2 Nephi 4

Hey guys! I have two exams to study for this week so the post today is gonna be relatively short. Today I am writing about 2 Nephi chapter 4. In this chapter, Lehi passes away after finishing his speech to his posterity. First I want to take a look at verse 5 where Lehi says, "...I cannot go down to my grave save I should leave a blessing upon you..." I love that Lehi knew the importance of a father's blessing. Here at BYU, I love seeing when young men exercise the Priesthood. I have had the opportunity to go to the Provo temple and be baptized by my Priesthood holding friends. I've witnessed blessings being given, home teaching lessons being taught on time, young men preparing for their missions and it is so amazing to see the power of God all around me. This next line in verse 20 is one of my new favorites: "My God hath been my support..." President Eyring said at General Conference that if we count our blessings every day, we will begin to easily see the hand of God in our lives. I appreciate that Nephi recorded how much Heavenly Father blessed and helped his family, even in times of trial in the wilderness. They were able to survive hunger and sickness because they relied on their Heavenly Father. For the rest of the chapter, Nephi prays. He prays out of gratitude, he prays for forgiveness, he prays out of joy and faith. I encourage you to read the rest of the chapter because there are some inspiring verses and one liners in there. As you go about the week, ask yourself when "God hath been (your) support." I testify that noticing and acknowledging the hand of God in your life will bless you and open your eyes to blessings you didn't even realize you had.

2 Nephi 2

Hellloo! The Sun is shining here in Provo and I am in a very good mood. That might also be because I'm eating peanut butter m&m's. Anyway, I hope  you are in a good mood as well. If not, maybe something in this post can change that. Today we are moving on to 2 Nephi chapter 2. This is probably one of the most influential chapters of the Book of Mormon in my life. I am also taking some of my thoughts from Brad Wilcox's talk His Grace is Sufficient . This talk is absolutely incredible. If there is one talk I could read in my whole life, this is it. If you have the time, read this talk before you read this post (just click on the underlined title of the talk). I cannot stress enough how good it is. So in 2 Nephi, Lehi is still speaking to his posterity, specifically to his son Jacob. I would like to start in the last line of verse 4, "And the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation in free." A while ago I wrote a little note next to the word "free" and wrote "with work." Since reading Brother Wilcox's talk, I have learned that through the grace of Jesus Christ, salvation really is free. We don't have to do anything to be resurrected. Christ suffered for us and as Brother Wilcox said, "Jesus filled the whole space. He paid our debt in full. He didn't pay it all except a few coins. He paid it all. It is finished." We don't have to work in order for this to be fulfilled. What we have to work for is change. Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, "The repenting sinner must suffer for his sins, but this suffering has a different purpose than punishment or payments. Its purpose is change." Going on to verse 7 we read, "Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered." A broken heart and a contrite spirit bring about this change Elder Oaks spoke of. In the middle of verse 8 we read, "...no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah..." Brother Wilcox said, "Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly." I'm serious when I say this quote gives me goose bumps. We must choose heaven. I feel like Brother Wilcox shares this whole topic so much better than I do, so I want to close with this quote by him, "...the older I get, and the more I understand this wonderful plan of redemption, the more I realize that in the final judgment it will not be the unrepentant sinner begging Jesus, “Let me stay.” No, he will probably be saying, “Get me out of here!” Knowing Christ’s character, I believe that if anyone is going to be begging on that occasion, it would probably be Jesus begging the unrepentant sinner, “Please, choose to stay. Please, use my Atonement—not just to be cleansed but to be changed so that you want to stay.” I am so grateful for the all-encompassing love that Christ has for you and I. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to make progress. Like our Earthly parents, they delight in our success, and are by our side when we fall. 

The last chapter of 1 Nephi!

