What is it about Les Miserable that I just LOVE so much? Is it the setting? Found in the culturally rich and breathtakingly beautiful city of Paris? The crepes? Yes...the crepes. Or is it Liam Neeson’s voice (Sean Connery, you have competition. And, what I will also mention is that Sean Connery is also the man my mother would totally leave my Dad for. There. I said it...anyhoo) in the dramatic version of the mighty Jean Valjean? Or could it be the music…ahhh, the music. My favorite of course being…(sing it with me people!) Do you hear the people sing? No wait, it’s a Heart Full of Love…no Castle on a Cloud…I Dreamed a Dream...no wait, THIS is my favorite… I think what I love most about this timeless Parisian story is, the story. The story of a people who were not afraid to stand for what they knew what was right. They stood tall and they stood together, just as they do right now. While we might not be able to actually be in Paris, to stand with our brothers and sisters in support, we can do something even greater with even more impact...we can pray. In a neighboring nation, Marie Madeline Cardon, who, with her family, received the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ from the first missionaries called to serve in Italy in 1850. She was a young woman of 17 or 18 years of age when they were baptized. One Sunday, while the family was holding a worship service in their home high in the Alps of northern Italy, an angry mob of men, including some of the local ministers, gathered around the house and began shouting, yelling, and calling for the missionaries to be brought outside. I don’t think they were anxious to be taught the gospel—they intended bodily harm. It was young Marie who marched out of the house to confront the mob. They continued their vicious yells and demands for the missionaries to be brought out. Marie raised her Bible up in her hand and commanded them to depart. She told them that the elders were under her protection and that they could not harm one hair of their heads. Listen to her own words: “All stood aghast. … God was with me. He placed those words in my mouth, or I could not have spoken them. That strong ferocious body of men stood helpless before a weak, trembling, yet fearless girl. The ministers asked the mob to leave, which they did quietly in shame, fear, and remorse. The small flock completed their meeting in peace. My great great grandmother at the age of 17, rendered the strength and grace of God into her heart to stand before an angry mob. I imagine at this same time, Marie Madeline’s family rendered to God in their home as they prayed for their courageous daughter. The Parisian people today, and that timeless story foretold, turned their hearts to prayer as they look to Him to render peace in their hearts. God hears our prayers of thankfulness and answers our pleas. From my favorite song in Les Miserable, Bring Him Home, Jean Valjean sings: God on high, He is there. The power of prayer unites sons and daughters with God. Prayer unites God and families, and prayers unite people…even to people found oceans apart. In a revelation given to Joseph Smith, it teaches us that even more beautiful than the music of Les Miserable, is the song of the heart: “For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, I have gratitude for the song of the heart...prayer. The song of the righteous to Him, and the answers that are given by faith that bless all of His beloved children. Let's have Him hear the people sing!
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