A Birthday Gift from a Friend

When I was fourteen I received a Book of Mormon as a birthday present from my friend Dean. He loved the Book of Mormon, everyone knew this about him, and he wanted to share his love for it with me.

It may sound strange but this was my very first personal copy of the book even though I grew up as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My mom's parents joined before she was born and my dad joined while he was a college student at BYU (a great story for another day.)

My family attended church every week. We prayed and read scriptures in our home. We held Family Home Evening (we called it Family Night.) I never felt forced to believe, but my parents created an environment where a testimony could grow and conversion could happen if we chose to allow it.

Despite all ^^^that^^^ I actually never remember my parents (or any teachers either) handing me a Book of Mormon and telling me to read it. Now my memory might not be the best but this is my story and I'm sticking to it. (Back in the 60's and 70's children didn't carry around their own set of scriptures like they do today--I only remember the Sunday School giving us our own copy of the Holy Bible when I was a teenager.)

Anyway, this was my gift from a friend. I didn't make it through very far on my first time reading it, but I kept trying--truthfully probably because of Dean. I didn't want to be a failure at something that clearly he had mastered.

Soon a verse here and a story there began to make sense: Abinadi, Amulek teaching Zeezrom about the resurrection, and then in a big way 3rd Nephi:17 where Christ blesses the children and angels encircle them with fire. These were the beginnings of my love for this sacred book.

I began to experience what Alma taught in Alma chapter 32. Like it says in verse 28, I "[gave] place that a seed may be planted in [my] heart. He compares the word (meaning the word of God--Jesus Christ--) to a seed. We plant it with our desire and nurture it with our faith and it begins to swell within us and soon we know that it is good.

That's what happened to me. All kinds of good things began swelling in my heart and I was blessed with testimony-building experiences and knowledge. Light and truth and joy filled my life like never before.

In Seminary, I think when I was sixteen, we began a goal-setting program called Quest for Exaltation. The first goal I set was to read the scriptures everyday. I began to fill up my chart with check marks, and I read my scriptures everyday because I wanted to fill every space on that chart. At the end of the Seminary year the spaces were filled but so was my mind and my heart. So was my life filled with the good fruits of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I was changed by it just as I had been over the two years prior. All of the light and knowledge and spiritual experiences came "line upon line, precept upon precept...here a little and there a little." (Isaiah 28:10)

I am a witness to the good fruit that comes as we exercise faith in Jesus Christ and His word. I am a witness that my faith is not blind because I have seen too much of the workings of the Lord in my life to ever want to live without it.

Alma 32

27 But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than ^adesire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.

28 Now, we will compare the word unto a ^aseed. Now, if ye give place, that a ^bseed may be planted in your ^cheart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your ^dunbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to ^eenlighten my ^funderstanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.

29 Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, Yea; nevertheless it hath not grown up to a perfect knowledge.

30 But behold, as the seed swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, then you must needs say that the seed is good; for behold it swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow. And now, behold, will not this strengthen your faith? Yea, it will strengthen your faith: for ye will say I know that this is a good seed; for behold it sprouteth and beginneth to grow.

31 And now, behold, are ye sure that this is a good seed? I say unto you, Yea; for every seed bringeth forth unto its own ^alikeness.

32 Therefore, if a seed groweth it is good, but if it groweth not, behold it is not good, therefore it is cast away.

33 And now, behold, because ye have tried the experiment, and planted the seed, and it swelleth and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is good.

34 And now, behold, is your ^aknowledge ^bperfect? Yea, your knowledge is perfect in that thing, and your ^cfaith is dormant; and this because you know, for ye know that the word hath swelled your souls, and ye also know that it hath sprouted up, that your understanding doth begin to be enlightened, and your ^dmind doth begin to expand.

35 O then, is not this real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is ^alight; and whatsoever is light, is ^bgood, because it is discernible, therefore ye must know that it is good; and now behold, after ye have tasted this light is your knowledge perfect?

36 Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither must ye lay aside your faith, for ye have only exercised your faith to plant the seed that ye might try the experiment to know if the seed was good.

37 And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say: Let us nourish it with great care, that it may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit.

38 But if ye ^aneglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.

39 Now, this is not because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable; but it is because your ^aground is ^bbarren, and ye will not nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof.

40 And thus, if ye will not nourish the word, looking forward with an eye of faith to the fruit thereof, ye can never pluck of the fruit of the ^atree of life.

41 But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with ^apatience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree ^bspringing up unto everlasting life.

42 And because of your ^adiligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the ^bfruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst.

Note: the blue highlighted word links won't work because I cut and pasted the verses.