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After enduring heavy barrages of rockets and mortar fire in Baghdad's Green Zone, David A. Schory, a defense contractor with the U.S. military, wrote how inspiring and comforting it was to gaze on a picture of the Savior on the cover of the March Ensign.
"It was great to know that the Savior loves each of us," he wrote.
The March issue of the Church magazine Ensign, with a honed focus on the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, is resonating among members who are sharing the special edition with family and friends in record numbers, prompting additional printings of nearly half a million copies.
More than 1 million copies were originally printed in March, a press run that anticipated a higher than average interest in the special Easter issue.
Still, estimates were woefully inadequate, said R. Val Johnson, managing editor of the Liahona magazines. "We were caught off guard by the response." The March issue is now in an unprecedented third printing.
The missionary effort in the Camino Principal Ward, Tucson Arizona East Stake, recognized the magazine as a missionary tool and delivered a copy during each visit made with full-time missionaries.
Members of the University Ward, Bloomington Indiana Stake, organized an "Invitation Sunday" during which each family was challenged to prayerfully invite at least one non-member or less-active friend or family member to Church on Easter Sunday.
During a special combined meeting, talks were given based on the messages in the March issue.
Copies of the special issue were then distributed. As a result, the ward has become infused with a spirit of missionary work. "People who didn't know much of our faith now understand that we really are Christian," said Catherine Barnhill.
Meeting the printing demands of the March issue were hampered by the challenge of sending the transparent velum cover from Europe by ship where it is manufactured.
Because of back orders, Church distribution services are shipping partial orders to wards and branches in an effort to equally share limited quantities until complete orders can be filled.
Likewise, various languages of the Liahona magazine have required a second, and sometimes, third printing, especially the Spanish editions.
E-mail to: shaun@desnews.com
'I felt so good after
reading the magazine'
I was to fly overseas on a business trip beginning Sunday evening. Before leaving the house I grabbed the March issue of the Ensign. Once on the plane, we were delayed on the tarmac for more than an hour.
I pulled the Ensign from my backpack and began reading. Ninety minutes later, I had read every page and every article. I cannot describe the feeling I had....
I felt so good after reading the magazine. I felt a desire to be better in every aspect of my life. To spend 90 minutes focused on the Savior was an incredible experience. It strengthened my testimony of the power of the Holy Ghost bearing witness of truth and the impact that can have on me.
I felt the Savior's love for me and the magnificence of the Atonement in a very personal way.
Even though I was sitting on a runway on a Sunday evening, leaving my family for a week and knowing I had a long flight ahead, I felt strength, joy and gratitude for the Savior's life, mission and sacrifice.
— Tom Kunz, Magnolia Ward, Klein Texas Stake
