Today’s reading: 2 Nephi 28: 1-17
7. Ye 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- for 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. Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.
I memorized this scripture passage to the tune of a song thanks to my 9th grade seminary teacher. Since then, I’ve never forgotten it! The older I get, the more I see the fulfillment of this scripture. We definitely live in an “anything goes” kind of world where sin is more acceptable than ever before. Morals are declining and society is moving further and further away from the Lord.
Many people fail to see the consequences of their poor actions, including those who profess to love God. This “eat, drink and be merry” attitude can get the best of any of us. I’ve seen friends and family end up on the wrong path because of small choices they make over time. The world teaches that “there is no harm” in a little sin. They’ll say, “Oh one time won’t hurt!” or “Everyone is doing it”, or even, “You can always repent later.” The fact is, that every choice we make effects who we become. I heard a quote once that said, “choices are the hinges of destiny.” Our destiny isn’t simply to live and die. Our destiny is to return to live with our Heavenly Father and to ultimately become like him. When we truly understand what we want to become, our choices will reflect that.
I also believe that you become whatever you allow to influence you. There are many influences around us, some good and some bad. We’re influenced by the media, by friends, by family and even the things we read on line. The Book of Mormon warns against those influences that can pull you away from Christ:
Heavenly Father did not put us on this earth to fail. He wants us to reach our full potential and he has given us the Book of Mormon as a tool to help us with that. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and it was written for our time. Though there is so much confusion in the world today, the Book of Mormon will help us to know what is right. I pray that as we each read it more diligently we will see and allow its power into our daily lives.
I was born and raised in Ogden Utah and am part of a big crazy family of 9. 🙂 I served a mission in Detroit and I seriously love the gospel! I also enjoy reading, drawing, photography and road trips. Tacos and craft stores are my weakness and I believe that ice cream fixes everything.