Church History Tour- God Appears in Small and Simple Places

Church History Tour: The John Johnson Farm

  

The John Johnson Farm is in located in Hiram, Ohio 

I was very unfamiliar with this home and farm in Church History, yet very familiar with events that  happened there.  I knew the history just didn't know WHERE .  That is what was so great about this tour we went on, it helped connect stories and history I have heard my whole life to the actual places they happened.   I had a lot of things mixed up in my head. 

The John Johnson Home was the headquarters of the Church for a certain time period. I  learned that pretty much where ever Joseph was living at the time, became the center of the Church.  Which makes sense.

What happened in the John Johnson home?

 Joseph and Sidney were invited to come live in the John Johnson home for a quiet, peaceful place they could work on the translation of the Bible.  Soon Emma joined with their 4-month old twins Joseph and Julia.  Sidney and his wife Phoebe with their 6 children moved into a log home across the road.

This is the room where Joseph and Emma lived with their twins. Notice the very colorful floor.  The Johnson's were wealthy and their home was decorated in the latest and best fashions of the day. It was a very comfortable home to live in.

Saturday, March 24, 1832 Emma and Joseph had spent the day caring for their now 11 month old twins, both suffering from measles.  By nighttime, Emma went to bed with Julia. Joseph stayed up with little Joseph, who was the more ill of the two. Joseph layed down on the trundle bed near the door and quickly fell asleep. 

They also believe the Prophet and baby Joseph could have been sleeping in this room right off the kitchen and very close to the front door, which was a room used for the sick.

During the cold night, a group of men with black-painted faces burst through the door. Emma screamed as they dragged the Prophet from his bed.  During the attack, baby
Joseph was left uncovered long enough to catch a severe cold and died a few days later.

Sidney Rigdon was also dragged by his heels, his head thumping on the frozen Ohio ground.

They threw tar on them and feathers.  Both of  the men were unconscious for a while afterwards, due to to violence of the act. Sidney worse off than the Prophet.  He suffered bad head injuries and was delirious for days afterwards.

After the mobbing Joseph pulled the tar from his mouth so he could breath. He made his way to the house. When Emma saw the beaten and tarred Joseph, she fainted.  Elsa Johnson and Emma stayed up most of the night, scraping tar from Joseph's skin.

The kitchen.  Notice the swirls in the wood. Another sign of the wealth of the Johnson family. The cupboard opened above shows how the wood looked before the re-finished the home.



kind of blurry...but this is the bread dough box next to the oven. At night time they would fill this with fresh bread dough. In the morning they would wake up and make all their bread.



the well next to the front door, Joseph hid in a few times to escape a mob

the doorstep Joseph was dragged from, and the doorstep he preached from.
What a Prophet he was!!

The John Johnson home was  a place of revelation

Though Joseph had lost a tooth, received a severe injury in his side, was missing a patch of hair, and had nitric acid burns, he preached a sermon at the usual Sunday worship services.  Afterwards he baptized 3 members of the congregation.

The Revelation Room: a sacred and hallowed place.
Sacred because something a great spiritual significance happened here and
 hallowed meaning the Savior has been here

We had a wonderful guide that joined our tour from  the John Johnson farm to Kirtland: Karl Anderson. You might be familiar with several of his books on the Doctrine and Covenants and the revelations that happened in Kirtland.[search them out at Amazon.com] He is a former CES Seminary teacher who is in his late 70s. A jolly guy who was fun to listen to.  He has lived and taught in Kirtland for years.   Because of him, we were able to get into many places we would not have otherwise.   He was great and seemed to know everything about everything that happened in the Johnson home and in Kirtland. 

I liked a statement he said to us many times: "God chose to appear in small and simple circumstances: the manger,  the grove, and this room in the John Johnson farmhome in rural Ohio."

I think for the most part, we as members of the Church are unaware of the many visitations of the Savior to His people.  He leads this Church and is not only very aware of what is going on, but is personally involved.  Many early Saints saw the Savior or were present when He was and felt of His presence. The John Johnson revelation room was one of those sacred and hallowed places on this earth. 

Many revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants happened in the John Johnson home.

