The Music & the Spoken Word broadcast airs live via TV, radio, and Internet stream on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time. For information on other airtimes, visit “Airing Schedules” at musicandthespokenword.org.
Music
Conductors: Mack Wilberg and Ryan Murphy
Organist: Andrew Unsworth
Announcer: Lloyd Newell
“Look to the Day”1
by John Rutter
“Gloria” from Mass in D, op. 86
Music: Antonín Dvořák
“There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today”2,3,7
Music: John R. Sweney
Lyrics: Eliza E. Hewitt
Arrangement: Mack Wilberg
“All Things Bright and Beautiful” (Organ solo)
Music: Dale Wood
“They, the Builders of the Nation”4
Music: Alfred M. Durham
Lyrics: Ida R. Alldredge
Arrangement: Mack Wilberg
“Faith in Every Footstep”5
by K. Newell Dayley
“Redeemer of Israel”3,5,6,7
Music: Freeman Lewis
Lyrics: Joseph Swain; adapted by William W. Phelps
1. On the CD Glory! Music of Rejoicing.
2. On the CD This Is the Christ.
3. On the CD Then Sings My Soul and in the CD set Anniversary Collection.
4. On the CD Spirit of America and in the CD set Encore Collection.
5. On the CD Come, Come, Ye Saints (Legacy Series).
6. On the CD Called to Serve.
7. In the CD set The Missionary Collection.
The Spoken Word
Bring Them In
In the 1800s, hundreds of pioneers crossed the Great Plains, seeking refuge in the unsettled American West. They walked through rain, wind, dust, and sun. They faced buffalo stampedes, rattlesnakes, and wolves. Many buried loved ones along the trail. The final leg of their trek may have been the most daunting: “Hills piled on hills, and mountains on mountains, in every direction.”1 But they pressed on, eventually reaching the land of their dreams.
In October 1856, as the first few companies of pioneers settled in their new home, word came of fellow travelers still stranded on the plains. They had left late in the season, and now they were trapped in early winter snows, frozen and out of food. Pioneer leader Brigham Young heard of their ordeal and rallied the settlers to come to their rescue. “Go and bring in those people now on the plains,” he said.2
They didn’t have much, but they loaded wagons with what blankets, food, and clothing they had, and within days they were back on the plains, bringing relief to those stranded in the deepening snow. Hundreds were saved from their desperate conditions by the rescuers.
In many ways, circumstances haven’t changed since the time of the pioneers. People still struggle—not in snowbanks but in grim and difficult circumstances. Many are hungry because they lack food; others are hungry because they lack hope. Like the pioneers, they face “hills piled on hills, and mountains on mountains in every direction” of their lives.
And who are their rescuers? Perhaps we can be. We may be in the midst of our own arduous trek, but there is always someone with needs greater than ours, and there is always something we can do to help. We can share from our cupboards, and we can share from our hearts. Sometimes the needs are practical: help around the house, help finding a job, or help coping with a loss. But what most people need is a friend—and if being a rescuer means being a friend, we can all be rescuers. We can find those in need and “bring them in.”
1 Orson Pratt, journal entry for July 17, 1847, in Millennial Star, June 1, 1850, 166.
2 Deseret News, Oct. 15, 1856, 4.