How Destructive is it to Hurt Others?

In Alma, one of the books in the Book of Mormon, a group of people spent decades dedicating their lives to hatred. Their hatred was a result of generations of lies against their brothers, the Nephites. Then one brave and humble Nephite named Ammon came amongst them and showed them a pattern of goodness and honor. It led to a miraculous conversion of their king and his entire people. When they looked back on their past transgressions, it saddened them deeply to know they had been so bloodthirsty. They made a monumental decision—to bury their weapons of war deep in the earth, never to kill another person in anger again.

How destructive is gossip? How damaging is bullying?  How painful is verbal abuse? They are all harmful enough to make a person feel unwelcome in their own church setting, to keep a person from feeling valued in their family, to cause a child to commit suicide. Verbal abuse swarms around us to the point where it is difficult to get away from. And like the Lamanites of old, it’s a fashionable form of warfare. Sarcasm—vicious comments masked in humor—is the talk of the day. When we take offense and become indignant, we justify our emotional pain by throwing verbal assaults at the offender. And they retaliate with the same abuse.

Hurtful language is our modern-day weapon of war, more so than even automatic rifles or atomic bombs. We can see the destruction left in the wake of warfare. It may take decades to rebuild. But the weapon of unkind words is far more destructive. This weapon is meant to destroy the family: our personal families as well as our church families, or wards. It separates us from each other and ultimately separates us from our Heavenly Family and our eternal home.

God Loves All His Children — Even the Ones You Are Angry With

If we remember how we are loved by our Father in Heaven, we can also remember His love for our brothers. This may not be enough to keep us from being angry with each other at times, but it can be enough to help us bury our weapons of war. Our Father in Heaven loves us and has given us the tools to be like Him. Once we understand the poisonous nature of gossip, we can be quick to bury this habit forever. But how do we keep it buried? The Lamanites have given us the answer.

The Lamanites buried their weapons deep in the ground. A shallow grave was not sufficient. It must have taken them hours to dig the hole. The dirt must have weighed quite a bit when packed on top of the weapons. They left no trace, no chance for retrieval. What comes between us and our weapons of war? We must place something even greater than mounds of dirt, even deeper than a pit. Our Savior, Jesus Christ is willing to stand between us and our weapons of war.

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Jesus Christ is the reason the Lamanites made their promise. He is also the way in which we can keep our same promises. We can say to ourselves, “I refuse to gossip.” But simply making the statement is like throwing the weapons to the ground and walking away. They are still there to pick up the second a mean thought pops into our heads. But if we first dig the ditch by making our commitment to the Lord through covenants and promises to Him, we are on our way. The next step is to fill the pit with Christlike behavior, actions that are contrary to gossipy words. We can also visualize the Savior at the pit, keeping us from reaching down for our former weapons. See His loving face that has forgiven you so many times. Let Him take you in His arms instead of taking up arms. Then turn to your offender and offer words of kindness. A miracle may even occur.

Later in the story of Ammon, converted Lamanites (called the people of Ammon) faced their own opponents. How difficult it must have been to know they would die at the hands of their enemies because they would not take up arms against them—their promise to the Lord was that important to them. But their inaction caused an even greater miracle—their enemies were so taken aback by the display of faith that many converted because of it.

And so the miracle can occur between us and our offenders. When we are faced with verbal attacks, we have the Savior standing at our side. When we take the high road, when we use restraint, when we meet anger with kindness, we are giving a part of the Savior to our attacker. One day, the very same enemy might surprise you. He may be impressed with your faith—impressed enough to change his ways toward compassion as well. He may decide to bury his weapons because he sees something greater.

This article was originally published in 2014. Minor changes have been made.

Nanette ONeal

Nanette O’Neal loves the gospel and is very happy to share her testimony on LDS Blogs. She is a convert to the church and still feels the spirit burn strong within her heart. She graduated from Mason Gross School of the Arts with a degree in music education and has taught children and adults in the private and public sphere for over twenty years. Nanette continues to study the gospel and the art of writing. She writes weekly inspirational articles on her blog and is currently working on an LDS fantasy novel series, A Doorway Back to Forever. You can find her at NanetteONeal.blogspot.com. Nanette has a wonderful husband, talented son, and three beautiful dogs.

Back in the  pre-COVID days when a person could hike in Hawaii, Roxy and I climbed some high peaks together. So as she concluded her mental musings about Samuel the Lamanite climbing the wall in Zarahemla, my imagination went to the vistas we’ve shared—to ridges we climbed to watch the sun both rise and set over the sea and we could “finally see all we have left behind and all that lies before us.”

Pondering the Wall Samuel Climbed

I’ve been enjoying pondering about the wall Samuel climbed. I loved learning that Samuel used the exact same name for Christ that King Benjamin did, 118 years earlier, when he taught the people the new name they would covenant by. Benjamin also stood on high, above the people, in the very same city that they were in when Samuel climbed the wall. I read that one of the reasons the Nephites hated Samuel so much was because this Lamanite dared to use the special name that they had been taught and was calling them to repent and remember it.

Just like Abinadi, Samuel had come once before and tried to preach but the people rejected him. But when Samuel the Lamanite was commanded to turn back, he did. Only this time, instead of coming in a disguise like Abinadi, he climbed the wall.

The prophets are given a message to deliver and must do so no matter what. Both Samuel and Abinadi were protected until they had finished giving the warning they were sent to give.

Walls and Hands

I read a comment on Instagram that was beautiful. Someone cross-referenced Helaman 13:4 with 1 Nephi 21:16.

1 Nephi 21:16:

Behold I have graven thee on the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

Helaman 13:4:

And it came to pass that they would not suffer that he should enter into the city; therefore, he went and got upon the wall thereof, and stretched forth his hand and cried with a loud voice, and prophesied unto the people whatsoever things the Lord put into his heart.

It’s like Samuel the Lamanite stood there symbolizing the Lord saying, “I see your obstacles but look at My hands, see the proof that I am here to climb it with you.” The Lord gives us the tools to rise up and climb over our challenges. He provides the way, like Nephi said in 2 Nephi 31:21.

[T]his is the way’ and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God.

As I listened to President Nelson’s talk from general conference where he introduced the new symbol for The Church of Jesus Christ, with the Savior’s arms outstretched, standing in the arch, it all unfolded to my mind and I saw how everything tied in.

Jesus Christ Is the Center Point of Our Wall

King Benjamin gave the name of the “Saviour” in the very center of his speech. Most chiasmi we read in the Book of Mormon have Christ at their center point. Chiasmi are like the arch. Christ is the keystone at the very middle of the arch and also the end of our old lives and the beginning of the new. Just as He stood in His tomb and broke open the door, the Saviour stands ready to help us do the same.

