BOOK OF MORMON: DAY 195: The Reasons of Sorrow and Rejoicing

Today’s ReadingAlma 27:18-Alma 28

Alma 27 sees the people of Ammon lead the Anti-Lehi Nephites to safety in the land of Nephi. The people of Ammon did more than simply rescue their brethren from death – they gave them a chance to live and thrive, to worship and be strengthened by the Lord, and, in turn, to strengthen their brethren and stand as examples and witnesses worthy of protection. The Nephites were so touched and anxious for the wellbeing of their brethren in Christ that they vowed to – and DID – protect them with their very lives. And though the Nephites and Anti-Lehi Nephites shared the same faith, the principle is the same for those whose views do not mirror our own.

” If it has been demonstrated that I have been willing to die for a ‘Mormon,’ I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination who may be unpopular and too weak to defend themselves. It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul — civil and religious liberty to the whole of the human race.

—Joseph Smith, 1843

Have you ever been so touched by anything in your life that you have cherished it, nourished it and protected it? Have you been so protected? People are drawn to light, whether they understand that draw or not. I’ve witnessed this many times in my own life – while working abroad or with people not of my faith – after I’ve made known or taken a stand for my beliefs. Those who continue to surround me after those times are protective of my beliefs, so much that they serve as a buffer between opposition and me. I’d like to think that I do that for those around me just as well as they do for me.

Let us be doers of the Word, followers of Christ, spreaders of truth and light and not of death and destruction; let us fight zealously for our rights and the rights of our brethren that we may have joy.

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