Alma 57:35

"And behold, we are again delivered out of the hands of our enemies. And blessed is the name of our God; for behold, it is he that has delivered us; yea, that has done this great thing for us."

The Nephites give credit to God for their success in battle. They are humble enough to realize that they did not fight alone. I admire their humility and faithfulness.

1 Nephi 10:18

"For he is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him."

God is the same. His plan is the same. Nothing about him changes. His gospel does not change, so we must always repent to have salvation. That will always be the requisite.

1 Nephi 8:28

"And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost."

There are many people today who taste the fruit of the gospel and feel the love of Christ in their lives. But later they turn away from it because of the temptations of the world. They fall into bad, sometimes devastating, habits and no longer feel that love. We all need to be so careful that we do not fall away into forbidden paths.

1 Nephi 6:6

"Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men."

Nephi says that the Book of Mormon is full of things that are of worth. I think that makes it important to read and reread that book.

1 Nephi 4:6

"And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do."

Nephi was so close to the Spirit that he received inspiration on the spot. How awesome! It is so neat that this is possible.  The Lord wants us to know His will, so we must be worthy of the Spirit so He can tell us what to do.

1 Nephi 3:7

"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

I love this scripture!  I love the faith Nephi has and how he knows his father is truly asking him to do the Lord's commands. The Lord will provide a way. His commands seems hard, but they are doable!

1 Nephi 1:20

"... But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance."

The brief explanation of the Book of Mormon tells about the different plates that make up the book. It took so much time and effort to engrave those plates, but so many prophet-historians did. They were chosen of God to make these plates because God knew they would do it. God's wishes will happen, and He uses people to complete His will. I want Him to be able to count on me, so I must follow His commands.  This verse says that Nephi writes to show me the tender mercies of the Lord to the faithful. I want those in my life, and I know that I will have them as I remain faithful and do what He wants me to do.

Alma 53:20-21

 20 And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for ^acourage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all—they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.

 21 Yea, they were men of truth and ^asoberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to ^bwalk uprightly before him.

These men were so awesome! I love all the qualities they have, especially that they were 'true at all times in whatsoever they were entrusted.'  

Moroni 10:3

"Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts."

Moroni wants us to read the Book of Mormon and to ponder how merciful the Lord has been throughout time. The Lord loves his children and will never stop loving them. There are so many examples of His love in this book, especially as He shows so much mercy. I want to ponder these things and feel His mercy in my own life.

Moroni 8:18

"For I know that God is not a partial God, neither a changeable being; but he is unchangeable from all eternity to all eternity."

God would not be God if he changed.  He is the same today as He always has, meaning that His Gospel is unchanging. He is a constant source of truth and will never leave.

Moroni 7:47

"But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him."

Charity is acting as Jesus would, with complete love. No grudging thoughts or poor intentions; rather genuine joy in serving others.

Moroni 1:3

"And I, Moroni, will not deny the Christ; wherefore, I wander whithersoever I can for the safety of mine own life."

How powerful is this statement! Moroni lives in a time where anyone who won't deny Christ is killed.  He alone remains as a Christian, so he has to live in hiding.  While he is hiding, he abridges scriptures-precious records that we have today because of him. He also writes the sacramental prayers and the manner of priesthood ordination. While reading the first few chapters of Moroni today I imagined the Nephites living as I do today.  Their church was organized exactly how ours is organized today. It is so incredible to think about and imagine. It makes me feel like I am part of something big. Something that has not changed, and won't change because it is how Christ organized it. He is the head, and He know what works best because it's how it's always worked. I know this!

Alma 50:12

"Thus Moroni, with his armies, which did increase daily because of the assurance of protection which his works did bring forth unto them, did seek to cut off the strength and the power of the Lamanites from off the lands of their possessions, that they should have no power upon the lands of their possession."

I love that Moroni's armies increased daily.  The zeal for freedom was extreme in these times, and so many people wanted to have safety. It is so important to believe in freedom enough to fight for it and defend it daily.

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Matthew 7:12

"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets."

The golden rule. Treat others how you want to be treated.

Ether 13:22

"And it came to pass that Coriantumr repented not, neither his household, neither the people; and the wars ceased not; and they sought to kill Ether, but he fled from before them and hid again in the cavity of the rock."

This is right after Ether prophesies to Coriantumr that if he does not repent his whole civilization will be destroyed except for him. He alone will survive to witness the death of everyone he knows. Coriantumr does not repent, and sadly this prophecy indeed comes to pass.

Ether 12:41

"And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen."

Moroni, realizing that his time in running out, asks readers to seek Jesus.  Moroni knows the true source of happiness and he wants everyone to find it. By following Christ, we can have God's grace with us.

Ether 10:33

"And in the days of Com there began to be robbers in the land; and they adopted the old plans, and administered oaths after the manner of the ancients, and sought again to destroy the kingdom."

This part of Ether is all about how King after King and war after war the people still remained in wickedness. The secret oaths came back and they threw out the prophets. It's sad to see the decay of righteousness and witness a nation being destroyed because of pride, selfishness, and the desire to get gain.

Ether 9:22

"And after he had anointed Coriantum to reign in his stead he lived four years, and he saw peace in the land; yea, and he even saw the Son of Righteousness, and did rejoice and glory in his day; and he died in peace."

This verse stood out to me today because it sounds so wonderful! I would love to be able to say that I helped establish peace in the land because of my righteousness.  It would be so special and amazing to have the privilege of seeing the Son of Righteousness and beholding His glory while on the earth. It would be so nice to die in peace. This is the goal and it makes following the gospel each day worth it!

Ether 4:12

"And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me - that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me, For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world."

All good things come of Christ. Those who don't believe Him will not believe anything of Him. Those who do not believe His words do not really believe Him.  They do not know that He is the truth, light, and life of the world, and that He is the Father.

Ether 2:25

"...Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?"

Here the Lord is asking the brother of Jared what he wants Him to do. God doesn't just give us answers sometimes. We had to figure things out for ourselves and then ask if it is right. He wants us to use our agency and choose ourselves so we can decide if we want to follow Him.

Ether 1:34

"...Cry unto the Lord..."

In this chapter this phrase if found at least four times. Jared urged his brother to "cry unto the Lord" so that his language would not be confounded and that they would be guided to a promised land. They were blessed with what they asked the Lord. The Lord saved these people from the confounding at the Tower of Babel and led them to the promised land.  The Lord hears and answers prayers of the faithful.

Mormon 9:34

"But the Lord knoweth the things which we have written, and also that none other people knoweth our language; and because that none other people knoweth our language, therefore he hath prepared means for the interpretation thereof."

The Lord knows everything.  He knows what is happening now and what will happen. It is no shock that the Lord knew how to preserve these scriptures. He can perform all miracles, and He did as Joseph Smith translated the plates into the Book of Mormon.

Mormon 7:9

"For behold, this is written for the intent that ye may believe that; and if ye believe that ye will believe this also; and if ye believe this ye will know concerning your fathers, and also the marvelous works which were wrought by the power of God among them."

The Book of Mormon (this) and Bible (that) are complementary. If you really believe the Bible, you will also believe the Book of Mormon. Reading both books helps us understand the history of prophets and the miracles wrought by God's power in past days. I am so grateful to have both books of scripture today.

Alma 45:3

"And Helaman said unto him: Yea, I believe."

Helaman answers Alma, his father, with this simple phrase.  In this proclamation Helaman affirms his belief in his father's words; the words of a true prophet.  Helaman shows his faithfulness and devotion to living the gospel just as his father had.