Alma - Chapter 52

In a previous chapter Mormon tells us that Moroni thought it no crime to use stratagem to one's advantage when at war.  I agree.  And so in this chapter Moroni and Teancum set out to scam Jacob the leader of the Lamanites.

It was a typical scam with all the right elements.  Jacob was vulnerable, because he was eager to make a name for himself.  He wanted to impress Ammoron in the worst way.  Who could blame him.  He certainly wasn't getting any comfort from the Holy Ghost.  So when Teancum marched by looking so vulnerable, it was such a great opportunity to advance his career, pad his pockets and improve his lot.  I'll bet he greedily said, "This is too good to be true!" And, of course it was.  Just like every other scam in the world.

We don't hear any more from Jacob as he was killed in battle, desperately trying to recover from his horrible error in judgment.  That is commonly another vulnerability scam victims demonstrate; unwillingness to give up on the pipe dream until it is perilously too late.

Now usually, it is bad guys perpetrating the ruse upon the "innocent."  But, though, in this story the situation is reversed it is still very instructive.  And, as we Mormons seem particularly vulnerable to the scam, we can take this chapter as a warning too.

I've been scammed.  I reacted to the set up in classic Jacob fashion.  I was so excited about the "opportunity" that I never stopped to remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  My mistake was relatively small, costing me a few hundred dollars.  I was sorely tempted though, to go after the perps and seek revenge.  Fortunately, a level headed friend talked me out of it.  Had I chased them down as I fully intended to do, I'd have been out numbered and quite possibly my losses would have been greater, even to the loss of my life.  I'd have had to exceed the speed limit significantly to catch them in their flight and at the very least, risked heavy fines for traffic violations.

In the end, I realized that I was no wiser that Jacob and but for the grace of God, might have met his end.

Let's not be like Jacob, let's look before we leap.

Alma - Chapter 51

It is pretty rare that a nation has been destroyed from with out without a significant weakening from with in.  God intended for us to have governments, laws, order.  When we live righteously and our government is used for the benefit of all, we prosper.  When factions in the government or populace begin to seek special favors or powers not available to the rest, such corruption is bound to weaken the whole.  So it was with the Nephites.  So it is with us.  Can you think of situations where one group has benefits from our nation that are not available to all?  So can I.  These are the Kingmen among us.  These are they who by their pursuit of personal rather than collective interests are weakening us from within.  As Freemen we would do well to thwart the evil designs of such men among us.

Alma - Chapter 50

There is a comment, probably from Mormon, during his abridgment that states:

"....there never was a happier time among the people of Nephi, than in the days of Moroni." (verse 23)

Never a happier time?  Not even during the reign of King Benjamin?  I think this is astonishing!  Consider their situation.  They are spending enormous efforts in preparation for war.  They've just had a serious war with an enemy they are certain to meet again.  How can this be a happy time?  I think the answer must be that happiness is not a condition of prosperity and peace, but rather a condition of obedience and sacrifice.  These people are doing exactly what the Lord desires of them and it shows, despite worldly circumstances around them.  This is a huge lesson for me.  I've been invited to speak to a group of youth next week.  Their leaders are concerned because these young people have developed a 'what's the use' attitude toward life.  A notion that there's no point in going to college for example because the world's about to end and the effort would be wasted.  Verse 23 of Chapter 50 is an answer to my prayers and hopefully this Bishop's prayers as well.

Alma - Chapter 49

I'd love to have been situated on Captain Moroni's fortifications and seen the look on the Lamanites' faces as they discovered the new challenge they faced.  What a comfort it is to be prepared, to be protected.  "If ye are prepared ye shall not fear." (D&C 38:30)

I think there is a great lesson in this chapter.  While I suppose the day may come when physical fortifications are required to defend ourselves.  Such a day is not imminent.  If it were, our leaders, who are every bit as far seeing as Captain Moroni, would have instructed us in such a manner.  But the spiritual onslaught being presently waged on our homes, families, way of life is underway and we have long been counselled to fortify ourselves and homes against its attack.  Have we made the kind of effort the Nephites did?  Are we as secure and comfortable behind our fortifications as we might be?  I think our situation is every bit as precarious as that of the Nephites and it is time to make certain our fortifications are strong.

I love that after the Lamanites abandonned their designs the Nephites thanked God for their deliverance.  It would have been easy for them to take the credit unto themselves or to give undue credit even to their leader. It was in deed God who preserved them and such will be the case with us.  When we put on God's armor and are protected by it, it is important to remember that it is His armor, that He forged and prepared it.  He made it efficacious in our behalf.  Hardly fair to boast of it for merely putting it on.

