Monday, August 29, 2016

Spiritual Hurricanes 1 Nephi 18:15


1 Nephi 18:15

Spiritual Hurricanes

What
 15 And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to asee that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof.

Why
Laman and Lemuel began to see the consequences of their wickedness and that if they didn't repent that they would be drowned so they loosed the bands that were on Nephi's wrists. It was their only hope to get the storms to stop. They were afraid and desperate but were they truly sorry? They did at-least stop their destruction.

Pattern
Other brothers tried to kill or destroy their brother:
Cane

Genesis 4:8

8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, thatCain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

Genesis 27:41

41 ¶And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.

Joseph
Genesis 37: 18 And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they aconspired against him to slay him.
 19 And they said one to another, Behold, this adreamercometh.
 20 Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

Christ
Jesus' brother Lucifer (or Satan,) tried to destroy Him.
 8 aAgain, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the bkingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
 9 aAnd saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, aSatan: for it is written, Thou shalt bworship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

Moses 4:21

21 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, between thy seed and her seed; and he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

JST, Revelation 12:6

6 And there was war in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought against Michael;

Conference
4/16 Patrick Kearon
Refuge From the Storm
The Savior knows how it feels to be a refugee—He was one. As a young child, Jesus and His family fled to Egypt to escape the murderous swords of Herod. And at various points in His ministry, Jesus found Himself threatened and His life in danger, ultimately submitting to the designs of evil men who had plotted His death. Perhaps, then, it is all the more remarkable to us that He repeatedly taught us to love one another, to love as He loves, to love our neighbor as ourselves. Truly, “pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction”6 and to “look to the poor and the needy, and administer to their relief that they shall not suffer.”7

October 1999- David R. Stone
Spiritual Hurricanes
 But some spiritual hurricanes sweep us into chaos, and we are encompassed and imprisoned by the shackles of powerful and ruinous influences whose consequences we can only dimly perceive at the time. Like those swirling cyclones, spiritual hurricanes can be virtually unnoticed until they are almost upon us, but they also can strike with intense and insensate fury.
We place ourselves in the path of these spiritual hurricanes when we indulge in anger, alcohol, and abuse; lust and licentiousness; promiscuity and pornography; drugs, pride, greed, violence, envy, and lies—the list is long. Perhaps, for a time, life seems to go on as before, and in that dormant period there is no hint of the terrible retribution to come, and then we are suddenly in the grip of their satanic power, and they lay waste our lives, bringing anguish and agony, depression, despair, and desolation. Too many times they also bring sadness, sorrow, suffering, and heartache to our loved ones. In the aftermath of their destructive path, it is often more difficult to restore a spiritually shattered soul than it is to rebuild a ruined city. There are whirling winds of malevolence, malice, and evil on the move in society today, and they will not spare those who wander into their path.
But we also have our spiritual hurricane guardians, those whose calling it is to watch and warn, helping us avoid spiritual damage, destruction, and even death. Our watchmen on the tower are known to us as apostles and prophets. They are our spiritual eyes in the sky, and they know, through inspiration and insight and pure intelligence, the course these storms may take. They continue to raise their voices in warning to tell us of the tragic consequences of willful and wanton violations of the Lord’s commandments. To intentionally ignore their warnings is to court misery, sorrow, and ruin. To follow them is to follow the chosen servants of the Lord into spiritual pastures of peace and plenty.

There is peace and tranquillity, there is solace and safety in His gospel. If we will but listen to those whose calling it is to watch and warn, if we will give heed to the words of the Master Himself, then our spiritual house will stand firm, and we can let the rain descend and the floods come and the winds blow and beat upon our house, because we are founded upon that rock (see Matt. 7:24–25).
The Lord has said, “And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days” (D&C 1:4). He also said, “Whether by mine own voice, or by the voice of my servants, it is the same” (D&C 1:38).
Apply
If we listen to our Latter Day Prophets and follow their counsel we can avoid the spiritual hurricanes that will come to those who try to destroy the work of the Lord. Loving one another and caring for our brothers in our families and around the world will bring peace. We can have peace in our hearts and minds.

We can go about actively helping the Lord's work, helping our brethren and Sisters in our families and our neighborhoods. We should spread good will and not destruction. We should also be brave in defending the right.

Hymns
250-We Are All Enlisted

Timothy 2:3
 3 Thou therefore endure ahardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 6:11:12 
11 Put on the whole aarmour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
 12 For we a wrestle not b against cflesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the drulers of the e darkness of this world, against spiritual f wickednessin high places.



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