Two Keys to the Work of Salvation

It has been quite sometime since I have posted anything here, but today my Bishop reiterated a challenge that he gave our ward at the beginning of the year. He promised that we will receive blessings of The Lord if we spend time in the Book of Mormon each day. The spirit touched my heart and I decided I need to be more diligent in this area, so here goes a revitalization of this blog. Last week we had a training with Elder Tate of our Area Seventy. The training was a regional meeting designed to follow-up on "The Work of Salvation" training broadcast by the general authorities several weeks ago. During the meeting he gave us some reading assignments. One of the chapters he asked us to read was 3 Nephi 11. I have read this chapter hundreds of times, but something new stood out today. Well at least the combination of two things was new. In verse 1, it states that a multitude of people was gathered together around the temple. In verse two it says "they were also conversing about this Jesus Christ." I think these two actions are essential to pushing forward the work of salvation (e.g. helping people make and keep the covenants that will allow them to receive eternal life). These people were committed to the gospel. In time of great turmoil after the earthquakes and floods and darkness, they could have gone many places, but they chose to gather at the temple. In our families, our wards, our quorums or other groups to we belong do we gather to the temple in time of trouble? We should. Not only is it a place of peace but it is a place of revelation. Secondly, had I gone through such a horrible time of natural disasters and geologic upheaval I think my conversation may have been focused on rebuilding my home or mourning the loss of loved ones. However these true disciples focused their conversation on the Savior. When trial comes or when there is a moment where our minds are not focused on a specific task, do our thoughts turn to the Savior and his work or do they turn to sports, current events, recreation or work? How much better of a place this world would be if all spent a little more time worshipping in the temple and if our thoughts turned to the Savior and how we might serve Him and His children just a little bit more each day! I imagine that the work of salvation would push forth at a much faster pace that it does now.

Finding Comfort in Christ

Over the last few weeks, I have learned about the deaths of several friends or family members of friends. As a result, the transient nature of life has been on my mind a fair amount during this time. Those who have been affected by those deaths have been required to bear burdens and sorrows with which I myself have never been acquainted. It is no coincidence therefore that upon opening my scriptures tonight, I came across this verse:

"And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam. And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men" (2 Nephi 9:21-22). It is impossible to comfort someone who is stricken with grief by telling them "I know how you feel" because the truth is I cannot even begin to understand their pains.

However, I can claim without reservation that Christ knows their innermost feelings and sorrows. I can claim this because when faced with my own sorrows, I have cast by burden upon His shoulders. I do not know how it works, but I do know that it does work. By the miracle of His perfect Atonement, Christ can make my seemingly unbearable sorrows bearable. Most importantly He can do this for all who are willing to come unto Him in meekness. Upon doing so, the grief and pain which envelopes the soul can be swallowed up by equally encompassing joy and peace.

Where is my heart?

Today I was reading about the Savior's visit to the Nephites. After speaking about the importance of sincerity in our fasting and prayer he said the following:

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where amoth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal; But lay up for yourselves atreasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (3 Nephi 13: 19-21).

As I was reading this I realized that sometimes it is easy to get caught up in the things of the world. I believe that it is easy to be a person who goes through the motions of doing what you are supposed to do without really having your heart in it. True discipleship is having our heart set on those Heavenly treasures. Helaman gave us a great way to determine if something is a treasure of the world or a treasure of heaven. The treasures of heaven are those things "which [are] eternal, and which fadeth not away; " (Helaman 5:8).

I love the end of summer because fall camp has started and college football season is just around the corner. As enjoyable as it is, football does not fit the definition of "eternal" and "fadeth not away." If my heart is set on football, then I can't have it set on by treasure in heaven. That is not to say that everything we do in life has to be spiritual in nature, simply that we must make sure that our hearts are with the things of eternal worth and the other things become secondary.

This point was really driven home by some things that were said in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple dedication services this afternoon. Elder M. Russell Ballard said, "It is important to do all we can to schedule regular temple attendance to show the Lord our faith. We must guard against Lucifer interfering with us participating in temple work." I really liked that he said to schedule temple attendance. If we schedule it, then it becomes so much easier to do. President Monson, along similar lines said, "In our homes we have rooms for eating, rooms for sleeping, rooms for watching TV and other entertainment. We must not forget to have room for the Savior. In our lives we have room for golf, for movies and for other entertaining things, but are we making time for Jesus Christ?" There are so many blessings that come from making room for Jesus Christ. The greatest thing about laying up treasure for ourselves in heaven is that we do not have to wait to enjoy that treasure. We can have it both now and throughout eternity. That treasure comes because living the gospel of Jesus Christ provides us happiness greater than we can obtain by any other method. But to enjoy that treasure, we must have our hearts set upon it. If our hearts are set on other things, we cannot obtain.

