Alma 27:13-14

 

Have you ever moved before--whether from one place to another or from one work environment to another? Did you decide to move because you want to or because you have to? Whether it's your own choice or you were forced to do it, when you actually move, you are getting out of your comfort zone and taking a leap of faith. It's not easy to leave the environment which you have been comfortable for quite a long time, isn't it? Well, the Anti-Nephi-Lehis got no choice but to move out of their precious lands and homes because their lives were in danger. The Lord wanted to protect them and told them to move to safety. 

"13 And now it came to pass that Ammon went and told the king all the words which the Lord had said unto him. (Alma 27: 13-14)

14 And they gathered together all their people, yea, all the people of the Lord, and did gather together all their flocks and herds, and departed out of the land, and came into the wilderness which divided the land of Nephi from the land of Zarahemla, and came over near the borders of the land."

The Anti-Nephi-Lehis willingly submitted to the will of the Lord. They did not complain. Ever since they buried their weapons of war, all they wanted to do is obey the Lord's will. 

I'm having my a-ha moment right now. These people of the Lord are so amazing indeed. They were so humble. They would submit to any circumstance they find themselves in without complaint. If the Lord did not tell Ammon to lead them out of their land of inheritance, they were willing to stay there even if their brethren would destroy them. They would lift their weapons of war no more even to defend themselves because they had sincerely repented. They did not question the Lord and asked why they had no more choice after they repented. They were not expecting God to lead them out of their place so they could be protected from their brethren who wanted to kill them. All their focus was to stay clean and pure from their previous sins and to continue to obey God. They were perfectly obedient to the Lord's will. 

If I were among these people, I would have told God to do something to protect me and my people from our brethren who wanted to kill us. And I would have questioned Him if I didn't hear anything that he is doing to protect me and my people. This is my type of personality. Well, I do know I could improve in my humility. I'm still around and still got the privilege to learn and grow and become more humble. I'm so grateful that God has been preserving me and lending me breath continually ever since I was born on this earth. The Lord has been doing a lot for me. Is the Lord supposed to do everything for me? Didn't He give me everything already so I could do what's supposed to be done myself? He gave me my life, my mind, my heart, my time to be here in this earthly existence and my freedom of choice. I am enough. And He's been giving me much, much more over the years. Have I been using what He has given me at their maximum capacity? Seems like I was not. And so it makes sense that He would allow me to go through the big challenge I'm going through right now. He wants to bring out the best in me. He wants me to transition into the better version of myself by using all the faculties He already has given me. He wants me to reach my full potential and become more like Him. And I know He wants the same for you. We are all His children and so we have the potential to become like He is. You and I am a child of God. He gave us everything we need to be able to reach our full potential. And He honors our free agency. It's up to us to decide whether we will choose to follow the plan He has designed for us. 

Alma 26: 1-12

Just as the shepherd would do his best to preserve his sheep and guide them, the Lord also preserve and guide those who follow Him. The people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi were led to safety by the Lord through Ammon. 

" 1 Now it came to pass that when those Lamanites who had gone to war against the Nephites had found, after their ^amany struggles to destroy them, that it was in vain to seek their destruction, they returned again to the land of Nephi.

2 And it came to pass that the Amalekites, because of their loss, were exceedingly angry. And when they saw that they could not seek revenge from the Nephites, they began to ^astir up the people in anger against their ^bbrethren, the people of ^cAnti-Nephi-Lehi; therefore they began again to destroy them.

3 Now this people ^aagain refused to take their arms, and they suffered themselves to be slain according to the desires of their enemies.

4 Now when Ammon and his brethren saw this work of destruction among those whom they so dearly beloved, and among those who had so dearly beloved them—for they were treated as though they were angels sent from God to save them from everlasting destruction—therefore, when Ammon and his brethren saw this great work of destruction, they were moved with compassion, and they ^asaid unto the king:

5 Let us gather together this people of the Lord, and let us go down to the land of Zarahemla to our brethren the Nephites, and flee out of the hands of our enemies, that we be not destroyed.

6 But the king said unto them: Behold, the Nephites will destroy us, because of the many murders and sins we have committed against them.

