SOTW 4 Annotated for LDS Ch. 3 British Invasions

The Great Game

Elder Alexander B. Morrison, of the Seventy, related an important lesson to be learned from the British Army’s disastrous retreat from Kabul, which is summarized as follows:

Under harsh winter conditions, 16,500 people, including soldiers, sepoys, and camp followers, were heading back to India from Kabul, from where the army had been driven out of their occupation of the Afghan capital. During this week-long retreat, 13 British soldiers, 13 British women, and 16 children, who were taken captive, a few sepoys, who were able to escape, and one British officer, who made it to safety. The remainder were killed by ambushes or the elements.
There are many in the Church who, like those who retreated from Kabul, fall victim and are lost. Some are seduced and led away by the temptations of the world. Some lack the discipline needed to stick together, to draw strength and courage from each other, to hang on and persevere to the end. Finally, there are others, who simply give up and cease to struggle.
The task of the Lord's shepherd-leaders is to prevent the spiritual reenactment of the retreat from Kabul. Those who are entrusted with the shepherding role must work with all diligence to provide the love and care needed to protect the Saints from spiritual marauders who dart in to pick off stragglers. They must ensure that all share in the warmth of the gospel of Christ. Theirs is the task to shelter the weak and weary, give courage to the faint-hearted, instill the discipline needed to withstand the world, and strengthen the feeble knees. (From Feed My Sheep: Leadership Ideas for Latter-day Shepherds, pp. 39-40)


Wandering through Africa

David Livingstone is a great example of a man who lived his religion though the circumstances were difficult. Once he arrived in Africa and began his journeys, he realized the great potential of the people particularly under the light of the Gospel and committed to stay there and help the people. It was this dedication that endeared him to the people there, that they carried his dead body 1500 miles that it might be returned to his native land to rest.