The Manner of Happiness

In 2 Nephi 5:27, Nephi states, "And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness." In previous verses contained in this chapter, Nephi teaches some principles that can help us "live after the manner of happiness."

1. Verse 6: Nephi took his family and others who would follow him to a different land where they would be safe from his brothers' anger. He describes those who would follow him as "those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God."
2. Verse 10: Nephi says "we did observe to keep the judgements, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things."
3. Verse 17: "I Nephi, did cause my people to be industrious, and to labor with their hands."

Some Noble Cause

After Ammon taught the Lamanites and helped thousands of them come unto Christ, these valiant new converts showed their devotion to God by making a convenant with him to never shed blood again. The record states, "they did bury [their weapons] deep in the earth. And this they did, it being in their view a testimony to God, and also to men, that they never would use weapons again for the shedding of man's blood...that rather than shed the blood of their brethren they would give up their own lives" (Alma 24:18).

Some twenty years later, these same faithful saints were faced with iminent attack from the Lamanites. The Nephites who had been protecting them up to this point were weakened and under much tribulation such that Ammons converts "were moved with compassion and were desirous to take up arms in the defence of their country" (Alma 53:13).

I believe that this cause under which the people of Ammon sought to justify going to war is a very noble cause. Throughout the Book of Mormon as well as Latter-day revelation, the Lord has revealed that we are justified in fighting to protect our families and our freedom. However, Helams feared that by "[breaking] the oath which they had made....by so doing they should lose their souls" (Alma 53:14-15).

As I read this the question came to my mind, "What convenants have I made which I might break for some noble cause?" For each of us the answer to that question will be different. Take for example the following things that we might place too much empahsis on. Each of these are worthwhile and character building activities. In fact the Lord has encouraged and in many cases commanded us to participate in all of these things in one way or another.

1. Quality time with our Families

2. Church callings

3. Temple Work

4. Exercise and healthy living

5. Job responsibilities

6. Caring for the sick and needy

7. Home teaching

8. Community volunteer work

9. Gaining an education

10. Yardwork

Do we spend so much time with our church calling that we neglect the convenants we have made to our family? Or is it the other way around. Do we spend so much time making our own yard look nice, that we fail to fufill our responsibilities as a home teacher to help the families we home teach with projects they may have? Do we get so busy serving others that we neglect our own yard? Are we so caught up with our job responsibilities that we don't find time to care for the needy and visit the sick?

This list could go on endlessly. For the people of Ammon the proper course of action was very clear. However for our daily lives which convenant should take top prioity may not be as clear. There are so many "noble" causes out there which we can pursue. At times, one of these may need to take a back seat to another. But if too much emphasis is placed on one or the other for too long, then the balance of our lives can be thrown into disequillibrium and our spiritual progress stops. By finding the proper balance, we are blessed abundantly and will one day partake of eternal life.

Waxing Bold in Prayer

Nephi speaks of "waxing bold in mighty prayer" (2 Nephi 4:24). What a great image. When a candle goes through the dipping process, the wick is dipped in melted wax over and over again. Each time it is removed it becomes a little larger and thus able to burn for a little longer. The same process was at play in Nephi's personal prayer. Each time he prayed, his faith grew a little stronger, setting him up to be able to show forth his light (Matt 5:14-16) brighter and longer. As he did so he became more "bold," meaning that each time he prayed his faith had grown a little stronger. This allowed him to ask for greater and greater things in his prayers. In the next verse it speaks of how he was carried away on mountains and saw great things (2 Nephi 4:25). These grand and miraculous occurances did not come immediately. I would venture to say that Nephi asked to be able to see these things. Because of his consistency in prayer his prayers were answered more often. Each time a prayer was answered his faith grew and he became more bold in his petitions to the Lord.

Nephi has experience to backup his claim that "[he knows] that God will give liberally to him that asketh...[our] God will give [us], if [we] ask not amiss" (2 Nephi 2:35). I would like to add my testimony to that of Nephi. I too know that if we exhibit our faith to the Lord by consistently pouring out our hearts to him in prayer, then he will not only grant our righteous desires, but our faith will grow, allowing us to receive even more answers to our prayers.

