Joseph Smith and a Personal Relationship with Christ

Today the Relief Society lesson was Chapter 4 from The Teachings of George Albert Smith manual. The entire lesson was about Joseph Smith and the restoration, and it was a really good lesson for me. I have always believed that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and when I was a teenager I think I started understanding the significance of the First Vision a little more, but I never really had a “missionary” testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith. You know – when the missionaries teach about the First Vision and the spirit is so strong it almost knocks you off your feet. I’ve always been able to feel the testimony of others, but never been really able to feel that testimony coming from within. You know the difference.

A few weeks ago I was looking at the lessons in the manual and checking out which lessons I would be “teaching” in Relief Society (I feel it’s more like leading a group discussion than actually “teaching” – especially because I am one of the youngest members of our ward’s Relief Society). I noticed that last week was a lesson on the Savior and then my lesson was going to be on Joseph Smith, and to be honest, I was a little disappointed. I wanted to lead discussion about the Savior! I love the Savior! I feel like I know Him! What a great topic!

But I had to teach about Joseph Smith. This somewhat mysterious man to me (even though I have read biographies about him, and I even took a History of the Church religion class at BYU – and I still didn’t really feel like I knew him very well) I would have to teach about and talk about for about 45 minutes. I didn’t think I could do it.

Then I started reading the manual. Wow. Talk about good stuff. And did you know that the Spirit will guide you as you prepare lessons? Just sayin’.

My favorite part of the lesson (after the part where I read Joseph Smith History 1:10-19 and had to choke back tears because the Spirit was so strong) was the part where President George Albert Smith said,

It was a very natural thing that Joseph Smith should seek the Lord. He came of a … people who believed in our Heavenly Father, in the divine mission of the Savior, in the efficacy of prayer, and that God would hear and answer his people if they went before him with a proper spirit. It was easy for this young man to believe, because he had been born and reared in a believing household; and when he went out into the woods in response to the injunction of the scripture (James 1:5): “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him,” he believed that his prayer would be answered, and our Heavenly Father has promised his children from the beginning, that, “by faith ye may know all things.”

This brought back a flood of memories of things that I had learned about Joseph Smith’s family. He came from a very faithful family – on both sides. His ancestors and his parents were men and women who believed in God and had great faith.

And then I thought, “Would it be (is it?) natural for my children to seek the Lord when they have a question? Do they have faith that Heavenly Father loves them and will answer their prayers?”

I realized that I am not doing nearly a good enough job raising my children in a “ believing household.” Sure, we have family prayer and read the scriptures together, but do I tell my children every time the Lord answers my prayers? Do I lead by example by going to the Lord when I need help or answers?

From Rob Gardner’s “Joseph Smith the Prophet”

I have a testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that he is a prophet of God. I know that he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ in the sacred grove, just as he said he did.

On a different note, if you checked out the Sunday Study link-up yesterday, you’ll know that I was going to study this (somewhat ancient) talk by President James E. Faust. Well. I did. And wow. Now you need to go read it.

If you struggle with your personal relationship with Christ, go read that talk. President (well, then Elder) Faust has some great instruction to help you figure it all out. I want to have a more personal relationship with the Savior, and this talk has helped me clearly see the way I can do that.

Also, Chocotania’s post today about becoming something better than you are, three weeks at a time, was really well written and very motivating. I am going to follow her example and change one habit for three weeks, every three weeks (hopefully for the rest of my life). Can you imagine the impact that could have on your life? There is always something we can change, and as I mentioned in the comments on that post, I have been on a “personal improvement plateau” for the past year or so. I mentioned that my “status quo” has been pretty good. I read my scriptures daily, study the gospel mostly daily (in addition to the scripture study), I prayed daily, I basically did all the “basics”. But that’s not enough. I need to be moving forward. If you’re not moving toward the Savior, you’re moving away from Him, right?

So my plan is to change a habit or start a new habit for three weeks, every three weeks. I am going to spend this week praying about what to do first, because it has to be small and simple – line upon line. But I want to make sure that it is a really significant thing, and because my goal this year is to find out what Heavenly Father wants for me, I am going to make sure that I get His input on my first task.

How do you change habits or make new ones? How do you develop your personal relationship with the Savior? What is your testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith?

Sunday Study link-up

(Image credit: LDS Media Library)

Can you believe the weekend is here already? Time has been going so fast for me lately, and I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Here’s this weeks’ lineup!

Cyber-Minutes and Light-Years – at We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ: about serving our families and our children

The Mormon Moment – at Meridian Magazine: by Jocelyn, a great post. I really liked how she talked about the significance of the “individual” Mormon moment – the moments when we feel the Spirit.

A Personal Relationship with the Savior – from 1976 General Conference – President James E. Faust

Science and Religion – topic study after reading Fred’s comments the other day about science and religion

Now it’s your turn!

What have you read this week that you would like to share? What are you planning on studying on the Sabbath? Add your link below!

If you need ideas of what to link up, check out the first Sunday Study link up.

Forgetfulness and the Holy Ghost

I just can't get enough of the Book of Mormon. I get sucked in and can't stop reading. I can't stop asking questions while I read, either.


For example, I was reading 1 Nephi 7 and I came across Nephi's little lecture to Laman and Lemuel - "How is it that ye have forgotten that ye have seen and angel of the Lord?" "How is it that ye have forgotten what great things the Lord has done for us?" "How is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things?"

This is the first time I realized that no one ever really answers those questions in the Book of Mormon. Laman and Lemuel just end up angry with Nephi and they tie him up. (more about that later)

Well, as I was reading, I thought of the scripture John 14:26 which says the Holy Ghost will "bring all things to your remembrance". In context, the Savior was telling his disciples that the Holy Ghost would help them remember the things He had taught them, even after he was gone. In the same way, then, the Holy Ghost can help us remember our blessings. But we will not have that remembrance without the Holy Ghost, and we need to have faith and be living worthy of his companionship.

From observation, we can tell that Laman and Lemuel didn't always have the Holy Ghost with them. They lacked the faith necessary for that gift, and so it was easy for them to forget the blessings and promises of the Lord.

I know that the Spirit has helped me remember my blessings and remember ye promises the Lord has given me. I hope that I can always remember the role the Spirit plays in helping me remember.

Have you ever forgotten blessings and promises you have received from Heavenly Father? Has the Spirit helped you remember those things?


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The Fulness of his Intent

Post have been few and far between this week. I have been catching up in a lot of areas of my life and now I am getting back into posting. At least a little. I still need to do GCBC this week!

I have been reading the Book of Mormon every day, but not my one and a half pages, so I will probably spend some quality time in its pages this weekend.

Have I told you how much I absolutely love the Book of Mormon?

Here's part of why:


I have been learning that every page of this book has a purpose - and that purpose is to draw people to Christ and the Father and to salvation.

Faith in Christ. Repent. Be baptized. Receive the Holy Ghost. Endure to the end.

There is a reason we call them the "first principles and ordinances of the gospel". They are the ones that are plastered on every page of the Book of Mormon.

How are you doing with your Book of Mormon reading? Are you trying to finish by a certain time? What is your favorite message from the Book of Mormon?

