Daily Thoughts

In the Old Testament we read that Samuel's sons took bribes and perverted judgment, turning aside from the Lord for lucre. The people insisted on Samuel giving them a king, in spite of his warnings that such would not be good for them. They said they wanted to be like other nations and have a king. So the Lord told Samuel to give them what they wanted and they would have to suffer the consequences of their poor decision. 1 Sam. 8: 1-10, 19-22 "And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. Now the name of his firstborn was Joel; and the name of his second, Abiah: they were judges in Beer-sheba. And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment. Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them. And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the people that asked of him a king. Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us; That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles. And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city."

In the Book of Mormon I read about how a man whose brother had been slain by Ammon was angry with him and tried to slay him with the sword, but fell down dead while attempting this. Ammon's father, Mosiah, had been promised that Ammon would be spared and Mosiah trusted in the Lord, so no one could kill his son. We need to know that we can fully trust in the Lord to keep His promises to us. Alma 19: 22-23 "Now, one of them, whose brother had been slain with the sword of Ammon, being exceedingly angry with Ammon, drew his sword and went forth that he might let it fall upon Ammon, to slay him; and as he lifted the sword to smite him, behold, he fell dead. Now we see that Ammon could not be slain, for the Lord had said unto Mosiah, his father: I will spare him, and it shall be unto him according to thy faith—therefore, Mosiah trusted him unto the Lord."

A verse with a thought booklet tells us that the Spirit of the Lord can speak through us and His Word can come from our tongue. If we're in tune with the Lord He can inspire us on what to say to others and we can be an instrument in His hands. The thought that went with this, written by Linda Neukrug says: When Ellie, a new coworker at the bookstore, told me that she used to be a counselor before she got laid off because of budget cuts, I patted her hand in sympathy. "This retail job must be a real comedown for you," I commented. If I'd expected her to agree with me, I was in for a surprise. "Oh no," she said. "I come in contact with more hurting people in a day here than I did in my old job in a week." "How on earth do you know that?" I asked. Most of the customers I met seemed confident and pulled together. "Why, just yesterday," she said, "a lady came in looking for a book on divorce." I remembered the woman vividlly. She'd looked annoyed, I thought, so I'd passed her on to Ellie. "Well, anyone looking for a book on divorce or grieving is obviously looking for help," I admitted, "but you make it sound like everyone can use help." "I think that many of them can," Ellis said. "Do you remember that tall man who wanted a book on finances?" I did remember him. He'd seemed so snappish that I'd kept right on shelving books while I let Ellie help him. "He was facing bankruptcy," she said quietly. At my astonished look she said, "As I walk them to the right shelf, I try to say a kind word and then I listen carefully. And I ask God to help me say the right thing." So I tried it. A man wanted a book on "neighbor law," and when he poured out his frustration about the child with a drum set who'd moved in above him, I briefly poured out my sympathy...and left both of us with a smile on our faces, for a change. God, help me to help someone with a kind word or an understanding ear today. 2 Sam. 23: 2 "The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue."