Who could use some good advice? 2 Kings 16–25 has advice from the Lord to the Southern Kingdom of Israel. And the good news for us is that praying, going to the temple, seeking counsel from the prophet, and more advice found in these chapters are timeless wisdoms. Whatever you are going through we can find solace in the words of the scriptures.
The Book of Mormon prophet Mormon asked the question, “Has the day of miracles ceased?” President Oaks answered in our day, “Many miracles happen every day in the work of our Church and in the lives of our members. Many of you have witnessed miracles, perhaps more than you realize.” If miracles are happening today then maybe in order to see them, we need to seek the faith that Elisha had when he prayed on behalf of his fearful young servant: “Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see”
The House of Israel is in total disarray. This week’s discussion of 1 Kings 12–22 will teach us what the Lord did for His people living on both sides of a conflict. Miracles didn’t cease and God proved it to whoever would listen to both the boasting of confident faith and a still small voice.
Would you say that with age comes wisdom? What about with experience comes wisdom? How about with the imperfections of others, comes wisdom? The Book of Mormon prophet Moroni said, “Give thanks unto God that he hath made manifest unto you our imperfections, that ye may learn to be more wise than we have been” (Mormon 9:31). Today’s discussion of 2 Samuel 11–12 and 1 Kings 1–11 contain stories of the imperfection and contrition which when combined, can definitely make us all “more wise than we have been.”
This week’s Come Follow Me lesson ends with David becoming king, being favored of the Lord, wanting to build the Lord a temple, and some dancing. To find out how he got there, we have to go back and discover who the young boy David was before becoming a young king. 1 Samuel 17–31 and 2 Samuel 1–7 show the heart of young David and the story he’d like to be remembered for.
David and Saul came from different backgrounds and appeared different at first glance. But both led Israel, were favored of the Lord, and also had secrets they tried to hide. But as we learn in 1 Samuel 8–16, God looks past our outward appearance and sees our heart.
Ruth and Hannah were strong figures in the Old Testament who demonstrated faith and established a righteous lineage. This week we are paying special attention to what we can learn about God’s pattern of revelation in Ruth and 1 Samuel 1-7. Sometimes the Lord asks hard things, but when we know it comes from God, it makes it worth it to obey.
The Book of Mormon prophet Jacob had wise words concerning those that look “beyond the mark” (Jacob 4:14). This week’s discussion from the book of Judges contains an important truth about hitting the mark and never missing. There is even a Hebrew word that changes the way we think about hitting the proverbial bullseye of the gospel.
After 40 years the Israelites have arrived at their destination, but without Moses they were in need of a new prophet and leader. Enter Joshua. The Book of Joshua contains his words to his people, battles, and the continued fulfilled covenants from the Lord.
“The more we know these prophecies, the more we can step forward with courage and strength and do hard things and help gather Israel.”
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Abraham experienced the kind of trials we could only imagine. And time after time he was reminded of future promises, while still having to go through more hard things. We are studying the trials of Abraham found in Genesis 12–17 and Abraham 1–2 today and how we can apply those experiences to persevere in our lives.
In December the Church announced an update in the general handbook concerning translations of the bible. So as our Come, Follow Me year of studying the Old Testament gets into swing we invited a couple of bible scholars to share their thoughts on what we can gain from different translations and how they can help us gain appreciation for the ancient context in which the bible was written. For those that are still a little bit afraid of the Old Testament, let this new guidance help you find scriptures that bring you closer to God.
God makes covenants to His people. Even when the people don’t want to hear His voice. In Genesis 6-11 and Moses 8 we have the stories of people that hear what God has to say and do the exact opposite from the Tower of Babel to the wickedness around Noah. But through it all God makes covenants, and those covenants are promises that we can lean on today even when the world around us seems as chaotic as when the flood rain was starting to come down.
We can learn about what our Zion should look like by modeling after Enoch’s Zion in Moses 7. Even if we might not walk exactly with God in this life, we can strive to be of one heart and one mind with those around us. Zion isn’t just the city we live in or the ward we go to, Zion is a condition of the heart and spirit. And creating a Zion people, starts with us.
Enoch was a prophet, he taught what was good. Music is important in developing and sharing testimonies. Today as we study the story of Enoch and his walk with God in Genesis 5 and Moses 6 we will do it through music. Hopefully these songs can bring you close to your Heavenly Father and bring to life the stories of the scriptures.
In Hebrew, Eden means delightful, luxurious, or dainty. But that does not mean there wasn’t conflict and opposition in Adam and Eve’s first home. We are studying the Fall found in Genesis 3–4 and Moses 4–5 with specific attention to how an understanding of the Hebrew words can shed new light on an age old story.