Farewell Talk

The bishop asked me to share how the Book of Mormon has brought me closer to the Savior.  It was really hard for me to narrow that subject down and pinpoint just one experience or one scripture that has brought me closer to my Savior.  As I’ve read and re-read the Book of Mormon throughout my life there have been countless times that it has brought me closer to my Savior, and some lessons it has had to teach me again and again.  There is a quote written on the case for my nook that says, “a good book is the best of friends, the same today and forever.”  That saying is truer for the Book of Mormon than any other book.  The book of Mormon is constant, and the reason we get different things out of it each time we read it is because we change not it.  As our spiritual needs change our understanding of the lessons taught in the Book or Mormon change as well.  As my spiritual needs have changed there has always been one constant, one thing I’ve always needed, and that has been my Savior.  The biggest way the Book of Mormon has brought me closer the Savior has been by teaching me about my Savior.  How can we put our trust in the Lord and draw closer to Him if we do not know Him?  The Book or Mormon has taught me so much about who the Savior is, and about how I can draw closer to Him, but today I will only share 4 things that I have learned.

         The first thing I’ve learned about the Lord is that He is aware of each of us.  I know that the Lord uses the Book of Mormon to show us He cares about us; I mean the book itself is evidence that He cares about us.  President Ezra Taft Benson taught:

“The Book of Mormon was written for us today.

God is the author of the book. It is a record of a

fallen people, compiled by inspired men for our

blessing today. Those people never had the book.

It was meant for us.”

I have had many experiences where I felt that a certain scripture was written just for me, one of those experiences happened as I struggled one night with worry and fear for a friend’s safety on his mission.  After praying to the Lord for peace, I opened up my scriptures.  I had just started 1 Nephi again and was reading about Lehi preaching to the people of Jerusalem, and it says in verse 20:

“And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had ^cast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also ^sought his life, that they might take it away. But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender ^cmercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of ^ddeliverance.”

I had read that scripture a million times because it’s one of my favorites, but this time the Lord showed me another meaning of it and brought peace to my soul through it.

         That same scripture had also taught me, long ago, that the Lord shows His love for us through “tender mercies.”  In fact about a year ago I put that scripture on the front of a book that I called my “blessing book.”  At the end of each day I will write down blessings from the Lord that I noticed that day.  Some days there are just little things like the camera charger that my mom and I had been searching for for days magically appearing.  Or some days it would be big things like the experience I am about to share with you.  Monday morning of this week my mom and I had been stressed about the finances for my mission because of bills that had popped up.  I began to have small doubts about leaving on my mission.  I would have the thought, “maybe I shouldn’t go, we can’t afford it and I don’t want to put more stress on my mom.”  I tried my best to push these thoughts aside and stay positive, but as the day went on I became more and more frustrated.  Later that night I discovered that I had a voicemail on my phone from the bishop saying, “I have great news!  Someone (who will remain anonymous to all of you) has told me that they will be putting $50.00 in a month for your mission.”  I was overwhelmed by this tender mercy from the Lord, and in that moment the words from a scripture in 1 Nephi chapter 21 came clearly into my mind, “I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands: thy walls are continually before me.” I know that the Lord uses the scriptures to speak to us, and to show us that he loves and cares for us.  Elder David A Bednar said, “We should not underestimate or overlook the power of the Lord’s tender mercies. The simpleness, the sweetness, and the constancy of the tender mercies of the Lord will do much to fortify and protect us in the troubled times in which we do now and will yet live. When words cannot provide the solace we need or express the joy we feel, when it is simply futile to attempt to explain that which is unexplainable, when logic and reason cannot yield adequate understanding about the injustices and inequities of life, when mortal experience and evaluation are insufficient to produce a desired outcome, and when it seems that perhaps we are so totally alone, truly we are blessed by the tender mercies of the Lord and made mighty even unto the power of deliverance. I am thankful for the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith and for the knowledge we have today about the Lord’s tender mercies. Our desires, faithfulness, and obedience invite and help us to discern His mercies in our lives…I know that He lives and that His tender mercies are available to all of us. Each of us can have eyes to see clearly and ears to hear distinctly the tender mercies of the Lord as they strengthen and assist us in these latter days. May our hearts always be filled with gratitude for His abundant and tender mercies.”  I am very thankful that the Book of Mormon has taught me to recognize blessings I receive from the Lord that show His love for me.

