I Desire to Dwell Among This People – Alma 17:22-23

22 And the king inquired of Ammon if it were his desire to dwell in the land among the Lamanites, or among his people.
23 And Ammon said unto him: Yea, I desire to dwell among this people for a time; yea, and perhaps until the day I die.

Do ye suppose that ye can bring the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth? Do ye suppose that ye can convince the Lamanites of the incorrectness of the traditions of their fathers, as stiffnecked a people as they are; whose hearts delight in the shedding of blood; whose days have been spent in the grossest iniquity; whose ways have been the ways of a transgressor from the beginning?
Let us take up arms against them, that we destroy them and their iniquity out of the land, lest they overrun us and destroy us (Alma 26:24-25).

Under those circumstances, I think it is remarkable that Ammon could overcome the prejudices of his people so completely. He not only traveled to the land of the Lamanites but made a commitment to live among them and offered to be a servant to the king. Think of the trust and the respect he showed these people who were supposedly beyond salvation.
Today, I will commit to follow Ammon’s example and trust the people I am called to teach. I will strive to meet them where they are and to serve them with humility and with respect, believing that they will accept my message when I treat them with genuine respect and love.