2 Nephi 6:17 Contends With My Enemies

"But thus saith the Lord: Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for the Mighty God shall deliver his covenant people. For thus saith the Lord: I will contend with them that contendeth with thee—"

(Context:  Nephi's brother Jacob is preaching to his people and is quoting Isaiah.)

I felt very blessed in my choice of a good divorce lawyer, and I also felt blessed in how the decision came about. I did not know of anyone personally, and Googling recommendations were really difficult when you’re just going by the reviews. Different women’s experiences were different all over. When I was talking to a coworker about this difficult decision, she said, "Why don’t you try mine? I had to get one for my sister last year and felt that he was really good."

She gave me a few more facts about where he worked, and I decided to go get a free consultation. After the consultation, I felt really good about him and his firm. It was a firm that pretty much represented men, but he assured me he would represent me and protect me the same as them, plus it gave me an edge that they knew so much about the men’s side of things. When I got back to the office and told my coworker about this lawyer and my decision, she said, "Oh good! I taught him piano when he was young, he grew up in my neighborhood."   I had no idea that this relationship existed, and she purposely didn’t tell me so I wouldn’t be swayed by that personal note. My lawyer ended up being a bulldog, and protected me every inch of the way. I felt led by God to choose him and through him He contended against my enemies.  I don't feel like divorces have to be treated as enemies, but in my case and circumstances, we had to defend and protect.

2 Nephi 5:5 Time to Flee

"And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me."

(The context of this verse takes place after Nephi's father has died and contention is escalating in his family.  He is warned to flee from his murderous brothers and does so with all who shared his same beliefs.)

When events got to an unbearable point in my divorce, it became necessary to lock my own bedroom door, to keep myself protected from my stbx.  My husband refused to leave our home, which I thought was the common behavior among couples getting a divorce.  So I began quietly asking around to find a place to go to with my son, but I didn’t know how I could. I knew he would fight me tooth and nail for anything I wanted to take out of the home, even though he felt perfectly fine taking things from the home when I was at work. (I learned that he had a couple storage units) 

My husband rarely took vacations, always the excuse of 'having to work' and 'can't afford to take the time off', even though he was self-employed and dictated his own schedule and made a very nice income.  I felt stuck that he never left home while I was there.  During the divorce, my husband quickly hooked up with another woman. It was all done in supposed secret, but I couldn’t help overhearing several conversations and also seeing text message conversations as he sat right beside me at my son & daughter's graduation.  I had learned through back doors that he was planning a singles cruise with her.  When this knowledge came to me, I felt the strongest impression that this was the time to move. I fully believe that impression came from God. 

An hour after he left for the flight, I had a small army come help me pack what I needed. I had been in that home for 24 years, yet I had every needful thing packed and ready to go and a storage shed rented in five days time. I had to document everything to make sure the lawyers knew what was going on. I had to make the decision of what was fair and what was not.  I felt I left him with the majority of the house possessions so I could not be accused of anything untoward.   It was important to me that while he behaved unethically, that didn't mean that I was going to.  My counselor suggested I rise above and act with dignity and grace, and I fully wanted to.  I didn't want to act out of spite, revenge or bitterness, even though it was hard to fight those natural feelings.  But that's another topic . . . 

Just like God warned Joseph to take his holy family to Egypt to flee Herod's killing spree, I know He will warn us too in our times of need.  I wasn't warned in a dream and my son wasn't the Savior, but I knew where that prompting and impression came from.  The God I worship loves me just as much as He loved Joseph and his family.

1 Nephi 22:12 Out of Darkness

"Wherefore, he will bring them again out of captivity, and they shall be gathered together to the lands of their inheritance; and they shall be brought out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel."

I know that God helps us when we get in situations that are pretty dark. I remember a time when I was 15 and felt surrounded by darkness and misery. I remember being very lonely and did not have the support and emotional connection of parents to help me through this time. I remember feeling suicidal at times, but knowing better enough that I didn’t attempt or make any moves toward that end. What I do remember was kneeling down one night, pleading for I don't know what... I guess just an end to the misery I was feeling inside, the feeling of being invisible.  My pleading became wordless as torrent of tears fell and I didn't have any more words.  Then . . . God’s love washed over me.  I physically felt two arms wrap around me and hold me while I cried. There was so much heartache, and so much sadness to let out. In the morning I felt very peaceful, and had a deep assurance that I was loved very much by my Heavenly Father.  He knew who I was and what troubled my heart.  This was the beginning of my coming out of darkness into light. He shows us the path to follow to better days and lasting joy, and I tried my best to do what he asked of me and then I reaped the rewards. I have never visited that darkness again, ever. The God I worship brought me forth out of that darkness.

