Nuggets Galore!

2 Nephi 32 & 33

I couldn't resist the urge to finish the book of 2 Nephi since they were both small chapters. There were plenty of nuggets in each one, so now I debate on which were my favorite.

As I listened to conference this weekend, I determined to memorize more scripture as was suggested by one of the brethren. I believe it may have been Elder Hale. This is like spiritual food storage – to store up for a time when I am left to what I can only think about. It can't hurt in keeping the brain cells active either. Some of my favorites are the response to the question that arises in reading 2 Nephi 31:13 – How DO angels speak? In 32:3 the answer is: “Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.” In other words – they are nice!

This is another reason to memorize scripture. When we are in the heat of a trial that would take us from our scriptures, it is important to keep the Holy Ghost with us and to speak like angels. This could explain why older people who have had time to really digest the scriptures are so angelic.

One of my all-time favorites is v9 in Chapter 32. This has been my guide for years as I have performed a lot musically. But now it becomes a verse that guides me as I find myself counseling in Ward Conferences to full rooms of sisters. V9 “But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.

Chapter 33 v2 explains to me the situation of some as they seem to stumble around in darkness, not really having a clue what this life is all about. “But behold there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught.” What is it that will cause a person to harden their hearts? They stop reading the scriptures. They stop caring what the prophets have to say. They go it on their own and in a very short time, their hearts are hard as flint. They are not content to just be their own miserable selves; they must convince others who cling to the words of the prophets of the wrongness of their path! It is no mystery how a person loses the spirit.

There are other nuggets but time limits me. I too glory in the plainness of scriptures as Nephi says in v6. I grieve that not all scripture is plain to me, but I am improving.