Insights from my daily study of the Book of Mormon.
In contrast with the inn which turned away Mary and Joseph, the wounded traveler in the parable of the Good Samaritan was welcomed into a place of comfort and healing. The Savior invites us to make His Inn (the Church) a welcoming place for wounded and weary travelers.
In the middle of a message of hope and optimism, Jeremiah pauses to paint a picture of a devastated mother observing the suffering of her children: Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Jeremiah 31:15 Ramah was a... Continue Reading →
The Sabbath Day is a good time to set aside things that are weighing us down. Here's how Jeremiah taught that principle to the ancient inhabitants of Jerusalem: Thus said the Lord unto me; Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by the which... Continue Reading →
The right message at the wrong time can be incredibly unhelpful. When Job's friends learned about his tragic losses, they traveled to his home "to mourn with him and to comfort him" (Job 2:11). At first, they simply sat with him, without saying a word. (See Job 2:13.) When one of them finally spoke, he... Continue Reading →
After Hannah finally gave birth to Samuel and then "lent" him to the Lord forever (1 Samuel 1:28), she offered a prayer in the form of a psalm. One brief verse from that psalm caught my attention today: The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.1 Samuel 2:7 This verse reminded me of the... Continue Reading →
How long can you sustain a commitment? This may be one of the great challenges of mortality. Do you promise to do something one day, but change your mind later when you feel differently? Obviously, if you only do what you feel like doing at any given moment, you're unlikely to accomplish anything of any... Continue Reading →
I was struck this morning by something Elder S. Gifford Nielsen observed about Joshua: He was raised as a slave in Egypt. How did he become the successor of Moses, leading the children of Israel into the promised land? Certainly not by dwelling on his own weaknesses or lack of qualifications. Here is Elder Nielsen’s... Continue Reading →
Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would be "a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3, Mosiah 14:3) The word translated "sorrows" in this passage—makobot (מַכְאֹב֖וֹת)—means literally "pains," and the word translated "grief"—choli (חֱלִי)—means "sickness," so the passage is as much about physical suffering as it is about emotional anguish. Alma's reference to this passage... Continue Reading →
Are we increasing other people's burdens or lightening them? That's a pretty good heuristic for many of the decisions we make. Jacob and his family thrived in Egypt, with the support of his son Joseph, who was governor over the land, second only to Pharaoh. (See Genesis 41:40-41.) But a few generations later, a new... Continue Reading →
What happened to Cain? He was the son of Adam and Eve, devout parents who taught their children to worship God. (See Moses 5:1-12.) Yet after his brother's offering was accepted and his was not, Cain became angry. "Why art thou wroth?" asked the Lord. "and why is thy countenance fallen?" (Genesis 4:6, Moses 5:22).... Continue Reading →
Book of Mormon Study Notes 