"Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.
And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it."
Alma 56:47-48
The idea that faith can be passed on through the generations is pretty cool. Of course we all have to get our own testimony, but I think that our example and confidence in God can make a huge difference in people's lives, as it did in this case. This is the story of the stripling warriors, who went into battle with this amazing confidence, and who fought and were injured, but not one of them died in the battle. Not one, when casualties were normal in the rest of the army. That kind of faith works miracles.
We can't pass that kind of faith down to anyone if we don't have it ourselves. So, how do we get it? I think it comes little by little through obedience and practice. Things like reading our scriptures, praying, and keeping the Sabbath Day holy. We think of them as the basics, and sometimes gloss over them, because how can something so small matter? But the small things add up to big things, and learning that kind of smallish faith is the only way to get to the largest faith. :)
Believing is not enough. We often want it to be, and we think that God must be mean if he doesn't grant us blessings that are just as good as anyone else's... he loves us, right? Why worry about little things like scripture study? ... But I think what we often forget is that these types of miracles happen *because* of faith. God can only heal us if we have faith that it can be done. Our choice has to be involved, because God is not about forcing anyone. Obedience and righteousness are *necessary* to the process.
Today, let's do the little things that turn into big things, and have faith in God. More than just belief, faith is belief backed with action. We trust, and we take the step that God advises, rather than waiting to see if it works out for someone else. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't prepare for whatever we can, but it does mean that God prepares for things that we can't anticipate, and that things will work out. Let's learn that confidence through our obedience, and then share it with others. :)
And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it."
Alma 56:47-48
The idea that faith can be passed on through the generations is pretty cool. Of course we all have to get our own testimony, but I think that our example and confidence in God can make a huge difference in people's lives, as it did in this case. This is the story of the stripling warriors, who went into battle with this amazing confidence, and who fought and were injured, but not one of them died in the battle. Not one, when casualties were normal in the rest of the army. That kind of faith works miracles.
We can't pass that kind of faith down to anyone if we don't have it ourselves. So, how do we get it? I think it comes little by little through obedience and practice. Things like reading our scriptures, praying, and keeping the Sabbath Day holy. We think of them as the basics, and sometimes gloss over them, because how can something so small matter? But the small things add up to big things, and learning that kind of smallish faith is the only way to get to the largest faith. :)
Believing is not enough. We often want it to be, and we think that God must be mean if he doesn't grant us blessings that are just as good as anyone else's... he loves us, right? Why worry about little things like scripture study? ... But I think what we often forget is that these types of miracles happen *because* of faith. God can only heal us if we have faith that it can be done. Our choice has to be involved, because God is not about forcing anyone. Obedience and righteousness are *necessary* to the process.
Today, let's do the little things that turn into big things, and have faith in God. More than just belief, faith is belief backed with action. We trust, and we take the step that God advises, rather than waiting to see if it works out for someone else. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't prepare for whatever we can, but it does mean that God prepares for things that we can't anticipate, and that things will work out. Let's learn that confidence through our obedience, and then share it with others. :)
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