His angels round about us

I’ve grown up hearing the stories of Mormon pioneers crossing the Great Plains to find refuge in the Rocky Mountains. These accounts of great men and women who were willing to give everything in order to worship God as conscience dictated have moved me to tears, inspired me, and motivated me to carry on the legacy they left behind. From them I’ve learned eternal principles to help guide my own life. Such happened again today when a sister in my Relief Society shared a story about one of her pioneer ancestors.

Ann Walmsley Greenhalgh Openshaw was a member of the Martin handcart company. The difficulties of the arduous journey became more than this 50-year-old mother of five could handle, and she one day fell behind the rest of the company. The day wore on, the company continued their westward journey, but Ann remained behind, collapsed in a weary heap on the ground. Toward evening, this weary woman heard a voice telling her to stand up and continue her journey. Her weakened body, however, did not allow her to do so, and she remained on the ground. Again, a voice came to her and told her that she needed to continue her journey because she had a great work to do in Utah. I’m not sure what poor Ann Openshaw thought at that moment, desiring to heed the call of this heavenly voice but unable to do so. She probably reflected on her testimony and how she believed in God and His prophet enough to traverse the plains in search of a place where the saints could worship God freely. She likely contemplated the life she had left behind England, the sacrifices she and her family were making for their faith. Perhaps, after all she had done, the thought of yet still more work waiting for her in Utah was daunting. Or perhaps she took comfort at those words, grateful that God still needed her and that He wanted her to make it through the seemingly endless journey, and these words saved her from giving in to despair. Yet despite whatever poignant thoughts filled the mind of this weary woman, she was again unable to rise.

At this moment of complete exhaustion, a chariot pulled by white horses raced up next to her. She felt herself being lifted into this heavenly chariot, which then sped across the terrain until it neared the camp the Martin company had set up for the night. The driver of the chariot helped Ann descend from the chariot, and members of her company soon found her. God was not going to leave her on behind that night.

Ann arrived in Utah and settled in Santaquin with her family. Nearing the end of her life, reflecting on the angelic promise she had been given so many years before, Ann wondered if she had fulfilled whatever great work God had for her in Utah. I imagine that her life, like most of ours, seemed prosaic, filled with mundane tasks—but tasks of love and service and faith that when taken together weave the tapestry of a life of devotion. She was assured by her priesthood leader that she had indeed fulfilled the work God had assigned to her.

In today’s busy age of tablets, satellites, and airplanes, stories about angels often feel old-fashioned, illogical, and inapplicable to us. But for all that angelic manifestations may seem to be solely antiquated or Biblical, they are not. Because angels minister to men today.

While I was a missionary in Crimea, we had a conference at which our mission leaders came and instructed us. The wife of my mission president gave a presentation I will never forget. She testified of angelic manifestations in the modern day and promised us that we would have angels around us, helping us fulfill our responsibilities as missionaries, supporting us, encouraging us. She shared sacred stories that I won’t repeat here but that moved me deeply and strengthened my faith that God still ministers to men through angels. As a reminder to each of the missionaries, she gave us a bookmark that I’ve carry in my scriptures to this day. On it is a quote from Elder Jeffrey Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. It reads:

“In the gospel of Jesus Christ, you have help from both sides of the veil—and you must never forget that. When disappointment and discouragement strike—and they will—you remember and never forget that if our eyes could be opened, we would see horses and chariots of fire as far as the eye can see (riding at reckless speed to come to our protection). They will always be there, these armies of Heaven, in defense of Abraham’s seed.”

And I know that is so. We cannot always see the help that we are receiving. But God’s armies are stronger and greater than the forces of evil and this world. We are not alone.

Those next months following that particular conference were some of the most difficult of my mission. And also some of the most angelic. I witnessed miracles during that time—both in my own life and in the lives of those I was serving—that could not have come about without help from the other side. The knowledge that I had help and support beyond this mortal realm was a great sustaining influence. And the miracles I saw—and continue to see—served as a further witness of the veracity of God’s promise found in Doctrine and Covenants 84:88 where he said, "I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."

No matter how mundane or overwhelming our tasks in life may seem, the God of heaven sends His angels to bear us up so that we can fulfill the great work he has for us. Sometimes these angels pick us up from the ground when we are too weary to move and they take us back to safety. Sometimes they provide encouragement. Sometimes they call us to repentance.  Sometimes they warn of danger. Sometimes they speak audibly. Often we don’t see them or know they are there. But a God who sent angels to His beloved children of Biblical and pioneer times still blesses us with these heavenly ministrants to help us along our journey home. He’s not going to leave us alone on the plains.