In my Book of Mormon class  this past week I was really touched by our discussion of 3 Nephi 11:15, “And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth, and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come.” This scripture speaks of Christ’s visit upon the earth after he was resurrected. I love that it specifically says that Christ went forth among the people “one by one”. This shows how individual His sacrifice was for each one of us and how personally he knows us. His atonement was for all mankind, but it was done for each of us individually not collectively. The Savior does know what each of us needs and He will do for us exactly what we need. He loves each one of us very personally and understands perfectly how we feel and if we reach out to “touch” Him as he goes forth among us, He will show us and give us exactly what we need to grow and change. He is the path to all righteousness and joy. His intimate and infinite sacrifice is what makes all eternal joy possible.

 In my Book of Mormon class this past week, my professor discussed the scripture Alma 46:12 which says, “And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it – In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children – and he fastened it upon the end of a pole.” This scripture is the title of liberty (or as our teacher called it – the title of agency). In our discussion of this passage, he brought to light an aspect which I had never thought of before. He said that the order in which each thing came on the list was significant. Without remembering first and foremost God we could not have religion, and without religion, we could not have freedom, and without freedom, there would be no peace, and without peace, the relationships with our family would not survive. Overall, we must put God first in our lives, above all else, and as we remember him in all things, everything else will fall into place. We will continue to grow closer to Him, His Son, and His other children. We will see our hearts softened and our minds increase in understanding. The blessings that God promises will continue to be poured out upon us.

This past week, as I was pondering Alma 5 I specifically thought about verse 26, which says, “And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?” So often I have read this scripture and been reminded that I need to reevaluate my spiritual life. This time, as I pondered this question, I realized that I should always be asking myself if I can feel the influence of the spirit at all times. It is so important that all of us, as children of our Heavenly Father, feel the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost so that we can be guided where God wants us to go, be continually spiritually fed, find feelings of peace and true joy, and overall grow continually closer to our Father in Heaven and His Son, Jesus Christ. We should all constantly ask ourselves if we can feel to “sing the song of redeeming love”? Is it a part of who we are? Are we doing those things which would allow us to have those heavenly feelings? I know that it is so important that we continually work to have those be a part of our daily lives, and if we do so we will draw near to Heavenly Father and continue to become like Him.