2 Nephi, chapter 30-31

Jesus Christ is our example in all things. Though He was perfect, He was still baptized, to show us all that we should do likewise. If we follow the path that He has laid down, we can be with Him one day.

31:20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

2 Nephi, chapter 29

This chapter talks about how people think that there should be no more scripture after the Bible. In verse 8:

Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also.

A powerful example of this to me is how the Book of Mormon and Isaiah have so many similar passages. These are books that were written far apart in both time and distance, and yet the message is the same. God spoke the same words unto one nation like unto another.

2 Nephi, chapter 28

verses 7-8:
Yea, and there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.

And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

I read verse 7 and felt a little smug. Because after all, I know better than to take that attitude! I know that there is work required in this life and that there is a life to come. But then I moved on to verse 8 and my little bout of smugness collapsed. Because I think I do fall into this category sometimes. You know, just letting little things slide because it's too hard to deal with right now. It's not such a big deal, right? Just a little thing... So this verse was my reminder that the little things are important, too!

2 Nephi, chapter 26-27

So chapter 27 was written around 559 - 545 B.C. yet it contains information about things that happened less than 200 years ago. It talks about how the Book of Mormon will come forth. How there will be three witnesses to the Book of Mormon. How a learned man will look at the records and say "I cannot read it." Amazing that all those years later, this is exactly what came to pass. Or I guess it's not amazing, when you consider that it was all put in place and orchstrated by God, who is unchanging. But from a mortal perspective, it seems pretty incredible!

And I am always so curious about references to the parts of the records that were not translated for us yet. What will they say? When will we get them? How will it be revealed?

2 Nephi, chapter 24-25

Chapter 24 highlights the importance of teaching our children about Christ and the way of salvation.

verse 23: For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

verse 26: And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.

2 Nephi, chapter 23

Scary predictions of destruction that will happen at the 2nd coming. Gives me chills to think about it. Having read the Left Behind books, I'm sure I have some misguided images of what all that will be like (they're entertaining, but certainly not doctrinally correct from our church's point of view). But it always makes me think that I would maybe prefer it if the 2nd Coming held off until I could observe from the other side of the veil...

2 Nephi, chapter 22

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation.

If we trust in the Lord, we don't need to be afraid. He is there to guide and support us. He is our salvation.

My friend Marshel died yesterday. She was always a wonderful person. She was so strong in her faith, in spite of all the trials she went through in her battle with cancer. I know that she trusted in the Lord. He was her strength. And I know that she is with Him now. He has welcomed her home.

Though we are sad that she is gone, she has gone to a better place where she can have joy and freedom from pain at last.

2 Nephi, chapter 20-21

verse 9 "...the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea."

What a wonderful thing it will be when the whole earth is full of the knowledge of the Lord. When everyone on the earth knows the Lord, it will be such a different place. More peace, less war. More helping, less hurting. More service, less selfishness. More beauty, less ugliness. More love, less hate.

2 Nephi, chapter 16-19

These are more prophetic passages similar to the chapters in Isaiah. As I've said before, I have a hard time with these sometimes. And in these particular chapters, there seems to be a lot of prophecies of trouble and woe. Not that there is not worth in those, certainly, but I really like to find uplifting bits in my scripture study to focus on. It starts my day on an up note. :)

It took a bit of extra reading this morning to find that happy note, but here it is:

2 Nephi 19:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Could there be a more uplifting verse than one talking about the coming of Christ? That happy moment was of such paramount importance to my own salvation; how can I help but rejoice over it? I also love the fact that this verse is part of Handel's Messiah. As I read the verse, I can hear that glorious music in my head. As a matter of fact, I believe that I still have my case of Christmas CDs in my desk drawer from last Christmas. I'm going to put on a little Handel's Messiah right now!

2 Nephi, chapter 14-15

The verse that caught my eye today:

21 Wo unto the wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!

A reminder not to get puffed up and full of ourselves. It's certainly not bad to be wise and prudent, but just because you think that you are wise and prudent, it doesn't mean you truly are. Be humble. Ask the Lord for wisdom and prudent use of that wisdom. Don't let pride make you stumble.

2 Nephi, chapter 13

This chapter reminded me of my days in Young Women. I had a YW leader who lectured us on this chapter at least once a month. This is the chapter that talks about all the ornamentation and fine apparel of the Daughters of Zion...

In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments, and cauls, and round tires like the moon;
The chains and the bracelets, and the mufflers;
The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the ear-rings;
The rings, and nose jewels;
The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping-pins;
The glasses, and the fine linen, and hoods, and the veils.

All I could think about as I read was the endless lessons we had on the evils of vanity - she was really VERY concerned about this topic. Even when the lesson was on something else, she would segue back into this. Sadly, the effect it mostly had is that my best friend and I always left those lectures with an urge to go get a piercing or jewelry or something... just in rebellion about the very strict viewpoint! :)

2 Nephi, chapter 12

I confess, I have a hard time with the Isaiah chapters. The language is difficult to wade through, everything is couched in imagery and metaphors. I always feel like saying: "Just come out and SAY it why don't you!"

For example, verse 22, which says: "Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?" Not exactly straightforward.

Still, I plow through and get the gist of things, even if I don't understand all the imagery and metaphors. And thank goodness for the chapter summaries at the top of the page to help clarify things! Thanks to that help, I know that verse 22 is part of the verses talking about how "The proud and wicked shall be brought low at the Second Coming."

2 Nephi, chapter 11

This is a short chapter, but uplifting to me just because of the imagery of the beautiful language...

"my soul delighteth in his words"

"my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ"

"my soul delighteth in the covenants of the Lord"

"my soul delighteth in his grace, and in his justice, and power, and mercy"

"my soul delighteth in proving unto my people that save Christ should come all men must perish"

"whoso of my people shall see these words may lift up their hearts and rejoice for all men"

2 Nephi, chapter 10

verse 23: Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.

We have been given the gift of free agency. We can choose for ourselves whether to follow the commandments from God and our prophets, or whether to go our own way. It's important to remember, though, that when we make a choice, we are also choosing the consquences. Making correct choices leads to eternal life, while poor choices carry a consqequence of everlasting death.

2 Nephi, chapter 9

It's been a crazy week and I slacked off on my scripture reading. Picture me crawling back onto the wagon this morning...

A couple of things caught my attention today. First, the chapter talks a lot about resurrection, which made me think about the sweet and simple faith of my children. They know about resurrection - as much as they can understand at their ages - and will bring it up frequently. If they see something on TV or hear about someone who has died, Haley will often make comments about "That's sad, but at least he will be resurrected!" Or something similar. And a couple of weeks ago on the way to church Haley and Preston were asking us and discussing what age they would be when they were resurrected. Wonderful to hear their take on things!

Also, verse 51 says "Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth..." Always a good reminder to economize, and think before I buy!!