Weekly Update May 17th - May 23rd

FAITH

"Flooding the Earth and Our Lives with the Book of Mormon"
Ezra Taft Benson - Lesson 10


Doctrine:

The Book of Mormon … was written for our day. The Nephites never had the book; neither did the Lamanites of ancient times. It was meant for us. Mormon wrote near the end of the Nephite civilization. Under the inspiration of God, who sees all things from the beginning, he abridged centuries of records, choosing the stories, speeches, and events that would be most helpful to us.

Each of the major writers of the Book of Mormon testified that he wrote for future generations. … If they saw our day and chose those things which would be of greatest worth to us, is not that how we should study the Book of Mormon? We should constantly ask ourselves, “Why did the Lord inspire Mormon (or Moroni or Alma) to include that in his record? What lesson can I learn from that to help me live in this day and age?”

 

And there is example after example of how that question will be answered. For example, in the Book of Mormon we find a pattern for preparing for the Second Coming. A major portion of the book centers on the few decades just prior to Christ’s coming to America. By careful study of that time period, we can determine why some were destroyed in the terrible judgments that preceded His coming and what brought others to stand at the temple in the land of Bountiful and thrust their hands into the wounds of His hands and feet. 

  

Invitation to Action: 

Every Latter-day Saint should make the study of this book a lifetime pursuit. Otherwise, he is placing his soul in jeopardy and neglecting that which could give spiritual and intellectual unity to his whole life. There is a difference between a convert who is built on the rock of Christ through the Book of Mormon and stays hold on the iron rod, and one who [is] not.

 

We have an increasing number who have been convinced, through the Book of Mormon, that Jesus is the Christ. Now we need an increasing number who will use the Book of Mormon to become committed to Christ. We need to be convinced and committed.

 

… My beloved brethren and sisters, let us read the Book of Mormon and be convinced that Jesus is the Christ. Let us continually reread the Book of Mormon so that we might more fully come to Christ, be committed to Him, centered in Him, and consumed in Him.

 

I have a conviction: The more we teach and preach from the Book of Mormon, the more we shall please the Lord and the greater will be our power of speaking. By so doing, we shall greatly increase our converts, both within the Church and among those we proselyte. … Our commission then is to teach the principles of the gospel which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. “These shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit” (D&C 42:13).

 

The Book of Mormon is the instrument that God designed to “sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out [His] elect.” (Moses 7:62.) This sacred volume of scripture needs to become more central in our preaching, our teaching, and our missionary work.

 

… In this age of the electronic media and the mass distribution of the printed word, God will hold us accountable if we do not now move the Book of Mormon in a monumental way.

We have the Book of Mormon, we have the members, we have the missionaries, we have the resources, and the world has the need. The time is now!

My beloved brothers and sisters, we hardly fathom the power of the Book of Mormon, nor the divine role it must play, nor the extent to which it must be moved. …

I challenge all of us to prayerfully consider steps that we can personally take to bring this new witness for Christ more fully into our own lives and into a world that so desperately needs it.

  

Promised Blessings:

It is not just that the Book of Mormon teaches us truth, though it indeed does that. It is not just that the Book of Mormon bears testimony of Christ, though it indeed does that, too. But there is something more. There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path. The scriptures are called “the words of life” (D&C 84:85), and nowhere is that more true than it is of the Book of Mormon. When you begin to hunger and thirst after those words, you will find life in greater and greater abundance.

 Read, study, or listen to the entire lesson here:  

 

 https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-of-presidents-of-the-church-ezra-taft-benson/chapter-10-flooding-the-earth-and-our-lives-with-the-book-of-mormon?lang=eng

 

You can also view a few short videos.

 

 

 

 

I shared a talk given by Ezra Taft Benson in the October 1988 General Conference.  Here it is again since it goes along so well with this lesson:

 

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1988/10/flooding-the-earth-with-the-book-of-mormon?lang=eng

 

FAMILY 

 

 

We have been challenged time and time again to read The Book of Mormon in our families.  I have personally noticed a huge difference in our home when we do.  The past few weeks we have studied the Book or Mormon and have learned about the many blessings it brings into our lives.  Is now the time for your family take another challenge to read it together?  Below is a few charts to help you complete it in your time frame and help you reach your goal. 

“We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost. (See Moroni 10:3–5.)

 

“Those who gain this divine witness from the Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is his revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah” (From the Introduction of the Book of Mormon).