My Soul Delighteth

In 2 Nephi 4:16, Nephi makes a statement that is a great example of what it means to be holy. He says, "my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard." When I read this today, I had to take a step back and ask myself if I have the same attitude. I have listed just a few things that we might ask consider in answering this question for ourselves:

• Is Sunday a blessing or do I wish that I could be on the golf course instead of Sacrament meeting?
• When that new movie I want to see comes out, do I go anyway even though I would feel uncomfortable if the Savior sat in the seat next to me?
• Do I look forward to the time that I study my scriptures each day or do I find myself forcing myself to read them because it's what "I'm supposed to do?"
• When there is a service project, do I cheerfully give up my Saturday morning or do I stay home and do what I would "rather" do?

As I asked myself these questions, I realized that sometimes it is easy to be doing the right things. I believe that the Lord will bless us beyond what we could imagine simply for doing what we are supposed to do. As I pondered more, I was reminded of the Pharisees in the New Testament. They were perfectly obedient (at least they claimed to be) to the letter of the law. However, they missed out on the greatest blessings of obedience because they were simply going through the motions.

I know that as we strive to "delight" in the commandments, not only do we find greater joy but obedience becomes easier. This is so because as we delight in the things of the Lord, we understand that the commandments are to help and guide us to return to live with Heavenly Father. Nephi was able to "delight in the things of the Lord" because he understood this simple principle. He understood that even though it might be difficult and a lot of work now, it would pay off in the long run.

The Fruits of Prayer

In Alma 34:17-27, Amulek counsels us to pray constnatly both for ourselves and for those around us. The prayer that Amulek is speaking of is not simply I thank thee...., I ask thee.... type of prayer. Rather, he teaches us that we "must pour out [our] souls." I know that when we pray in faith, our Heavenly Father will hear and answer our prayers. But pouring out our souls is not the only thing we need to do in order for our "prayers to find access to [Heavenly Father" (Hymn #172, In Humility our Savior). In verse 28, Amulek teaches us a very important principle to prayer. He teaches that if we "turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart not of [our] substance, if [we] have, to those who stand in need....behold, [our] prayer is in vain and [we] are as hypocrites who do deny the faith." In other words there are two parts to our prayer. The first is speaking to the Lord in faith. The second part is to have charity for others by going forth and serving them. Amulek gives some great examples of how we can show forth charity, but I think there are many more. The most beautiful part of prayer is that as we pray in faith, the Lord will reveal to us the things that we should DO after we ASK. As we go forth and do those things, as Ammon we will be able to rejoice in the Lord because "we [will] be made instruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work" (Alma 26:3) which we have been called to do as holders of the Priesthood of God.

Days of Greatest Sorrow - Hope or Despair?

Despite knowing that his course in life was according to the will of the Lord, Lehi still recognized that leaving Jerusalem was a difficult and trying thing to do. This is evidenced by a statement that he made to his youngest son Joseph. He said, "thou wast born in the wilderness of mine afflictions; yea, in the days of my greatest sorrow did thy mother bear thee" (2 Nephi 3:1). That is pretty strong indication of how difficult the journey was for him and his family. The thing that I love about this statement is that he does not dwell on it. He acknowledges that it was difficult, but it stops at that. This is a great example of hope. Hope is not to create a dillusion of the mind that "everything is okay" when it is not. Our Heavenly Father expects us to acknowledge that sometimes the things he commands us to do are hard; that his commandments require sacrifice of the things that we enjoy or are comfortable doing. Rather, hope is a knowledge that no matter what happens, in the long-run we will obtain that which we are seeking --- Eternal Life.

Immediately after making this statement about the trials he endured, Lehi goes on to teach his son about Joseph "who was carried away into Egypt" (2 Nephi 3:4). This leads into a great prophesy about the restoration of the gospel. I would suggest that had Lehi taken his first statement further by murmuring about the trials rather than just acknowledging them, he would not have had the Spirit open his mind to the vision of Joesph Smith and the Book of Mormon. Likewise, when we murmur about our trials and how hard they are, we close ourselves off to the Spirit and deny ourselves simliar spiritual experiences. In this instance, Lehi gave his son a great faith promoting experience which I am sure strengthened his testimony and helped him grow closer to the Lord. May each of us follow the example of Lehi and provide faith promoting rather than faith destroying experiences by acknowledging the trials through which we pass instead of complaining about and dwelling on them. If we can learn to do so, we will be much happier and so will our friends, families and associates.

Simplicity

I have been reading 2 Nephi 2 for the last couple of weeks. I have read only a few verses each day, spending a lot of time just pondering what I read. It is one of the greatest discourses ever given on the plan of salvation. As I have been reading, I have been waiting for some grand mystery to pop out and enlighten me. I have been reading it and pondering it for over a week now and that still has not happened. In other words, I haven't really learned anything that I didn't already know. There have been a couple of new insights that have reminded me, but even those I could not put into words to communicate the ideas in any other way than simply quoting the verse. As a result I really haven't had anything to post for the last couple of weeks.

