1
Nephi 18:6
Theme-
Be Prepared
What
6 And
it came to pass that on the morrow, after we had prepared all things,
much fruits and meat from
the wilderness, and honey in abundance, and provisions according to
that which the Lord had commanded us, we did go down into the ship,
with all our loading and our seeds,
and whatsoever thing we had brought with us, every one according to
his age; wherefore, we did all go down into the ship,
with our wives and our children.
They
prepared as well as possible for this journey across the ocean. They
had a supply of food to last them for the journey and seeds to plant
when they got there. Apparently, they engaged everyone, young and
old in this preparation.
Why
They
prepared because they were commanded to prepare and because they knew
that it would be a long journey across the ocean. There would be not
much chance to obtain other food on the way.
Pattern
Ezekiel 38:7
7
Be thou prepared,
and prepare for
thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and
be thou a guard unto them.
8
But behold, to their uttermost astonishment, they were prepared for
them, in a manner which never had been known among the children of
Lehi. Now they were prepared for
the Lamanites, to battle after the manner of the instructions of
Moroni.
Alma 37:46
46
O my son, do not let us be slothful because of the easiness of the
way; for so was it with our fathers; for so was it prepared for
them, that if they would look they might live; even so it is with
us. The way is prepared,
and if we will look we may live forever.
6
Now the leaders of the Lamanites had supposed, because of the
greatness of their numbers, yea, they supposed that they should be
privileged to come upon them as they had hitherto done; yea, and
they had also prepared themselves
with shields, and with breastplates; and they had also
prepared themselves
with garments of skins, yea, very thick garments to cover their
nakedness.
Ether 12:32
32
And I also remember that thou hast said that thou hast prepared a
house for man, yea, even among the mansions of thy Father, in which
man might have a more excellent hope; wherefore man must hope, or he
cannot receive an inheritance in the place which thou hast prepared.
28
Behold, are ye stripped of pride? I say unto you, if ye are not ye
are not prepared to
meet God. Behold ye must prepare quickly;
for the kingdom of heaven is soon at hand, and such an one hath not
eternal life.
Doctrine and Covenants 29:8
8
Wherefore the decree hath gone forth from the Father that they shall
be gathered in unto one place upon the face of this land,
to prepare their
hearts and be prepared in
all things against the day when tribulation and desolation are sent
forth upon the wicked.
29
Behold, I say, is there one among you who is not stripped of envy? I
say unto you that such an one is not prepared;
and I would that he shouldprepare quickly,
for the hour is close at hand, and he knoweth not when the time
shall come; for such an one is not found guiltless.
Hebrews 11:7
7
By faith Noah, being
warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an
ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world,
and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
Genesis
7:9
9 There
went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female,
as God had commanded Noah.
The
kingdom of God on earth is The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints (D&C 65). The purpose of the Church is
to prepare its
members to live forever in the celestial kingdom or kingdom of
heaven. However, the scriptures sometimes call the ...
Christ
Jesus
came to the earth prepared to do the work He was sent to do.
Ether 3:14
14
Behold, I am he who was prepared from
the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I
am Jesus Christ. I
am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and
that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they
shall become my sons and my daughters
Conference
11/2011
Ian S. Arden
A
Time
To
Prepare.
Alma
spoke of priorities when he taught that “this life became a
probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God” (Alma
12:24).
How to best use the rich heritage of time to prepare to meet God may
require some guidance, but surely we would place the Lord and our
families at the top of the list. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
reminded us that “in family relationships love is
really spelled t-i-m-e”
(“Of Things That Matter Most,” Liahona and Ensign, Nov.
2010, 22). I testify that when help is prayerfully and sincerely
sought, our Heavenly Father will help us to give emphasis to that
which deserves our time above something else.
The
poor use of time is a close cousin of idleness. As we follow the
command to “cease to be idle” (D&C
88:124),
we must be sure that being busy also equates to being productive. For
example, it is wonderful to have the means of instant communication
quite literally at our fingertips, but let us be sure that we do not
become compulsive fingertip communicators. I sense that some are
trapped in a new time-consuming addiction—one that enslaves us to
be constantly checking and sending social messages and thus giving
the false impression of being busy and productive.