One last note:  Isn't it wonderful to see that Corianton is doing well, serving faithfully; unhampered by his past mistakes.

Alma - Chapter 48

The contrast between Moroni and Amalekiah is quite remarkable.  Who wouldn't rather be like Moroni.  Clearly, there is joy in serving other sand none in serving one's self.  Both men seem to understand the power of words.  Both devoted a good deal of time to teaching.  One's aim was freedom and individual choice, the other's to influence and control the minds of his subjects.  One taught the people to put their trust in God, who would warn them as to what they should do.  The other taught that they should trust him.  One taught his people to love, the other taught his people to hate.  One represented God and the other represented Satan.  Oh, that all our leaders were like Moroni.  Indeed the very powers of hell would be shaken.  We are a free people, we must seek such leaders and choose and follow them.

Alma - Chapter 47

I can't help but wonder how much better life might have been like for the Lamanites if dissenters from the Nephites hadn't kept showing up and messing things up.  Truly, the evil ones among the Nephites were more so than the Lamanites.   I can barely imagine the burden of guilt men like Hitler or Amalekiah take upon themselves as they lead thousands of innocents to war, deprivation, suffering and even evil.  That level of selfishness is unimaginable to all but a few of us.  How many personal crises of courage and faith did these men cause.

Only God can tell whether the choices of their followers were also evil or merely a matter of having been caught in the stampede of fear that their evil leaders caused.  My heart is inclined toward the latter.  Clearly these Lamanites didn't want to go to war.  And only the treachery of an evil man could make it otherwise.  Looks to me like The Book of Mormon is warning us to be discerning and to watch for such treachery in our leaders.

Alma - Chapter 46

I really had not previously paid attention to the significant comparison in this chapter between Captain Moroni's rent coat and Joseph's.  Couple that with the added significance that these Nephites, were without doubt the remnant of Joseph spoken of as Jacob observed that a remnant of Joseph's coat had not decayed.  And I think it to be a singular story that is really quite remarkable!

A significant part of Moroni's appeal to rally the people to the Standard of Liberty was the inherent reminder of who they are.  "Remember who you are," our parents used to tell us as we headed out the door.  Here Captain Moroni is saying the same thing.  Our doing so makes all the difference in the depth of our courage, the breadth of our faith, the length of our vision and the blessedness of the outcome of our adventures.  We, like the Nephites are also descended of Joseph.  We have, bred into us, the capacity to choose well, to rise above affliction, and to lead the world in righteousness.  When we think of the Title of Liberty, we might also think of the banner of freedom beneath which we abide and also remember who we are.

Alma - Chapter 45

I love being in a meeting or other gathering and having someone ask, "Who will....?"  Most of the time someone will invariably raise a hand and say, "I will."  I don't think there are many more beautiful phrases in the English language than that one, "I will."  It is spoken by someone who senses that he has something to offer, that he has confidence in that ability.  It comes from a person who realizes that he possesses free will and is able to exercise that will to the benefit of others.  It is an expression of humility and gratitude suggesting that the volunteer recognizes the blessings he's been given and feels privileged to share them with others.  Here is a person who in some way asks himself, "If not me, who?"  "If not now, when?"  He is the person who like Helaman, (see verse 7) can be trusted with bearing off the Kingdom triumphant.  He is a person who emulates the Savior, who was the first to volunteer and not only showed us the way, but ensured that we could choose it.

This person can be found in your Ward.  Watch for him.  Watch him.  He is as likely to be a she.  He might be you.

Alma - Chapter 44

I couldn't help but wonder about these Lamanite warriors who made an oath to not take up arms against the Nephites ever again.  Did they keep the oath.  I have a hunch that many of not most of Lehonti and his army, as described in Chapter 47, we among those who made this oath.  They were clearly afraid to go to war and determined not to.  Even so, treachery, deceit, carelessness prevailed and back to battle they went.

I just have this feeling today, that I need to remember this story, for someday circumstances might sneak through my back door and, if I'm not careful, trick me into breaking my resolve.

It is interesting that Zarahemna was initially unwilling to make a covenant he knew he wouldn't keep.  Yet, later, under fear of certain death, he made it.  I wonder what be came of him.  I wonder if he honored that covenant?   Did he keep that oath?  Did his warriors?  I hope so.  Violating covenants is no small thing.

