. As I kneeled down
and my petition was what kind of an
organization should be set up in order
to accomplish what the presidency had assigned? And there came to me in
that glorious morning one of the most heavenly
realizations of the power of the priesthood of God. It was as though something
were saying to me, there is no new organization
necessary to take care of the needs of this people. All that's necessary is to put
the priesthood of God to work. There is nothing else that
you need as a substitute. Sensitive to the
Lord's direction, Brother Lee put the priesthood
to work in administering the Church welfare plan. Work programs, warehouses
for food and clothing, and an organized
distribution system reflected the guiding principle
that every member of the Church gives what he is able to
give and receives in return what he needs for the sustenance
of himself and his family. This inspired system continues
to bless the lives of members of the Church today. [MUSIC PLAYING]
