I want to begin this blog with a story about one of our ancestors. I have told his story many times over the years, so some of you may have heard it before. But it is a good story and very meaningful as we apply its implications in our lives today.
AEthelred was an early king of England. He was the grandson of Alfred the Great who had united England and succeeded in stopping the invasion of the Vikings in Northern England. He came to the throne in 978 at the age of 10 years. As a result of the successes of Alfred, AEthelred became king during a time of peace and plenty.
He grew up loving to hunt, ride, joust, never giving much concern for the kingdom he ruled or the Vikings who were once again beginning to make raids on Northern England. He was called the "Unready" by later historians because he received very bad advice about his kingdom from his counselors. Consequently, when the Vikings came, he was not prepared. He lost his kingdom and had to pay tribute to the Danish Vikings for many years thereafter.
AEthelred is important to us because he is our ancestor. My grandfather's name was Allred, and he traces his ancestry all the way back to AEthelred the Unready and beyond.
AEthelred's story is important to us because it contains important advice to all his decendants, including you and I. First, we must realize that life is more than fun and games or even digital devices. We must take advantage of opportunities in our schooling, in our work, in all aspects of our lives. And secondly, in the process we must be wary of the advice we receive along the way and the people who want to advise us.
There are always people who want to tell us how to vote, what to eat and drink, that we are too fat or too thin, how to improve our looks, who our friends should be, but, especially, what to think.
Make sure the person giving the advice is credible, trustworthy, and is himself worthy of the spirit. If we do this, we will always be "ready" to make the right decisions. And we will not lose our kingdoms because we listened to bad advice.
As a footnote to AEthelred's story, let me add one more anecdote.
Several years ago Mary Lou and I were doing sealings in the Oakland, California Temple. All the kings and queens of England have had their temple work done many, many years ago. But many of them had never had their children sealed to them. On this particular occasion, we were sealing children to parents, as researched and organized by our oldest daughter Janet.
Suddenly, the sealer called out the name of AEthelred the Unready. Mary Lou and I were kneeling at the altar and couldn't believe our ears. I was to act in behalf of AEthelred and Mary Lou his wife. Together, we had sealed to them all of their children. It was a thrill to us because they were our direct ancestors and because I had told his story so many times before.
Afterward, we wondered if AEthelred had accepted the temple work done for him and his family. We hoped this time he was properly prepared and that he was in deed "ready."
