In the Book of Mormon we read that the Nephites greatly rejoiced because the Lord had delivered them from their enemies, and they gave thanks unto God, through fasting and prayer. Have you ever thought of fasting as a way of showing gratitude to God? I've usually fasted when I wanted to ask the Lord for something, but don't know that I've ever done it to show thanks. Interesting idea! Alma 45:1 "Behold, now it came to pass that the people of Nephi were exceedingly rejoiced, because the Lord had again delivered them out of the hands of their enemies; therefore they gave thanks unto the Lord their God; yea, and they did fast much and pray much, and they did worship God with exceedingly great joy."
In the New Testament we read about how Paul confronted a false prophet who practiced sorcery, calling him a devil and saying he attacked anything that is right, twisting the straight ways of the Lord into crooked paths. He told him that his eyes would be made blind for a while, so that he would be unable even to see the daylight. At once the man's eyes were darkened and he began to grope around fr someone to lead him around by the hand. When the governor saw what had happened, he came to believe, astonished by the teachings about the Lord. Acts 13:6-12 "And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord."
A verse with a thought booklet is a plea from the Lord, saying He called us often but we wouldn't come; He reached out to us, but we paid no attention. The story is told of a minister sitting in his office at the church trying to prepare a sermon when a noise started to distract him. He tried to ignore it, but it wouldn't go away. Finally, recognition dawned on him about what the noise was, fire alarm! He quickly got up and went to the multipurpose room where a kid's club was meeting. The children were running around making so much noise that no one had noticed the alarm. He evacuated the children and then found out that the alarm was a false one--triggered by a mischievous child. But it made him realize that when we're busy with our own thoughts or there are loud, distracting noises around us, important sounds we need to hear can be drowned out or ignored. Are we quiet and attentive enough to hear when the Lord tries to speak to us? Do we take time from our busy lives to pray, read scriptures, and spend time with God? Or are His messages drowned out by other things in our lives? Proverbs 1:24 "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;"
In the New Testament we read about how Paul confronted a false prophet who practiced sorcery, calling him a devil and saying he attacked anything that is right, twisting the straight ways of the Lord into crooked paths. He told him that his eyes would be made blind for a while, so that he would be unable even to see the daylight. At once the man's eyes were darkened and he began to grope around fr someone to lead him around by the hand. When the governor saw what had happened, he came to believe, astonished by the teachings about the Lord. Acts 13:6-12 "And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord."
A verse with a thought booklet is a plea from the Lord, saying He called us often but we wouldn't come; He reached out to us, but we paid no attention. The story is told of a minister sitting in his office at the church trying to prepare a sermon when a noise started to distract him. He tried to ignore it, but it wouldn't go away. Finally, recognition dawned on him about what the noise was, fire alarm! He quickly got up and went to the multipurpose room where a kid's club was meeting. The children were running around making so much noise that no one had noticed the alarm. He evacuated the children and then found out that the alarm was a false one--triggered by a mischievous child. But it made him realize that when we're busy with our own thoughts or there are loud, distracting noises around us, important sounds we need to hear can be drowned out or ignored. Are we quiet and attentive enough to hear when the Lord tries to speak to us? Do we take time from our busy lives to pray, read scriptures, and spend time with God? Or are His messages drowned out by other things in our lives? Proverbs 1:24 "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;"
No comments:
Post a Comment