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A Father's Testimony

We hear a lot about how the stripling warriors were taught by their mothers and that is why they had such great faith. This story is a favorite among Church members, especially mothers. In fact, when it comes to parents teaching their children the gospel, this is probably the most quoted scripture story.

But there is another, less well-known story I would like to share. This is the story of Helaman and his sons Nephi and Lehi.

Helaman was a great chief judge who was very righteous. The Nephites were mostly righteous and prosperous while he was the chief judge. After he died, his son Nephi became the chief judge.

While Nephi was the chief judge, the Nephites started getting more and more wicked (although Nephi was a very righteous judge - "he did keep the commandments of God, and did walk in the ways of his father.") After a while, Nephi got sick of all the wickedness, and he got out of government and went back to missionary work (probably with his wife at this point, I imagine this was like him serving a couples' mission after retiring from the senate in the United States). He and his brother Lehi "took it upon [themselves] to preach the word of God all the remainder of [their] days". They made this decision because they remembered the testimony of their father, Helaman. "For they remembered the words their Father Helaman spake unto them."

And it turns out that what Nephi and Lehi learned from their father Helaman is almost as famous as the story of the stripling warriors.

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

"And it came to pass that they did preach with great power," and they were able to teach the Nephites who had left the Church "insomuch that they came forth and did confess their sins and were baptized unto repentance."

I love this story as much as I love the stripling warrior story. It is interesting to me that in both cases, the young men were taught about faith and prayer and the Savior (basic principles of the gospel), but while the stripling warriors used their faith to fight valiantly in a war to defend their freedoms, Nephi and Lehi used their faith to powerfully preach the gospel.

How were you taught by your parents? Were both of your parents equally influential in your gospel learning? Were you more like the stripling warriors, who were taught by their mothers? Or did your father teach you the basic doctrines of the gospel? Or were you like Abraham, who didn't learn the gospel from his parents at all?

Families are Forever

 

We had a very merry Christmas for 2011, with the presence of every member of my parents’ family – even my oldest brother was there was there. Well, his picture was there, and we thought about him and talked about him a lot.

We took some family pictures (thanks, Victoria!) and when it was time for us to have the “mom and dad and offspring” picture, I kept looking around for my brother. There was someone missing. It was kind of hard. We really miss him.

 

As I was thinking about writing a post today, I remembered this oldy (but goody) from the LDS Church back in the 70s. The first time I heard it (when I was a kid) I cried my eyes out, and I still can’t get to the end without bawling.

It is a lot more poignant for me now. And I am so grateful for the testimony I have that families are forever.

“Dad, dad, it’s alright! Families are forever!”

“And he said, ‘Dad, dad, it’s alright! Families are forever!”

Do you have a testimony of eternal families? Have you lost a family member and been comforted by the knowledge we have that “families are forever”?

I Have not Required it, But the Lord

When Lehi told Nephi and his brothers to go and get the brass plates from Jerusalem, he said





(1 Nephi 3:5)

Lehi told Nephi that it wasn't a commandment from him (Lehi), but rather a commandment from God.

This prompted me to ask the question, "How can I make sure that my children understand that the commandments are from God rather from us as their parents?"

I imagine that principle can easily be missed by children and their parents when parents seek to limit their children's agency, rather than teaching them the gospel.

I am reminded of my favorite scripture to read to my kids - Mosiah 4:14-15

"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, or who is the evil spirit... He being an enemy to all righteousness.
But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another."



(my 4 year old almost has that scripture memorized... I really like reading it to them...)

Maybe this scripture holds some of the answer to that question.

How do you teach your children that the laws of God are truly God's laws, and not "mom and dad's" laws? How do you help them understand that what you are teaching them is not what you require of them, but rather, what God requires of them?

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Elder David A. Bednar’s Regional Conference Talk

I have noticed that a few people have been finding my blog looking for Elder Bednar’s Regional Conference talk for the South Salt Lake Valley regional conference. Not sure if he has given another talk at a different conference since then, but I figured I should post the notes from ours. Our conference was on Sunday, October 23, 2011.

I actually found a website with an audio file and transcript. However, I am hesitant to post a link to it here because of a Church policy that says “Church members should not record the talks or addresses that General Authorities… give at stake conferences, missionary meetings, or other meetings. However, members may record broadcasts of general conference on home equipment for personal, noncommercial use.” I am going to send an email and figure out if it’s okay to post that, and I will get back to you.

Now I wish I had taken more notes. I am sure I took notes during the conference, but I can’t find them, and I am sure that I was more occupied with trying to make sure my children didn’t smash cheerios in the carpet of the Conference Center (our stake was invited – and encouraged – to attend at the Conference Center), or throw fits disrupting the people behind us. So I probably didn’t take very many notes anyway. However, apparently I either remembered a lot, or by some stroke of inspiration by the Holy Ghost I wrote here on the blog a lot of the things Elder Bednar said – most of the things I just mentioned in passing in another post, but I’ve collected them all here for you.

Sacrifices and Things That Matter

I made it home and we went to our Regional Stake Conference on Sunday where we listened to Elder Bednar. The first thing out of his mouth was a story about how his son chose not to play in a football tournament that was going to be on Sunday. And then how his sons gave up attending a college basketball game they wanted to attend – because it was going to be on a Sunday. Can I tell you how relieved I felt that I wasn’t driving up from Las Vegas during his talk? I don’t even know what those stories had to do with the rest of his talk (wrestling a four year old and two year old during conference might have had something to do with that) so I almost felt like his words were so that I would feel as if the Lord noticed my decision and approved of it.

Being With God

We had the privilege of listening to Elder David A. Bednar at our Regional Conference on Sunday at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. He spoke about a lot of things, but one of the things that stuck with me the most was his admonition to study the life and character of the Savior, because we need to receive His image in our countenance – and in order to become like the Savior, we need to know the Savior.

I thought it was interesting that Elder Bednar specifically mentioned studying the gospels and 3 Nephi, because during the Relief Society Broadcast I felt a distinct prompting to study those exact scriptures – to really study the life of the Savior so that I could become more like Him.

…

Elder Bednar pointed out the translation of verse 11: “Then the devil leaveth him, and now Jesus knew that John was cast into prison, and he sent angels, and behold they came and ministered unto him (John).” This translation is significantly different than the Savior having angels minister to Him. The Lord knew that John was in prison, and he had just been fasting for forty days and forty nights and had been dealing with the father of lies, and instead of worrying about himself, the Savior sent angels to minister to John.

The Time Shall Come

At our Regional Stake Conference yesterday, Elder David A. Bednar talked about this principle. We cannot be converted to programs, people, or policies. We are converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ – which is that He lives and that He atoned for our sins. Sometimes I think that we lose sight of the “most important message” of the Church. We need to remember that our message is of the Savior – and that is the message that we need to take to the world.

…

Yesterday Elder Bednar testified that He alone does not have any of the capacity or ability to be an apostle – but that through the atonement of the Savior and through the power of the Holy Ghost, he is made to be more than he is. I loved Elder Bednar’s thoughts about that and I think they fit in with Elder Clayton’s testimony that this work is God’s work. We participate in God’s work as we allow the Savior to make us more than we are – and God does his work through us, but it is still God’s work. And we would do well to remember that.

