Day 61, March 2

My father's great-great grandfather, William McBride, was born on March 22, 1807 at Greene County, Ohio.

My father wrote this about his ancestor:  "In 1835, he (William)  married Elizabeth Harris Booram. It is not known when William and Elizabeth joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but on April l6, 1844 (according to a certificate), he was ordained an Elder. In 1846, he was ordained a Seventy. (A record kept by Elizabeth Clark McBride, reveals that Elizabeth and William were sealed to each other in Nauvoo, Illinois, by President Brigham Young.)

"William performed work for some of his wife's family in the Temple, probably the Kirtland Temple. With their growing family, William and Elizabeth journeyed to the Salt Lake Valley in Utah with the body of the Saints in 1849. At a call from the Prophet, William served a mission to the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii)."

Today, young men and young women are called to serve missions, at their own expense, to wherever the Lord sees fit to send them.  At this period of Church history, however, husbands and fathers were called to leave their families and preach the Gospel.  How hard it must have been for William to leave his wife and children to fend for themselves while he traveled thousands of miles away.

So, for today, I am grateful for those who follow the Lord's commands, no matter how difficult.