Section 1 of the Doctrine and Covenants was revealed in the revelation room

24Behold, I am God and have spoken it, and it is of me

as well as these Sections 65-69, 71,73, 74, 76-81, 99,133

Section 76: Vision of the Three Degrees of Glory

One of the greatest doctrinal revelations given in this dispensation.

  Joseph and Sidney saw the Savior and conversed with Him:

14 Of whom we bear record; and the record which we bear is the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, who is the Son, whom we saw and with whom we conversed in the heavenly vision.

22 And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

 23 For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

24 That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God. 

Follow my North Eastern Church History Tour

Church History Tour- Eliza and Lorenzo Snow

"When we understand the character of God, and know how to come to Him, He begins to unfold the heavens to us, and to tell us all about it.  When we are ready to come to Him, He is "ready to come to us" (Teachings of the Prophets of the Church: Joseph Smith)

Home of Oliver and Rosetta Snow in Mantua, Ohio where
Lorenzo and Eliza Snow lived from 1815-1838
The original home included the large section to the left door.
You see a dividing line right next to the door. That is where an addition was later added.

"When we understand the character of God, and know how to come to Him, He begins to unfold the heavens to us, and to tell us all about it.  When we are ready to come to Him, He is "ready to come to us" (Teachings of the Prophets of the Church: Joseph Smith)

Some background information on Eliza and Lorenzo

Eliza Roxcy Snow Young -(January 21, 1804-December 5, 1887) is one of the most well-known women of Church History.  She  was a renowned poet writing hundreds of poems, a school teacher, and 2nd Relief Society General President. She is most knows today for her poems, which are found in our Hymn book:

• How Great the Wisdom and the Love
• Invocation, or the Eternal Father and Mother (Oh, My Father)
• Truth Reflects Upon our Senses

Eliza was baptized in 1835 at the age of 30. She moved to Kirtland, Ohio, which was the headquarters of the Church at that time. She worked as a school teacher there. She donated a large sum of money to the building of the Kirtland Temple. To show their appreciation, the building committee provided Eliza with "a very nice lot near the temple with a fruit tree,  a spring running through the property, and  a house that accommodated two families."

She claimed to be a plural wife of Joseph Smith (June 29,  1842). 

From Eliza's diary we read,

"I was sealed to the prophet, Joseph Smith, for time and eternity in accordance with the celestial law of marriage which God had revealed.... This, one of the most important events of my life, I have never had cause to regret."

  

Throughout her life Eliza referred to Joseph as "her first and only love . . . the choice of her heart and the crown of her life." and when Joseph was martyred in 1844 she was so overcome by grief that she could not eat or sleep and even pled with the Lord to allow her to die. It was during this time of grieving that Joseph appeared to her in vision and told her that she must not desire to die. He then explained that her mission on earth was not yet completed and counseled her to be of good cheer and service to those around her. (source)

Eliza was later married to Brigham Young (1844)

Though this marriage was one of convenience and respect, it provided Eliza with security after the death of Joseph. When Eliza arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, Brigham arranged for her to live in a log cabin with Clara Decker, one of his other plural wives. Then, in 1856, he moved Eliza into the Lion House which he had built to house many of his wives and children. Brigham highly respected Eliza's intellect and valued her opinion. She always sat on his right side at the dinner table and during family prayer.

  

Lorenzo Snow (April 14, 1814-October 10, 1901) 5th President of the Church

Lorenzo joined the Church in 1836 at the age of 22. At the time the Prophet Joseph Smith was living in Hiram, Ohio in the John Johnson farm about 4 miles away.

At age 18 Lorenzo attended a meeting at the John Johnson farm. There Joseph Smith spoke to a crowd of about 200 people. He was very moved by this experience, but it was another 4 years before he was baptized. 

 He mentions being "particularly stirred by the counsel of Joseph Smith Senior who said to him 'You will become as great as you can possibly wish-even as great as God, and cannot wish to be greater'" (Biography and Family Record of Lorenzo Snow)

Lorenzo has an extensive history from the time of his conversion, until his death. We are most familiar with his key role as prophet restoring the principle of tithing.  The setting for this revelation was in St. George, Utah.  During a serious drought, the members had fasted and prayed for rain.  Through revelation, President Snow, taught them that if they would pay their tithing, they would have rain.  And they did.  This experience was later made into the church movie,  "The Windows of Heaven".

