How is your faith in God influencing your family?
" 1 Behold, it came to pass that I, Enos, knowing my father that he was a just man—for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord—and blessed be the name of my God for it—2 And I will tell you of the wrestle which I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins.
3 Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.
4 And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens." (Enos 1: 1-4)
"16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the amysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did bvisit me, and did csoften my heart that I did dbelieve all the words which had been spoken by my efather; wherefore, I did not frebel against him like unto my brothers.
17 And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the Lord had manifested unto me by his Holy Spirit. And it came to pass that he believed in my words.
18 But, behold, Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words; and being agrieved because of the hardness of their hearts I cried unto the Lord for them." (1 Nephi 2: 16-18)
"15 But behold I said unto them that: aAs the Lord liveth, and as we live, we will not go down unto our father in the wilderness until we have baccomplished the thing which the Lord hath commanded us.
16 Wherefore, let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; therefore let us go down to the land of our father’s ainheritance, for behold he left gold and silver, and all manner of riches. And all this he hath done because of the bcommandments of the Lord.
17 For he knew that Jerusalem must be adestroyed, because of the wickedness of the people.
18 For behold, they have arejected the words of the prophets. Wherefore, if my father should dwell in the land after he hath been bcommanded to flee out of the land, behold, he would also perish. Wherefore, it must needs be that he flee out of the land.
19 And behold, it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these arecords, that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers;
20 And also that we may apreserve unto them the words which have been spoken by the mouth of all the holy bprophets, which have been delivered unto them by the Spirit and power of God, since the world began, even down unto this present time.
21 And it came to pass that after this manner of language did I apersuade my brethren, that they might be faithful in keeping the commandments of God." (1 Nephi 3: 15-21)
"1 And it came to pass that after we had come down into the wilderness unto our father, behold, he was filled with joy, and also my mother, Sariah, was exceedingly glad, for she truly had mourned because of us.
2 For she had supposed that we had perished in the wilderness; and she also had acomplained against my father, telling him that he was a bvisionary man; saying: Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.
3 And after this manner of language had my mother complained against my father.
4 And it had come to pass that my father spake unto her, saying: I know that I am a avisionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a bvision I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren.
5 But behold, I have aobtained a bland of promise, in the which things I do rejoice; yea, and I cknow that the Lord will deliver my sons out of the hands of Laban, and bring them down again unto us in the wilderness.
6 And after this manner of language did my father, Lehi, acomfort my mother, Sariah, concerning us, while we journeyed in the wilderness up to the land of Jerusalem, to obtain the record of the Jews." (1 Nephi 5: 1-6)
"20 And it came to pass that they were sorrowful, because of their wickedness, insomuch that they did bow down before me, and did plead with me that I would aforgive them of the thing that they had done against me.
21 And it came to pass that I did frankly aforgive them all that they had done, and I did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for bforgiveness. And it came to pass that they did so. And after they had done praying unto the Lord we did again travel on our journey towards the tent of our father." {1 Nephi 7: 20-21)
"17 And it came to pass that as I was thus aracked with torment, while I was bharrowed up by the cmemory of my many sins, behold, I dremembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, ahave mercy on me, who am bin the cgall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting dchains of edeath.
19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my apains bno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
20 And oh, what ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!" (Alma 36: 17-20)
"21 ¶ Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou ashalt not bkill; and whosoever shall kill shall be cin danger of the judgment:
22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is aangry with his brother bwithout a cause shall be cin danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, dRaca, shall be ein danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be areconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." (Matthew 5: 21-24)
"38 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, An aeye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not aevil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right bcheek, cturn to him the other also.
40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.
41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
42 aGive to him that asketh thee, and from him that would bborrow of thee turn not thou away.
