Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin: Remain focused on 'things that really matter'
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Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin spoke in his priesthood session address Saturday night of some of the "life-changing" experiences he had as a young man.
Elder Wirthlin, who at age 89 is the oldest member of the Quorum of the Twelve, told of participating in a high school football game against a rival school.
Playing in the wingback position, he found that the man he was supposed to block on the opposing team was a "giant." Though he managed for the most part to avoid this intimidating player, on one play he reached for and missed a catch. "After that, I'm not exactly sure what happened, because the giant hit me so hard I wasn't sure what planet I was on," he said.
Later, during his half-time speech, Joseph's coach reminded the team about the pass he had dropped. "Then he pointed right at me and said, 'How could you do that?"'
He responded that he took his eye off the ball. "That's right, you took your eye off the ball," the coach said. "Don't ever do that again. That kind of mistake loses ball games."
Making up his mind to do as the coach said, he caught a pass near the end of the game that the "giant" attempted to intercept. That play won the close game for his team.
"I've tried to remember the lesson I learned from Coach Oswald and prioritize values that are important to me so that I can keep my eye focused on things that really matter," Elder Wirthlin mused. "I urge you to examine your life. Determine where you are and what you need to do to be the kind of person you want to be. Create inspiring, noble and righteous goals that fire your imagination and create excitement in your heart. And then keep your eye on them. Work consistently toward achieving them."