         The second thing the Book of Mormon has taught me about the Savior is that His Grace is sufficient.  Ether 12:27 says:

 “And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”

Reading that scripture I use to always focus on the weak things being made strong aspect of it and never really noticed the part about the Lords grace being sufficient until I read an amazing talk by Brad Wilcox entitled “His Grace is Sufficient.”  We hear about the Saviors Grace many times throughout the Book of Mormon, but do we really understand what it is?  I didn’t, until I read Brad Wilcox’s talk.

Brother Wilcox compares Grace to a mother paying for her child’s piano lessons.  The mother pays in full for the lessons, she doesn’t expect her son to pay her back for the lessons, but asks him instead to practice as a way to show his appreciation for the gift his mother is giving him.  Similarly, the Savior has paid our debt in full through His atonement and now all he asks of us in return is to follow Him and keep his commandments. Brad Wilcox quotes

Elder Dallin H. Oaks saying, “The repenting sinner must suffer for his sins, but this suffering has a different purpose than punishment or payment. Its purpose is change” Wilcox continues on to say: “Let’s put that in terms of the child pianist: The child must practice the piano, but this practice has a different purpose than punishment or payment. Its purpose is change.

The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can live after we die but that we can live more abundantly (see John 10:10). The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can be cleansed and consoled but that we can be transformed (see Romans 8). Scriptures make it clear that no unclean thing can dwell with God (see Alma 40:26), but no unchanged thing will even want to.

The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can go home but that—miraculously—we can feel at home there.

“But don’t you realize how hard it is to practice? I’m just not very good at the piano. I hit a lot of wrong notes. It takes me forever to get it right.” Now wait. Isn’t that all part of the learning process? When a young pianist hits a wrong note, we don’t say he is not worthy to keep practicing. We don’t expect him to be flawless. We just expect him to keep trying. Perfection may be his ultimate goal, but for now we can be content with progress in the right direction. Why is this perspective so easy to see in the context of learning piano but so hard to see in the context of learning heaven?

Too many are giving up on the Church because they are tired of constantly feeling like they are falling short. They have tried in the past, but they continually feel like they are just not good enough. They don’t understand grace.

There should never be just two options: perfection or giving up. When learning the piano, are the only options performing at Carnegie Hall or quitting? No. Growth and development take time. Learning takes time. When we understand grace, we understand that God is long-suffering, that change is a process, and that repentance is a pattern in our lives. When we understand grace, we understand that the blessings of Christ’s Atonement are continuous and His strength is perfect in our weakness (see 2 Corinthians 12:9). When we understand grace, we can, as it says in the Doctrine and Covenants, “continue in patience until [we] are perfected” End of quote. The Lord does not expect us to be perfect in everything, and because of His grace we don’t have to be perfect.  Because of the Lord’s Grace all we have to do is try our best to follow Him and change for the better.  Understanding what grace is has helped me to better understand the meaning of the atonement and knowing that I don’t have to be perfect makes it easier for me to come to the Lord for help when I need it.

         The third thing that the Book of Mormon has taught me is that the Savior forgets our sins.  This was a really hard thing for me to comprehend.  I always wondered how someone with a perfect memory could just forget something that had caused Him so much suffering in the garden of gethsemane, and yet the lord says in D&C 58:42, “he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord remember them no more.”  I cannot find one example in the Book of Mormon of the Lord throwing someone’s past sins that they have already repented for back in their face. The only time He ever refers back to a sin is to show the person what they have overcome, and that they can be forgiven through the atonement.  I used to think that because I remembered my sins that meant that the Lord still remembered them, but in the Book of Mormon Alma says to His son, “And now, my son, I desire that ye should let these things ^trouble you no more, and only let your sins trouble you, with that trouble which shall bring you down unto repentance.”  As we strive to become like Christ, He will bless us with the ability to forgive ourselves, and as we forgive ourselves we begin to see the purpose of our imperfections.  Sometimes they humble us so that we can draw closer to the Lord, we must remember them to stay humble, but that does not mean that we can’t forgive ourselves or that the Lord does not forgive us.  I promise you that the Lord does not see you for your sins and weaknesses as you might see yourself but rather he sees you for your potential because He knows you better than you know yourself.  He knows your every weakness but he also knows your every strength, even the strengths you may not have acquired yet but will in the future, and He sees the strength you can gain when you overcome your weaknesses.  I know that after we’ve done all that we can to repent, we can leave it to the Lord from there, we can let go of it.