1 Nephi 21:16 Never Forgotten

"Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me."
This is actually Nephi quoting Isaiah, but for those of you who haven't ever been in that book . . . .

I remember a very difficult time in my life a couple years ago, when my husband announced he would stop putting money into the joint checking account, that he was no longer willing to pay for our health insurance, which my children were still on, no longer willing to pay our home utility bills, home insurance, car insurance and property taxes. This was at a period of time when our divorce started getting very ugly. We had tried to stay in the same home and be civil about things, but it wasn’t too long before things became anything but civil. I will never forget the day I went out to the mailbox and there was a blank envelope with my name on it. When I opened it up, there was no note, but a cashier's check for $1000 made out to me. I was completely dumb struck and really couldn’t believe it. I didn’t feel I was on a poverty level yet, but I did need this money. Health insurance was expensive every month, and I wasn’t making enough money to carry all those bills myself. I do not believe this was a coincidence.  

There are myriads of examples of His personal attention.  Here's another story taken from a BYU devotional.  Andrew C. Skinner shared this:

I testify that our Father in Heaven cares about each of us, individually and personally. There are many examples of this doctrine that I could share, but my son Mark recently reminded me of one. Mark served a mission to Mongolia. He served with and developed a deep love for a senior missionary couple from Idaho. They used an interpreter their entire 18-month mission. Their interpreter—a Mongolian sister—had an important story to tell. She grew up in Mongolia. The missionaries found her and baptized her. When she joined the Church, she started saving money for a full-time mission. She received a call to one of the missions in the United States, but at that time she spoke almost no English. She got on a plane in Mongolia to come to the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, knowing only three sentences in English:

“I am from Mongolia.”

“I am a missionary.”

“Please help me.”

When she got on the plane, no one had explained to her that she needed to change planes to complete the flight to Utah. She landed in Chicago, but, naturally, there was no one there to meet her and she didn’t know the language. She found a chair, sat down, and prayed to Heavenly Father to know what to do. She then got up to try to find help. As she was attempting to explain her predicament to a ticket agent (using her three English sentences), a man tapped her on the shoulder, pulled out his temple recommend, and showed it to her. She recognized the temple recommend because she had been given one before she left, so she knew this man at her side was a member of the Church. He motioned for her to wait. Ten minutes later he handed her his cell phone, and on the other end of the line was the missionary who had taught her the gospel in Mongolia. The missionary told her to follow the man to the plane to Salt Lake City and get on board. He told her there would be people to meet her in Salt Lake City—and there were!

Our Father in Heaven truly watches out for His children—very often through others. But that’s not the end of the story. The man in the Chicago airport was a businessman who has flown all over the world. He was upset that day because it was the first time he had missed his connecting flight to Salt Lake City. But because he was there at the Chicago airport, he overheard this Mongolian sister trying to get help, and he knew he could help her.

I testify, as others have, that our Father in Heaven not only answers prayers but at times chooses to micromanage the details of His kingdom. This, too, is part of His divine nature. But herein lies an important lesson. It is our Heavenly Father who chooses; we do not dictate to Him time, place, or circumstance. Still, we may rest assured that our Father knows all things and He does all that He does out of love."

I know the God I worship never forgets us.

1 Nephi 18:1 Clear Direction

"And it came to pass that they did worship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. And the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship."

At this point in the story, Nephi is commanded to build a ship to carry his family across the ocean.  Nephi is not a shipbuilder, but he relies on the Lord for direction, and those directions came.

