“O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant.” (Nehemiah 1:11)

Old Testament nobleman Nehemiah | via ChurchofJesusChrist.org

How many times have we felt as the faithful Old Testament nobleman Nehemiah and found ourselves on our knees “beseeching” the Lord in prayer? The word “beseech” means to beg eagerly for or to make an urgent appeal. No one makes it through this life without some degree of sorrow and some seem to have more than others. Sometimes we feel strong as we bear our burdens but other times we feel weak and desperately seek relief. The greatest source of relief comes through our loving Heavenly Father.

However, sometimes our pleadings to the Lord seem to go unanswered. Why are some prayers answered to the immense relief and joy of the supplicant while others are left to wade through their trials? Why are some prayers answered immediately and others take time? Why is it that as I struggle to do what is right, I see others prospering and living a life of relative ease while ignoring the counsels of God? Wouldn’t life be better without trials and tribulations? Why me?

Feeling like I needed more understanding on this matter, I looked to the Lord. After my own beseeching, I turned to the scriptures. In the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, I found a man named Amulek who was teaching a group of people about prayer. He taught them:

“Yeah, humble yourselves, and continue in prayer unto him. . .

 

. . . ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.

 

Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around you.

 

And now behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you, do not suppose that this is all; for after ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need—I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites who do deny the faith.” (Alma 34:19,26-28)

I realized that I was not doing as much as I could. I assumed prayer would be enough but there is much more the Lord wants us to do as we seek answers. Early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known to many as the Mormons, were suffering great persecutions and were told that “they were slow to hearken unto the voice of the Lord their God; therefore, the Lord their God is slow to hearken unto their prayers, to answer them in the day of their trouble” (Doctrine and Covenants 101:7). I realized that if I wanted something from the Lord, I needed to be diligent in my efforts to follow His commandments.

I continued my search for understanding. President Spencer W. Kimball, the twelfth President of the Church, wrote a book called Faith Precedes the Miracle. In it I found enlightenment. He said:

“Should all prayers be immediately answered according to our selfish desires and our limited understanding, then there would be little or no suffering, sorrow, disappointment, or even death, and if these were not, there would also be no joy, success, resurrection, nor eternal life and godhood. …

 

Being human, we would expel from our lives physical pain and mental anguish and assure ourselves of continual ease and comfort, but if we were to close the doors upon sorrow and distress, we might be excluding our greatest friends and benefactors. Suffering can make saints of people as they learn patience, long-suffering, and self-mastery. …

 

If all the sick for whom we pray were healed, if all the righteous were protected and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled and the basic principle of the gospel, free agency, would be ended. No man would have to live by faith. …

 

If joy and peace and rewards were instantaneously given the doer of good, there could be no evil—all would do good but not because of the rightness of doing good. There would be no test of strength, no development of character, no growth of powers, no free agency, only satanic controls.” (Faith Precedes the Miracle (1972), 97-100)

Reading this was to me as “cold waters to a thirsty soul” (Proverbs 25:25). How could we feel joy if we never felt sorrow? We would never know the difference. We were sent to this earth as a test; to gain experience and make wise choices. It is often referred to as the plan of salvation or the plan of happiness.

What if everyone was granted every desire just by asking? What if no one ever got sick or died? How would God’s plan work? What if every good deed was immediately rewarded and every wrong choice instantly punished? Everyone would be good, I have no doubt — but what would be our motivation? It would be a conditioned response without understanding.

I thought back through my life and realized the times of greatest distress were also the times of greatest growth. I could see that the Lord lifted and strengthened me as needed. Sometimes He answered my prayers immediately, sometimes after some time had passed, and sometimes in ways I wasn’t expecting. As I stayed close to Him, He always answered my prayer and I came out of the experience a better person.

It is still painful to go through sorrow and distress. Sometimes it is self-inflicted, sometimes others inflict it, and sometimes things just happen. I know now to stay close to the Lord and obey his commandments. I also need to include deep supplication and conversation with Him followed by doing what I can to help others who are suffering. I need to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees” (Doctrine and Covenants 81:5). Then I need to leave it up to God, knowing He knows what is best for me and will answer my prayer appropriately.

As I have continued through life with this knowledge, I realized I can be happy and at peace even in the midst of trouble. I know Heavenly Father loves me and is watching out for me. I can see His hand in my life guiding me and supporting me and helping me to return to Him.

This article was originally published in January 2009. Minor changes have been made.

Ben

And there shall be silence in heaven for the space of half an hour; and immediately after shall the curtain of heaven be unfolded, as a scroll is unfolded after it is rolled up, and the face of the Lord shall be unveiled; (Doctrine and Covenants 88:95)

In the verse prior to this, the Lord describes some of the disturbing things that will be happening right before Jesus Christ appears on Earth again. Now, I recognize that this scripture is ultimately talking about the Second Coming of Christ, but I found it working into my mind in regard to managing my own time. I saw, though not the exact complications, the same amount of chaos trying to wiggle its way into my own life. No, I may not face some of the horrible trials and loss of faith that the world in general will be experiencing. I do, however, experience those moments when everything seems to be falling apart, when there is more going on than I feel I can possibly handle, and I’m lost to know which direction to turn in my struggle to free myself.

