Week 10
Mormon 1:2 "And about the time that Ammaron hid up the records unto the Lord, he came unto me, (I being about ten years of age, and I began to be learned somewhat after the manner of the learning of my people) and Ammaron said unto me: I perceive that thou art a sober child, and art quick to observe." I find the description of Mormon quite interesting. Ammoron and Mormon both use sober child to describe Mormon. When I was about 14 my family went to Nauvoo to be in the pageant. Before we went, we were set apart as some type of missionary for the two weeks that we would be there. I remember in my blessing that I got from the bishop he counseled me to be sober. I had never really thought about what is means to be sober before so I was taken aback a little bit when it was said in my blessing. I still am not completely sure what it means to be a sober child but here are a few of my ideas. One thing I think it encompasses is to not be dramatic about things. Not be rash in decision making. Not to overreact to insignificant things. I think it has something to do with maintaining an eternal perspective. Having a firm anchor in the gospel will help us to be more stable in all aspects of our lives. Another lesson that could apply is to be wary of light mindedness and loud laughter. Being sober doesn't mean that we should not express emotions or never have any positive or negative reactions to things that happen in our lives, but it means that we should bridle our passions and not let our emotions control our decision making. Another characteristic that Ammoron says Mormon has is being quick to observe. I think that means that he was quick to observe the commandments of God. He was quick to listen to his leaders. He was quick to act on what needed to be done. He was a good decision maker. He could observe, analyze, make a decision and act on it. These two qualities are ones that I want to develop in my own life. I want to be grounded in the gospel and not let whims of doctrines, trends, or bad things that happen in my life shake my faith or cause me to dramatically change everything I do because of a bad day. I want to be quick to observe the counsel of my leaders and apply the things I know I should in my life immediately so I can continue to grow and change for the better. I know that if I strive to develop these two characteristics I will be happier in my life and increase my relationship with Heavenly Father.
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Week 9
When the Savior comes the second day, he asks Nephi to bring the records and show them to Him. He asks Nephi if the prophecies of Samuel the Lamanite have been written down and if the fulfillment of them was written down also. When Nephi tells him no, Christ rebukes him for not keeping the record more detailed. I think this lesson can apply to journaling as well. Many prophets and apostles have commanded us to keep a journal. They have counsels us to write down the miracles we see in our lives and the tender mercies of the Lord. The blessings they promise us from doing this are plenty. They promise that we will have more gratitude for the Lord as we take note of His blessings. I can be better at writing down and remembering the blessings from the Lord. Even if I just spent 10 min a week writing down the blessings that I saw in my life that week, I would be more aware of the love that God has for me. Another lesson from this reading is the commandment to pay tithes and offerings. For me tithing has always been easy. It's just been what I've done my whole life. My parents had me start paying tithing as soon as I started getting any money. Paying tithing was always something fun and exciting for me and my siblings. I don't know how my parents got us to look at it that way but at the end of the year when we went to tithing settlement we were always super excited to be full tithe payers. I guess it make us feel like big kids or something. The hearts of the children are turned to their fathers is another lesson Jesus teaches his third day with the Nephites. This is a sign He gives of the second coming. This prophecy is getting fulfilled in our day as we are seeing family history and temple work taking a huge stride of progress. The amount of temples we have now is amazing. We are ushering in the Millenium with the work of the dead. One last comment on this weeks reading, babies were saying marvelous things that can't be written because of how sacred they were! I can't even imagine how cool this must have been! You're a mom and your baby just starts talking and making prophecies! That would be incredible.