The God I worship gives clear direction. It was very difficult for me to make my decision to divorce. I did not make enough money to support myself and the needs of my children. My youngest two were not quite ready to support themselves, even though they were 18 and older. I remember making this decision a matter of mighty prayer. I really wanted God's help and direction and assurance that I was making the right decision. My mom had also divorced, but she divorced out of boredom, and I valued marriage more than that. I needed this decision to be right with me and to be right with God. I remember I went to a holy place often to ponder and think and to try to get an answer. On one particular day, I did get a clear-cut answer: it whispered to me, "There is no other way." That answer gave me comfort, but at the same time it didn’t give me a timeline! What did that mean? It took four more years until I was finally given the confirmation that now was the time. I didn’t use those four years to prepare for the divorce, but looking back now, I can see where doors and windows opened up for me that acted as a preparation, without me even knowing it. I did not give up on my marriage those past four years. I still continued to seek out professional counseling and tried to work things out with my husband with full faith that they would.  I'm so glad I did.  When the time came to take the first step, I needed that confirmation that I did all in my power to make the marriage work and to make myself available to fix whatever needed fixing.  The God I worship gives us clear direction when we ask and when it’s important to us.

1 Nephi 17:30 What I Needed

"And notwithstanding they being led, the Lord their God, their Redeemer, going before them, leading them by day and giving light unto them by night, and doing all things for them which were expedient for man to receive, they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds, and reviled against Moses and against the true and living God."

The part of this scripture that stood out to me was "doing all things for them which were expedient for man to receive."  The God I worship gives us all we need, not necessarily what we want. 

When you are young, you sometimes reflect about the future and what you want out of life.  When I compare those dreams to what I was given, what my life experiences have been, wanted and not wanted, I have concluded that the God I worship gives me what I need. These life experiences and situations have made me grow. They have stretched me in ways that I probably could not have been stretched otherwise. I think it is natural when we have these circumstances and experiences that are unpleasant to want them to stop and end, but I fully believe that we ought to really look at them in a way to see what we can gain from each of these things, to see how we can possibly grow to the best of our ability. I don’t think they are coincidental. I think our life here is tailored with exactly what we need to challenge us. 

For example, I did not like my parents being divorced when I was a small child, it brought much heart ache and loneliness. This is not what I wanted.  Could God have intervened and perhaps softened their hearts to stay together?  Possibly.  But He knew what I needed, and at the same time, honored their choices.  But having known those difficulties, I have become very compassionate with other people who share my experiences. I can let them know that I have walked in those moccasins and I know what it feels like. I can give them tools to find peace in what they have been given. God has allowed these experiences in my life so I can be an instrument in his hands to help others, as well as my own personal growth.  The God I worship gives me what I need, not necessarily what I want.

1 Nephi 17:13 Two Steps Ahead

"And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led."

I know that God can lead us along if we let him.  Part of that is trying to stay as close as possible to Him. That requires trust and faith in a Being that you cannot see -- but you can feel Him.  I cannot enumerate here all the many times in my divorce where I was guided and led due to kind friends and concerned children who would tell me what my husband was up to. This was a very ugly divorce, full of dishonesty and mischief.  Because I knew about some of these things ahead of time, I was able to put myself in a position to protect myself and prepare.   I remember his frustration at times, thinking I was always two steps of head of him. But it literally was like that. I don’t think this was coincidence. I think God was leading me along this whole process.  He led me to a wonderfully blissful promised land, and I feel grateful for His care.  The God I worship will lead us along if we let Him.

1 Nephi 16:16 Being Led to a Promised Land

"And we did follow the directions of the ball, which led us in the more fertile parts of the wilderness."

There's a saying in my neighborhood that you don't find Farmington, that Farmington finds you.  I feel like I was led to Farmington. I had spent the years between the ages of 8 to 17 here.  It was an emotional, turbulent time for me and I looked forward with much anticipation to the day when I would have a choice to move away.  I moved out when I was 17 years old, just having finished high school and  I had no intention of ever returning, except for the occasional family visit.

I fled to San Jose, California to spend some time with my dad, and it was in the San Jose area that I met my husband.  After a year in the Bay Area, we moved to Sacramento so we could buy a home.  A few years later when we had our first child, we felt like we couldn’t afford California anymore.  We looked at two places, Utah where my family was located and Washington state, where my husband's family now lived. We were kind of leaning towards Washington, but my husband's job interviews didn’t go well. My husband had not finished his college education, and never intended to, so his career choices were slim.  We also knew Washington state would be a little more expensive than Utah, so we turned our attentions to Utah. We knew my step-dad would be able to help us build a home there as well. So we packed up things and moved to Utah. We lived with my parents for two years, while we bought some land and built a home. My husband was very financially saavy, and wanted to buy a piece of property as an investment.  The best outlook was Davis County, so we focused our search there.  He was also cheap, and the cheapest piece was either a hillside in Bountiful or a gradual hillside piece in Farmington.  The unknown excavation costs scared my husband to death, so we chose the lesser of the two evils, Farmington. 