I like the analogy of verse 95 as it can apply to me personally when I find myself in such a disheveled state. The key, I think, was silence. There was silence for the space of half an hour and then the Lord was revealed. The answer is in the silence: a quiet time of introspection when the world and its influences are pushed away, leaving room for the Spirit only. It’s a special time of preparation, inviting in good things that are to come. Every disciple needs moments when they are just quiet, when they can reflect on what matters most and ponder the course of their life as it relates to their Savior.

How busy is your life? What would it take for you to find just half an hour each day to be silent and think about the Savior? Some days, it would probably take an awful lot—and those are probably the days we need it most. One of the greatest blessings of discipleship is the ability to build a personal and loving relationship with Jesus Christ. We need those moments when nothing else matters but that relationship. We need a little time to ask ourselves what we did today that the Lord is pleased in, what we did that should have been better, and how we will let Him guide us more fully tomorrow.

Make a goal to be silent! If half an hour isn’t feasible, try to find just 10 or 15 minutes. Get up a little earlier or go to bed a little later, spend a little more time in the shower, take an extended walk, hide in the broom closet on your lunch hour—do whatever it takes to give yourself a few moments in which Christ can show you His face and nature.

Heavenly Father has told us over and over again to “Be still, and know that I am God.” So that’s my advice for today:  push everything away except your scriptures, your prayers, your faith, and an open heart. Let there be silence for several minutes and see God anew in the world around you.

This article was originally published in July 2008. Minor changes have been made. 

Alison P

Tragedy after tragedy strikes and yet some people still get up every single morning and keep moving forward. How do they that? How can they pick up the broken pieces of their lives and keep putting one foot in front of the other? It is because Jesus Christ is not some made-up ethereal being. He isn’t just some random person who lived and died 2000+ years ago. He is the real and living God, the “Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New.” Because He is real, I believe His message and the hope He offers.

Our Savior descended from on high that He might not only restore the fulness of the gospel, but to endure the Atonement. He suffered on our behalf, freeing us from an eternity of sin and pain, then broke the bands of death with His Resurrection. There is a peace that comes with this knowledge regardless of the trials life throws at you.

The loss of a loved one tears at the very fabric of a family, and yet with that sorrow comes the peace of understanding that mortality is but a brief moment in time, and that the eternities await. In those eternities, if we have sought truth and have striven to live by its precepts, we will be reunited with those we love.

“Eternal life is the phrase used in scripture to define the quality of life that our Eternal Father lives. The Lord declared, “This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). Immortality is to live forever as a resurrected being. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, everyone will receive this gift. Eternal life, or exaltation, is to live in God’s presence and to continue as families (see D&C 131:1–4). Like immortality, this gift is made possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. However, to inherit eternal life requires our “obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel” (Articles of Faith 1:3) (LDS.org Gospel Topics, “Eternal Life“).

This is more than vain hope. It is more than a childhood wish. It is truth in its purest form. With this truth comes the knowledge that great joy awaits us if we can but endure to the end.

Yes, I have fallen to my knees in pain and sorrow and wept to my Heavenly Father, begging for release from the pain.

Yes, my faith has been shaken on occasion.

Yes, I have cried unto my God when it seemed I had not the strength to continue.

In the darkest of nights, when my spirit drooped low, it was at that moment, with tears coursing down my face, that I knew my God lived. I knew Jesus Christ had bled from every pore to pay for my sins, my sorrow, my grief… And that because He did, I was able to shake off that sorrow, lift my head, and stand tall.

This is not a knowledge I can give you, but something you must seek after yourself. I testify that Jesus is the Christ, the Everliving God, and through Him—and only through Him—may relief from the pain of life be found. Only through Him and His teachings will you find the principles, practices, and precepts that will lead you ever closer to perfection. And in your deficit of perfection, if you testify of Him, live for Him, teach of Him, and preach of Him, He will reach down with a loving, scarred hand to lift you up.

Truth is testified of in so many ways. But as the warmth of that knowledge infuses my body and spirit, there is a certainty in my heart: there is Hope and His name is Jesus Christ.

This post was originally published in May 2008. Minor changes have been made.

Candace

I suppose anyone would agree with his feelings. But later on he wrote, “I freely admit that I don’t want to die. I don’t worry about what comes after death—I am not a “spiritual person” in the slightest. When I die I expect nothing but nothing. Life will be over. That is what I dread. I can’t imagine saying goodbye to life and all the things in it that mean something to me, especially to the people I love.”

