Words, Words, Words

My daughter is a very beginning reader and my husband and I have been trying to encourage her to recognize a few of the simple words that she can sound out. After reading advice from others, we thought we could easily translate this to scripture reading by letting her have her own Book of Mormon to underline the important words that she knows. While this did result in her unfortunately loud utterance during a recent Sacrament meeting of, "I see God!," in general this has been a great activity and she really loves looking in her own scriptures.

What has amazed me by this simple exercise is the frequency of meaningful words in the Book of Mormon. It seems on every page, we can find references to essential topics. In a online search of the Book of Mormon, the word "God" appears 202 times, "Christ" 99 times, "Jesus" 64 times, "Spirit" 113 times, "faith" 109 times, "prayer"/"pray 88 times, and "love" 40 times. It is no wonder that the introduction to this book teaches that it is, "the keystone of our religion, and a man [will] get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." I am grateful that we truly have "another testament of Jesus Christ" in the Book of Mormon and that I have been able to feel the life-changing power of this book of scripture.

"Without reservation I promise you that if you will prayerfully read the Book of Mormon, regardless of how many times you previously have read it, there will come into your hearts an added measure of the Spirit of the Lord. There will come a strengthened resolution to walk in obedience to his commandments, and there will come a stronger testimony of the living reality of the Son of God."
~Gordon B. Hinckley

Mormon girl interviewed at Harvard

This is a wonderful clip of a discussion held at Harvard concerning the personal search for purpose. On the panel were college students of different faiths, including this Latter-day Saint girl, Rachel Esplin, as well as a Muslim, Jew, Presbyterian, and Buddhist. They all answered wonderful questions concerning their faith and religious practices. Rachel Esplin answers questions regarding her upbringing, the development of her personal testimony, women's roles in the church, her belief in Christ, Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, knowledge of spiritual truths, temple marriage, temple covenants, and missionary work. This is a great clip to see!!

Day of Faith: Personal Quests for a Purpose - 3. Rachel Esplin from Harvard Hillel on Vimeo.

Our Keystone

Joseph Smith taught that, "the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth" and that this book is the "keystone" of our religion. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ, we believe that this book is a continuation of scriptures and just as the title page states, it is truly "another testament of Jesus Christ" in addition to the Bible. The truths and teachings that can be found in this book are amazing, but it can often seem daunting to people to begin reading. The book's length and language can feel different to those experiencing scriptural reading for the first time.

In our congregation, we were recently given a short list of scriptures that are a great starting point for anyone who would like to come to a knowledge of the truthfulness of this book for themselves. By focusing on these short, key sections, the book can become much more manageable and immediately relevant. I encourage any who have questions that need to be answered, to turn to the Book of Mormon for guidance and examples that can truly change lives. I know that we have a loving Heavenly Father who prepared a way for this book to be available to us today. Please take the opportunity to explore this book and learn more of our savior, Jesus Christ.

Some suggested passages to begin study with are:
1 Nephi 11:27, 31, 33
2 Nephi 2:25
2 Nephi 9:14-15, 21-23, 28-29
2 Nephi 29:3, 8
2 Nephi 31:5, 17
2 Nephi 32:9
2 Nephi 33:10-11
Mosiah 3:5, 8, 17, 19
Mosiah 27:25-26
Alma 7:14-16
Alma 11:40-41
Alma 30:43, 44, 49, 52, 60
Alma 32:17, 18, 21, 26, 27
Almas 34:32
Alma 40:11-14
Helaman 5:9-11
Helaman 14:30-31
3 Nephi 11:8, 10, 22-26, 33-34
3 Nephi 15:21-24
3 Nephi 18:15-21
3 Nephi 27:19-22
3 Nephi 29:6-7
Mormon 9:7, 17, 19, 21
Ether 4:11-12
Moroni 6:2-3
Moroni 10:4-5
Moroni 10:32-33

If you would like a free copy of the Book of Mormon, please visit http://www.mormon.org/.