Book of Mormon: Day 177: Watch and Pray

Today’s Reading:  Alma 13:14-31

28 But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be led by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, meek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering;

 29 Having faith on the Lord; having a hope that ye shall receive eternal life; having the love of God always in your hearts, that ye may be lifted up at the last day and enter into his rest.

I recently returned from four glorious days of trekking through the vast wilderness of North Eastern Utah.  We took some of the young men and young women in our Stake on a Pioneer Trek.  We dressed like pioneers and we walked and walked and walked.  We pulled loaded handcarts along dusty roads and trails teeming with grasses, sagebrush, and bugs.  It was hard.  It was exhilarating.  It was amazing.

I had the wonderful opportunity to be a photographer and capture moments along this journey.  As I trudged through the tall sagebrush beside the handcart trails, snapping pictures of these amazing youth, there was one word that I heard about every five seconds.

“Hole!”

“Hole on the right!  Hole on the left!  BIG hole in the middle!”

The trails were riddled with badger holes, some of them large enough to swallow a grown man whole. We had to be vigilant and we had to rely on the ones in front of us to warn us about the upcoming danger.  Sometimes the warnings were not heard and several injured ankles and legs were the result.  Because I was often not on the main trail with the handcarts as I was viewing this trek through my camera lens, I had to be extra cautious.  There was no one ahead of me to warn me of the holes and dangers on my path.  It was tricky.  I had to look up to to take pictures but at the same time look down so that I would not get caught in a hole that would cause me pain.  I had a constant prayer in my heart that I would not be injured.

I had to watch and pray continually in order to be safe.

I heard several of the Trek Ma’s and Pa’s talking to the children in their families about what the holes could represent in their real lives.  Several things were mentioned:  Facebook and other forms of social media, music and movies that are not conducive to the Spirit, following the crowd instead of standing up for your values, etc.  These are truly things that have the tendency to swallow us whole if we are not careful.  How can we be vigilant in making sure that we avoid these temptations and the problems that they can cause in our lives?

For one thing, we can listen to the people ahead of us.  Parents, leaders, friends, and other family members who have traversed the path before can help by encouraging us, giving us advice, and teaching us through their experiences. We can learn from their experiences and perhaps avoid some holes in our own lives by heeding to their counsel.  We are also blessed with a prophet who through the power of the priesthood keys that he holds, reveals to us how to avoid holes of all different sizes.  He is a seer and can help us to see things ahead of us that our natural eyes may not be able to see.  The trick is to make sure that we are listening, that we are watching and praying continually so that we can avoid the holes and not be tempted above that which we can bear.

Satan is incredibly deceptive and it is very tricky to avoid the “holes” that he places in the path ahead of us.  He disguises the holes and lulls us into a sense of false security.  He convinces us that we don’t need to listen to the prophet, keep our covenants, or pray continually.  He tells us that we are “doing alright” and we don’t need to turn to the Lord every day, study the scriptures, or go to our church meetings.  Before you know it, you are in a pretty deep hole and guess who is not going to be there to help you out of that hole?

But there is someone who will always be there to extend a hand of love;  our Savior and older brother, Jesus Christ.  He was also tempted by Satan.  He knows the adversary well and He also knows how to help us avoid the holes that Satan places in the paths of our lives.  Our Savior wants to offer his assistance to us.  He is waiting for us.  Call on Him.  Have faith in Him.  Trust in Him.

We can have power over Satan and not be “tempted above that which we can bear.” (v. 28) That power comes from faith in the Savior, prayer, scripture study, and service.  It comes from “having the love of God always in your hearts.” (v. 29)  Avoid the holes.  Turn to the Lord.  Have faith and courage and “be lifted up at the last day and enter into his rest.”

(The graphic below is a downloadable print.  Feel free to print it and add it to your scriptures or stick it on your fridge as a reminder.)

Desirae Ogden

I grew up the oldest of 5 children in the blazing heat of Southern Utah. After high school and some college experience I met and married Mark Ogden and we are the parents of four children. I have owned and operated my own home-based preschool for more than a dozen years, and I consider myself an accidental author as well. When I am not in my minivan transporting children from one activity to the next, I enjoy playing the piano, blogging, speaking about my life’s experiences, and feeding my insatiable crafting disease.