Alma 33 Christ is the Seed, the Tree, the Armor, the Beautiful Garment

Christ is the seed.  Christ is the tree.  Plant Christ in your heart.  Plant the Tree of Life in your life, water it, and nourish it with His words.  Put on the whole armor of God.  Put on Christ.  Put on your beautiful garments.  Put on Christ.  Get Christ down into your spiritual cells, your heart of hearts, your DNA.  Do this through prayer, scripture study, listening for and to His voice.  Act upon his words.  Ask, seek, knock, and He will answer.  Really believe in Him!

Alma 32 Decide to Act and Not Be Acted Upon

Elder Bednar has encouraged us to act and not be acted upon.  If I will act, taking inspiration from the Holy Ghost as my guide I will be happy and productive.  If I will act, taking the words of the scriptures and living prophets as my guide, I will be safe and full of good works.  Christ has provided for me a seed of faith to plant in my heart. My faith in Christ will grow if I learn of him and follow his words.  If there is something that I have stopped doing that I need to start again, then I must act.  If there are things to do that I have yet to begin but are essential for my spiritual growth, I must begin, and act in accordance with the will of my Father in Heaven.

Alma 31 Bring Them Again Unto Thee in Christ

The scene of apostasy among the Zoramites that presented itself to Alma and his fellow missionaries was astonishing and appalling!  The Rameumpton stood in the middle of the synagogue like a high dive into hell.  Parishioners, one by one, ascending and descending the rungs of its ladder, speaking hellish oaths full of blasphemy and devilish pride.  How could they have fallen so far?  The answer is pride!

As Alma prepares to continue his mission to the Zoramites, he lays his hands on each of the missionaries in his group and blesses them.  They are filled with the Holy Ghost.  In his personal prayer on their behalf, Alma pleads with the Lord to “comfort my soul, and give unto me success, and also my fellow laborers…Yea, wilt thou comfort their souls in Christ.  Wilt thou grant unto them that they may have strength, that they may bear their afflictions which shall come upon them …wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee in Christ…Behold O Lord, their souls are precious….”

 Indeed, Alma’s prayer was answered, for Mormon records, “And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ.  Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith.”

Yet, one of Alma’s sons, exercising his moral agency, chose to break the mission rules.  Even the prayer of faith by Alma, could not keep his son from making some very poor choices.  In chapter 39 of Alma we will see how a faithful father is able to recover his son.

 

Alma 30 I Believe in Christ

I believe in Christ.  I know he lives and loves me and my family.  He performed the Atonement in behalf of the children of God.  I and my family are blessed beyond measure by his love.  My dear wife, Jean, turned 57 years old today.  She is the love of my life.  She is the perfect wife for me and the perfect mother.  She loves us and cares for us.  She possesses the characteristics of Christ: she is full of grace, mercy, love, patience, discernment, healing, peace, kindness, goodness, honesty, forthrightness, hard work, gentleness, and loyalty to God and family.  We cherish her daily presence in our lives.  I pay tribute to my angel wife, Jean.

Alma 29 Oh, I Married an Angel

“Oh that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart….”  Alma wants to do more than he has strength or ability to accomplish.  But then asks himself, “…why should I desire more than to perform the work to which I have been called?”  Alma’s is not an unrighteous aspiring to power, fame, or wealth; nevertheless, he recognizes that his desires go beyond what was the Lord’s will is for his life.  Recognizing this, he tones down his desires from mass angelic trumpeting abilities, to becoming “…an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy.”  Notice his focus turns to the “one.”  Likewise, our focus should be on the one in our lives; first, to become converted ourselves, and then to look around and lift spouse, family and friends. 

Today is my 36th wedding anniversary.  I have felt incredibly blessed to have found such a wonderful person to spend my life and eternity with.  Jean is at the center of my heart.  I would be nothing without her.  I love her so dearly.  We have wonderful children and grandchildren that make our daily walk all that much sweeter. Also on this day:  Happy birthday Nick!

Alma 28 Incomprehensible Joy

Alma summarizes Ammon and his brethren’s ministry: “…their sorrows, and their afflictions, and their incomprehensible joy….”  There is the contrast of joy and sorrow in their lives.  The same contrast of experiences awaits all of us in this life.  Please know and understand that God has not abandoned you when trials and sadness come.  “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not on thine own understanding.”  (Proverbs 3:5)  The best times are yet to come.

Alma 27 Come Unto Me

I had forgotten that the People of Ammon (Anti-Nephi-Lehites) had a second episode of being slain by the Lamanites.  They were attacked again by the Lamanites and refused to take up arms.  Ammon asks the Lord what to do and the Lord tells him to get the People of Ammon out of the land and back to Zarahemla.  The Nephites give these refugees a place to live and thrive: Jershon.  They agree to give them protection from the Lamanites.  Among this group would have been King Lamoni and his wife and family, Lamoni’s brother, king over all the people, and all who had been converted unto the Lord!  Come unto me all ye who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matt 11:28)

Alma 26 Mindfulness

Ammon rejoices in the wonderful successes they have had as missionaries, the changed hearts of thousands of the Lamanites, and being instruments in the hands of the Lord.  He also rejoices that the Lord “snatched” them (Alma, Ammon and their brethren) from their sinful past and pointed them in a new direction.  Finally, he rejoices in the mindfulness of the Lord.  In verse 36, he states that God “…has been mindful of this people, who are a branch of the tree of Israel.  Further, he says that “…God is mindful of every people, whatsoever land they may be in.”  In the Book of Moroni, Mormon, great general and abridger, says, “My beloved son, Moroni, I rejoice exceedingly that your Lord Jesus Christ hath been mindful of you….”  (Moroni 8:2)

To be “mindful” is to pay attention.  The Lord pays attention to each of us individually.  He challenges us to be mindful of each other and not treat each other as objects.  When we truly pay attention to our children, for example, we listen to them, watch them, pray for them, and love them.  When we are mindful of our spouse, we are in tune with their needs and we put those needs above our own.  When we are mindful we pay attention to our mindsets.  We don’t just walk through our day in mindless activities because we know how.  We don’t multi-task when we are driving because we can.  We don’t treat others as objects because they are just there in the room.  We pay attention.  We don’t space off during conversations because we can.    