Alma - Chapter 43

And so begin the war chapters.  As a boy, I loved these above all others.  Intrigue, high adventure, strategy and heroism inspired me and enlivened my reading.  Captain Moroni became a hero who has stood the test of my time as well as his own.  I admire his brilliance, goodness, courage and compassion.  He's the all around quintessential hero in my book.  Being charismatic and genuinely good at the same time are rare qualities, ones I'd like to see among the heroes of our day and age.  Qualities Captain Moroni had in abundance!

In this chapter, after seeking God's assistance and receiving it, Moroni and his armies prevailed against a much more numerous enemy.  And after gaining the advantage the last verse tells us Moroni called for the bloodshed to stop.  That one little verse says volumes about Moroni and his character.  He never lost track of his objective; which was to defend his people and their lives, religion and liberty.  Needless slaughter may have reduced the enemy to far fewer threats, but he'd already learned that the greatest threat to any society including his own came from within.  Allowing his soldiers to needlessly slaughter the enemy would have damaged their souls, hardened their hearts, riddled them with guilt and created the very threat he feared the most - dissension among his own people.  First dissension from their faith, then their religion, then their nation, only creating more enemies.  The very army he was fighting was led and fed with fury by such dissenters.  Allowing his soldiers to show compassion toward their enemies had the opposite effect and as we later will learn, even brought enemies over to their side.

When self defense crosses over to revenge, hearts cross over too, to a dark, empty place devoid of the Spirit.    The Book of Mormon is replete with examples of the ill effects of this.  Clearly, Moroni knew that while annihilating the enemy might prove an immediate advantage, it would bring utter devastation in the long run.  Fast forward to the end of the book and see for yourself.

Alma - Chapter 43

And so begin the war chapters.  As a boy, I loved these above all others.  Intrigue, high adventure, strategy and heroism inspired me and enlivened my reading.  Captain Moroni became a hero who has stood the test of my time as well as his own.  I admire his brilliance, goodness, courage and compassion.  He's the all around quintessential hero in my book.  Being charismatic and genuinely good at the same time are rare qualities, ones I'd like to see among the heroes of our day and age.  Qualities Captain Moroni had in abundance!

In this chapter, after seeking God's assistance and receiving it, Moroni and his armies prevailed against a much more numerous enemy.  And after gaining the advantage the last verse tells us Moroni called for the bloodshed to stop.  That one little verse says volumes about Moroni and his character.  He never lost track of his objective; which was to defend his people and their lives, religion and liberty.  Needless slaughter may have reduced the enemy to far fewer threats, but he'd already learned that the greatest threat to any society including his own came from within.  Allowing his soldiers to needlessly slaughter the enemy would have damaged their souls, hardened their hearts, riddled them with guilt and created the very threat he feared the most - dissension among his own people.  First dissension from their faith, then their religion, then their nation, only creating more enemies.  The very army he was fighting was led and fed with fury by such dissenters.  Allowing his soldiers to show compassion toward their enemies had the opposite effect and as we later will learn, even brought enemies over to their side.

When self defense crosses over to revenge, hearts cross over too, to a dark, empty place devoid of the Spirit.    The Book of Mormon is replete with examples of the ill effects of this.  Clearly, Moroni knew that while annihilating the enemy might prove and immediate advantage, it would bring utter devastation in the long run.  Fast forward to the end of the book and see for yourself.

Alma - Chapter 42

There is a sweet simple statement in this Chapter that greatly comforts me.  It regards the Atonement of Christ and says:

"...whosoever will come may come and partake of the waters of life freely..."  (Alma 42:27)

What a blessed thought, no one is excluded.  Everyone may exercise his own free will and partake of Exaltation. The Atonement is universal and applies to each and every one of us.  That is, if we choose to let it.  President Boyd K. Packer once said:

"There is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no apostasy, no crime exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness. That is the promise of the atonement of Christ"    What a wonderful promise and all we need to do is choose it. In verse 8 of the previous chapter Alma makes the statement and promise even simpler. "Whosoever will may." There are no exemption clauses, no small print, no need of lawyers to interpret and haggle over details. No need of elaborate stipulations. Just a plain simple promise.   Don't you dare say, "Yea but....."  Unless you want to make excuses for choosing not to come to the waters of life, but why would you?

