In the last few years most of us have been obliged to embrace the
digital age. Confronted with a confusing variety of devices with their
attendant charge cords, passcodes and modus operandi, we love devices that are labeled “user-friendly.” This is a relatively new term, coined
to describe complex machines or systems that are readily accessible without
special skills or a lengthy set of instructions. In other words, given a little
time, patience, and a few helpful suggestions (usually from
someone at least half our age!) you and I can figure them out.
This has got me thinking about another device we can’t function properly
without: the word of God. Are the scriptures “user-friendly?” I would submit
that they are, and all of the new technology available to us is making them
even more so! But, like my tablet or my new FitBit, discovering the power of
these wonderful tools takes a little time and effort, and sometimes the
assistance of a friend. So I thought we might sit down together and take a
fresh look at our own unique text, the Book of Mormon.
Making the Connection
Have you ever given a friend a Book of Mormon, only to find that he or she experienced some confusion when, instead of a book that explains
Latter-day Saint beliefs, your friend finds it to be a narrative about Hebrew emigrants to North
America in 600 BCE? Let's be honest: though we are very familiar with the story and its
characters, we may have a little of the same “disconnect” in understanding how
the Book of Mormon relates to our daily lives. There is a crucial difference between reading the scriptures and really using them.
Let me illustrate. If
you are anything like me, this morning you woke up with a set of things that
you are: worrying about, praying about, chatting about on the phone
with your friends, or trying not to think about! We all have sorrows and
weaknesses that weigh us down. We wrestle with money worries and conflicting
demands on our time. Our challenges may include health issues, struggling
children, addictions, aging parents, marital difficulties or loneliness. We may
have all of the above, and more, because life is difficult by definition. Can we actually use the Book of Mormon to address the very modern problems that beset us
every day?
We can, and as we learn to do so this book will become more user-friendly in
the very best sense. Rather than a chore on our “to-do” list, the Book of
Mormon can become the blueprint for a Christian life. The key to “liken[ing]
the scripture unto ourselves” is to identify our modern problems as they are faced
by these ancient people. Here are just a few examples: Nephi and his brothers
have a lot to teach us about family violence. Lehi and Sarah show us how major
changes in lifestyle can cause stress on a marriage. Alma Senior and Junior illustrate the difference between control and influence in parenting. The brother of Jared has something to teach us about dating. (Really!) Mormon and Moroni
guide us in knowing when it is acceptable to wage war with others. There are so
many more, and we will explore them together.
All you need to get more out of the Book of Mormon is a notebook, some quiet time each day, and a commitment to really pay attention. As you read, ask yourself the following questions: Where am I in this story? In other words: how could this story relate to my life? And, where is Jesus in this story? What is He trying to teach me here? Why is this story in the scriptures at all ? And finally, ask the most important question, "So what do I do about this?" or "How does this affect my life?"
Therefore, What?
“Therefore, what?” I think that is what the Savior answered day in and day out as an inseparable element of His teaching and preaching. I’ve tried to suggest that. These sermons and exhortations were to no avail if the actual lives of His disciples did not change." (CES Conference on the New Testament, 8 August 2000, BYU)''
The scriptures are meant, above all, to change us, and the only real key to change is Jesus. As you read, try to write down everything you learn about Jesus Christ, the atonement, and his relationship with you. If you do so, your reading of the Book of Mormon will become a source of living water for you. You will find yourself really using what you read in your daily life, and the scriptures will become what one artist has called "the antidote for the emptiness of existence." I invite you to fill your soul with the wisdom, inspiration, and Christian joy that the Book of Mormon offers. As Alma says so beautifully:
"If ye will nourish the word…by your faith with great diligence…it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life. And because of your diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in your, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof… and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst." (Alma 32:41-42)
