Catching the Vision

Feb. 28

Jacob 4

Application: similar results.  I thought more clearly and I was more humble and willing to change. I had more desire to maximize the use of my time, and I felt that I had the capacity to do it. However, asIi gave in and started watching what others were watching I felt the Spirit less and time escaped me. 

  6 Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope, and our faith becometh unshaken, insomuch that we truly can ccommand in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey us, or the mountains, or the waves of the sea.

A: Search the prophets and follow the Spirit in finding the vision that you need to find. 

P: Personal revelation gives us a hope. 

D: As we learn from God, we receive a clearly vision of what can be. 

• Only as we obtain the hope can our faith become unshaken. 
• As we obtain an understanding of what can be, we have a greater knowledge of things as they are, making miracles like commanding the trees in the name of Jesus possible. 

7 Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things.

A: Never forget where it's coming from. 

P: When we are doing our best we are often shown our weaknesses. 

D: God is the source of everything. We must never forget that even though we can improve and be able to handle new things, it's only possible through the Atonement. 

  10 Wherefore, brethren, seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand. For behold, ye yourselves know that he counseleth in wisdom, and in justice, and in great mercy, over all his works.

A: When you pray, ask for guidance as you ask for help. 

P: He couseleth in wisdom, and justice, and in great mercy over all his works. 

D: God is omniscient, meaning he not only knows all things but he knows the sequence of all things and what will be best in the end. 

  13 Behold, my brethren, he that prophesieth, let him prophesy to the understanding of men; for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls. But behold, we are not witnesses alone in these things; for God also espake them unto prophets of old.

A: Look plainly for the viion that the Spirit can hold for you. 

P; By the Spirit we are bale to catch the vision of what we can become. 

D: The Spirit reveals things that are to be in the future.  

The Firm in Mind

Feb. 27

Jacob 3

Application: I felt so much better yesterday as I didn't listen to music and watch videos. I really felt happy at and at peace. However, at night I kinda let it go a little and I could tell the difference. I lost track of time, I lost the drive to d my homework, and it was a lot easier to forget goals that I had made for the night. 

 1 But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart. Look unto God with firmness of mind, and apray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions, and he will plead your cause, and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction.

 2 O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads and receive the pleasing word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever.

A: Look unto God with firmness in mind.

• Those that are firm in mind: 
• • Receive continual truth through prayer and study (Jacob 3:1-2)
  • Put their trust in God, despite youth or lack of experience (Alma 57:27)
  • Receive truth from those that are sharing it (Moroni 7:30)
  • Are pure in heart. 

P: The firm in mind take what they've learned and move forward with it. 

D: If you're not moving forward you're moving backwards. 

• Here we see a real importance to having a firm mind. Those that are light minded or easy minded will be easily swayed and deterred, it takes a firm mind to live a life separate from the word but still in it. 

12 And now I, Jacob, spake many more things unto the people of Nephi, warning them against fornication and lasciviousness, and every kind of sin, telling them the awful consequences of them.

A: Consider the lusts that tempt you, where do they come from, can you cut them off?

P: There are awful consequences to not just fornication, but lust.

D: Lust is the opposite of love, a gateway for the natural man. 

A Quick Quote from Brigham Young

Check this out from a prophet of God:

• "If we are sick, and ask the Lord to heal us, and to do all for us that is necessary to be done, according to my understanding of the Gospel of salvation, I might as well ask the Lord to cause my wheat and corn to grow, without my plowing the ground and casting in the seed. It appears consistent to me to apply every remedy that comes within the range of my knowledge, and to ask my Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus Christ, to sanctify that application to the healing of my body. . . 

• .. . . But supposing we were traveling in the mountains, . . . and one or two were taken sick, without anything in the world in the shape of healing medicine within our reach, what should we do? According to my faith, ask the Lord Almighty to . . . heal the sick. This is our privilege, when so situated that we cannot get anything to help ourselves. Then the Lord and his servants can do all. [JD 4:24–25]"

Pride of the World

Feb. 26

Jacob 2

 8 "And it supposeth me that they have come up hither to hear the pleasing word of God, yea, the word which healeth the wounded soul."

  13 And the hand of providence hath smiled upon you most pleasingly, that you have obtained many riches; and because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are lifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they.

A: Don't care so much about what you wear, don't judge others for what they wear either. 

P: Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 

D: No man can serve two masters. 

• This is especially true with our time. Our time cannot be split between two masters. 

18 But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.

19 And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.

• We must remember that the reason that we have earthly goods is to provide for life and do good for others. 

 28 For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith the Lord of Hosts.

A: Chastity is in the mind as well. Don't subject yourself to anything that could compromise your chastity even a little bit. 

