Chance is my grandson.  When he was small his dad purchased an old safe at an auction for $10.  No one knew how to open it.  For years it sat unopened in his shop.

Chance became a teenager.  The sealed safe intrigued him.  One day as he was studying it he decided that he could open the safe by attacking its hinges.  With punches and a grinder he finally succeeded in breaking into the impenetrable safe.  What was thought to be an empty safe contained $5,000 in five dollar bills.  There was no way of knowing who had placed the money there.  It all belonged to Chance, except for ten dollars which his dad demanded as reimbursement for the purchase price of the safe.

It occurs to me that many people, including some members of the Church, have hidden treasures sitting unopened in their houses, just like that safe sitting in the shop.

My good friend, Don Baxter, told about the summer job he had as a young man.  He was hired to man a lookout high on a lonely mountain top.  His job was to watch for and to report forest fires.  It was a dull and lonely job.  Don needed things to do, so he packed his backpack full of books to read as he watched for fires.

Finally, he had read all but one.  The book at the bottom of the pile was the Book of Mormon.  He hadn't wanted to read it, but it was the only book left.  When he picked it up, he opened a treasure that changed the rest of his life.

Doctrine and Covenants section 89 says that those who keep and do the commandments of God will find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures.  (D&C 89:18-19).  These are treasures that are available to everyone who will make the effort to open them.

These hidden treasures include additional precious scripture, a knowledge of God, the possibility of eternal marriage and family relationships, good health and long life, peace of conscience and peace of mind, the ability to repent, the power to redeem our deceased loved ones, the power to influence for good our unborn posterity, and many, many other hidden treasures.

There are many dozens of people who owe their happiness and their very existence to the fact that Don Baxter opened that treasure box which is the Book of Mormon.

Chance experienced a surge of happiness when he opened the safe, but when Don opened the Book of Mormon he found a lasting joy that continues to build.