43 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt alove thy bneighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, aLove your benemies, cbless them that dcurse you, do egood to them that fhate you, and gpray for them which despitefully use you, and hpersecute you;" (Matthew 5: 38-44)
"14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:" (Matthew 6: 14)
"1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye." (Matthew 7: 1-5)
"36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (Matthew 22: 36-39)
"21 Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed." (3 Nephi 18: 21)
"33 And Christ hath said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me." (Moroni 7: 33)
"10 Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;
11 For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him.
12 And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance.
13 And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!" (Doctrine and Covenants 18: 10-13)
And here's the commentary entitled: "The Lord can help me influence my family for good":
"Maybe there’s someone in your family who you wish you could help come unto Christ, but you wonder if your efforts are making any difference. What can you learn from Enos 1:1–4 about Jacob’s influence on his son Enos? For example, what does the phrase “the nurture and admonition of the Lord” mean to you? How can you invite His influence in your home?
As you think about your own family, consider these questions and resources:
How can you influence your family in positive ways? (see 1 Nephi 2:16–18; 3:15–21; 5:1–6; 7:20–21; Alma 36:17–20; “The Family: A Proclamation to the World”). What can you do if someone doesn’t seem to want your help or is unkind to you?
What principles do you find in the following scriptures that can guide your relationships with family members? Matthew 5:21–24, 38–44; 6:14; 7:1–5; 22:36–39; 3 Nephi 18:21; Moroni 7:33; Doctrine and Covenants 18:10–13.
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared helpful counsel for families in “In Praise of Those Who Save” (Ensign or Liahona, May 2016, 77–80). What does his message inspire you to do to strengthen your family? (see especially the section titled “Saving Our Families”).
See also Gospel Topics, “Family,” Gospel Library; “Home and Family—Through Small Things” (video), Gospel Library."
This reading is intense and has a powerful impact on me today--I got an aha moment. The Lord does give us what we need at the very moment that we need it the most. I have a wonderful family and the relationship we have with one another is truly great. There's love, peace, and joy in my family because of God's love in our hearts for which I am so grateful. So, what I needed from this reading is for my own peace and comfort so I can have more joy at this point in time. And the Lord knows this. He truly is aware of the details and the details and the details of our lives. He is aware of what I'm going through at this very point in time of my life.
When Lehi's family left Jerusalem to get to the promised land, they did get out of their comfort zone--their comfortable family and community life, basic necessities, and material possessions in abundance, and stuff. They already had everything--riches and honor, as to the world's standard. And they left everything to journey towards an unknown world. Only God knew exactly what was in store for them. And it would take them many years before they reached the promised land. Within quite a long time, as they were traveling, they would hunt their own food and stay in their tents to sleep. There were lots of uncertainties. No wonder even Lehi came to a point when he gave in to the temptation to complain. The difficulties they were going through were too much. And the uncertainty was almost unbearable. Comparing this with my own situation at the moment. What I am going through is a lot easier. I do have food on my table every mealtime. I don't need to hunt for food. I have a comfortable place to stay. And all my family members are also enjoying the same blessings. The only uncertainties for me are: 1) When will I see my family in person? 2) When will I be able to start earning my high income and be able to visit my family again in the Philippines regularly? and 3) Will I be able to continue paying for the mortgage of the property I'm investing in after I'm done paying for the deposit within around 3 more years?
I'm so grateful for Nephi's example of exercising his faith in the Lord. His faith never faltered at all even at that moment when his own father, Lehi's faith did falter. Nephi's faith had been always strong and had been growing even as he chose to obey God's commandments and rely on Him continually so he was able to influence his own father, igniting his faith at that moment when his own faith was faltering. Nephi did see visions of what would happen in the future as the Lord allowed him to. And he kept his faith no matter what. I may not be able to see exactly what will happen in the future as Nephi did, and yet I can follow his example of exercising faith in the Lord. The Lord knows exactly the desires of my heart and He knows what's best for me. As long as I am doing my part, God is continually blessing me with exactly what I need. And the blessings that I need are coming at the very hour that I need them (Just as Nephi figured out what to do to be able to continue hunting food when his iron bow got broken because he was inspired by God. And there are other examples.). So, nothing to worry about. I am and will always be enough because of my faith in the Lord. With God, everything will be all right.
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