In case my notes aren’t enough, I found a few other people who wrote about Elder Bednar’s talk:

Mormon Wookiee: Regional Conference with Elder David A. Bednar
Mormon Angst: A Testimony is Not Enough
LDS Freedom Forum: Notes from Jason

Here are some links to a few similar talks from Elder Bednar:

In the Strength of the Lord” (BYU speech, 2001)
“The Character of Christ” (BYU-I Symposium , 2003)

Is this what you were looking for? If you attended, did you have any other notes from Elder Bednar’s address? Please share them here if you did!

That He May Prove Us

Book of  Mormon Papers - a series of posts
containing papers I wrote for a
BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: This paper reminds me of a midterm that I wrote for this class about the Church of the Lamb of God. I can’t wait to post that paper – it was really long, so I might have to post it in parts. While reading the part where I say Heavenly Father “will give His children many opportunities to accept [the gospel]” I was reminded of something a friend of mine said during a Relief Society lesson. She said that before the judgment day “Each person will be taught the gospel in a way that they perfectly understand what they are accepting or rejecting.” I think that is pretty true, and kind of what I was saying in this paper.)

Nephi received a vision of many prophesies of the latter days. In these prophesies Nephi was shown the loss of many plain and precious parts of the gospel through the formation of a great an abominable church. Nephi was also shown the restoration of the gospel to the earth and the work that would spread the gospel to the world. The Lord also taught Nephi that some of the children of men would not accept the gospel. If the Lord knew who would accept the gospel and who would not, why did He not judge those He knew would not accept the gospel? Not only is the Lord merciful in that He will give His children many opportunities to accept and come unto Him, it is expedient that He should provide a way to test and try the children of men so that He may prove us – whether as followers of Him or followers of the “great and abominable church.”

The Lord told Nephi that “because of these things [the plain and precious parts of the gospel] which are taken away out of the gospel of the Lamb, and exceedingly many do stumble…insomuch that Satan hath great power over them.” (1 Nephi 13:29) This may seem like a hopeless situation for those who never receive the plain and precious parts of the gospel. However, the Lord also states that He will be merciful unto the Gentiles and “bring forth unto them, in mine own power, much of my gospel.” (1 Nephi 13:34) The Lord goes on to describe to Nephi the restoration of the gospel. The Lord wants His children to know of His gospel and would not let them perish in ignorance.

However, as more knowledge is revealed to the children of men, they have a much more crucial responsibility. The Lord said to Nephi that He would “work a marvelous work among the children of men.” (1 Nephi 14:7) This work is to be “everlasting” – or to be an eternal judgment. The Lord’s purpose in bringing forth the gospel in the latter days is to prove the children of men, either to convince them “unto peace and life eternal” or “unto their bringing brought down into captivity.” (1 Nephi 14:7). “Who’s on the Lord’s side, who? Now is the time to show!” (Hymn No. 260) The Lord has revealed His gospel in the latter days to prove the children of men and to separate them into those on His side and those against. The Lord has said that “whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations.” (1 Nephi 14:10).

Although the Lord is merciful and wishes all of His children to return to live with Him again, there stands the eternal truth that “the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God.” (1 Nephi 15:34) Therefore, the Lord has prepared a way to prove the children of men and judge them according to their hearts by bringing forth the gospel in the latter day, requiring man to choose between “liberty and eternal life…or captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil.” (2 Nephi 2:27)

What things do you learn about from the revelations that were given to Nephi? Do you think each child of God will have every opportunity to accept the gospel? What is the great and abominable church? What is the Church of the Lamb of God?

Stand in Holy Places

(find the talk here)

I didn’t get a chance to read this talk this morning, but I was super tired (my wonderful husband surprised me on Saturday with a brand new computer(!) and I spent most of Saturday and Sunday evening trying to get all my photo albums switched over to the new computer) – so I am trying to make up for it now.

I really enjoyed this talk. I am pretty sure that it was one of the first talks our ward Relief Society studied for our Teachings for Our Times lesson.

It’s not hard to see that what President Thomas S. Monson said about the “moral compass of society” is absolutely true.

“Also evolving at a rapid rate has been the moral compass of society. Behaviors which once were considered inappropriate and immoral are now not only tolerated but also viewed by ever so many as acceptable.”

It’s interesting that there are a lot of things that made people uncomfortable decades ago and now are mostly the “norm” – and some of those things are good (interracial marriage, women’s suffrage, etc) and some of those things are bad (views on homosexuality, skewed priorities of mothers, financial miseducation, etc).

“Although the world has changed, the laws of God remain constant.” The bishop of one of my student wards in college drew the two lines as pictured above on a chalkboard during a combined Relief Society and Priesthood meeting. Actually, the first time he drew the lines, the top line ran parallel to the bottom line. He discussed with us how the world’s morality has always been slightly lower than the morality of members of the Church, but how members today are letting their standards fall along with the world – even though our standards are still higher than those of the world. Then he erased the top line and drew a straight line across like the one I have pictured. He then taught us about the constancy of God and how His laws never change, and so our standards should never be lowered. The gap between the standards of the Church and the standards of the world should be growing if the standards of the world are declining.

Most of us probably experience feelings of uncertainty when we think about raising children in today’s society, which is only getting worse and worse. President Monson asks the questions: “Do we wring our hands in despair and wonder how we’ll ever survive in such a world?” His answer is an emphatic “No.” And I echo that sentiment. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives, and we know how to keep our families safe from the storms of the world. President Monson’s message is that the way to keep our families safe is by maintaining a close relationship with our Father in Heaven.

This is something that I frequently “wring my hands” about teaching my children:

“It may appear to you at times that those out in the world are having much more fun than you are. Some of you may feel restricted by the code of conduct to which we in the Church adhere. My brothers and sisters, I declare to you, however, that there is nothing which can bring more joy into our lives or more peace to our souls than the Spirit which can come to us as we follow the Savior and keep the commandments. That Spirit cannot be present at the kinds of activities in which so much of the world participates.”

I am always concerned that my children will feel this way – that the laws of God are restrictive. I want to teach them that obedience to God’s laws brings “more joy into our lives [and] more peace to our souls”.

Just tonight I had a conversation with my four year old, who is having a really hard time learning how to obey rules. He tells me all the time that he wishes there were “no rules” and that he could just do “whatever [he] want[s]” to do. We talked about how kites fly by being held by a string, and that if we let go of the string, the kite will fall down to the ground. Then we talked about how following God’s rules helps us feel the Spirit and how obeying our parents keeps us safe, and how obeying the rules to a game helps us have more fun.

I hope that bedtime conversation will have an impact on him. I know that just one conversation will not be enough – I will have to show him by my obedience to God’s laws, and other important “rules” and we will talk about this concept frequently. I still can’t help but worry about him.

On a concluding note, I have to say that I wish I could say that “not a day has gone by that I have not communicated with my Father in Heaven through prayer.” I want to make a goal to communicate with my Father in Heaven every day.

How do you keep your family safe in this morally declining world? How often do you communicate with your Heavenly Father?

Sunday Study Link-up

Welcome to the first edition of my Sunday Reads Link-up! I am very excited about this (mostly because it will give me a place to stick talks that I want to remember to study on Sunday but also because you get to participate!).

Here’s how this is going to work. Each Saturday, I am going to post a few links to some of the talks/articles/blog posts/scriptures that I read/found that week that I either read and want to share, or were shared with me and I want to read. Does that even make sense? I think you’ll get the hang of it.