Well, I just finished the chapter and was still trying to find some grand mystery, but nothing was coming. At that point I realized that is exactly what I needed to learn. The plan of salvation is so simple and it logically makes so much sense. We all left the presence of God, sin so we can't re-enter his presence on our own, and finally we must rely on the Savior to overcome the effects of sin. That's all! The plan is so simple and so beautiful. Like I mentioned earlier, I have not learned anything new, but I have felt the Spirit. My testimony of the Savior has been strengthened. I can say with greater confidence now that I know Jesus Christ is our Savior. I know that as we follow Him, we can return to live with our Father. It is our choice whether we want to obtain that blessing or not. I know that the Book of Mormon was truly a record that Joseph Smith translated. He could not have made it up on his own. This chapter that I just read is proof of that. The doctrine is so simple, yet so profound and full of wisdom.

A Vision and a Tender Mercy

In 1 Nephi 1:20, Nephi says, "[I] will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosed, because of their faith." Today in my reading I found one of the tender mercies which the Lord bestowed upon Lehi. After great tribulation, the family finally made it to the promise land. Upon arriving there Lehi spoke to his sons concerning "how merciful the Lord had been in warning [them] that they should flee out of Jerusalem" (1 Nephi 1:3). In the next verse, he tells them why the Lord was merciful despite the great afflictions which they bore during that time. I'm sure that as his sons rebelled against him during the journey in the wilderness or when the ship was about to be swallowed up in the sea, that Lehi had some doubts about the decision to leave Jerusalem. When his familiy is in danger or is suffering, any father must wonder if his decision to be obedient to the Lord's commandment is the proper course in life. Thus, the Lord gave Lehi a tender mercy to help him as he would face the decision to continue the course or to turn back. To use Lehi's words, "I have seen a vision in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed" (1 Nephi 1:4). The record does not say when that vision was received, but it must have been welcomed by Lehi and gave him the strength to continue when times were tough. I would suggest that each of us are entitled to similar tender mercies. They may not come through a vision. However, I would suggest that if we pray in faith, the Lord will reveal in a very personal way that our course of action is according to his will and for our benefit. That confirmation will come differently to each person, but I know that those who seek it will find it (Matthew 7:7).

Pasture

When I was a little boy, I spent a lot of time at my grandparents house. They lived in a rural area and trained thoroughbred racehorses. One of my favorite things to do was to spend time wandering through the expansive pastures with my cousins. We could spend hours just wandering around and enjoying the fresh air. For the most part, the horses spent time in the pastures where they had freedom to roam and all the fresh grass that they could eat. Now, my grandparents live in Arizona durng the winter months. While there they still race horses, butsince the track is in the city the horses are confined to small stalls. As I visit them there I often think that the horses must get restless in those stalls. When they bring the horses home, there is a long ride in a horse trailer which must be worse than sitting in the stalls, but at the end of that journey is a summer of freedom. I imagine that those horses are overjoyed to return to the pastures where they can run and play without the limitations of walls and gates.

This comparison helped me to better understand a passage from 1 Nephi 22:24-25:

"And the time speedily cometh that the righteous must be led up as calves of the stall, and the Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory. And he gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth; and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture."

Isn't that just a wonderful metaphor that Nephi uses to teach us about how the Savior can help us. Because of sin, we are like the horses who spend all winter in a stall. We are bound and cannot have some of the greatest joys of life. Yet, the Savior is there to lead us out. The journey of repentance may be long and arduous, but the reward at the end is so grand. Like those horses, the Savior will lead us to pasture. 

Scattering of the Twelve Tribes

I just finished 1 Nephi 21, which is a prophecy of Isaiah. Nephi begins explaining this prophecy. I found a note in my margin from my mission in Taiwan. This note is related to 1 Nephi 22:4: "There are many who are already lost from the knowledge of those who are at Jerusalem." In my note I write "This time period is just 50 years after the scattering of Israel. 'Lost' in this verse can be taken to mean Lost from the knowedge of the Savior from the Old Testament. China probably didn't have those records." I have often speculated about some of the parallels between ancient Chinese and ancient Jewish customs. I dug around a little bit and found the following. I have thoughts about some of these similarities myself, but these are put together fairly nicely. The source is http://hubpages.com/hub/lost_tribe_of_Israel_Chinese. 

