Faith of the New Zealand People, Healing a Prophet of God

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In 1976, Russell M. Nelson and his wife Dantzel were invited to join President Spencer W. Kimball and his wife to nine area conferences over a period of three weeks in the South Pacific. Elder Nelson had been President Kimball's heart surgeon and was watching over the health of the Prophet during this trip.

At every stop-in Tonga, Fiji, Tahiti, Samoa, Western Samoa, New Zealand, and multiple cities in Australia they greeted the Saints, met with government officials, talked to the press, held devotionals and more.

While flying from Apia to Pago Pago in American Samoa, President Kimball, whose eighty-first birthday was just a few days away, suddenly became violently ill. By the time they reached the hotel his temperature had soared to 104 degrees F. He assigned President N. Eldon Tanner and Brother Nelson to fill in for him on an interview on Samoan TV and went to bed. But even still, it was a short night. The entourage was scheduled on a 5:00 am flight to Aukland, which meant leaving the hotel at 3:30 am.

President Kimball slept on the four-hour flight and he perspired- a clear sign that his temperature had fallen. As the plane descended, he awoke, began to straighten his tie, and turned to Sister Kimball and asked her to comb his hair for him.

"Which hair do you want me to comb, Spencer?" she teased in return.

As they emerged from the plane, the prophet somehow managed to shake the hands of everyone in a long line waiting to greet him and then to stand in front of television cameras for nearly half an hour giving what amounted to a dissertation about the Church.

Elder Nelson said: "It was the finest presentation I have ever heard- thoroughly organized, comprehensive and humbly and powerfully delivered, Brother Arthur Haycock and I looked at each other in utter amazement; we could hardly believe what we were seeing and hearing."

President Kimball then attended a luncheon with New Zealand Prime Minister Robert Muldoon. Once he (President Kimball) got back to his hotel, his temperature shot to 102 degrees F. As a doctor, Russell Nelson could not believe what he had just witnessed.

Elder Nelson said: "A man so ill had received the blessing of a two hour remission, which allowed him to perform his duties faithfully and well, as though his spirit had the power to drive the illness at least temporarily from his body."

President Kimball and his party then drove the sixty-nine miles from Auckland to Hamilton New Zealand, and President Kimball went again to bed. President Tanner handled a meeting with the Maori queen, and President Kimball told the party to please excuse them from the cultural event planned that evening. Only Arthur Haycock, assistant to the First Presidency, and Russell stayed behind with President and Sister Kimball to attend to their needs, and President Kimball fell into a deep sleep.

Just before 7:00 pm, the President Kimball awoke suddenly, covered in perspiration. He then asked Russell, who had been reading quietly in the room, what time the cultural even was to begin.

"At 7:00 pm" he responded.

"What time is it now?"

"Almost 7:00 pm"

"Tell Sister Kimball we're going."

The Kimball's dressed quickly and drove the short distance to the stadium at the Church College of New Zealand. As their car entered the stadium, a deafening roar went up from the crowd.

As soon as Russell took his seat next to Dantzel, she told him what had happened. When the official party reached the stadium, President Tanner welcomed the large Polynesian audience and explained that President Kimball had been fighting a serious illness and was regrettably too sick to attend. A young Polynesian man then walked to the podium to offer the invocation. As he prayed, he explained that they had been preparing for this event for six months and then he petitioned the Lord: "We three thousand New Zealand youth have gathered here prepared to sing and to dance for thy prophet. Wilt thou heal him and deliver him here." As the prayer ended, the car carrying the Kimballs entered, and the stadium erupted in a spontaneous deafening shout at the answer to their prayer.

References:

"Insights from a Prophets life, Russell M. Nelson" p.117-121