Daily Thoughts

In the Old Testament I read about how the king sent fifty men to ask Elijan to come down from the top of a hill. Elijah told them that if he was a man of God, the Lord would send fire down to consume all fifty of them, which indeed did happen. The same thing happened to another group of fifty. The captain of a third group of fifty came to Elijah pleading for his life and Elijah agreed to go down with him, after an angel from the Lord told him to go and there was nothing to fear. 2 Kgs. 1: 9-15 "Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down. And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. Again also he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly. And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight. And the aangel of the Lord said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king."

In the Book of Mormon I read that wickedness continued to spread throughout the land to the point that the Lord took His disciples away, miracles and healings did cease, and the Holy Ghost was withdrawn--all because of the wickedness of the people. Morm. 1: 13-14 "But wickedness did prevail upon the face of the whole land, insomuch that the Lord did take away his beloved disciples, and the work of miracles and of healing did cease because of the iniquity of the people. And there were no gifts from the Lord, and the Holy Ghost did not come upon any, because of their wickedness and unbelief."

Some scriptures with a thought booklet tell the story of the parable of the Good Samaritan. The thought that went with this, written by Dan Nicksich from Somerset, Pennsylvania says: One of our elderly church members told me of a time when he fell on the sidewalk in front of his apartment building. He hit his head on some brickwork while falling and knocked himself out. He doesn't know how long he was unconscious but when he came to, he was aware of the sound of cars passing by in the street. Nobody stopped to even check on an elderly man lying on the sidewalk. It's the parable of the Good Samaritan all over again except for the absence of any Samaritan to help a fallen traveler. I wonder who passed by. Teachers? Real estate agents? Bankers? Mail carriers on their appointed rounds? Possibly some Christians? May we never be so busy, so preoccupied with self or even with acts of service, that we fail to notice or take the time to help someone in need. Is it I, Lord? Am I one who would simply pass by those who are in need? Give me the heart of the Samaritan, filled with your compassion. Luke 10: 25-37 "And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise."

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