Good afternoon sisters. What a beautiful
afternoon.
THOUGHT: “We can be delivered from the ways of evil and
wickedness by turning to the teachings of the holy scriptures”
Elder L. Tom Perry
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- We have a cannery
assignment to do peaches in September. If you haven't signed up and wish
to do so, please contact Brother Moon.
- Relief Society Canning
Tips and Hints Class:
Amy Rigby is going to share her canning tips and hints for canning
peaches, pears and her yummy salsa on Tuesday, Sept. 4th at 7
pm at her home (1175 E 1180 N). It will be lots of fun with interaction
time for questions and hands on learning and sampling of her salsa.
- Preparedness Notice: We have a very special
opportunity to have Jed Norton come to our Ward on Thurs. Sept. 13th
at 7 pm at our Ward Building to share with us his vast knowledge on being
prepared in six different categories. Husbands are invited.
- Be sure to fill out the '10
Fun Facts! Getting to know our Manila 12th Ward Sister.
Contact Melissa Brady if you haven't gotten one.
- Don't forget our RS
Blog. Go to http://manila12thwardrs.blogspot.com
BIRTHDAYS: Aug. 26th – Christy S. and Aug. 29th
– Amy W. Happy Birthday to you both.
Our lesson today was presented by Darla Cox and
was “The Power of Deliverance' by L. Tom Perry.
I am happy to be here. Enjoyed the Winders'
talks and wish them well. We will miss you.
Alisa: They are going to the same mission that my
husband and I went to. The Santa Rosa, Ca. Mission.
Linda: We will be working in the office until further
notice.
Thanks for your prayer, Lynette. If you think
that going to Walmart at 11:30 pm, and not run into anybody you know, you are
mistaken. I ran into three ward members and one former ward member last night.
One of them was Melisa Grieve. She had just gotten off work at 11 pm. Told me
that her brother and his business partner had opened a donut shop by Texas
Steakhouse called Station 13. They sell donuts, drinks starting at 6 am and
that their top seller was Maple, bacon donuts.
Jami: we go there all the time. They sell Amish fry
pies and frozen hot chocolate to die for. It's an amazing store.
Today we will be discussing the Power of
Deliverance. Elder Perry starts off by telling the story of a young friend who
has some difficult challenges. “They limit him in some ways, but in other ways
he is extraordinary. Scott was making his first airplane flight alone to visit
his brother and when he sat , he turned to the person sitting by him and told
him his name, asked what his name was, what did he do, and where did he live?
When he found out the passenger lived in Las Vegas, Scott told him that we had
a temple there, asked him if he was a Mormon, told him he should be, that it
was a great religion and then asked if he had read the Book of Mormon. Told him
he should. That is was a great book.
Elder Perry goes on to say that he agreed with
Scott, that the Book of Mormon is a great book. “This year in our Sunday
School classes, we are studying the Book of Mormon. As we prepare and
participate, may we be motivated to follow Scott's bold example to share our
love of this special scripture with others not of our faith.”
Later on in the lesson we will share experiences
we have had of being delivered through the words of the scriptures.
We are going to talk about experiences in the
scriptures of deliverance from sin, battle, destruction, prison. Does anyone
remember some of these examples?
Gayla: Alma the younger, when he was delivered from
sin. And the reason was because of the prayers of the righteous. It shows us
how powerful prayers are.
Robby: Deliverance from pain. My eldest daughter was
in a car accident 16 years ago in New Zeal and. Her friend Rachel, who was a
passenger in the car was nearly killed and so all the members in Australia were
praying for her. Everybody sincerely was praying for her, and during all the
treatments and surgeries she had to have, she never had any pain. She was
delivered from pain because of the faith and prayers of the people.
“A dominant theme of the Book of Mormon is
expressed in the final verse of the first chapter of 1 Nephi. Nephi writes,
“But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord
are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them
mighty even unto the power of deliverance. “
This handout I stole from the Seminary System of
the Church. You can get it on line. It shows the comparison between two groups
of people in the Book of Mormon. Their experiences are similar yet different.
We will do a review on it.
“Many of the stories of the Book of Mormon
are stories of deliverance. Lehi's departure into the wilderness with his family
was about deliverance from the destruction of Jerusalem. The story of the
Jaredites is a story of deliverance, as is the story of the Mulekites. Alma the
Younger was delivered from sin. Helaman's stripling warriors were delivered in
battle. Nephi and Lehi were delivered from prison. The theme of deliverance is
evident throughout the entire Book of Mormon.”
Following the death of Abinadi, the people of
King Noah divided into two colonies. One was led by King Limhi and the other by
Alma. The stories of these two groups provide an interesting comparison of how
the Lord deals with His children. They also provide important answers to help
us deal with our challenges.
If you will notice, to the left of the page are
the Questions, and then we have the People of Limhi, and the People of Alma.
