Insight From the Scriptures

 In this chapter, Alma has gone into hiding and is teaching some of the people about Abinidai's message.  It's a beautiful chapter and I'm so impressed and inspired that Alma could remember the words that Abinidi had spoken.  I can't even remember what the speaker said in church on Sunday. Alma wants to baptize the people and they say in verse 11:  And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts. They've been living under a very unrighteous king, but they are yearning for this goodness to find them. Also, Alma names  the  church and  organizes  it: And they were called the church of God, or the  a church  of Christ, from that time forward. And it came to pass that whosoever was baptized by the power and authority of God was added to his church. 18  And it came to pass that Alma, having  a authority  from God,  b ordained  priests; ev...

  (and I cannot write but a   a little   of my words, because of the   b difficulty   of engraving our words upon plates) and we know that the things which we write upon plates must remain I have often wondered about that; how the writers in the Book of Mormon could write such lengthy words because it would be so difficult to carve them in the plates.  But, the irony of this sentence is that after Jacob wrote this, he went on to write a rather lengthy section on the allegory of the olive tree.  Seems ironic that he would write so long just after telling how difficult it is, but before that allegory, he says this, which is so beautiful and profound: 2  But whatsoever things we write upon anything save it be upon  a plates  must perish and vanish away; but we can write a few words upon plates, which will give our children, and also our beloved brethren, a small degree of knowledge concerning us, or concerning their fathers— 3  Now in...

 ...is a challenge to read because there are so many wars, and then more wars.  Brother against brother and son against father; bad guys against good guys, and on an on. As I listened today, I just kept wondering... WHERE ARE THE WOMEBN IN ALL OF THIS?  WHY DON'T WE KNOW WHAT THE WOMN ARE SAYING AND THINKING?  WHY AREN'T THE WOMEN GIVEN A VOICE TO SAY... STOP! STOP! STOP! I just can't quite believe that women would allow their fathers, brothers, sons, grandsons to continue to wage wars when no one wins.  Everyone loses. I hope I remember to ask this question to St Peter when I get to the Pearly Gates.

 So, while listening to the Scriptures this morning on the way to the gym, I was in Ether 6.  The brother of Jared and Jared were getting close to death, so the people want to appoint a KING.  It seems like an unwise thing to do. But all the sons of the brother of Jared refuse.  They have no desire to be king.  But one son of Jared accepts the kingship.   Orihah becomes king, and hew walks humbly before the Lord. In the next several chapters, however, MANY desire to become king.  The chapters are filled with cunning, deceit, murder, kidnapping, imprisonment, captivity and evil designs. It always makes me wonder, WHY DO PEOPLE WANT A KING SO BADLY? And, I do know the answer; it's because the people who would be king see it as an opportunity to have others work for them, for the king to lead a richly lifestyle, and be set up in majestic palaces.  They want no constraints on their behavior, or their evil desires.   Let's face it, some of those c...

 While going to exercise one very early morning, I drove heading to this lovely home.  I was listening to 3rd Nephi and thinking about Jesus being the LIGHT of the world. It's wonderful that here we are 2000 years later, and we still celebrate HIS birth by lighting up our homes, yards, churches, buildings, cities, hospitals.   All in HONOR of HIM!   Yes, he IS THE LIGHT.  And, HIS light glorifies the world. I love 3 NEPHI where the Saviour has come to the Americas.  Such a profound section of scriptures and so few people know it and believe it.  

 The last part of Alma and first of Helaman is all about the many wars fought between the Lamanites and Nephites.   Every time I read them, I dread them.  So many lives lost, so much destructions, so much hatred.  It's difficult to read. It makes me realize how grateful I will be to have PEACE when the Saviour comes.  It cannot come soon enough for me.

Allen doesn't really believe in the story itself.  He thinks it is a story to prove a point.  He asked the other night in our scripture reading time; what can we learn from this? Well, I DO believe it's real.  If God could part the RED SEA, he could have a giant fish-like creature  whale and cause the whale to spit Jonah out on the land.  So, I believe in the story. But it's also important to think about what the story means. To me, it means, we CAN NEVER RUN AWAY FROM GOD........and that's a good thing actually....because the rest of the story tells us that God follows us and allows us MERCY.  He is willing to give us second chances; He is willing to forgive us....HE wants us to follow HIM. And, when we do, we are blessed.  Not that we won't have trials, but that he will always be there in our trials.