Alma - Chapter 41

Earlier in The Book of Mormon, Lehi makes a simple yet profound statement:

"...men are that they might have joy."  (2 Nephi 2:25)

Here Alma makes another one:

"...wickedness never was happiness."  (Alma 41:10) 

The corollary is priceless and richly informative.  All around us we see millions pursuing happiness in wickedness.  To the degree that we do that, and we all do to some extent, we keep coming up short.  How desperately we continue to seek joy in the wrong places.  We might as well just sit ourselves down and make up our minds that from now on we will only seek happiness where it is found.  Any other pursuit would be insanity.  A definition of insanity that I like goes something like this.

Insanity is when you keep repeating the same behavior, while expecting different results.

I think solving this problem comes of building our lives on a foundation of truth.  This is why it is so important to begin each day but laying out that foundation afresh as we study the scriptures and The Book of Mormon in particular.  Most of us accept that happiness can't be found in wickedness.  We just need frequent reminding so the onslaught of propaganda that contradicts that notion won't have it's desired affect on us.

Joy is our birthright.  Whether we get to have it is our choice.

Alma - Chapter 40

This is quite a statement:

"....the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave the life." 

I had not thought of it that way.  It appears to mean that promptly upon death we will meet our Maker.  It is not the final judgement, but a partial one.  One in which we are consigned to Paradise or Prison which is also called Hell.  I have a notion about he nature of Hell that I'd like to share with you and get, if I may, some feedback.

One day I was counselling with a girl at the Detention Center.  She'd been accused of a heinous crime.  As we discussed her situation tears were shed by each of us.  At one point she asked in grief, "Am I going to Hell?"  To which I responded with a question of my own.  In a compassionate way I asked, "Aren't you already there?"  She answered in the affirmative and explained that she not only was, but had been since long before the present incident.

I've thought a lot about that and about the nature of Hell since then.  I don't think it contradictory to Alma's explanation to Corianton.  Hell may or may not be a geographic location.  But most certainly it is a state of being.  Many of us experience Hell on earth.  We suffer at the hands of others and we suffer at our own hands.  Wrong choices, whether inflicted upon ourselves or by others around us cause pain and suffering.  These are the end result of having taken the risk to choose agency and mortality.  We clearly knew the threat of pain and suffering that attended our choice to follow God's plan rather than Satan's.  Surely in his campaign to win our hearts Satan pointed out to us the enormous risk we were taking.  Surely, he asked us why we would choose the inevitability of pain and mistreatment.  Certainly, the Father didn't misrepresent the nature of mortality either.  But we chose God's danger and discomfort fraught plan over Satan's because while cushy and pain free, Satan's plan could never deliver us to our rightful inheritance.  The reason we could make such a choice was the promise that Christ would rescue us from that pain, sorrow, affliction and sin.

So here we are on earth and many of us are hurting.  Most of us, including many in the church, have yet to learn that Christ is the answer to that pain and suffering.  Most of us, not having discovered or chosen Christ to rescue us yet, have found other ways to deal with the pain.  We anesthetize it by various means.  Drinking and drugs are common methods.  So are chasing adrenalin highs, excessive eating, gambling, over spending, pornography, sexual deviation, endless games of solitaire, the list goes on and on.  All are abused to numb the pain or distract us from it.  It is called self medication and it is far more common that we think.  All are unnecessary because we can go to Christ and be forgiven  and healed of the brokenness and pain of our mistakes, sins and mistreatment.

The difference, I believe, between Hell here and Hell in the Spirit World is this:  Here we can self medicate and to a degree we can conceal our pain from ourselves.  Over there, stripped of a body, the pain will persist, for it is spiritual pain, but there will be no way to avoid fully experiencing it.  It will be raw, intense and agonizing.  Far better to have it healed and dealt with here than there I should think.  Still, I believe the same remedy is available there as here, to accept the Savior's invitation to "return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you."  (3 Nephi 9:13)  The Temples seem to be adequate testimony to the possibility of doing that there as well as here.

An addict friend of mine put it very succinctly when he said, "I don't want to be over there with an itch I can't scratch!

Alma - Chapter 39

I sense that this chapter is primarily about pornography and voyeurism or as Alma puts it "the lusts of your eyes."  It could be that Corianton's sin went beyond that to fornication, but I doubt it because, after repenting, he went right back to work as a missionary.  Alma makes it very plain, that whatever Corianton had done it was grievous on two levels.

The first is the personal devastation to the participant for it "steals away" their hearts.  The first commandment is to "... love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind."  When we allow our hearts to be stolen away by the perniciousness of lust we find ourselves neither loving the Lord, nor ourselves.  We find ourselves having spent our strength and lost our minds and harmed our souls.

