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TODAY'S THEME
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Two Thousand Stripling Warriors -by Arnold Friberg |
Alma 53:10 And now behold, I have somewhat to say concerning the people of Ammon, who, in the beginning, were Lamanites; but by Ammon and his brethren, or rather by the power and word of God, they had been converted unto the Lord; and they had been brought down into the land of Zarahemla, and had ever since been protected by the Nephites.
11 And because of their oath they had been kept from taking up arms against their brethren; for they had taken an oath that they never would shed blood more; and according to their oath they would have perished; yea, they would have suffered themselves to have fallen into the hands of their brethren, had it not been for the pity and the exceeding love which Ammon and his brethren had had for them.
12 And for this cause they were brought down into the land of Zarahemla; and they ever had been protected by the Nephites.
13 But it came to pass that when they saw the danger, and the many afflictions and tribulations which the Nephites bore for them, they were moved with compassion and were desirous to take up arms in the defence of their country.
14 But behold, as they were about to take their weapons of war, they were overpowered by the persuasions of Helaman and his brethren, for they were about to break the oath which they had made.
15 And Helaman feared lest by so doing they should lose their souls; therefore all those who had entered into this covenant were compelled to behold their brethren wade through their afflictions, in their dangerous circumstances at this time.
16 But behold, it came to pass they had many sons, who had not entered into a covenant that they would not take their weapons of war to defend themselves against their enemies; therefore they did assemble themselves together at this time, as many as were able to take up arms, and they called themselves Nephites.
17 And they entered into a covenant to fight for the liberty of the Nephites, yea, to protect the land unto the laying down of their lives; yea, even they covenanted that they never would give up their liberty, but they would fight in all cases to protect the Nephites and themselves from bondage.
18 Now behold, there were two thousand of those young men, who entered into this covenant and took their weapons of war to defend their country.
19 And now behold, as they never had hitherto been a disadvantage to the Nephites, they became now at this period of time also a great support; for they took their weapons of war, and they would that Helaman should be their leader.
20 And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all—they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.
21 Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him.
22 And now it came to pass that Helaman did march at the head of his two thousand stripling soldiers, to the support of the people in the borders of the land on the south by the west sea.You will now have the opportunity of reading and listening to an account about how the Prophet-General, Helaman of the Nephite Nation in Ancient America, who was mentioned above and which involves the two thousand stripling warriors who began serving as Nephite soldiers serving under Helaman in place of their fathers, faced the adversity presented them with boldness and great courage!
Alma Chapter 58
You, my gracious and patient blog readers have just read about the great adversity faced by the Nephite army led by the Prophet-General Helaman. I am sure you were pleased that the young Lamanite soldiers acquitted themselves very well in battle to the extent that despite receiving many wounds none of them were killed!
You will have read in verse four of Alma Chapter 58 that one of the great challenges Helaman and his army were facing was that they had not yet received the much needed provisions they had been expecting from their Government leaders.
We are not told in that chapter the reason why those provisions had not yet been sent to them. Elsewhere in another chapter which I won't have you read now because of time limitations, we learn that there had been significant dissension in their capitol city where those who were seeking to take over the government, had success in preventing the true government leaders from sending the supplies so sorely needed by Helaman's army.
I'm sure you will agree with me that the Prophet-General Helaman was an inspired man and was suceeding as well as possible in his assignment.
Now I suggest that you reflect along with me on that which you have just read and listened to in Alma, Chapter Fifty Eight and in the previous verses I quoted.
I'm sure you readers, some who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and others who are not, have come to realize that which you have just read is not something that could have been made up and written by a poorly educated Joseph Smith who was still in his early to mid twenties.
I'm sure you will agree with me that it makes very good sense that he, as he personally recorded in his history; by the spiritual gift of translation given him by God, translated the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ from an ancient Hebraic language into the English language of the Book of Mormon which was first published in 1830 in Palmyra, New York.
Joseph Smith could not have authored the Book of Mormon! It is now published in great numbers in many different languages throughout the world.
Dear readers, while reading and/or listening to the scriptures I have provided in this blog post, please realize that you have been reading true history!Now after you have just read the great example of how the Nephite Prophet-General Helaman faced adversity with boldness and great courage I now provide you the opportunity of viewing a Mormon Messages video in which a present apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland as a young man, along with his wife and two very young children faced great adversity as they begin driving their older car, which is all they could afford at that time, from St. George, in the Southernmost part of the State of Utah to the East Coast of the United States where he had been accepted by Yale University to begin working on his doctorate degree in American Studies there, so he could become more adequately prepared to be of service to others and to support his family.
You will surely appreciate the great example Elder Holland has set for each of us as we each seek to meet the challenges we may be facing.
Mormon Messages Video: "Good Things to Come" Featuring Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Elder Holland, as you may know, eventually became very successful in gaining the specific education he sought to acquire and has provided much service for many people during his life time using that education and the great God-given talents he has been blessed with, to serve many people through-out the earth in his calling as a modern day apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is my, J. Neil Birch's, sincere desire that each of you will have been assisted by this blog post of mine sufficiently to have gained that courage needed in facing and adequately handling the challenges each of you may be confronted with in your lives presently and in the future! Best wishes to each of you!
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DISCLAIMER
This Blog is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.
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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX: To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or To Search The Index For Any Other Blog Post You Desire To Access), After You Have Read All of This Paragraph, Please Scroll Back Up And Click on the Following: Facing Adversity With Boldness and Great Courage. A Mormon Messages Video, "Good Things to Come" Featuring Elder Jeffery R. Holland is provided. -Post 44b. When The Picture of Our Savior, Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy Comes Onto Your Screen, Please Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use the Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed).
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.
If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.
I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested in it. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog:
Neil Birch