P: The Lord delights in chastity. 

D: Chastity is the only way to true love in the family. Lust is the opposite to Love. 

Application for this week: Get your reality back. Don't watch any TV or movies this week. This is includes Youtube videos, movie trailers etc. Also, don't listen to any worldly music within your power. Record how it makes a difference every day. 

Change

Feb. 25

Jacob 1

7 Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest, lest by any means he should swear in his wrath they should not center in, as in the provocation in the days of temptation while the children of Israel were in the wilderness.

A: Stop trying to look in other places for rest. 

P: Christ is the only true source of rest. 

D: Only through his Atonement can we receive peace form our trials, sins, weaknesses, and sufferings. 

 19 And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day.

A: Teach as if their mistakes are your own. 

P: The responsibility of a teacher goes past the classroom. 

D: We must be willing to walk as Christ walked. 

"The gospel of Jesus Christ encompasses much more than avoiding, overcoming, and being cleansed from sin and the bad influences in our lives; it also entails doing good, being good, and becoming better." David A. Bednar

• You can't have one without the other. You can try to give much of yourself and serve others but if you are allowing evil into your life you will be damned in your service. Likewise you can try to become as personally pure as possible, but without the experiences of serving others you are damned in your personal growth. The Atonement fixes both, as long as we focus on them both.

The ultimate purpose of the gospel is to "have our hearts changed by the Holy Spirit such that 'we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually' (Mosiah 5:2)" David A. Bednar

• Why do you have the unrighteous desires that you have now?
• Why don't you have some righteous desires that you should have?

"The infinite Atonement is for both the sinner and the saint in each of us." -Bednar

• As we repent we gain a forgiveness of sins, as we then act in faith we see a transformation of our natures. 
• "We become who we want to be by being who we want to become every day." Elder Richard G. Scott

Feasting Upon the Words of Christ

Feb. 22

2 Nephi 32

32:3 "Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do."

Application: Feast upon the words of Christ.Take them in with great desire often.

• There are a lot of analogies we use with this phrase "feast upon the words of Christ" (e.g. we are hungry for a feast, we eat as much as possible at a feast etc.) However, I want to make an analogy that connects with Jer. 15:16 "Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts." 
• I like how he he says that the word is the joy and rejoicing of his heart. I saw this sometimes as a missionary. One companion and I would play conference talks as we drove around. We loved it! The Spirit was with us and we were always learning and it was so enjoyable to us. I think if we're not loving it at some point then there's something wrong. 

Principle: The words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do. 

Doctrine: The Words of Christ are truth. They are things as they really are. 

• 32:4 Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark.

 7 "And now I, Nephi, cannot say more; the Spirit stoppeth mine utterance, and I am left to mourn because of the unbelief, and the wickedness, and the ignorance, and the stiffneckedness of men; for they will not search knowledge, nor understand great knowledge, when it is given unto them in plainness, even as plain as word can be."

A: If we don't search knowledge then we're never going to grow. We must actively search for something we don't have.

P: We learn by study and by faith. Without acting on faith, no blessing can be given.

D: This is our time to perform our labors, we won't grow and become if we're not acting and stretching. 

32:9 "But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul."

A: Pray always, and not just a quick, wrote, repetitious prayer, but a real prayer with your Father in Heaven. 

P:The Lord will consecrate our performance as we do it in prayer. 

D: The process of prayer is aligning the will of the Son and the will of the Father. 

Gifts of the Spirit

Feb. 21

2 Nephi 31

31:3 "For my soul delighteth in plainness; for after this manner doth the Lord God work among the children of men. For the Lord God giveth light unto the understanding; for he speaketh unto men according to their language, unto their understanding."

Application: As you help teach, avoid giving them too much.The Spirit will pull from what they've learned, what do you want the Spirit to teach them?  

Principle: We must understand a principle before the Lord will enlighten us and Spiritually confirm the truthfulness of that principle. 

Doctrine: The Spirit brings all things unto our remembrance. It will help us learn and understand based on what we've already learned, but if the learning hasn't taken place then the Spirit has nothing to pull from.

• Patterns: Plainness, often connected with precious as in plain and precious truths.
• This refers largely to the gospel of Jesus Christ, faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. These are the plain things that were left out of the Bible, and they are the plain things that Nephi wants to focus on. They shouldn't be that difficult to understand.

 13 "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel."

A: Consider the gifts of the Spirit available as you repent and are clean and humble and obedient. 