         Knowing that the Savior forgets sins has not only helped me draw closer to Him because I know that he forgives me, but has also helped me draw closer to Him by teaching me that I can forgive others.  A little while ago I had gotten in an argument with a close friend.  I had been hurt and angered by something that was said and I let those feeling of anger and pain fester.  I woke up the next day feeling completely void of the spirit.  As I studied the Book of Mormon in an attempt to get the spirit back I read about Nephi and His brothers in 1 Nephi chapter 7.  Nephi’s brothers had become angry with Nephi and they did bind him with cords and sought to take away his life. Yet even after all of this Nephi in verse 21 “frankly” forgives his brothers.  I know that if Nephi had not been close to the Savior and understood the Saviors will he would not have been able to so easily forgive his brothers. Psh! If Nephi could so easily forgive his own brothers for trying to kill him, surely the Lord could help me forgive my friend for saying some hurtful words.  As I sincerely prayed to the Lord he healed my bitter heart, and I was able to let go of my hurt feelings. James E Faust said, “the Savior has offered to all of us a precious peace through His Atonement, but this can come only as we are willing to cast out negative feelings of anger, spite, or revenge. For all of us who forgive “those who trespass against us,” 19 even those who have committed serious crimes, the Atonement brings a measure of peace and comfort.”  Knowing that the Lord forgives and forgets my sins helps me forgive others and as I forgive others I feel the Saviors love.

The last thing that the Book of Mormon has taught me about my Savior is that He is our Advocate.  D&C 45:3-5 says, “ Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him—

 4 Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and breath of him who did no chin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified;

 5 Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.”

The word advocate comes from a Greek word meaning paraclaytos, Kalayo meaning “to summon” and para meaning “to the side of.”  The word para has a special meaning to me since I had the amazing opportunity this last school year to be a special needs para educator at a high school.  Sometimes the students didn’t always need the paras help, either because they had someone helping them already or because they could do the task independently, but no matter what we were always there when someone needed our help.  And when a student needed our help we were there by their side guiding them through their work.  That is what the Savior does for us as our advocate, or our own personal para.  He is always by our side wanting to help us; all we have to do is let Him.

         As D&C 45:3-5 also taught us the Savior will also be by our side as we face the judgment of God.  The D&C student manual states that, “At the time of eternal judgment, we will stand before the bar of God accused of being imperfect and unworthy to enter God’s presence, “for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). At that time we have an Advocate with the Father. He will stand beside us to plead our cause before the Great Judge; however, He does not plead our case by pointing to our lack of guilt; rather, it is His own sinlessness to which He calls God’s attention (see D&C 45:4). His perfection and His suffering pay the price to satisfy justice for those of His “brethren that believe on my name” (v. 5). Imagine the indescribable sorrow of standing before the judgment bar with no one to step forward, no one to speak for you. How tragic that some will not come to Him in true faith and repentance so that He can take their guilt upon Him and become their advocate with the Father.”  I know that as we humble ourselves, and turn to the Savior that He is waiting for us with open arms.  Please turn to Him and I promise that if you do He will become your greatest advocate and friend.

         The one thing that all 4 of these things I’ve learned have in common is love. The Savior is aware of each of us because He loves us.  His Grace is sufficient because of His love for us.  The Savior forgets our sins because He loves us.  And the Savior is our Advocate because He loves us. The biggest thing that the Book of Mormon has taught me and shows me every time I read it is the love the Savior has for me and each of you.   I know that the Lord loves each and everyone of you, and I cannot wait to share His love with the people in Utica.