When we are mindful we listen to the Holy Ghost.  We pay attention to his promptings and write them down.  We act on personal revelation and don’t procrastinate or resist his voice.

Alma 25 Take the Lord at His Word

We can take the Lord at his word.  Ammon and his brethren were promised by the Lord prior to their missions that he would protect them and give them success.  He preserved their lives and gave them success way beyond what they could have imagined

Alma 24 Repentance and Covenant Making

The Anti-Nephi-Lehites will not take up arms against their brethren; in fact, they bury their weapons of rebellion deep in the earth.  This signified to the Lord that they had repented of their sins.  One thousand and five of them were slaughtered when the Lamanites came upon them in war.  More than a thousand of the Lamanites were so touched in their hearts with guilt that they stopped killing their brethren and laid down their weapons and joined the Anti-Nephi-Lehites.  When we repent we must bury our sins deep in the earth and never dig them up again.  We must take our covenants seriously. In his editing, Mormon adds several "thus we see" notes.  The first is: "...thus we see that, when these Lamanites were brought to believe and to know the truth, they were firm, and would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin."  This shows how seriously they took their covenants.

Alma 23 Taking Upon Ourselves a New Name

The king of the Lamanites sent out a decree to all his people that they were not to obstruct the work of Ammon and his brethren as they spread the gospel throughout the land.  As a result, thousands of Lamanites were converted to Christ.  They never did fall away!  They changed their name from Lamanites to Anti-Nephi-Lehites.  When we experience a significant change in our lives, we too have a desire for a new name.  This happens at least eigth times in our lives:  Pre-mortal birth, mortal birth, rebirth, priesthood and missions, temple and marriage, parent and grand-parenthood, death, and resurrection.

Alma 22 Is There a God? Inspired Questions

Aaron and his brethren are guided by the Spirit to the palace of the king over all the Lamanites.  He is ready to hear the gospel and asks several inspired questions.

1.       What is this that ye have said concerning the Spirit of the Lord?

2.       What is this that Ammon said—If ye will repent ye shall be saved, and if ye will not repent, ye shall be cast off at the last day?

3.       Is that the Great Spirit that brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem?

4.       What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken?

5.       Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day?

6.       O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me? 

This last question has really resonated in my soul.  Many times I have prayed saying similar words.  I have come to know, without any doubt, that he is there; he has manifested himself to me daily in simple and undeniable ways.  His voice is a still, small voice that I have heard many, many times through his Spirit.  And he has taken away my sins.  I long for all of my family to ask the questions above in there own way according to their needs and station in life.  I love you all so much.  (Look at page 100 in the Book of Mormon—easy to remember—verse 26.)   

Alma 21 The Harvest of Souls

The doors to the Lamanite people are now wide open.  Religious freedom has been declared by the king.  Aaron, Ammon, and their companions continue the harvest.  Thousands of Lehi’s Children are converted.  Oh, how I long for the day when the Children of Lehi in North America will open their hearts to the gospel in great numbers.  Yes, the blossoming has started, but the numbers are relatively few.  I look for a day when a nation will be converted:  The Navajos, Apaches, Sioux, Hopi, Zuni, and the other Pueblos, and all the other tribes opening their hearts and returning to their God, even Jesus Christ.       

Alma 20 Rescue Your Brother and Sister

Ammon was sent by the Lord to free his brethren from prison.  King Lamoni went with him.  They met the king’s father, the king of all the Lamanites, along the road. After losing in a sword-fight with Ammon, he rejoices to find that Ammon doesn’t want to kill him. But even greater was his recognition of Ammon’s love for his son, King Lamoni, who Ammon had defended in the sword fight.  With a softened heart, the king is now ready to let Ammon free his brethren from prison in Middoni.  He is also ready to hear the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Ammon will step aside and go another way as directed by the Spirit and Aaron will step in and do the teaching. 

When our brothers and sisters are in the prisons caused by sin, we must be willing and ready when the Spirit prompts to go to their rescue.       

Alma 19 The Abish Touch

Abish is the hero of this chapter of Lehi’s children’s saga. She reaches down and touches the queen’s hand and lifts her up.  She is undaunted in her courage!  She is true to her conversion to Christ.  The “Abish Touch” is a metaphor for how we should have the courage to physically put ourselves in a position to do good.  Like Esther of the Old Testament, she rises to her moment, the moment for which she came into the world.  She saves her king and queen, who in turn will open the door for a huge Lamanite conversion wherein thousands of people are saved from their sins and freed from false traditions.

In describing King Lamoni’s conversion, Alma states: “…the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness—yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul, yea, he knew that this had overcome his natural frame, and he was carried away in God.”  And he adds, “…their hearts had been changed; that they had no more desire to do evil.”