The Manner of Happiness: A Lesson from the Book of Mormon

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Yesterday in Sunday School, we were studying 2 Nephi chapter 5, which describes what happened to Nephi, his family, and all those who followed him after they separated themselves from Laman, Lemuel, and their families.  This was a short time after the death of their father, Lehi, right after he had exhorted his children to listen to and follow the counsel of Nephi.  However, a few days after his death, Laman and Lemuel were again complaining against Nephi and threatening his life.  And so their family broke in half, and they started over.  This was probably not an easy time for them.  They had lost Lehi, who had guided them on this amazing journey across the wilderness, across the sea, and into a new land.  Their future probably seemed uncertain, and they must have worried for their lives and safety, especially under the threat of the angry half of the family.  I’m sure there was mourning and anxiety.  But here’s the fascinating part– in verse 27:

And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.

I attended a CES workshop once where the teacher broke down this chapter into ingredients for that happiness.  Here are some of the notes I have in the margins:

(from 2 Nephi 5)

1 Behold, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cry much unto the Lord my God, because of the anger of my brethren.

PRAYER +

5 And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me.

PERSONAL REVELATION and FLEE FROM EVIL +

6 Wherefore, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did take my family, and also Zoram and his family, and Sam, mine elder brother and his family, and Jacob and Joseph, my younger brethren, and also my sisters, and all those who would go with me. And all those who would go with me were those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God; wherefore, they did hearken unto my words.

FOLLOW THE PROPHET +

10 And we did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things, according to the law of Moses.

OBEDIENCE +

11 And the Lord was with us; and we did prosper exceedingly; for we did sow seed, and we did reap again in abundance. And we began to raise flocks, and herds, and animals of every kind. (see also verse 17)

WORK +

12 And I, Nephi, had also brought the records which were engraven upon the aplates of brass; and also the bball, or ccompass, which was prepared for my father by the hand of the Lord, according to that which is written.

SCRIPTURES +

13 And it came to pass that we began to prosper exceedingly, and to multiply in the land.

MARRY AND RAISE FAMILIES +

16 And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon’s temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine.

TEMPLE =

27 And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.

THE MANNER OF HAPPINESS.

The world is a complicated place, but I really think the answers are this simple.  I’m not naive enough to think that their lives were free of pain or suffering or difficult times, but these ingredients can bring us peace of mind and a steadiness of character, and the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.  Just one more reason I love the Book of Mormon and know that it’s true.

GCBC Week 21: “Teachings of Jesus” by Elder Dallin H. Oaks

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I love Jesus Christ.  What has he done for me?  Everything.  All the goodness of His life, all the pain of His sacrifice– all for me.  And you.  All of us really.  The more sorrow and suffering I see and experience in the world around me, the more I have learned how important He is to me.  I love Elder Oak’s testimony of the Savior’s invaluable roles and contributions to our happiness and salvation.

Teachings of Jesus by Elder Dallin H. Oaks

“There is no middle ground. We are followers of Jesus Christ. Our citizenship is in His Church and His gospel, and we should not use a visa to visit Babylon or act like one of its citizens. We should honor His name, keep His commandments, and ‘seek not the things of this world but seek … first to build up the kingdom of God, and to establish his righteousness.’”

What think you of Christ?  What are some of your thoughts and testimony after reading this talk?  Share your thoughts or insights in the comments below.

I saw this video message today and absolutely LOVED it.  It would be worth 3 minutes to watch this message and hear the testimonies of modern-day prophets and apostles about the divine nature of Jesus Christ and His power to heal us and lift our burdens.

 

As a side note, we only have FIVE talks left.  And then it’s General Conference AGAIN.  ALREADY.  Yay!  Thanks to all of you who have participated in GCBC, especially to those of you who have hung in there since the beginning.  I hope it has strengthened you to study these talks each week.

To anyone who is checking out GCBC for the first time, the goal is to read one General Conference talk a week and discuss it together as an on-line “book club.” If you want to learn more, go here, and join the discussion here each week.

Remember that time I gave you a free book?

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It was only a couple days ago.  You should totally remember.

Cue my infomercial voice.

Wait. There’s more!

