Mosiah 29

BE WISE IN YOUR DECISIONS

I am impressed by the foresight of Mosiah when he was speaking about a king for the people, and he was considering his son's lack of desire to obtain the priesthood. He said, "And now if there should be another appointed in his stead, behold I fear there would rise contentions among you. And who knoweth but what my son, to whom the kingdom doth belong, should turn to be angry and draw away a part of this people after him, which would cause wars and contentions among you, which would be the cause of shedding much blood and perverting the ways of the Lord, yea, and destroy the souls of many people. Now I say unto you let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my son neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be appointed in his stead."

When Mosiah said these words, he had no idea what would come to pass, but he considered what could be dangerous prior to making a decision. I think we should evaluate our own lives in this manner. If there is something that could lead our children into sin, then we shouldn't proceed. Having this kind of foresight requires the spirit in our lives, which means we are studying our scriptures and seeking the Lord daily. In this case, I think Mosiah was learning from the past through his own scripture study. He had translated the record of the Jaredites in which this occurred over and over again. He had also seen kingdoms prior to his own where similar contentions had arisen. By studying our scriptures, we are able to keep the Spirit in our lives, which will help us in along our pathways of life.

Mosiah 27

SPIRITUALLY BORN OF GOD

In Mosiah 27: 25-26 it states, "And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters; And thus they become new creatures; and unless they; do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God."

What does it mean to be born of God?

Alma somewhat answered this question in verse 29 by saying, "My soul hath been redeemed from the gall of bitterness and bonds of iniquity. I was in the darkest abyss; but now I behold the marvelous light of God. my soul was racked with eternal torment; but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more. I rejected my Redeemer, and denied that which had been spoken of by our fathers...

However, I think Alma bests answers this question in Alma 5 when he asks a series of questions, which questions I believe we should ask ourselves all the time:

1. Have you spiritually been  born of God?
2. Have ye received his image in your countenances?
3. Have ye experienced a mighty change in your hearts?
4. Do ye exercise faith in the redemption of him who created you?
5. Do you look forward with an eye of faith, and view this mortal body raised in immortality, and this corruption raised in incorruption, to stand before God to be judged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body?
6. Can you imagine to yourselves that ye hear the voice of the Lord, saying unto you, in that day: Come unto me ye blessed, for behold, your works have been works of righteousness upon the face of the heart?
7. Can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?
8. If you have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?
9. Have ye walked, keeping yourselves blameless before God?
10. Behold are ye stripped of pride?
11. Is there one among you who is not stripped of envy?
12. Is there one among you that doth make a mock of his brother, or that heapeth upon him persecutions?

I love these questions. I want to re-evaluate them more often in my life.

Mosiah 27

THE FAITH OF A PARENT

I love that an angel comes to Alma because of others' prayers. To think that I may pray for something so momentous, to think that a faith of a parent can truly make an impact on our children gives me reassurance. Our parenting doesn't have to be one sided. The Lord wants us to be in partnership with Him. I think too often I feel alone in my parenting, or for that matter--anything else. When I turn inside myself, I am somewhat alone. Sure, the Lord is always there, but unless we access Him in our lives His influence isn't as strong. As we pray to Him, we become a partnership with God. He can then help us in all of our endeavors--no matter what our struggle might be (a wayward child, patience...).

Right now my little guy is struggling in school. He has started a learning program, which takes an hour every single day practicing drills. This program is suppose to help him process better--it's suppose "fix" all of our struggles. In the process of "fixing", my patience is often at the surface. These drills are not easy. They take a lot of time, and they quite often have to be simplified, and broken down. On top of that, we just started school, and Jacob is required to do a lot of homework. Last night we spent two hours on homework in addition to Jacob's learning technics. What would take some kids only an hour to complete--takes Jake double. He tries extremely hard, and his heart is in it--he just can't process as fast. By the end of our two hour homework scenario, I was done for the night; however, I was staring into an hour of learning technics as well. It was 8:30 pm--his bedtime, and we were not done. My mental sanity was definitely shaken. I needed the Lord more than ever. I needed Him to help me stay sane, but more importantly to help me remain calm with a beautiful child that was truly trying his best. I wish I could say that I was the ultimate example of patience. I can't. I wasn't. After I tucked Jacob into bed, I went into his room to love and kiss on him. I told him how proud I was of him, and how sorry I was that I was frustrated. I let him know that I really do love him. As I was pleading for forgiveness, and looking into my beautiful son's eyes, I knew I needed God. I knew I couldn't do it alone. My prayers last night were prayers of pleading. They were prayers that ache. I want more than ever to be that mom that is so awesome. To be honest, I am not even sure what "that mom" entails. If I could list a few of "that mom's" talents, I would list a mom with ultimate patience, a mom with a listening ear, a fun mom, a caring mom, an in tune mom, a spiritual mom... Some of these things, I feel I am accomplishing; however, I am definitely  not accomplishing all of it. The thing is: we don't have to. I think we must do our best, and then we must pray like it will make up all the difference, because I honestly believe it will. It did for Alma.

