Daily Thoughts

In the Book of Mormon we read that whoever believed in the records and tried to keep the commandments of God were called Nephites. They continued to keep a record of their people. Alma 3:11-12 "And it came to pass that whosoever would not believe in the tradition of the Lamanites, but believed those records which were brought out of the land of Jerusalem, and also in the tradition of their fathers, which were correct, who believed in the commandments of God and kept them, were called the Nephites, or the people of Nephi, from that time forth— And it is they who have kept the records which are true of their people, and also of the people of the Lamanites."

In the Old Testament we read that if the wicked forsake their evil ways and unrighteous thoughts and return to the Lord, He will have mercy on them and abundantly pardon them.  We need to seek the Lord while He may be found and call upon Him while He is near.  His ways are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways.  But just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are the Lord's ways higher than our ways.  Isaiah 55:6-9 "Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:  Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Some scriptures with a thought booklet remind us to press forward toward our goals, leaving behind and forgetting things from the past that would stand in our way. The story is told of a baby zebra whose mother had died.  The baby kept nudging her trying to revive her.  A male zebra kept prodding the baby to rejoin the herd.  Time was running out for the zebras to reach their destination where there was water if they were going to survive.  Finally the baby left his dead mother and went with the other zebras.  If he had not, he would have died. Sometimes we keep trying in vain to revive something that is "dead" and the results hinder our progress in life. Maybe we try to rekindle a relationship that has ended. Maybe we keep dredging up memories of past mistakes and refuse to let them go to the point that we feel worthless and unable to do what we need to be doing in the present. Whatever is in the past that is hindering our present life, we need to let it go and move forward. When we find ourselves bogged down with past memories, think of the baby zebra and move on.  Philippians 3:13-14 "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."