It's never just a little

A few particular points of the law In 67 or 66 BC, the Nephites had things pretty good. As far as the military goes, they'd been winning wars left and right. And they didn't even lose a single soldier in the most recent battle. Plus, things were great at home, too. They'd built a lot of cities and there was peace and prosperity in the land:And in these prosperous circumstances were the people of Nephi in the commencement of the twenty and first year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi. And they did prosper exceedingly, and they became exceedingly rich; yea, and they did multiply and wax strong in the land.Nothing could go wrong! I mean, sure, there was a land dispute Moroni had to resolve, but aside from that minor skirmish, everything seemed to be going really well leading up to Alma 51

When brothers become enemies

Often called the "Psalm of Nephi" because it follows the rich Hebraic poetic structure of the Psalms of David and Solomon, 2 Nephi 4 is one of the most emotive and powerful chapters in all of Scripture in my opinion.

Personal Conversion, Personal Savior

Every man for himself! In this Church, we take seriously God's command to watch out for each other "both temporally and spiritually." We contribute fast offerings. We clean yards. We home and visit teach, ahem, minister to each other. We know that it is our duty to be our brother's keeper and that we must work together as wards, stakes, quorums, classes, and families to assist in the work of salvation. "Thee lift me and I’ll lift thee, and we’ll ascend together." Given that doctrine and strong tradition of community support and brotherly concern, I was surprised the other day when I opened the Book of Mormon and found the phrase "every man for himself." And it was used to describe, of all people, the righteous Nephites at the time of Christ's first visit.

Noised abroad immediately

Christ first appeared to the Nephites in 3 Nephi 11. That initial visit lasted all day and concluded with His ascension into heaven at the end of chapter 18 with the promise to return the next day. Chapter 19 records the response of the Nephites, starting with "And now it came to pass that when Jesus had ascended into heaven, ..." But before I continue with what that chapter actually says, I want to give a few "alternate" responses of what it very well could have said, if it had been written in our day.

Satan can't hit a moving target

I don't know why the war chapters get such a bad rap. I hear people complain about them all the time, lumping them right up there with the genealogy and "compare Isaiah" chapters. I don't think that's really fair. I love the war chapters. Chapter after chapter of doctrinal exposition gets kind of overwhelming (and/or boring) after a while, and I start to wish I could just read a cool story: an action-packed beginning, middle, and end. And right on time, here come the war chapters. Like a halftime show. I get to take my head out of the theological firehose for a few minutes and just hear Mormon recount a bunch of action sequences.

The Immediate Atonement

The Atonement of Christ is the center of our faith. But it's also the principle of our faith that is probably hardest to understand. Not just because it's infinite beyond the scope of our mortal minds, but because the whole notion that Christ could pay for sins He didn't commit just kind of blows our minds. I don't know anyone who has claimed to look at the calculus of the Plan of Salvation and figured out how it all works out.

Even among the Lamanites

It was 18 BC. Nephi, the prophet, had recently returned from his mission to the land of the North, only to find that the Gadianton robbers had taken control of the government. The Nephites were in a very spiritually low place, to say the least. Nephi miraculously announced the murder of the chief judge, but it had little to no effect on the hearts of the people (signs never do, after all). The Nephites were once again ripe for destruction. War broke out, and Nephites were slaughtered in droves. Nephi asked the Lord to replace the war with a famine, and God kindly obliged. That's where we read this verse:And this work of destruction did also continue in the seventy and fifth year. For the earth was smitten that it was dry, and did not yield forth grain in the season of grain; and the whole earth was smitten, even among the Lamanites as well as among the Nephites, so that they were smitten that they did perish by thousands in the more wicked parts of the land. -- Helaman 11:6What caught my attention in this verse was the phrase "even among the Lamanites." As if the author found it notable or surprising that the Lamanites would suffer the same punishments that were heaped upon the Nephites. I pondered on that and came away with a few insights

Fun movie. Serious spiritual lessons.

On Friday night, my wife and I were able to get out of the house and go on a date. And despite being really tired, we didn't just grab a bite to eat and come home to crash this time. It was a real date. Dinner and a movie. It was wonderful. When my wife and I got home, it was pretty late, and we were back to feeling tired. One of those nights where you really don't want to haul yourself out of bed and study your scriptures. But I did. And as I studied, I came across this counsel from the prophet Jacob:

That time Pres. Nelson fulfilled a prophecy

A little while ago, I stumbled across this prophecy of Isaiah, repeated by Christ to the Nephite multitudes. Foretelling the expansion of the Gospel during this last dispensation, He quoted:And when that day shall come, it shall come to pass that kings shall shut their mouths; for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider. -- 3 Ne 21:8You know, it's been a long time since Isaiah, and later Christ Himself, uttered that prophecy. And yet there still aren't a lot of kings in our sacrament meetings. In fact, it seems that the richer and more powerful a person is, the less likely they are to accept the Gospel. Plus, where are all the kings, anyway? What gives?

Visited in our afflictions

Enduring wrong Things have been difficult for me and my family recently. We've been hit by deaths, cancer, mental health problems, and a lot of other bad news from friends and family we know and love. These situations weigh heavily on the minds of my immediate, extended, and ward family. And then there's the awful Florida school shooting, rising international tensions, and increasing level of vitriol and hatred from both sides of the political aisle. And we know it will continue to get worse. With all the sad, tragic news around right now, it feels like 2018 is determined to deal us one blow after another.