Mosiah 24

WAYS in WHICH we are HELPED THROUGH TRIALS

When the people of Alma were burdened by the wicked priest, Amulon, the Lord didn't remove their burdens at first, but he lightened their burdens. And even for this "lightening" to occur, the people of Alma first asked through prayer. So it is with us--we must first pray for assistance, and then even after we pray--our trials may not be removed, but we will be better able to carry them.

There have been many times when I have wished I could pray my trials away, but this isn't the way of the Lord. These trials mold us, and form us into what our God wants us to become. Without them--we would not "become", we would not grow, our period of probation would be stagnant.

One trial I have often wished I could pray away is the trial that my little guy faces. He struggles with dyslexia, and it is so hard for me to see him struggle in school with reading. I wish our hard work could make it all go away--I'm sure it helps, but it is still a constant companion. I know that when we work at his reading, my concern for him and his struggles are manageable through prayer. When I forget to pray, I feel overwhelmed and very much alone.

I truly believe that when we are covenant keeping people, we can expect the Lord's hand in our lives. That doesn't mean that our trials will go away, but we can expect Him to carry us in the midst of our trials--just like the people of Alma. I like how verse 15 states, "And it came to pass the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord."

By the end of this experience, the Lord did deliver the people of Alma from their trials--from bondage. First, they endured, and then they were delivered.

There are other experiences in the scriptures in which the Lord does this. There was the time when Joseph was placed in prison because of the wicked maiden. The Lord didn't at first remove Joseph from prison, but he carried him through that trial (Genesis 39). As Joseph remained faithful, the Lord blessed him. He became a leader in the prison, he was trusted above all the other prisoners. The Lord "lightened" his burden; however, He didn't remove his trial...at least not in the beginning. We must be willing to endure, so that we can learn from our experience. And then, as we have endured we will be removed from our trial. We will come off conqueror.

Doctrine and Covenants 10:5 reads, "Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work."

As we seek the Lord, we will conquer!

Mosiah 13

Obey the Lord
Abinadi testifies

Mosiah 13:9
"But I finish my message; and then it matters not whither I go, if it so be that I am saved."

Abinadi knows that he could die, but it doesn't matter to him. His only care is to do as the Lord commands. How many times am I prompted to do something, and I fail? I want to be the kind of person that the Lord knows He can call on--anytime, anywhere.

I am inspired by a latter day prophet learning this same lesson. When President Monson was in a meeting, he was prompted to leave immediately and go to the hospital, because he was sitting on the stand, he struggled to get up until after the meeting was over. Once he arrived at the hospital, the person he was sent to see had passed away. He said that this lesson was not lost on him. He would never again wait to follow a prompting (Heidi Swinton, BYU Idaho Education Week, August 1, 2014).

Abinadi

ABINADI's FAITH

Abinadi is my hero. Ever since I was a little girl I have loved Abinadi. I love that Abinadi had the courage to testify even when he knew he could die. I love that when death was inevitable--he still did not falter. I love his strength of character, his testimony, and his love for the Savior. I want to be like Abinadi. I want to have the strength of character to testify of my Savior no matter the consequences. I want to have a testimony of the Gospel so strong that--I too, could testify unto death. I want the Savior to be the center of my life.

When I was a little girl I often wondered why God didn't just save Abinadi? Why He didn't help Abinadi like he helped Elijah, or even Daniel? There are numerous scriptural accounts where God comes to the rescue, and then there are those where He doesn't. The scriptures explain that God does all things for a wise purpose. 

I think this life is about faith. BAD things can happen to GOOD people. We have to have faith to understand that no matter what happens--it is for a wise purpose, and as Doctrine and Covenants 90:24 states we have to have faith to believe that no matter what happens, "all things will work together for our good". This kind of faith will require a heart converted to the Lord. It will require an Abinidi heart. This kind of faith is the kind of faith I am seeking!

Mosiah 12

THINGS of this WORLD
Where do we focus our hearts?

Mosiah 12:29
Abinidi asked the wicked priests, "Why do you set your hearts upon riches?"

I think we live in a day and age where we must continually fight within ourselves to not set our hearts on the things of this world. This past week my kids and I have been shopping for school clothes. In one of our excursions grandma bought my kids some more expensive items--items they wouldn't have received without grandma's generosity. Since this purchase I have heard a few comments that have caused me concern. One of my daughter's expressed her excitement when she said, "I can't believe I have jeans from the Buckle." In another conversation I heard her telling someone that she had clothes from the Buckle as if having clothes from a particular store was better than another store. I know this comment was not my daughter's intent; however, as her mother--I felt concerned.

Last night we had a long conversation about the importance of keeping our perspectives on what matters most. All of my children understood, and our conversation was eye opening. My children have pure hearts, they truly love the Lord, and they strive to be all that He wants them to be.

As I read this scripture this morning it reminded me of the struggle we have had. The struggle between putting too much emphasis on material good rather than spiritual goods. With that being said, I don't want to elude to the fact that my kids were more interested than clothes than they were spiritual matters--they were not. However, I think that this is a prime example of how easy it is to begin focusing on things that are simply not important. There are many "things" that fight for our attention in this life, and it is a constant battle to keep our attention on the "things" that matter most.