The Book of Mormon: A Challenge

As I have previously mentioned in my blog before, the Washington Vancouver Mission was given a challenge to read The Book of Mormon before the end of this next transfer. This morning, my companion and I decided that we would study in Preach My Gospel in chapter five titled "What Is the Role of the Book of Mormon?" We came across a quote by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin. He said:

“Please do not take the Book of Mormon for granted. Pray for a vision of how the Book of Mormon can be used more effectively in your mission. I promise that as you do so, your mind will be enlightened with the direction that you should take.”

Something that President Taylor has taught us about a lot is having a vision. (Vison+Discipline=Destiny) So now, any time I see the word VISION, I stop and focus my attention a little bit more. So when I saw this word I had to pause. Elder Wirthlin tells us that we have to PRAY for a VISION of how we can use The Book of Mormon more effectively.

What is your vision when you read The Book of Mormon? What do you hope to get out of it each time you read it? Do you have questions that you want answered? At the end of The Book of Mormon, there is the famous challenge:

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

 

We must renew this challenge in our hearts EACH and EVERY time we open The Book of Mormon. As we do so, we can have a renewed testimony of its truthfulness. With that renewed testimony, we can receive answers to our questions. I am so grateful to have The Book of Mormon in my life. I know that as we read it with a vision in mind, we can receive answers to any questions we may have!