7 And Ammon said: I will go and inquire of the Lord, and if he say unto us, go down unto our brethren, will ye go?

8 And the king said unto him: Yea, if the Lord saith unto us go, we will go down unto our brethren, and we will be their slaves until we repair unto them the many murders and sins which we have committed against them.

9 But Ammon said unto him: It is against the law of our brethren, which was established by my father, that there should be any ^aslaves among them; therefore let us go down and rely upon the mercies of our brethren.

10 But the king said unto him: Inquire of the Lord, and if he saith unto us go, we will go; otherwise we will perish in the land.

11 And it came to pass that Ammon went and inquired of the Lord, and the Lord said unto him:

12 Get this people ^aout of this land, that they perish not; for Satan has great hold on the hearts of the Amalekites, who do stir up the Lamanites to anger against their brethren to slay them; therefore get thee out of this land; and blessed are this people in this generation, for I will ^bpreserve them." (Alma 26: 1-12)

Just as the Lord did preserve the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi, He is also preserving those who love Him and obey His words. I see this in my life. God is truly in the details of my life. At this moment in time when we have this pandemic, I see His hand guiding me to safety and to greener pasture. How do you see that the Lord is in the details of your life? 

Alma 26: 35-37

Because of what I learned in the Book of Mormon yesterday, bury my weapons of war--my bad habits, I decided to get back to following the saying "Early to bed and early to rise; makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." So, I did go to bed early last night (10:38PM) and so now, I'm up early (5:40AM). And I feel great! I've been staying up really late (until 3-5 AM) and getting up late (until 8-9AM)  for quite awhile. And being early is still a lot better because I feel more energized every time I'm able to get to bed early and get up early like right now. The saying is true indeed! And I'm so grateful I'm able to get back to this good habit of going to bed early and getting up "a great while before day" just as Jesus would. 

"And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed" (Mark 1:35)

Jesus Christ is our great exemplar and when we are able to follow His example it just makes us feel awesome! Studying the Book of Mormon has been helping me to follow His example. And now that I'm back to writing what I'm learning in this blog, the words of The Book of Mormon are even more powerful. And this power makes taking action easier. Even though I've been staying up late and getting up late for quite awhile, the moment I decided to change, I'm able to do it! I never thought turning a bad habit into good would be that easy. Well, if I'm doing this on my own, it really not easy. I know I'm not alone. God is with me. And through His power I am able to change for the better. Just as the Lamanites were able to repent and change their ways through God's enabling power, I am and will be able to turn my bad habits into good ones. And even as Ammon and his brethren, being God's instruments in the conversion of the Lamanites were so grateful for God's power and all that He is, I am so grateful as well. 

"35 Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all ^apower, ^ball wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a ^cmerciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name.

36 Now if this is ^aboasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo. Yea, blessed is the name of my God, who has been mindful of this people, who are a ^bbranch of the tree of Israel, and has been ^clost from its body in a strange land; yea, I say, blessed be the name of my God, who has been mindful of us, ^dwanderers in a strange land.

37 Now my brethren, we see that God is ^amindful of every ^bpeople, whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people, and his bowels of mercy are over all the earth. Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving; yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever. Amen."

There are now more than 7 million people here on this earth. And yet, God is there for every person. He is mindful of you. He is mindful of me. He knows what you and I am going through, whatsoever land you and I may be in. He cares for you and for me. He is gently guiding us so we could do His will. He wants us to have peace and joy in this earthly life and He wants us to rise above our challenges right here and be able to live with Him forever after this life is over. He is watching over us. He is involved in the details of our lives. I see that He is indeed involved in the details of my own life. And I'm thankful for that throughout the day each and every day. He is also involved in the details of your own life, isn't He? I know He is. If you are comfortable sharing some details, I would love to hear them and I do appreciate your sharing thoughts or experiences. 

Alma 26: 28-34

If you are a fruit-bearing tree, what kind of fruits are you producing? And how much fruit are you producing? The fruits of Ammon and his brethren are their converts, the Lamanites. And they are not few but many! And the labor they did which produced those fruits was not easy. They couldn't do it alone for sure...

" 28 And now behold, we have come, and been forth amongst them; and we have been patient in our sufferings, and we have suffered every privation; yea, we have traveled from house to house, relying upon the mercies of the world—not upon the mercies of the world alone but upon the mercies of God.