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Just as Adam and Eve were shut out of the Garden of Eden, and by so doing, we all are born into the lone and dreary world, Jesus Christ helps reverse that process by leading us through the archway of our tombs and into the beautiful paradise that awaits. Our walls of trial, and challenge, and sorrow are all around us like those walls of the tomb. But He stands there, too. He sees our walls, too. And we are in His hands, bound to Him. And He will lift us up and out of that tomb and through the sealed arch to new life.

Then, we stand on our own wall and finally see all we have left behind and all that lies before us. We are closer to Him and more able to see His light from the first rays of dawn to the last sunlit skies. And even in the night, we see more clearly the moon and stars that shine without the pollution of the lesser, confusing mass.

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

Joseph Smith told Brigham Young to “tell the brethren to keep their hearts open to conviction, so that when the Holy Ghost comes to them, their hearts will be ready to receive it.” So when we think that we know something, or are sure about something, we will still be open to the Holy Ghost and accept revelations, promptings, and chastisements.

One reason I love the Book of Mormon is because it’s full of ordinary people having extraordinary experiences. Nearly every character exemplifies this principle of being open to the Holy Ghost, or not.

Unfortunately, Laman and Lemuel didn’t keep their hearts open to the Holy Ghost. They told Nephi, “for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us” (1 Nephi 15:9).

Ether began calling people to repentance during the reign of Coriantumr. Moroni wrote that “Ether did prophesy great and marvelous things unto the people, which they did not believe, because they saw them not” (Ether 12:5).

See, Hear, and Know

A couple of years ago, my scripture study focused on the Savior’s injunction to see, hear, and know. I couldn’t really understand what He meant by “seeing, they would not see” or “hearing, they would not hear.”

At the time, I played the organ for our ward. I got the hymn numbers from the chorister, went to practice the hymns (I even had plenty of time to practice during the week.) I really felt prepared to play the music for Sacrament meeting.

During the Sacrament hymn, I began sensing that something was wrong, really wrong. I usually mentally sing along during the hymn, but the words weren’t jiving with what I was playing. I finished the first verse, a three-lined hymn, and realized the congregation was still singing…the hymn across the page, a four-lined hymn.

My eyes dashed to the posted hymn number and then to my book. I played the wrong hymn! The chorister saw my panic. We stopped. There was just no efficient way to transition to the correct hymn.

Stop. Breathe. Reset. We started again.

I had written down the correct hymn number to practice. I saw the correct hymn number posted on the wall. I saw the correct hymn number in the bulletin. But, I played the wrong hymn. I gained understanding on my scripture study question. Seeing, I did not see. (Candidly, I wish some spiritual lessons didn’t have to be sooo public.)

So how did the Book of Mormon people open their heart to see and hear and know the things of the Holy Ghost?

Seeing Leads to Faith

After hearing Alma’s preaching, the poorest Zoramites approached him. Their leader—I can hear his dejected plea—said, “we have no place to worship our God; and behold, what shall we do?” Alma turned to them with joy and saw “that they were in a preparation to hear the word” (Alma 32:5-6).

They’d gone to a place where they could be taught. They’d gotten up and gotten out of their homes and probably out of their comfort zones. They opened themselves up.

Alma told them that, realistically, they might not understand everything they learned at first. Faith is a process. But, as they “aroused their faculties” and approached the Gospel with at least a “desire to believe” then Alma promised that the Holy Ghost would confirm their baby-steps. And step by step, their knowledge and comprehension would expand, if they maintained that desire to receive truth from God.

My first real experience with the Book of Mormon was when I was 8. My grandmother challenged me to read the whole book by myself. She said if I did, she’d give me $5. That was a lot of money to me. My family read the Book of Mormon together when I was a child, so I’d already read it through with them several times, but this was my first time to do it by myself. I finally finished.

At around the same time, my Primary teacher challenged us to pray to know for ourselves if the Book of Mormon was true. I knelt on my bed and I decided I wouldn’t leave until I received an answer. I began to pray and asked that question. Then I waited, for what seemed like forever. Clearly and distinctly, I heard a voice in my mind saying, “Delisa, you already know the Book of Mormon is true.”

During times of doubt or frustration, this experience, one of the first where I knew God communicated to me through the Holy Ghost, returned to my mind and reconfirmed what I knew to be true. “Delisa, you already know this is true.”

Do you know that the Book of Mormon is true? If you don’t, I challenge you to ask God, and to be open to whatever way He speaks to you and to hear His answer.

Hearing Leads to Repentance

Enos’s faith led to his repentance. I love the verbiage of his story.

He talked about “the wrestle which I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins.”

Sometimes we choose to wrestle with our sins for many years before deciding to repent. God honors our choices, but we cannot find true peace and happiness until we have wrestled ourselves and our bad habits and ask God to forgive our sins.

His heart was open because words which he’d often heard sunk deep into his heart. His soul hungered. He cried to God.

And then, Enos heard the voice: “[T]hy sins are forgiven thee.” Enos said, “Lord, how is it done? And he said unto me: Because of thy faith in Christ…wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee whole” (Enos 1:2-8).

After opening his heart to conviction and learning that he needed to repent, King Lamoni’s father bowed down to God and cried mightily. “O God…if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee” (Alma 22:18).

Knowing Leads to Covenant

God will make Himself known to us. Through covenants.

At great peril, Alma the Elder heard, and accepted, the truth Abinadi preached. He taught other believers Abinadi’s words. They expressed their faith. They had repented. They were prepared for the next step. Baptism.

Alma taught the commitment expected by the covenant—looking outside of self towards others and the Lord. Baptism isn’t a first step for this life only, but for redemption and eternal life. Baptism precedes confirmation of the Holy Ghost.

“And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts” (Mosiah 18:11).

King Benjamin’s people demonstrate the sanctifying and purifying power of receiving the Holy Ghost.

“And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.

And we, ourselves, also, through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things” (Mosiah 5:2-3).

Because of the covenant, they became the children of Christ and because of Christ, they were free.

See, Hear, and Know—Enduring in Power

For me, the most impactful Book of Mormon story is of Nephi. Nephi and his brothers listened to Lehi’s vision of the Tree of Life. Nephi learned later that while his brothers had lots of questions about the vision, none of them asked God for answers.

At the end of his record, Nephi’s still lamenting about people not asking God. “Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark.

I am left to mourn because of the unbelief, and the wickedness, and the ignorance, and the stiff neckedness of men; for they will not search knowledge, nor understand great knowledge, when it is given unto them in plainness” (2 Nephi 32:4, 7).

After hearing Lehi’s dream, Nephi desired to see and hear and know for himself. “For it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord” (1 Nephi 11:1) and he saw and heard and knew for himself.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie described how tv and radio signals are bouncing around all around us. but he said, “The minute…we tune a radio to the proper wave band and tune a television receiving set on the proper channel, we begin to hear and see and experience what otherwise remains completely unknown to us.

And so it is with the revelations and visions of eternity. They are around us all the time. This Tabernacle is full of the same things which are recorded in the scriptures and much more. The vision of the degrees of glory is being broadcast before us, but we do not hear or see or experience because we have not tuned our souls to the wave band on which the Holy Ghost is broadcasting.