I know my friend is an avowed atheist. Several times we have had discussions about God and life after death. He simply believes he is right and sees no logic in believing otherwise. To him, there is no God in heaven, no Christ, no Redeemer, nor anything after this life but a void and emptiness. Everything will be as blank and empty then as before his first memories.

Why Do People Fail to Pursue Spiritual Knowledge?

I find it so sad that he is willing to give up on life after death without even examining the alternatives. I have often asked myself, “Why do so many of God’s children give up so easily in the pursuit of the knowledge that leads to immortality and eternal life? What is the harm of pursuing this hope with every last bit of strength we have? What can be of more worth than living in God’s kingdom for time and all eternity and seeking exaltation?”

Yet, for various reason, many of God’s children would rather remain in darkness and ignorance than humble themselves and learn of Him and of His unconditional love for each of us—love that provides us with eternal life and exaltation after this life if we work to accept it.

My friend is a good man in all respects. He is a good family man raising several wonderful children and caring for his dear wife with love and kindness. He contributes his time and efforts to the community. But he will have nothing to do with religion either formally or informally.

What are some of the possible reasons for him and so many like him to follow this hopeless route in life? I offer here a few thoughts that might shed some light on the subject.

1. No Religion in the Home

Some people live without God and religion simply because they never heard of it in their homes while growing up. Children most often follow the ways of their parents, whether they know it or not. Look at how children tend to follow their parents’ political persuasions. More often than not, democrats follow democrats and republicans become republicans.

There is no truer example of this trend than in The Book of Mormon. The Lamanites followed the traditions of their fathers and were a godless people and, as such, were almost constantly in ignorance of Christ and his teachings. This verse sums it up: “And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the tradition of their fathers.”

Because of these false traditions, generations of Lamanite children grew up in ignorance of Christ and His teachings. This conflicts with the happier outcome when children are under the teachings and influence of parents who teach the powerful truths of the Spirit of Christ. These faithful parents produce generations of men and women who believe in Christ, follow His teachings, and live by correct principles, having hope in eternal life and exaltation.

2. The Joseph Smith Dilemma: Which Church is Right?

Another possible reason for being uninvolved with religion comes down to sheer numbers. With so many churches and religions in the world today, each preaching different doctrines, one can easily become so frustrated that it becomes too confusing to find a satisfactory doctrine to follow. For almost 2,000 years, the true church of Christ was not on the earth. It all but perished with the death of the original apostles. That means that all churches founded during those millennium were the churches of men, following their interpretation of religion rather than God’s.

After the First Vision, Joseph declared about this dilemma:

“. . .I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)—and which I should join.

I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof” (Joseph Smith—History 1:19).

3. Losing Faith in God

Now we come to one of the hardest traits of man to understand. I speak of losing all faith in God (and His love for His children) and replacing it with the science of men. How many have turned their backs on a belief in God because His existence can’t be “proven by science.” They purport that science has all the answers and that it has no room for God. In reality, they know so very little of God and His worlds, yet they think they know enough to disprove His existence.

We should remember Moses as he spoke to God face to face. When finished seeing all of God’s creations, Moses fell to the earth and lost his strength “for the space of many hours” so great were the works of God. It left Moses saying, “Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” The vastness of God’s creations cannot be comprehended by us even in the slightest, yet with our myopic view, we dismiss Him completely from our lives.

It is like the the age-old story of leading a blind man to the side of an elephant, then letting him touch the trunk and asking him to describe the whole beast. There is so much he does not see nor comprehend without his vision. He cannot do describe the elephant as a whole with any accuracy. The scriptures tell us, “O how marvelous are the works of the Lord, and how long doth he suffer his people; yea, how blind and impenetrable are the understandings of the children of men, for they will not seek wisdom, neither do they desire that she should rule over them.”

4. Our Own Agency

Another reason for refusing to accept the teachings of life after death and the existence of God is that we all have the right to do so. We can make choices to abandon God of our own free will for various shortsighted reasons. This is the improper application of “free,” or better yet, “moral” agency. God will never force anyone to accept and worship him. We read in the scriptures, “For remember, remember, my brethren, that whosoever perisheth, perisheth unto himself; and whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself; for behold, ye are free; ye are permitted to act for yourselves; for behold, God hath given unto you a knowledge and he hath made you free.”

Many are the traps set by Satin to entice us into misusing our free agency. The Book of Ephesians best sums up the pit into which we can fall into by improper use of our agency: “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the slight of men, and the cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive . . .”

The list of idols that man has to choose from rather than God’s way are many. He can freely choose the praise of man, power, pride, vanity, excessive wealth, immorality in all its facets, intellectualism, and a multitude of other vices that trap and starve us spiritually.

The height to which men will go to in choosing unholy objects and objectives was best brought to my attention a few years ago when I was looking at the large and expensive luxury yachts anchored in a South Florida marina. As I passed a huge new boat several hundred feet in length, my host said to me that it costs the owner over $1,000,000 a year just to berth and maintain this one yacht!

