Alma 37

What formed the Yosemite Valley?

How can you relate this picture to Alma 37:6-7?

How does Alma 37:6-7 relate to Alma 37:35?

President Hinckley Tree: http://broadcast.lds.org/visual-resources/book-of-mormon/2003-08-00-alma-37-35-hinckley-learn-in-thy-youth-750k-eng.mp4

Alma 37:35

What small and simple commandments have you kept since you were young that would be more difficult to begin living today?

Can you think of someone who has been blessed throughout their life because they learned to keep the commandments in their youth?

“Give me a young man who has kept himself morally clean and has faithfully attended his Church meetings. Give me a young man who has magnified his priesthood and has earned the Duty to God Award and is an Eagle Scout. Give me a young man who is a seminary graduate and has a burning testimony of the Book of Mormon. Give me such a young man and I will give you a young man who can perform miracles for the Lord in the mission field and throughout his life” (President Benson, C.R., Apr. 1986, 59).

“I have little or no fear for the boy or the girl, the young man or the young woman, who honestly and conscientiously supplicate God twice a day for the guidance of His Spirit. I am sure that when temptation comes they will have the strength to overcome it by the inspiration that shall be given them. Supplicating the Lord for the guidance of His Spirit places around us a safeguard, and if we… honestly seek the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord, I can assure you that we will receive it” (Heber J. Grant, Gospel Standards, 26).

In what ways does the Lord help us become this type of person?

-------Small and Simple------Alma 37:38

What is the meaning of Liahona?

“L is a Hebrew preposition meaning ‘to,’“iah is a Hebrew abbreviated form of ‘Jehovah,’ “on” is the Hebrew name of the ‘City of the Sun,’ “L’iah-on” means therefore, literally, ‘To God is Light’; or ‘God gives light” (George Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl, Commentary of the Book of Mormon, 1:229).

LiahonaLiahona

LiahonaLiahonaTell me everything you know about the Liahona…Alma 37:39-45

Two Spindles?

D&C 8:2-3D&C 8:2-3

“An impression to the mind is very specific. Detailed words can be heard or felt and written as though the instruction were being dictated.

“A communication to the heart is a more general impression. The Lord often begins by giving impressions. Where there is a recognition of their importance and they are obeyed, one gains more capacity to receive more detailed instruction to the mind. 

“An impression to the heart, if followed, is fortified by a more specific instruction to the mind. …(Helping Others Be Spiritually Led, August 1998, CES Symposium on the Doctrine and Covenants and Church History).

Wouldn’t it be great if the Lord gave each of us a Liahona to show us the way?

Patriarchal Blessing Scriptures/Words of the Prophets Holy Ghost Our Conscience

LiahonaLiahona

1. What are two or three ways that … is like the Liahona?2. What are some things that might cause us to miss important messages from … ?3. When have you been blessed by following the guidance of … ?

1. Patriarchal Blessing2. Scriptures/Words of the

Prophets3. Holy Ghost4. Your Conscience

LiahonaLiahona

Group 1: A Patriarchal BlessingPresident Thomas S. Monson:

“The same Lord who provided a Liahona for Lehi provides for you and for me today a rare and valuable gift to give direction to our lives, to mark the hazards to our safety, and to chart the way, even safe passage—not to a promised land, but to our heavenly home. The gift to which I refer is known as your patriarchal blessing. …

“Your blessing is not to be folded neatly and tucked away. It is not to be framed or published. Rather, it is to be read. It is to be loved. It is to be followed. Your patriarchal blessing will see you through the darkest night. It will guide you through life’s dangers. … Your patriarchal blessing is to you a personal Liahona to chart your course and guide your way” (“Your Patriarchal Blessing: A Liahona of Light,” Ensign, Nov. 1986, 65–66).

LiahonaLiahonaGroup 2: The Scriptures and the Words of Prophets

Elder W. Rolfe Kerr: “The words of Christ can be a personal Liahona for each

of us, showing us the way. Let us not be slothful because of the easiness of the way. Let us in faith take the words of Christ into our minds and into our hearts as they are recorded in sacred scripture and as they are uttered by living prophets, seers, and revelators. Let us with faith and diligence feast upon the words of Christ, for the words of Christ will be our spiritual Liahona telling us all things what we should do” (“The Words of Christ—Our Spiritual Liahona,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2004, 37).

LiahonaLiahonaGroup 3: The Holy Ghost

Elder David A. Bednar:“As we strive to align our attitudes and actions with

righteousness, then the Holy Ghost becomes for us today what the Liahona was for Lehi and his family in their day. The very factors that caused the Liahona to work for Lehi will likewise invite the Holy Ghost into our lives. And the very factors that caused the Liahona not to work anciently will likewise cause us to withdraw ourselves from the Holy Ghost today” (“That We May Always Have His Spirit to Be with Us,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2006, 30).

LiahonaLiahonaGroup 4: Your Conscience

“You must realize that you have something like the compass, like the Liahona, in your own system. Every child is given it. When he is eight years of age, he knows good from evil, if his parents have been teaching him well. If he ignores the Liahona that he has in his own makeup, he eventually may not have it whispering to him. But if we will remember that everyone of us has the thing that will direct him aright, our ship will not get on the wrong course and suffering will not happen and bows will not break and families will not cry for food—if we listen to the dictates of our own Liahona, which we call the conscience.”Spencer W. Kimball, “Our Own Liahona,” Ensign, Nov. 1976, 79

When have you experienced direction in your life?

Elder Holland: Wrong Roads http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNQC-_srxH8

Alma 37