The Comforter knoweth all things; he is commissioned to bear witness of the Father and the Son, to reveal, to teach, and to testify—and he is broadcasting all the truths of salvation, and all the knowledge and wisdom of God, out into all immensity all of the time.”

Joseph Smith said “The Holy Ghost is a revelator.” And, “No man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelations.”

The Lord’s covenanted promise to us is to reveal Himself when we seek Him. These experiences are not just for people in the scriptures!

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

The Lord promised “then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:12-13).

What a blessing to be commanded to see, hear, and know. In seeing, we are seen. In hearing, we are heard. In knowing, we are known.

The Book of Mormon is our how-to guide, our direction manual to seek and find Jesus Christ. I pray we choose to live our lives so that our “hearts will be open to conviction, so that when the Holy Ghost comes to [us], [our] hearts will be ready to receive it.”

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

As I read their amazing story of redemption and grace, a phrase caught my eye:

And now behold, my brethren, since it has been all that we could do (as we were the most lost of all mankind) to repent of all our sins and the many murders which we have committed, and to get God to take them away from our hearts, for it was all we could do to repent sufficiently before God that he would take away our stain.

“After all we can do” has been a phrase I’ve pondered a lot of my life.  It comes from this verse in 2 Nephi 25.

For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

Wow! Doesn’t that make perfect sense?

We know it is by Jesus Christ’s grace that we are saved after all we can do and it was all we could do to repent sufficiently before God that He would take away our stain!

The salvation I seek is eternal life, which is to live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ eternally. As He prayed His intercessory prayer, Jesus said,

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Enoch taught that the Lord commanded Adam to

teach it unto your children, that all men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God, for no unclean thing can dwell there, or dwell in his presence; for, in the language of Adam, Man of Holiness is his name, and the name of his Only Begotten is the Son of Man, even Jesus Christ, a righteous Judge, who shall come in the meridian of time.

Repentance cleanses our stain so that we can dwell in God’s presence.

Doing All Things

Curious, I wanted to discover if this train of thought carried through other similarly worded scriptures.

In 1 Nephi 17:30-31, Nephi recounts how Jehovah did all things for Israel.

And notwithstanding they being led, the Lord their God, their Redeemer, going before them, leading them by day and giving light unto them by night, and doing all things for them which were expedient for man to receive, they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds, and reviled against Moses and against the true and living God.

And it came to pass that according to his word he did destroy them; and according to his word he did lead them; and according to his word he did do all things for them; and there was not any thing done save it were by his word.

So what the people could do was repent and keep the commandments, because the Lord was taking care of everything else!  He did do all things for them!

Mormon pointed out other temporal ways the Lord did all things for His people.

Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people, yea, in the increase of their fields, their flocks and their herds, and in gold, and in silver, and in all manner of precious things of every kind and art; sparing their lives, and delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; softening the hearts of their enemies that they should not declare wars against them; yea, and in fine, doing all things for the welfare and happiness of his people; yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget the Lord their God, and do trample under their feet the Holy One—yea, and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity.

In Alma 7:8-9, Alma taught that God is doing all things and the next verse on repentance follows this train of thought, too.

This much I do know, that the Lord God hath power to do all things which are according to his word.

But behold, the Spirit hath said this much unto me, saying: Cry unto this people, saying—Repent ye, and prepare the way of the Lord, and walk in his paths, which are straight; for behold, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and the Son of God cometh upon the face of the earth.

The Lord has power to do all things so what we can, and should do, is to repent!  Alma continued his discourse by describing some of the amazing “all things” Jesus would do for us.

Ye Can Do All Things

After we’ve done all we can do and repented and are cleansed by the blood of our Messiah, then another miraculous thing happens!  He gives us power to act in His name!

The first way we act in the Lord’s name is by keeping His commandments. By keeping commandments, we grow in experience and faith and understanding until we can do all things according to His word!

And Christ truly said unto our fathers: If ye have faith ye can do all things which are expedient unto me.

and

Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

and

[T]hey have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord—having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world; having power given them to do all things by faith; having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise….

Cheerfully Do Then Stand Still

“Do all things” is a phrase in one of my very favorite scriptures.

Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.

I love that so much!  We can live cheerfully doing all things in our power and then stand still (with the utmost assurance!) to watch our God do all things in His power for us. I know He can!  And He will!

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

The Amulonites

Aaron and His Brethren Released by Jerry Thompson

The Amulonites descended from Amulon, former priest of King Noah. He and other priests fled with King Noah during a Lamanite attack. They left their wives and children behind in their mad dash out of town. Before they fled, the Lord sent Abinadi to remind them of the doctrine they said they lived and taught. Out of this group, only Alma repented.

The truant priests stole Lamanite daughters and married them. They lived among the Lamanites and taught the Lamanites language and marketing skills. And when it was introduced to them, they adopted the theology of Nehor.

The Amalekites

Similarly, the Amalekites left what they felt were confines of Nephite theology and culture and moved to the Lamanite’s territory. While shedding the oaths and covenants of the Nephites, they still asserted that God existed. This remark by the king over all the land is so interesting.

And Aaron said unto him: Believest thou that there is a God? And the king said: I know that the Amalekites say that there is a God, and I have granted unto them that they should build sanctuaries, that they may assemble themselves together to worship him. And if now thou sayest there is a God, behold I will believe.

They still believed in a God. They built churches and worshipped there. Their belief system was so strong that they apparently requested religious exemption to build churches from the king of all the land. And yet, Mormon described the Amalekites as “a more wicked and murderous disposition than the Lamanites were, in and of themselves.” The Amalekites also converted to Nehor’s teachings.

So two former sets of “believers” experienced apostasy and converted to the same counterfeit theology, the order of the Nehors.

And [Nehor] had gone about among the people, preaching to them that which he termed to be the word of God, bearing down against the church; declaring unto the people that every priest and teacher ought to become popular; and they ought not to labor with their hands, but that they ought to be supported by the people.

And he also testified unto the people that all mankind should be saved at the last day, and that they need not fear nor tremble, but that they might lift up their heads and rejoice; for the Lord had created all men, and had also redeemed all men; and, in the end, all men should have eternal life.

Despite Nehor’s philosophical retractions, few people renounced their belief in his religion.

How does this happen, this careful, baby step, devolution to partial and non-truth?

Apostate Progression

58 years after the publication of his book, Spencer W. Kimball’s explanation reveals a progression of adopting modified truths that still rings true.

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

“Apostasy often begins with criticism of current leaders. Apostasy usually begins with question and doubt and criticism. It is a retrograding and devolutionary process. The seeds of doubt are planted by unscrupulous or misguided people, and seldom directed against the doctrine at first, but more often against the leaders.