As I looked up at the stern of this boat to see what its name was I was appalled. It was christened “NEVER ENOUGH.” It just proved to me that without God in our lives, our appetites become unquenchable. Without Him, we would never make the time nor effort to live Christlike lives. It would not take long for mankind to fall into the abyss described by Alma about the people of Ammonihah. In a state of apostasy, the Ammonihah-ites became a hard-hearted and a stiffnecked people; a lost and fallen people who would be visited with utter destruction as a judgment from God.

5. Apathy

Lastly (and sadly), what holds so many from seeking out a testimony of immortality and eternal life is apathy. Many are just too busy or lazy to be bothered at this time. As Elder L. Tom Perry said, “A major problem we face in preaching the gospel in the world is general apathy toward religion, toward things spiritual. Too many are very comfortable with their present lifestyle and feel no need to do more than “eat, drink and be merry” (Luke 12:19). They are not interested in anything but themselves—here and now.”

Until we can convince man to stop and take time to explore the true nature of God and His eternal love for us, then many of his children will walk in their own way and after the image of their own god.

Their likeness will be a reflection of the image of the world. There is so much more to be gained by following Christ. This, then, should be our great goal in life—to be missionaries with the wholesome goal to teach the plan of salvation until all believe.

George Domm

George Domm was born and raised in upstate New York around historical LDS sites such as the Hill Cumorah and Palmyra. He was very familiar with the Church long before he was baptized in 1959. Soon after joining, he found himself serving a full-time mission for the Church in Berlin, Germany. That was his first of four missions! George currently lives in American Fork, UT with his wife, Margaret, and busies himself trying to keep up with their 11 children and 42 grandchildren. He loves to do family history and play golf with “all the old men in our neighborhood.” His goal is to one day shoot his age, 74.

Regardless of perceptions, opinions, and judgments rendered by individuals or groups, all debate about the meaning of being Christian quickly disappears as we look to the Son of God, and let Christ set the standard.

The following represents a foundational beginning point for defining what it means to be “Christian”–what it means to be “a follower of Christ.” The standard and “the way” (John 14: 6) must be set by the Savior Himself:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3: 16).

There is no question that being Christian begins with “believing in him.” Now, let’s look to our Lord Jesus to understand what it means to believe in Him:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also (John 14: 12).

Christ has established His doctrines of salvation: In the Savior’s own words, “believing in him” involves actively doing the “works” that He did–believing in Christ does not happen passively. In the New Testament, there are two fundamental meanings of the word “works” as follows:

1) The works of the “law of Moses” (Acts 13: 38, 39), devoid of faith in Jesus Christ, are also referred to as “dead works” (Hebrews 9: 14).

 

2) The works of the “law of faith” (Romans 3: 27), the doings and deeds that are done directly because of faith in Christ, are also called “good works” (Titus 2: 14).

The motive for which we do the “works of Christ” (Matt. 11: 2) defines the difference between “good works” and “dead works”–the former being a necessary element that manifests an active belief in Christ, and the latter being precisely the kind of work that Paul called empty “eyeservice” (Ephesians 6: 6).

This good and active form of faith in Christ is further reinforced by the New World Translation of John 3: 16, thus: “For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life” (John 3: 16, NWT).

Jesus Christ

The phrase “exercising faith” correctly captures the active expression of “believing” that followers of Christ will manifest through “doing good” (Acts 10: 38)–a goodness that honors and emulates the example set by the Savior.

The New Testament speaks of “dead works” but also warns of “dead faith”–a passive form of faith, devoid of diligently doing the works of Christ. Because he listened to and learned from the direct teachings of Jesus, we clearly understand why James declared:

“For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” (James 2: 26).

Thus, true believers in Christ are active in their faith and will “work the works” of Christ, just as Christ did also “work the works of [the Father]” (John 9: 4).

Christ decried the practice of doing religious works to be “seen of men” (Matt 6: 5); works motivated to garner the “praise of men” (John 12: 43); works that foolishly try to build a tower to heaven, as if one could work his way to heaven by the puny power of mortal might–apart from “the merits of him who is mighty to save” (2 Nephi 31: 19). These are not “good works,” they are not faith-filled works.

In contrast, the “good works” that manifest belief in Christ, will witness of His infinite mercy and grace, for humble followers of Christ realize that they can only do good as they “abide in the vine,” for without Christ we “can do nothing” (John 15: 1-5).

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints not only believe in Christ but also believe His words–all of them. Mormons fully and wholly believe every word that Jesus has spoken from the beginning of time, until to today; we seek to faithfully live according to His words and His works–for such is the core meaning of being Christian.

Matt M

Imagine you’re in ancient Rome.

Your family is wealthy. You have all that you need for a comfortable living, and more. Your slaves attend to your needs and you are free to study and enjoy life.

You have a place of respect and enjoy elegant society gatherings. And when people see you in the streets they show a certain reverence.