Note: These observations are not well formed arguments. I am presenting them here only as observations. They should not be taken as anything but some ideas to provoke further thought. For example, in my thesis, I wrote: 

One particular classroom discussion illustrates the difference between simple comparisons and continuities. During this discussion I made the observation that I thought there might be connections between the ancient Jewish Passover custom of smearing lamb’s blood around doorposts and the Chinese New Year custom of hanging writings on red strips of paper on the top and sides of the door. Eric Hutton who was teaching the class commented that we have to be careful in calling such observations “connections.” To illustrate his point he cited the example that just because people of two different regions of the world wear pants does not necessarily mean that their wearing of pants has historical linkages or significance.

I think that this anecdote applies well to the information below. For an interesting discussion on "conscious continuities" vs "connections" see Perry, Elizabeth. Rebels and Revolutionaries in North China, 1845-1945, (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1980), pp. vii.

 

Okay, now that I have thrown all the academic crap in there, here is what I Googled up. Enjoy!

 

The lost tribe of Israel - Chinese

 

We all know that Israel or Jacob, son of Isaac, fathered 12 sons who started the 12 tribes of Israel. Today, Israel as a nation is from the only surviving tribe of Jews or Judah. All others tribes were vanished with history.

But is this truly so? I remember news running for days on television many years ago about the lost tribe of Israel returning to Israel from Ethiopia. Not long later, I recall I saw on television another group of Israel tribe returning home from Russia. I would not believe the report if I had not seen the real people in the news. The Ethiopia Israelis looks just like any black African. Those returned from Russian look more like Caucasian than the Middle East Jews.

Jews has many traditions originated in the Bible they still observe today. They celebrate the pass over to remember God's mercy on the night of the plague on the first born. In the New Testament, Jews hired the wailers in a funeral to moan with commotion and cries. Today, we still see the same loud cries in a funeral to indicate sincere sorrow they feel for the parted one.

Chinese too, has some traditions and practices exactly the same like the Jews. Rich Chinese funerals still hire people to cry in the funeral with the same meaning as it is intended in the Biblical Jews. We may not see this practice much in China mainland due to some culture up rooting during the Cultural Revolution under the Communist reign. But in Taiwan and Hong Kong, hire wailing is a common phenomenon of the rich.

Another Jewish funeral tradition that Chinese still practice is for the children of the deceased to wear sackcloth and use ashes to hold the jot stick. Although not all Chinese will wear sackcloth in a family funeral today due to the effect of the influential western culture, but we can still see many Chinese who keep the old tradition of wearing sackcloth in a funeral. Those who do not wear it would cut a small piece of sackcloth and clip it to the shirt in the funeral and during the mourning period for 3 months.

For a Chinese house, it is auspicious to keep a pair of red paper on the front gate and doors to dispel evil spirit and usher good luck. Red that signifies blood is the most preferred color to all Chinese. In Chinese New Year, red paper must be hang or stick to the front door. A similar custom Jews do from the pass over tradition.

In Chinese New Year, the cake Chinese has is also unleavened bread or the Nien-Gao similar to the unleavened bread Jews has in their Abib or Nisan festive season.

There are many other customs of Chinese and Jews so similar that it can hardly be a coincidence. Jews and Chinese alike will travel the world to return home for the New Year eve family gathering feast. Jews and Chinese too would give up anything in life to enable their children for higher education.

Looking at some Chinese writing will further confirm my belief that Chinese a one of the tribe of Israel. We know that Chinese writing starts from the right and end on the left, Jews too has the way of writing from right to left.

In fact, Chinese character is more to drawing than writing. Every word is drawn from the real object of thing or person. The word sun is a circle with a line in the middle saying the sun is round with light shining in the center. The word person is a straight line down with two small lines under drawn like a man with 2 legs.

The word boat looks more like a picture of a Chinese junk. But for a big boat, it is a drawing of a boat with eight mounts in it. Why the eight mounts in a boat? It is because Noah with his family members of seven who survived the flood in the Ark

Another Chinese word "Come" is a cross with 2 persons hanging on both sides of the cross and people under the cross. Who can the 2 person on the cross be except the two robbers who were crucifies with Jesus one on his right and one on his left. The person under the cross is the one Jesus say to "Come" to me.

The most amazing of the Chinese characters is the word righteousness. It is a picture of a lamb on top of me. No one can be righteous unless he/she is under the grace of Christ Jesus.

Upon the palms of my hands

When I was about 9 years old, while my family was camping in the Nebo Loop I was riding my bike down a hill and could not stop in time to prevent myself from running into a pickup truck that was passing through the intersection at about 30 mph. My father rushed me down the canyon to the Payson hospital. I did not have any serious injuries other than scrapes, bruises and some soreness. Emotionally I was shaken up for a few days, but I soon fully recovered from those minor injuries. However, almost 20 years later I still have a small scar on my right knee. Whenever I see that scar I think back to that day nearly 20 years ago. 

