Mormon 4

Notes from personal scripture study:

Mormon chapter 4

• It is easier to remember to pray at the beginning of my scripture study when I take notes.
• "..it is by the wicked that the wicked are punished; for it is the wicked that stir up the hearts of the children of men unto bloodshed." (v5) War and the destruction that comes with it are one way that the wicked are punished. It seems to me that when the wicked stir up men unto bloodshed, the righteous frequently suffer as well. I don't think it is fair to say that the righteous are being punished, however. Maybe Mormon is saying that the wicked punish themselves through the shedding of blood.
  
• verses 13, 14 - the city of Desolation changes hands for the 3rd time in the chapter. Was it occupied entirely by the military forces? What about the people that weren't fighting? V14 mentions that the Lamanites offered up women and children "as sacrifices unto their idol gods." Perhaps this is the type of punishment that the wicked bring upon the wicked. If the Nephites had been righteous, maybe these sacrifices would not have occurred as they did.
• Chapter 4 begins with the Nephites as the aggressors, but ends with the Lamanites doing all the attacking. The aggressiveness of the Nephites led to their destruction (v4).
  

Start 9:40 pause 9:50 resume 10:13 end 10:37 -- 34 min.

Read More......

The Infinite Power of Hope

Notes from my scripture study today:

The Infinite Power of Hope by Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf (from November 2008 Ensign)

Notes:

• Faith overcomes fear; hope overcomes despair. Faith and hope must be put into action to be truly effective.
• The scriptures are written that we "might have hope" (Romans 15:4). This verse actually says that hope comes through "patience and comfort of the scriptures." What does comfort of the scriptures mean? Knowing them well enough to be comfortable? Finding comfort in the words?
• Having hope is important if I want to have a happy life (Psalm 146:5) - specifically, having hope in the God of Jacob and his power to raise us unto life eternal (Moroni 7:41).
• The absence of hope can make the heart sick (Proverbs 13:12).
  
• Hope is a gift of the Spirit which accompanies repentance and humility (Moroni 8:26).
• "...be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard..." (Colossians 1:23).
  
• We are commanded to be hopeful: "we have the responsibility to make it an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope."
• "...wherefore man must hope, or he cannot receive an inheritance" in the kingdom of God (Ether 12:32).
  

Quotes:

Hope is one leg of a three-legged stool, together with faith and charity.

[W]e have the responsibility to make [hope] an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope.

Hope is not knowledge, but rather the abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill His promise to us.

Because God has been faithful and kept His promises in the past, we can hope with confidence that God will keep His promises to us in the present and in the future.

Started: 1:30 p.m. Ended: 2:15 (45 minutes)

Read More......