I was a little leery about coming back to Utah, but I had chosen to become a stay at home mother, and knew my husband would be carrying the financial load of our family all by himself, so I kept my reservations to myself as he worked out numbers.  The memories here were painful.  I felt like I would be bombarded with remembrances around every bend. And yes, it did happen for a while.  But new memories and a growing family replaced old memories. My circle of friends and neighbors grew as I rubbed shoulders with them in church and the community.  My love and respect for the many good men and women around me took root and grew deep.  As time went on, the old memories lost their pain.   It got to a point where I felt like I could not ever leave this place.  My husband wanted to at different times, never content to be in one place for too long, but I stood my ground.  I needed a solid foundation for my children and not have them uprooted like I had been as a child.  And then those around me became a solid support as my marriage started ebbing and flowing away into oblivion after many years of neglect and abuse.  The emotional pain was exquisite all over again, but this time was different.  I felt well loved and accepted by my friends and neighbors here, and I couldn’t imagine leaving and going somewhere where I was unknown and a stranger.  There were so many invisible bonds tying me to these people. I guess this is why I felt I was led to Farmington. The people in my neighborhood are some of the best people I have ever known. And not just one or two, but many many people. I felt led to this "fertile part" of the land where so many good souls became a part of my life to assist me in my journey.  I eventually got to a point where I felt I could cut those apron strings and move on, but as my blessings kept flowing in, I was able to keep my home after the divorce and stay amidst these people.  And I try my best to now take part as a more independent member of this community looking for ways to give back and help someone else who was led here for the same purpose.  The God I worship leads us to the most fertile parts of the land.

1 Nephi 16:8 Pressed Down, Shaken Together and Overflowing

"And thus my father had fulfilled all the commandments of the Lord which had been given unto him. And also, I, Nephi, had been blessed of the Lord exceedingly."

I have a personal testimony of this quality of God. I had been a stay at home mom for 24 years by the time my two youngest were in high school.  My husband had been pressuring me to get a job for some time. My daughter was suicidal, and I was making myself available to come to her rescue at anytime of the day. School was brutal for her, and for a time I was driving down every day at lunch hour to spend that hour with her. 

Out of the blue, a neighbor called to ask if I was interested in a part-time job. I wasn’t interested at all, and had no intention of looking for a job at this time. I had plenty on my plate, and my husband made more than enough money for us. We enjoyed a nice lifestyle, and I didn’t see the necessity of working outside the home. I worked 24/7 inside the home!   I politely thanked her for thinking of me and said I would think about it.   My friend called back 30 minutes later and asked if I would please just come in and talk to her boss. I laughed and told her I would. 

I threw on a dress the next morning and showed up at their office, five minutes away from my home. I had only just remember that morning that I didn’t even have a resume. I told myself I was just gathering information. I sat down with the owner and the office manager.   They explained the scope of their company, and what my duties would be.  The office manager left for a phone call and the owner started talking about compensation. Now prior to this, when I thought about working, I knew I could never get a job that would pay over $10. I didn’t have a college education, and figured the best I could do was work at a 7-Eleven or Walmart. But in my mind I had had a lot of life experiences and would not work out of the home under $11. When the owner asked me point blank what hourly amount I was considering, I blurted out $12 an hour, surprising myself. He said, "Well, we wanted to offer $13 an hour."   I think I was a little shocked. I never thought I was worth this much money. Sounds ludicrous today to say that out loud, but it’s true.   I asked him if I could think about it. 

I went home and told my husband I had been offered a job. I asked him why he thought it was so important that I work right now at this time. He told me that God told him I should get a job. I did all in my power not to roll my eyes. He was not living in a way consistent with having the Spirit tell him anything, let alone tell him anything regarding me. All this did was just make me angry. The next day I accepted the job and started working part time. I had told the owner in the interview that my family came first, and if my daughter needed me for any reason, I would need to leave immediately. They were behind me all the way, and letting me know that they also believed family came first, and that as long as I got my work done, they wouldn’t mind if things came up. They were very, very supportive. 