In 1 Nephi 21:15-16, Nephi quotes Isaiah's Messianic prophecy. "I will not forget thee, O house of Israel. Behold, I have engraven thee upon the palms of my hands," he says. Just as each time I look at my scar I think of my bike accident, each time the Savior looks on the scarred wounds of his hands he thinks of the great sacrifice that he made for us. I'm sure that as he does so he is reminded of each of our burdens and pains that he suffered in Gethsemane. He will never forget us in our adversity. He will be there for us if we turn our hearts to Him. 

Out of Darkness into the Light

Isaiah, speaking to the House of Israel, promised to restore the blessings of the gospel to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith. to quote exactly, he said "I will preserve thee, and give thee my servant for a convenant of the people, to establish the earth" (1 Nephi 21:8).  Several years ago I was in a history class where my professor was disucssing our term papers. He related a story of a student who had done a beautiful job researching and synthesizing the information, then submitting a well-written paper. "But so what!," the professor yelled. None of it matters unless you can provide some insight about why it matters. In the very next verse of this passage, Isaiah provides the "so what" of why the gathering of Israel matters. "That thou mayest say to the prisoners: Go forth; to them that sit in darkenss: show youselved" (1 Nephi 21:9). What an incredible image. To me, sometimes the gathering of Israel and the Second coming seem so abstract. yet, when I read this verse today, it all seemed to make sense. As I read this my mind conjured up images of people in the forms of shadows dropping the chains which had left them unable to move for so long. Their backs were hunched over from the tight quarters in which they had lived for so long. But as they walked into the light, their faces began to be illuminated by Christ. They were no longer just unknown shadows, but people, living souls even....my friends, my neighbors, my family members and people that I don't even know yet. They began to stand a little taller and even smile with joy. The Restoration of the gospel is the most important event to occur in the last 1000 years. Because of it souls are able "to go forth [and] show themselves [from the darkness]." When we speak of the gospel we must remember this. It is not some abstract concept or indecipherable metaphor. Rather, it is the means by which people throughout the earth "might have joy" (2 Nephi 2:25).

SUMMIT EVERY DAY

I would like to thank Lennie for inviting me to be part of such a wonderful project. I am thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to log my experiences as I read the Book of Mormon. Several weeks ago I was searching for a way to increase the Spirit in my home, in my family, and for me personally. For me, in my quest to draw nearer to the Savior, to have his spirit with me always, stronger and more abundantly I have noticed something. The journey is full of ascents, and plateaus, and hopefully not to many descents. As we are inspired and prompted by the spirit, and that fire burns within us to drawer nearer, to increase our knowledge, to come to know him, we recognize that we have plateaued, that we can't drawer nearer to the Savior without an ascent. We can no longer continue to do what we are doing and expect to draw nearer to the Savior. We have to give more, search harder, ponder more often, and really pray if we are to Summit. It is my testimony that if one wants to come to know the Savior, there is no better way to summit, then by studying the scriptures. The Scriptures testify of Jesus Christ. I have felt the spirit confirm this to me over and over again as I have read and studied the writings of Profits. I have a fire within me that drives me to study everyday. I look forward to my lunch break when I can get away and dive into the Book of Mormon. Everyday is a new adventure, I cant wait to see what is unfolded next. I am doing something different, I am no longer just reading, I am studying, seeking answers and inspiration. I testify to you, in his name Jesus Christ, that if you will really study, not just read, but study, you will come to know him. You will have is spirit with you, and you will be on fire! The writings will be as new to you, and you will find the things you have always searched for, your knowledge will be increased, you will come to know him and .............EVERYDAY WILL BE A SUMMIT. Not an ascent, Not a Plateau, and never a descent. You will really come to know the scriptures, AND YOU WILL COME TO KNOW HIM.............

Recently I have been studying 2 Nephi. Jacob is teaching and reading from Isaiah. In chapter 6, Jacob speaks to the people of Nephi and tells them; "for I am desirous for the wellfare of your souls. Yea mine anxiety is great for you;" Jacob must have really loved the people of Nephi. He didnt just care about them. He had a great anxiety for them, he was concened about their wellfare. Do we agonize over the people we serve? Do we really love them, are we concerned about their wellfare. Do you have an intrest in their life. If we want to be an effective leader we have to love the people we serve more than anything.

