Follow the Prophet

In October general conference President Russell M. Nelson asked the women of the church to read the Book of Mormon by the end of the year.  He advised us to mark all the passages about Christ and then to share what we were learning with our family and friends. My first reaction was excitement.  I had taken on a challenge 8 years ago to read the whole Book of Mormon in a month (March Madness).  I did that and have done it several times since - so I knew I could do it in 3 months.  Then I remembered I was very pregnant with my 5th - and Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas were all coming up and I would have a new little baby.  Doubt set it.  I assumed he wanted us more focused during the holiday season on what matters most - as it is women who often get carried away during holiday times and have more Martha moments then Mary moments.  I decided to put reading in front of the holidays and be more like Mary.  By the end of his talk my heart had calmed and I knew I was going to do it!

I felt prompted to get  the women in my family involved.  I got this prompting during the talk and ignored it for almost a week.  The prompting kept coming back.  I decided to start a group text with my mom, sisters, and sister-in-laws (my niece got added later).  We had a few good texts and conversations - but it didn't turn out quite like I had hoped - I was mostly the only one commenting, my sister-in-laws commented also - I feel like it helped draw me closer to them - so that was good.

I had previously read the BoM once and marked every time is said Christ (or a word referencing to Jesus) in yellow.  I noticed that president Nelson said "passages" - so this time I marked the whole phrase about Him.  This changed everything.  Just a few chapters into 1st Nephi I noticed that these phrases were powerful and telling.  I could feel my heart changing - I could feel His power in my life.  I started to understand His real power in our lives and it is clearly there is the BoM.  Let me share a few with you:

highly favored of the Lord

went forth and prayed unto the Lord

as he prayed unto the Lord

Saw God sitting upon his throne

in the attitude of singing and praising God

One descending out of the midst of heaven

he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord

exclaim many things unto the Lord

Great and marvelous are they works

the Lord had shown unto him,

The Lord had shown so many marvelous  things

manifested plainly of the coming of a Messiah and also the redemption of the world

will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all

the Lord spake unto my father

the Lord commanded my father

he was obedient unto the word of the Lord

he did as the Lord commanded him

made an offering unto the Lord

gave thanks unto the Lord our God

firm and steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord

having great desires to know of the mysteries of God

I did cry unto the Lord and behold he did visit me

the things which  the Lord had manifested unto me

I cried unto the Lord for them

The Lord spake unto me

though hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart

a land which I have prepared for you

returned from speaking with the Lord

the Lord hath commanded me

the Lord hath commanded me

it is a commandment of the Lord

I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded

I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way

I had been blessed of the Lord

accomplished the things which the Lord hath commanded us

let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord

because of the commandments of the Lord

it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these records

which have been delivered unto them by the Spirit and power of God

be faithful in keeping the commandments of God

an angel of the Lord came

Know ye not that the Lord hath chosen him

the Lord will deliver Laban

How is it possible that the Lord will deliver Laban into our hands?

AND THAT IS JUST THE FIRST 3 CHAPTERS OF NEPHI!!!!  It only gets better.  Just by reading these you start to see the love the Lord has for us and how He operates in our lives.  

On Tuesdays I go to an institute class and during the first week of November someone made a comment about how President Nelson's challenge was to prepare the women of the church to teach our families the new curriculum starting in 2019.  Both he and President Eyring said that the women were key to this new program and that this challenge was to prepare us for that.  So that we would have just read the BoM and had been looking for Christ and would have scriptures that were marked with Him in mind and Christ would be more on our minds - and NOW we would be prepared for this new curriculum.  I had never thought about it that way - this wasn't about the holidays - my vision was too narrow, too easy, he had something WAY bigger in mind.  The spirit witnessed to me that what this sister said was true.  I had more focus now.  I was being prepared.  Since conference I had been feeling "called" from the Lord to take a more active role in the nurturing and spiritual teaching of my family - and now I knew why.

I finished last night.  I read the last chapter out loud to Dane while I was rocking him to sleep.  I started crying.  I know President Nelson promised us great things if we did these things and I am humbled to be counted worthy of those blessings.  I know they will come.  I have learned that God keeps His promises.  I know that.  I am counting on that.  I hope I can teach that to my children.