This job has been an exceeding blessing ever since. The people I work with became a second support group that built up my starving emotional tank and they verbally valued my work regularly. The bonuses were generous, the compliments genuine. After a couple years, my friend retired and I was offered a full-time position. I was given a nice raise, and after my divorce, my boss gave me another raise so I might be able to stay working for his company and still be able to support myself. I had always wanted to be a full-time mom and full-time grandma after the first decade of staying home with my children. I had no interest whatsoever in working. But this job was truly a blessing in disguise, and I had no idea at the time that events would lead me to ask for a divorce and separate from my husband in every possible way. I feel like I have tried the most part of my life to be obedient to God's commandments, to do the best of my ability. I feel like he has blessed me exceedingly, pressed down what was in my cup, shaken it to get things settled down even more, then kept my cup overflowing.

1 Nephi 13:18 Going Into Battle

"And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle." 

During most of the years of my past marriage, my husband hid money from me.  As our marriage started rapidly dissolving in the last few months, I knew I needed to get a better idea of our finances. He had never laid everything out to me, so I was in the dark for many years regarding our finances, our future financial plan -- anything but a partnership. We had a gun safe in our house, that had a smaller safe inside. I had the outer combination to get to important papers like Social Security cards or birth certificates for the kids, but I never had access to the cash we kept in the inner safe.  I knew it contained some cash, but I didn't know what else it held.   I also knew my husband well enough that if I even whispered the word "divorce" that cash would disappear. My husband was dishonest, obviously, and I knew I couldn’t just come out and ask him for an accounting. I had done that before, many times, not wanting anything inside, but out of fear that if anything were ever to happen to him, I would never have access to this emergency savings. He kept very little money in our savings account in the bank. 

One day at work, I was lamenting my situation to my coworker.  She  joked, "Google it." And so I did. Would you believe that all I had to do was email in the name brand, model and serial number, and they would email me the combination back?   Yes!  It only took me three hours to get the combination from the Internet. I don’t believe this was a coincidence. I feel like my friend was prompted to say what she said, to get me on the right track in getting what I needed. I was able to get inside the safe when my stbx was out of town. I had everything documented,  pictures taken and I had witnesses who signed affidavits.  The God I worship helps us in our battles.

1 Nephi 11:31 Healing In His Wings

"And he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Lamb of God going forth among the children of men. And I beheld multitudes of people who were sick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with devils and unclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all these things unto me. And they were healed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out."

This is another part of Nephi's dream where he sees the Savior going forth among the people in the Old World and healing their sick.  Heavenly Father sent His Son to heal us -- heal us from broken hearts, hurt pride, injustices, afflictions, disappointments, tragedies.  His healing power can reach down through all levels of pain if we let Him.  He can heal marriages, He can heal families.  

I've mentioned before that I am recently divorced.  I grew up in a divorced family, and one thing that I hated was the bitterness between my parents.  Knowing how my mom felt, I felt so much guilt for wanting to spend time with my father, for looking forward to our summer visits.  I felt even more guilt as I chose to move in with him after I graduated from high school.  Even after 40-something years, every once in awhile you'd hear a snide comment.  There were times when I wanted to shake her and say, 'Grow up!'   What was more infuriating was that the divorce was all her choice.  I didn't understand the bitterness and I knew I didn't want to have those feelings in my own life.   A few weeks after I initiated my own divorce, my friend asked me if I was going to turn into one of those 'bitter divorcees'.   Knowing my nature and my past history, I didn't think it was even possible.  I'm one of the most peaceful kind of people I know, having no known enemies and feeling great compassion for people as a whole.  

And then my stbx husband unleashed all his fury and hatred on me.  It was like his true colors were immediately unveiled and he did everything in his power to hurt me, lied about me to my friends and neighbors and children, trying to turn them against me, and started removing things from our home while I worked during the day.   Those 11 months were the hardest I'd ever had in my life up to that point, and that was his goal.  He prolonged the divorce for no viable reasons, thus creating more attorney fees.  After my home was awarded to me, it cost me another $400 in attorney fees just to get him to move out.  I think I had every reason to hold bitterness in my heart.  But I had never forgotten what my neighbor asked me from the very beginning.... "are you going to become one of those 'bitter divorcees"?     