 

They who garnish the sepulchres of the dead prophets begin now by stoning the living ones. They return to the pronouncements of the dead leaders and interpret them to be incompatible with present programs. They convince themselves that there are discrepancies between the practices of the deceased and the leaders of the present. They allege love for the gospel and the Church but charge that leaders are a little ‘off the beam!’

 

Soon they claim that the leaders are making changes and not following the original programs. Next they say that while the gospel and the Church are divine, the leaders are fallen.

 

Up to this time it may be a passive thing, but now it becomes an active resistance, and frequently the blooming apostate begins to air his views and to crusade. He is likely now to join groups who are slipping away. He may become a student of the Journal of Discourses and is flattered by the evil one that he knows more about the scriptures and doctrines than the Church leaders who, he says, are now persecuting him. He generally wants all the blessings of the Church: membership, its priesthood, its temple privileges, and expects them from the leaders of the Church, though at the same time claiming that those same leaders have departed from the path.

He now begins to expect persecution and adopts a martyr complex, and when finally excommunication comes he associates himself with other apostates to develop and strengthen cults. At this stage he is likely to claim revelation for himself, revelations from the Lord directing him in his interpretations and his actions. These manifestations are superior to anything from living leaders, he claims. He is now becoming quite independent.

History repeats itself. As the critics of the Redeemer still worshiped Abraham and the critics of Joseph Smith could see only the Savior and his apostles, and as the apostates of Brigham’s day could see only the martyred Joseph, now there are those who quote only the dead leaders of the pioneer era” (Spencer W. Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 462.)

The Book of Mormon shows real-life examples—from Laman and Lemuel to the Nephites of Mormon’s day and the Amulonites, Amakelites, and others in between— of people who escape truth as they grow in pride, begin to murmur, rise in opposition, and eventually, live in open rebellion against the truths they once knew.

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

And ye will not have a mind to injure one another, but to live peaceably, and to render to every man according to that which is his due.

King Benjamin makes this comment after his people had just received the baptism of the Holy Ghost and experienced the remission of their sins.  They achieved salvation through the steps he’d outlined, which he reiterated.  Then King Benjamin said, in verse 12, that if they always retained and remembered that they would

…always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.

Be filled with the love of God, retain a remission of sins, grow in the knowledge of glory of God, grow in the knowledge of just and true, have no mind to injure each other, live peaceably, render to every man according to that which is his due.

I’ve kind of glossed over that phrase before, essentially thinking, “Yeah, yeah, be nice, keep promises, do unto others as you would have others do to you.”  But every time I went through Mosiah 4 this time, this phrase seemed to want more attention.

So I stopped and thought about what does “render to every man according to that which is his due” mean?

In one sense, the phrase reminded me of judgment.  However, the scriptures are clear that the Lord is the judge, not me. So what’s left for me to render?  My help? to keep a promise?

The Lord requires a few things of us: to love Him and keep His commandments and love our neighbors as ourselves. So is charity what is due to others?

All Human Beings…Realize Their Divine Destiny as Heirs of Eternal Life

The Family: A Proclamation to the World identifies some things “which is his due.”

ALL HUMAN BEINGS—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. ….

IN THE PREMORTAL REALM, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life (emphasis added).

During my scripture study, the thought came that this phrase “render…that which is his due” comes after feeling the effects of salvation and living in peace.  I closed my eyes to mentally look for scriptural stories that would teach me this principle. These stories were the stories I thought of in the general order they came to mind.

• Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with oil.
• Jesus washed His disciples with water.
• Jesus suffered for the Fall, for sins, for my sins.
• Abraham let Lot decide which land he wanted.
• Joseph Smith welcomed William W. Phelps, “friends at first are friends at last.”
• David preserved King Saul’s life.
  

  Enos prays for his brethren

• Nephi agreed to be king because his people pled with him to lead them.
• King Benjamin worked for his own support while serving his people.
• Tabitha served women and families in her community.
• Captain Moroni freed captive Lamanites after they make a covenant.
• Jesus healed the leper, paralytic, blind man, those possessed, the woman with the issue.
• Abinadi gave his life so Alma could hear truth.
• Jonah’s preaching saved Ninevah from destruction.
• Amulek received Alma the Younger at great personal cost.
• Abigail pled for David’s mercy for his sake.
• Elisha commanded the Syrian army to be smitten with blindness and then led them safely out of the land.
• The widow gave her mites.
• Naaman’s leprosy was healed.
• Alma and Amulek healed Zeezrom.
• The Shunamite widow’s son rose from the dead.
• Joseph’s brothers bowed before him in Egypt.
• Instead of money, Peter gave healing to the beggar.
• Enos prayed that his brethren and the Lamanites would receive truth.
• Enoch preached repentance to people and they walked with God.
• Abraham paid his tithes and offerings to Melchizedek.
• Paul promised fellow Christians that they were joint-heirs with Christ.

I can see charity, respect, and service with an eye single to God’s glory in those stories.

What “When One Doesn’t Render What Is Due” Looks Like

So how does it look to not render what is due? I mentally searched for examples of those, too.

• Nephi’s brothers tied him to the ship and hoped he’d die.
• Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery.
• Haman paraded Mordecai through the streets of Shushan while plotting to kill the Jews.
• King Saul tried to kill David multiple times.
  

  Nephi tied to the mast by his brothers

• Cain killed Abel.
• Akish killed Jared.
• The daughter of Jared reopened the secret combinations among her people.
• Amalickiah and Ammaron warred against the Nephites.
• Amalickiah rose to the throne through murder and intrigue.
• King Noah’s rule required his people to support his idolatrous lifestyle.
• Jesus’ disciples quarreled over who was greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
• Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver and a kiss.
• Thomas B. Marsh and wife apostatized over milk strippings.
• Simonds Ryder felt offended by name misspelling.
• Coworkers conspired to throw Daniel in a lion’s den.
• Jonah, afraid of the people of Ninevah, fled from the Lord.
• Jesus’ disciples could not cast out demons from a boy.
• A mob stoned Stephen.

While reading these cases of not rendering what is due (from either an eternal or mortal perspective) something C.S. Lewis wrote repeated itself in my mind.  It’s the idea that we must see our neighbors as divine beings.  What he described became, for me, the ultimate statement of my responsibility to “render to every man according to that which is his due.”

To Render By Seeing Who Everyone Truly Is

It may be possible for each to think too much of his own potential glory hereafter; it is hardly possible for him to think too often or too deeply about that of his neighbor.

The load, or weight, or burden of my neighbor’s glory should be laid daily on my back, a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken.

It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare.

All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations.

It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics.

There are no ordinary people.

“Such as I Have, Give I to Thee” by Walter Rane

You have never talked to a mere mortal.

Nations, cultures, arts, civilization—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.

But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.

This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn.

We must play.

But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously—no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.

And our charity must be real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner—no mere tolerance or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment.

Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.

