By John Tippets, Brazil Sao Paulo Interlagos Mission 2016-2017
“The truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done.” -“The Standard of Truth,” Joseph Smith, 1842
The fulfillment of “The Standard of Truth” means full-time missionaries will answer the call to serve in various urban and remote corners of the world. Our loving Heavenly Father understands the risks, as do full-time missionaries. Serving a mission is an act of courage and faith. Consequently, many missionaries over the ages have received extra protection from Heaven. Examples include the sons of Mosiah preaching to the Lamanites (Alma 17-26) or Helaman’s 2,000 stripling warriors (Alma 57:25-27). As a full-time missionary, I witnessed divine intervention on my behalf. I also gained a stronger testimony and understanding of how the Savior Jesus Christ works through the priesthood.
In the summer of 2016, I served as a full-time missionary in the Brazil São Paulo Interlagos mission. My companion and I were assigned to a remote, rural town named Juquitiba on the outskirts of São Paulo. One morning, while returning by bus from a zone conference meeting, I started to feel unwell. At the time, I thought it was just a bad stomach ache. Little did I know then that I had appendicitis and needed immediate medical attention.
At lunch with our branch president, he recognized that I was in pain and recommended I go to the Hospital. At first, I dismissed the idea. We returned to our apartment, where I asked my companion for a priesthood blessing. I reasoned with my companion that he held the same power used to create worlds. Surely, I thought, he could heal my stomachache! The Lord had a different plan than my plan. Hence the scripture, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8)
My companion gave me the blessing, and we left our apartment to teach. About ten minutes later, the pain in my stomach sharpened, and I keeled over. We walked to the only clinic in town. After hours of waiting to be seen, the doctor informed me they lacked sufficient medical equipment to diagnose me. They said I could wait until the following day to get the results back from a blood test. We thanked the doctor, left, and boarded a bus to try again at a larger downtown hospital.
When we arrived in downtown São Paulo at 10:30 p.m., I had been battling the increasing stomach pain amid bumpy bus rides for approximately 12 hours. Disembarking from the bus, I hobbled alongside my companion, using him as a crutch. In that era, missionaries in Brazil did not have smartphones with Google Maps. We also did not have a physical map. We started walking in the direction the bus driver indicated as the way to the Hospital, not knowing that we were still miles away from our intended destination.
My companion and I walked for about 15 minutes through entirely deserted streets. Realizing our predicament, we stopped to pray, asking Heavenly Father to help us get to the Hospital. We continued walking when suddenly a car pulled up in front of us. The driver rolled down his window and spoke to us in English, asking where we were going. I explained that we were headed to the Hospital, to which the driver calmly replied, “Get in.” We hopped in the backseat and discovered that our rescuers were a returned missionary and his wife. In Brazil, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints constitute less than 1% of the total population. To this day, I believe the Lord put those members in our path, a true miracle that saved the day.
Upon arriving at the Hospital, the nurses rushed me to the emergency room. I received the diagnosis of appendicitis and had surgery the following morning to remove my appendix before it would burst. But the Lord was not yet finished on my behalf.
Doctors had instructed me not to consume sugar the week post-surgery. A week later, there was a birthday for one of our senior missionaries at the mission office. After singing Happy Birthday, I assumed enough time had passed to eat sugar. I indulged in a small piece of birthday cake. Later that evening, I experienced yet another severe pain in my stomach, just like before. The birthday cake had become stuck in my digestive tract and needed removal.
My mission president’s wife rushed us to the emergency room. As I lay in the hospital bed, I requested a priesthood blessing from my companion. I asked specifically for relief from my intense stomach pain. My companion asked the attending nurse for permission to perform a religious blessing, to which she agreed. As he finished uttering the words of the prayer, a wave of physical relief immediately washed over me. I had not received any medication, painkillers, or even an IV. The doctors still had to do their work, but for the rest of the night, I felt no pain. I again felt an assurance from the Spirit that Heavenly Father was watching over me.
Throughout this experience, I made multiple mistakes. I should have called a taxi instead of eating the cake. Thankfully, like the prodigal son, the Savior is ready to embrace us. He welcomes us with open arms when we humbly turn to him for help (Luke 15). My mission president often said, “Plan C is much better than Plan A or Plan B.” He explained that “Plan C is Plan CELESTIAL” (Isaiah 55:8).
Priesthood blessings and ordinances are like the sail of a sailboat. They allow us to access the infinite power of Jesus Christ. A sail enables a ship to access wind power. It moves a boat forward. Similarly, these blessings propel us spiritually. The Savior Jesus Christ is our brother and friend. He is ready to help if we allow Him through priesthood blessings and ordinances.
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” (Revelations 3:20).
Qualities of Jesus Christ 