So I have always been baffled by Laman and Lemuel. Today was a study of 1 Nephi 7. Nephi's older brothers, some of Ishmael's sons and daughters all rebel against him and his father and family. They want to go back to Jerusalem. But Nephi with his faith speaks to them and asks them many questions and one of them is in verse 10, "How is it that ye have forgotten that ye have seen an angel of the Lord? Ok, seriously, how do you ignore or forget about that crazy experience. It is a lesson to me that if we don't keep our faith strong that we can probably rationalize or excuse ourselves out of righteousness, even if we did see an angel of the Lord. I think that I do this on a different scale. I know that I have recieved answers, I know I have a testimony, I know what is right and what is wrong...but do I still make mistakes or sin or give into temptations...YES...unfortunately. I do on a daily basis I think. I know I need to raise my children with love and patience, but I totally lose my patience by the end of the day...I know I shouldn't and there are better ways, but my weakness still gives in. I keep trying to ask myself...would I do this if I knew Heavenly Father and Jesus were in the room with me? I know I wouldn't..I would be overly nice and patient. The sad part is that I know that they are watching...so how can I forget that? I guess it is easy to forget when you can't see.
I also find it inspiring to see how easily he forgives his brothers after the Lord loosed his bands. He "frankly" forgave them in verse 21. He was more concerned about them being forgiven of the Lord. Isn't that amazing? This examply reminds me of things I learned when I read "The Peacegiver". It isn't just that we need to forgive, but we need to help others to forgive so they also can be forgiven. If you haven't read that book, you need to. It is amazing. I want to love others so much that I care about their forgiveness. I think that is a true sign that you are Christ-like because I think it is one of the most difficult things to do.
So my challenge I give myself is to not forget the "angels" or things from the Lord and to keep my faith strong so I can follow His will.
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Maggie, I just want to say I think it is so great that you are doing this. I have totally been slacking in my scripture study and you ar inspiring me to get my act together. The times in my life when I have been felt the best spiritually have been the times when I have been studying the scriptures diligently. Thanks for being such a great example and thanks for your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteThanks Amber. I sometimes laugh at myself for opening myself up like this. I think about how I know you and our lives working together and I wonder if it will be weird for people to get to know my thoughts on the more spiritual side. But I have been having fun and this has been so good for me. Thanks for reading. Please share with me your thoughts when you get a chance to read, I know I have so much to learn from friends and family!
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