And I want you to share, too. I want you to link up talks/articles/posts/scriptures that you think would be appropriate Sunday reading material. Since I kind of have a thing with keeping the Sabbath day holy, I like to be armed with lots of good study material, so I don’t waste precious Sabbath study time (i.e., the kids’ nap time).

I haven’t really come up with a theme for this week, but some weeks I might have a theme. On “themed” weeks you don’t have to link to a talk/article/post/scripture that goes along with the theme. Anything will do.

I have a folder on my Bookmarks bar that says “Good Reads” and I bookmark things that I want to go back later and read, but I usually forget to do that. So this link-up party is more for me, I guess.

Without further ado, here are my Sunday Reads:

Teaching the Doctrine of the Family – Sister Julie B. Beck, Relief Society General President

Baptismal Talk on the Holy Ghost – Scriptorium Blogorium

The Remnant in the Book of Mormon – Feast upon the Word Blog

3 Nephi 20-21

What are you going to be studying this Sunday? Link up here!

What should you link up?
1.) scriptures – link to the specific scripture at scriptures.lds.org
2.) talks/articles from Church magazines
3.) anything you can find searching on lds.org
4.) gospel related blog posts (try stuff from Women in the Scriptures, Diapers and Divinity, Scriptorium Blogorium, We Talk of Christ We Rejoice in Christ – there are lots of great blogs out there, just make sure the posts are gospel related)
5.) BYU/BYU-I/BYU-H devotional addresses, or Women’s Conference talks, or notes about talks from General Authorities
6.) anything else gospel related/Sunday appropriate reading material

I look forward to reading things you share!

Friday Fragments

I’m going to do a little break from the ordinary here, mostly because I need it, and list 5 things I am grateful for (not necessarily in order of importance).

-1-

My Family.

Not just my family – everything about them. My heritage. The values my parents and my grandparents have instilled in their children and grandchildren. I am a member of a very giving, open, loving, caring, generous family. I could go on and on with examples of ways the Joseph Theron Smith family is amazing, but I’ll just say they are wonderful. Amazing and wonderful.

-2-

My husband.

Although he isn’t always very patient with me, he does help me see my weaknesses, and I can’t change what I don’t know is wrong. Marriage has been a great tool to help me grow and develop my personal characteristics. I just hope my husband can stand me long enough to let me grow.

-3-

The gospel.

Just read my blog. You’ll know why. I’m particularly fond of the Book of Mormon lately.

-4-

Search Engines.

Particularly the one on LDS.org, but any one that assists me in a search for knowledge and information.

-5-

My body.

I am always amazed at the ingenuity of our physical bodies. Their ability to heal themselves is miraculous to me. I wish I could say I take excellent care of my physical body, but sometimes I let it slide… and there really isn’t a good excuse. I need to take better care of it. Speaking of which… I better go get some breakfast so we can go the the gym! We’re going as a family today, with my sister and her husband, too! It’s going to be great (I hope – I’m still pretty sore from pump class on Tuesday…)

What are you grateful for?

Find more random bits of Friday
over at Women in the Scriptures

And don’t forget to come back tomorrow morning and link up your Sunday Reads!

Reading Again and Again

If you missed my post yesterday – I finished the Book of Mormon on January 31st at 11:30pm! I made my goal of finishing by the end of January (although my goal changed a few times along the way).

As I was reading about the destruction in Ether and Moroni, I started getting really excited to start at the beginning again. I already had a brand new economy copy of the Book of Mormon ready for service! Doesn’t it just look like it is ready to be devoured?

I did the calculations, and including the title page, witness pages, and Joseph Smith history pages, I need to read approximately 1.6 pages of the Book of Mormon every day in order to finish by the end of the year. I decided that I am going to round up to two pages, that way if I miss a few days, or if I can only read one page, or half a page, some days, I’ll be fine.

My desire to read the Book of Mormon each year stems from a desire to be like Elder Richard G. Scott’s wife. In October General Conference, Elder Scott said this about his wife:

“For I don’t know how many years, as the end of the year approached, I would see [my wife] sitting quietly, carefully finishing the entire Book of Mormon yet another time before year’s end.”

I want to read the Book of Mormon cover to cover every year. I can’t remember where I read it (probably on the Book of Mormon Forum blog hop last year) (edit 2-3-12: turns out that was Cocoa from Chocolate on My Cranium! Thanks, Cocoa!), that someone mentioned keeping a scripture journal each time she read the Book of Mormon, and that she wanted to give one of the journals to each of her kids. Instead of keeping a separate journal, I use an economy copy of the Book of Mormon each time I read it, and I just use a regular old ball-point pen and underline, box, and circle words, draw, and write notes in the margins of the pages. By the time I am finished with the economy copy of the Book of Mormon, it is my scripture journal. But I loved this sister’s idea to give a copy to each of her kids. I think I will do this with my economy copies of the Book of Mormon. Since I will have a copy of the Book of Mormon for each year, I think I’ll have plenty of copies to share with my children.

As I write my thoughts and insights and questions in the margins of the pages, I think about this scripture:

“And upon these I write the things of my soul… for my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and profit of my children. Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.”  (2 Nephi 4:14-16)

As I write my thoughts and feelings and questions in the Book of Mormon margins, I feel like I am writing my own scriptures for my children. And I hope that I can teach them to love the Book of Mormon as much as I do.

How do you study the Book of Mormon? How do you motivate yourself to read it over and over again? Do you read the Book of Mormon every year? How many times have you read the Book of Mormon cover to cover?

I Finished!!

I finished the Book of Mormon!


I did it! I finished the Book of Mormon! I wish that I could say I have read it cover to cover countless times, but this is only the third time I have. However, I made a goal at last General Conference to read the Book of Mormon cover to cover every year.

I want to be like Elder Scott's wife.

After October General Conference, I was determined to finish the Book of Mormon by the end of 2011 so that I could start again in January. The holidays were crazy at our house, and so that didn't quite happen. Then I was determined to finish by last weekend, and I got so close, but it still didn't happen. Finally, I knew that I could finish by the end of January, and last night around 11:30pm I finished reading the Book of Mormon cover to cover.



It was a really interesting experience for me to read the Book of Mormon cover to cover in such a short amount of time (at the beginning of last year I was only in 2 Nephi).


I shouldn't have been surprised to find that every page of the Book of Mormon is a call to come unto Christ. There is a distinct theme to the Book of Mormon - it is: believe in Christ, have faith in Him, come unto Him, repent, be baptized, and endure faithfully to the end.

I know that the Book of Mormon is of God. I know it with a perfect knowledge. How? Why? This is what I wrote in my journal last night:

"for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the powe and gift of Christ; wherefore ye maknow with a perfect knowledge it is of God."

Moroni 7:16

I believe that no one can read the Book of Mormon and not come to that knowledge that it is of God. You cannot do it. You can deny your feelings all you want - but you will "know with a perfect knowledge" that it is true. Don't believe me? Go ahead - prove me wrong. I dare you.

Want a copy of the Book of Mormon? Just email me your mailing address and I will put one in the mail for you - with a personal message to you from me.