  The Tour



One of the unexpected surprises of our tour was going inside the childhood home of Lorenzo and Eliza Snow.  It wasn't on our schedule, although I think our tour guides knew it could be a possibility but didn't tell us. It was a great surprise for me.

We were in Mantua, Ohio and our tour bus went down some small country roads until we came to this historic marker which was on the side of the road right in front of the Snow home.

 As we all got out to read the sign and get a quick look of the Snow home, the owners came out.  Though not members of our faith, they invited us in to tour the home.  Keep in mind this is a tour bus load with 50 + people.  Who does that?

For me, this was one of the greatest treats of the tour. 

The home has not passed through the hands of many owners and is very much intact to the original floor plan. The owners also have taken great care of the home and strive to decorate and keep it up as it once was, mixed with  modern day conveniences.  A lot of money had been invested into the home to keep it up and have it reflect that time period.

I was very impressed by the owners. Here they were, not members of our faith, no testimony of our church history, yet they had this deep respect for the Snow family. The home was almost a sanctuary  to honor the Snow family. Very surprising and impressive.

The upstairs in the Snow home. Notice the decor



On the wall in the front living room,
 hangs these pictures of Eliza and Lorenzo Snow

The Snow farm right behind the house.  Can you just visualize this
in the time period of Eliza and Lorenzo?

"O, My Father"

Before leaving all 50 of us gathered on the driveway in front of the house and sang, "O My Father" There was a Mormon Tabernacle Choir member amongst our group, so hopefully it sounded okay.

O my Father, thou that dwellest
In the high and glorious place,
When shall I regain thy presence
And again behold thy face?
In thy holy habitation,
Did my spirit once reside?
In my first primeval childhood
Was I nurtured near thy side?

For a wise and glorious purpose
Thou hast placed me here on earth
And withheld the recollection
Of my former friends and birth;
Yet ofttimes a secret something
Whispered, "You're a stranger here,"
And I felt that I had wandered
From a more exalted sphere.

I had learned to call thee Father,
Thru thy Spirit from on high,
But, until the key of knowledge
Was restored, I knew not why.
In the heav'ns are parents single?
No, the thought makes reason stare!
Truth is reason; truth eternal
Tells me I've a mother there.
When I leave this frail existence,
When I lay this mortal by,
Father, Mother, may I meet you
In your royal courts on high?
Then, at length, when I've completed
All you sent me forth to do,
With your mutual approbation
Let me come and dwell with you.

("O, My Father," by Eliza R. Snow)

Eliza Snow wrote the lyrics just after her own father's death and a year after Joseph's.
The "key of knowledge"  is the fulness of the gospel restored to the earth.

This hymn teaches that: God is literally the Father of our spirits, and that we are literally His children. It is also the only hymn that talks about having a Mother in heaven.

Joseph Smith taught that God “looks upon the whole of the human family with a fatherly care and paternal regard” and that “if men do not comprehend the character of God, they do not comprehend themselves” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 39, 40). (See New Era, Joseph Smith's Key of Knowledge)

Having this knowledge changes everything.  We know how to approach God in prayer. We know we can. We know He lives. We know He is there. We know He cares, and that He hears and answers prayers.  We know we are His children, He knows us by name, He knows the very details of our lives, and we know that He loves us deeply.

This is from that "key of knowledge" restored to us through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

I am grateful for what Joseph taught and for the knowledge and testimony I have of this gospel of our Heavenly Father.

It is true!


Church History Tour-Angel Moroni Comes and Joseph Recieves the Plates

For those following my Church History Series, these are posts about a North Eastern Church History Tour my husband and I went on this past summer.  It was a dream vacation for me that was testimony building to say the least and life changing in many ways. 

I am sharing with all of you my pictures, some thoughts, and information from many of these sites.  This is mainly for my mother.  We share this love for the gospel  and scriptural insights.  It would have been so much fun to take her along with us.  She would have loved every second of it.