So I took my hurts to God.  He helped me rise above the pettiness and do my best to act with grace and civility.  He gave me the strength and faith to believe that everything would turn out as it should, and that He would make everything right.  He kept my heart soft and forgiving, and helped me understand how mentally and emotionally sick my husband was.  Helping me to further understand that my husband was projecting his self-loathing on to me aided me immensely.  I don't want to paint a picture that I didn't have feelings of hurt or anger or bitterness.  The difference was that those feelings didn't stay.  They evaporated as I tried very hard to stay close to God and listen for His direction.  The God I worship healed my hurts and reminded me that only His opinion of me mattered.  I felt He helped others remember my true character, because I am still loved by many with the exception of his close work associates, who don't know me at all and chose to believe everything my husband reported.   It has been so satisfying to reflect on the status of my heart and realize that I have no ill feelings towards my ex-husband.  I choose to not communicate with him as a safety precaution, but that doesn't mean I haven't forgiven him.  

1 Nephi 11:30 God Sends Angels

"And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the heavens open again, and I saw angels descending upon the children of men; and they did minister unto them."

I've had several experiences with the angels that have crossed my path during different times of my life.  I know there are angels seen and unseen.  The story I want to share today is someone seen.  A few weeks after giving birth to my 3rd child, I was sitting in a rocking chair nursing.  My two-year-old sweet daughter leaned over me and said, "Momma, I not feel good."  And then she abruptly threw up all over me and the newborn baby.  It was not a good start to the day.

After cleaning us up, I was feeling particularly tired already and it wasn't even 10 a.m.  Then the phone rang.  A sweet grandma-aged neighbor two doors up just happened to call and asked me what I needed.  I kind of fell apart as I explained how my morning began.  She promptly came down, voluntarily scooped up my 4 year old son and took him to her house for several hours while they made cookies and played games.   That sweet gesture has forever made an impact on me.  Her sacrifice of time was especially meaningful, and the fact that she would give that attention to my son when she knew I would be putting the most of my attention on my two younger daughters that day was probably one of the best things she could have done for me so I wouldn't feel guilty about the unintended negligence.  The God I worship sends angels.  He knows our needs and will give us aid, even if we don't ask for it.  My life has been full of angelic and heavenly help that has come in all the right times and places.  

1 Nephi 11:27-28 Jesus Was Sent

"And I looked and beheld the Redeemer of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also beheld the prophet who should prepare the way before him. And the Lamb of God went forth and was baptized of him; and after he was baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the Holy Ghost come down out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a dove.  And I beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in power and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out from among them."

In a dream, Nephi is blessed to see the Savior of the World in the Old World going forth among the Jewish people.  He was sent to show us the way to live and how to return back to Heaven.  His example in the scriptures show us plainly the way we should live in order to bring us the most amount of happiness during this mortal period.  He also shows us how to behave so we might become more like Him, thus more like our Father.  We follow His example by exercising faith and being baptized by immersion, like Jesus did.  We follow His example by forgiving, being kind and charitable.  We follow His example of being non-judgmental.  We follow His example of loving little children.  We follow His example by teaching others about His gospel.  We follow His example by praying to our Father.  We follow His example of great compassion on all those around us.  We follow His example of doing our best to help others heal.  We follow His example by helping people who are blind to the mysteries of God, "see" once more or for the very first time.  We follow His example of loving and fellowshipping others that might seem "dead" to spiritual things, that we might "raise them up" again.  We follow His example by turning from the temptations of the world and finding out what God's will is for us, then follow it.  The God I worship sent His Son as a sure example to follow.  

1 Nephi 10:18 God is the Same

"For he is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him."

It is a great comfort in knowing that the God I read about in the scriptures is the same God that I worship today.  There are a myriad of scriptures in the Old & New Testament, the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine & Covenants that tells me He will be my strength and protector.  I read stories of his mercy and grace, and feel that He will treat me the same way.  I read stories of deliverance, aid and comforting the weary.  He promises guidance and direction and a Comforter.  I've experienced many of these things myself in this modern age and know His promises to be sure.  The God I worship has treated and will treat His children the same through all generations of time.

1 Nephi 7:12 Able To Do All Things

"Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him."

In this part of Nephi's story, he and his brothers had just gone back to Jerusalem to get Ishmael's family.  They were fleeing into the wilderness, to be led by the Lord to a land of promise, away from the destruction of Jerusalem . . . so they needed wives if their colony was to survive.  Part of the way back to their camp, Nephi's brothers begin to complain along with some of Ishmael's family and they wanted to turn back to Jerusalem.  Yep, camping and journeying in the wilderness is hard work.  And they had forgotten about God's promises of not only Jerusalem being destroyed, but that they were going to a land of milk and honey, a land blessed above all the other lands of the earth.  They lacked the faith that God could help them get there.