• wisdom and understanding
• the Spirit of prophesy
• signs
• ability to speak in other tongues
• ability to see the glory of God. 
• knowledge
• unfold mysteries
• speak with the tongue of angels. 
• gift of translation
• he leadeth to do good
• ability to write inspired texts
  • From TG Holy Ghost Gifts of

P: After the "baptism of fire" comes the ability to speak with the tongue of angels.

D: Gifts of the Spirit are only possible when we have been Spiritually cleansed. 

• 2 Tim.1:6 There are gifts of God that we have been given like talents that can only be released according to our worthiness. (D&C 46:11)
  • I think this is why many people feel like they're at their best when they are doing the Lord's work. There are a lot of talents and gifts that are hidden by our disobedience, forgetfulness, and apathy. 
• D&C 107:92 A prophet has all the gifts from God. 

31:21 And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the away; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.

Satan's Traps

Feb. 20

2 Nephi 27-30

27:1 "But behold, in the last days, or in the days of the Gentiles - yea, all the nations of the gentile, and also the Jews... they will be drunken with iniquity and all manner of abominations."

Application: Don't start in Satan's game. You can't win.

Principle: When we sin it changes the way that we think and the way that we act. 

Doctrine: We are held captive by the effects of our sins. 2 Nephi 2:26

• Just yesterday i saw this principle take effect. I was sitting down, and I was all prepared to study. Before my studies I decided to heck my phone for something, and next thing I knew I was messing around with some game on my phone. I got bored with that one so I moved on to another one, and then I got bored with that one so I moved on to watching movie trailers. I had spent over an hour messing around, and between the idleness and some inappropriate movie trailers my brain was shot. I was apathetic, "Who cares about biology? It's a stupid class anyway, it won't hurt my GPA too bad if I get a C." At one point I even considered bagging the whole thing and not even taking the test. I also felt a little frustrated, "Does my professor understand the purpose of a general education class? He is making this test way too hard. I'm going to have to read from every chapter in the book and it's going to take hours because he won't give us a study guide like all the other professors." Inside I felt like all my arguments were wrong. However, I was doing a pretty good job of convincing myself. I was as good as drunk. 

          Luckily the guilty feeling that I had prevailed. I realized that I wasn't in the right state of heart and mind and so I prayed for forgiveness. It took     

          a while, there were a lot of prideful ideas and wrong desires that I had to get rid of, but in the end I felt light, humble, and ready to study. I      

          was inspired as to how I should make my own study guide, and the Lord helped me as I reviewed the material. I was able to study every 

          principle we've discussed this semester in a surprisingly short amount of time, and I did much better than I would've expected on the test.

          Our iniquities can literally leave us drunk to the point where we no longer act or think like we normally would. Inspiration is replaced with a 

          repetition of hollow promises and false ideas to the point where we are intellectually convinced that wrong is right, and the only thing to tell us     

          otherwise is the guilty promptings of the Spirit. That's why it's important that we don't start Satan's game, because we can't win, and only 

          through repentance can we get out.

27:3 "And all the nations that fight against Zion, and that distress her, shall be as a night vision; yea, it shall be unto them, even as unto a hungry man which dreameth, and behold he eateth but he awaketh and his soul is empty; or like unto a thisty man which dreameth and behold he drinketh but he awaketh and his soul is empty; or like unto a thirsty man which dreameth and  behold he drinketh but he awaketh and behold he is faint, and his soul hath appetite; yea, even so shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mount Zion."

A: Ask why you do what you do. You'll find that you do things in order to fulfill needs that can only be met by the Atonement (ex. self worth) Then recognize that Satan is trying to give you things that look like they fit the need but they won't (ex. nice clothes). Avoid the counterfeits, replace with the Atonement. 

P: Satan tempts to needs. He will create counterfeits that look fulfilling but are not. 

D: Wickedness never was happiness Alma 41:10

• Note that the rest of 2 Nephi 27 explains that the Scriptures will help us recognize our sins and understand how to apply the Atonement in our lives. 

27:35 "They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine."

28:8 "And there shall be many which shall say: eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God- he will justify in committing a little sin"

A: Before you way the good and bad to make a decision, consider if anything is truly worth the bad. Think of the movie with the "one bad part". 

P: We often think the there are different magnitudes of sin that "we can handle". 

D: Pride. We don't need God to take on the things that the devil throws our way. 

• We often forget that repentance is the process in which we humble ourselves to the point where the Atonement can heal us. If our repentance is lazy or insincere then we will not draw upon the Atonement and we will be left unfulfilled. 
• The little sins that we willingly choose to commit can be the most deadly because repentance won't come until we are truly humbled, which usually requires a much larger, more destructive accumulation of sins down the road. 
• In other words, every sin is a gateway sin, and the trails of small ones can be the most deadly because they're sneakier that the big sins. 