I am constantly updating my Church History posts with pictures and information. So keep checking back to see the changes.  This gospel is so true!!

Previous Posts from this Series:

Who Were Joseph Smith's Ancestors

Religion Prior to the First Vision

Joseph Smith Sr. Father of the Prophet

The Birthplace of Joseph Smith

Alvin Smith: the Ideal Son and Older Brother

Re-visiting the First Vision

Joseph and Emma

At the age of 14, Joseph Smith had what is called the First Vision. For the next 3 years he did not have any visitations, and life continued on, although everything from normal. 

JS-H 1:22 I soon found, however, that my telling the story had excited a great deal of prejudice against me among professors of religion, and was the cause of great ^apersecution, which continued to increase; and though I was an ^bobscure boy, only between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and my circumstances in life such as to make a boy of no consequence in the world, yet men of high standing would take notice sufficient to excite the public mind against me, and create a bitter persecution; and this was common among all the sects—all united to persecute me.

On the evening of September 21, 1823 Joseph went to bed with his brothers in these upstairs bedrooms.

The staircase right off the kitchen leading the the Smith children's bedrooms

The front bedroom is the boys room, the back bedroom is the girls

Joseph shared a bed with his brother as well as a whole room with the other boys

Sometimes I think we have this visual in our mind, due to pictures from artists, that Joseph had his own room when Angel Moroni visited.  To me, it makes the story even that more amazing to know that no one else saw, heard, or even knew about Joseph's all-nighter with Angel Moroni.

As Joseph knelt down to say his prayers, no doubt the others were asleep in their beds, he felt weighed down with  his weaknesses sins of "levity" and asked for forgiveness and his standing before God. He says, he had  "full confidence in recieving a divine manifestation as he had previously done"

Distraction: I have an older brother who for years,  was actually scared an angel would appear in his bedroom.  His brothers used to love [and still do]to tease him about that. 

In answer to Joseph's prayer, Angel Moroni appeared in his bedroom with a very important message

see Joseph Smith -History 1:27-54 and my previous post [towards the end]

Alvin the Ideal Son and Older Brother

On September 22, 1823, after telling his father about the message and visit of Angel Moroni, Joseph went to a hill near his home, that came to be known as Hill Cumorah.  Here an ancient record of the inhabitants of the American continent was saved, preserved, and hidden in the hill . This record, written in reformed Egyptian, contained the fullness of the gospel and Joseph would translate it through sacred instruments provided him.  The time for that translation would be in the future.   Joseph saw the place in his vision, and recognized it immediately when he came to it.

He did not receive the record immediately, although he handled it and saw it.  He was told to come to the exact spot every year for four years on the exact same day.  During these early visits, Joseph was taught immensely about these people.  He would go home, and the family would all gather around as Joseph would tell of his experiences.  His mother shares that Joseph spoke with such ease of these ancient people: their dress, mode of travel, buildings, animals they rode upon, etc. as if he had spent his  entire life among them.

Receiving the plates was emotionally agonizing for Joseph and his entire family.  They knew the importance of it, and wanted more than anything for Joseph to be worthy and seen as worthy to the Lord to receive them. They had moments when they were very worried if Joseph would be able to pull  it off.

On one of Joseph's early visits, the plates were in a box and he set them down behind him. When he turned around the box and plates were completely gone.  He panicked, not knowing where the plates were. He prayed and asked the Lord what happened to the plates.  Angel Moroni came and reminded him of the early instruction to not let the plates out of his sight for even a second.  It was a hard lesson and Joseph went home "weeping"  His father, fully expecting Joseph to bring the plates home, and not understanding the whole situation, told Joseph, "If I were you, I would have just taken them"  Joseph said, "Father you don't know what you speak of, the angel wouldn't let me have them."

Another time, he reached in to take the plates, and was thrown "violently onto his back"  Receiving the plates was a heart-wrenching experience, that Joseph was very inexperienced in what was expected of him. But  he was taught every step along the way, and many times with very hard lessons.