Is it snowing where you live? It's snowing where I live. I still haven't gotten used to it. I would describe it as a blizzard, but most Utahns would call it a "light flurry." So while I am cooped up in my dorm room I thought I'd write my second post for the week (back to back posts, I know, wild). So we are ending 1 Nephi today. I have gotten through 1 Nephi probably a million times, but then my scripture reading habits start to fade and the rest of the Book of Mormon gets a little dusty....but not this time! Stick with me guys, be proud we've finished a whole book in a book! This chapter discusses the last days and what will happen to the Gentiles, Israel, the righteous and the wicked. We are the Gentiles and it is our job to preach the gospel to Israel like....now. In verse 7 we read, "And it meaneth that the time cometh that after all the house of Israel have been scattered and confounded, that the Lord God will raise up a mighty nation among the Gentiles..." now on to verse 8, "And after out seed is scattered the Lord God will proceed to do a marvelous work among the Gentiles, which shall be of great worth unto our seed..." This "marvelous work" is the restoration of the gospel and all the events that led up to it which helped it occur, like Christopher Columbus finding America and the Constitution including the freedom of religion in it. As the chapter goes on Nephi tells of the blessings the righteous will receive and the punishments the wicked will receive. As Nephi talks about wars and famines and people perishing, it sounds like a scary event doesn't it? As soon as I began thinking this, I read the first line of verse 22, "And the righteous need not fear..." It is such a comfort to know that if I am righteous I will prosper and be blessed in the end. Living the gospel doesn't always seem easy in the world we live in today. The world tells us that it's okay to party and drink and smoke. They tell us that mother's don't really need to take care of their kids because a successful career is really important. They tell us our standards on marriage are way too strict. Do not let your guard down because the world tells you to. Remember your standards and goals at all times! What is your goal? A temple marriage, to be sealed with your family forever, to obtain eternal life. I love this promise, "the righteous need not fear." We are not alone in this world and when we endure to the end, we will certainly not be alone in the very last days. I don't know if we are allowed to have a favorite apostle, but if we are my favorite is Elder Jeffery R. Holland :) His talks are absolutely amazing. In the last General Conference he said, "You never check your religion at the door. Not ever." I hope that we can all make an effort to really live out this phrase, because it is so, so important.

1 Nephi 18

Good afternoon guys! I hope you are all having a good week. With President's Day starting out the week, I have been a bit discombobulated so this post is a little late...sorry! So today I wanted to talk about 1 Nephi 18. In 18 we read about Nephi taking his family on the boat they constructed to the promised land. Everything starts well, but then of course Laman and Lemuel and  the sons of Ishmael revolt against Nephi. In verse 10 they say that they don't like having their younger brother "rule over" them, so in verse 11 we read that they tie Nephi up and leave him like that for four days. While Nephi was bound, a great storm arose and the Liahona stopped working, leaving the family helpless on the sea. As the storm raged on, Nephi's brothers grew afraid and realized they needed to let him go. Now in verse 20 we read, "...wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea they repented of the thing which they had done..." and in 21 we read, "And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm." Did you notice multiple things had to be done in order for the storm to stop? First, Nephi's brothers had to repent of their sins. Next, they had to make things right by loosening the cords. Nephi then looked to the compass given to them by Heavenly Father and then prayed that the storm might cease. The principle I draw from this is that sometimes our trials aren't going to be taken away in the blink of an eye. In fact, that rarely happens. Trials are given to us because we have sinned, but they are also given to shape, refine and perfect us, even when we are being obedient. Without trials we cannot fully appreciate the Plan of Salvation or become like Christ. It is important to trust in God's timeline and know that there might be multiple things we have to do before we conquer a certain challenge. Something my Doctrine and Covenants professor said in class today is, "The Lord wants to bless us when the blessing will bless us the most." This teaches patience, but it also teaches the importance of faith in God, and knowing that he knows better than we do. I know this topic has kind broadened out from Nephi's story, so I hope you can see the connection I've made. I have learned to be grateful for the challenges in my life. Something I have started to do is instead of asking Heavenly Father to take my trials away, I ask for the strength and knowledge to overcome them. I have noticed that this gives more purpose and focus to my prayers as I learn how to overcome challenges. I challenge each of you to try this approach and I promise that your trials will seem lighter.

