Wednesday, June 2, 2010

BE ON THE LORD’S SIDE

W hen I was little, I lived in

Zwickau, Germany. My

grandmother had a friend with

white, flowing hair. Her name

was Sister Ewig, and she invited

my grandmother to church. When

our family went there, we saw

many children. All of us were very

impressed by the music, espe-

cially the singing. One song, “Jesus

Wants Me for a Sunbeam,”* really

impressed me. I felt very close to

Jesus when I sang it. I knew that

He wanted me to be a sunbeam

for Him. I still love that song—and

the testimony that it gave me of the

Savior.

My whole family—except me,

because I was only six years old—

were baptized members of The

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day

Saints. When I was eight, I was

baptized in a public swimming

pool by my father.

When I was 11, my family

had to leave East Germany. We

moved to Frankfurt, West Germany.

I attended the Frankfurt Branch,

which was not as big as the one

in Zwickau. The Frankfurt meet-

inghouse was small, and we had

classes in the basement. The mis-

sionaries taught us important

gospel principles.

One missionary, Elder Stringham,

impressed me very much with his

lessons on the Pearl of Great Price,

especially where Moses is being

taught that he is a son of God

(see Moses 1:3–4). Elder Stringham

also taught me the scripture that

says, “If God be for us, who can

be against us?” (Romans 8:31). This

gave me comfort and courage,

because at that time the future

looked bleak in Germany. The

city of Frankfurt was in ruins with

bombed-out buildings. That teach-

ing has stayed with me throughout

my life. It taught me that I need

to be on the Lord’s side. I cannot

afford not to be on the Lord’s side.

I challenge you children to follow

the words of the prophets. When

you do, you will find the answers to

your questions, whether you are 6, 9,

11, 19, or, like me, 69 years old! ◆

From “Friend to Friend,” Friend, June 1998, 6–7.

*Children’s Songbook, 60.

By President

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Second Counselor in

the First Presidency

Come Listen to a

Prophet’s Voice