Who You Gonna Call? Those Scriptures!

Some questions have been floating around in my mind lately- and I feel through reading the Book of Mormon during my studies today, quite  a few of them were answered. Here are some of the questions I've been mulling over lately:

How do I best help people around me want to change?
How do I help a loved one understand their worth to God?
How can I better understand my own worth to God?
How will this understanding help me interact with other people?
And how can I forgive myself when I keep messing up again and again?

Alma the younger- ma man!- will help us find answers to these profound questions of the soul. Which is pretty appropriate, seeing as his name is "soul" in spanish- woooow- didn't even realize that until just now. Must be fate. Anyhowsers, I was reading in Alma 36, when he is bearing his testimony of Christ and the gospel to his son, Helaman. He starts off his testimony by stating what he has found to be true after a life time of service to the Lord and dedication to the gospel: "For I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day." (3) See what he did there? Pure, simple statement of truth. How did he know what he said was true? Let me tell you- he has lived quite a marvelous life:

• Alma the younger= Son of a prophet, extremely rebellious, sinful, messing with people's lives
• After receiving a warning from God, chose to turn life around
• Became one of the most excellent missionaries this fine world has seen
• Successfully preached to receptive people in a few major cities
• Went through intense rejection, physical abuse, mocking, and watched martyrdom of others in Ammonihah 
• despite these challenges, kept faith in God and was delivered from opposition
• Preached gospel to apostate Zoramites
• When he teaches the Zoramites, you can tell he understands the importance of small and simple things, consistency (alma 32)
• Knew how to teach to the individual (Helaman, Corianton, Shiblon)
• One son= Overzealous, needed encouragement
• Another= Sinned, needed to understand why he had to change
• Other son= Hard on himself, needed to understand the atonement
• Through his experiences, the spirit guided him what to say to each of them

Yup he's incredible. What kept Alma continually faithful and growing in the church?

• He remembers the WHY of what he's doing
• He remembers both the negative and positive experiences in his life- how badly he felt when he realized the mistakes he'd made and the pain he'd inflicted on himself and others, as well as the joy, peace, and light that came from turning it all over to Christ
• Believes he is loved, forgiven, and valued by God, so now he wants other people to experience the same joy, healing, forgiveness, and peace that has come into his life since changing (it has to start with your own personal experiences with God and the atonement before you can help other people know it's true)
• He is alright sharing his past mistakes with other people, when appropriate. He knows he is forgiven and recognizes if he is open with those past mistakes, they can help others desire to change as well

What caused Alma to want to change in the first place when he was living a life so contrary to God's will? The pure doctrine the angel spoke to Alma helped him realized he needed to change. And once he remembered the words of his father, about the promise of Jesus Christ's ability to save all men, he had the desire to turn to Christ with a whole heart.
Until someone understands why they need to change and how it is possible, nothing will happen. I think the biggest the to remember as well is that it won't be on our time, but it will always be God's time. Alma's dad probably would have had a heck of a lot less grey hairs had he decided to change earlier in life- but because Alma the Younger experienced what he did, he was a wonderfully powerful instrument in God's hands.

And Alma the younger kept true to his faith by living simple, consistent principles:

• Turned to the scriptures for guidance, comfort, truth
• Remembers his own experiences: where he's been, how far he has come with God's help
• Takes time to learn his ancestor's stories and testimonies to strengthen his faith

"And I have been supported under trials and troubles of every kind, yea, and in all manner of afflictions; yea, God has delivered me from prison, and from bonds, from death, yea and I do put my trust in him forever and he will still deliver me.
And I know that he will raise me up at the last day...[and] he has brought our fathers out of the land of Egypt...and led them by his power to the promised land...yea and he also brought our fathers out of the land of jerusalem...and I have always retained in remembrance their captivity." alma 36:27-29

Alma recognizes that God has always been mindful of his people, and that He will continue to deliver them. Alma also recognizes that there will still be opportunities for him to teach, to grow, to be stretched, and to dedicate his time to God. We will experience a variety of challenges in this life- that will not change. But we can decide to change for the better because of them with the help of God. I know He delivers us from our pains when we do as He asks, and He will continue to do so as we give Him our very best.

Each of us has a completely different story and we all have a unique and individual opportunity to come to know God through these experiences. We wants us to reach our full potential while here on earth, and that is possible as we turn to Christ. As we improve ourselves through the Lord, we are also committing to leave the world better than we found it. And that is most definitely what Alma did while he was here. I am grateful that his story was recorded so I could learn from him, and I hope to continue to glean all I can from the scriptures and those who came before me the rest of my life. Take time this week to remember- your own life as well as the scriptures and those who came before you. I know this knowledge will protect, guide, and comfort you as you navigate the crazy storms of this world.

Much love,

Emily