Okay, this is another scripture study one but just bear with me because I whenever I get a new idea I have to share it with someone. Just ask my friends.
So I was reading in the Book of Mormon, in Helaman 11. It related the story of a man named Nephi who was deeply saddened by the wickedness of his people. And so he did what most amazing people like him do: prayed. He asked the Lord to bring on a famine in order to 'stir them up in remembrance of the the Lord their God'. And so a famine came.
That'd be pretty cool, I thought. It seemed people in the scriptures always had this immense power granted to them. (and probably for good reason) But then I realized, in this case, it really wouldn't do me much good. First off, I live in a small town where just about everyone already goes to church. Second off, we live in a desert and everyone's apple blossoms have already been blown off their trees. So the threat of a famine wouldn't really be that effective and the only thing anyone could call them to repentence for would be falling asleep in sacrament meeting.
I shrugged it off and was about to read again when I realized something. Nephi wasn't just trying to show off--he was trying to help bring others to their Savior, trying to do His will. Maybe we didn't always have these huge miracles that effected an entire nation, but it seems that every true follower of Jesus Christ is allowed something to help them accomplish His purposes.
For a mother, its the miracle of added strength and awareness at two in the morning, though thin it may be. For a missionary, the troubled stranger that just happened to be standing at the same crosswalk as them. For a teenager, the scripture in Seminary that, in such masterly words, illustrated the solution to a concern that, to others, seemed so insignificant. For a father, the miraculously added digits to a paycheck after a month where tithing came hard. For a child, the discovery of a lost toy after diligent prayer. For the elderly, the unexpected visit of a busy child.
Sunsets, a cheerful bird chirp, a smile, a hug, forgiveness,the art of music, a random act of service--miracles are everywhere! They may not be huge, but they're just the size we need. As another favorite scripture of mine goes, "...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." (1 Nephi 3: 7).
So I was reading in the Book of Mormon, in Helaman 11. It related the story of a man named Nephi who was deeply saddened by the wickedness of his people. And so he did what most amazing people like him do: prayed. He asked the Lord to bring on a famine in order to 'stir them up in remembrance of the the Lord their God'. And so a famine came.
That'd be pretty cool, I thought. It seemed people in the scriptures always had this immense power granted to them. (and probably for good reason) But then I realized, in this case, it really wouldn't do me much good. First off, I live in a small town where just about everyone already goes to church. Second off, we live in a desert and everyone's apple blossoms have already been blown off their trees. So the threat of a famine wouldn't really be that effective and the only thing anyone could call them to repentence for would be falling asleep in sacrament meeting.
I shrugged it off and was about to read again when I realized something. Nephi wasn't just trying to show off--he was trying to help bring others to their Savior, trying to do His will. Maybe we didn't always have these huge miracles that effected an entire nation, but it seems that every true follower of Jesus Christ is allowed something to help them accomplish His purposes.
For a mother, its the miracle of added strength and awareness at two in the morning, though thin it may be. For a missionary, the troubled stranger that just happened to be standing at the same crosswalk as them. For a teenager, the scripture in Seminary that, in such masterly words, illustrated the solution to a concern that, to others, seemed so insignificant. For a father, the miraculously added digits to a paycheck after a month where tithing came hard. For a child, the discovery of a lost toy after diligent prayer. For the elderly, the unexpected visit of a busy child.
Sunsets, a cheerful bird chirp, a smile, a hug, forgiveness,the art of music, a random act of service--miracles are everywhere! They may not be huge, but they're just the size we need. As another favorite scripture of mine goes, "...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." (1 Nephi 3: 7).
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