Friday, September 23, 2011
(85) Alma 60:16 “Yea, if we had gone forth against them in the strength of the Lord, we should have dispersed our enemies, for it would have been done, according to the fulfilling of his word.” We must be totally devoted to living God’s will if we are to succeed against Satan and his forces.
(86) Alma 61:13 “But behold he doth not command us that we shall subject ourselves to our enemies, but that we should put our trust in him, and he will deliver us.” I love how this is repeated so many times in the Book of Mormon. As we put our trust in God, he shall deliver us of all evil as long as we do our part and work towards our own deliverance. We can’t just sit idly by waiting for our troubles to go away. Part of trusting is doing or acting upon our trust.
(87) Alma 62:49-51 “But notwithstanding their riches, or their strength, or their prosperity, they were not lifted up in the pride of their eyes; neither were they slow to remember the Lord their God; but they did humble themselves exceedingly before him. Yea, they did remember how great things the Lord had done for them, that he had delivered them from death, and from bonds, and from prisons, and from all manner of afflictions and he had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies. And they did pray unto the Lord their God continually, insomuch that the Lord did bless them, according to his word, so that they did wax strong and prosper in the land.” When we are humble and remember all the things that the Lord has done for us, we too will be blessed and delivered from our afflictions.
(88) Helaman 1:18 “And it came to pass that because of so much contention and so much difficulty in the government, that they had not kept sufficient guards in the land of Zarahemla; for they had supposed that the Lamanites durst not come into the heart of their lands to attack that great city Zarahemla.” We cannot suppose that Satan will never go for that part which used to be the strongest, or that he will never go for our hearts. Whatever happens, we cannot let our guard down.
(89) Helaman 1:28 “But when Moronihah had discovered this [that the Lamanites had come into the center of the land and were taking possession of many cities], he immediately sent forth Lehi with an army round about to head them before they should come to the land Bountiful.” I like how it says he immediately sent an army to defend the land Bountiful. Instead of waiting for the enemy/Satan to arrive at our threshold, the moment we are warned or become aware of the threat of danger we should send out our armies and our defenses. Luckily God has provided us with many means by which we can learn of the things that Satan will and does try to attack.
(90) Helaman 3:25 “And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure.” Have you ever been astonished beyond measure by the number of blessings you have received? Or even just astonished to receive a certain blessing? I know I have been, especially as I have been living in Taiwan.
(91) Helaman 3:27 “Thus we see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name.” I have witnessed this of myself many times. I think that this is something that everyone needs to try to gain a testimony of, and perhaps several times. It is sometimes easy to forget.
(92) Helaman 3:35 “Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God.” I feel that this verse contains the ingredients for joy, namely: fasting, frequent prayer, humility, and faith in Christ. I think also that this is one of the most beautiful verses in the Book of Mormon. “Joy and consolation.” What does it mean to be consoled? Consolation is to receive comfort after a loss or disappointment. God and Christ recognize that there will be losses and disappointments in our lives, but because of Christ and because of faith in him, those losses can be made up to us. We can find comfort and joy through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is through the Atonement that we are also able to become pure and holy. For all of this to come to pass, we must “[yield our] hearts unto God,” or comply with the desires of God. We must give our hearts to Him and keep his commandments (all of them) completely.
(93) Helaman 5:6 “Behold, my sons, I desire that ye should remember to keep the commandments of God; and I would that ye should declare unto the people these words. Behold, I have given unto you the names of our first parents who came out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I have done that when you remember your names ye may remember them; and when ye remember them ye may remember their works; and when re remember their works ye may know how that it is said, and also written, that they were good.” We that have been baptized have been given or take upon us the name of Christ. When we remember our name, then, we should remember him and His works, and try to live up to that name. We should do all that we can to be good as He was and is good.
(94) Helaman 5:42 “And it came to pass that they did all begin to cry unto the voice of him who had shaken the earth; yea, they did cry even until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.” I love this. I love that when we pray, our faith in Christ can be increased. I also am reminded, in regards to the cloud of darkness, of Joseph Smith when he was in the Sacred Grove. It was through the power of prayer that the cloud of darkness was lifted from him, and it is the same thing here. I think that it is important, though, to remember that a cloud of darkness doesn’t have to be caused by sin. Joseph was not sinning when he knelt to pray. Sometimes darkness is caused by evil trying to obscure our view of the light. It is important that we don’t allow that to keep us from praying. We should always pray.
Labels: Book of Mormon, Religion, Svithe