And, second we no longer love our neighbor, the second commandment.  As Alma points out, Corianton's bad example did great harm to the hearts of others, who used his misbehavior to justify their own and who discounted his teachings because of his incongruent choices.

Such is the nature of lust.  It supplants love.  It is selfish.  It is foolish.  It does not build or strengthen.  It only destroys.  Oh, that we lived in a day when the only purveyor of porn was over on the "borders of the Lamanites."  Now-a-days it is readily available right in our own homes.  It is stealing away hearts in epidemic proportions and breaking hearts at an alarming rate even among the Latter-day Saints.

Alma's counsel to Corianton with regard to repentance was wonderful:

Refrain from your iniquities.

Turn to the Lord with all your might, mind and strength,

Make amends, by returning to those you've offended and "acknowledge your faults and the wrong which you have done."

 Counsel with your brethren

Today, Latter-day Saints who've succumbed to pornography are given the same counsel, to great effect.  I don't know a Bishop who hasn't helped a ward member or several to deal with the same problem Corianton had.  We'll learn later on that Corianton overcame the "lusts of his eyes" and so can we; through the blessed Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Alma - Chapter 38

Alma gave Shiblon some wonderful advice, with this bit standing out to me:

"...as much as ye shall put your trust in God even so much ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your  troubles, and your afflictions...."

He goes on to speak of eternal rewards, but I'd like to focus today on blessings we might receive in this life.

In this little statement Alma points out plainly that we can trust in degrees and that God's blessings seem to come to the degree we trust.  The principle makes sense, but has somehow escaped me until today.

Looking back on my past, though, bears this out.  Clearly, 100% trust is what we're shooting for.  But kindly, Heavenly Father will reward 50% trust in order to help us build our faith and trust in Him.  Looking back on my life, I have often been inclined to hold a little bit back.  I might have occasionally used the excuse that I was pacing myself.  Or keeping a reserve for tomorrow.  Or keeping a little "arm of the flesh" in the equation in case God was distracted or nodded off for a moment.  Can you see how very shallow those excuses seem when described this way?  Really, there is no excuse, I just didn't fully trust and the result was that I wasn't fully blessed.

Lately, things are beginning to change.  God has never let me down.  I am the one who lets down.  I'm coming closer to fully trusting.  Of course when I approach that sensation, I often get a new trial, or trouble or affliction that specifically shows me a new dimension of need in the trust department.  I'm glad of that, gradually, by degree, my loving Father is teaching me to entirely and completely put my trust in Him, all of it.

Alma - Chapter 37

There is so much in this Chapter.  You know I never fully exhaust every verse, but rather examine something that really jumps out at me.  Today that something is in verse 36.  A little line that simply says, "...let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord..."

We are commanded to pray always.  Is this what Alma wanted to teach his son?  Is there a difference between thoughts and prayers.  I guess it depends upon the direction.

I am always thinking.  There is constantly a conversation going on in my head.  I remember, by way of example, that while driving down the road a while back, someone waved to me.  I waved back.  Immediately, I judged my wave to have been nerdy.  So, for the next mile I worked on developing a cool wave and the practiced it the rest of the day.  This is the kind of thing that happens when we direct our thoughts to ourselves.  It most certainly doesn't bring out the best in us.  Most of us are susceptible to negative self-talk.  The conversations we have with ourselves involve what Coleen Harrison calls the committee.  We all have a committee in our heads and we make our decisions too often with deference to that committee.  The committee consists of parents, friends, teachers, critics, bullies, church leaders and, through our memory they all seem to have a say in what we choose, how we feel and the judgments we make.

What if I directed my thoughts to the Lord?  I tried it.  The committee shut right up.  I saw things with an entirely different perspective.  I made decisions based upon my perception of what God thinks rather than what the committee thinks.  I also got a different perspective on myself.  Stephen R. Covey calls the feedback we get from the committee, the social mirror.  Always the social mirror is distorted, like the ones you see at the Carnival.  With that distorted view of ourselves is it any wonder that we're messed up?  Covey then refers to an added interpretation of Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants which declares, inversely, that the chief characteristic of those who reach the Celestial Kingdom is that they are "valiant in the testimony of Jesus."  What if that means we are valiant in His testimony about us.  His whole life and all of his teaching declare that we are of infinite worth and divine potential!  


By directing our thoughts unto the Lord we effectively see ourselves in His mirror.  With that perfect view, won't we see ourselves more correctly and act more wholly (could also be spelled as Holy) as a consequence?  I think we will.