Then one day you hear of a Man who had died about 150 years before you were born. He wasn’t just any man. Those who have taught you tell you that He was the Son of God. He was crucified for the sins of the world. And He overcame death by arising three days after being placed in the tomb.

He came to teach you a better way to live. He came to save you from your sins. He is your Redeemer. And His teachings are beautiful. As you learn of Him your heart burns and you feel a love you have never felt before.

Perpetua was a brave early Christian.

You become so convinced that this Jesus of Nazareth was who He said He was, that you desire baptism to follow in His path. Your parents plead with you. They know well of what awaits you in the Roman Empire during this time. You will become one of the dreaded Christians. As such, you will be fed to the wild beasts in a coliseum, tortured, and driven from polite company.

You listen to their pleadings. But your heart knows the truth. It knows that this Man of whom so many belittle really was who He claimed. There is no other way. It is true.

So you make your decision. You and a small group of friends are baptized. And just as promised, you are taken to prison. This forces a separation from you and your newborn child. You begin to pine in prison, knowing that by the moment, your baby grows weaker from not nursing.

The guard has compassion on you. He allows your friends to bring your baby to you for sustenance. But the day arises, the day that you will be brought with your friends to the coliseum to face the wild beasts in front of hundreds, if not thousands, of jeering Romans.

Her regal presence hushed the crowd.

You grip those close to you and make your journey to that place. Finally, you are offered one last time to turn your back on your new found Christianity. You refuse. In fact, you stand side by side with one of your slaves, who is weak from having given birth two days before the pending martyrdom. Your regal presence hushes the crowd, an unusual occurrence, this quiet in a coliseum.

Your last thoughts as the hungry lion and bear are released are . . . ?

This story is summarized from the actual journal, amazingly preserved, of a young Christian follower named Perpetua. She was an aristocrat whose life could have been one of relative ease. But she died for her new found faith in Jesus Christ. She was valiant in her faith, and valiant to the end.

Learning of this woman has deepened my faith tremendously. I cannot imagine the thoughts coursing through her mind as she held her babe one last time. Or her thoughts as she watched her slave girl birth her own baby two days before death by beasts. This small band of Christians refused to renounce their love of the Lord and thus underwent a painful death.

What of me? What am I doing today to live in such a way that I refuse to bow down to society’s gods? For that is what young Perpetua had refused to do. She sacrificed greatly for her faith.

Christians perished at the mouths of lions in the Colosseum.

Am I willing to do the same? Am I willing to at least pick up my scriptures daily to sup from His word, the same word so many in history have died for?

I’m sorry to say that some days I do better than others. But after having read of Perpetua yesterday, I am determined that no day will pass again– through till the end of my life– without my having worshiped the Lord at least through scripture study. If Perpetua could die for the Lord, I can begin certainly to live for Him!

Indeed, some of the best study aids and resources for understanding the scriptures and applying them are by learning from the valiant around us.

Cindy B

The Doctrine and Covenants is a collection of divine revelations and inspired declarations given for the establishment and regulation of the kingdom of God on the earth in the last days. Although most of the sections are directed to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the messages, warnings, and exhortations are for the benefit of all mankind, and contain an invitation to all people everywhere to hear the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, speaking to them for their temporal well-being and their everlasting salvation.

 

Most of the revelations in this compilation were received through Joseph Smith, Jun., the first prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Others were issued through some of his successors in the Presidency. (See headings to Sections 135, 136, and 138, and Official Declarations 1 and 2.)

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ, Jehovah of the Old Testament and the Messiah of the New Testament, has been in communication with His prophets since Adam. The Old and New Testament prove this. What has been interesting, is that somehow certain members of the human race at one point, and I’m not going to point fingers, decided God was no longer communicating with mankind and that was that.

That wasn’t that . . . God is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8, 1 Nephi 10:18-19). Because of this, reason dictates that He has continued to speak to His prophets until this very day. This is wonderful and should be cause for great rejoicing.

In the Doctrine & Covenants there are so many wonderful scriptures, but there is a passage that speaks so clearly and deeply to my heart. Joseph Smith, Jr. was persecuted from 1820 to 1838 when his life was brutally and viciously taken by a mob with their faces painted black.

Prior to that dark day, the Saints had been driven from state to state by their persecutors. They were robbed, raped, tarred and feathered, and murdered . . . there was no action too vile for those who drove the Saints from their homes over and over again.

When the Saints gathered in Missouri it was not long before they became a powerful voting block, more powerful than any other voting block in the state. There are many reasons why the Missouri atrocities occurred, but this is one of the main ones: greed.

Joseph Smith

Missouri was the last state admitted into the union that was a slave state. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints vehemently opposed slavery and its members were very vocal about it. The largest land and slave owner of the state of Missouri was the infamous Governor Lilburn Williams Boggs. It was he who issued the Extermination Order on the 27th of October in 1838.

