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.
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;
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.
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
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.
