Elder Jeffrey R. Holland addressed his priesthood session remarks to "the rising generation, you who must be ready to use your priesthood, often at times and in ways you did not anticipate."

Elder Jeffery R. Holland

Elder Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve drew a parallel between his call and the call Joshua gave to an earlier generation of priesthood bearers: "Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you." (Joshua 3:5.)

As an illustration, Elder Holland told a gripping story of A. J. Edwards, who was a deacon in the Port Neff Ward of the McCammon Idaho Stake, when he was struck by lightning during a practice of his Little League football team in Inkom, Idaho. As CPR was administered to A.J., 18-year-old Bryce Reynolds of the Mountain View Ward in the McCammon Stake realized he needed to use the Melchizedek Priesthood conferred upon him just 39 days earlier.

As he held the young deacon in his arms, he uttered the words: "A.J. Edwards, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the power and authority of the Melchizedek Priesthood which I hold, I bless you that you will be OK."

As he finished the blessing, A.J. drew his first breath since the lightning had struck him.

"It is sufficient to say a very healthy and a very robust A.J. is in the [congregation] tonight with his father as my special guest," Elder Holland said. "I also talked recently on the telephone with Elder Bryce Reynolds, who has been serving faithfully in the Texas Dallas Mission for the past 17 months. I love these two wonderful young men."

Though not every prayer is answered so immediately and not every priesthood declaration can command the renewal or sustaining of life, "young men, you will learn if you have not already, that in frightening, even perilous moments, your faith and your priesthood will demand the very best of you and the best that you can call down from heaven," the apostle said. "You Aaronic Priesthood boys will not use your priesthood in exactly the same way an ordained elder uses the Melchizedek, but all priesthood bearers must be instruments in the hand of God and to be so, you must — as Joshua said — 'Sanctify yourself.' You must be ready and worthy to act."

Elder Holland discoursed on the significance of the passage, "Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord" (Isaiah 52:11; 3 Nephi 20:41; D&C 38:42; 133:5), and "If a man. . . purge himself [of unworthiness], he shall be a vessel. . . sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. [Therefore] flee. . . youthful lusts:. . . follow righteousness, . . . call on the Lord out of a pure heart." (2 Timothy 2:20-22.)

"In both of those biblical accounts the message is that as priesthood bearers not only are we to handle sacred vessels and emblems of God's power — think of preparing, blessing and passing the sacrament, for example — but we are also to be a sanctified instrument as well," Elder Holland said.