C.S. Lewis —The Weight of Glory (HarperOne, 2001), pp. 45-46

I’d never considered the implications of this phrase in my life. I probably glossed over it more than any other section of King Benjamin’s amazing speech.  I’m so grateful for the opportunity to dive a little deeper into what that phrase could mean and how I can apply it in my life.

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

And there are many among us who have many revelations, for they are not all stiffnecked. And as many as are not stiffnecked and have faith, have communion with the Holy Spirit, which maketh manifest unto the children of men, according to their faith.

This verse in Jarom was my very favorite from the Come, Follow Me chapters this week. I just loved the image of many people in the Nephite community receiving many revelations. And Jarom matter-of-factly gives the formula:

• Don’t be stiffnecked
• Have faith

That’s it. If we’re not stiffnecked (stubborn, proud, disobedient) and have faith, we can have communion with the Holy Spirit. We can. Anyone can.

The Holy Spirit manifests things according to our faith and obedience. So I don’t have to have huge faith to commune with the Holy Spirit. I just need some faith—or like Alma says, a tiny seed’s worth of faith. If I have a particle of faith, revelations can come.

Many Among Us Who Have Many Revelations

What kinds of revelations were they having?

Jarom wrote about blessings of protection, which would come through the means of revelation.

And it came to pass that they came many times against us, the Nephites, to battle. But our kings and our leaders were mighty men in the faith of the Lord; and they taught the people the ways of the Lord; wherefore, we withstood the Lamanites and swept them away out of our lands . . .

 

And thus being prepared to meet the Lamanites, they did not prosper against us. But the word of the Lord was verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land.

They were enlightened by the Holy Spirit to find natural resources and invent things.

And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground, and weapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war.

I’m so curious about their machinery! I’d love to see what they invented and how it benefitted their people.

They Must Be Having Big Revelation

Jarom talked about items of daily life. As I stopped to think about many people receiving many revelations, I realized I just assumed everyone was receiving big revelations about the most important things.

The Holy Ghost prompted me to consider things I’d encountered today (Friday) and to reconsider my assumption on what “many revelations” meant.

• One moment that came to mind was a conversation with a friend about reports that we shouldn’t use Ibuprofen if we had symptoms of coronavirus. I had just heard a report refuting that claim. At that moment, I knew the only way I’d know for sure what to do was to seek revelation about it.
• Another one moment that came to mind was about searching for jobs on a job board. The jobs are flying off the board right now and sometimes I worry about getting the amount of jobs I need, even though I always do. Today, I felt like I should pass on a couple of jobs that came up and refresh the board (refreshing brings up the new jobs). We get two minutes to preview a job and decide if we want to claim it. The thought came that if I was previewing those jobs, I would miss something else. After refreshing a few times, a job posted that I claimed. It was an awesome job and the content made me so happy. Had I ignored that little revelation, I would have missed out on a job I really, really loved.
• I kept bugging Anthony to go on a family bike ride this morning. He was working solidly through the morning. We all needed the fresh air and exercise. Then it began to rain, and I thought the option was off the table. I got busy with the job I just mentioned. Anthony finished around 1:00 p.m. and prepared the bikes and said we should go then. We never go during the heat of the day. We went. The roads had dried from the morning rain. As we returned home, rain began to fall again.
• I asked a question in my scripture study and followed a line of thought that came to mind that I’d never before considered. Things I learned edified and excited me.

I realized that many revelations didn’t need to be just big revelations. Many revelations can also refer to the small guidance that comes in our day-to-day lives as we’re trying to do the best we can.

We’re asking lots of questions these days about how to be safe and healthy, and ways to serve others, and how to maintain sanity, and how to fortify our spirits to prepare for general conference, and so many other things. In this day of confusion and turmoil, we are a people that can and do receive many revelations.

I just need to remember to always follow Jarom’s recipe and hear the divine Word.

Hearken and hear, O ye my people, saith the Lord and your God, ye whom I delight to bless with the greatest of all blessings, ye that hear me….

I know the Lord delights to bless. Even my little examples today show me that what matters to me matters to the Lord. If I listen to Him, I can receive His blessings that make my day-to-day mundane more exciting and joyful. And learning to hear and heed the small promptings will help me prepare to receive other more important promptings.

Jarom said we receive revelation based on the depth of our faith and obedience. I’m super grateful for promptings about when to ride our bikes and waiting for a job I love, but what my soul longs for and cherishes are the revelations pertaining to my eternal journey and salvation.

Saving Revelations

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

One of my very favorite stories of revelation in the Book of Mormon is Enos’s experience. This chapter is also part of this week’s Come, Follow Me lesson. Enos’s struggle for the remission of his sins is so relatable. He shows his formula for receiving revelation.

• Ponder on spiritual truths, words of the prophet
• Find a solitary place
• Hunger for revelation
• Humble yourself
• Pray a mighty prayer
• Expect an answer and wait for as long as it takes

Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.

And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.

And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.

And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie; wherefore, my guilt was swept away.

And I said: Lord, how is it done?

And he said unto me: Because of thy faith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen. And many years pass away before he shall manifest himself in the flesh; wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee whole.

Repenting of every sin is a requirement for receiving more revelation. Because his sins were remitted, Enos received the ultimate revelation. I love his declaration of redemption.

And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father. Amen.

This is the revelation we all seek—to stand with confidence in the presence of God and receive eternal life.

How awesome it is to live in the midst of a tumultuous world and be a people who receive many revelations from the Lord of revelation! I’m so grateful for Jarom and Enos, who shared a glimpse into how revelation is accessible and how it impacted their lives.

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

Everyone’s family looks different. Even in my nuclear family, some of our journeys are vastly different from each other. Testimonies are connective and the value of sharing testimony is immense—even if it’s written or expressed to ourselves and for ourselves.

MY TESTIMONY OF THE BOOK OF MORMON 

by Darla Bushman, February 6, 2020

The “Come Follow Me” lesson for this week asked a question that spurred me onward to something I have been thinking of doing for a couple of weeks. The question is, “If you knew your life was coming to an end, what final messages would you want to share with those you love most?”

I had already decided that I should write down my testimony of the Book of Mormon. Delisa asked me to share it on the day of Asher’s football game, but for some reason, I declined to do it then. I do want you all to know for sure I have that testimony, and not hide it, so I will do my best to share it with you in writing.

It was on Saturday, January 18th that our bishop called late and asked me to bear my testimony of the Book of Mormon the next morning in sacrament meeting along with others. I was happy to say yes, but I was surprised when I was one of only two he asked to do that along with our stake president who was also going to speak. I had thought about what I might say but didn’t write anything down.

So now I’ll write as much of what I said as I can remember (with maybe further explanations and any other bits I want you to know).

I mentioned that I didn’t know why the bishop asked me or how he knew I have a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but I do have one and I knew that my Heavenly Father knows I do.

I said that it is my pleasure to join the other witnesses of the Book of Mormon, even those whose testimonies are written in the book and the millions of others whose are not, especially our Savior Himself who declared to us as recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 17:6 about the Book of Mormon, “…as your Lord and your God liveth, it is true.” 