September 22, 1827 the night that Joseph received the plates from Angel Moroni, Heber C. Kimball in another part of the country-Mendon, Ohio, saw a great vision.  There is no coincidence of timing involved here. 

"Sept. 22, 1827, while living in the town of Mendon, I having retired to bed, John P. Greene, a traveling reformed Methodist preacher, waked me up calling upon me to behold the scenery in the heavens.

I called my wife and sister Fanny Young (sister of Brigham Young) who was living with me; it was so clear that you could see to pick up a pin, we looked to the eastern horizon and beheld a white smoke arise towards the heavens, and as it ascended it formed itself into a belt and made a noise like the rustling of a mighty wind, and continued southwest, forming a regular bow dipping in the western horizon.

After the bow had formed it began to widen out and grow clear and transparent of a bluish cast, it grew wide enough to contain twelve men abreast.

In this bow an army moved, commencing from the east and marching to the west. They moved in platoons, and walked so close, the rear ranks trod in the steps of their file leaders, until the whole bow was literally crowded with soldiers.

We could see distinctly the muskets, bayonets, and knapsacks of the men, who wore caps and feathers like those used by the American soldiers in the last war with Britain; also their officers with their swords and equipage, and heard the clashing and jingling of their instruments of war and could discover the form and features of the men. The most profound order existed throughout the entire army, when the foremost man stepped, every man stepped at the same time: I could hear the step.

When the front rank reached the Western horizon a battle ensued, as we could distinctly hear the report of the arms and the rush.

No man could judge of my feelings when I beheld that army of men, as plainly as I ever saw armies of men in the flesh it seemed as though every hair of my head was alive. This scenery was gazed upon for hours, until it began to disappear.

Subsequently I learned this took place the same evening that Joseph Smith received the records of the Book of Mormon from the Angel Moroni."

Joseph received the plates and during the years of translation,  Joseph had to go to GREAT lengths to keep the record safe.  During this time, he and Emma were living in the frame home in Palmyra with Joseph's parents and family.  This large barn is directly across the road from the frame home.

In the barn loft

Between Lucy and Katherine asleep in bed

In the box

In a barrel of beans, Joseph's father was a wet cooper and made barrels.
This photo is actually inside the Newell K. Whitney store in Kirtland

Underneath the hearth bricks

Of coarse, Joseph was able to keep the record safe until he finished translating.  After which, Angel Moroni came and took them. 

If this post wasn't long enough for you, and you want to read more, see my post The Bible and the Book of Mormon are Both Good Fruits

I can't explain to you how incredible it was to walk where Joseph walked, and to see first hand the very places where sacred events happened in our Church History.  I know now more than ever before it is true.  Joseph was a Prophet of God.  Jesus Christ lives and directs this work. This is His Church on the earth. 

Church History Tour- Joseph and Emma

From the movie : Joseph Smith Prophet of the Restoration

Joseph and Emma first met in November of 1825.  Joseph was almost 21 and Emma had turned 21 in July of that year. I don't have anything super exciting to say about their engagement and marriage except that being a natural romantic,  I love their story!

So when we went to the house where they spent the first few weeks of their marriage, my ears and eyes perked up a bit.

After Joseph tried unsuccessfully to get Isaac Hale to give him his blessings in marrying his daughter. He decided to marry Emma anyway.  She was "the choice of his heart".  He loved her, and knew she was the one the Lord had prepared to be his wife, and to be of comfort and support to him in his very important call as the Prophet of the Restoration.  I am sure he hoped the support from his father-in-law would come later. 

Plaque outside the home

Bronze statue of Joseph in the Josiah Stowell yard

The home of Josiah Stowell

It was thrilling to be inside this home where the tour guides described some of the simple tasks that Joseph did prior to his marriage, such as ironing his own shirt.  It was romantic feeling to be in this home, and I could feel they were once there.  There were three bedrooms upstairs and we all walked through and tried to guess which bedroom was Joseph and Emma's.  We all guessed and were about 1/2 right.  I love the story of their marriage.

And now with Emma, Joseph was able to begin one of the greatest purposes of his for-ordination as prophet:  the receiving and translation of the golden plates, otherwise known as  The Book of Mormon.  Emma was key.