61. Testimony

Excerpts from an account I wrote of a talk given by fifteen-year-old Michael on Sunday, September 11, 1988, in the sacrament meeting of the Bountiful Twentieth Ward, Bountiful Utah South Stake. This account is taken from the October 1988 issue of the Family Journal. Michael at the time was a sophomore at Bountiful High School.

“There are at least three elements to a testimony,” explained newly turned 15 Michael as he spoke in sacrament meeting on September 11. “First, that God lives and Jesus Christ is His Son. Second, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and restored the Church. And third, that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true church on the earth.”

Michael defined testimony as a revealed knowledge from God that something is true. It comes in response to prayer. He quoted from the Book of Mormon:

“And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

“And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:4–5).

He concluded his talk by sharing a story of a missionary in Germany in 1928:

“As I spoke with a woman at the doorway to a nearby apartment, I heard someone coming up behind me. I turned and saw a policeman in uniform. I continued to talk, believing he had business with someone upstairs.

“To my astonishment, he dropped a heavy hand on my shoulder and turned me around to face him.

“‘You will have to come with me,’ he said quietly. ‘You’re under arrest.’

“ . . . ‘Why am I being arrested?’ I asked the policeman. He told me that I was accused of burglarizing an apartment and carrying off a valuable heirloom watch.

“The officer explained that my accuser had found the watch missing the morning before. He contended that I had been the only person other than himself and his family to enter the building.

“ . . . At the police station, I was ushered into the chief’s office. A police court, consisting of several plainclothes and uniformed policemen, was waiting for me. In the corner sat seven people who said they had witnessed my entering the building.

“During the hour-long interrogation, I answered every question honestly and directly, with a prayer in my heart that the Lord would help me.

“Then the seven witnesses testified against me. All stated that, except for family, I had been the only person to go to the third-floor apartment the day before. It began to look as though I might spend several years in a German prison.

“The police chief asked me if I had anything to say in my defense. I prayed fervently for assistance, then began speaking, hesitantly at first, in my broken German. I told those in the room why I was in Germany and explained my mission. Suddenly I began to preach the gospel. A strange feeling came over me. I gradually lost control of my tongue, my arms, and my facial muscles.

“The Holy Spirit had come to my rescue. I began to speak the language fluently, with confidence and power. When I concluded my testimony forty-five minutes later, I nearly slumped to the floor in exhaustion. There was complete silence in the room for at least a full minute.

“Then the police chief said simply, ‘This man didn’t take the watch.’

“He asked me many questions about myself and the Church. The hostility in the room had vanished. Then he turned to a detective and said, ‘Go with this young man to his room and search his belongings. If you don’t find the watch—and I’m sure you won’t—let him go. End this foolishness’” (Walter M. Horne, “You’re Under Arrest!” in Ensign, Aug. 1988, 67–68).

52. Tithing

A talk given by eight-year-old Michael Cleverly on Sunday, January 17, 1982, in the Primary of the Bountiful Twentieth Ward, Bountiful Utah South Stake. On Tuesday, January 26, he wrote the following account of the talk in his journal. The original spelling and punctuation have been retained. It was also published in the February 1982 issue of the Family Journal. At this time Michael was a third grader at Bountiful Elementary. He had been baptized four months earlier on Saturday, September 5, 1981. He was confirmed a member of the Church the following day.

On January 17, 1982, Sunday, I gave a talk in Primary. This how it went.

Lernzo Snow was the 5th preisdnt of the Church. When Lernzo Snow was presidnt of the Church, the Church had 2 problems. 1st the Church was in det. 2nd ther was a floud [drought] in Saint George. Lernzo Snow had been praying about both of theyes problems.

One day Hevanly Father told Lernzo Snow to go to Saint George. He did not know why he was going to Saint George. But he went Sain George. And when he got there they had a specil confnce. And Lernzo Snow got up and said, "I don't know why I came here." In his talk he read from the bible Malachi chapter 3, verses 8, 9, and 10.

(Note I am to tired to finsh my talk is continued next time.) That's all for today.

On Saturday, 6 February, Michael concluded his account of his talk:

(Finishing part of talk.) Then he stoped. Then he said “Know I know why I came here. It's to tell you two pay your tithing. If you will pay your tithing hevanly Father will open the windoes of hevan and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

So the people started to pay there tithing and hevanly Father opened the windows of heaven and it started to rain. This solved both problems there was no longer a drout and the Church was out of deat. I know these things are true in the name of Jesus Christ amen.

49. The Holy Ghost

A talk given by Michael Cleverly on Sunday, August 9, 1981, about a month before he turned eight and was baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. The talk was given in the Primary of the Bountiful Twentieth Ward, Bountiful Utah South Stake, and was printed in the September 1981 issue of the Family Journal.

Today I’m going to talk about the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the third member of the Godhead. It tells about the Holy Ghost in the first Article of Faith:

“We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.”
And also it tells about the Holy Ghost in the fourth Article of Faith:

“We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the gospel are: first, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, repentance; third, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

When we are confirmed, Heavenly Father’s promise is that the Holy Ghost will be with us as long as we are righteous. Before we are baptized the Holy Ghost isn’t always with us.

I’m going to tell a story about Wilford Woodruff. One night when Wilford Woodruff was staying over at someone’s house, the Spirit—I mean the Holy Ghost—told him to go move his buggy. He could have rolled over and went back to sleep, but Wilford Woodruff had learned that when the Holy Ghost tells you to do something you’d better do it. So he got up and moved his buggy. A minute later after he moved it, a tree crashed where they buggy had been. If he hadn’t moved it like the Holy Ghost told him to, the buggy would have been smashed.

I know these things are true. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

45. Faith, the First Principle of the Gospel

A talk given by seven-year-old Michael Cleverly on Sunday morning, February 1, 1981, in the Primary of the Bountiful Twentieth Ward, Bountiful Utah South Stake. The talk was printed in the March 1981 issue of the Family Journal. Michael at the time was a second grader at Bountiful Elementary.

“We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the gospel are: first, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, repentance; third, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Articles of Faith 1:4).

Today I’m going to talk about the first principle, faith. Faith means believing in Jesus Christ and believing and doing the things Jesus has told us.

I’m going to tell about David and Goliath. When David arrived at his brothers’ camp, one of his brothers showed him Goliath. David said he would fight the giant. The next morning David got five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd’s pouch. When Goliath was almost to David, David ran toward him and let go of his sling. One of the stones hit Goliath between the eyes.

David beat Goliath because he had faith in God. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.