Emily Bunker - Winchester 2nd Ward
Two weeks ago our lesson in RS was on the two April
conference messages from President Monson:
“Kindness, Charity, and Love,” p.66 and “The Power of the
Book of Mormon,” p. 86 . They both are a
witness of the manner in which President
Monson has lived his life and his testimony of the Book of Mormon.
Several of our
class were invited by the teacher, Sister Snow, to share our testimonies of the
power of the Book of Mormon in our lives. I love the Book of Mormon. It whispers peace to me and it ALWAYS brings
the spirit; it gives us examples from
the lives of these former people that apply to our time and all times. It teaches true eternal doctrine and
principles and gives us answers to questions we are seeking. It is a sure witness of the Savior, Jesus
Christ and Heavenly Father’s eternal plan.
I would like to share what I shared in class - an experience
that I recently had with a dear friend and neighbor as it relates to the Book of Mormon. She is a future member of the church. We were
visiting and of course the current state of the world came up and she made the
comment that it is hard to understand why God doesn’t intervene and stop the
evil and destruction that is going on throughout the world when so many innocent
people are suffering. She asked how can
God allow it? Why doesn’t He intervene
to protect them? I thought immediately
of man’s agency and accountability and briefly mentioned it. Then
the story of Alma and Amulek’s came to mind:
Not only were
they imprisoned and suffered severely but they had to witness the burning of innocent
women and children who were cast into the fire because of their beliefs. Amulek asked Alma: “How
can we witness this awful scene? ….let
us stretch forth our hands ….. and save them from the flames.” Alma’s response was the perfect response to
my friend’s question……
I retold this exchange in my own words as best as I could
and then told her I would email her the scriptures as they are written. You can read Alma’s response to Amulek’s
question in Alma 14: 8-11. I
did send this scripture passage to her and she thanked me for taking the time
to do it and said she had never thought of it that way and that it helped her
understand.
President Monson says
in his message: “This morning I speak
about the power of the Book of Mormon and the critical need we have as members
of this Church to study, ponder, and apply its teachings in our lives. The importance of having a firm and sure
testimony of the Book of Mormon cannot be overstated.”
As I read that paragraph certain words stand out. I would ask: What stands out to you?
He asks this question:
“What will protect us from the
sin and evil so prevalent in the world today?”
His answer: “I maintain that a strong testimony of our
Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His gospel will help see us through to safety.”
I KNOW that the Book of Mormon is true! It has the power to change our lives for the
better. Heavenly Father will speak to us
individually and as families as we seek to read and apply the truths it
contains. EB