I told that I have been privileged to have the Book of Mormon in my possession all my life. Many of my ancestors sacrificed greatly to join the Church and gather with the Saints. I know that some of them were among the Gentiles Nephi saw who came forth “out of captivity” across the waters to this land, as described in 1 Nephi 13:13-20. I feel that I too would be willing to make a journey or pilgrimage or trek if I had to to be able to worship God as the Book of Mormon recommends, and I can testify of its truthfulness because of things I have seen and felt and know.

I explained that as a child growing up, I did not read the Book of Mormon with my family very much, and we weren’t so often admonished from the pulpit to read it every day as we are now. I learned about it and referred to it a lot and finally read it in seminary, but my testimony is founded on an experience I had when I was 18.

In 1965 my parents and five of their children went on a vacation, traveling all across this beautiful land of America. It was a long road trip in a crowded sedan from Idaho to New York to attend the World’s Fair, but it was wonderful! We stopped along the way at many Church history sites, including the Hill Cumorah Pageant. My father enjoyed the pageant so much that he changed our plans and we stayed over to watch it again another night.

That gave us the opportunity to be there on Sunday morning to attend a sacrament meeting held on the grounds at the foot of the Hill, and we sat on benches where the audiences would sit to watch the pageant. Several General Authorities were in attendance, but I remember only three: Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, who at that time was an assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder N. Eldon Tanner, an Apostle, and Marion D. Hanks, an assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. They all spoke and bore testimonies about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and also about the fact that the final battles of two great nations written about therein occurred all around where we were sitting—that the Nephites and Jaredites walked, and fought, struggled and died right there in that expanse of land next to the Hill. The Spirit bore witness to my soul that their words were true and that is a feeling I can’t deny or ever forget.

After about 20 years, in 1985 or so, my husband and I and the six children we had at the time decided to follow the counsel of our bishop and read the Book of Mormon every day as a family. We tried hard, but for many months we only managed to read about 15 days out of 30, as I kept track of the days we read and what page we were on. Still, it became part of our daily lives and I can testify that there is a power in the Book of Mormon that can bring families closer to God than any other book.

As we kept trying to read every day, I could feel how good it was for us—some of our children learned to read with the Book of Mormon and one son who was in seminary asked and was given permission to leave a family campout and drive 45 miles home to get a Book of Mormon so he could read every day and not miss a single day.

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

I finally noticed that we had reached my goal of family scripture reading every day for a month when I counted over two months of daily reading just a few weeks before our fourth child left for her full-time mission, 17 years after we started this.

Is there a power in the Book of Mormon? I know there is! All eight of our children chose to serve missions, they all went on to graduate from college, and all eight will be with us in the Payson temple next week when our last child is married!

Now, we live in the days when many physical evidences are coming forth from the world to support the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. I have read DNA studies that support it. I have walked on mounds that were built anciently with the same fortifications described by Captain Moroni. I have seen a ship that was built after the fashion of those built in 600 BC that made a voyage around Africa that showed how Nephi’s ship could have traveled. 

I know the latitude of the southern United States is the same as that of Jerusalem and that the seeds and plants and animals necessary for living the Law of Moses could grow where Lehi and his children could use them. These and other evidences strengthen my already strong testimony that the Book of Mormon is true and powerful. I know it is God’s tangible “visual aid” given to help us spread His gospel, to teach and bring souls to Christ in these latter days. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

The people lived the commandments then, and with hindsight the prophets testified of their veracity and preserved them in a record on golden plates for our benefit today. The prophets shared the circumstances of people that were not so faithful as well. I want to share an example of why this is so important to our lives now. We’ll go directly to the claims made by that very record, which is to testify of Jesus Christ.

We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost. (See Moroni 10:3–5.) 

Those who gain this divine witness from the Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is His revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the Second Coming of the Messiah.

This excerpt comes from the introduction in the Book of Mormon – Another Witness of Jesus Christ.

Without reservation, I promise you that if you will prayerfully read the Book of Mormon, regardless of how many times you previously have read it, there will come into your hearts an added measure of the Spirit of the Lord. There will come a strengthened resolution to walk in obedience to His commandments and a stronger testimony of the living reality of the Son of God.

President Russell M. Nelson and many other leaders of the Church have continued to extol the Book of Mormon to people throughout the world.

“I would like to add my testimony of the divinity of this book. I have read it many times. I have also read much that has been written about it. Some authors have focused upon its stories, its people, or its vignettes of history. Others have been intrigued by its language structure or its records of weapons, geography, animal life, techniques of building, or systems of weights and measures.

Interesting as these matters may be, study of the Book of Mormon is most rewarding when one focuses on its primary purpose—to testify of Jesus Christ. By comparison, all other issues are incidental” (Russell M. Nelson, “A Testimony of the Book of Mormon,” October 1999).

“The Atonement is the very root of Christian doctrine. You may know much about the gospel as it branches out from there, but if you only know the branches and those branches do not touch that root, if they have been cut free from that truth, there will be no life nor substance nor redemption in them” (Boyd K Packer, “The Mediator,” April 1977).

“The more you understand the Atonement and what it means, the less likely you will be to fall prey to temptations of the adversary. No other doctrine will bring greater results in improving behavior and strengthening character than the doctrine of the Atonement of Jesus Christ” (Joseph B Wirthlin, “You’ll Grow Into It,” New Era, November 2000). 

“I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book” (Joseph Smith, “Introduction to the Book of Mormon,” The Book of Mormon).

“The Book of Mormon is the keystone of [our] testimony. Just as the arch crumbles if the keystone is removed, so does all the Church stand or fall with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. The enemies of the Church understand this clearly. This is why they go to such great lengths to try to disprove the Book of Mormon, for if it can be discredited, the Prophet Joseph Smith goes with it. So does our claim to priesthood keys, and revelation, and the restored Church. But in like manner, if the Book of Mormon be true—and millions have now testified that they have the witness of the Spirit that it is indeed true—then one must accept the claims of the Restoration and all that accompanies it. Yes, the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion—the keystone of our testimony, the keystone of our doctrine, and the keystone in the witness of our Lord and Savior” (Ezra Taft Benson, “The Book of Mormon—Keystone of Our Religion,” October 1986).

To hear someone so remarkable say something so tremendously bold, so overwhelming in its implications, that everything in the Church—everything—rises or falls on the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and, by implication, the Prophet Joseph Smith’s account of how it came forth, can be a little breathtaking. It sounds like a “sudden death” proposition to me. Either the Book of Mormon is what the Prophet Joseph said it is or this Church and its founder are false, fraudulent, a deception from the first instance onward.

 

To read more of Walter’s articles, click here.