You can also request a copy from the Church by using the Book of Mormon link on the side bar -->

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Filled by the Sacrament

I don't know about you, but one little piece of bread and one sip of water has never really filled me up. (not that it should).

But in 3 Nephi 18, when Christ administers the sacrament to He disciples and to the multitude, the scriptures say the disciples and the multitude "had eaten and were filled" and then later "they did drink, and they were filled."

Apparently taking the sacrament "filled" the Nephites. Filled their bellies? Probably not. I imagine that what the scriptures mean here is that the were "filled" with the Spirit of Christ and with the covenant they were making with the Father to "always remember" Christ.

Do you ever feel "filled" when you take the sacrament? Do you take the sacrament while thinking about the promise that you are making to "always remember Him"?


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He That Receiveth Light

Book of  Mormon Papers - a series of posts
containing papers I wrote for a
BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: Re-reading this paper, I can tell this is right after my high school AP English course… on another note, wow! I had forgotten(?) that I knew so much about Nephi’s vision of the interpretation of Lehi’s dream. Also my awareness of Nephi’s humility is good stuff. I think I am a lot more arrogant and prideful than I was when I wrote this paper. Some change is not as good as others… Either way, this is some good stuff! I hope you enjoy it!)

After Lehi recounted his vision, Nephi desired to know for himself of the revelation given to his father. Nephi’s desire led to a vision of interpretation of his father’s dream. What other knowledge did Nephi receive to interpret his father’s vision, and how did the Lord know that Nephi was ready to receive that knowledge? In addition to an interpretation of Lehi’s vision, Nephi received visions of the “condescension of God.” The life, death, and resurrection of Christ, along with the visitation of Christ to the Americas, were shown to Nephi as part of the interpretation because he followed the instructions of the Spirit and of the angel and acknowledged his lack of the wisdom which he desired.

The Spirit of the Lord caused that Nephi should be “caught away” into a mountain, which is symbolic of a temple. There the Spirit asked Nephi, “What desirest thou?” When Nephi professed his belief in the words of his father and his desire to know the interpretation thereof, the Spirit rejoiced, and then commanded Nephi to “Look!” This is the beginning of a pattern that continues throughout Nephi’s vision. Nephi responded faithfully to the request of the Spirit of the Lord saying “I looked and beheld…” What Nephi beheld is important, however it is very interesting that each time the Spirit or the angel bid Nephi “Look!” he looked without hesitation, opening the opportunities for more revelation.

At first, Nephi only received the vision of the tree, yet to more fully explain the interpretation of the tree of life and the love of God, an angel showed to Nephi the birth of Christ. When asked “Knoweth thou the condescension of God?” (1 Nephi 11:16) Nephi answered truthfully responding that he did not know the meaning of all things. He was humble and teachable and willing to receive the knowledge that the Lord was ready to reveal to him. To reveal the interpretation of the iron rod, the Lord showed Nephi his ministry among men during which Christ gave his word to the world, for Christ is the Word. The large and spacious building which represented the pride of the world was shown to Nephi by revealing the crucifixion of Christ, for Christ was “judged of the world…and slain for the sins of the world.” (1 Nephi 11:32-33)

Further interpretation was given when the Lord revealed the righteousness of the Nephites for the four generations following Christ’s visit to the Americas and the subsequent fall into iniquity to illustrate the mists of darkness as the temptations of the devil. (1 Nephi 12:17) Also revealed was the interpretation of the “great and terrible gulf” which was the “word of justice of the Eternal God.”

The vision given to Nephi revealed to him the life and purpose of Jesus Christ. The plan of salvation, as illustrated by the vision of the tree of life, is centered around Christ. He is the reason there is a plan and He is the plan. Therefore, that each part of the tree of life was explained by a revelation of part of Christ’s life and ministry confirms that the vision of the tree of life is symbolic of the plan of salvation. Nephi demonstrated his readiness to the Lord to learn these sacred things by being eager to learn, by looking when bid to look. Man is taught in this day through similar ways. The Lord bids one to “Look!” and the more one obeys that command, the more revelation that will be added to him.

What insights do you have about Lehi’s dream? Have you had times in your life when the Spirit has told you to “look” and when you obeyed you were blessed with personal inspiration and revelation?

Good Cometh of None Save of Me

Plugging along today in the Book of Mormon. I am really enjoying reading in Ether. I have been realizing through this experience of reading the Book of Mormon that I am pretty familiar with the stories of the Book of Mormon, but often less familiar with the words of the Book of Mormon.

For example, I knew all about the scripture in Moroni 7 about anything persuading a man to believe in Christ is from God. But I didn't know about this corollary:




I have said before that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not hold a monopoly on truth. Nor do we, as Mormons, or even as Christians, have a monopoly on following Christ. Every person who does good is following Christ in some way (yes, even Muslims and Jews who do not profess to believe in Christ).




"whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me." Ether 4:12

Have you been able to find Christ in unexpected places, by finding things that persuade men to do good?

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The Importance of a Name

(find the talk here)

This talk inspired me to make this with Photoshop. I’m not great with Photoshop, but I think it turned out okay. I loved how Elder M. Russell Ballard dissected the name of the Church and talked about the significance of every part – even the seemingly insignificant article “The” at the beginning of the name.

 (please feel free to share this image, pin it, whatever – just make sure to give credit)

I was also somewhat pleased that Elder Ballard’s talk was kind of a follow-up and clarification of President Boyd K. Packer’s talk in April 2011 General Conference when he talked about how important it was to use the full and proper name of the Church and to refer to ourselves as “members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” or simple “Latter-day Saints.” I know many people wondered what was going to happen to the Church’s “I’m a Mormon” campaign, so I am glad that Elder Ballard clarified that for now, it wasn’t going anywhere, but it’s purpose was to teach people who “Mormons” really are (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).

Elder Ballard said, “I have thought a lot about why the Savior gave the nine-word name to His restored Church. It may seem long, but if we think of it as a descriptive overview of what the Church is, it suddenly becomes wonderfully brief,candid, and straightforward.” I am sure many people wonder why the Lord decided to give His Church such a mouthful of a name, but, like Elder Ballard pointed out, it is wonderfully descriptive, and rather brief, when you look at all it really says (see image above).

“I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ. Because we believe in the Book of Mormon, which is named after an ancient American prophet-leader and is another testament of Jesus Christ, we are sometimes called Mormons.” I hope that I get the opportunity to use this response to the question “Do you belong to the Mormon Church?” I believe this response can also be appropriate when asked the question “Are you Mormon?” It’s wonderfully succinct and hits all the important points, while validating the person’s question.

Elder Ballard said, “Surely it would be easier for [people] to understand that we believe in and follow the Savior if we referred to ourselves as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” Just think of how the media coverage might be different today if we had spent the last 100+ years referring to ourselves as “members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”? I do understand that when the Church was first organized it was important to distinguish us from other Christians – and that is still important. We don’t mind being “different” Christians – in fact, it’s the best part of our Church – we are not just another protestant religion. We belong to the restored Church of Jesus Christ.

“The Savior’s name is the only name under heaven by which man can be saved.”

“Do we realize how blessed we are to take upon us the name of God’s Beloved and Only Begotten Son? Do we understand how significant that is?” Do you refer to yourself as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? How do you tell people about the full name of the Church?

What will ye...?

