None of us is an island, and the impact of our lives is not limited to people currently living. We operate in a multigenerational space, and our decisions affect "generations gone before" and "generations yet to be." (See "Turn Your Hearts," Hymns, 291.) An awareness of that reality can help us feel connected and can... Continue Reading →
“I Will Go Before Thee”
At the end of Moses' life, he encouraged the children of Israel to move into the promised land with courage and faith: "The Lord thy God, he will go over before thee," promised Moses (Deuteronomy 31:3). And he reiterated this promise to Joshua, who would lead the Israelites after Moses' departure: "The Lord, he it... Continue Reading →
Milk and Honey
I've been thinking about promised lands today. When God appeared to Moses on Mount Horeb, he promised not only to deliver the children of Israel from captivity but also to lead them "unto a land flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:8). So before the Israelites even began their journey, they had a destination in mind. Lehi's... Continue Reading →
Finding Favor
Luke tells us that as a young man, "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man" (Luke 2:52). He was following in the footsteps of his mother. The angel Gabriel had assured her, "Thou hast found favour with God" (Luke 1:28-30). What is God's favor, and how can we find... Continue Reading →
A Land of Promise
Abraham recognized that it was time for a change. "I, Abraham, saw that it was needful for me to obtain another place of residence," he wrote (Abraham 1:1). God had promised to lead him by the hand (Abraham 1:18), and take him to "a strange land" where his descendants would become "a great nation" (Genesis 12:1-2). The... Continue Reading →
A Tower to Get to Heaven
Sometime after the Great Flood, the descendants of Noah were gathered in a place called Shinar, which later became known as Babylonia. They collectively resolved to build "a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven." They viewed this project as a way to avoid being "scattered abroad upon the face of the... Continue Reading →
“Especial Care”
On July 9, 1841, Joseph Smith visited Brigham Young at his home in Nauvoo—a log cabin his wife had built in his absence while raising and caring for their children alone. Brigham had returned a week earlier from a mission to England and had immediately gotten to work helping her with a job which was... Continue Reading →
“Inquire of the Lord”
The Book of Mormon contains many stories of people taking questions to God in prayer and receiving answers. Here are some examples: Lehi prayed to know where his son Nephi should go to hunt for food for the family (1 Nephi 16:23-26).Jacob prayed to know what he should do about the "wicked practices" he began... Continue Reading →
Four Years and Three Hours – Ether 2:14
After the first generation of Jaredites had traveled a great distance toward a land which God had promised would be "choice above all the lands of the earth" (Ether 1:42), they arrived at the ocean. Throughout their journey, they had prayed for instructions. Moroni tell us that they had been "directed continually by the hand... Continue Reading →
Gazelem – Alma 37:23
The record of the Jaredite people was engraved on twenty-four plates (Ether 1:2). The Lord gave the brother of Jared two stones to store with the plates. He explained that those stones would enable future readers to understand the words he would write. For behold, the language which ye shall write I have confounded; wherefore... Continue Reading →
Book of Mormon Study Notes 