Not everything in life is so black and white, but it seems the authenticity of the Book of Mormon and its keystone role in our belief is exactly that. Either Joseph Smith was the prophet he said he was…or else he [was] not. And if he [was] not…he is not entitled to retain even the reputation of New England folk hero or well-meaning young man or writer of remarkable fiction. No, and he is not entitled to be considered a great teacher or a quintessential American prophet or the creator of great wisdom literature. If he lied about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, he is certainly none of those.

 

I feel about this as C. S. Lewis once said about the divinity of Christ: ‘I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: [that is,] ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to’ (Mere Christianity, New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1952, pp. 40–41). 

 

I am suggesting that we make exactly that same kind of do-or-die, bold assertion about the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the divine origins of the Book of Mormon. We have to. Reason and rightness require it. Accept Joseph Smith as a prophet and the book as the miraculously revealed and revered word of the Lord it is or else consign both man and book to Hades for the devastating deception of it all, but let’s not have any bizarre middle ground about the wonderful contours of a young boy’s imagination or his remarkable facility for turning a literary phrase. That is an unacceptable position to take—morally, literarily, historically, or theologically” (Jeffrey R. Holland, “True or False,” Ensign, June 1995).

“I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness” (Marion G. Romney, “The Book of Mormon,” April 1980).

The Church has put a great deal of work in a multi-year filming project to capture many of the cherished Book of Mormon stories as videos; they are well into filming the third of four seasons. Here is what others are saying:

“These new videos are fabulous and the ‘making of’ ones like this help us appreciate better what went into creating them. I feel the Spirit watching them too!”

“I love to see this movies strengthen my faith and really touch my heart. I know that the Book of Mormon is true.”

“It does not play like a ‘talk’ at all. It’s moving and touching and beautiful. Love, love it. Well done.”

“This is just how I imagined it reading the Book of Mormon.”

“I knew the stories, but now I have lived the stories.”

What will your reaction be?

Walter Penning

In 1989, Walter Penning formed a consultancy based in Salt Lake City and empowered his clients by streamlining processes and building a loyal, lifetime customer base with great customer service. His true passion is found in his family. He says the best decision he ever made was to marry his sweetheart and have children. The wonderful family she has given him and her constant love, support, and patience amid life’s challenges is his panacea.

Brynlee Ashton on Conversion

Answering the Missionary Questions

I’m so excited to be here today and I’m glad all of you are here as well. I want to start by saying I opened my mission call about five months ago. Five months is a long time! And within those five months, many people have asked me the same questions and said the same comments. I will now answer them so you don’t have to take time out of the day to ask me!

• Where are you going?
  • England Leeds Mission
• When are you going?
  • I’m leaving the 28th to be there on the 29th
• Which MTC are you attending?
  • The England MTC
• Are you excited?
  • Yes
• Are you nervous?
  • Yes
• Are you [insert any emotion]
  • I have probably felt that emotion sometime within these 5 months
• Are you ready?
  • I have never felt more ready and not ready in my whole life
• What are you excited for?
  • Just about everything
• What are you nervous about
  • Bad companions and blood pudding
• I know someone who has served, is serving, or will serve in England 
  • Wow, that’s really cool
• I’m excited for you (or anything of the sort)
  • Thanks

Conversion is Our Goal

When I asked the bishop what my topic would be, I was a little scared he would say something like “Christ’s Atonement” and I’d have to teach the entire gospel in 15 minutes, but then he told me it was “Conversion is Our Goal.” I don’t know if this is special treatment, but I felt like this a really easy topic, especially for someone who is going out to help people convert to the gospel. Then I got to work and realized that there is a lot more to conversion than I had previously realized.

I also realized that I’m probably not the prime example of conversion. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a terrible person — but at the same time, I’m not expecting to be the next prophet (my gender to the side). From the time I got the topic to now, I’ve been reading the Book of Mormon with this topic in mind and I realize almost every chapter has a guide or a step to becoming more converted.

When I first heard about conversion, I was 11 or 12 in Brother Capua’s class. He was teaching us the story of the man who didn’t understand why he wasn’t feeling the Spirit and Christ told him that he needed to be born again. Brother Capua told us that being born again is being converted fully to the gospel, and then proceeded to tell us his conversion story.

At that moment, conversion didn’t scare me. I was going to church, although sometimes forced. I was baptized. My dad was paying my tithing. I read a chapter of scripture about once every three months. I felt like I was in. I didn’t feel the need to convert more than I already had.

Then I got older and started to understand more fully the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the need for change and improvement, not only in the Church but in life as well. Reading the Book of Mormon these past couple of weeks, I realized it gives you a recipe to becoming converted. The Book of Mormon teaches you how to convert and why.

The Book of Mormon is like a guidebook. If you have a question that needs to be answered and you read with that question in mind, the Book of Mormon will help you find the answers. While I was asking about conversion, I realized that Christ gives us principles to become more converted.

Alma 32:13 basically tells us exactly what those principles are. 

And now, because ye are compelled to be humble blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble, seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to the end the same shall be saved.

Alma says all you need to do to be saved, or converted, is follow these four simple principles:

1. Humble yourself
2. Seek repentance
3. Obtain mercy from repentance
4. Endure to the end

Sounds a lot easier than it is. I know from personal—and secondary—experiences that those four actions can be some of the hardest things we’ll do in this lifetime. That’s why it’s so important to follow them: because doing good, difficult things leads us to become our best selves.

Humility

So let’s break these four principles down. The first step is humility. The Gospel Topic on humility defines humility as the ability to… 

…recognize gratefully our dependence on the Lord—to understand that we have constant need for His support. Humility is an acknowledgment that our talents and abilities are gifts from God. It is not a sign of weakness, timidity, or fear; it is an indication that we know where our true strength lies.

Once again, it seems like such an easy concept, and yet it’s difficult. The natural man makes being dependent upon the Lord seem unwanted, unneeded, and unattainable. 

However, King Benjamin, a prophet of God, lets us know that when we humble ourselves, we will “be filled with the love of God…” Talk about an amazing promise.

Have you ever had days where you just feel worthless, unwanted, hated by others or even yourself? King Benjamin gave us the solution—to forget our stresses and realize that we are awesome because we are created by a remarkable being. To have better days is to realize all our gifts, talents, and abilities are from God. 

King Benjamin also promises a few more things, including that we will “grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.” I find it interesting that he says you will grow in knowledge of God or of things that are just and true.

And I think it’s because King Benjamin understands that we are given knowledge piece by piece. We don’t get perfect knowledge when we ask, but rather we get imperfect knowledge to give us the urge to grow towards perfect knowledge. You won’t understand everything about God and everything that is just and true by being humble once — you understand it by becoming humble over and over and over again.

Jesus Christ’s Atonement

The last thing that King Benjamin promises is that you will “always retain a remission of your sins,” which leads perfectly into the second principle towards conversion—to seek repentance. When you’re humble, you “understand that [you] have constant need for [God’s] support.” After realizing that, you begin to want His help and He gives you the perfect source of support—Christ’s Atonement.