2 Nephi chapter 9 verse 3 is a scripture that I pray I will always remember as I read the Scriptures. Again Jacob is teaching from Isaiah, and has spoken many hard and plain things to the people of Nephi. And then he so beautifully teaches us, how to look at the harsh and plain words that have been spoken. "Behold my beloved brethern, I speak unto you these things that ye may rejoice and lift up your heads forever". The question is asked; what is it that drives you, fear or faith? The point I am getting at (and maybe its a strech) is that sometimes we get answers we dont want to hear. Sometimes we are taught principles that are very hard to accept. The scriptures sometimes speak very plainly and are direct and to the point. We may be called to repentence or given a law that is very difficult to accept. What we are taught is that the purpose behind it is not to bring us down, not to make us feal guilty, or unworthy. It is the exact opposite. The purpose is to bring us joy, to lift us up, to testify of the goodness of the Savior and draw us nearer to him. It is not ment to be fear that drives us, but love, joy, and peace. It is faith that will help you get past the fear, and lift up your head..forever.
There are many wonderful things I have learned in 2 Nephi, I hope these will somehow be of meaning to you. My dear friends, I know that the scriptures speak to each one of us in our own way. May your life be touched as you read the scriptures. I pray they will come alive as you read them, and that you will summit every day. The Book of Mormon is the Word of God, I know its true, and it testifys of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Turning of Hearts Because of the Word of God

Sometimes I think that it is difficult to do what is right. It's not necessarily that we do not want to make the right decisions, but sometimes we simply get distracted or forget our priorities for a little bit. I for one often am frustrated with myself because I know that I can do better. Today I read a passage which I have read many times, but have always applied it in the context of *trying to serve and teach others. However, today I realized that it has a great application to promoting righteousness for ourselves. In the verses leading up to this passage, Mormon tells about how the Zoramites had fallen into an apostate state. This apostasy caused Alma "great sorrow" (Alma 31:2). So here is what Alma decided to do:

 "Now as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just --- yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them -- therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God" (Alma 31:5).

 

How fantastic would it be if we immersed ourselves in the scriptures on a daily basis! I believe that when this happens, the distractions and forgetfulness that often lead to us not having the constant companionship would disappear. If we immerse ourselves in the scriptures daily, then the power of the word has a "powerful effect upon [our] mind[s]." I would suggest that “effect upon our minds” can impact our lives as it did the people of King Benjamin. After he finished speaking, the Spirit came upon them and changed their hearts such that they had "no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually" (Mosiah 5:2).

 In the first post for this blog I wrote of a promise that President Dave Brown made at a stake conference several months ago (here's the link). In that talk, he promised that a daily study of the scriptures would bring great blessings into our lives. Since then as I have recommitted myself to studying (not just reading) the Book of Mormon, I have seen those blessings come into my life. As I have spent my lunch break at work studying I have felt a greater companionship of the Spirit. As I have made the commute home, I have had less of a desire to fill the drive with the daily news or sports talk. I am not saying that those things are sins and that we should not do them. The point I am trying to get across is that I have had a greater desire to spend that half hour listening to a conference talk, praying or just sitting in silence to ponder how I can be a better husband, father and priesthood holder. In other words, my heart has been turned towards God. Alma's observation that the word of God has a "great tendency to lead the people to do that which [is] just" is absolutely true. When we try to fill our lives with the word of God we are happier and more prone to do those things that God would have us do. 

 *This what I usually think about when I read these verses. When we teach the word of God to others, whether it be family members, quorum members, families we home teach, primary classes or to anyone else whom we love, it has a powerful effect on them. It can lead them to make righteous decisions and partake of the full blessings of the gospel. Thus we should make teaching the word (e.g. scriptures, counsel of living prophets, etc...) the primary focus of all of our church service. The most effective meetings that we can have in the church are those where Alma's example is followed. 

How Exquisite!

In explaining his conversion to his son Helaman, Alma says "the very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror" (Alma 36:14). Clearly Alma had committed some pretty grievous sins as he went about openly trying to destroy the church of God. But I would suggest that the same torment should rack each one of us for so-called "minor" sins. Alma's father once asked the question, "can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?" (Alma 5:19). Here Alma is speaking of the judgment day, but it is so important to remember "that day" is not after we die, it is TODAY! If we are not clean and pure today, then we are missing out on the blessings of the gospel. The Lord revealed to Joseph Smith, "every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am" (D&C 93:1). Why would any of us want to deny ourselves the blessing of being in the presence of the Lord. Again, this is not a blessing that will only come to us in the hereafter. If we are living pure and clean, then we can be given that privilege. In the Priesthood Session of the October 2008 General Conference, Elder Richard G. Scott said the following:

 "For a few minutes I ask you to consider that you and I are alone in a quiet place where the atmosphere permits direction by the Holy Spirit. Some of you receive periodic personal worthiness interviews, while others have callings where that seldom occurs. Will you consider that in the next few minutes you and I will have a private priesthood interview?