28:28 "And in fine, wo unto all those who tremble, and are angry because of the truth of God! For behold, he that is built upon the rock receiveth it with gladness; and he that is built upon a sandy foundation trembleth lest he shall fall."

• A good way to tell if we're "drunk on iniquity" is to see how we react when someone invites us to be more Christlike. The righteous are grateful for it and are excited to act, while the wicked make excuses. 

30:12-15

A: Don't make any negative comments about people. When you judge people it doesn't make you any better than them.

P: In the last days all will be united and at peace with each other. The Saints must lead that.

D: Charity is the pure love of Christ for all men regardless of what they've done. 

2 Nephi 26

Feb. 19

2 Nephi 26

1 "And after Christ shall have risen from the dead he shall show himself unto you, my beloved children, and my beloved brethren; and the words which he shall speak unto you shall be the law which ye shall do." 

A: You will receive it as you are looking for the things that the Lord wants you to do. 

P: Revelation is often followed by a commandment. 

D: Revelation is communication with God. God always has a purpose in our communication. 

• Think of what a difference it would make if you were to come to the Lord with purpose too. 
• You need to do your Book of Mormon reading separate to your personal study. 
• • Even though you learn a lot during your Book of Mormon study, you don't have the same drive than when you're studying something that you're really interested in and needing.

A: Be a leader, have your own goals and plans, confirm them with the Lord and then follow them by the Spirit. Only allow change when prompted by the Spirit. 

P: We must live in such a way that we are not being acted upon by outside sources. 

D: 13 "And that he manifesteth himself unto all those who believe in him, by the power of the Holy Ghost"

24 "He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation."

A: Be willing to listen and follow in faith because there is nothing to be afraid of. 

P: All things that he does he does for our good. 

• He should not be afraid of the commandments or assignments that the Lord gives us. We need to remember that these things are not done to condemn us, but t help us and make us happy. 

D: God loves us and wants us to be happy. "Men are that they might have joy."

Feb. 15

2 Nephi 25

1 "For behold, Isaiah spake many things which were hard for many to understand; for they know not concerning the manner of prophesying among the Jews."

A: Teach the missionaries with the same attitude that you would teach investigators. 

P: If people don't understand the context behind something then they're going to have a hard time understanding. 

D: Knowledge precedes understanding. 

• Even though you want everything to make sense to everybody, and you want to five them opportunities to learn for themselves you must realize that its not going to click, the Spirit wont testify until they have learned it and understand it intellectually, 

Jacob 4:13 "[The Spirit} speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls."

Feb 11 
2 Nephi 16

Verse 10
A: We need to "see and hear" the gospel before we can understand and apply.
If missionaries aren't having a spiritual experience in class then they can't understand.
P: Conversion cannot come without understanding in the heart.
D: Christ changes hearts though his spirit.

This week's application: 
The lord wants me to take my studies more seriously.
Applications: 

1. Do your homework the day that you get it.
2. No music during homework time.
3. No homework at home.

Also this week:

1. Pray and fast about your major, go to the temple.

• • You need to have a focus, a purpose that can drive you. 

Repentance and sins of omission

Feb.8

2 Nephi 14-15

verse 4

     Application: Repent, and allow the Lord to refine you. 

     Principle: The Lord can "wash away... filth" and purge us of sin by the "spirit of burning" Also, see Malachi 3:2

     Doctrine: God wants us to return to Him clean and undefiled. 

• It's not the trial that refines you, it's the repentance at the time of the trial. 
• The people that come out from a trial "stronger" are those that are willing to change in order to adapt to the trial. Those that don't humble themselves, turn to the Lord, and change don't end up any better than at first, in fact they usually are worse off. 
• Repentance often has a negative connotation because in the process of repentance we are openly confronting sin. We hate sin, which is good, and so we connect with repentance the painful and humbling process of confronting, confessing, and overcoming mistakes that we've made in the past. Though this is one part of repentance, we often forget that repentance is our gateway to overcoming sins of omission as well. Sin is anytime we knowingly make a wrong choice. Sins of omission are times that we make a choice to not do what the Lord wants us to do. This happens all the time! However, we often don't recognize it. We suffer the consequences of sin, but unlike with sins of commission, we don't think to repent because we often fail to recognize our sin. However we miss a huge opportunity when we don;t repent of things that we haven;t done. We could be accessing the Atonement in doing things that are new and hard for us. 
• On the same page we must realize that, though both are ways of accessing the Atonement, repentance is necessary when we have filed to do something we knew we should have done, while basic prayer and supplication are necessary when we are in a new situation and don't know how to react.