"Nevertheless, after all this, I never have known much of the ways of the Lord, and his mysteries and marvelous power. I said I never had known much of these things; but behold, I mistake, for I have seen much of his mysteries and his marvelous power; yea, even in the preservation of the lives of this people.
Nevertheless, I did harden my heart, for I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know; therefore I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart, even until the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges."
Alma 10:5-6
This is Amulek, speaking to the people in Ammonihah. I think that what he says here is something that we can all relate to. God's hand is in evidence all around us, and acting in our lives all the time... but how often do we stop and notice, and take responsibility for that knowledge by communicating with and listening to God? We mentally block God out so often, perhaps worried that we'll have to change our lives or that God will ask us to do something dramatic that we don't want to do.
And to be sure, sometimes those fears are confirmed. For instance, later in this book, Amulek, who was a rich man, loses everything. And some would say, look... he finally did what God asked, and God punished him for it. But is that really the case? Is that *ever* really the case? Although we can of course choose to see things that way, I think that if we look at the evidence fairly... in the case of Amulek's life as well as our own, we'll see that God is always preparing us for greater things. When we do as God asks, even when that results in giant changes take place and it seems like we are losing everything, if we look back with a better perspective, we see that we were being preserved, and assisted.
In Amulek's case, it was an angel appearing to him that made the difference and got him to stop blocking God out. For us, God probably won't be quite as overt. Amulek was asked to feed and take care of a prophet, and we don't have a lot of them walking around with nothing to eat nowadays. :) But God is still asking us to listen, to know, and to help. He does everything for us. Today, let's get on our knees and ask God what we can do for him.
Nevertheless, I did harden my heart, for I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know; therefore I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart, even until the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges."
Alma 10:5-6
This is Amulek, speaking to the people in Ammonihah. I think that what he says here is something that we can all relate to. God's hand is in evidence all around us, and acting in our lives all the time... but how often do we stop and notice, and take responsibility for that knowledge by communicating with and listening to God? We mentally block God out so often, perhaps worried that we'll have to change our lives or that God will ask us to do something dramatic that we don't want to do.
And to be sure, sometimes those fears are confirmed. For instance, later in this book, Amulek, who was a rich man, loses everything. And some would say, look... he finally did what God asked, and God punished him for it. But is that really the case? Is that *ever* really the case? Although we can of course choose to see things that way, I think that if we look at the evidence fairly... in the case of Amulek's life as well as our own, we'll see that God is always preparing us for greater things. When we do as God asks, even when that results in giant changes take place and it seems like we are losing everything, if we look back with a better perspective, we see that we were being preserved, and assisted.
In Amulek's case, it was an angel appearing to him that made the difference and got him to stop blocking God out. For us, God probably won't be quite as overt. Amulek was asked to feed and take care of a prophet, and we don't have a lot of them walking around with nothing to eat nowadays. :) But God is still asking us to listen, to know, and to help. He does everything for us. Today, let's get on our knees and ask God what we can do for him.
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