Headquarters of the Militia
City of Jefferson, October 27, 1838
Gen. John B. Clark.

 

Sir:-

 

Since the order of this morning to you, directing you to cause four hundred mounted men to be raised within your division, I have received by Amos Rees, Esq. of Ray county and Wiley C. Williams, Esq., one of my aids, information of the most appalling character, which entirely changes the face of things, and places the Mormons in the attitude of an open and avowed defiance of the laws, and of having made war upon the people of this State.

 

Your orders are, therefore, to hasten your operations with all possible speed. The Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary, for the public peace-their outrages are beyond all description. If you can increase your force, you are authorized to do so, to any extent you may consider necessary.

 

I have just issued orders to Maj. Gen. Willock of Marion county, to raise five hundred men, and to march them to the northern part of Daviess, and there unite with General Doniphan, of Clay, who has been ordered with five hundred men to proceed to the same point for the purpose of intercepting the retreat of the Mormons to the north.

 

They have been directed to communicate with you by express, you can also communicate with them if you find it necessary. Instead, therefore, of proceeding as at first directed to reinstate the citizens in their homes, you will proceed immediately to Richmond and then operate against the Mormons.

 

Brig. Gen. Parks of Ray, has been ordered to have four hundred of his Brigade in readiness to join you at Richmond. The whole force will be placed under your command.

 

I am very respectfully,
Your Ob’t Serv’t,
L. W. BOGGS, Commander-in-Chief.

Joseph Smith writing in Liberty Jail

This heinous letter has been nick named “The Mormon Extermination Order”.  It began the wholesale slaughter of Mormons in every community across the state of Missouri. Many fled into the cold wintry night and crossed the frozen Mississippi with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

As mobs roamed the countryside Joseph Smith, Jr. determined that the only way to stop this was to surrender himself to the authorities. It was really him they wanted and so he, Hyrum Smith (his brother), Parley P. Pratt and a few others surrendered. It didn’t stop the massacres, the rapes, the plundering, but by the time Joseph escaped from jail six months later, there wasn’t a Latter-day Saint left in Missouri.  The extermination order had done it’s job.

During his long and painful sojourn in Liberty Jail Joseph wrote:

1 O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?

 

2 How long shall thy hand be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?

 

3 Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?

 

4 O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devil, and the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol—stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.

 

5 Let thine anger be kindled against our enemies; and, in the fury of thine heart, with thy sword avenge us of our wrongs.

 

Joseph Smith praying in Liberty Jail

6 Remember thy suffering saints, O our God; and thy servants will rejoice in thy name forever. (D&C 121:1-6)

How often have we pled unto God the Father, “O God, where art thou”?  Joseph Smith suffered so much because he would not deny that he’d seen Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He refused to deny it even when mobs tarred and feathered him, tried to force poison down his throat, and left him in a field to die . . . he still would not deny Jesus Christ.

We look around at our lives, and sometimes see the ruin we have made of this gift we call mortality. Sometimes our lives are so wracked with pain, torture and suffering, that some wonder if there even is a God.

I pledge to you, He hears your cries. God is there and watching over you. Sometimes it is years or decades before we see the hand of God in things. Sometimes it seems as if we are given more than we can bear.

The Lord did answer Joseph’s plea, “Thou art not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job.” (D&C 121:10)

When life gets dark and it seems as if you cannot go on . . . that is when you open your eyes and recognize the hand of God in every aspect of your lives. Friends, family, majestic mountains, beautiful lakes, gorgeous flowers, health . . . God and His angels. His loving touch is all around us, if we will but open our eyes and see. You are never alone and I promise you, this trial too shall pass. Pray and pray often . . . listen . . . and then act.

Candace

For that reason, I decided not to use a teacher, even though my Mormon congregation has two very talented instructors. Mormon is a nickname people sometimes use when they are talking about people who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It’s fine to use it to describe the people, but Mormons always ask that it not be used in place of the name of the Church.

Using Hymns to Learn Piano
Our church has a keyboarding course that teaches people how to play using Church hymns. You can use it with a teacher or you can teach yourself to play. I ordered it and went to work. As I anticipated, it was a very slow and tedious process and I’m sure all the six-year-olds in church are learning to play much faster than I am. However, I realized that slowness had a unique benefit.

Two days ago I started learning to play with both hands at once. Thanks to some learning disabilities, I expected this to be an impossible task and it certainly seemed like it would be. I had first learned to play each hand separately and was now ready to put them together. The book spends a lot of time on Sacrament songs because they are slower. Sacrament is the Mormon term for Communion. I began with a hymn called, “While of These Emblems We Partake.”

I spent the entire half-hour practice on just those specific words, which are the first words of the song. Since you’re supposed to sing them while you play I spent a lot of time singing those words. After I started getting the hang of it a little, I began to think about what the words mean.