I just finished Ether chapter 2! I am getting so close! Only 39 pages left! I figure if I can finish Ether tomorrow and Moroni on Tuesday I will have made my goal of finishing the Book of Mormon by the end of January. I think that is totally doable!

I love this part of the story of the Brother of Jared -


When the Brother of Jared asked the Lord how they would have light in their barges, the Lord responded with His own question, "What will ye that I should do?"

The Lord went on to describe the manner in which the Jareditws would be transported across the water, and He went ahead and listed a few things that would not work. Then he asked again, "Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?"


This scripture always reminds me of the revelation given to Oliver Cowdery in the Doctrine & Covenants after he tries (and fails) to translate the plates. The Lord tells Oliver, "You took no thought save it was to ask me."

The Lord expects us to study out the answers to our own problems, and then go to Him for confirmation or a stupor of thought, or a new thought.

Have you ever had to study the answer to a question in your mind before going to the Lord in prayer? Do you find that you are more able to receive revelation and inspiration when you try to work your problems out on your own first?

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Friday Fragments – One

*1*

I tried to have a post scheduled for yesterday, but I totally forgot. Lame. I was going to have one of my Book of Mormon papers post, but I forgot to edit it, and so it will be up on Tuesday. I was going to post two each week (Tues and Thurs – mornings that are rushed around here, rushed = no time for blogging), but I think I may just post one each week.

*2*

I am going to start a Saturday linkup called Sunday Reads. It will be a place for people to link to Sunday-appropriate reading material. I will be posting some of my favorites from the week (mostly from LDS.org, but some from really good blogs). I will be posting it on Saturday so that if you’re looking for some good gospel study topics while the kids are napping after Church, you can come over here and get some inspiration. I’m excited, and I hope you’ll share some good stuff with me, so we can all get inspired.

*3*

I tutor online for a company that I love. If you are looking for some part time work from home, head over there and apply to be a tutor. Put down Rebecca R as your referral and I get a bonus if you get hired! But really, it’s a great job – super flexible, but helps me keep up my math skills (speaking of which… those are sooo rusty. I feel like my brain hasn’t worked in ages…) I usually tutor at night after the kids go to bed, but sometimes I tutor during naptime as well.

*4*

I have been doing loads of laundry today. (ha ha, loads – that’s a pun. Get it?) We have had too much bedwetting lately, and Papai (Portuguese for “daddy”) put the kiddos to bed last night without making sure they went potty before bed. Dad’s seem to be clueless sometimes about that kind of stuff. As a mother, I rarely forget to have the kids go potty before bed. But that’s probably because I’m usually the one changing the wet sheets in the morning and washing peed on clothes and bedding. I could draw a lot of life metaphors from that, but my head hurts right now.

*5*

We stayed up waaay too late on Sunday night talking with our good friends. It was an excellent conversation, and I think my mind was opened to a lot of things. It was interesting to hear all the different points of view and the ways people see things. I’ll have to write about it here some day. My goodness, it was a great conversation! Even though we all hardly agreed (the topic was marriage and physical appearances) I feel like I really came away with some new perspective on the whole matter. And it’s always fun to chat with these friends (most people would call it a debate – but it’s a good healthy one, and we’re always still friends afterwards… I hope!)

However, I am still recovering from the lack of sleep the great conversation caused. Seriously, I think we were up until 3 in the morning!

I’ll leave you with this one thought from the conversation – my husband told me at some point (either while we were engaged or shortly after we were married) that before he proposed he asked himself, “Could I still love Becca if she got really fat?” His answer was “Yes” and so he married me. That may sound really strange, but I think it was a really profound and important thing for a man to ask himself before he gets married. And he’s been true to it. I got really plump with my first pregnancy (especially compared to my marriage weight of about 110 lbs) but my husband thought I was beautiful – even after I wasn’t “pregnant” beautiful, but just “postpartum fat”. And I know that he will love me no matter what I look like, ever.

 

Meet more folks over at Heather’s Five for Friday linkup!

475

I am on page 475 of the Book of Mormon. There are 531 pages in the Book of Mormon. I have 56 pages to go. I didn't finish over the weekend (wow it was a crazy - but fun - weekend), so my new goal will be the end of January.


This is kind of the most depressing part of the Book of Mormon. The Nephites are completely wicked and Mormon just stopped leading them - he was finally fed up with their wickedness. I can't imagine living in a society where I was the only righteous person (sometimes I feel like the only wicked person living in a righteous society).


I do really love the fervor of Mormon's testimony at this point. All he wants is for people to repent and come to God.

"And I would that I could persuade all ye ends of the earth to repent and prepare to stand before the judgement-seat of Christ."

Sometimes I feel that way - if only I could persuade everyone to believe in Christ and repent.

Have you ever felt alone like Mormon? What parts of his story stand out to you? What part of his testimony is most meaningful to you?

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A Personal Witness

Book of  Mormon Papers - a series of posts
containing papers I wrote for a
BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: this paper reminds me of the admonition to never take anything the Prophets say at face value – we should always approach Heavenly Father with what we have heard, and ask “diligently” to know “by the power of the Holy Ghost” if the things we have heard are true.  A personal testimony is always better than just hearing it from someone else. It reminds me of the Reading Rainbow series where LeVar says, “But you don’t have to take my word for it.”)

After hearing of Lehi’s visions and prophecies, Nephi discussed his desire to know for himself of the things that to Lehi were revealed. Lehi told of his vision of the tree of life and later went on to prophesy of the coming of Christ. Why was it so important for Nephi to gain such a personal testimony of the words of his father, and why is there no record of his brothers showing similar faith? Instruction has been given that “by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.” (Moroni 10:5) However, it is given on one condition – “if ye shall ask with real intent, having faith in Christ.” (Moroni 10:4) This is real intent and faith that Laman and Lemuel lacked.

Lehi’s prophecies contained many things that may have seemed foolish to some of his less faithful family members. The prophesy that a Messiah or Savior would come to save the world from sin was difficult to understand. Oftentimes, the words of prophesy are not easy to understand and must be accompanied by a mind that “diligently seeketh” (1 Nephi 10:19).

In asking the Lord for a personal testimony of Lehi’s visions and prophecies, Nephi also developed greater faith in the power of the Holy Ghost and in the sameness of God. Nephi states that when he asked he knew that God would answer him because God had answered those “in times of old” (1 Nephi 10:17) and Nephi knew that God would answer all those after him.

In addition to gaining his own testimony, Nephi’s testimony was part of a “special purpose” (1 Nephi 9:3) that the Book of Mormon became in containing “more than one witness” (Alma 10:12) which has more power than the testimony of one. Nephi would add his personal testimony and revelation to the witnesses of several other prophets who had also testified of the coming of Christ – “how great a number had testified of these things, concerning this Messiah.” (1 Nephi 11:5)

Laman and Lemuel, as proven in previous experiences, lacked the faith – or even the desire – to gain a personal testimony of any of their father’s or brother’s teachings. They would not manifest even a desire to understand the prophecies of their father until shortly thereafter, after which Nephi chastises them for failing to “look unto the Lord as they ought.” (1 Nephi 14:3).

