3 Nephi 10

As the Savior is speaking with the people he says, "How oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens and ye would not." This phrase is mentioned a couple of times as the Savior speaks with the people. As I read this phrase, I wondered--how many times does He now try to gather us, and we do not hear? How do we shut out the worlds sufficiently to hear His voice accurately? 

How is the Lord gathering me? Am I seeing what He is doing for me in my life? Am I open to His communications?

I am grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that God lives. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet who translated The Book of Mormon. As I read from The Book of Mormon, I feel the truthfulness of its doctrine. It guides me and teaches me in my life to become a better person. It is something that makes me better. I have recently had conversations with people who are struggling with their testimonies, and as I seek to help them, I want to record how I know. Although this testimony is simple, I can feel it in my heart. I trust that anything that makes me better--must be good; anything that enlightens me--must be good; anything that directs my path towards the Savior--must be good. I trust that I may not understand all things, but that God does, and He will direct me--he will gather me if I allow Him to do so. We live in a day and age where there are many confusions and contentions. In order to rise above that confusion, we must be willing to trust, to seek, and to persevere. Faith is not something for the faint of heart. I think back on Joseph Smith's early days of the church how he had to study to get his answers. It wasn't taught to him immediately, but over a long period of time. There is information put out by the church that has caused a lot of confusion about Joseph Smith. I haven't read it. I am debating whether I should or not; I don't always feel that I need to know everything to know that the church is true. 

3 Nephi 9

When we "come unto Christ", we are promised eternal life. It seems as if learning how to "come" should be a priority in our lives. In verse 3 Nephi 9:14 it says, "Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me" (3 Nephi 9:14). As I contemplate this scripture, my mind wonders what it means to "come unto Christ". Perhaps a formula for that is found in Moroni when he says, "Yea, come unto Christ and be perfected in him and deny yourselves of all ungodliness. And if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness and love God with all your heart, might, and mind, then is His grace sufficient for you. That by his grace, ye may be perfect in Christ"(Moroni 10:32). So, as we turn our hearts to God, and deny ourselves of things that are not "godly", we are "coming unto Christ". Further explanation of the meaning of "coming unto Christ" can be found in 3 Nephi 9 when it says, "Therefore, whoso repententh and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive..." (22). It further states, "And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost..." (20). 

Coming unto Christ is a process. It is something we must continually strive for and develop in our lives. It is accomplished by living the commandments day by day, reading our scriptures, saying our prayers, and simply placing the things of God above the things of the world. As we do this, our hearts our changed, and we become "like a little child", and we "come unto Christ". I believe it is something we must strive to accomplish in the everyday moments of our lives. I believe that we must be diligent in our testimony of Christ. I believe that is part of enduring to the end to keep Christ in our focus. It is so easy to allow the world to infiltrate our hearts. We must seek him every day, and as we do, we become His.

3 Nephi 8

When Christ was crucified, great destruction occurred on the American continent. Many cities were burned, while other cities became mountains, and yet other cities were covered by the sea. Those who remained wished they had repented prior to the great destruction saying, "O that we had repented before this great and terrible day, and had not killed and stoned the prophets, and cast them out; then would our mothers and our fair daughters; and our children have been spared...(25)", and in another city they said, "O that we had repented before this great and terrible day, and then would our brethren have been spared... (24). 

This life is our probation. We prepare to meet God while we are here on this earth. I have thought about this concept many times. Ultimately, we get to choose our destination at the end of this life. In 2 Nephi  10:23 it states, "Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves--to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life" (2 Ne. 10:23).  The scriptures demonstrated that many of the people who lived prior to the Savior's coming turned their hearts from God, and chose the way of "everlasting death". And as I consider this, I have often wondered what this means for us. What will be a game changer? The difference maker? I don't want to ever hear myself bemoan my or my families' lack of repentance.

This past month my little brother passed away. Twenty years ago my older brother passed away. Death has caused me to reflect on this concept even more. I have prayed to know and understand the Lord's plan, and I have gained a testimony of the plan of salvation. I know that my understanding is still young, and I know that I will continue to grow in knowledge concerning our life to come. However, as I have contemplated this, I have felt as if the key to the next life will be our hearts. I don't think there will be a checklist of sins and misdeeds that will keep us out of heaven for I truly believe that each and every one of us have sins that disqualify us. However, as our hearts turn to God, and as we desire Him, it is then that the atonement can take place in our lives to allow us to enter into God's presence. If our hearts are pure before God, then we will be able to access the Savior's great atoning sacrifice. President Uchtdorf said, "Today and forevermore God's grace is available to all whose hearts are broken and whose spirits are contrite" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, The Gift of Grace, April 2015 General Conference). He further stated, "Because we have all 'sinned, and come short of the glory of God' and because 'there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God,' every one of us is unworthy to return to God's presence. Even if we were to serve God with our whole souls, it is not enough, for we would still be 'unprofitable servants.' We cannot earn our way into heaven;...The grace of God is our great everlasting hope" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, The Gift of Grace, April 2015 General Conference).

