Monday, June 27, 2011

I apologize for once again being so behind in posting the readings. I just got called to be the Primary Secretary and I have spent every waking minute getting organized and going to meetings. I have barley had time to sleep let alone post. But now that I am finally settled I have time to catch up.

Day 82- Thursday, June 23
Read- 3 Nephi 17-19
Mark- 3 Nephi 18:6-7, 11
Quote-"We are commanded to repent of our sins and to come to the Lord with a broken heart and a contrite spirit and partake of the sacrament in compliance with its covenants. When we renew our baptismal covenants in this way, the Lord renews the cleansing effect of our baptism. In this way we are made clean and can always have His Spirit to be  with us. The importance of this is evident in the Lord's commandment that we partake of the sacrament each week." ~Elder Dallin H. Oaks
Question- How can taking the sacrament each week help you to be just as clean as when you were baptized?


Day 83- Friday, June 24
Read- 3 Nephi 20-21
Mark- 3 Nephi 21:6-7
Quote-"Every person who embraces the gospel becomes of the house of Israel...The majority of those who become members of the Church are literal descendants of Abraham through Ephraim, son of Joseph. Those who are not literal descendants of Abraham and Israel must become such, and when they are baptized and confirmed they are grafted onto the tree and are entitled to al the rights and privileges as heirs." ~President Joseph Fielding Smith
Questions-What blessings are promised to you because you are of the house of Israel?


Day 84-Saturday, June 25
Read-3 Nephi 22-26
Mark-3 Nephi 24:7-10
Quote-"I can't list all the ways that blessings will come from obedience to the principle [of tithing], but I testify many will come in spiritual ways that go well beyond economics...I express my deepest gratitude for every blessing of the gospel of Jesus Christ, especially that greatest of all gifts, the exemplary life and atoning death of God's Only Begotten Son. I know I can never repay heaven for any of this benevolence, but there are many ways I need to try to show my thankfulness. One of those ways is in the payment of tithes and freewill offerings." ~Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
Question-What blessings do you receive from paying tithing?


Day 85-Sunday, June 26
Today is a catch up day!


Day 86-Monday, June 27
Read-3 Nephi 27-28
Mark-3 Nephi 27:19-20
Quote-"The most important of all the commandments of God is the one that you're having the most difficulty keeping...Today is the day for you to work...until you've been able to conquer that weakness. Then you start on the next one that's most difficult for you to keep. That's the way to sanctify yourselves by keeping the commandments of God." ~President Harold B. Lee
Questions-What commandments are the most difficult for you? What are you doing to be more obedient? Who can help you?


Day 87-Tuesday, June 28
Read-3 Nephi 29- Mormon 1
Mark-Mormon 1:13-15
Quote-"[President Brigham Young said] 'I want you to teach the people- and I want you to follow this counsel yourself- that they must labor and so live as to obtain the Holy Spirit, for without this you cannot build up the kingdom; without the spirit of God you are in danger of walking in the dark." ~President Wilford Woodruff
Question-As a young man Mormon enjoyed the blessings of the Lord despite living in a wicked society. How can you keep the Spirit with you regardless of conditions in the world?

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Day 81-Wednesday, June 22
Read-3 Nephi 13-16
Mark-3 Nephi 15:21, 24
Quote-"Aren't we rather prone to see the limitations and weaknesses of our neighbors? Yet that is contrary to the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ...If we have the spirit of fault finding...that never comes as the result of the companionship of the Spirit of our Heavenly Father and is always harmful." ~President George Albert Smith
Question- The Savior gave teachings to the Nephites similar to the sermon on the Mount. He warned not to judge. What helps you to always look for the best in others and not be critical?

I have always had a hard time not judging others. I found that as I pray for the Spirit and actively seek it throughout the day I lose the desire to criticize others. As I seek to see people as our Heavenly Father sees them and love them as He does then it becomes easier to not judge them and to see the good in them. As I get older I realize that everyone's challenges and situations are different and they are different for a reason it becomes easier to be empathetic to others. Heavenly Father creates a mortal experience that is unique to each of His children so that they can have the trials, challenges and lessons that they need to become like Him. Heavenly Father knows what we each need and we don't.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Day 80- Tuesday, June 21
Read- 3 Nephi 11-12
Mark- 3 Nephi 11:10-11
Quote-"Look to the temple of the Lord as the great symbol of your membership...As we attend the temple, we learn more richly and deeply the purpose of life and the significance of the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us make the temple, with temple worship and temple covenants and temple marriage, our ultimate earthly goal and the supreme mortal experience." ~President Howard W. Hunter
Question-The Nephites were gathered at the temple when the Savior visited them. How are you preparing to go to the temple?

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Day 77-Saturday, June 12
Read-3 Nephi 6-8
Mark-3 Nephi 6:12-14
Quote-"I testify that no one of us is less treasured or cherished of God than another. I testify that He loves each of us--insecurities, anxieties, self-image, and all. He doesn't measure our talents or our possessions. He cheers on every runner, calling out that the race is against sin, not against each other." ~Elder Jeffery R. Holland
Question-Why is pride "the great stumbling block of Zion"? What can help you be more humble?

I love this quote because I often feel like I have nothing to offer the Lord. But what Elder Holland said is true. We are all equally important to the Lord and He loves each of us for who we are because we all have something to powerful and amazing to offer and that is our testimony. We need to humble ourselves so that we can realize how amazing we can be through the power of the Lord, the power that we get from the Holy Ghost.

Day 78-Sunday, June 13
Today is a catch up day if you have read through 3 Nephi chapter 8, then you can reread Helaman 13. What did Samuel the Lamanite preach to the wicked Nephites before the Savior came? What are modern prophets teaching us as we prepare for Christ's second coming?

Day 79-Monday, June 14
Read-3 Nephi 9-10
Mark-3 Nephi 9-10
Quote-"An atonement was made. Ever and always it offers amnesty from transgression and from death if we will but repent. Repentance is the escape clause in it all. Repentance is the key with which we can unlock the prison from inside. We hold that key within our hands... Humbly I lay claim upon the atonement of Christ. I find no shame in kneeling down in worship of our Father and His Son." ~President Boyd K. Packer
Question-What can the Lord do for you when you repent?

Friday, June 17, 2011

Day76-Saturday, June 18
Read-3 Nephi 3-5
Mark-3 Nephi 3:12-14; 4:10
Quote-"In providing out-of-home activities for the family, we must use care; otherwise, we could be like a father determined to provide everything for his family. He devotes every energy to that end and succeeds; only then does he recover that what they needed most, to be together as a family, has been neglected." ~President Boyd K. Packer
Question-How can you help your family receive the strength that comes form being "gathered together".

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Day 75-Friday, June 17
Read-Helaman 16-3 Nephi 2
Mark-3 Nephi 1:12-13
Quote-"Gifts of the Spirit which the Lord bestows upon those who believe and obey the gospel of Christ are called signs. That is, their receipt stands as an evidence or sign of the presence of that faith which results from believing the truth. Signs are wonders and miracles; they always and invariably are manifest to among the faithful saints." ~Elder Bruce R. McConkie
Questions-Why didn't Satan want the faithful Nephites to believe in the signs? What lies does he send today to try to keep you from believing the witness you've received as a result of your faith?

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Day 74-Thursday, June 16
Read-Helaman13-15
Mark-Helaman 14:30-31
Quote-"Spiritual maturity is understanding that we cannot blame anybody else for our actions. Some factors may make it harder for us to perform according to God's plan for us but being accountable for how we use our agency means being answerable for our own behavior." ~Sister Elaine Cannon
Question-In what ways do you use your agency to help you to grow?