Now, like I said in the beginning, I don’t have time to change my talk into a talk about the Atonement, so I hope it’s okay if I summarize it. God sent His firstborn Son to sacrifice Himself for our sins. Jesus lived through every one one of our lives, individually, and felt every single one of our pains and afflictions in a couple of miraculous hours. Because of that, He can plead our case and take our sins upon Him, if we let Him, by repenting. Once that happens, God has no memory of them.

I find King Benjamin’s diction interesting in this verse. The word retain is defined as “continue to have; keep possession of.” And remission is defined as “the cancellation of a debt, charge, or penalty.” The phrase “retain a remission of your sins” can be translated to “continue to have the cancellation of your sins.”

However, Alma makes a promise that comes with different language. He says that if we SEEK for repentance, then we will achieve it. King Benjamin’s “always will receive remission” and Alma’s “you have to seek remission” seem to contradict themselves. However, if you look at the context they aren’t so different. 

King Benjamin, in the verse before the one we’ve talked about, is talking about humility. So combining the Gospel Topic’s definition of humility, King Benjamin is saying that if you understand that you need constant help from the Savior and put that into action, then you will retain a remission of your sins — because once you realize you need help, you tend to go get help if you have humbled yourself.

Repentance

In the case of conversion, the help you need is to gain mercy from God. Principle number three to conversion is to obtain mercy. Obtaining mercy is easy once you repent with full purpose of heart. However, repenting can be very difficult. 

I use to think that repentance was a punishment — that if I fell into temptation and had to repent, I was in big trouble. Sometimes I still think that. Sometimes I feel that even to pray to God, I have to be perfect.

But that puts me in a tricky situation, doesn’t it? How am I supposed to repent if I’m too scared to talk to God? How do I become more perfected if I don’t repent? How do I heal my wounds if I don’t humble myself and realize that God doesn’t need me to be perfect to talk to Him? To repent?

If that were the case, none of us would get anywhere. God sent His Son not to make us feel afraid to go to Him, but to feel confident enough in our Savior to go to God and admit our imperfections.

That right there is the basis of why we’re here. It’s the path of our conversion. We need to humble ourselves enough to go to God on our knees, spill out our hearts, repent, and receive mercy from our perfect Father.

Enjoy to the End

You’ve probably realized that I still have one more principle to talk about. Alma told us that there are four principles to conversion, and I’ve only mentioned three of them. The four principle is endure to the end.

I’d like to change it, though. When my brother Liam came home from his mission, he taught our family something that has resonated with me since. When you say “endure” to the end, it makes this life, this plan, seem like it’s going to be us scratching tooth and nail to get to the finish line. Some days it may feel like that.

Liam taught us to say “enjoy” to the end. Despite the hard days, trials, pains, and temptations, life can be pretty awesome. We have these bodies that continue to amaze me day after day. God created this earth with flowers, trees, and mountains. He gave us delicious food, beautiful animals, and stars to gaze at. He gave us incredible brains, fantastic oceans, and most importantly—He gave us a choice.

Why Would You Choose Conversion?

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God created us and this world so that we have agency, the power to choose. Just because a cute, awesome girl up here on the pulpit told you these principles to conversion doesn’t mean you have to follow them. So why would you?

In 3 Nephi 7 after Jesus came and worked many miracles among the Lamanites, verse 21 says

And it came to pass that the thirty and first year did pass away, and there were but few who were converted unto the Lord; but as many as were converted did truly signify unto the people that they had been visited by the power and Spirit of God, which was in Jesus Christ, in whom they believed.

The few who decided to choose conversion and come to the Lord were blessed with the Spirit of God. 

Being Blessed With the Spirit of God

I’m just gonna list a few things the Holy Ghost does for us. 

• 3 Nephi 16:6 claims the Holy Ghost witnesses of the Father and His Son
• Alma 21:16 claims the Holy Ghost will lead you or enlighten your path
• Alma 17:10 claims the Lord can visit you through the Holy Ghost
• Alma 12:7 claims the Holy Ghost gives you the ability to prophesy
• Moroni 7:16 claims the Holy Ghost helps you know good from evil
• Mormon 2:26 claims the Holy Ghost strengthens you physically
• Galatians 5:22-26, Alma 13:28, Philippians 4:7, and Moroni 8:26 claim the Holy Ghost brings perfect love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, hope, and so much more good.

And those don’t even scratch the surface. I mean, based on those, who doesn’t want the Holy Ghost with them at all times? Everyone says that Casper is the friendly ghost, but, honestly, he doesn’t even come close to the Spirit of God. 

I know that I already said joy comes with the Spirit, but joy also comes with conversion. Helaman 6:3 proclaims that the people of the Church were full of joy with the Lamanites’ conversion. Joy comes from your conversion and when people you know and love convert.

That’s why missionary work is so fulfilling. You get to see others come closer to God and gain greater joy and happiness, and that rocks—especially if you were a part of their conversion. Remember, you don’t have to be a full-time missionary to be a missionary. 

The Holy Ghost and joy are pretty great reasons to convert, but the best reason of all is eternal life. God promises to us over and over that if we turn away the natural man and convert to His gospel with full purpose of heart, then we will be able to get the chance to go back home and live with Him again. Oh, how glorious that day will be when we get to see Heavenly Father again and live happily in His presence. 

I’m also excited for that day because I’ll be able to see my family again. My beautifully imperfect family that has supported me through my whole life. I hope it’s okay that I take a few minutes to thank them. Thank you, Malac and Layla, for teaching me one of the greatest lessons: patience. You guys haven’t always been the easiest to get along with, but despite that, I hope you guys know how much I love you and how much I’ll miss you. Malac, keep going with your basketball — you have so much talent. Layla, keep making good friends day by day. 

David, thank you for helping me understand more fully the plan of salvation. I’m so excited to meet you.

Liam and Hadley, thank you for being the best older siblings I could ask for. Thank you for always being such good examples for me. Liam, stop being so smart and making me look bad. (I’m just kidding!) Thank you for always being there for me even if I permanently scarred your arms from my nails. Hadley, thank you for being the best older sister. I’m so happy Liam chose you for his eternal companion.

Mom and Dad, thank you for being my constant support in everything I do. I must’ve done something really good in the premortal life to have gotten you as parents. Thank you for putting up with my bad days and celebrating with me on my good days. Mom, thank you for being one of my best friends and a perfect example of a mother. Dad, I’ve been told that you only get through this life laughing or crying. But you’ve proven them wrong. You have made me laugh so hard that I cry with every single one of your dumb dad jokes and weird dance moves. Thank you for never giving up on me.

I love you guys so much.

I’m so excited to be able to go out and teach the people of England Leeds the lessons and promises of conversion and family. I’m excited to feel the joy of watching the people I’ve been teaching come to Jesus and change their lives for the better by following the four simple, but hard, principles with full purpose of heart and mind. 

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.