Hank Smith: 00:00 Hello everyone. Welcome to followHIM Favorites. This is where John and I are sharing a single story to go with each week’s lesson. John, we are in sections 27 and 28. Section 27 has a lot about the sacrament, and I think that’s where you’re going to take us today.

John Bytheway: 00:18 I’m intrigued by things the Lord has us repeat, and the sacrament is one of those that is so beautiful. I just love to listen to the words of the prayer. Another thing I love, Hank is airplanes and astronauts and space, and I remind you that my name is John Glenn with two Ns Bytheway. Have you ever heard of a space shuttle astronaut named Don Lind?

Hank Smith: 00:41 I can’t say I have.

John Bytheway: 00:43 Well, he was a latter-day saint. I’m just going to read his experience. Another experience very close to me was to have the sacrament in orbit. We were in space for a full week, so of course we were up there on a Sunday. Our bishop had given me permission to hold my own sacrament service. It was a little unusual. You priests in the audience might consider what it would be like to try to kneel down in weightlessness. You keep drifting off. That’s funny. Literally, right? We all drift off in meetings, but not literally. Yeah. 

  01:14 Brother Johnson, get down here. You’re floating again. Right?  For privacy, I held my sacrament service in my sleep station. Something like a Pullman berth. That’s, I think that’s a reference to a train, a Pullman car where you have little places you can sleep. I knelt on what you would think of as the ceiling and braced my shoulders against my sleeping bag so I would not float away. It was a very special experience. I will remember that sacrament service and the renewing of my baptismal covenants high above the earth all my life. It had some of that special feeling that usually have only when you go to the temple. And then he continued. This is an Ensign article, November 85 Ensign. Shortly after the flight, I had the opportunity to show Sister Charlene Wells, our Miss America, around the Space Center. She asked me if it didn’t seem uncomfortable going into space, upside down.

  02:08 I explained that in space you always feel right side up and stationary. The earth turns below you. If someone’s head is pointing toward your feet, he’s the one who’s upside down at liftoff. The earth simply rotates to a position above your head. But that’s the Earth’s problem.  Later at a fireside Sister Wells made a comment about that situation that I think is very meaningful in many things we do. She said, the world thinks we are completely upside down. They think our moral values are foolish. Our standards are restrictive. Our beliefs are quaint, but outdated. The important thing is that we make sure that we keep ourselves right side up, aligned with the Lord, even if it makes the whole world look upside down. And that’s from the November 85 Ensign, which I believe is a conference issue. So maybe Brother Lind gave a talk in General Conference.

Hank Smith: 03:00 Wow. I love that story. I just picture a priest in the ward floating around. Right? You better brace yourself there.

John Bytheway: 03:08 You’re drifting off again.

Hank Smith: 03:10 Yeah.

John Bytheway: 03:10 Yeah. Speaking about the bishop needs to give you permission for something like that. That’s a keys thing. Who’s the bishop over the planet Earth? I mean, I guess because he was his bishop he could do that. But it’s kind of an interesting question, isn’t it?

Hank Smith: 03:24 Who, what’s the ward up there, right? Do I need to contact them first?

John Bytheway: 03:29 Yeah.

Hank Smith: 03:30 The Lord says in section 27, he said, I’m not overly concerned about what you eat or what you drink. This is what it’s important. That you do it with an eye single to my glory. I think we could all do that this week for the sacrament.

John Bytheway: 03:45 Yeah. And in this story, I’m not even concerned about where you do the sacrament.

Hank Smith: 03:51 You can do it in space for all I care.

John Bytheway: 03:54 But it’s about your eye single to the glory of God.

Hank Smith: 03:57 Now can’t you imagine telling Joseph Smith and the early Saints when they write the sacrament prayer one day, this is going to be done in space by a man who’s floating away? 

We hope you’ll join us on our full podcast. It’s called followHIM. You can get it wherever you get your podcast. We are going to be with Dr. Matt Richardson this week. Matt has a lot of experience in the church. He’s going to show you some things that you’ve never seen before. It’s pretty phenomenal. Then come back next week, join us on followHIM Favorites.