Mosiah 25-28; Alma 36: pt 3

The Lord saw fit in his infinite mercy to spare Alma and the sons of Mosiah. Likewise, he has seen fit to spare each of us. Every one of us must be born of the Spirit. The Lord knows whether we need to see an angel and be struck lame and dumb or if there is some other way for him to call us to repentance. He deals with each of us in the way that will make it most likely, short of taking away our agency, for us to obey and follow him. It's good for me to remember and feel this.

Mosiah 25-28; Alma 36: pt 2

Chapter 26, verses 13 & 33: When Alma was confronted with a new situation, he asked the Lord for guidance because he was afraid of doing wrong in the sight of God. It might have been easy for him to rely on past prayers or to have a casual attitude about it, thinking he was in tune with the Spirit so he'd be fine. Instead, he sought the Lord diligently in prayer. He did not have a casual attitude toward the new problem he faced. He was rewarded with a direct and specific revelation. Further evidence that he did not take it lightly is that he wrote the words of the revelation down, "that he might have them."

I am faced with a new and difficult question. So far I have taken a casual approach to it, but reading this tonight tells me I need to follow Alma's example. I need to be afraid to do wrong in the sight of God and pray earnestly to know his will.

Mosiah 25-28; Alma 36: pt 1

Chapter 25, verses 8-11: Things that should cause us sorrow: loss of our loved ones, people killing other people, the sinful and polluted state of others. Things that should cause us joy: deliverance from bondage, the immediate goodness of God and his power.

One of the purposes of this lesson is to inspire class members to continually apply the principles of repentance. As we do so, our hearts, and thereby our emotions, will be more aligned to God's heart and emotions. We will be more like him in sorrowing for the sin we see around us (instead of ignoring, being entertained by, or glorifying and promoting it like so much of the world does). Likewise, we will be more like him in feeling joy at the blessings received by others, especially the blessing of being delivered from every type of bondage.

Mosiah 18-24: pt 2

Chapter 20 verse 22: And now let us pacify the king, and we fulfil the oath which we have made unto him; for it is better that we should be in bondage than that we should lose our lives; therefore, let us put a stop to the shedding of so much blood.

Three good points here from Gideon:

1. Just because the Lamanites broke their oath doesn't mean it's ok for the Nephites to break theirs.

2. It was better for them to be in bondage than to lose their lives. I suppose it's better for us to live through a difficult situation than to stop living, mainly because we don't know when God will deliver us. We usually don't know how good our life is going to get, and it may be sooner than we think.

3. This one goes without saying.

Mosiah 18-24: pt 1

Chapter 18 verse 10: Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?

Sometimes it's helpful to me to apply this verse by putting blanks to be filled in, like this. Now I say unto you, if _____ be the desire of your hearts, what have you against _____, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?

If a strong family unit be the desire of my heart, what have I against family scripture study, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon us? If charity for my fellow man be the desire of my heart, what have I against serving others, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon me?

The lesson I learn from this is that there is always a way for the righteous desires of our heart to be fulfilled; we just have to be willing to do what is required. What do we have against it?

Mosiah 12-17: pt 2

Chapter 13 verse 11. Somehow I've never read this verse and thought about the danger of studying iniquity. I've just always glossed over that part and only thought about King Noah and his priests teaching iniquity. Often people think there's no danger in studying things that are contrary to gospel truths. There are all sorts of ways to rationalize it, and all sorts of iniquity to study. We would do better to study righteousness.

Mosiah 12-17: pt 1

If you teach the law of Moses, why do you not keep it?

Sometimes a few days after giving a talk or teaching a lesson I'll catch myself not doing some of the things I taught that we should do. It's disappointing.

Mosiah 7-11: pt 3

The children of men flee from the Shepherd, and scatter, and are driven; and their understanding is blind and impenetrable. I was just thinking that it's funny how every time a group goes out to the wilderness, they get lost. It seems like the Nephites and Lamanites are always getting lost, and they have to wander around for days. I suppose we're all like that. Thank goodness for prophets and seers, watchmen on the tower.

Mosiah 7-11: pt 2

I like that Limhi recognizes that the suffering of his people is due to the wicked things they did, in particular the killing of Abinadi.

Mosiah 7-11: pt 1

Sorry about the past week.

A couple of things from chapter 7. First, I am impressed with the concern Mosiah and his people had for their brethren. Zeniff and his people left 3 generations earlier, yet Mosiah cared enough about them (who knows if he remembered when they left or knew any of them personally) to go find them. We have ancestors we should be willing to search for and reclaim through family history and temple work.

Second, I am impressed with Ammon. He was a strong and mighty man, and a leader, yet when he was captured, he did not get angry. He recognized that it was simply a misunderstanding. He was humble.

Third, I am impressed by Limhi's faith that sixteen men could rescue them from the Lamanites. I am also impressed by his recognition that despite the promise of rescue, there remained an effectual struggle to be made. Just because we've repented and been forgiven, or just because we've been on a mission, or just because we finally got married and had kids, or just because we finally got a good job--it doesn't mean we are done with struggling. Like Limhi, we can trust that there remain struggles, but also like Limhi, our faith should not be undaunted because of it. Like Limhi, we should lift up our heads and rejoice and put our trust in God.