Beginning with Joseph Smith there have been 17 Prophets leading the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Today that Prophet is Russell M Nelson, he is President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and a Prophet of God. He is a vigorous 93 years old and an eternal optimist. He was born with perfect pitch, plays the piano and organ very well and is fluent in many languages (helped because of his perfect pitch). He is a family man, he and his wife Dantzel had nine daughters and then one son, they have 57 grandchildren, and 116 great grandchildren. In 2005 Dantzel passed away and in 2006 he married Wendy L Watson. For me one word describes this Prophet, it is ‘discipline’. He decided early to go into medicine and disciplined himself to graduate from the University of Utah Medical School top in his class at age 22 (BA at age 19). He served his residency in surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and at the University of Minnesota, where he was awarded his PhD degree in 1954. He became an internationally renowned surgeon and medical researcher (his specialty being the heart). He was one of the pioneers of Open-heart Surgery, the first to perform that Surgery in Utah. Though his career required a great deal of time, he was still a great father (all his family agree: when he was home, he was 100% home) and gave continual service to the Church as Counselor in a Bishopric, Stake President, Regional Representative, and General President of the Sunday School. In 1984 President Nelson was called to be an Apostle, which required him to give up his medical career and to give full time service to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He became President of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles on July 15, 2015 and President of the Church on January 14, 2018. These are the details, now I want to share why I sustain him as Prophet, Seer and Revelator.
His ’discipline’ has transformed him into a ‘true disciple of the Lord, Jesus Christ’. He was able to tell President Hinckley that everything was in order in his life, after which, he was called to be an Apostle. At that moment he said, “the focus of the last forty years in medicine and surgery was changed to devote the rest of my life in full-time service to my Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.” Just as he disciplined his life to give 100% to his profession while at work and 100% to his family when at home, now he was able to give 100% in service to his Savior. In his first conference talk as an Apostle he helped us understand his commitment when he said, “I have been forged from the stern discipline of law. … Desired blessings come only by obedience to divine law, and in no other way. My lifetime thus far has been focused on learning those laws. Only as the laws are known, and then obeyed, can the blessings we desire be earned.” Willingly he has given his will to his Lord, just as Jesus gave his will to His Heavenly Father, in the Garden and on the cross.
But President Nelson already was experienced in giving his will to the Lord; he quickly followed every instruction received from his leaders. Example: in a meeting of Regional Representatives, Church President Spencer W Kimball invited all to learn the Mandarin Chinese Language so they would be ready to share the Gospel with the Chinese people. Immediately Russell hired a Chinese tutor and began to learn the Chinese Language even in the midst of his busy life. Soon after beginning to learn Mandarin he was at a medical conference, sat down next to a doctor from China and started up a conversation in Chinese. His seatmate was delighted that an American Doctor could speak his language and a friendship began that continues still. This first visit has born fruit. Dr Nelson was invited on several occasions to visit China and give instruction on Open-heart surgery. Today President Nelson is honored as a ‘Friend’ to the Republic of China, and was invited by the Chinese Government to perform Open-heart Surgery on their famous Opera Singer whose life would have been lost otherwise – the surgery was the last one performed by Dr Nelson and was done after he had retired following his call to the Apostleship. His obedience to a Prophet’s invitation to learn Mandarin has brought miracles, it displays a pattern in President Nelson’s life – He is quick to Obey, he is quick to follow counsel, especially when it comes from the Holy Ghost.
When he was called to be a Stake President, he shared with the Apostles (Elder Kimball and Elder Richards) that he was concerned about the high mortality rate with Open-heart surgery patients – one in five passed away during or soon after surgery. They blessed him to be able to have the time to do his work as Stake President and still have time to do his medical work and his capacity increased. The blessing inspired him to do the research necessary to understand the laws governing the procedures and often he was inspired with solutions. To illustrate, a good man had requested surgical help several times for his terminal heart condition but none of the known procedures could help him. Because he was a man of great faith, Dr. Nelson finally agreed to operate, though he did not know the technique required. Dr. Nelson said, “the operation had not been done before. I operated upon him, and, in the middle of the operation, I had the most wonderful vision of what should be done – dotted lines as to where the stitches should be laid. I opened his heart up and placed the stitches right where I saw them in that diagram that flashed before my mind, and the operation worked beautifully … When you have people praying for you and you’re praying yourself, coupled with the power of fasting, which makes you more humble and more teachable, you can learn things, even if it is given by revelation.”
