BYU (Brigham Young University) is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often mistakenly called the “Mormon Church.” As part of their undergraduate coursework, BYU students take multiple semesters of spiritually uplifting, stimulating religion classes.
In this series (see below), students enrolled in scripture study classes have shared their thoughts, insights, and reflections on the Book of Mormon in the form of letters to someone they know. We invite you to take a look at their epiphanies and discoveries as they delve into the scriptures.
In publishing these, we fulfill their desire to speak to all of us of the relevance, power and beauty of the Book of Mormon, a second witness of Jesus Christ and complement to the Bible. The Book of Mormon includes the religious history of a group of Israelites who settled in ancient America. (The names they use are those of prophets who taught the Book of Mormon peoples to look forward to the coming of Christ—Nephi, Lehi, Alma, Helaman, and other unfamiliar names. We hope those names will become more familiar to you as you read their inspiring words and feel the relevance and divinity of their messages through these letters.)
Let us know if you’d like to receive your own digital copy of the Book of Mormon, and/or if these messages encourage and assist you spiritually as well.
Mormon Thoughts: Never Giving Up
Blog Post
I would like to dedicate this post to those who never give up. Many times life will throw us a situation that is difficult. But, as life shows all the time, it is never just one difficult situation that we have to face. It seems to be phases that one has to pass through in order to find the peace at the end of the tunnel. There are many reasons to feel doubtful about the future, not only for ourselves, but the one we love as well. An example of this very kind of trial and worrying is shown through the Book of Mormon prophet Samuel, the Lamanite, in Helaman 13-16. He, at the beginning, is introduced as one who was called to preach repentance to the people of Nephi. Then his trials begin. He is, at first, as many prophets are, rejected and then cast out of the city. I am sure he was disappointed that the people of Nephi didn’t heed the healing word of God. However, when an angel appeared to him it was apparent how strong Samuel truly was. The angel told him to go back to the people who had just rejected him. With unwavering courage, he went back determined to get into the city. As stated before, though, the trials never seem to be a one-time occurrence, even with divine help. As Samuel tries to be obedient to the commands of the Lord, the people this time won’t even let him gain entrance into their city. For many, this would prove sufficient, and they would go home feeling they had accomplished what the Lord had sent them to do. But not for Samuel. He instead thought of another plan to be able to tell the people what God wanted them to hear. He climbed the wall surrounding the city, and from the top of the wall began to preach to them. The people, stunned at this man’s bravery, tolerated this for a while, until the wicked people (who seemed to be the majority) decided that they needed to kill Samuel because of his preaching. So one sure way they believe to get rid of him is to throw rocks and shoot arrows at him. Samuel, who seems not to be having the best day, saw the arrows and again decided not to give up. He instead put his trust in the Lord. Luke 1:37 reads, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.” Samuel knew this, and so therefore never gave up.
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