29 And we have entered into their houses and taught them, and we have taught them in their streets; yea, and we have taught them upon their hills; and we have also entered into their temples and their ^asynagogues and taught them; and we have been cast out, and mocked, and spit upon, and smote upon our cheeks; and we have been ^bstoned, and taken and bound with ^cstrong cords, and cast into prison; and through the power and wisdom of God we have been delivered again.

30 And we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be the means of saving some soul; and we supposed that our ^ajoy would be full if perhaps we could be the means of saving some.

31 Now behold, we can look forth and see the ^afruits of our labors; and are they few? I say unto you, Nay, they are ^bmany; yea, and we can witness of their sincerity, because of their love towards their brethren and also towards us.

32 For behold, they had rather ^asacrifice their lives than even to take the life of their enemy; and they have ^bburied their weapons of war deep in the earth, because of their love towards their brethren.

33 And now behold I say unto you, has there been so great love in all the land? Behold, I say unto you, Nay, there has not, even among the Nephites.

34 For behold, they would take up arms against their brethren; they would not suffer themselves to be slain. But behold how ^amany of these have laid down their lives; and we know that they have gone to their God, because of their love and of their hatred to sin."

The Lamanites who were coverted made their choice to never use their weapons of war ever again "because of their love towards their brethren" and because of "their hatred to sin." How amazing is that? Have you ever hate anyone or anything? Sounds like the Lamanites know exactly what is the best thing to hate, sin! If you've never experienced hate at all, now you got something to hate. We can choose to hate! It's totally ok to hate sin! Just as the Lamanites chose to bury their weapons of war, we can also choose to borrow our own weapons of war. We can choose to hate them and then bury them deep in the earth. And we can choose to never use our weapons of war ever again or do our sins no more. And we can choose to do this because of love just as the Lamanites did. 

What are the weapons of war which you would like to bury deep in the earth? For me, the bad habits which are not helpful for me. I choose to bury them and do them no more. And I choose to strengthen my good habits and develop more good habits. How about you?

Alma 26: 22-27

Who wants to have success? If you have set your big goal, you want to succeed in getting the result you want, right? Well, do you think you can do everything by yourself? Do you have all the power that you need to make things happen? Will you be able to rise above all the challenges that come your way? Probably. And yet, it would be so tricky if you're on your own. You would want to rely on someone a lot powerful than you are to help you, wouldn't you? Well, Ammon and his brethren did rely on the most powerful being, even God, as they set out to achieve their big goal. And God was with them throughout those years. As they did their part, God did give unto them success. 

"22 Yea, he that ^arepenteth and exerciseth faith, and bringeth forth good ^bworks, and prayeth continually without ceasing—unto such it is given to know the ^cmysteries of God; yea, unto such it shall be ^dgiven to ^ereveal things which never have been revealed; yea, and it shall be given unto such to bring thousands of souls to repentance, even as it has been given unto us to bring these our brethren to repentance.

23 Now do ye remember, my brethren, that we said unto our brethren in the land of Zarahemla, we go up to the land of Nephi, to preach unto our brethren, the Lamanites, and they ^alaughed us to scorn?

24 For they said unto us: Do ye suppose that ye can bring the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth? Do ye suppose that ye can convince the Lamanites of the ^aincorrectness of the ^btraditions of their fathers, as ^cstiffnecked a people as they are; whose hearts delight in the ^dshedding of blood; whose days have been spent in the grossest iniquity; whose ways have been the ways of a transgressor from the beginning? Now my brethren, ye remember that this was their language.

25 And moreover they did say: Let us take up arms against them, that we destroy them and their iniquity out of the land, lest they overrun us and destroy us.

26 But behold, my beloved brethren, we came into the wilderness not with the intent to destroy our brethren, but with the intent that perhaps we might save some few of their souls.

27 Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to ^aturn back, behold, the Lord ^bcomforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with ^cpatience thine ^dafflictions, and I will give unto you success."

As you're striving to rise above the challenges you're facing, there's the tendency to feel discouraged and depressed, and to feel you can't continue in your journey any longer. Ammon and his brethren were comforted by the Lord. And as they did bear their afflictions with patience, the Lord did give them success. 

