Month: May 2020

Lessons from Alma Chapter 4

1. The Corona virus of 2020 has awakened us to a remembrance of our duty. (v. 3) It reminds us the judgments of God can come swiftly and without warning. The wise will reset themselves and prepare for coming afflictions.
2. We now have an opportunity to establish the church (at home) more fully in our families. (v. 4)
3. We can unite ourselves and our families with the church of God even while we wait for the normalization of our lives. (v. 5)
4. Our pride, riches, and our precious things which we have obtained by our industry provide carnal security but inhibit our spiritual growth. (v. 6)
5. The nation is divided and people are scornful one towards another. It seems that the majority follow their own will and pleasure.  (v. 8)
6. Many of the judges have been compromised. The laws are prosecuted selectively and politically. Contentions, envying’s, strife, and malice flood the media and our political class unendingly. (v. 9)
7. Wickedness in high places is a great stumbling block for the nation; thus the people begin to fail to progress. (v. 10)
8. Many people stumble from one piece of iniquity to another; thus bringing destruction on their heads. (v. 11)
9. There is a great inequality in the land. The proud despise the needy, the hungry, and the sick. They are used as pawns to be divided up by the powerful. (v. 12)
10. There are some who for Christ’s sake impart of their substance to the poor and suffer those afflictions which befall them always looking forward to the day of deliverance of Jesus Christ. (v. 13,14)
11. The Spirit of the Lord will not fail the humble followers of Christ. (v. 15)
12. A wise man (Russell M. Nelson) a high priest has the power and the vision to guide us through these perilous times. (v. 16, 17, 18)
13. The pride, craftiness, and contentions of today can be pulled down by the word and the holy order of God. (v. 19,20)

In the anguishing process of repentance, we may sometimes feel God has deserted us. The reality is that our behavior has isolated us from Him. Thus, while we are turning away from evil but have not yet turned fully to God, we are especially vulnerable. Yet we must not give up, but, instead, reach out to God’s awaiting arm of mercy, which is outstretched “all the day long.” (Jacob 5:47; Jacob 6:4; 2 Ne. 28:32; Morm. 5:11.) Unlike us, God has no restrictive office hours. 🔔Neal A. Maxwell

https://tinyurl.com/y7qft7sg

“Self-actualizing people are, without one single exception, involved in a cause outside their own skin, in something outside of themselves.” 💡Abraham Maslow

Do you know that your soul is of my soul such a part,

That you seem to be fibre and core of my heart?

None other can pain me as you, dear, can do,

None other can please me or praise me as you.

Remember the world will be quick with its blame

If shadow or stain ever darken your name.

“Like mother, like son” is a saying so true

The world will judge largely the “mother” by you.

By yours then the task, if task it shall be,

To force the proud world to do homage to me.

Be sure it will say, when its verdict you’ve won,

“She reaped as she sowed. Lo! This is her son.”

Every man’s religion should have practical issue, not merely emotional responsiveness which delights in hearing the gospel, but lacks diligence in living it. We must remember that religion is action, not diction. Let us pray that God will deliver us from our dullness of conscience, from a feeble sense of duty, from thoughtless disregard of others, and from all half-heartedness in our work. . . .

Let everyone get under the load of responsibility, and realize that every doctrine has its associated duty, that every truth has its task. The gospel when the Master first proclaimed it, was not intended primarily for preaching—it was intended for action. . . .

No man can truly assimilate Christianity by impression alone, there must be expression as well. [Hugh B. Brown, “Service,” Relief Society Magazine,December 1969, pp. 884, 888]