 

 

We have also been invited to "Flood the Earth with the Book of Mormon."  Who do you know that you could share your testimony and this great gift with? 

   

 RELIEF 

 

 

Have you visited the churches new volunteer website?  I just happened to come across it last week.  There are some really fun ways we can all serve no matter what our experience, whatever stage of life we are in,  wherever we live, and wherever we would like to serve.  Below are some of the categories to choose from.
 

https://volunteer.lds.org/

•  
  

  Missionary

   
  Missionary opportunities to support and serve the mission field
•  
  

  Welfare & Humanitarian Services

   
  Welfare and Humanitarian Services need your help to care for those in need around the world
•  
  

  Media

   
  Contribute with your skills in photography, video, or other media
•  
  

  Family History

   
  Opportunities that support family history, FamilySearch, and indexing
•  
  

  Technology

   
  Technology related activities to hasten the work
•  
  

  Other

   
  Other opportunities from a variety of categories

 

SWEEPING THE EARTH AS IF A FLOOD:

 

 



 Hollywood Bible Movies Provide Opportunity to Share Church’s Bible Videos:

With the current renewed interest in the Bible—as evidenced by Bible-themed Hollywood movies and TV mini-series such as A.D. The Bible Continues—now may be the perfect time to share the Church’s The Life of Jesus Christ Bible Videos with friends and family through social media.
Depicting events from the New Testament, the Bible videos have been watched millions of times over the last three years on the BibleVideos.org website, the Bible Videos mobile app, the Gospel Library mobile app, and Mormon Channel platforms, including YouTube and Roku.
Of the 92 Bible videos the Church has filmed and published over the past three years, more than half have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Russian, German, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese, with the remainder coming later this year.

Use Bible Videos app to share your testimony

 

In addition to the website, the interactive Bible Videos app for Android and iOS offers an engaging and interactive way to watch and read key accounts from the New Testament and makes it easy to share one video at a time.
Members of other faiths may not be aware that individually and as a Church, Latter-day Saints love and revere the Bible. Because all content in the Bible videos is based on solely on the Bible, people of many faiths can benefit by experiencing Christ’s ministry and teachings.
As you share Bible videos on social media, consider expressing your love for Bible teachings or your testimony of the Savior.
“The message of the Lord Jesus Christ needs to be shared as widely as possible throughout the world,” said Elder Lynn G. Robbins of the Seventy.

Watch and show videos to study and teach about the Savior
The Valiant classes in Primary are studying the New Testament this year. And with the New Testament being this year’s Gospel Doctrine course of study, the Bible videos provide new and meaningful ways to learn about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Each video is only a few minutes long, which makes it easy to use one or more to illustrate specific events and teachings during lessons or personal study.
“It is our hope that these New Testament videos will help people to visualize what they have only been able to imagine and to more deeply feel the truths of the New Testament as they witness the Savior’s life and not just as they read about it,” Elder Robbins said. “Hopefully, there will be entirely new insights into the Savior’s character that will help viewers feel of His love and inspire them to want to be more like Him.”

Download and share images from Bible videos
More than 400 images from the filming of the Bible videos are available for you to download and use for a variety of personal and church use from BibleVideos.org and the LDS.org Media Library.
 
https://www.lds.org/church/news/hollywood-bible-movies-provide-opportunity-to-share-churchs-bible-videos?cid=HP_TU_5-19-2015_dPTH_fCNWS_xLIDyL2-3_&lang=eng

 

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Relief Society Announcements: 

Lesson Schedule:

 

May 10^th – Ezra Taft Benson  #9 – The Book of Mormon – Keystone of Our Religion

May 17th – Ezra Taft Benson #10 – Flooding the Earth and Our Lives with the Book of Mormon

May 24^th – Teachings For Our Time - "The Sabbath Is a Delight" Russell Nelsons talk from the April conference

May 31^st – 5th Sunday

Calendar Items:
  

Sunday May 31^st – Visiting Teaching Conference

 

 

Congratulations to the 2015 Seminary Graduates!

 

 

Recipes on the blog:

If you have a recipe you would like to share send them to:  drbennett1@hotmail.com or call or text them to 208-351-7083. We would love to have your favorite holiday recipes!

Visit the ward recipe blog:  www.burton4threcipes.blogspot.com

Visit the Relief Society blog:  www.burton4thrs.blogspot.com

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