When I think of God being able to do all things according to His will, I remember the Red Sea opening for Moses and the Children of Israel, Daniel in the lion's den, Elisha and the chariots of fire, David and Goliath, the fall of Jericho, and many, many other miracles in the Bible.   

There have been many miracles in our modern day as Jesus Christ has restored his Church in these last days.  There have been many geographic places on this earth where the opposition to build a temple was fierce -- or the opposition to allow missionaries in certain countries was fierce -- but we have always prevailed.  There was always a way through, and we know where the miracle came from.  The God I worship can do all things.    

I feel like there have been miracles in my own personal life because God can do all things if he wills it.  If He can move mountains, then He can help me pass a test or soften a heart. One experience in particular that was a cause of much heartache was the bearing of children.  When my husband and I were finding out about each other before we were married, trying to see if we were compatible and had similar goals, we talked about a future family and what that would look like.  Because he had virtually been an older child, he wanted a lot of kids and I did too.  

Well, after having only one child, he changed his mind to my great sorrow.  I felt like with each child that followed after, it was a great fight and battle to get another child into our home. It should have been a time of joy and happiness and a time of sharing and anticipating a new life, but it wasn't.  It was painful and I was emotionally drained by the time he finally relented to having another child.   It was especially frustrating for me because I was completely healthy, willing and emotionally capable of raising more than one or two children.  After our third, I knew he wasn't going to budge any more, and it broke my heart.  I knew we had the capability and the financial ability to bring more children into our home, and he wanted no part of it.  And then. . . . 

I started to exercise faith and I started to pray as if everything depended on those prayers.  I discovered a wonderful book about getting answers to prayer and I treated that book like a textbook, practicing line upon line, expanding my perspective, gaining hope, and finally submitting to God's will.  When you pray for something so desperately, the bottom line is it will only come from God if it's for your good.  I had to get to a place where I needed to completely trust in God that maybe it wasn't in my best interest to have that fourth child.  When my prayers finally turned from pleading to gratitude for the 3 beautiful children I had, when they turned from begging to my telling God that I would be okay if I didn't have any more children, that is when the miracle occurred.  The God I worship can do all things -- and He softened Bill's heart enough for him to suggest that we bring one more child into our home.  

I have four beautiful children.  They are my greatest treasures.  And now that I can look back with 20-20 vision, it was God's wisdom that we stopped when we did.  He definitely helped me get to a place where I felt my contribution as a mother was significant and enough, but he also knew what was coming down the road and needed me to be patient.

1 Nephi 5:8 We are Given Power to Be Obedient

"And she spake, saying: Now I know of a surety that the Lord hath commanded my husband to flee into the wilderness; yea, and I also know of a surety that the Lord hath protected my sons, and delivered them out of the hands of Laban, and given them power whereby they could accomplish the thing which the Lord hath commanded them. And after this manner of language did she speak."

Nephi's mother Sariah is speaking in the above scripture.  She had doubted her husband's calling as a prophet and had doubted her sons' deliverance, but when they arrived back at camp, her testimony was deepened of a God who can give power to help us accomplish His commandments.

Sometimes we are asked to do some tasks that seem larger than we are.  Right after I had my first child I opted to become a stay-at-home mom.  I quit my job and we were living on my husband's meager income in Sacramento.  We knew that our house payment was bigger than necessary, so we put our home on the market and waited.  And waited and waited.   The problem was that homes were not selling very fast in our community.  We were on the "down" turn side of the real estate market.  Our congregation at that time was growing beyond our building size and after many years we were finally given the okay to purchase land and build a new, larger building.  Back in these days, members were expected to pay for at least half the building.  Each member was asked to sacrifice and give an amount that "hurt."  My husband and I hardly had two dimes to rub together, let alone give a donation to the building fund.  What were we going to do?  We decided to give $500.  We didn't know how things were going to play out, but we donated it anyway, exercising faith that things would work out for our good.  It was soon after that our home had an offer placed on it.  We were able to sell and move to a less expensive area, not even enjoying the fruits of the new church building.  But that was okay.  We were still in a position to keep me at home with our son.   The God I worship gives us power to accomplish His commandments.  There are things we believe, and there are things we know.  This I KNOW -- God gives us power to accomplish His commandments.