1 Nephi 15

Good morning readers. Are you feeling the love in the air? That's right, it's Valentine's Day week! In honor of it, give your loved ones an extra hug this week, tell them you love them, and maybe put a few heart stickers on their bedroom door or something. Anyone in need of a Valentine? I volunteer :) Okay, so back to business. Today I wanted to write about 1 Nephi 15, as you can see from the title of this post. So this whole time, Nephi has been trying to help his brothers understand the teachings of the Lord. Wouldn't it be frustrating to constantly tell your siblings something important, just to have them ignore and ridicule you? Well, in this chapter Laman and Lemuel finally express to Nephi that they just don't understand the teachings of their father. In verse 7 we read, "And they said: Behold, we cannot understand the words which our father hath spoken concerning the natural branches of the olive-tree, and also concerning the Gentiles." Now, Nephi could have easily interpreted Lehi's teachings for them, but instead he said in verse 8, "And I said unto them: Have ye inquired of the Lord?" Sometimes I just hope I will be given an answer to a question I have without doing any of the work. Ask Heavenly Father, He has the answers! They may not come when or how you want them to, but they will come, you need only ask. Which brings us to verse 9, "And they said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known to us." Okay, of course they don't understand this stuff, they are just waiting around for answers! It is important to remember to actively inquire of the Lord when we need answers. In verse 11 we are given three steps to achieving these answers: 1) Ask in faith 2)Believe that you will receive an answer 3)Be diligent in keeping the commandments. I am grateful for the power of prayer. I always feel more peaceful, productive, focused and happy when I have "inquired of the Lord." One last principle I took from chapter 15. In verses 13 through 18 Nephi speaks of the house of Israel and how they are a covenant people. He talks about how the Gentiles are a chosen people, a people who the gospel will be preached to and who will preach the gospel I love that the word
"chosen" is used. If we always remembered we were each chosen to be here at this time, we each have our own missions, we are each children of God, how would we act? This is such an important principle. Remember who you are! I am grateful I have had such strong women in my life who act as role models to me and who constantly remind me of my divine heritage. I am a princess, for I am a daughter of a King.
  I made a little handout (<-- that picture over there) so if you want to you can use it. I understand it is directed towards girls, but I'm pretty sure I don't have many Young Men's leaders reading my blog....:) Anyway, have a wonderful week readers!

1 Nephi 7

Sorry this post is a wee bit late....I spent a little too much time Skyping my family last night, so blogging got pushed to today. I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend like I did and are all rested up to dive into 1 Nephi chapter 7. So this is the part where Nephi and his brothers bring Ishmael and his family into the wilderness with them. Nephi, his brothers and Zoram then marry the daughters of Ishmael. Where would this story be without a little romance, right? So, Laman and Lemuel and two of the sons of Ishmael had to ruin things and start complaining and conspiring against Nephi. Now look at verse 11 where Nephi says, "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us, in delivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?" Replace the phrase "out of the hands of Laban" and "that we should obtain the record" and put in one of your own trials. For example, "delivering me from my cold so that I could sleep and be ready for my exam." Or, "delivering me from a late house payment so that I could pay my tithing." This verse is a good reminder that we need to remember the blessings we have received and the challenges the Lord has gotten us through. In verse 12 Nephi goes on to say, "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him." It isn't just the Nephi's and Moroni's of the world that receive miracles from the Lord. Its the you's and me's of the world. So, I challenge you to count your blessings this week (don't worry, I'll be doing it too). If you do it, comment and let me know if it changed your day, or maybe even your week! One last thought from chapter 7. In verse 21 we read, "And it came to pass that I did frankly forgive all that they had done..." Nephi's brothers were terrible to him! But he forgave them in the blink of an eye. That was a lesson I needed this week, so I thought I'd share that little tidbit, too.
To go along with the thoughts above ^^ here is an adorable handout (courtesy of the ever adorable Lil' Luna blog) http://lilluna.com/count-your-blessings-printable/