Nephi’s inquiry of the Lord not only blessed him in his own spirituality, but also blessed all future generations who would read the multiple witnesses of Christ given in the Book of Mormon. Moreover, Nephi’s testimony of the power of the Holy Ghost is assuring. Nephi testifies that all who are desirous to know can receive that knowledge through the awesome power of the Holy Ghost which is “the gift of God.”

Why do you think it was so important for Nephi to gain his own witness of the visions his father, the prophet, had seen and heard? Is it just as important for us to receive a personal witness of the words of the prophets? How do you gain that witness? Do you seek diligently, and look unto the Lord for that witness?

Love Her Mother

(find the talk here)

I have no idea why I felt inspired to write about this now,  but I think it has something to do with my husband learning how to love me, and our relationship growing and becoming stronger in the past few months.

Early last year, my husband and I got to a place in our marriage that could have been a breaking point. Thankfully, my husband picked up all the broken pieces and really did his best to fix everything. My husband is not your average guy. He is really amazing. Wonderful, really. He has a really hard past. He suffered things as a child that no child should ever have to experience. And the lack of help he received as a child to heal from those experiences has left severe spiritual and emotional scars (scars I didn’t see when we first got married, and scars that he didn’t even know were there). He is starting to heal, and it is a beautiful, but very hard, thing.

We have been married for six years, and those six years have been so hard. Of course marriage is a growing experience, and it isn’t always easy, but I never expected to have to deal with all of this hurt and pain. The thing is, I had a great, “normal”, very safe childhood. My father was a counselor and my mother was an elementary school teacher. Sure they had their faults and weaknesses – but they were, for the most part, normal faults and weaknesses, things that most parents struggle with. In general, my parents were kind, supportive, gentle, wise, and really taught us “the way [we] should go.” I have never really known many people with the kind of hurt and pain my husband has been holding inside for over 20 years. Those were the people who went to see my dad for counseling – people who had suffered hard things and needed help healing. Not me.

And yet, here I am. My husband and I see a marriage counselor just about every week. We have been seeing him since around September of last year, and I really think that he has been able to help my husband heal. There is still a lot of healing ahead (I hope). We’re nowhere near the end, but we are going to get there.

I am learning a lot about how to help my husband, and how to be strong when he is hurting.

And, thanks to the atonement of the Savior, the amazing man in my husband is able to come out from behind the scars and pain. I am learning to have more faith in the Lord’s ability to heal us. My husband has always been a righteous man, and always a very spiritual man. But the hurt from his past had caused such bitter feelings that they were eating away at our marriage. At first, I thought there was something wrong with me. It was really easy to feel that way. I felt like maybe he didn’t really love me.

How foolish! My husband loves me with all of his heart, and always has.

And I guess that is why I am writing about this after studying Sister Elaine S. Dalton’s talk. Because last October when she gave this talk, I didn’t think that my husband loved me, and so I worried about how I was going to raise a righteous daughter in a home where her father didn’t love her mother.

I look back now and realize how wrong I was. He has always loved me.

Sister Dalton said, “Love her mother so much that your marriage is celestial. A temple marriage for time and all eternity is worthy of your greatest efforts and highest priority.”

My husband and I have learned that seeing a marriage counselor is not as embarrassing as it seemed at first. In fact, we love talking to people about what we learned from our marriage counselor. He is an excellent counselor. Our marriage is top priority. And right now, it needs some help. We are putting forth our greatest efforts to protect our marriage and strengthen it.

For Christmas after our daughter was born, I bought my husband this book – Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters by Meg Meeker. I read a little bit of it, and skimmed the rest, but my husband read it cover to cover. She talks about a lot of the principles mentioned by Sister Dalton in her talk. I recommend this book to any father of a daughter.

My favorite thing that Sister Dalton suggested fathers do with their daughters was attend the temple with them. I think that is a fabulous idea! My favorite temple trips were the ones when my father came with us and baptized us.

Here are some other things Sister Dalton suggested fathers can do for their daughters:

You are your daughter’s guardian in more than the legal sense. Be present in your daughter’s life. Let her know your standards, your expectations,your hopes and dreams for her success and happiness. Interview her, get to know her friends and, when the time comes, her boyfriends. Help her understand the importance of education. Help her understand that the principle of modesty is a protection. Help her choose music and media that invite the Spirit and are consistent with her divine identity. Be an active part of her life. And if in her teenage years she should not come home from a date on time, go get her.

I really enjoyed this talk. I apologize for not writing more about the talk, but I really felt inspired to share what has been going on in our marriage. Maybe to let you know that my life isn’t perfect, and we have struggles that are really, really hard – just like everyone else.

We have to rely on the atonement of our Savior for strength, for repentance, and for healing.

What did you get from Sister Dalton’s talk?

Find more insight on this talk (and others) over at
Diapers and Divinity’s General Conference Book Club

A Lion Among the Beasts

As you may know, I tried to finish the Book of Mormon before the end of 2011 and it didn’t happen, and so now I am trying to finish it by the end of the week. (as of Wednesday I have about 80 pages to go!)

My husband told me that I will probably have to do a less thorough reading to get through it in that time, but I was sure I would be able to get through it quickly while still studying and gleaning.

Then I hit 3 Nephi 20. You think 2 Nephi is hard, try reading 3 Nephi 20. I kept reading, even though I didn’t really understand what the Savior was talking about, and about a page and a half into chapter 20 I decided that I really needed to understand what was going on here.

I went back to verse 10, when the Savior starts talking about the remnant of Israel. I read it over and over again and I still couldn’t figure it out. I was a little unnerved that I couldn’t understand this passage, and so I finally prayed for Heavenly Father to open my mind and my hearts (“and their hearts were open and they did understand in their hearts the words which [Christ] prayed” – 3 Nephi 19:33).

And then I went back and read it again.

“Behold now I finish the commandment which the Father hath commanded me concerning this people, who are a remnant of the house of Israel.”

Great. I’ve got this – the Nephites are a remnant of the house of Israel, and Christ had to come to the Nephites, because that was part of God’s plan. That’s all stuff I knew from seminary.

“Ye remember that I spake unto you, and said that when the words of Isaiah should be fulfilled – behold they are written, ye have them before you, therefore search them – And verily, verily, I say unto you, that when they shall be fulfilled then is the fulfilling of the covenant which the Father hath made unto his people, O house of Israel.”

I had to stop here for a second and ask myself, “What words of Isaiah is the Savior talking about? Obviously not all of them, since there are some words that haven’t been fulfilled yet. And what covenant is He talking about?” The covenant God made with Israel was that Christ would come to them, and that He would gather His people. Also, that when Christ would come, the Mosaic law (which was part of the original covenant with Israel) would be fulfilled.

“And then shall the remnants, which shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the earth, be gathered in from the east and from the west, and from the south and from the north; and they shall be brought to the knowledge of the Lord their God, who hath redeemed them.”

The first line of this verse caught me off guard for a minute - “the remnants, which shall be scattered” – but I thought the House of Israel had already been scattered? And then I realized that he was talking about scattering the remnants of the House of Israel – the Nephites/Lamanites. We can see the “scattering” of the Nephites and Lamanites all over the American continents today.

Then the Savior must be talking about more of the words of Isaiah than just the Messianic prophecies. And the covenant He is talking about here must be the covenant to gather Israel.

Much clearer now (Note to self: praying before reading complex scripture passages is a great idea)

“And the Father hath commanded me that I should give unto you this land, for your inheritance.”