And thus, I stand all amazed at my Savior and King. My writing cannot describe the gratitude, love, and devotion I feel toward Him. Because of Him, "death has no sting" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, The Gift of Grace, April 2015 General Conference). Because of Him families can be together forever. My heart sings. I rejoice at what He offers me, and I humbly pray that my heart will always be His, so that His grace may rescue me--a sinner. 

3 Nephi 7

I am inspired that after the scriptures speak of the people putting all of the prophets to death for their testimony, this chapter speaks of Nephi having the courage to stand despite the possible consequences. Nephi's testimony was so great he couldn't contain it within his heart. It didn't matter to him that it could possibly mean death. So great was his faith that God gave him the power to raise his brother from the dead (3 Nephi 7:19). In verse 20 it describes how the people felt of his raising his brother from the dead by saying, "And the people saw it, and did witness of it, and were angry with him because of his power; and he did also do many more miracles in the sight of the people, in the name of Jesus" (3 Nephi 7:20). 

I want to be like Nephi. I want the Lord to trust me like He trusted Nephi. I do not expect or care to raise people from the dead. That is not what I am saying. I am saying that I want to be the kind of person that would do anything for the Lord. The kind of person that would give up my life for His cause. I want to have a burning testimony within me that all can see--not for my own gain, but rather so that I may help others come to the truth. I want to become all that the Lord desires of me, and be the tool He intended me to be. I am positive that Nephi fulfilled all that the Lord required of him.

Later in this chapter, it talked about the importance of being "baptized unto water" in order to receive full repentance (24). What a testimony of the importance of baptism, of washing our sins away, of turning to our God through our act of being baptized.

3 Nephi 4

I love that in the end of this chapter, the people rejoice in God. I wrote on the side of my scriptures the question: Is my heart turned to God, so that I may be delivered?

I have no doubt that God can deliver us. He is our source of strength! If we turn to Him, He will strengthen us and lift us. He will fight with us in our battles, and He will help us to come off conqueror.

The scriptures read:

31 And it came to pass that they did break forth, all as one, in singing, and praising their God for the great thing which he had done for them, in preserving them from falling into the hands of their enemies.

 32 Yea, they did cry: Hosanna to the Most High God. And they did cry: Blessed be the name of the Lord GodAlmighty, the Most High God.

 33 And their hearts were swollen with joy, unto the gushing out of many tears, because of the great goodness of God in delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; and they knew it was because of their repentance and their humility that they had been delivered from an everlasting destruction.

3 Nephi 4

IIn this chapter the Gadianton Robbers were ready to come to battle against the Nephites and just before the battle ensued, the Nephites prayed to their God for support. The Gadianton Robbers saw this as a sign of weakness and fear, and they took courage as they assumed they would soon defeat the Lamanites; however, to their disappointment--they were sorely mistaking.

It reads:

8 And it came to pass that the armies of the Nephites, when they saw the appearance of the army of Giddianhi, had all fallen to the earth, and did lift their cries to the Lord their God, that he would spare them and deliver them out of the hands of their enemies.

 9 And it came to pass that when the armies of Giddianhi saw this they began to shout with a loud voice, because of their joy, for they had supposed that the Nephites had fallen with fear because of the terror of their armies.

 10 But in this thing they were disappointed, for the Nephites did not fear them; but they did fear their God and did supplicate him for protection; therefore, when the armies of Giddianhi did rush upon them they were prepared to meet them; yea, in the strength of the Lord they did receive them.

And so it is with us in our life. As we turn to God, He will strengthen us. He will preserve us from Satan, but we must turn to Him for that strength. We have the choice to allow God into our lives, or the choice to rely on our own strength. Time and time again in the scriptures, the stories of the people relying on the strength of God demonstrate the ability to overcome; whereas those who do not--do not overcome. Recently, we have been struggling with Uncle Brandon's death. This is our time to rely on God for strength and for fighting our fears. This is what I wrote in my journal:

Last night was another night of fear before bed. We cried together for quite some time. We once again talked about facing our fears and trusting in God. Sometimes thoughts are so hard to dismiss. It takes great persistence, faith and prayer to move past some of the thoughts that seem to surface in our minds. This is the struggle--to continually push out the sad and bad thoughts, and trust in the good. Amber said last night that she can't seem to get the night of Brandon's death out of her mind. She said it is like a movie that continually replays in her mind, and the movie is always of me crying the word "no". We talked about that night. We faced her fears. And then we talked about the good of that night too. We talked about the praying and the seeking God. We talked about the blessing she received and what it said, and then we listened to the blessing.

I didn't realize that it would be a tender mercy to have the blessing recorded, but as we re-listened to God's words to her, Amber felt fortified and determined to allow God to help her. The blessing was directly related to her struggle right now. When the blessing was first offered Bryan had no idea of what kind of struggle Amber would face, which is a testimony to me that God is aware of us. He sees our struggles, and He sends messages to us to strengthen us in times of need. This blessing was a message from God to Amber, and I believe it will be the source of her strength to overcome. I am so grateful for the power of the priesthood, for the love of God, and for trials. It is through these trials that we have the opportunity to become. The process of becoming is so difficult, but I have no doubt that it will someday be glorious.