The emblems are the bread and water. Mormons substitute water for wine. Mormons believe they represent the blood and body of Christ, rather than actually being the blood and water, and so they are emblems. As I practiced, I thought about why those symbols matter. Why are we asked to remember the blood and body, and not just the atonement of Jesus Christ?

The next line, which was yesterday’s practice, says, “In Jesus’ name and for his sake.” During yesterday’s practice, which only required ten minutes to get the line right the first time, I began to think about Jesus’ life and what it meant that we take the Sacrament not just in His name, but for His sake. How did my taking of the Sacrament help Him to carry out His mission? How did it honor His powerful sacrifice on my behalf?

As I work on each line, I have time, once the initial struggle is past, to reflect on the meaning of each song. I find myself singing it as I go about my day, giving me more time to reflect. I am thinking about the songs in new ways and when we sing them in church, I find myself reflecting on them as I sing because I now understand their message.

The Holy Spirit Helps Us Learn

I have discovered I can master a song (to my low standards) much faster than the drills. When I taught English as a Second Language in Church, my advanced students told me they learned English by reading the Book of Mormon. They learned faster that way than by reading other books. While the Bible also worked, it was harder to find translations that coordinated the way the Book of Mormon translation does, where there is just one translation for each language. They felt that as they read from the scriptures in English, the Holy Ghost helped them understand and they learned faster.

Later, I encouraged some children I taught to practice reading scriptures of any kind. They were struggling with reading and had asked for advice. I told them that when we are reading God’s words, He helps us understand them and so our reading improves. The Mormons have an adult literacy program that uses scripture study to teach reading for just that reason.

To read more articles by Terrie Bittner, please click here.

I think this applies to my music as well. Because I am working on spiritual music, the Spirit is able to testify of the truthfulness of the message, but also to help me to play more effectively. I still have to work hard, and my disabilities don’t go away, but I am doing something it was thought I could not learn to do. My fingers, though arthritic, are managing to play most days. My learning disabilities mean I have to spend a half hour on a tiny portion of song, but those half hours add up and I’m learning new songs faster than I learned the first ones.

While I thought of learning to play as simply a fun thing with no special value except pleasure, it has turned into a spiritual experience for me. It has given the hymns new meaning and given me time I probably would not have taken in which to reflect on a specific hymn for weeks at a time.

Terrie Lynn Bittner

The late Terrie Lynn Bittner—beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend—was the author of two homeschooling books and numerous articles, including several that appeared in Latter-day Saint magazines. She became a member of the Church at the age of 17 and began sharing her faith online in 1992.

The Crucible of Doubt is a book designed to help intellectual readers who are struggling with their faith find ways to approach and understand issues related to a perfect church run by imperfect people. It is also for those working to help these people. It is not a book for everyone, as you will come to see.

Terryl Givens is a professor of religion and literature at the University of Virginia. His wife, Fiona Givens, is a retired instructor of modern languages and is now an independent scholar. Brother Givens has written a number of books on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has co-authored several with his wife. Fiona Givens has published many pieces on her religion.

Each day a review appears this week, the link will be added to the list with a tag that clues you in to the blogger’s background. This will help you decide who might be most useful to you. Read them all to get a complete picture of the book from a diverse group of bloggers.

Reviewers:

Saturday, November 1: Valerie Steimle, approaching the book as a Jewish Convert and Intellectual Spouse

Sunday, November 2: Nanette O’Neal, approaching as an East Coast convert

Monday, November 3: Terrie Bittner, approaching as a convert and apologetics fan.

Tuesday, November 4: Tudie Rose, approaching as a reactivated Latter-day Saint.

Wednesday, November 5: Jane Thurston, approaching as a converted life-long member

Thursday, November 6: Britt Kelly, approaching as one who is exploring how we perceive our faith

Thursday, November 6: Richard D. Olsen, approaching as a Latter-day Saint in Utah

Sunday, November 9: Nanette finishes her review of the book, started last Sunday.

Patty Sampson adds her thoughts on the book.

Terrie Lynn Bittner

The late Terrie Lynn Bittner—beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend—was the author of two homeschooling books and numerous articles, including several that appeared in Latter-day Saint magazines. She became a member of the Church at the age of 17 and began sharing her faith online in 1992.

If you’ve been following this series, you’ll remember that we’ve been studying the teachings of a man named Nephi. We are skipping a lot of great stuff now in order to get closer to the most important part of the Book of Mormon and today we’re reading the works of Nephi’s brother Jacob. When he began to keep the records, he said that God told him to keep those records that testified of Jesus Christ, because they were the most precious of all teachings.

Follow along as we read about Sherem in the Book of Mormon free online.

Anti-Christ in the Book of Mormon

Jacob noted that under the next kings, the Nephites started turning away from Jesus Christ. A man named Sherem showed up and began teaching the people that Jesus Christ would not come to earth as the prophets had testified. He told people whatever they wanted to hear (which is usually whatever makes salvation seem easy and without sacrifice of worldly pleasure) in order to lead them away from the church. He succeeded, but he really wanted to teach Jacob, knowing Jacob had a personal testimony of Jesus Christ. His plan was to use his power of speech to mesmerize Jacob into losing his testimony. He was also very learned and thought he could reason him out of a testimony.