For way less than the price of signing up one of your kids for T-ball (which might cause you hours of painful observation), you can have this amazing book, which is guaranteed to give you hours of reading pleasure:

Okay, all joking aside, I’m excited to tell you about this book.  I feel a little sheepish because I’m one of the contributors and I’ve never been super comfortable with blatant self-promotion.  (Subtle self-promotion, yes.  But “Hey! Look at me! Look at me!,” not really.)  It’s a book that gives insight into the lives, families, values and humanity of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

DeNae has compiled all the essays and contributed some of her own.  If you’ve read her stuff before, you know that there will be some laugh-out-loud humor involved.  Some of the other writers involved are Becca Wilhite, Debbie (a.k.a. Crash), Ken Craig, Kazzy, Melanie Jacobson, Jana Parkin, Annette Lyon, and more.  They do not disappoint.  I had the chance to read through a draft of the book before it went to publishing and there is a fine collection of heart-wrenching, head-nodding, and flat-out funny essays.

The book will be officially available on March 10th, but you can order it now (switch infomercial voice back on) for 30% off of regular list price.  This is a special pre-order price.  That’s right folks, for only $10.50 + shipping, you can add this treasury to your library! 

The book will be available for $15 after the release date, and I believe it will also be listed on Amazon at that point.  The discounted price ($10.50) comes for ordering early.

Now, if I were a blogging genius, I would have figured out by now how to put a link to order the book on my sidebar.  Since I am not, I’ll just direct you to DeNae’s blog page where she has a handy-dandy link to paypal.  Please don’t let the extra click deter you; go order a book (or two or more– there are deeper discounts for bulk purchases).  To recap:

Go order the book by clicking right here!

Thanks, friends.

Love and Marriage Manual: A Free Download

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Happy Valentine’s Day!

I have a little present for you.

I wanted to share with you what I like to give as a wedding gift when an LDS couple gets married.  I put together this FHE manual for newlyweds, a collection of talks and articles about topics that are important for married couples to study and discuss and understand.  There are some really great talks in there!

I print it out, hole punch it and put it in a 3-ring binder.  I print out the title page (above) and write a personal note to them about how these messages can bless their marriage and have blessed mine.  I usually get one of those binders with a clear plastic pocket on the front cover, slide in the title page, and tie up the whole thing with a pretty bow.

You can download the title page by clicking on the picture of it above, and you can download the whole manual (as an 80-page .pdf file) by clicking on the table of contents below.  When you click on either one, you will probably get a dialogue box that pops up asking if you want to save the file.  When you click Save, it will download to your computer.  Then you can open it and print it.

Anyway, I think it makes a great wedding gift, but I also think it would be a great Valentine’s gift to your husband, and something that would definitely strengthen your marriage if you study it and discuss it together.  All of the talks are by prophets, apostles, general authorities, and general auxiliary leaders.  (All are cut-and-pasted from lds.org or BYU devotionals or Women’s Conference talks.)  Even now, I can still think of more talks I love that I wish I had included, so feel free to print out your favorites, hole-punch them, and add them to the binder.  I love the doctrines and principles that are taught in these talks.  I hope you will too.

“Marriage brings greater possibilities for happiness than does any other human relationship. Yet some married couples fall short of their full potential. They let their romance become rusty, take each other for granted, allow other interests or clouds of neglect to obscure the vision of what their marriage really could be. Marriages would be happier if nurtured more carefully. . . . . When you as husband and wife recognize the divine design in your union—when you feel deeply that God has brought you to each other—your vision will be expanded and your understanding enhanced.”– Elder Russell M. Nelson

GCBC Week 20: “Covenants” by Elder Russell M. Nelson

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I’ve been thinking a lot about covenants lately, and how they are like buoys in a storm.  Only by clinging to them can we be safe.  When the waters get rough and we get scared or tired or lazy, we may be tempted to just let go, but it will only be at our peril.  When we loose the covenant, we lose the blessings.  Covenants are the surest way to keep our families safe and bind our children to us throughout eternity.  I love Elder Nelson’s thoughts about the power of our covenants.

 

Covenants by Elder Russell M. Nelson

” Children of the covenant have the right to receive His doctrine and to know the plan of salvation. They claim it by making covenants of sacred significance. …

When we realize that we are children of the covenant, we know who we are and what God expects of us. His law is written in our hearts. He is our God and we are His people. Committed children of the covenant remain steadfast, even in the midst of adversity.”

What are some of your thoughts and testimony after reading this talk?  Share your thoughts or insights in the comments below.

To anyone who is checking out GCBC for the first time, the goal is to read one General Conference talk a week and discuss it together as an on-line “book club.” If you want to learn more, go here, and join the discussion here each week.