Question: What were the people like?
The People of Limhi: They were divided; they
were contentious; They fled before the Lamanites; They abandoned their
families; They had their daughters plead for them, and They killed the king. If
you will notice in verse 16 of Mosiah 19, Limhi stayed with the women and
children.
Question: What happened to them, and how did
they react?
The people of Limhi: They were brought into
captivity and paid a 50% tribute; They lived peacefully in bondage for two
years; The Lamanites attacked them; They fought back and They accepted bondage.
Question: What were the conditions of their
bondage?
The People of Limhi: The Lamanites smote them on
the cheeks; They exercised authority over them; They gave them heavy burdens
and drove them like animals; They began to murmur and They went to war and were
defeated three times.
Question: How did they respond to this bondage?
The People of Limhi: They were compelled to be
humble; They accepted their bondage and abuse; They cried mightily to the Lord
and They sent for help.
Question: What was the result of their response?
The People of Limhi: The Lord was slow to hear
them; The Lord softened the hearts of their enemies, who eased their burdens;
They were not delivered at first; They prospered by degrees; They helped
others; They covenanted to serve God; They gave wine to the Lamaite guards, who
then fell asleep; and They escaped.
Contrast this group with the People of Alma:
Question: What were the people like?
The People of Alma: They believed Alma (who had
believe Abinadi); They traveled to hear the gospel; They endured risk; They
were taught to repent and have faith in the Lord; They covenanted wit God; They
were filled with grace and They were taught not to contend but to love one
another.
Question: What happened to them, and how did
they react?
The People of Alma: The Lord strengthened them;
They built a city; They prospered exceedingly; The Lamanites found them; They
cried to the Lord; and They surrendered and accepted bondage.
Question: What were the conditions of their
bondage?
The People of Alma: Amulon persecuted them; He
exercised authority over them and gave them taskmasters; Their afflictions were
great; They were threatened with death and They had burdens on their backs.
Question: How did they respond to this bondage?
The People of Alma: They cried mightily to God;
They prayed in their hearts; They submitted cheerfully and They showed faith
and patience.
Question: What was the result of their response?
The People of Alma: The Lord spoke to them; He
promised to deliver them; He eased their burdens and strengthened them; He
promised to deliver them “on the morrow”; He caused a deep sleep to come upon
the guards; and They escaped.
Micheale C read: Mosiah 18:34 “And it came
to pass that Alma and the people of the Lord were apprised of the coming of the
king's army; therefore they took their tents and their families and departed
into the wilderness.”
Why do you think they took their tents and
family: I see that as taking their 72 hours kits.
Mosiah 23: 39 tells us that the king of the Lamanites had
granted unto Amulon that he should be a king and a ruler over his people, who
were in the land of Helam. Amulon was one of King Noah's priest. They had been
exposed to the gospel and were former Nephites. The Amulonites maintained their
names, but continued in their impenetrable hearts. The seed of Amulon were
eventually scattered, hunted and slain.
Elder Perry continues: “There are two
stories in the Book of Mormon which are very similar and teach an
important lesson. The first is from the book of Mosiah, starting with the 19th
chapter. Here we learn of King Limhi living in the land of Nephi. The Lamanites
had waged war against the people of Limhi. The result of the war was that the
Lamanites would allow King Limhi to rule over his own people, but they would be
in bondage to them. It was a very uneasy peace.”
“When Limhi”s people had their fill of
Lamanite abuses, they convinced their king to go against the Lamanites in
battle. Three times Limhi's people were defeated. Heavy burdens were laid upon
them. Finally they humbled themselves and cried mightily unto the Lord that He
would deliver them. Verse 15 of chapter 21 tells us of the Lord's response:
“And now the Lord was slow to hear their cry because of their iniquities;
nevertheless the Lord did hear their cries, and began to soften the hearts of
the Lamanites that they began to ease their burdens; yet the Lord did not see
fit to deliver them out of bondage.”
“Soon after, Ammon and a small band of men
fro Zarahemla arrived and with Gideon—one of the leaders of Limhi's people—they
worked out a plan which was successful, and they escaped from the Lamanite
abuses. The Lord was slow to hear their cries. Why? Because of their
iniquities.”
“The second story is similar in many
respects but also different. The account is recor45ded in Mosiah 24.”
“Alma and his people had settled in the
land of Helam, when an army of the Lamanites came into the borders of the land.
They met and worked out a peaceful solution. Soon the leaders of the Lamanites
began to impose their will on the people of Alma and placed heavy burdens on
them to bear. In verse 13 we read, “And it came to pass that the voice of the
Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of
good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will
covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.”
“The people of Alma were delivered from
the hands of the Lamanites and safely made their way back to be united with
people of Zarahemla.