Many are bearing their afflictions at this point in time in the world because of the pandemic. You may be feeling discouraged because of the challenges you're facing right now. It's easy to feel depressed when we look at what's going on around the world at the moment. How will we be able to rise above our challenges and become successful in achieving our goals right during this challenging time? The Book of Mormon is written for our day. Its words help us know exactly what to do. When we do our part and rely on the most powerful being in the whole universe, He will give us success. 

Alma 17: 20-39

It’s a great privilege for me to arrive about an hour early at work today and now I got the chance to write here. 

Last time I talked about how Ammon used his communication skills as he initially taught the gospel to King Lamoni. He’s able to position himself so well that King Lamoni is already looking up to him as someone who doesn’t just have the authority but even the most powerful being that he knew all along (the Great Spirit). How did Ammon position himself this way? This is what we’re gonna cover right here today. 

In verses 20-25, we read that Ammon arrived at King Lamoni’s Kingdom and offered his service to the king first of all. He provided great value first...Providing value First is very key to opening the hearts of people and building a relationship of trust with them. 

Ammon, being himself a son of a king (King Mosiah) decided to go meet the king of the Lamanites, the leader of a group of people whom he decided to preach the gospel to. His father is the leader of his own people, the Nephites so it makes so much sense that Ammon planned to meet the king of the Lamanites and teach him the gospel first of all. If you are a leader yourself, you’re in the position to meet other leaders, have the privilege to build relationships of trust, share your knowledge with them, and stuff. It makes sense. People hang out with the same kind of people. Birds of the same feather flock together. Leaders hang out with leaders. If there's a leader you want to reach out to, you've got to become a leader yourself.  The three wise men were among those people who visited the baby Jesus when he was born. We also call them the three kings. They were leaders of their day and would hang out with their own kind. All the different kinds of people were given the privilege to visit the baby Jesus--not just the three wise men but also the shepherds. It's because the gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone. 

In verses 29-31, Ammon as one of the servants of King Lamoni, saw the bright side of something that happened which made his fellow servants cry. He saw it as a great opportunity. He said in verse 29, “I will show forth my power unto these my fellow-servants, or the power which is in me, in restoring these flocks unto the king, that I may win the hearts of these my fellow-servants, that I may lead them to believe in my words.” “His heart was swollen within him with joy” for seeing this great opportunity “when he saw the afflictions of those whom he termed to be his brethren “ (verse 30). And the rest of the verses up to verse 39 tell us that Ammon indeed did “win the hearts of his fellow-servants”. He became their champion. And this did build Ammon’s reputation up so high that he’s regarded by King Lamoni as the Great Spirit.

Alma 18: 24-39

        In these verses, I really love how Ammon connected with King Lamoni. He did not destroy the belief of the King. He built on what he already knew. It says in verses 24-29:

       "And Ammon began to speak unto him with boldness, and said unto him: Believest thou that there is a God?

         And he answered, and said unto him: I do not know what that meaneth.

         And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there is a Great Spirit?      

         And he said, Yea.

         And Ammon said: This is God. 

      And Ammon said unto him again: Believest thou that this Great Spirit, who is God, created all things which are in heaven and in the earth? 

        And he said, Yea, I believe that he created all things which are in the earth; but I do not know the heavens."

       People call God by different names. And He is the same God, almighty, the most powerful being in the whole universe, our Heavenly Father. King Lamoni calls Him, the Great Spirit. That's how he knew God all along. And now Ammon gave him clarity by teaching him that this Great Spirit whom King Lamoni believed and God are the same.

         Ammon showed us a beautiful way of communicating what we believe in with others who are not of the same faith as ours. We are not sharing something foreign to them. We are just adding to what they already have. And that truly builds rapport and trust. 

      I know how challenging it is to build rapport at times. Building a relationship of trust is a skill. Ammon got it. What did help him a lot to be able to do that was his spiritual preparation before meeting King Lamoni. And because of his preparation and also the faith and prayer of his own father, King Mosiah, the Lord's Spirit has been Ammon's constant companion. Through the Spirit, he's able to figure out a way to touch the heart of King Lamoni. Before teaching him, Ammon did some amazing things for King Lamoni and his fellow servants. That's in the previous chapter. And I really love it. So I would really love to share my thoughts on it. Will do that next time...Just got back to doing this blog today and I'm hoping to keep up with this if not every day, at least twice or once a week.