- Follow eternal values

- Accept responsibility- Carry out Lord's work

Looking back back on a life that nearly spans the entire 20th Century, Elder David B. Haight counseled Aaronic Priesthood holders about the need for preparation to assist in "the moving forward of the Lord's program upon the earth."

Elder Haight of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke at the priesthood session Saturday evening, and reflected on an anthem sung at the session by the Ricks College Combined Men's Choirs, "Let the Mountains Shout for Joy."

"As we reflect upon this being the sesquicentennial year of our pioneer celebrations, you can imagine the thrill that the Saints must have felt to sing that song or to have heard it for the first time . . . after they had made the trek across the plains," he said. Mentioning the statistics reflecting growth in the Church, which were read in conference earlier in the day, Elder Haight added, "You can imagine again, we could sing with great enthusiasm, `Let the Mountains Shout for Joy,' because here we are and the word is spreading the way it had been predicted."

Elder Haight, who was born in 1906 said his life nearly spans the 20th Century. "I've seen the automobiles come along, I've seen the airplanes come into being. I've seen radio, the little crystal with a cat whisker, the little beginning of the electronics world. . . . And as I . . . think of the world that I knew when I was young, the basics that we talk about were in place then. . . . The eternal values haven't changed a bit from the original."

He recalled being ordained a deacon and the thrill he felt "to receive power to help in the organization and the moving forward of the Lord's program upon the earth." He added that accepting responsibility to hold the priesthood and advance through its various offices requires learning and practicing the basics that have been on the earth from the beginning.

To illustrate the importance of preparation, he told of being on the first football team to play for his high school in Oakley, Idaho. His team had never seen a game before; the chemistry teacher was the coach because "he had seen a game one time."

In its first matchup, against the previous year's state champs, Twin Falls, the Oakley team lost 106-6. Elder Haight drew laughter from the congregation as he told of Oakley's only touchdown, made by his teammate who happened to catch a wild pass from the opposing team. "He saw them coming after him, and he started to run; he was not running for points, he was running for his life!"

As in football, preparation is necessary in life, Elder Haight said. "When there's something to be done and things that we have to learn in order to accomplish it, then we have to learn the facts and how to carry them out. . . . What a great chance and opportunity we have now to carry out the Lord's work in a way that it must be done throughout the world."