Nephi: Man of Initiative, Man of Faith

Back in July, Jocelyn of We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ challenged her fellow Book of Mormon Forumites to read the Book of Mormon in 30 days. (Here’s a blog entry where she shares something she’s read.) Unfortunately, I didn’t get that far. Here it is the middle of September and I’m still in Mosiah. But there is so much more I see during this reading than I’ve seen before.
Take Nephi for example:

Nephi is a man of great initiative. When Lehi was commanded to leave Jerusalem, Nephi obediently followed his father. When told to go back for the plates of brass, he went willingly. After the first failed attempt, Nephi made the decision to attempt to buy the plates from Laban with the family wealth. When that didn’t work, he tried a third time, this time “led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which [he] should do.” (1 Nephi 4:4) After he and his brothers returned to the camp with Ishmael’s family, his father prophesied about many things, and also talked about his vision of the tree of life.

Nephi desired confirmation of his father’s words, and so didn’t grumble in confusion like his brothers. He had a knowledge of the blessings given to those who diligently seek God. He took the initiative and asked. So he was granted the opportunity to see the same things his father saw, the same things every prophet saw from Adam on down.

When Nephi’s fancy silver bow broke, he made a new one out of wood and an arrow to go with it. So he knew about woodwork and fletching. He could have taken the compass himself – later known as the Liahona – as he went hunting, but he didn’t. He showed respect for his father as the head of the family and the Lord’s prophet by asking him to inquire where Nephi should hunt.

When he is commanded to build a ship in order to take his family across the water, Nephi takes the initiative, and at the same time we see another of his skills coming through, and asks “Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me? And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make tools.” (1 Nephi 17:9-10)

After the colony is on its way across the ocean to the Promised Land, Laman, Lemuel, their wives and the sons of Ishmael start acting out in a disrespectful way. When Nephi speaks to them about it, they get mad and tie him to the mast. We know what happens after that. The compass stops working, a storm builds over the next four days until the brothers see that they’re about to die and so release Nephi.

Here’s the interesting thing: after everything that Nephi has gone through up to this point, still he spends all day praising God after he’s released, never murmuring once. I can’t imagine what that’s like. Yet in 2nd Nephi, he grieves because of his sins.

He’s an intriguing man. I would love to meet him someday, just to talk to him about how he managed to have such strong faith when even his father murmured. His oldest brothers tried on several occasions to kill him. Eventually he had to flee with any who would go with him, to save their lives.

I’m left to wonder: how many of us, if ever faced with a similar modern-day situation, would have the same strong, unshakable faith as Nephi?

(all images came from gospelart.lds.org)

Women in the Scriptures

In searching Pinterest today, I discovered a link to the blog Women in the Scriptures. Heatherlady issues a challenge each year to study the women of the scriptures, either in the entire standard works or in just one book. She offers questions to ask when you come across each woman in the scriptures. She has even written posts on the women she has found. (See, for example, this Old Testament post about Abigail and this one on the New Testament women Tryphena and Tryphosa.)

Well, she had me at Women in the Scriptures. Beginning today, I'm going to take her challenge and see just how many journals I can fill up learning about the countless women of the scriptures.

But which book to begin with?

Romans 8:35-39

I think I have finally found my favorite scripture.  While studying the Old Testament yesterday and using the Institute manual with it, the end of the study chapter I was in provided a reference to Romans 8:35-39.  I fell in love with it immediately, highlighted it and put a shiny blue star sticker next to the verses to make it really pop out when I flip through my scriptures.

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

"As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted  as sheep for the slaughter.

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

"Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (King James version of the Bible)

The love of Christ is always there for us, whether we want to partake of it or not.  And in the end, it is Christ that will be victorious.  Who will be on His side?  I hope I will be.

Two Successes in Two Weeks

I've acheived two successes within the past two weeks. I actually wrote 50k words for NaNoWriMo last month.

And just today I completed my reading of the New Testament; my goal was to finish it by Christmas. I started my reading on May 25, so it took me six months and twelve days to complete the New Testament. My goal for next year is to read the entire Standard Works (the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine & Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price constitute the standard works of scripture for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) in one year.

4.33 chapters/day or 6.76 pages/day

I went by chapters this past year. I think I'll try pages next year. I pray that as I do this, that the Lord will bless me with a greater understanding of the gospel and His Word, along with a willingness and opportunities to share my knowledge and beliefs of the Church.