John Tanner and Elizabeth Beswick Tanner. My 4th Great Grand Father and Mother. First LDS Tanner's
I am a 6th Generation Mormon. My family has been associated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints since 1832. That is two years after the church was organized. If you take a climb up my family tree you will find many early pioneers. I don’t say this to boast, but rather to bless my God and bring honor to their names.
One Hundred and Sixty-Seven years ago today, the saints first entered the valley of the Great Salt Lake. Today I celebrate their faith. I celebrate their epic story. They moved over hundreds of miles to find safety and the freedom to live their religion.
I am so grateful that I share that same religion. I know that someday I will approach them and need to give an account for how I used the gifts they blessed me with. I only hope that they will be able to smile on my efforts. I don’t seek to compare my trials with theirs. But rather to approach my own trials with the faithfulness that they approached their own.
Heaven knows that I fall short, but I know their is a God in Heaven how loves me, and who has provided a way for all of us to fix the mistakes and sins we make. It is through
Jonathan Oldham Duke, first LDS Duke. My 3rd Great Grandfather on my Mothers side.
the mercy, grace, and merits of Jesus Christ. I honor my family tree today, I honor all pioneers who sacrificed their lives to build the Kingdom of God.
Every person who chooses to exercise faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repent of their sins, is baptized, receives the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and endures to the end of their lives is grafted into this great pioneer legacy of faith. I pray my name might be listed with theirs for all of my decendents.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.