Gordon B. Hinckley

President Gordon Bitner Hinckley, the President and Prophet, Seer, and Revelator of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints passed away tonight (1/27/08) around 7pm MST in his Salt Lake City apartment surrounded by family. He died of causes incident to age at the age of 97. He was a very active and dedicated servant of the Lord right until the end. Though short in stature, he was a giant among men and even among other Church leaders. He will go down in history as one of the greatest of the modern day prophets. His amazing temple building program (http://tinyurl.com/of8ve) and the Proclamation on the Family (http://tinyurl.com/3dxjsk) are just two of the many accomplishments for which he will be remembered and revered. He has more than earned the long awaited reunion with his beloved Marjorie which he is now enjoying.

Members of the Orange California Stake were grateful to have heard him speak one last time after last October General Conference during a satellite broadcast for our Stake Conference two weeks ago on January 13th. Here are the somewhat cryptic notes I took during his talk:

Need for love, caring, trust in marriage; abuse & dictatorship is sinful; repent and live gospel with greater devotion; expect and withstand adversity. Four steps for strengthening marriages and families:
1- Mutual respect; cherish differences; overlook weaknesses; focus on virtues; live worth of being respected
2- Give a soft answer; employ soft communication; still small voice of peace and love; be slow to anger
3- Financial honesty; limited extravagance; allow mutual freedom for limited, minor expenditures but discuss and agree upon major purchases
4- Family Prayer