Also a well-known fact – America is the “promised land”.

“And I say unto you, that if the Gentiles do not repent after the blessing which they shall receive, after they have scattered my people –”

Here I am pretty sure the Savior is getting ready to talk about what will happen if the Gentiles don’t accept the gospel after they scatter the Nephites and the Lamanites and are given the promised land – remember, the Gentiles were given America as well to restore the gospel, because of the wickedness and eventual apostasy of the Nephites.

“Then shall ye, who are a remnant of the house of Jacob, go forth among them; and ye shall be in the midst of them who shall be many; and ye shall be among them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he goeth through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thy hand shall be lifted up upon thing adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off.”

This is where I got stuck again. My first thought was that if the Gentiles reject the gospel, the Lord will allow the remnant of the Lamanites (the native people of the Americas) to destroy the Gentiles. *(see note at bottom of post)

(Image Source: Animal Planet)

Because I don’t like to speculate, I pulled out my old Book of Mormon seminary manual to see if there was anything in there. Nope. Just the “gathering of Israel” part. I even checked out this commentary video on BYUtv about it, but they did the same thing – talked about how important the words of Isaiah are, and about the gathering of Israel.

No one seemed to mention these verses, so I headed to Google (which I only use as a last resort when it comes to gospel study – I don’t like to find a bunch of stuff written by crazy people…)

I came across this blog, Feast Upon the Word, and discovered a series of posts discussing just this topic! The author is … very educated, it seems, and the posts are not for the faint at heart (I had to move to my desktop computer to read them, instead of my phone – it was really that intense – and I had to actually look up a few words he used online. And I consider myself pretty well educated with a decent size vocabulary).

I have a feeling that in order to really understand this part of 3 Nephi I am going to have to dedicate some time to studying Isaiah 52 and Micah 4-5, so I probably will just “skim” through these chapters and pick out what I can for now while I am trying to finish the Book of Mormon.

I am excited to study these passages in more depth, and hope to do so in the next few weeks!

*Turns out this passage is simply talking about the power of the House of Israel during the gathering of Israel to teach the gospel to the Gentiles and purify them. The Gentiles who won’t accept the gospel will be cut off from Heavenly Father.

Have you ever been absolutely stumped by a passage of scripture? Have you prayed to be able to understand the scriptures better? Where do you look for help understanding passages that stump you? Do you have thoughts on these passages in 3 Nephi?

Strength Through Adversity

Book of  Mormon Papers - a series of posts 

containing papers I wrote for a 

BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: This is the first paper I wrote in my freshman Book of Mormon class at BYU in the fall of 2004. I have learned a lot since I took that class - I have learned a lot about repentance, forgiveness, and trials. I will admit I was - and probably still am - a naive, inexperienced young woman. The things that stand out to me about what I wrote here are Nephi's "frank forgiveness" of his brethren - charity anyone? - and the reminder that faith produces miracles, not the other way around. As I was reading this paper, I was a little surprised at the ... finality of my conclusion. It is important to understand that what Alma said about the blood of the innocent crying out in judgement against with wicked is true - however, in the past year or so, I have become increasingly aware of the fact that God will give us every opportunity to change - up until judgement day. And if we do repent and partake in the atonement, we can and will be forgiven of all of our sins - even the ones that seem very serious.)

While Lehi and his family journeyed in the wilderness, Nephi was often ridiculed by his older brothers Laman and Lemuel.  At one point, his brothers even beat Nephi and their other brother Sam with rods.  Why when Nephi was so righteous, blessed, and even “chosen” did the Lord allow his brothers to bind him and beat him at various occasions?  Not only did all of his trials help to strengthen Nephi, but they also allowed his brothers to witness on several occasions the power of God, making their punishment for sinning against the Almighty even more serious.

            The Lord has said that “where much is given, much is required.” (D&C 82:3)  Nephi was blessed, as he himself stated, with “goodly parents” (1 Nephi 1:1) and with many other blessings he describes throughout the section.  Because Nephi was given so many great blessings, he was required to endure more than others may be required to endure.  Countless times Nephi records statements from the Lord to himself saying “Blessed art thou, Nephi” (1 Nephi 2:19) and “thou shalt be made a ruler and a teacher over thy brethren” (1 Nephi 2:22).  Nephi was truly chosen of the Lord who only gave him trial after trial to prove him and strengthen him.  Nephi grew in patience and in love toward his brothers as he “frankly [forgave] them all that they had done.” (1 Nephi 7:21).  That kind of frank forgiveness can only come from one who has accepted the challenges of the Lord and looks at those challenges in a spiritually positive light.

            Every time Laman and Lemuel were involved in mocking, abusing, or ridiculing their younger brother, the power of God was made manifest to them.  When Nephi and his brothers returned to Jerusalem to obtain the plates of brass, Laman and Lemuel beat Nephi and Sam and stopped only with the appearance of an angel (1 Nephi 3:29).  Later when Laman and Lemuel bound Nephi in the wilderness and left him for dead, by the power of God, Nephi broke the bonds with which he was bound (1 Nephi 7:17-18).  Unfortunately, even these miracles of God did not convert Nephi’s brethren because they had no faith.  “Miracles do not produce faith... faith comes by righteousness” (BD Faith).  The Lord said to Nephi, “…inasmuch as they brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.” (1 Nephi2:21).  Not only does the Lord allow bad things to happen to good people for the growth and development of the righteous, but also so that “the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against [the wicked], yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day” (Alma14:11). 

            The Lord allowed Nephi to be bruised and afflicted by his brethren for Nephi’s own personal growth regarding his brothers and others.  Laman and Lemuel’s judgment was also sealed by their actions toward Nephi and the other righteous members of Lehi’s family.


What lessons have you learned from Nephi and his family in the Book of Mormon?

Button, Button, Who's got the Button

I have been thinking for a while that I needed a button for this blog. So, after much ado (well, not really, just a few minutes of photoshopping) I present ... My Soul Delighteth's very own button! I hope you like it (and I hope you use it ;) ) If you have a button for your blog, let me know and I will add it to my sidebar. I have quite a few buttons up, and I usually try to visit the blogs of people who comment on my blog (if you are reading but haven't commented, let me know you're out there so I can come see your blog, too!)

I also made new Facebook and Twitter buttons, and a Pinterest button, and a button for my email and RSS feeds, too. Hopefully those are useful.

So what are you waiting for? Grab my button!

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"not lost unto the Father"

In 3 Nephi, the Savior comes to the Nephites and says "ye are they they of whom I said: Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd."

I love this clarification that the Lord gives us.


Later He also says, "I ... show myself unto the lost tribes of Israel, for they are not lost unto the Father, for he knoweth whither he hath taken them."

We talk a lot in the Church about the "lost sheep" or the "one and the ninety and nine" - we talk about bringing them into the fold. In our ward councils we make plans to find them and fellowship them.

They may be lost to us, but they are never lost to the Father.

We may feel lost sometimes, but the Father always knows us and knows where we are. We cannot be lost to Him. He can always find us, and He will always bring us home if we will let Him.

Have you ever looked for a "lost sheep"? Have you ever been a "lost sheep"? Have you ever felt lost? Do you know that the Father always knows where you are?


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