As we share these moments together, I ask you to ponder your personal worthiness to use the sacred authority you hold. I will also ask you to consider how consistently you use your priesthood to bless others. My intent is not to criticize but to help increase the benefits that flow from your use of the priesthood.

Are your private, personal thoughts conducive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, or would they benefit from a thorough housecleaning? Do you nourish your mind with elevating material, or have you succumbed to the enticement of pornographic literature or Web sites? Do you scrupulously avoid the use of stimulants and substances that conflict with the intent of the Word of Wisdom, or have you made some personally rationalized exceptions? Are you most careful to control what enters your mind through your eyes and ears to ensure that it is wholesome and elevating?

If you are divorced, do you provide for the real financial need of the children you have fathered, not just the minimum legal requirement?

If you are married, are you faithful to your wife mentally as well as physically? Are you loyal to your marriage covenants by never engaging in conversation with another woman that you wouldn’t want your wife to overhear? Are you kind and supportive of your own wife and children? Do you assist your wife by doing some of the household chores? Do you lead out in family activities such as scripture study, family prayer, and family home evening, or does your wife fill in the gap your lack of attention leaves in the home? Do you tell her you love her?

If any of you feel uncomfortable with any of the answers you have mentally given to the questions I have asked, take corrective action now."

 These are deep, penetrating questions which depending on the answers could lead us to feel as Alma, racked with torment. If the answers to those questions make us feel uncomfortable, then we probably should feel like Alma.

However, the pain and torment that he described is only part of the story. Although necessary for the repentance process, we do not have to go on living our lives with the heavy burdens. We can repent and go on with our lives, ready to receive the blessings that the Lord has prepared for us; to enjoy his presence.

In the words of Alma, "there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains...on the other hand there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy" (Alma 36:21). This joy came only after Alma turned his heart to the Savior. The pain is necessary to humble us and pay the price for the wrong that we do, but it is just as important to remember that the pain of sin can be taken away when we learn to truly repent though the Atonement of Jesus Christ. 

Oblivion to Sin

After Nephi and his brothers completed building the ship, they set out into the sea. The ship was guided without incident at the beginning of the journey. However, as Laman, Lemuel and the Ishmael's sons began to "make themselves merry....[and] forget by what power they had been brought thither" (1 Nephi 18:9), Nephi "began to speak to them with much soberness" lest the Lord should smite them and they be swallowed up in the sea (1 Nephi 18:10). To this, Nephi's brothers responded by tying him up. Upon doing this the Liahona stopped working and a great storm arose. For three days the storm drove them backwards. On the fourth day the storm became "exceedingly fierce" (1 Nephi 18:11-14). This whole time Lehi and tried to persuade them to free Nephi, but to no avail. In fact Laman, Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael "did breathe out much threatenings against anyone that should speak for [Nephi]" (1 Nephi 18:17). 

I found it interesting that even in the midst of this great storm, Laman and Lemuel failed to see the consequences of their actions. Even though others told them so, they failed to see that they were doing anything wrong because of a weakened conscience. Had they not began rebelling against God with their merrymaking, their consiences would not have ever allowed them to get to the point where they would assault their brother and place their entire family in harm's way. I believe that most people suffer from a similar problem although it may be on a much smaller scale. When we knowingly disobey God's will we are desensitized to the promptings of the Spirit and become apathetic to the needs of those around us. This is why it is so important to repent on a daily basis. We need the full companionship of the Spirit to be able to effectively teach and lead our families as well as fulfill any other callings that the Lord may have given us. When we do not repent, we begin walking down a path such that we get further and further from where we want to be without realizing it.

Week-long vs. Weekly Renewal

In 1 Nephi 17:40, Nephi says "[The Lord]" loveth those who will have him to be their God. Behold he loved our fathers and he conveanted with them, yeah even Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and he remembered the convenants which he had made." This verse reminded me that covnenants are a two-way promise. We promise to keep the commandments and as we do so the Lord blesses us abundantly. There are so many opportunities that we have to covenant with the Lord, the most frequent of which is the Sacrament. In a testimony meeting I once heard someone talk about how clean and pure they felt when they were baptized. They went on to talk about how they wish that they could feel like that again. I wanted to shout out from my seat, "but you can! The Sacrament allows us all to feel that." I continued to reflect on this and realized that I am greatly under-utilizing the power of that holy ordinance. The sacrament is more than an ordinance that lasts a few moments on Sunday morning. The sacrament should be a way of life. Everything that we do during the week should culminate to those few quiet moments as we partake of the bread and water. How pure would we be if we knelt in prayer each evening, keeping the Sacrament at the forefront of our minds! We could feel just as pure as the day we are baptized!