What he didn’t understand was that a true testimony is pretty unshakable if you are living according to your faith. Jacob knew Christ was real. He’d received personal revelation, he’d seen angels, and he’d personally heard the voice of the Lord speaking to him. He lived his faith and knew its value. His faith was unshakable because he had chosen to make it that way.

Sherem’s methods were similar to those used today by people who prefer to convert by attack, taking away but giving nothing in return. Let’s look at what he did to try to shake Jacob’s faith and how Jacob was able to resist Sherem’s lies.

How People Try to Rob Us of Our Faith

First, Sherem used false labels. He said that Jacob was committing blasphemy by saying there would be a Christ and by teaching people that the Law of Moses was not the way to salvation. It should be noted that the people kept the Law of Moses, but they taught that the law did not save them—that was done only by Jesus Christ. Using the term blasphemy—incorrectly—was designed to frighten Jacob into changing his ways. Jacob wasn’t impressed. He knew he was not the one committing blasphemy because he knew the scriptures and the gospel.

Then he uses an argument that is pretty silly for anyone who is thinking. He says, “And now behold, I, Sherem, declare unto you that this is blasphemy; for no man knoweth of such things; for he cannot tell of things to come.”

What is wrong with this argument? If no one can know the future, then how does Sherem know there will not be a Christ? This is a common tactic that involves holding the other religions to a different standard than you hold your own. Turning a question around often reveals the error in this method.

Jacob didn’t argue. He simply asked Sherem if he was, then, denying the Christ. Sherem said if Christ were true, he wouldn’t deny him, but the idea of Christ was false. Jacob then turned to one of the ways we can prove what is true. He asked if Sherem knew the scriptures. Sherem said he did. Jacob gently informed him that if he knew the scriptures, then he didn’t understand them because they taught of Christ.

It’s interesting to note that the scriptures these people had were what had been written just prior to the fall of Jerusalem, not the entire Old Testament. They had what was in
existence when they left Jerusalem. “And I said unto him: Then ye do not understand them; for they truly testify of Christ. Behold, I say unto you that none of the prophets have written, nor prophesied, save they have spoken concerning this Christ.” He taught Sherem that without an atonement, all mankind would be lost.

Proof or Faith?

Sherem then followed a typical pattern, asking Jacob to prove what he was saying. So many want to take the easy path to faith. Instead of studying, making a decision, praying for confirmation of our choice, and waiting for an answer, they want God to do all the work and send a visible sign that takes no familiarity with God or experience in asking for His help.

Jacob, as a prophet, warned Sherem that he was asking for proof of something he already knew. Sherem know there was a Christ—he was preaching for his own selfish purposes. He warned him that asking for a sign was inappropriate, but said that if God chose—and it was God’s choice—to send a sign, it would be that Sherem would be smitten.

This, of course, wasn’t what Sherem wanted. He wanted easy and painless confirmation, not something that would harm him. But he had been warned not to demand a sign. Religion is based on faith and testimony of the Holy Ghost. Only God could choose to give a sign, and He would choose one that met His needs, not Sherem’s needs. This was because Sherem was intentionally and knowingly playing a dangerous spiritual game and was not a sincere seeker of truth.

Sherem was stricken for several days. Then, knowing he was about to die, he asked for the people to gather so that he could confess he had been lying. He did so and then died. This was in response to Jacob’s prayer that the people would have their testimonies restored and understand that there are evil people willing to deceive them.

How to Know What is True

What is the message in this story for us? There are three steps we must take in order to find out what is true. Ezra Taft Benson, a former Mormon prophet, said this story teaches us these three steps to avoid being deceived by modern-day Sherems:

1. Find out what the scriptures say. It’s not enough to take an isolated verse you learned in a witnessing to Mormons class. You need to read all the scriptures and understand them in context and in their entirety.
2. Find out what the prophets have taught—especially the most recent prophets in modern times.
3. Gain a witness through the Holy Ghost. This comes through prayer that is sincere and seeks truth, not just what you want to hear. Let the Holy Ghost testify to you of truth after you have studied it out in your own mind and made a choice. There are some who will falsely tell you that you can’t know who is answering. Since James 1:5 says that if we lack wisdom, we can ask of God, we know this is a false Sherem-type of answer. If God tells us to pray, He will answer our prayers and He will find ways to make sure we know who is answering. It takes time and practice and patience—but the truth is worth it. Don’t you agree?

Terrie Lynn Bittner

The late Terrie Lynn Bittner—beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend—was the author of two homeschooling books and numerous articles, including several that appeared in Latter-day Saint magazines. She became a member of the Church at the age of 17 and began sharing her faith online in 1992.