Scriptures Are My Lifeline!

 This morning I read Alma 32—one of my favorite chapters of scripture in all the standard works.

I remember with clarity sometime after General Conference and I was pondering on the feast we had just had, as I was making my bed. All of a sudden, I stopped in my tracks. When they were telling us to read the scriptures daily (I don’t remember who said it, of course), who did I think they were talking to? I had read the Book of Mormon. I hadn’t done much reading outside since I had turned my life around. It was at that very moment that I knew the Lord was speaking to me and I needed to repent and come up with a plan. This was sometime after 1980, and I have not stopped reading daily since. I have noticed on days when I’ve had to “shake up” the order of things that my attitude and ability to cope with the stresses of life decreases. I have noticed the habit of reading daily has changed my ministering , and that I consciously seek to help others. I have noticed that when I get lax in my study of the scriptures and the words of the prophets, that I become selfish and less easy to live with. I have noticed my tolerance for others decreases. I have noticed that my love for mankind increases when I am faithfully reading and searching to be closer to my Heavenly Father.

Does Alma’s counsel make sense to me? Absolutely! My scriptures are my lifeline. Generally, it is the first thing I do in each day after I have prayed for guidance in my day. Yes, scriptures are my lifeline!