He was the meekest of the elders, a humble farm boy called as a servant of the Lord among a distant people. His speech was simple; his social skills basic; his only polish was the weather-tanned skin of a man of the soil. But when he opened his mouth to bear fervent testimony of the truth of the gospel and the sacredness of the Book of Mormon, there was something special there, something that resonated with simple grandeur, for he spoke the words that were in his heart as conveyed by the Holy Spirit. We, his missionary comrades, noticed the radiance shining from his frontier countenance. We learned from him. So did the families he taught. The lesson is simple: It is not the learning of the world or the élan of cultural sophistication that changes hearts; it is the word of God spoken by His humble servants and confirmed by the Spirit that touches lives and opens souls for gospel illumination. “And blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” was the promise of the Savior to his listeners in Jerusalem (see Matthew 5:5) as well as in America (see 3 Nephi 12:5). This young elder, by now of patriarchal age, is doubtless just the type of person who will indeed inherit the earth. (Richard J. Allen)