“What was the difference between the
people of Alma and the people of King Limhi? Obviously, there were several
differences: the people of Alma were peaceful and more righteous; they had
already been baptized and entered into a covenant with the Lord; they humbled
themselves before the Lord even before their tribulations started. All these
differences made it appropriate and fair that the Lord would deliver them
quickly in a miraculous way from the hand which kept them in bondage. These
scriptures teach us of the Lord's power of deliverance.”
What trials, burdens, difficulties have you had
in your life that the Lord was able to deliver you from? As you are thinking I
want to share with you an experience in my life. Many years ago when I had 5
young children, our school district, specifically our school, was involved in
an experimental school program which had failed in California. I opposed it and
took a stand and became very vocal. There were many people who agreed with me
and we had many meetings about it. The votes were 50/50. Part of the curriculum
was that there should be no testing needed. We argued that there was no other
way that the children and the parents could know how the students were
progressing. That not all children would be self motivating. Well the program
past, even though we never really knew if the votes were truly counted. We
continued to fight against it and it became really ugly and the people were
divided. It even made the newspapers and I started to have bad feelings in me
and didn't feel right. It was not good. A lot of the children were not self
starters, motivated. After two years we could see that the program was failing.
It lasted five years and we learned later that the program was federally funded
and the contract w3as for 5 years. I felt very uneasy, very ugly with a heavy
heart and so I petitioned the Lord. One day I was ready Alma 33:4: ”For
he said: Thou art merciful, O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I
was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those
who were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me.”
Verse 10: ”Yea, and thou hast also heard
me when I have been cast out and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou
didst hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit
them in thine anger with speedy destruction.”
And 11: “And thou didst hear me because of
mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy Son that thou hast
been thus merciful unto me, therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine
afflictions, for in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned thy judgments away
from me, because of thy Son.”
That was the answer to my prayer. The Lord took
care of that problem for me. How? I knew he was aware of me and my problem. The
situation resolved itself. That was very comforting to me at that time.
Rosemary S: Mine was deliverance from guilt and from a
false messenger. After I had my second special needs baby, I felt so much
guilt. I felt that I had caused it You know, we women do that so much, blame
ourselves. Guilt is great if it leads to repentance, but it can destroy us if
we let it. I knew that I had to pray because that is how the atonement can take
the guilt away from me. There was so much going on in my life. Michael was
going on his mission and then I had the other children. I could not function as
a mom. The guilt was such a burden on me that I just couldn't function. After
much prayer, the physical feelings were gone and I was able to understand the
false messenger. It was not my fault that the boys were born with disabilities.
Alma 42: 26 “And thus God bringeth about his great and eternal purposes, which
were prepared from the foundation of the world. And thus cometh about the
salvation and the redemption of men, and also their destruction and misery”
It's a big plan and my boys are part of that big plan. I think the Lord
knew his daughters.
Lynette: There are many examples where the Savior did
not come until the fourth watch and then he will deliver us. It doesn't come
fast like we want it to come. If our faith was immediately rewarded, all would
have faith.
Charlotte Winder: This ward and
neighborhood is very tender to me because of the deliverance that came to us.
My daughter was in a very accident and was hurt because of me. It was on a
Sunday and I had gone to a meeting at a sister's home and forgot that she was
asleep in the back of the car. She was a baby then. She was badly injured. It
is interesting to see the process of her healing, of the deliverance that the
Lord blessed us with. The faith and prayers and fasting of the ward members was
a blessing to us. When bad things happen to good people the Lord steps in. I
was desperate for deliverance and the only way I can explain it is that the
Lord parted the Red sea in much the same way. Through Priesthood power she was
healed. He blessed me with gratitude to serve God because of the miraculous
deliverance. He loves us so much and wants to help us. I am in his debt
forever.
Shanae: When I was on my mission I had a companion who
was dealing with depression and when you have depression, you can't have the
spirit. It occurred to me that my mother had send me an e-mail about how
detailed Heavenly Father is. That it had taken years of preparation for the two
of us to meet, to be together, so I could help her. Anything can be turn for
our good. The fourth watch. There are some things in our lives to prepare us
for later.
Thank you for sharing.
I would like to close with Elder Perry's
remarks: “We can be delivered from the ways of evil and wickedness
by turning to the teachings of the holy scriptures. The Savior is the Great
Deliverer, for He delivers us from death and from sin.
“I declare that Jesus is the Christ and
that we can draw close to Him by reading the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon
is another testament of Jesus Christ. The first testaments of our Savor are the
Old and New Testaments—or the Bible.”
“Again, let's remember my friend Scott's
description of the Book of Mormon: “It's a great book.” I testify to you that
much of the Book of Mormon's greatness stems from its harmony with the Holy
Bible, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
We are so blessed to have the scriptures. May we
read them and gain deliverance from them.
Have a great week, sisters.
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