11/80
Ezra Taft Benson
Prepare
for the Days of Tribulation
For
over forty years, in a spirit of love, members of the Church have
been counseled to be thrifty and self-reliant; to avoid debt; pay
tithes and a generous fast offering; be industrious; and have
sufficient food, clothing, and fuel on hand to last at least one
year.
Today
there are compelling reasons to reemphasize this counsel. We heard it
done effectively in that great welfare meeting this morning. May I
add just a word.
...More
than ever before, we need to learn and apply the principles of
economic self-reliance. We do not know when the crisis involving
sickness or unemployment may affect our own circumstances. We do know
that the Lord has decreed global calamities for the future and has
warned and forewarned us to be prepared. For this reason the Brethren
have repeatedly stressed a “back to basics” program for temporal
and spiritual welfare.
Today,
I emphasize a most basic principle: home production and storage. Have
you ever paused to realize what would happen to your community or
nation if transportation were paralyzed or if we had a war or
depression? How would you and your neighbors obtain food? How long
would the corner grocery store—or supermarket—sustain the needs
of the community?
I
bear you my testimony that President Heber J. Grant was inspired of
the Lord in establishing the Church Welfare program. The First
Presidency was inspired when they made the first public announcement
in 1936 and declared the prime purpose of Church welfare was “to
help the people help themselves” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1936,
p. 3). I bear witness to that inspired counsel from 1936 to the
present day that the Saints lay up a year’s supply of food. When
President Spencer W. Kimball persistently admonishes the members to
plant gardens and fruit trees and produce our own food, he is
likewise inspired of the Lord.
Be
faithful, my brothers and sisters, to this counsel and you will be
blessed—yes, the most blessed people in all the earth. You are good
people. I know that. But all of us need to be better than we are. Let
us be in a position so we are able to not only feed ourselves through
the home production and storage, but others as well.
May
God bless us to be prepared for the days which lie ahead, which may
be the most severe yet. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Apply
Life
is a journey.
We
plan and work for a better future but we do not know what our
circumstances will be . We are guided by prophets to receive
revelation for the membership of the church. We have scriptures and
local leaders who guide and help us and we have our Father in Heaven
and His Son, Jesus Christ who love us and watch over us. They know
us far better than we know ourselves.
They
have given us guidelines sot that we can be prepared for the troubles
that will most certainly beset us during this life. The wise thing
to do is to prepare ourselves in every way that we can. Spiritually,
mentally and physically.
What
are we preparing for? The future of course!. Ultimately, we are
preparing for our home beyond this life. Life goes on after we leave
this one. He has prepared a mansion for us if we have prepared
ourselves to be in it.
Doctrine and Covenants 72:4
4
For he who is faithful and wise in time is accounted worthy to
inherit the mansions prepared
for him of my Father.
2
In my Father’s house are many mansions:
if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place
for you.
6
And if thou art faithful unto the end thou shalt have a crown of
immortality, and eternal life in the mansions which
I have prepared in the house of my Father.
These
mansions are real. Just as real as the house you live in now!
Relationships are real and lasting. That is if we are prepared for
them through divine ordinances.
If
we have faith in Him and truly believe in Him, then we will have
peace in our hearts and be able to prepare everything that is needed.
For
most of us, the journey is long and we are tossed around all over the
place but, He an calm the seas.
Let
us plan and prepare with our families, for our future in this life so
it will mesh seamlessly with that future home with family across the
veil.
I
love this quote from Eliza R. Snow
“I
will go forward, I will smile at the rage of the tempest, and ride
fearlessly and triumphantly across the boisterous ocean of
circumstance and the testimony of Jesus will light up a lamp that
will guide my vision though the portals of immortality. “
Hymn
226
Improve The Shining Moments.
Alma
34:32-33
32 For
behold, this life is
the time for men to prepare to
meet God; yea, behold the day of this life
is the day for men to perform their labors.
33 And
now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses,
therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the
day of your repentance until
the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for
eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life,
then cometh the night of
darkness wherein
there can be no labor performed.
Children
166-A
Young Man Prepared