A few years before being called to be an Apostle, Dr. Nelson was involved in the following experience with Apostle Spencer W Kimball. This is Elder Nelson’s report shared 13 years later at Pres. Kimball’s funeral:
In March 1972, when President Kimball’s heart was failing and he sensed that death was nigh, he obtained a conference with … the First Presidency. To provide medical information as requested, he invited … me.
President Kimball breathlessly began, “I am a dying man. I can feel my life slipping. At the present rate of deterioration I believe that I can live only about two more months. Now I would like my doctor to present his views.”… Then President Kimball called on me as a cardiac surgeon and asked, “What can surgery offer?”
I indicated that an operation, if it were to be done, would consist of two components. First, an aortic valve replacement would be required. Second, an important coronary artery with a blockage should be treated with a bypass graft.
President Harold B. Lee of the First Presidency then asked the crucial question, “What would be the risks with such a procedure?”
“I don’t know,” I replied. “In a man aged seventy-seven, the risk of either of these operations is significant. But to do both on one whose heart is failing would entail risk so high that the operation cannot be recommended as a safe one.”
As a weary President Kimball responded, “I am an old man and ready to die,” President Lee interrupted. He rose to his feet, pounded his fist to the desk, and said, with his prophetic power, “Spencer, you have been called! You are not to die! You are to do everything you need to do to care for yourself and continue to live.”
President Kimball replied, “Then I will have the operation.”
He underwent that complex operation not because it was deemed to be reasonably safe in the opinion of his medical advisers, but because he was obedient to the counsel of the Lord, expressed through the leaders of the Church—regardless of personal risk.
The outcome is well known. He was blessed to survive the operation which reversed the tide of his deterioration.
I shall never forget the feeling I had as his heart resumed beating, leaping with power and vigor. At that very moment, the Spirit made known to me that this special patient would live to become the prophet of God on earth.
Discipline combined with obedience brought President Nelson to understand the power of revelation. Yet he is still our example of discipline today because whatever he asks of us he does himself. In each of his two conference talks given in 2017 he asked the membership of the Church to do something: First he invited us to let the scriptural citations about Jesus Christ in the Topical Guide become our personal core curriculum (his invitation was by example), he then said, “I gave that challenge because I had already accepted it myself. I read and underlined every verse cited about Jesus Christ, as listed under the main heading and the 57 subtitles in the Topical Guide (2200 total verses). When I finished that exciting exercise, my wife asked me what impact it had on me. I told her, “I am a different man!” Second he invited us to consider three related questions: First, what would your life be like without the Book of Mormon? Second, what would you not know? And third, what would you not have? Then he promised: “My dear brothers and sisters, I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life. I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day, even the gripping plague of pornography and other mind-numbing addictions.” But this was after he had himself followed President Monson’s invitation given six months earlier: “Since President Monson’s challenge six months ago, I have tried to follow his counsel. Among other things, I’ve made lists of what the Book of Mormon is, what it affirms, what it refutes, what it fulfills, what it clarifies, and what it reveals. Looking at the Book of Mormon through these lenses has been an insightful and inspiring exercise! I recommend it to each of you.”
President Russell M. Nelson with his councilors President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor, (left) and President Henry B. Eyring, second counselor (right)
His example invites each of us to be more disciplined so that we may also become true disciples of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I declare That Russell M Nelson is a Prophet of God, raised up to lead us today, not just members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but everyone on the earth at this time. I sustain him with all of my heart, I am grateful for his life and example and I love to follow him.