- Obligates to keep

commandments

- Renews covenants- Brings peace of mind

Worthily partaking of the sacrament is a privilege that should delight members as they affirm their faith in the Savior and allegiance to the Church of Jesus Christ, said Elder L. Tom Perry.

Elder Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve addressed the Sunday morning session. He recalled memories of his service as a U.S. Marine during World War II, and of a special green footlocker. He and other LDS servicemen carried the footlocker from island to island as their division completed orders. The footlocker held the elements of the sacrament - a wooden plate and tray, a card with the sacrament prayers and several boxes of small paper cups.

"The contents of the green footlocker were representative of all we held dear," he said. "As we gathered each week on the Lord's day, opened our footlocker and used the contents to prepare, bless and pass the sacrament, it was a spiritual and uplifting experience that renewed our faith and gave us hope for the days ahead. That special hour each week removed from us the trials and hardships of everyday life."

Elder Perry related that he eventually was transferred from the island and left behind the footlocker carrying the sacrament elements.

"The Lord understood the need for His children to be reminded of the promises He has made to us if we would obey His laws," he said. `In making such covenants, God offers blessings in exchange for obedience to particular commandments."

Elder Perry said the commandments are part of a plan laid out from the very beginning, and the Savior is the central figure in the plan. The Savior introduced the ordinance of the sacrament shortly before His crucifixion. The sacrament, which had suffered many perversions during the dark period of the apostasy, was clarified in the restoration of the gospel.

"With the partaking of the sacrament, we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior and obligate ourselves to keep His commandments by covenant," he said. "This makes the partaking of the sacrament a renewal of the covenants we made at the time of baptism into the Church. Thus, by the sacrament, we declare repeatedly, ordinarily weekly, our allegiance to the Plan of Salvation and its obligations."

He said that over many years of his life, including as a Marine during one of the most trying periods, "I have had the privilege of attending sacrament meetings, whether in times of peace or conflict, periods of joy or sorrow, periods of stress or relative ease, partaking of the sacrament has been a time of thoughtful reflection on the blessings the Lord has given me and a time to covenant with Him to live His law and His gospel. . . ."

"The Lord has promised that if you will partake of the sacrament worthily, He will bless you with peace of mind that can only come from knowing that you are a participant in His divine plan."