When the Savior comes the second day, he asks Nephi to bring the records and show them to Him. He asks Nephi if the prophecies of Samuel the Lamanite have been written down and if the fulfillment of them was written down also. When Nephi tells him no, Christ rebukes him for not keeping the record more detailed. I think this lesson can apply to journaling as well. Many prophets and apostles have commanded us to keep a journal. They have counsels us to write down the miracles we see in our lives and the tender mercies of the Lord. The blessings they promise us from doing this are plenty. They promise that we will have more gratitude for the Lord as we take note of His blessings. I can be better at writing down and remembering the blessings from the Lord. Even if I just spent 10 min a week writing down the blessings that I saw in my life that week, I would be more aware of the love that God has for me. Another lesson from this reading is the commandment to pay tithes and offerings. For me tithing has always been easy. It's just been what I've done my whole life. My parents had me start paying tithing as soon as I started getting any money. Paying tithing was always something fun and exciting for me and my siblings. I don't know how my parents got us to look at it that way but at the end of the year when we went to tithing settlement we were always super excited to be full tithe payers. I guess it make us feel like big kids or something. The hearts of the children are turned to their fathers is another lesson Jesus teaches his third day with the Nephites. This is a sign He gives of the second coming. This prophecy is getting fulfilled in our day as we are seeing family history and temple work taking a huge stride of progress. The amount of temples we have now is amazing. We are ushering in the Millenium with the work of the dead. One last comment on this weeks reading, babies were saying marvelous things that can't be written because of how sacred they were! I can't even imagine how cool this must have been! You're a mom and your baby just starts talking and making prophecies! That would be incredible.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Week 8
I love the first few verses in 3rd Nephi 16 when Christ talks about the other sheep that he must go visit. He tells the Nephites that he has other sheep that aren't them and that aren't the people in Jerusalem but other tribes as he called them. I like to think that he went and visited the lost 10 tribes. Maybe not all of them, depending on how spread out they were or how righteous they were, but those are who he visited. I can't wait to read the record that they made when Jesus came and visited them. Because Jesus' visit to the Nephites is the focal point of the Book of Mormon I want to read the other record of His visit to the other tribes. Another part from this reading that I've always loved is when Jesus explains how the Law of Moses is fulfilled in Him. Christ tells the Nephites that He is the one who gave the law and He came to fulfill the law. He's not coming to destroy it or go back on what He or other prophets had testified in the past but that He was the great and last sacrifice and that now He was establishing a higher law. It was no longer an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, but it was love your enemies, do good to those that hurt you. The sacrifice was changed from a burnt offering to a broken heart and a contrite spirit. This higher law, although it was less explicit and controlling, was harder to live. In order to love it you had to elevate yourself to a new level of dedication to Christ. To live it, we have to be more like Him and love like He loves. Having charity for all. We have to humble ourselves and be repenting every day.
I love the first few verses in 3rd Nephi 16 when Christ talks about the other sheep that he must go visit. He tells the Nephites that he has other sheep that aren't them and that aren't the people in Jerusalem but other tribes as he called them. I like to think that he went and visited the lost 10 tribes. Maybe not all of them, depending on how spread out they were or how righteous they were, but those are who he visited. I can't wait to read the record that they made when Jesus came and visited them. Because Jesus' visit to the Nephites is the focal point of the Book of Mormon I want to read the other record of His visit to the other tribes. Another part from this reading that I've always loved is when Jesus explains how the Law of Moses is fulfilled in Him. Christ tells the Nephites that He is the one who gave the law and He came to fulfill the law. He's not coming to destroy it or go back on what He or other prophets had testified in the past but that He was the great and last sacrifice and that now He was establishing a higher law. It was no longer an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, but it was love your enemies, do good to those that hurt you. The sacrifice was changed from a burnt offering to a broken heart and a contrite spirit. This higher law, although it was less explicit and controlling, was harder to live. In order to love it you had to elevate yourself to a new level of dedication to Christ. To live it, we have to be more like Him and love like He loves. Having charity for all. We have to humble ourselves and be repenting every day.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Week 7
This week we got to the most pivotal chapters in The Book of Mormon; when Jesus Christ appears to the Nephites after his resurrection. The resurrection is the most incredible miracle in all of history. I love the beginning of chapter 11 when Heavenly Father speaks to the people. I think that it is interesting that the voice of Heavenly Father is described just like the Spirit is described. “…it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn” (3 Nephi 11:3). The Spirit is always described as the still small voice or the burning in the bosom. One teacher I had told us that we can learn to differentiate between the voice of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. They can all speak to us differently. However, I’ve also heard that they can all speak for and in behalf of each other. So I’m not really sure what that means. I know that it is extremely rare for Heavenly Father to speak in the scriptures and that the majority of the time it is Jesus Christ and the Spirit.
This week we got to the most pivotal chapters in The Book of Mormon; when Jesus Christ appears to the Nephites after his resurrection. The resurrection is the most incredible miracle in all of history. I love the beginning of chapter 11 when Heavenly Father speaks to the people. I think that it is interesting that the voice of Heavenly Father is described just like the Spirit is described. “…it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn” (3 Nephi 11:3). The Spirit is always described as the still small voice or the burning in the bosom. One teacher I had told us that we can learn to differentiate between the voice of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. They can all speak to us differently. However, I’ve also heard that they can all speak for and in behalf of each other. So I’m not really sure what that means. I know that it is extremely rare for Heavenly Father to speak in the scriptures and that the majority of the time it is Jesus Christ and the Spirit.
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