Companion to the YouTube video, link HERE, “Heading Into the Storm, Are We Creating Men of Iron or Wooden Men?” Also see my interview with Randy Brown on his Spiritual Survival channel, “Hour of Judgment 2027? How Close are We? link HERE
Bernhard Sorensen, Norwegian Resistance in WWII:
From We Die Alone, by David Howarth: Bernhard Sörensen, aided Jan in his escape:
Bernhard, who was 72 at that time . . . went back to his bedroom and began to put on his clothes. Fru Sörensen asked him where he was going.
“We’ve got to take the boat out, there’s a man who [needs] to cross the sound. . . .
Now don’t worry. He must get across. . . .It was a row of ten miles across and back. But Bernhard laughed at [his wife’s] fears.
“In my day, it was wooden ships and iron men, and what is it now?
Iron ships and a lot of wooden men.
Why, do you know, there was a young fellow taken to hospital sick, only the other day. And do you know why he was sick? Because he’d got his feet wet. Yes, taken to the hospital because he’s gotten his feet wet. I’ve had my feet wet for over seventy years. Come along, boy. Crossing the sound is nothing. We’ll swindle the devils out of one corpse, eh?” (Book available on www.bookfinder.com, link HERE.
An “Iron Man” in Recent History: King Haackon of Norway
Norway was invaded by the naval and air forces of Nazi Germany during the early hours of 9 April 1940. . . The German Ambassador to Norway called on Haakon to accept Adolf Hitler’s demands to end all resistance and appoint Vidkun Quisling as prime minister. The King consulted with Norway’s government stating: For my part I cannot accept the German demands. It would conflict with all that I have considered to be my duty as King of Norway since I came to this country nearly thirty-five years ago. He went on to say that he could not appoint Quisling as prime minister, since he knew neither the people nor the Storting (parliament) had confidence in him. However, if the cabinet felt otherwise, the King said he would abdicate so as not to stand in the way of the Government’s decision.
The King’s official residence was the Norwegian Legation at 10 Palace Green, Kensington, which became the seat of the Norwegian government in exile. Here Haakon attended weekly Cabinet meetings and worked on the speeches which were regularly broadcast by radio to Norway by the BBC World Service. These broadcasts helped to cement Haakon’s position as an important national symbol to the Norwegian resistance.
The Minister of Church and Education in Norway gave this observation: This made a great impression on us all. More clearly than ever before, we could see the man behind the words; the king who had drawn a line for himself and his task, a line from which he could not deviate. We had through the five years [in government] learned to respect and appreciate our king, and now, through his words, he came to us as a great man, just and forceful; a leader in these fatal times to our country. Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haakon_VII
King Haakon’s Descendants:
• King Olaf V
• King Harald and Queen Sonja
• Crown Prince Haakon
All are loved and respected as the moral leaders of Norway, if only in a figurehead position relative to the government. Crown Prince Harald and commoner Sonja Haraldsen secretly dated for 9 years before his father finally granted permission for them to marry, a requirement mandated by the Norwegian Constitution. The couple have lived a long life, still on the throne, both at aged 88. They have two children, Princess Martha Louise, and Crown Prince Haakon. See Amazon Prime 4-part miniseries, The Commoner, about the 9-year courtship of Harald and Sonja. See how it ends, many years later (read her story HERE.
What Line We Will Each Draw in the Days Ahead?
An Iron Man in Ancient History: King Alfred the Great
• Alfred was the legitimate king of England in the 900 AD when England had been besieged by invading Vikings, bent on plunder and conquest for hundreds of years.
• Alfred is the only king ever called The Great in all of British history.
• Source: Alfred the Great, by Jacob Abbott
• He had been nearly defeated by a large invading Viking army and then driven into hiding.
• Rallying both his courage and his Saxon chieftains, they defeated the invaders and offered them a choice:
• Become Christians and peaceful settlers or be mercilessly driven out. They settled their previous conquered English territory of Southeast England, under the kingship of Alfred.
• Rather than live luxuriously on the taxes of the people, Alfred rebuilt England’s infrastructure, required that English Courts be scrupulously impartial in all cases brought before them, whether from Celts, Saxons, or Vikings and other settlers.
• Alfred spearheaded long-lasting peace in England and may well be the father of Western Civilization.
WHAT ABOUT VALIANT WOMEN?
Esther: A Valiant Woman in Ancient Times
We probably all know Esther’s story from the Book of Esther in the Old Testament: The King deposed Queen Vashti when she refused to appear before his guests. He then held a beauty pageant to replace her and chose Esther, and her cousin Mordecai was given a governmental post. Then Haman, the King’s highest official, proposed a plan to annihilate all Jews, whom he hated. The King agreed and a date was set. She was counseled by Mordecai to intervene, in Esther 4:13–16.
Esther’s life really was at stake because the King didn’t know she was Jewish, plus even asking to see the King could result in death, if he so chose. But Mordecai’s words, “who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” awakened her loyalty to her people. It was a cause worth risking death for. Her decision: If I Perish, I Perish. Fortunately, her wishes prevailed and Haman was himself hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. This story and others have caused me to put myself in their shoes. How would YOU choose?
Joan of Arc, A Valiant Warrior for Christ
From History.com:
Joan of Arc, a pious peasant in medieval France, believed that God had chosen her to lead France to victory in its long-running war with England. With no military training, Joan convinced crown prince Charles of Valois to allow her to lead a French army to the besieged city of Orléans, where they achieved a stunning victory. After seeing the prince crowned King Charles VII, Joan was captured by enemy forces, tried for witchcraft and burned at the stake at the age of 19. By the time she was canonized in 1920, Joan of Arc was considered one of history’s greatest martyrs, and the patron saint of France.
NOTE: link to movie about Joan of Arc, to view on BYU TV, link HERE.
What is the source of St. Joan’s courage, even in the face of martyrdom?
WE March Forth With Needed Priesthood Power
JST Genesis 14:27–28, 30–31:
27 And thus, having been approved of God, he [Melchizedek] was ordained an high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch,
28 It being after the order of the Son of God; which order came, not by man, nor the will of man; neither by father nor mother; neither by beginning of days nor end of years; but of God;
30 For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself; that every one being ordained after this [Melchizedek] order and calling should have power, by faith, to break mountains, to divide the seas, to dry up waters, to turn them out of their course;
31 To put at defiance the armies of nations, to divide the earth, to break every band, to stand in the presence of God; to do all things according to his will, according to his command, subdue principalities and powers; and this by the will of the Son of God which was from before the foundation of the world.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Recap from Feb 2022 Priesthood Blessing:
Teach about the Last Days because we are in times of tribulation. They’re coming soon and they will be difficult. And the members, and others, need to be ready with:
• Food Storage
• Spiritually Prepared
• Lives in Order.
Heard in Stake Conference from a General Authority: He detailed the Church’s counsel about food storage, which is still in force, and added: Those who don’t follow this advice will REALLY suffer. Don’t let that be you!
SPIRITUALLY PREPARED:
Stand strong in the testimony of Christ in the face of persecution. Start NOW.
• In all things, honor your covenants.
• Don’t let the whispered opinions of your peers, nor the voice of any human, replace the “still small voice” of the Spirit of God.
• Ask yourself: Are you men, or women, made of iron or wood?
Gird up your loins. The Battle looms dead ahead.